2nd Review: Kissing Coffins by Ellen Schreiber

Book Information:

Kissing Coffins by Ellen Schreiber
Katherine Tegen Books
Published in 2005
ISBN 9780060776244
225 Pages

Series Information:

Vampire Kisses Book 02

Review/Rating:

5 out of 5

2ND REVIEW. 1ST REVIEW IS HERE.

After Raven meets Alexander Sterling, a teenage vampire, life in “Dullsville” is a little bit less dull, but he has mysteriously disappears. Knowing that her relationship with Alexander will have its complications, she goes on a dangerous chase in order to find him. However, when she encounters something terrifying than anything she can imagine, she might have to make a life-transforming decision that she actually may not be ready accept.

Oh, there may be spoilers in this review for this book and the first book, so beware.

The second book in the series is a lot like the first one, but Raven is a little depressed when Alexander disappears without a word, which reminds me of a certain other young adult vampire book. However, she is revived by her best friend, Becky, when she says that she would go find her boyfriend if he ever disappeared. So, Raven then goes to find him, but finds danger as well. This outline is kind of similar to most young adult romance books and way overused, but at least she doesn’t try dangerous stunts like that other vampire book.

Anyways, this book of the series takes place about two or so days after the first book, starting off with Raven and how she feels about Alexander leaving. There are more interesting new characters, like her Aunt Libby, which add some new spice and spin to the series. Even though this is the second book, the descriptions, plot, and characters are still very good. :D

The book is kind of serious as you learn more about Alexander’s past, but it still has some witty comments. Also, the love scenes (kissing and romantic scenes) still make me a little giddy. :) Overall, I found the book a fun, simple, quick read with an upbeat main character. It may be too simple for most people, but it is a good read for a lazy weekend afternoon.

Where I Got It:

Bought from Amazon, and I still own a copy.

Challenges Apart Of:

Goodreads 2011

Re-Reading:

This is the 2nd review, 1st review is here.
Not planning to re-read.

Other Reviews/Author Site:

Ellen Schreiber
Goodreads
Library Thing
Bookish

Places to Buy From:

Amazon | Barnes & Noble

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2nd Review: Vampire Kisses by Ellen Schreiber

Book Information:

Vampire Kisses by Ellen Schreiber
Katherine Tegen Books
Published in 2003
ISBN 9780060093365
253 Pages

Series Information:

Vampire Kisses Book 01

Review/Rating:

5 out of 5

2ND REVIEW. 1ST REVIEW IS HERE.

In Dullsville, pretty much everyone, including her parents, considers Raven weird and strange. However, this young Goth will no longer be the only “weird” one, when a family moves into the old mansion on top of Benson Hill. Everyone in the town thinks they are actually vampires because they only come out after the sun goes down. Ecstatic over that thought, Raven breaks into that mansion, only to find a teenage boy. However, will he be everything she has dreamed of, a vampire? She will do anything, including putting herself at risk, to find out the truth.

Oh, there may be spoilers in this review so beware. :)

First off, I like how the author made Raven remember her childhood. It made it so funny with all the child-like descriptions and views on the world, and gives a comparison on how she was like when she was little. ;)

Anyways, it had wonderful character growth and personalities. Why? Because most of the vampire books I read, the girl is sappy, whiny, and depressing. It was uplifting to see a spunky, cheerful Goth girl instead the depressing chick for a vampire story. :D

Also, there are a lot of funny, sassy, and witty scenes and comments. I was almost laughing all through the book. :P One of them is when Trevor deep kisses Raven and attempts to have sex with her. I found it hilarious at how Raven got back at him.

Alexander is also a wonderful guy, but a little, err, too quiet for me. Though, he is wonderful with Raven at providing giddy, gushy kissing scenes. Nothing too heavy, but such cute puppy love between these two characters.

