REVIEW: Piper Perish by Kayla Cagan

I received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

Piper Perish inhales air and exhales art. The sooner she and her best friends can get out of Houston and get to New York City, the better. Art school has been Piper's dream her whole life, and now that senior year is halfway over, she's never felt more ready. But in the final months before graduation, things are weird with her friends and stressful with three different guys, and Piper's sister's tyrannical mental state seems to thwart every attempt at happiness for the close-knit Perish family. Piper's art just might be enough to get her out. But is she brave enough to seize that power when it means giving up so much? 

This is going to be kind of a ranty review because spoiler alert: I hated it. Maybe part of it is an age thing. Some parts of it may appeal to younger audiences because while I could relate to some things, most of the book just annoyed me. This book is told through Piper's journal entries. Interesting choice for a narrative style, but it ensured that we only got things from Piper's POV. The problem with Piper was that she annoyed me for most of the book. She was a typical teenager who couldn't wait to leave her hometown for an art school in New York and she wouldn't shut up about it. I do understand that part because I was the same way. But she was so whiny about everything and she was unrealistic about her options. She wanted to go to an expensive art school, but did she do ANYTHING about trying to figure out options so her parents could afford it? No. She didn't look for scholarships or loans or grants or anything. She even took her sweet time about getting a job. She got in and then just expected her parents to be able to pay for it all and then she blamed other people for the fact that they couldn't. And she didn't have ANY other backups. 

Let's talk about her family. Her parents were supportive and I felt sorry for them because they had to deal with two very bratty teenagers. Okay, now I get that sisters can have a whole rivalry thing going on and they can hate each other for no reason and one always thinks the other is being spoiled by their parents. That's how it was for me and my sister growing up. But here's the thing: Piper's sister, Marli, was an absolute horrible person and there was no reason for it. And there was never any supportive or loving moments between the sisters. I don't even get the point of the Marli point of the storyline. I felt like the author was trying to insinuate that Marli had mental problems. Piper and her friend read a chapter in a psychology textbook and decided that Marli was a sociopath. Really?? I agree that Marli was mean, but I never saw any indication of that. Not a diagnosis you want to throw around lightly. And Piper kept calling Marli crazy. So annoying. And here's a radical thought: a person can be awful and mean WITHOUT suffering from a mental illness. But since nothing was ever resolved with that, I don't know if Marli actually had issues or if it was just an insult thrown around by an envious sister. But Piper could be mean to Marli too. And she thought her parents were spoiling Marli just because her parents actually did things for her. And not to give away any spoilers, but Marli's problem couldn't just be swept under the rug.

Then let's talk about Piper's friends. They were both artists too and they were also as moody as Piper because of the whole "teenage angst" thing. Kit was jealous of Piper a lot instead of being supportive. And Piper just apologized to Kit for things that weren't even her fault and she was so needy in her desire to make Kit okay. That was annoying. Enzo was Piper's artist boyfriend, who breaks up with her in front of everyone at the whole school because he's gay. I never got over the way he ended things with Piper and then I hated him because he kept jerking Piper around, despite the fact that he said he didn't want to be with her. And another reviewer pointed out that the author should have made Enzo bisexual or something and I have to agree with that. Basically, the ONLY options that were presented for Enzo were gay or straight. Yet, he still kind of wanted to be with Piper at times even after he came out. So was he just struggling with being gay? Or was he bisexual? If he were bisexual, then maybe some of this actions would have made sense and I would have liked him a bit more.

Buy/Borrow/Skip: Skip this one. Please.

Top Ten Tuesday - Books I Swear I Will Read Soon!!

This is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. They feature a different top ten list every week. This week's topic is top books on my Spring TBR . . . in other words, books that I swear I will get to soon, but may or may not actually read because I am easily distracted by other books.

ARCs on my TBR

Books Languishing on my Kindle (or my bookshelf) longing to be read

So what books are on your Spring TBR? Are there any on my list that you have already read? Which ones should I read immediately?

BOOK REVIEW: The Archived (The Archived #1) by Victoria Schwab

Imagine a place where the dead rest on shelves like books. Each body has a story to tell, a life seen in pictures that only Librarians can read. Da first brought Mackenzie Bishop here four years ago, when she was twelve years old, frightened but determined to prove herself. Now Da is dead, and Mac has grown into what he once was: a ruthless Keeper, tasked with stopping often-violent Histories from waking up and getting out. Because of her job, she lies to the people she loves, and she knows fear for what it is: a useful tool for staying alive. Being a Keeper isn't just dangerous-it's a constant reminder of those Mac has lost. Da's death was hard enough, but now that her little brother is gone too, Mac starts to wonder about the boundary between living and dying, sleeping and waking. In the Archive, the dead must never be disturbed. And yet, someone is deliberately altering Histories, erasing essential chapters. Unless Mac can piece together what remains, the Archive itself might crumble and fall.

