Review: Mist by Susan Krinard

Mist

Susan Krinard

Centuries ago, all was lost in the Last Battle when the Norse gods and goddesses went to war. The elves, the giants, and the gods and goddesses themselves were all destroyed, leaving the Valkyrie Mist one of the only survivors.

Or so she thought.

When a snowy winter descends upon modern-day San Francisco in June, Mist’s quiet existence starts to feel all too familiar. In quick succession, Mist is attacked by a frost giant in a public park and runs into an elf disguised as a homeless person on the streets…and then the man Mist believed was her mortal boyfriend reveals himself to be the trickster god Loki, alive and well after all these years.

Loki has big plans for the modern world, and he’s been hanging around Mist to get access to a staff that once belonged to the great god Odin. Mist is certain of one thing: Loki must be stopped if there is to be any hope for Earth. But the fight is even bigger than she knows.

Because Loki wasn’t the only god to survive.

Susan Krinard has been writing paranormal romance and fantasy since 1993, when a published author friend read a short story she’d written and advised her to try writing a novel. She sold her first novel to Bantam Dell, and has since written for Bantam, Penguin, Harlequin/ Silhouette, Harper Collins, St. Martin’s Press., and Tor Books. Her output includes twenty-three novels and twelve novellas and short stories.

Susan’s love for Science Fiction and Fantasy began when her fourth grade teacher read Madeleine L’Engles’ A Wrinkle In Time to the class. She attended her first Star Trek convention at the age of 14. Since then she’s continued to read voraciously and has attended numerous local and World Science Fiction conventions. Her first major urban fantasy series is the “Midgard” series, beginning with Mist, a July 2013 release from Tor Books.

Susan and works in Albuquerque, New Mexico, with her husband Serge Mailloux—whom she met because of a mutual love of the works of writer C. J. Cherryh—dogs Cagney, Nahla and Freya, and cats Agatha and Rocky. http://www.susankrinard.com

Review: Earthfall by Mark Walden

The battle for mankind is about to begin in this riveting story of Earth’s invasion from the author of the H.I.V.E. series.

Sam awakens to see strange vessels gathered in the skies around London. As he stares up, people stream past, walking silently toward the enormous ships, which emit a persistent noise. Only Sam seems immune to the signal. Six months later, he is absolutely alone.

Or so he thinks. Because after he emerges from his underground bunker and is wounded by a flying drone, a hail of machine-gun fire ultimately reveals two very important truths: One, Sam is not, in fact, alone. And two, the drone injury should have killed him—but it didn’t.

With his home planet feeling alien and the future unstable and unclear, Sam must navigate a new world in this gripping adventure.

Review

Thank you Simon and Schuster Canada for providing the ARC.

It has been a while since I’ve read a middle grade book let along an amazing one. I was kind of worried because I thought MG was not for me anymore, because the past few MG titles I read just didn’t amaze me. So I am so glad that this title worked for me.

I have to say at first I wasn’t that into the book (but I was having a book hangover). So after I read the first chapter I’m like “oh no, that’s A LOT of description”. I knew that Mark just wanted to establish the background and the setting but it was just almost pure description. But after that one (almost dreadful) chapter, the book was fast-paced, interesting, and enjoyable.

There’s only one way I can describe the book and it is…..if you like the feel of Call of Duty, this book is a winner for you. And oh look Mark spend 10 years as a video games designer and producer! :O I legitimately didn’t know that fact but now I can totally understand why the book was like a video game. I really felt that I was an avatar in a game, running through the dead, dark streets, all dirty, hungry and scared. 

But I have to say there was almost no suspense in the first part of the book because there was a time jump back in time. It talked about how the aliens attacked and it was just typical stuff: “Aliens suddenly appeared. Sam was the only unaffected by hypnotism. Blah blah blah.”

There wasn’t a lot of character development because of the time jumps. “The next couple of months seemed to pass by in a blur for Sam.” (101) I guess Mark didn’t want to spend a shit load of blah blah like most apocalyptic stories on the training. Which was fine, and I actually liked that but we did lose the transition and the growth of the characters.

Without character development, the characters were not really memorable. Sure I liked them but they didn’t stick in my mind. The interactions between characters were fun though, they joke, they laugh, they fight. I think it was pretty awesome. I liked how Sam was a newbie but he was a leader. And what was more was that he wasn’t the type of leader that whined and complained about “I don’t want to be the leader”. He just simply lead the team.