*COUGHS* Anyways, this book mostly has the lesson of getting to know people’s true “insides”, instead of judging from their appearance and things like that.  Overall, I found the book a fun, simple, quick read with an upbeat main character. It may be too simple for most people, but it is a good read for a lazy weekend afternoon. :D

Where I Got It:

Bought from Amazon, and I still own a copy.

Challenges Apart Of:

Goodreads 2011

Re-Reading:

This is the 2nd review, 1st review is here.
Not planning to re-read.

Other Reviews/Author Site:

Ellen Schreiber
Goodreads
Library Thing
Bookish

Places to Buy From:

Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Review: Homeless Bird by Gloria Whelan

Book Information:

Homeless Bird by Gloria Whelan
Harper Collins Publishers
Published in 2000
ISBN 006028452
216 Pages

Series Information:

Not a series.

Review/Rating:

4 out of 5

When thirteen-year-old Koly’s parents arrange a marriage for her, she discovers that her husband is very sick. However, things turn out for the worst when her husband dies, and she is abandoned in a city with other widows. What will become of her?

The plot kind of reminds me of The Dowry Bride, but on a less gruesome scale since the mother-in-law isn’t trying to kill her. Also, it is a little bit more romantic, in my opinion. So, the book already had my attention because of these two things. However, there are some similarities between the two books, especially with the characters’ personalities. Evil mother-in-law, weak father-in-law, mommy’s boy, but that’s pretty much where the similarities end.

Anyways, even though the characters are kind similar to The Dowry Bride, I think this book captures a different light and is much better at describing and having a good ending. Also, it is a lot less gruesome because no one is trying to kill Koly. ^^ The characters in the book are still pretty enjoyable, despite the similarities with the personalities.

The descriptions, metaphors, similes, etc all paint a pretty good idea of what Koly is going through in your head. They were all pretty much done beautifully and some of them made me laugh, and this was a very good aspect of this book.  ;) I think I mostly enjoyed this book because of these things. :D

Anyways, with everything Koly goes through, including the ending, kind of reminds me of a cultural Cinderella. However, even though the ending was pretty good, I wish there was more to this book. Though, the author left the story at a good enough spot so that you can imagine a happily ever after ending yourself.

Overall, I am pretty much satisfied with how this book turned out, especially with the romance (for a young adult book).

Where I Got It:

Checked out from the library.

Challenges Apart Of:

Goodreads 2011

Re-Reading:

Not planning to re-read, but leaning towards maybe.

Other Reviews/Author Site:

Gloria Whelan
Goodreads
Library Thing

Places to Buy From:

Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Review: The Midwife’s Apprentice by Karen Cushman

Book Information:

The Midwife’s Apprentice by Karen Cushman
Clarion Books
Published in 1995
ISBN 0395692296
122 Pages

Series Information:

Not a series.

Review/Rating:

4 out of 5

When Jane, the local midwife, finds a girl sleeping in a dung heap, she takes her in as her apprentice. What will happen to this homeless girl now?

The plot is very simple, but for me, it was still kind of touching. Though, I wish the author could have figured out a way to make this book a little bit longer than 122 pages. :(

Anyways, this book takes place during the medieval times, so the book tries to make you feel like you are during that time period. There is also some insight on how a midwife’s life might have been like during the medieval times, which I found very interesting to read. ;) However, most of the information I found out was towards the end of the book (the Author’s Note). :|

There are not as many details as I would have liked, but the “feeling” of the book kind of helped me overlooked the almost non-existent details. And the characters’ personalities helped the author make the emotion in this book so much better. They had a normal and real-life air to them, so it was kind of refreshing. ;)

Besides the shortness, I also kind of disappointed that nothing really happened between Will and the girl. xD I kind of was hoping that they had a spark between them, but I guess it was just me seeing that. :P Another thing I was kind of was disappointed with was the ending and how it was kind of normal, but I think the author’s message came across okay.

