BOOKCEPTION

BOOKCEPTION. THE NOVEL. 

This is not a review because I did not read the entire thing. I read about 35%. I didn't DNF it because it was horrible. You'll see. I just wanted to share my reaction to this book. Also, this was before the official synopsis came out. So.

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Guys. I have no words. White Space was confusing in a way that you could still sort of understand, but just confused you when you read it and still confuses you. That makes no sense does it. Or does it? 

^That's basically what the book was like. 

Did I like it? Did I not? I have no idea. It was just...it was just. I have no clue how Ilsa J. Bick managed to write such a complicated thing, but guys, it must've taken her ages to plot. And worldbuild. And everything else. 

If there was one word to describe this book, it would be BOOKCEPTION. Because. It really was bookception. I even made a schmancy graphic of the first 35% of the book for you. Yes. Only the first 35%. 

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Yeah. Basically. At least, that's how I read it. Maybe I read something wrong...? Maybe I didn't. But that. That is basically the general idea of the entire story. It was definitely interesting. And confusing. So...what?

I have no idea whether I would recommend this or not. Because I just can't even. I mean, it was definitely interesting, but my brain hurt a bit, but at the same time I wanted to know what the hell was going on. 

I never did find out because like I said. I lost the ability to think. So I decided to not finish it. 

HOWEVER. White Space was pretty creepy. So horror fans, you guys will love this. I think a few hardcore sci-fi may too. People who are easily confused and lose their will quickly? I'd skip this one. 

But dear God it was fascinating. 

Pages: 560

Genre: I don't even know

Series: Dark Passages #1

Publisher: Egmont USA

Release Date: Feb 11, 2013

Rating: EVERYTHING

I'm so disgruntled, I'm using my old format.

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The Dollhouse Asylum by Mary Gray

Goodreads Blurb

A virus that had once been contained has returned, and soon no place will be left untouched by its destruction. But when Cheyenne wakes up in Elysian Fields--a subdivision cut off from the world and its monster-creating virus--she is thrilled to have a chance at survival.
At first, Elysian Fields,with its beautiful houses and manicured lawns, is perfect. Teo Richardson, the older man who stole Cheyenne's heart, built it so they could be together. But when Teo tells Cheyenne there are tests that she and seven other couples must pass to be worthy of salvation, Cheyenne begins to question the perfection of his world.
The people they were before are gone. Cheyenne is now "Persephone," and each couple has been re-named to reflect the most tragic romances ever told. Everyone is fighting to pass the test, to remain in Elysian Fields. Teo dresses them up, tells them when to move and how to act, and in order to pass the test, they must play along.
If they play it right, then they'll be safe.
But if they play it wrong, they'll die.

Woah, guys, woah. I'm definitely impressed with The Dollhouse Asylum and my mind is kind of blown.

The Dollhouse Asylum got off to a pretty rocky start because Cheyenne just irritated me so much. She created all these excuses for Teo when everyone kept telling her, warning her, about him. She was so lovesick and naive I wanted to slap her out of her love induced stupor, but I have to hand it to Mary Gray--she sure knew how to write a character infatuated. Thankfully Cheyenne wised up pretty early on though. She drove the story on and was clever enough to dissuade Teo from...well you'll see. She grew on me as a character, though she was still moldable and pretty easily distracted.

Teo was definitely my favorite character, as psycho as he is. He's a complex character with layers upon layers, and it was fascinating watching him come undone. He loved in a sick and creepy way, but he didn't know any different. He did what he did for Cheyenne and it was a sort of a twisted sweetness. And in the end...well he broke my heart and I sort of cried for him. In the end, he just wanted to love and be loved by Cheyenne, build a perfect world for her--with his own dark desires mixed in.

I didn't really understand Cleo's part in all this though. Her personality, the "slut" of the story, didn't really drive the plot on in any way, except to be that typical mean girl with the gorgeous face. She made Cheyenne jealous when she flirted with Marc...but that was about it.
And speaking of Marc, the romance between him and Cheyenne was a bit ridiculous and I feel like the story would've been so much better if they'd stayed friends without the underdeveloped chemistry between them.