Victoria Schwab is a genius. There is just no other word for it. I bought this one because 1) Victoria Schwab and 2) it was on sale and 3) a library full of dead people! This premise was incredibly original and dark and Schwab definitely did it justice. First of all, the dead people basically sometimes escape and wander these dark hallways. Then the Keepers (i.e. people like MacKenzie) find them in these creepy and dark hallways (the Narrows) and send them back on their way to the Archives. There are Librarians in charge of the dead people Archives (how cool would THAT library job be??) and there are Crew members in charge of finding any dead people (also known as Histories) who somehow make their way into the Outer (also known as the regular world). Oh, and Mackenzie has to wear this special ring at all times because she can read memories of things or people that she touches. Reading people's energies and their memories and all their feelings can be crazy exhausting. It was so creepy and dark and twisted and I LOVED it.

The characters were awesome. Mackenzie is a total bad ass who became a Keeper at twelve years old, which is about four years earlier than they normally are allowed to because . . . obviously. She's awesome. The book goes between the present and the past when her grandfather actually recruited her to become a Keeper. Mackenzie is mourning the loss of her grandfather and her younger brother, so she has a few issues with the dead and the whole issue of their bodies returning. Not only is she grieving, but she has to lie to EVERYONE about her disappearances and her bruises. It is such a lonely life. I loved her parents. Everyone is still so devastated over Ben's death and her mom seems like a realistic portrayal of a grieving mother. She is overwhelmed with her own feelings her grief can sometimes blind her to what's going on with Mackenzie, but she obviously loves her daughter and is concerned about her. Same with Mackenzie's dad. It's nice to see a realistic family with real problems (aside from the whole daughter being a Keeper thing) instead of the typical YA abusive and neglectful parents.

It SEEMS like there is a love triangle here, but it still doesn't really feel like one. There is Owen, who is tortured and in the Narrows and Mackenzie is trying to figure out who he is and why he's there. Even though there is a little romance between the two of them, it's obvious that Mackenzie is using him for an escape. She is still grieving after all and she is just so tired of all the secrets and lies. And then there's Wesley, who is adorable and charming and they have CRAZY chemistry. Mackenzie and Wesley are such a slow burn that I LOVED it. The best part is there was NO insta-love. And the second best part was that there were twists with BOTH boys and they kind of left my head spinning. 

The ONLY negative about this book was that it started a bit slow. But as you can see, I still had no choice but to give this one five stars. Once it picked up speed, there were so many twists and turns and so much creepiness and I absolutely loved the entire plot and all the characters. And now, I MUST have the sequel NOW!!!

Buy/Borrow/Skip: Buy it NOW!! 

BOOK REVIEW: Alone (The Generations Trilogy #3) by Scott Sigler

Pawns in a millennia-old struggle, the young people known only as the Birthday Children were genetically engineered to survive on the planet Omeyocan—but they were never meant to live there. They were made to be “overwritten,” their minds wiped and replaced by the consciousness of the monsters who created them. Em changed all of that. She unified her people and led a revolt against their creators. Em and her friends escaped an ancient ghost ship and fled to Omeyocan. They thought they would find an uninhabited paradise. Instead, they found the ruins of a massive city long since swallowed by the jungle. And they weren’t alone. The Birthday Children fought for survival against the elements, jungle wildlife, the “Grownups” who created them . . . and, as evil corrupted their numbers, even against themselves. With these opponents finally defeated, Em and her people realized that more threats were coming, traveling from across the universe to lay claim to their planet. The Birthday Children have prepared as best they can against this alien armada. Now, as the first ships reach orbit around Omeyocan, the final battle for the planet begins.

Wow. What an incredible end to an incredible series. So there are times when I am reading a book series and I never really feel like the sequels live up to the first one. For so many series, the books just kind of lose steam as they go on. BUT NOT WITH THIS ONE. This book is just as exciting as the first two . . . even more so, actually. This book was almost 600 pages and I swear there was action and bloodshed and intensity for over 500 of those pages. It was such a roller coaster . . . if the roller coaster in question was full of hills and didn't give you a chance to catch your breath before taking you over the next one. 

Okay, it's REALLY hard to give a thorough review because of spoilers. I don't want to ruin this. I will say there are so many enemies that Em and the other Birthday Children have to fight here. Once they fight one group, another one comes along. Meanwhile, they also have to stop fighting each other so they can concentrate on the people who are really after them. This last book kind of reminded me of Lord of the Flies times a million or something. It's like an adult version of that. And there were so many twists in this one that my head spun a little bit. All the questions are answered and none of it was predictable at all. This was such a thrilling conclusion to this series. 

Buy/Borrow/Skip: Buy this one! You should read this entire series.

DISCUSSION: Does the length of a book impact your decision to read it?

Have I mentioned on this blog that I'm lazy? I'm sure that I have. And I am sure you have figured that out by the length of time it can take me to respond to comments.  Okay, I am working on it . . . and I'm talking about both the laziness and the responding to comments.

Most of the time, I am not lazy when it comes to reading. Actually, reading is the reason why I can be lazy sometimes.

reading vs. cleaning = reading wins (though that probably isn't a fair match)

reading vs. responding to blog comments = reading

reading vs. working out = reading

reading vs.  . . . . well, just about anything = reading wins (except maybe eating. I'll give up ten minutes of reading time to stuff some chocolate in my mouth.)