I think one of the biggest reasons I loved this book was that there was no deep thinking shit, no angst, no “boohoo I’m stuck in this horrible place and I must be tough”. All there were actions and doings. This made this book super fast to read; before I knew it I was half way through! So like a video game, this book was very addicting to me. I just wanted to follow the characters and complete tasks, and fight aliens! If you want the rush of video games, read this book!


Final thought? Though this book was not on the level of “Percy Jackson”, but it was definitely a must read! Definitely can’t wait for the next book!

Review: Earthfall by Mark Walden

The battle for mankind is about to begin in this riveting story of Earth’s invasion from the author of the H.I.V.E. series.

Sam awakens to see strange vessels gathered in the skies around London. As he stares up, people stream past, walking silently toward the enormous ships, which emit a persistent noise. Only Sam seems immune to the signal. Six months later, he is absolutely alone.

Or so he thinks. Because after he emerges from his underground bunker and is wounded by a flying drone, a hail of machine-gun fire ultimately reveals two very important truths: One, Sam is not, in fact, alone. And two, the drone injury should have killed him—but it didn’t.

With his home planet feeling alien and the future unstable and unclear, Sam must navigate a new world in this gripping adventure.

Review

Thank you Simon and Schuster Canada for providing the ARC.

It has been a while since I've read a middle grade book let along an amazing one. I was kind of worried because I thought MG was not for me anymore, because the past few MG titles I read just didn't amaze me. So I am so glad that this title worked for me.

I have to say at first I wasn't that into the book (but I was having a book hangover). So after I read the first chapter I'm like "oh no, that's A LOT of description". I knew that Mark just wanted to establish the background and the setting but it was just almost pure description. But after that one (almost dreadful) chapter, the book was fast-paced, interesting, and enjoyable.

There's only one way I can describe the book and it is…..if you like the feel of Call of Duty, this book is a winner for you. And oh look Mark spend 10 years as a video games designer and producer! :O I legitimately didn't know that fact but now I can totally understand why the book was like a video game. I really felt that I was an avatar in a game, running through the dead, dark streets, all dirty, hungry and scared. 
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Review: Forgive Me, Leonard Peacock by Matthew Quick

Forgive Me, Leonard Peacock by Matthew Quick

In addition to the P-38, there are four gifts, one for each of my friends. I want to say good-bye to them properly. I want to give them each something to remember me by. To let them know I really cared about them and I'm sorry I couldn't be more than I was—that I couldn't stick around—and that what's going to happen today isn't their fault.

Today is Leonard Peacock's birthday. It is also the day he hides a gun in his backpack. Because today is the day he will kill his former best friend, and then himself, with his grandfather's P-38 pistol.

But first he must say good-bye to the four people who matter most to him: his Humphrey Bogart-obsessed next-door neighbor, Walt; his classmate Baback, a violin virtuoso; Lauren, the Christian homeschooler he has a crush on; and Herr Silverman, who teaches the high school's class on the Holocaust. Speaking to each in turn, Leonard slowly reveals his secrets as the hours tick by and the moment of truth approaches.

In this riveting book, acclaimed author Matthew Quick unflinchingly examines the impossible choices that must be made—and the light in us all that never goes out.

Review

Thank you HBG Canada for providing a beautiful ARC of FM,LP

I can see many people will enjoy Forgive Me, Leonard Peacock and I admit, it definitely has a lot going for it. It's a modern story, highlighting two issues that have manage to persist through time. I will only mention one of the issues here, because I want other readers to find out about the other one as they read through the story. If you have read the description on the back of the book, you can probably guessed the issue Leonard Peacock is facing – bullying. He's been bullied to a point that committing a murder-suicide appears to be the best option. Now, I didn't give this book 5-stars because I thought it was a sad story and it moved me. Sometimes, I feel like sad books get automatic good ratings purely because they made the readers cry. Those 5-stars got there because the story was painfully realistic – no matter how much you want to deny it and live in your happy little bubble, this book brings you back down to Earth. And that hurts. Reality sucks but Matthew Quick was able to put to words feelings most of us can't express. And you better believe that deserves 5-stars.
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Review: Forgive Me, Leonard Peacock by Matthew Quick

Forgive Me, Leonard Peacock by Matthew Quick

In addition to the P-38, there are four gifts, one for each of my friends. I want to say good-bye to them properly. I want to give them each something to remember me by. To let them know I really cared about them and I’m sorry I couldn’t be more than I was—that I couldn’t stick around—and that what’s going to happen today isn’t their fault.