But the plot was...wow. My favorite part of the entire book, it was unexpected, shocking, and wonderfully horrible. The story just hooks you in and traps you in it's web of deaths, realizations, and revelations. It was fast paced and didn't let you breathe at all until the book finished and, like I said, I sort of teared up at the end. Stop looking at me like that! I honestly didn't expect it at all and it hurts every time I think about it.

While a bit awkward in the beginning, The Dollhouse Asylum gets better and better until it's full-blown amazing and a book I have to recommend for fans of psychological thrillers, dystopians, and basically anything that'll break your brain. It's one you should definitely read and one I can't stop recommending!

Pages: 296

Genre: Contemporary/Romance

Series: Standalone

Publisher: Spencer Hill Press

Release Date: Oct 22, 2013

Rating: 4 stars

Another Little Piece by Kate Karyus Quinn

Goodreads Blurb

On a cool autumn night, Annaliese Rose Gordon stumbled out of the woods and into a high school party. She was screaming. Drenched in blood. Then she vanished.
A year later, Annaliese is found wandering down a road hundreds of miles away. She doesn't know who she is. She doesn't know how she got there. She only knows one thing: She is not the real Annaliese Rose Gordon.
Now Annaliese is haunted by strange visions and broken memories. Memories of a reckless, desperate wish . . . a bloody razor . . . and the faces of other girls who disappeared. Piece by piece, Annaliese's fractured memories come together to reveal a violent, endless cycle that she will never escape—unless she can unlock the twisted secrets of her past.

Oh my gosh. Was this creepy or was it creepy? (Spoiler: IT WAS CREEPY.)

I am, obviously, not a very smart person. So when did I read this? Well, I started at 11 PM all the way until 3 AM. And then little ole me just couldn't get to sleep.
So yes, yes it was very creepy. Creepy, but very original and absolutely intriguing. I found myself becoming increasingly and increasingly stunned by both the haunting writing and the brilliant story line. Because this story line was absolutely brilliant. And creepy. We can't forget that.

The worldbuilding/paranormal aspect of this was absolutely chilling too. And very, very disturbing. Fascinatingly so. I could not stop reading despite everything that happened. I love the twist on "Selling your soul to the devil" bit and...well I can't really say more than that or else I spoil everything, don't I?

What the best thing about this was, though, was how there wasn't really a giant twist. It was more like an accumulation of little things that starting clicking together in your brain, until finally you got the full picture. And it's an absolutely twisted picture too. It's amazing what Kate Karyus Quinn has done, giving us little pieces that seem insignificant until we realize just what they mean. It's a bit confusing at first, but once you get used to it, you just have to scramble through every detail, wondering which were important and which were just plain creepy.

My only complaint, though, was that the romance was rushed, but after that initial thought, I learned to love Dex. He...okay, damn, can't say much about that either.
Besides the romance, I did feel as if the plot was a bit slow at times, but intriguing all the same. But when it wasn't slow...oh God, it was definitely quickly paced and had me reeling back in shock when I finally figured something out. And...it was sort of heartbreaking too, near the end. But, you know, can't say anything about that either or it just ruins the entire read.

Dark, twisted, and disturbing, Another Little Piece is one of the best horror/thriller books I've read in a long time and I absolutely have to recommend it to everyone. Chilling to the core, this is definitely a book to pick up and one of the best to read on a stormy night (if you want to pee your pants.) It just sucks you straight in and you can't help but flip through the pages, eager to finally get the whole (creepy) story.

Pages: 419

Genre: Horror/Paranormal

Series: Standalone

Publisher: Harper Teen

Release Date: June 11

Rating: 4 stars

Asylum by Madeleine Roux

Goodreads Blurb

For sixteen-year-old Dan Crawford, New Hampshire College Prep is more than a summer program—it's a lifeline. An outcast at his high school, Dan is excited to finally make some friends in his last summer before college. But when he arrives at the program, Dan learns that his dorm for the summer used to be a sanatorium, more commonly known as an asylum. And not just any asylum—a last resort for the criminally insane.
As Dan and his new friends, Abby and Jordan, explore the hidden recesses of their creepy summer home, they soon discover it's no coincidence that the three of them ended up here. Because the asylum holds the key to a terrifying past. And there are some secrets that refuse to stay buried.
Featuring found photos of unsettling history and real abandoned asylums and filled with chilling mystery and page-turning suspense, Madeleine Roux's teen debut, Asylum, is a horror story that treads the line between genius and insanity.

