Customer Comments

I like the world Shinn has created, with people being born with a gift that makes them tell the truth at all times or keep secrets. However, these unique characteristics don't overshadow the narrative. This is a story about two mirror twin girls and their friends growing up together, finding themselves, and figuring out what they want in life. There are broken hearts, disappointed dreams, and many very happy, touching moments. If you enjoyed The Safe-Keeper's Secret, you will love The Truth-Teller's Tale. For those new to the series, if you like romantic coming of age stories with a light fantasy backdrop, you will love these books.

Dead in the Family starts off a bit darker than the other novels in the series, but considering what happened in the previous novel, I would have been upset if it didn't. Sookie has lost a lot of her innocence and naivete, and I think this is a good change from the beginning books of the series. After hanging around the vampires and the weres, something had to happen to make her less soft. From when I first started reading it until it ended, I couldn't put this book down. What I love about Harris's books is that they are so well-constructed and developed. There are a lot of things going on, what with the political business concerning the weres, Alcide's pack adjusting to the new rules, her relationship with Eric, Eric's maker coming to visit, and the aftermath of the Faery War. Needless to say, it was packed with conflict and problems. The characters are awesome, as always -- Claude was particularly hilarious in this novel, and I'm glad we got to see more of Sookie's telepathic cousin, Hunter. This book was a lot calmer than the rest -- less tension, less conflict. I didn't mind it at all, because I feel like this is just the calm before the storm. Victor seems to have it out for Sookie and Eric, something different is happening with Bill's character (not going to say what due to spoilers!), and the fairy situation is finally starting to wrap up -- or so it seems. I think the next few books are going to be very interesting and exciting.

This is by far the best and funniest of the series. Within the first chapter, I was laughing hysterically, and remained amused throughout the entire novel. Heather Wells is the kind of character I relate to. She's a bit clueless sometimes, finds herself in ridiculous situations, but she's a good person and tries her best to make things right. I love her! And Cabot has a talent for making her guy characters irresistible. I want a Cooper! The mystery was predictable; however, the way it's executed and the confrontation between Heather and the murderer is priceless, so I was okay with it. I liked the new characters that were added into this book, and the return of old characters such as her ex-fiance Jordan and her old boss Tom. Like I said, the whole novel is hilarious. There's a good mix of humor and seriousness in here.

Finally! I actually liked Luce in this book. She seemed a lot smarter to me. Maybe because she stopped whining and moaning while waiting on the sidelines and actually decided to DO something about it. If there's one thing I hate, it's a whiny heroine who sits back and lets stuff happen to her. Go Luce! This series is really starting to impress me. Every book gets better, and I am looking forward to Rapture. I'm glad we're finally starting to get some answers, but I hope there's more to the curse/story than was revealed. Because honestly, that would be lame if not. And the "mercy" that is given to Daniel for his curse seemed totally random to me. I don't want to reveal it for those who haven't read it, but the loophole was just weird. I liked that we got to see a few of Luce's previous lives, and I liked the constant action. There was no time while reading that I was bored or thought the pacing was slow. I sped through Passion because of this. The twist at the end was a bit obvious. I think we all knew something was up with Bill. I expected him to be someone else, though, so his true identity was a nice surprise. I have to admit, I wasn't a fan of the first book. And Torment even had its rocky moments. Passion made me a fan of this series. It's a thoroughly well-written, enjoyable book. Like I said in my review for Torment, if you gave up on Lauren Kate because of the first book, keep going. You may end up liking this series.

Of all the works I have read by Dickens so far, Great Expectations is the best, hands down. The plot is interesting -- Pip falls in love with Estella when they are very young and develops "expectations" to be a gentleman so he can be worthy of her. Later on, he gets a sponsor who pays for him to become a gentleman. It's a typical coming of age story, focusing on Pip's growth and development and his realizations about the mistakes he's made in life. What makes this novel extraordinary is the characters. Each of them is complex and multi-dimensional, with full backgrounds and oddities that make them unique. Pip's brother-in-law Joe is by far one of my favorite characters of all time. Because the characterization is incredible, I was completely involved with this story, my emotions changing along with the novel's progression. I'm not a fan of the tacked-on ending. All the characters got what they deserved, which I appreciated, but the last chapter felt especially rushed. However, the pacing for the rest of the novel was perfect, so I would say that this is a minor complaint.