But when it comes to reading long books . . . well, my laziness has a tendency to win out. My average size book is around 300 or 350 pages. Don't get me wrong, I will read a long book. Last year, my longest book read was Gone with the Wind, which came in at a whopping 1057 pages.

Great book, but do you have any idea how long it languished on my Kindle before I finally read it?

Yeah, me neither but I know it was a long time.

Right now, I am reading Gemina, which is 659 pages. I have been looking forward to this book for ages, but it took forever to gather the motivation to read it because of its length.

I know some people may say they are intimidated by books with a lot of pages. I would love to say that is my excuse. Then maybe you guys would respect me a bit. But alas, it's strictly laziness.

I have found that the longer a book is, the longer it takes me to read it. If it's over 500 pages, that's the sweet, sweet spot of procrastination on my part.

So let's discuss: do you procrastinate on reading books if they are too long? What do you consider too long? Is it an intimidation thing or are you just lazy like me? No judgments!

February Recap - The one where I come back from a much needed break

I am linking up to both the Sunday Post @ Caffeinated Book Reviewer and the Sunday Post @ Feed Your Fiction Addiction.

This past month has been a good one. I know I haven't been around for a while. Part of the problem has been writer's block. But I think a bigger part of it is just that I needed a break from blogging. Or maybe I have also been more than a little lazy.

We all have those moments every now and then, right? I think I'm back, but let's face it: I may get distracted again by a candy bar or a shiny new book. I get that way.

So what have I been up to over the past month?

1. Recovering from jet lag

I came back to Italy from a month long trip to the States a couple of weeks ago and I am just now starting to feel like myself again. Jet lag is a bitch.

2. Spending time with my husband and my dog

One month away from them is just too long. My husband said he is never going to let me leave him for a month again. And when I got home, I was only home for eighteen hours before he had to leave for a week long business trip! Argh! I missed my family terribly and I know that my husband was happy to have someone to annoy besides our dog.

3. Catching up on TV

A month without watching This is Us because I had to watch it with my husband . . . TORTURE. That is real love folks.

4. Reading

Of course!! Luckily, I have not been in a reading slump. I have read some great books over the last month and some not so great ones. Below are a few of my favorites. I managed to read fourteen books in the month of February.

5. 5. Dealing with change

I despise change. And it's not even an age thing. I have been this way for a long time. Four versions of the iPhone came out before I finally gave up my old 90's style flip phone. What can I say? The camera was awful and it took forever to type out a text, but I loved it.

So I was forced to get a new Kindle because mine was old and having issues. I tried to get the same exact one I had before: the Kindle Fire with 7 inch display. I thought it would be exactly the same. I. Was. Wrong.

It's more narrow than I am used to and the display is all different and the place where I charge it is in a different spot. Even the plug is irritating me because it's all different.

I'm getting used to it, but it was rough for a few days. Did I mention that I'm old and I HATE CHANGE.

6. Planning travel

My husband and I will be living in Italy for two more years. We are planning on taking full advantage of our time left. We are planning Paris in April, Florence in May, Scotland in July and a Baltic cruise (that will include St. Petersburg, Russia!!) in September. And I think we will be spending Thanksgiving this year in Budapest. Good times.

Okay, so I think that's about it for me this month. Hope everyone else has had a great February.

Talk to me! What was your favorite book that you read this month? Any trips planned? Do you hate change as much as I do?

REVIEW: Denton Little's Still Not Dead (Denton Little #2) by Lance Rubin

I received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

The good news: Denton Little has lived through his deathdate. Yay! The bad news: He’s being chased by the DIA (Death Investigation Agency), he can never see his family again, and he may now die any time. Huh. Cheating death isn’t quite as awesome as Denton would have thought.

FINALLY! More Denton! It seems like I have been waiting forever for this sequel and IT DID NOT DISAPPOINT! Denton has found his birth mom (yeah, the one he thought was dead) and they are running from the DIA. There was a lot going on with the plot and I loved it. There was so much action and so much of Denton running for his life. I also appreciated the awkwardness between Denton and his birth mom and how he still thought of his stepmom as "Mom." I thought that was so realistic. There was also more of Paolo. Seriously, could there friendship be any more awesome? They are your typical teenage boys and there was still so much snark and sarcasm and witty banter and I loved all of it. 

This book also still discussed the big questions about death, like whether people should be forced to know their death dates or whether people should even know at all. I think that if it were possible to know my death date ahead of time, I wouldn't want to know. And this book also deals with Denton trying to save Paolo from his death date. It's a race against the clock and I was rooting for him to figure out a way to outsmart it. 

It was AWESOME that romance was not a huge subplot of the book. Yeah, there were a few romance scenes, but it never took over the book and there was none of that stupid insta-love. I was rooting for Denton and Veronica, but I thought their relationship was realistic and well-done, especially considering the fact that they are both teenagers, for crying out loud.

This book was funny and touching and full of wacky adventures and if you loved the first one, you will love this one as well! 

Buy/Borrow/Skip: Buy this one!