I finished this book in a little bit more than an hour, but I still loved it. ;)

Oh, before I end this review, there are mentions of affairs (kissing) and some other acts, but no in-depth details to them. ;)

Where I Got It:

Checked out from the library.

Challenges Apart Of:

Goodreads 2011

Re-Reading:

Not planning to re-read, but leaning towards maybe.

Other Reviews/Author Site:

Karen Cushman
Goodreads
Library Thing

Places to Buy From:

Amazon | Barnes & Noble

2nd Review: Silver World by Cliff McNish

Book Information:

Silver World by Cliff McNish
Carolrhoda Books, Inc.
Published in 2008
ISBN 9781580138796
247 Pages

Series Information:

The Silver Sequence Book 03
Last Book in The Silver Sequence Series

Review/Rating:

2 out of 5

2ND REVIEW. 1ST REVIEW IS HERE.

The Roar has finally made it to Earth. Will these children be able to stop her from destroying their planet?

First, what was I thinking when I thought I should re-read this in order to make a better review?!

Okay, my feelings haven’t really changed from the first time I read it.

I’ll summarize since I don’t want to think that much about this book. Things I didn’t like:

• This book is a little bit shorter than the second book, but longer than the first one.
• Even though this is the last book, I still think it wasn’t that well thought out.  Still too many plot holes, not that many details, and still some questions towards the end of the book.
• Descriptions, wording, events, etc are all still very choppy and strange.
• Too much like a junior fiction book than a young adult one.
•  Personalities of the characters have never really developed.
• Also, the ending doesn’t feel completed. Though, I’m happy there aren’t any more books in this series.

And there isn’t anything I liked about the book. :(

What would make this series better is better description, more detail and background, and more of a plot to go by. So, I would not read this series unless you are truly bored.

Where I Got It:

Checked out from the library.

Challenges Apart Of:

Goodreads 2011

Re-Reading:

This is the 2nd review, 1st review is here.
Not planning to re-read.

Other Reviews/Author Site:

Cliff McNish
Goodreads
Library Thing

Places to Buy From:

Amazon | Barnes & Noble

2nd Review: Silver City by Cliff McNish

Book Information:

Silver City by Cliff McNish
Carolrhoda Books, Inc.
Published in 2007
ISBN 9780822567806
256 Pages

Series Information:

The Silver Sequence Book 02

Review/Rating:

2 out of 5

2ND REVIEW. 1ST REVIEW IS HERE.

The Roar, devourer of planets, is finally on her way to the planet Earth. Will the changed children be able to stop her from destroying their planet?

First, what was I thinking when I thought I should re-read this in order to make a better review?!

Okay, my feelings haven’t really changed from the first time I read it.

I’ll summarize since I don’t want to think that much about this book. Things I didn’t like:

• Not as short as the first book in this series, but still pretty short.
• This book is not that well thought out. It still had some plot holes, not as much as the first one, but still a lot.
• Descriptions, wording, events, etc are all still choppy and strange.
• Too much like a junior fiction book than a young adult one.
• Personalities of the characters are still not developed that well. They are still very boring. ~_~

And there isn’t anything I liked about the book. :(

They definitely aren’t worth reading unless you are really, really bored.

Where I Got It:

Checked out from the library.

Challenges Apart Of:

Goodreads 2011

Re-Reading:

This is the 2nd review, 1st review is here.
Not planning to re-read.

Other Reviews/Author Site:

Cliff McNish
Goodreads
Library Thing

Places to Buy From:

Amazon | Barnes & Noble

2nd Review: The Silver Child by Cliff McNish

Book Information:

The Silver Child by Cliff McNish
Carolrhoda Books, Inc.
Published in 2006
ISBN 9780822565031
192 Pages

Series Information:

The Silver Sequence Book 01

Review/Rating:

1 out of 5

2ND REVIEW. 1ST REVIEW IS HERE.

Six children are the first to start changing into something not human, and no one knows why. However, all of them are drawn to Coldharbour, and they can hear a roar. What is making the roar? And how will they be able to fight it?