Before this book, I hadn't read anything by Carl Hiaasen, though I have heard a lot about him because of Hoot's success. Without even reading the summary, I knew that this novel would probably take on some sort of environmental issue, but I didn't expect it to be so good. This is a book I would have loved as a kid, and is still a good read as an adult. It has a lot of action, intrigue, and great characters. I really liked the relationship between Noah and his little sister Abbey. Their interactions were realistic and Abbey added a humorous element to the story, which I appreciated. I also liked how Abbey is portrayed as a stronger personality than Noah, even though she's his little sister. I'm a sucker for strong female characters, and Hiaasen definitely includes them in this novel. The story itself is awesome. To clear their father's good name, Noah and Abbey take it upon themselves to prove that the Coral Queen is dumping raw sewage into the harbor and enlist the help of a couple of others. Some plot twists were predictable, but there were a few surprises Hiaasen threw in that completely shocked me. Overall, this book is enjoyable, full of surprises, and carries a good message. It's about kids taking matters into their own hands and helping to right wrongs. With humor and adventure, Flush is great for kids and adults alike.

Hesitant doesn't even begin to cover how I felt about starting this novel. I read the original Goose Girl fairy tale not so very long ago and I'm not a fan. It's short, has a lot of random events going on, and I hated the main character for being such a pushover. So I was not expecting the amazingness that is Shannon Hale's version of The Goose Girl. It's suspenseful, entertaining, funny, and simply a good story. I love how Shannon Hale took the core story of the fairy tale and completely expanded upon it. There were many familiar events, but a lot of new twists and turns as well. I have to say, for me, the ending was entirely unexpected. This may be because I read the original fairy tale first, and I thought it would be closer to that ending, but Hale makes it a much better, happier ending, which I very much appreciated. Mostly, this book is about growing up and finding out who you are. It is a young adult novel, but I think that older people can most definitely relate. Ani has to get away from her family and her normal obligations to find out who she is for herself. And what she finds is that she's more like a princess that she thought she was. Besides reading about the adventure and the intrigue (which kept me on the edge of my seat throughout the entire story), I enjoyed seeing Ani grow up and become more confident in herself. And I loved reading about her making all sorts of new friends among the royal animal-keepers. Friendship is another good theme in this novel -- a theme that will never get old for me. In terms of audiobooks, Full Cast is the way to go. They deliver on their name -- there is a full cast for this audiobook, meaning each character has its own person delivering their lines. At first, this was jarring for me. Being used to having at the most two narrators for an audiobook, hearing all the different voices was a bit strange. However, I got used to it and fell in love with the format. Every character is guaranteed to have his or her own quirks and personality, because there are different narrators throughout. I liked the music at the end of the chapters, but I thought it went on overly long. Overall, however, I loved this audiobook. (It did win a 2007 Audi Award for Achievement in Production and was a Finalist in another category, so I'm not surprised it was good.) If you can't tell already, I love this book. Whether it's in print or in audio, if you haven't read it yet and are a fan of fairy tale retellings, or a good story in general, I recommend this for you.

This is one novel that deserves the popularity it enjoys. Wow, is this book good! The main thing that makes this such a favorite is the suspense that Collins has woven in. I could not stop listening to this book! I kept trying to find more things to clean around the house to justify listening to it for "just another hour." Of course, that hour turned into two hours, which turned into three hours -- needless to say, I finished this one very quickly and my house was sparkling for a couple of days. There is never any part where the reader's emotions are allowed to rest. Like Katniss, I was always on edge, waiting for her next challenge, waiting for the next bad thing to happen. This makes it a fast read. Also, since it's told through Katniss's eyes and the storytelling is excellent, I was completely involved in the story from start to finish. Haymitch is by far my favorite character, with Katniss being a close second. I thought all the characters were wonderfully done. I got a sense of each of them without being told exactly who they were, what they did, and what I should think of them. Collins lets us draw our own conclusions by giving their personalities through Katniss's eyes and letting the characters' actions speak for themselves. I think this envelops all of the book, actually. She doesn't dumb down the writing just because it's young adult. It's complex, teaches lessons without being didactic, and (better yet) doesn't talk down to the reader. Another thing I appreciate is the realism Collins brings to The Hunger Games. Problems don't magically disappear and there aren't any forced happily-ever-afters. It's violent, brutal, and dark. Those who are squeamish will have a hard time with this story, but I think it's worth it. For one thing, the violence isn't there for shock value, as is the case for some novels, unfortunately. Rather, it's a statement about the government of Panem and what these people are forced to live with. I like that the characters are forced to work through their problems and actually deal with issues. It makes for an interesting story, the characters are allowed to grow and change, and it reflects the real world. Problems don't just disappear. The narration of the audiobook is also excellent. McCormick is so talented at infusing her words with emotions and getting the pacing exactly right. The voices for each of her characters are easy to distinguish, even if you're listening to it in the background. Her rendition is so well done, in fact, that I found myself pausing in my chores to just listen to her tell the story. I highly recommend this to everyone. Yes, there is violence, yes it is dark, but these are parts of the message The Hunger Games holds. This is one book worth reading.