So I was a bit wary starting in because of the mixed reviews I've been seeing and while Asylum wasn't exactly picture perfect, it was still a...decent read, I guess.

The beginning is absolutely creepy and chilling (It is not a good idea to read this at night alone in your house. I don't recommend it any time soon.) and I was enthralled, if not completely terrified, by the eerie descriptions and the ghostly writing. The pictures just doubled the creep factor and I absolutely loved it! But then, things sort of went downhill.

While the entire book did retain it's eerie atmosphere, the plot became dull about a quarter in. Almost nothing happened in the next two hundred pages(?) besides a few murders and...relationship problems. For a horror mystery, Asylum focused a lot on the awkward relationships formed throughout the story and the reveal was predictable. The last twenty pages were exciting, but they didn't really wrap up that many questions for me and I was still pretty confused on the worldbuilding and science of the story.

Our main character, Dan, was a flat character and he didn't have much of a personality. What character traits he did have were inconsistent and they changed to whatever the story line needed to progress (although by story line, I mean their relationship.) Jordan and Abby were pretty much the same and I honestly couldn't even begin to understand their actions.

The relationships were just as bad. For someone who was supposed to be antisocial, Dan made two best friends almost immediately and the romance between Abby and Dan seemed rushed and forced. Not to mention the relationships between all three of the characters were strained throughout the entire book and I had no idea how they could retain a relationship at all. What irritated me the most was that they'd just met each other and that they were so close, so quickly, and were nicknamed "The Hydra" in about a week.

While completely haunting and creepy, the rest of the book was pretty disappointing and confusing. It was sort of hard to understand everything that happened in the book and the characters were just flat and were pretty bland, besides the mysterious things that happened. I'm not quite sure if this is a series, but if it is, I don't think I'll be continuing it anytime.

Pages: 320

Genre: Horror/Thriller

Series: Asylum #1 (?)

Publisher: Harper Children's

Release Date: Aug 20, 2013

Rating: 2 stars

The End Games by T. Michael Martin

Goodreads Blurb

It happened on Halloween.

The world ended.

And a dangerous Game brought it back to life.

Seventeen-year-old Michael and his five-year-old brother, Patrick, have been battling monsters in The Game for weeks.

In the rural mountains of West Virginia, armed with only their rifle and their love for each other, the brothers follow Instructions from the mysterious Game Master. They spend their days searching for survivors, their nights fighting endless hordes of “Bellows”—creatures that roam the dark, roaring for flesh. And at this Game, Michael and Patrick are very good.

But The Game is changing.

The Bellows are evolving.

The Game Master is leading Michael and Patrick to other survivors—survivors who don’t play by the rules.

And the brothers will never be the same.

T. Michael Martin’s debut novel is a transcendent thriller filled with electrifying action, searing emotional insight, and unexpected romance.

The End Games was...completely unexpected. It was such a hopeless, bleak kind of book and really, really depressing. No matter what they did, it felt like Michael and Patrick would be running forever, and never really live without fear. 

Actually, I think depressing was sort of an understatement.

The plot and the writing were two of the top things for me (that, and the sort of twist on the zombie apocalypse.) Right from the beginning of the bat, we learn two things. A) just how dangerous the world is, and just how desolate it is now, and B) things are already changing and getting creepier. Their were so many action scenes and so many twists that had me gasping and stunned. And, waning, a lot of deaths. 

I rarely talk about voice in my reviews, but it was like you were in Michael's mind, not just as a narrator! The way the story was told is phenomenal and the writing was superb (I love that word.) You could just feel Michael's nervousness, his fear throughout the entire book.

The characters, though, were not my favorite. I'd say they annoyed me, but I mainly felt a bit impartial to them. If one died, I honestly didn't care. They weren't relatable to me, though they might be to some, and I got so irritated by all the lying. I mean, I could understand. The world pretty much ended, after all. But Michael kept lying all to raise hope, knowing it wouldn't last. It was horrible of him and I wanted to sock him in the face. 