First, what was I thinking when I thought I should re-read this in order to make a better review?!

Okay, my feelings haven’t really changed from the first time I read it.

I’ll summarize since I don’t want to think that much about this book. Things I didn’t like:

• This book is very short. You can finish it rather quickly, if you even finish it.
• This book is not that well thought out. Too many plot holes and not that many details.
• Descriptions, wording, events, etc are all very choppy and strange.
• Too much like a junior fiction book than a young adult one.
• Personalities of the characters are not that well developed. Also, they are very boring. ~_~

And there isn’t anything I liked about the book. :(

They definitely aren’t worth reading unless you are really, really bored.

Where I Got It:

Checked out from the library.

Challenges Apart Of:

Goodreads 2011

Re-Reading:

This is the 2nd review, 1st review is here.
Not planning to re-read.

Other Reviews/Author Site:

Cliff McNish
Goodreads
Library Thing
Po(sey) Sessions
Book Reviews for Home Schoolers

Places to Buy From:
Amazon | Barnes & Noble

2nd Review: The Dowry Bride by Shobhan Bantwal

Book Information:

The Dowry Bride by Shobhan Bantwal
Kensington Publishing/Books
Published in 2007
ISBN 0758220316
343 Pages

Series Information:

Not a series.

Review/Rating:

3 out of 5

2ND REVIEW. 1ST REVIEW IS HERE.

Megha is a dowry bride in India. One day, she overhears her husband and mother-in-law talk about how to murder her. For fear of her life, she runs away to the only place where they won’t think to find her. Kiran helps hide her from his wicked relatives. However, when they begin to have feelings for each other, will this bring doom to them?

My feelings are pretty much the same as when I first read it. However, the redundancy got on my nerves more this time than the first time. And the fact that I endured reading the book again without smut just made my mood worse. >.>”

Anyways, like mentioned before, there is a lot of redundancy. For the first part of the book, it was really boring and makes you wonder why she put it there. Then, it turns out the author just repeats that part later on in the story, with only a little bit more detail. Also, this book is very slow paced with a little too much description. I was struggling to read the whole book again. :( It takes almost 200 pages for them to do gushy romantic things. :(

Even though there isn’t any detailed smut, there is several gushy, giddy puppy-love romantic parts. I don’t like reading that much romance without any kind of smut, if I do, I will read young adult books for it. There is sex mentioned and one not very detailed smut scene between Kiran and Megha, but other than that, you will get filled with romance and love. :X So those of you expecting more smut than romance, you will be disappointed, though, the romantic parts are (kind of) nice. ;)

It is sort of exciting with the characters, descriptions, and climaxes, but this book is not something I would read more than twice. The ending is very disappointing. I wish there was more of a complete ending as to whether or not Megha and Kiran get married. The point of this book, to me, was to mostly show women’s independence and how women, like men, can grow whenever something terrible happens and still lead a successful life.  It is a good book to encourage women to take a stand in things they know isn’t right for them or others, but as far as romance goes, it isn’t. :(

Where I Got It:

Checked out from the library.

Challenges Apart Of:

Goodreads 2011

Re-Reading:

This is the 2nd review, 1st review is here.
Not planning to re-read.

Other Reviews/Author Site:

Shobhan Bantwal
Goodreads
Library Thing
My Book Place

Places to Buy From:

Amazon | Barnes & Noble

2nd Review: Midwives by Chris Bohjalian

Book Information:

Midwives by Chris Bohjalian
Vintage Books
Published in 1997
ISBN 0375706771
374 Pages

Series Information:

Not a series.

Review/Rating:

5 out of 5

2ND REVIEW. 1ST REVIEW IS HERE.

Sibyl Danforth is a midwife in rural Vermont, but on one winter night, she made a fatal mistake that might put an end to her career. Now she faces the law, doctors, and her own conscience, while trying to prove that her patient really was dead before she did the emergency c-section. What will the jury deciding her fate pick? Guilty? Or, not guilty?