Today is Leonard Peacock’s birthday. It is also the day he hides a gun in his backpack. Because today is the day he will kill his former best friend, and then himself, with his grandfather’s P-38 pistol.

But first he must say good-bye to the four people who matter most to him: his Humphrey Bogart-obsessed next-door neighbor, Walt; his classmate Baback, a violin virtuoso; Lauren, the Christian homeschooler he has a crush on; and Herr Silverman, who teaches the high school’s class on the Holocaust. Speaking to each in turn, Leonard slowly reveals his secrets as the hours tick by and the moment of truth approaches.

In this riveting book, acclaimed author Matthew Quick unflinchingly examines the impossible choices that must be made—and the light in us all that never goes out.

Review

Thank you HBG Canada for providing a beautiful ARC of FM,LP

I can see many people will enjoy Forgive Me, Leonard Peacock and I admit, it definitely has a lot going for it. It’s a modern story, highlighting two issues that have manage to persist through time. I will only mention one of the issues here, because I want other readers to find out about the other one as they read through the story. If you have read the description on the back of the book, you can probably guessed the issue Leonard Peacock is facing – bullying. He’s been bullied to a point that committing a murder-suicide appears to be the best option. Now, I didn’t give this book 5-stars because I thought it was a sad story and it moved me. Sometimes, I feel like sad books get automatic good ratings purely because they made the readers cry. Those 5-stars got there because the story was painfully realistic – no matter how much you want to deny it and live in your happy little bubble, this book brings you back down to Earth. And that hurts. Reality sucks but Matthew Quick was able to put to words feelings most of us can’t express. And you better believe that deserves 5-stars.

So maybe some of you might think the plot is too cookie-cutter, because if you had previously read any bullying story, it probably went down the same way Leonard’s story did. But that doesn’t make it any less enjoyable. Although his story may sound Plain-Jane, his character wasn’t. I was able to feel Leonard’s frustrations, confusion and hopelessness. The stylistic choices, like the footnotes and indents, solidified Leonard’s character. His brain worked at such a fast pace that it often went on tangents (footnotes) and as a reader reading the book, it added to the chaotic feeling. At points, Leonard’s internal struggles packed such a punch that I felt I needed to put down this book and reflect on what I had just read. (This explains why it took me nine days to read a 288 page book, and I’m not trying to come up with an excuse for my reading speed). That’s when you know you’ve got a powerful book in your hands.

Forgive Me, Leonard Peacock is my very first Matthew Quick book, and it definitely won’t be my last.

P.S.: Everyone deserves their own Herr Silverman in life.

Review: Half Lives by Sara Grant

Half Lives by Sara Grant

I learned that surviving isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. If you survive, you’ve got to live with the guilt, and that’s more difficult than looking someone in the eye and pulling the trigger. Trust me. I’ve done both. Killing takes a twitch of the finger. Absolution takes several lifetimes.
Seventeen-year-old Icie’s parents have given her $10,000 in cash, a map of a top-secret bunker, and instructions to get there by any means necessary. They have news of an imminent viral attack and know that the bunker is Icie’s only hope for survival. Along with three other teens, she lives locked away for months, not knowing what’s happening in the outside world or who has survived. And are they safe in the bunker after all?
Generations in the future, a mysterious cult worships the very mountain where Icie’s secret bunker was built. They never leave the mountain, they’re ruled by a teenager…and they have surprising ties to Icie.
This high-stakes, original, and thought-provoking adventure from Sara Grant follows two unlikely heroes, hundreds of years apart, as they fight to survive.

Review

Thank you HBG Canada for providing an ARC of Half Lives!

When my sister forwarded an email to me with the books available from HBG this summer, I almost didn’t pick this book. Just buy reading the first 70% of the description, I was already in the “Oh-no-not-another-post-apocalyptic-novel-in-which-a-secret-was-discovered” mood. But praise the writing gods (and Sara Grant), this story has more to it than just that. It skips forward in generations and also tells the story of a future cult. Now, that is the kind of kick I was waiting for. What’s even better was Ms. Grant’s choice of not simply writing a story from the future perspective, because then, another dystopian story would have been born. The concept of this book is new and adventurous, not to mention the cross-generation storytelling was well executed.

