Friday 16 March 2018

Bullet Point Reviews | Catching Up

After thinking I was doing really well with being up to date with reviews at the moment, I recently discovered a file full of notes on books that I have read over the last 2 years but completely forgot to review. I thought the best thing to do with these books is to do some more bullet point reviews, in which I give brief bullet point notes that I made about the books shortly after I finished reading them. This might not be the most helpful in getting my opinions across but I guess it's better than nothing.

Image and video hosting by TinyPicLying About Last Summer by Sue Wallman
Published On: May 5, 2016
Published By: Scholastic
Genre: YA, Mystery, Thriller
Pages: 272
Format: Paperback
Source: Bought
Rating: ★★★★
Amazon | Goodreads

- This reminded me of We Were Liars by E Lockhart. The story was completely different but it had the same feel to it.
- This was a very unique take on loss and grief. Using a camp for troubled teens as a way of exploring grief was very interesting and different to anything I have read before.
- I really enjoyed reading about the camp is it brought back memories of various camps I have attended over the years.
- I found the characters to be very interesting and well-written; I didn't know who to trust.
- I really enjoyed the mystery aspect of this book. We had two mysteries being uncovered simultaneously, both what happened last summer and who was sending the messages. I liked the way these were developed and revealed throughout the book.
- The ending was very gripping and quite surprising, it was not at all what I had been expecting.


Image and video hosting by TinyPicThe Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han
Series: The Summer I Turned Pretty #1
Published On: May 5, 2009
Published By: Simon & Schuster
Genre: YA, Contemporary
Pages: 276
Format: Paperback
Source: Bought
Rating: ★★★
Amazon | Goodreads

- Okay, average read.
- Good for a summer beach read.
- I liked the characters but I didn't love them. They were nothing particularly special.
- I didn't care for the relationships and the love triangle, which is basically the main aspect of the story, was annoying.
- I would have liked more to the story than the relationship drama. There were some other things going on throughout the book but they didn't seem to get as much attention as the love triangle.


Image and video hosting by TinyPicThe Accident Season by Moira Fowley-Doyle
Published On: August 18, 2015
Published By: Corgi Children's
Genre: YA, Magical Realism, Paranormal
Pages: 282
Format: Paperback
Source: Bought
Rating: ★★
Amazon | Goodreads

- This was not my cup of tea.
- It would be a great Halloween read, however I read it in the summer.
- The first half of the book bored me.
- I didn't like the characters and I really didn't like the relationships.
- I saw 90% of the plot coming, and those things that I did not see coming were quite underwhelming.
- I didn't like the writing style at all. It seemed very informal at times and words like 'amn't' were used frequently, which I know is an Irish (and Scottish) word and the author is Irish, but I didn't like it.
- I may have enjoyed it more had I read it at a more suitable time, like in October, but at the time I did read it, I didn't enjoy it.


Image and video hosting by TinyPicYou by Caroline Kepnes
Series: You #1
Published On: September 25, 2014
Published By: Simon & Schuster
Genre: Adult, Thriller
Pages: 424
Format: Paperback
Source: Bought
Rating: ★★★
Amazon | Goodreads

- This was unique, creepy and intriguing. It was unlike anything I have ever read before.
- It focuses strongly on our obsession with social media and emphasises the dangers that this poses, which is very relevant to today's society and made it even creepier.
- I found it very interesting to be reading from the perspective of the stalker. It gave a real insight into the mind of the 'bad guy'.
- It was extremely explicit, with a lot of sex and violence throughout, so I definitely wouldn't recommend it if that kind of thing bothers you.
- I got a bit bored after a while. This book didn't seem to grab me the way it did for many others, which was a little disappointing.
- The best thing about this book was definitely the writing. I loved the second person narrative, it really added to the creepy feel of the book and worked so effectively with the story.

As you can see, I had more to say about some than I had about others and having read many of them quite a while ago, I couldn't really add much to my thoughts. I hope you got a good idea of my opinions of these books though, I think I made that quite clear. Have you read any of these books? What did you think of them?

Sophie :)

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