And onto the zombies (I found it funny that people didn't call them Zombies. They did live in this century, but no one thought to call them zombies?). I loved discovering about the disease that brought them back to life, it's origin, and it's purpose. There was a lot of thought out into this worldbuilding and it was fascinating.

The End Games is a game of survival, and the rules are being broken. With twists or attacks around every corner, there's almost no one to trust, but all the more reason to take a chance. The ending was perfect for the book! I just wish we could've seen an epilogue!

Pages: 384

Genre: Post apocalyptic

Series: Standalone

Publisher: HarperCollins

Release Date: May 7, 2013

Rating: 3.5-->4 stars

The Dead and Buried by Kim Harrington

Goodreads Blurb

A haunted house, a buried mystery, and a very angry ghost make this one unforgettable thriller.
Jade loves the house she's just moved into with her family. She doesn't even mind being the new girl at the high school: It's a fresh start, and there's that one guy with the dreamy blue eyes. . . . But then things begin happening. Strange, otherworldly things. Jade's little brother claims to see a glimmering girl in his room. Jade's jewelry gets moved around, as if by an invisible hand. Kids at school whisper behind her back like they know something she doesn't.
Soon, Jade must face an impossible fact: that her perfect house is haunted. Haunted by a ghost who's seeking not just vengeance, but the truth. The ghost of a girl who ruled Jade's school — until her untimely death last year. It's up to Jade to put the pieces together before her own life is at stake. As Jade investigates the mystery, she discovers that her new friends in town have more than a few deep, dark secrets. But is one of them a murderer?

Before I start, I just want to say that as a wuss, and a usual ghost-avoider, The Dead and Buried may fall a little flat for horror lovers! I, however, adored it!

Something that many non-creepy readers will love is that while it was a bit spooky, it was completely "Oh my GOD that is freaky" kind of scary. So if you're expecting to be scared out of your pants...change your expectations! The Dead and Buried is a typical ghost story, brought to an extreme and detailed level, which I loved. A haunted house, the new kid turned detective, and a love triangle? A bit familiar? Maybe. But I loved it.
It wasn't too creepy for me, but it still made me feel a bit spooked and that's something that rarely happens. I'm either completely scared out of my wits, or I'm bored. This was a perfect balance between both and I thoroughly enjoyed it. 

The plot was...fine, I admit, cliche. But the ending? Definitely shocking!  I had never suspected that person and the fact that it was that person? Shocking to say the least! Reading back, I could see all the hints pointing at it, but it was still shocking. I thought I knew who it was, then I was proven wrong, rinse and repeat several times, but did I ever guess who it actually was? Did I even have an inkling of a thought? No, not really. Actually, let me rephrase that: No, not at all. It was completely shocking and the way that every hint seemed...innocent? That was just a cruel, cruel twist! The plot was far from slow and while it wasn’t necessarily action packed, it was still highly enjoyable!

I just couldn’t believe the romance between Jade and Donovan. Every kiss, stray look, each feeling.  It felt like it was just there for…nothing, and I just got extremely annoyed by how little depth the romance had. The same goes for things between Kane and Jade. There was…nothing, though I do get that the only reason Jade was leading Kane on was because of her “research”, but I honestly think The Dead and Buried may have been a much more engaging book if most of it weren’t that taken up with Jade and her boy problems.

The characters? They were real. They each had weaknesses, they all had had their secrets, and there was always one thing they wanted. Whether it was protagonist or antagonist, I loved each of them. Even Kayla, who was supposed to be the bratty one. I feel like if someone had just seen her for herself, not her social rank, she could’ve been…better. I even liked Faye, the reigning “mean girl” who was trying to slip into the role of Queen Bee. Everyone had their own story and I loved discovering what their sore point was, what they’d wanted the most. 

Pages: 304

Series: Stand alone

Genre: Thriller/Romance

Publisher: Scholastic Point

Release Date: Jan 1, 2012

Rating: 3.5 --->4 stars