Thanks to Sara, the present and the future can finally live in harmony! (And no Fire Nation jokes in the comments please.)[ (hide spoiler)]

When a story involves a future religious cult, one would perceive that as a serious matter – and it is. But kudos to Sara Grant for bringing in humour in her story. I mean, come on, the leader of this religious group is a teenage boy. He has bound to make some mistakes, right? I think my favourite aspect of this book has to do with the misinterpretations of Icie’s story. Her story has been misunderstood by those in the future and when the reader first arrive at the future perspective, expect to be a little confused. Their words have evolved and the thing we once knew can be unknown to them. So when they all begin to chant: “Whatever! Whatever! Whatever!” don’t put down the book and walk away. That disjointed feeling is the beauty of this book.

I’m still undecided as to which perspective I enjoyed more. Both had their pros and cons, and both had moments where I can and can’t connect with. These present day characters are not who I usually connect to but I thought they were written very realistically. I feel like the jokes they tell and their view on life is pretty close to those of real teens. The character in the future are more of the voices I am accustomed to; these characters appear a lot in other post-apocalyptic novels, so they are a bit clichéd. But because the plot was so interesting, these characters didn’t bother me.

So overall, this book was unexpected, humorous and thought-provoking.
I will link the article Sara Grant speaks of in the Author’s Note right here. It is the inspiration to this book and I think it’s a neat read.

Review: Half Lives by Sara Grant

Half Lives by Sara Grant

I learned that surviving isn't all it's cracked up to be. If you survive, you've got to live with the guilt, and that's more difficult than looking someone in the eye and pulling the trigger. Trust me. I've done both. Killing takes a twitch of the finger. Absolution takes several lifetimes.
Seventeen-year-old Icie's parents have given her $10,000 in cash, a map of a top-secret bunker, and instructions to get there by any means necessary. They have news of an imminent viral attack and know that the bunker is Icie's only hope for survival. Along with three other teens, she lives locked away for months, not knowing what's happening in the outside world or who has survived. And are they safe in the bunker after all?
Generations in the future, a mysterious cult worships the very mountain where Icie's secret bunker was built. They never leave the mountain, they're ruled by a teenager…and they have surprising ties to Icie.
This high-stakes, original, and thought-provoking adventure from Sara Grant follows two unlikely heroes, hundreds of years apart, as they fight to survive.

Review

Thank you HBG Canada for providing an ARC of Half Lives!

When my sister forwarded an email to me with the books available from HBG this summer, I almost didn't pick this book. Just buy reading the first 70% of the description, I was already in the "Oh-no-not-another-post-apocalyptic-novel-in-which-a-secret-was-discovered" mood. But praise the writing gods (and Sara Grant), this story has more to it than just that. It skips forward in generations and also tells the story of a future cult. Now, that is the kind of kick I was waiting for. What's even better was Ms. Grant's choice of not simply writing a story from the future perspective, because then, another dystopian story would have been born. The concept of this book is new and adventurous, not to mention the cross-generation storytelling was well executed.
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Review: Earthbound by Aprilynne Pike

Tavia Michaels is the sole survivor of the plane crash that killed her parents. When she starts to see strange visions of a boy she’s never spoken with in real life, she begins to suspect that there’s much about her past that she isn’t being told. 

Tavia immediately searches for answers, desperate to determine why she feels so drawn to a boy she hardly knows. But when Tavia discovers that the aunt and uncle who took her in after her parents’ death may have actually been responsible for the plane crash that killed them–and that she may have been the true intended victim–she flees for the safety of Camden, Maine, where the boy she sees in her visions instructs her to go.

Now, Tavia is on the run with no one to trust. No one, that is, except for her best friend and longtime crush, Benson.

Tavia feels torn between the boy who mysteriously comes to her at night and the boy who has been by her side every step of the way. But what Tavia doesn’t know is that the world is literally falling apart and that to save it she will have to unite with the boy in her visions. Only problem? To do so would mean rejecting Benson’s love. And that’s the one thing Tavia Michaels swore she’d never do.

Thank you Razorbill for letting me on the tour!

Review

It is quite hard for me to write this review. I feel like Idon’t really have much to say. To be honest I was skeptical about this book. I was immediately repulsed by the romance. Sure, I love century old conspiracy, but I don’t like love triangles. But to mysurprise, the love triangle in this book wasn’t bad. Tavia didn’t spend half of the book debating Quinn or Benson; she was pretty loyal to one guy. She did consider the other guy but not to the point of hair-pulling amount.

As for the plot, it soundedboring and typical from the book flap. I was like “oh no the aunt and uncle mystery is going to be destroyed by her running away with her longtime crush.” But I was wrong. The adventure Tavia and Benson had was quite awesome. It was fast, suspenseful, and exhilarating. It did however took about half of the book to set up everything and for the pace to increase.