Okay, this is the second time I have read this book, and it is just as good as when I first read it. :D

Anyways, Sibyl’s story is told through the eyes of her daughter, when she is an adult. And even though this story is told when she is adult, you still get the feeling that she was channeling that time because it had a childlike air to it.

It also has a mixture of law, medical, family problems, and other interesting things. The description in this book is very well done, and you can tell that the author did a lot of research before jumping into writing this book.

The book was very engaging because of all the action and real life problems in it. Some parts you want to break down and cry, and other parts, where you actually want to read ahead and find out the outcome – since the court parts were kind of boring, exciting, and interesting all at the same time. ;)

It was a very touching story, and it felt very completed. I was very satisfied that I read this; even though it was my second time reading this book.

Anyways, I definitely recommend this book for pretty much anyone. It has a little bit of everything for everyone. However, there are some things that children definitely shouldn’t read about in it. It is also perfect for any class that is studying ethics or anyone who is planning on going into the medical field.

Where I Got It:

Checked out from the library.

Challenges Apart Of:

Goodreads 2011

Re-Reading:

This is the 2nd review, 1st review is here.
Not planning to re-read.

Other Reviews/Author Site:

Chris Bohjalian
Goodreads
Library Thing
The Lost Entwife
Croak

Places to Buy From:

Amazon | Barnes & Noble

2nd Review: Wicked Girls by Stephanie Hemphill

Book Information:

Wicked Girls by Stephanie Hemphill
Balzer + Bray
Published in 2010
ISBN 9780061853289
408 Pages

Series Information:

Not a series.

Review/Rating:

3 out of 5

2ND REVIEW. 1ST REVIEW IS HERE.

Ann, the queen bee/drama queen, overhears the men talking about witchcraft. So she, Mercy, Margaret, and the other girls get an idea… They start accusing people as witches, but how long will this attention-grabber last?

I love reading historical fiction, especially if it has romance in it, so I like this book a little bit more. I gave it a higher rating than last time because of the fact I wasn’t in a rush to read it like last time. ^^;

I really do not like the format of the book (evocative verse) since it made it seem like a very short read. It kind of reminded me of the Dear America books, but shorter and a lot of POVs (points of view). Which brings me to who narrates, Ann, Margaret, and Mercy are the main narrators. It was pretty interesting to have each different girl have a POV, and it was surprising that the book still had a pretty good flow to the storyline despite the multiple POVs.

Anyways, despite the feeling of the book being too short, the author still managed to give the girls a good enough personality. And somehow with these personalities, the author was able to make people pity them because the author tries to give the girls a good enough personality and enough background life to notice them. Another thing I like about this book is that you also get to see a new side on how the girls are treated after they put an end to the accusing. In other books I’ve read about the witch trials, I don’t think any of the authors end the accusing and how society treats them afterwards.

I like the idea behind the book, however, it feels like something was missing from the book — it could have used a little bit more substance, action, and plot. I definitely would have liked it even more if it expanded it with more description and substance to it. >.>”  Also, it felt more like a junior fiction book than a young adult book, despite having a little sex scene in it. >.< However, that scene didn’t go that into detail, so you don’t have to worry about it too much. ^^

The idea is worth reading, but the lack of descriptions, details, and action makes it feel too incomplete and short. >.>”  I like this book a little bit better than when I first read it, but not by much.

Where I Got It:

Checked out from the library.

Challenges Apart Of:

Goodreads 2011

Re-Reading:

This is the 2nd review, 1st review is here.
Not planning to re-read.

Other Reviews/Author Site:

Stephanie Hemphill
Goodreads
Library Thing
Book Envy
Simply Books
My Reading Room
Book Whisperer
Dog-eared and Well-read

Places to Buy From:

Amazon | Barnes & Noble