One big reason why I didn’t felt this book was not the best was because of the world building and the story set up. It was lacking. It didn’t felt anything about it. Aprilynne mentioned that Tavia was from a small, old, characteristic town but I didn’t sense that. I didn’t know what to picture because the story didnn’t provide me with anything to help me imagine it. I kept on having to remind myself “oh right, this is an old town, I better picture it that way.” I guess what I am asking is more descriptions so the book could “drag” me inside.

Now for Tavia. I didn’t care for her in the begginning because she didn’t have much of a personality. But when she ran away with Benson, I felt like “yeah! There’s my tough cookie!” I started to like her. She definitely was not your BAMF though. She cried a lot, paniced lot, and (not really whine) but kind of reminded me of a whimpering puppy – this is mainly due to the hotel scene where she was cold. Oh yeah, she and Benson like to make out. I kind of just skimmed through those part. They were cheesy.

Benson was cute (supposedly in a nerdy, library boy way). Personally I think Aprilynne kind of missed the mark. I didn’t feel that Benson was a cute, nerdy boy – nothing he did or said made me felt that way. Aprilynne did tried, Benson found stuff in the library but really??? Was that suppose to make me feel a strong emotion toward it? That all said, Benson was a great guy. He was protective, supportive, and effective. If you can choose one guy to help you run away, Benson is a pretty safe bet. I also enjoyed his food nicknames for Tavia: Maple Bar, Baklava etc. It kind of reminded me of Morgan and Garcia’s relationship on Criminal Minds.

Now for Quinn. Quinn was *sigh* hard to say. (Incoming spoiler)…to be honest, he wasn’t in this book much. What I got out of him was the he was very mechanic and odd (which was exactly what he supposed to be, so good job Aprilynne). He was attractive though.
“He’s beautiful in the moonlight, a dark, snow-spotted coat wrapping him from his neck to his ankles, his face soft and almost expressionless.” (pg 170 – from ARC)

Overall I feel pretty neutral about this book. There weren’t any “OMG THIS BOOK IS LIKE HOLY GOD OFJAOFJAEFIJR” but also there weren’t “THIS BOOK SUCCKKKSS!!” It was like “oh, that’s cool. I didn’t thought of that.” If you are looking for a supernatural with secret organizations book, give it a try. It kind of gave me the same feelings I had while reading the Darkest Powers trilogy by Kelley Armstrong. But I do have to say the Darkest Powers trilogy was a bit more intense.

To sum it all up in two sentences? This book didn’t provoke strong emotions from me but the mystery and the adventure propelled me to the end. I will likely read the next installment.

Review: Earthbound by Aprilynne Pike

Tavia Michaels is the sole survivor of the plane crash that killed her parents. When she starts to see strange visions of a boy she’s never spoken with in real life, she begins to suspect that there’s much about her past that she isn’t being told. 

Tavia immediately searches for answers, desperate to determine why she feels so drawn to a boy she hardly knows. But when Tavia discovers that the aunt and uncle who took her in after her parents' death may have actually been responsible for the plane crash that killed them–and that she may have been the true intended victim–she flees for the safety of Camden, Maine, where the boy she sees in her visions instructs her to go.

Now, Tavia is on the run with no one to trust. No one, that is, except for her best friend and longtime crush, Benson.

Tavia feels torn between the boy who mysteriously comes to her at night and the boy who has been by her side every step of the way. But what Tavia doesn't know is that the world is literally falling apart and that to save it she will have to unite with the boy in her visions. Only problem? To do so would mean rejecting Benson's love. And that's the one thing Tavia Michaels swore she'd never do.

Thank you Razorbill for letting me on the tour!

Review

It is quite hard for me to write this review. I feel like Idon't really have much to say. To be honest I was skeptical about this book. I was immediately repulsed by the romance. Sure, I love century old conspiracy, but I don't like love triangles. But to mysurprise, the love triangle in this book wasn't bad. Tavia didn't spend half of the book debating Quinn or Benson; she was pretty loyal to one guy. She did consider the other guy but not to the point of hair-pulling amount.

As for the plot, it soundedboring and typical from the book flap. I was like "oh no the aunt and uncle mystery is going to be destroyed by her running away with her longtime crush." But I was wrong. The adventure Tavia and Benson had was quite awesome. It was fast, suspenseful, and exhilarating. It did however took about half of the book to set up everything and for the pace to increase.

Read more »

Review: PODs by Michelle Pickett

Seventeen-year-old Eva is a chosen one. Chosen to live, while others meet a swift and painful death from an incurable virus so lethal, a person is dead within days of symptoms emerging. In the POD system, a series of underground habitats built by the government, she waits with the other chosen for the deadly virus to claim those above. Separated from family and friends, it’s in the PODs she meets David. And while true love might not conquer all, it’s a balm for the broken soul. 

After a year, scientists believe the population has died, and without living hosts, so has the virus. That’s the theory, anyway. But when the PODs are opened, survivors find the surface holds a vicious secret. The virus mutated, infecting those left top-side and creating… monsters. 

Eva and David hide from the infected in the abandoned PODs. Together they try to build a life–a new beginning. But the infected follow and are relentless in their attacks. Leaving Eva and David to fight for survival, and pray for a cure.

Review

I had a hard time deciding the rating for this book and I’ll explain why.

The plot of the book was simple and 1 dimensional. There weren’t layers of intricate plotting. Michelle didn’t tried to break your heart with feels or connections. You know how sometimes stories linked together and pieces of the book fitted when the story began to conclude? Yeah, those were what I called connections. This book didn’t offer me that but that doesn’t mean it was a total negative thing. By having a 1 dimensional plot, the story moved fast which kept my attention. Imagine if it was a simple plot that was draggy? Phew, this book wasn’t, in fact I loved how the book was such a breezy read. What the book lacked in intricacy, it gained in pace. And having said how the plot was simple, it wasn’t a bad plot. The plot of the book was a great one! Because of the fast pace, the events didn’t dwell and not did it got dull. It was like turning over new leaves in a short period of time, it had excitement in it.

But not only did the plot lacked connectivity, the characters did as well. I also didn’t form any emotional attachments to them as well. It felt as if they were cardboards and if one person died, I wouldn’t care and either would the other characters. You would think that a group of teens stuck in a POD for a long time equalled character development, but nope. The conversations were……..eek! It felt amateur as if horrible actors were delivering the lines. And adding romance into the pot didn’t made this any better. Sure Eva and David were in love but they didn’t felt like it. There were a lot of “I love you” and lots of kissing but I didn’t feel their love for each other. I just dislike apocalyptic romance. Sorry just don’t care. Every single book I read disappointed me, this book was no better. The romance was so forced and cliche. Boo!

“David”

“Yeah?”

“Stay” (pg 82)

“…smells as good and looks as yummy as David….” (66) <—Ewwww -____-

COMMENCE PUKE!

The writing style when Eva was in the POD was almost like a diary. There were short sections (which made for easy reading) that broke within a chapter. While in the Compound, it was brief. Is this what it feels like to not have roots? To move around so often that your surroundings don’t even link to you?

Overall, the writing for this book was sub-par. You know how sometimes a book can make you feel like you’ve been absorbed by it? This one didn’t do that. It just like a slab of concrete on my face. It was, a fast, simple read but really nothing more. It felt liked a 5 year old telling me a story: cute but lacks maturity and substance. The plot of the book was good but there’s definitely room to grow. I saw potential, a little better execution would make this book feel more satisfying.

If I had to right one pro and one con....

Pro:

Fast pace (which translated to a decent plot).

Con:

Lacked intricacy, connections and character developments.

In two sentences, this book was good enough that I didn't dislike it but I also didn't like it. It didn't draw out any particular emotion in me.

Notes I written during my reading & stuff that I am too lazy to write in paragraph form for:

•  Jai Li not being able to speak English…I call bullshit (58)
• · “I watched in awe as her stomach rippled with the baby’s movements” (60) REALLY??? O____O
• · Katie, I liked her instantly: sassy, bitchy, fiery little kid. She was in 8th grade, the “I think I’m better than all of you” stage.
• · WHAT IS TIFF PAINTING WITH??!! Pregnant and paint fume, NO! (69)
• · When the mail came I’m like “TYRA MAILLLLL!!” 😛 (73-74)
• · Eva was very in control to deliver the baby, very impressive.
• · What’s with Eva and smelling??? Why does she keep on describing what David smelled like.
• · I imagined the Compound to look like Terra Nova, with the houses and fences etc
• · “The firelight revealed more men like the one who’d barged into my tent. Tall and broad – easily twice the size of a normal man – they chased the people of the camp, scattering supplies and tearing down the shelters.” (205) T-T-TITAN???