"Shattered Dreams" by Ellie James

Book Details:
Title: Shattered Dreams
Author: Ellie James
Published: anticipated December 2011 by St. Martin's Press
ISBN: 978-0-312-64702-5
Genre: Teen Fiction
Pages: 342
Rating: 4 of 5
Read in: 7 days


My Review:
I received an advance copy of this through Goodreads and could not put it down! A classic young adult novel, but definitely one of the best I've come across. Slated to be released in December, I feel Ellie James' Midnight Dragonfly series will be a great hit!


The first aspect of the book that pulled me in was the setting. Right from the beginning, the hollow, bleak surroundings set the perfect mood for the entire book. Taking place in post-Katrina New Orleans, most of the city is run-down and abandoned- a perfect place for the extreme level of mystery- murders, family secrets, and a strange ability at the center- that the reader comes across straight through to the end. The city's imagery haunts the reader just as the events that take place in it haunt the protagonist.


The author introduces a very interesting subject through the main character- precognition. Orphaned and sent to live with an aunt she doesn't even know, Trinity Monsour is plagued by the ability to "see" events before they happen. Unfortunately, not many people are ready to accept this as truth, causing many complications when she tries to use this ability to locate a missing girl. I've read plenty of novels starring protagonists with strange abilities, but this was a refreshing first.


I also really enjoyed the character development. I was surprised by which characters the author chose to open up to the reader, especially Pitre and Dylan, because of the minor roles they played through the first half. However, they were skillfully included in the finale.


Every major aspect of a successful young adult novel is present in this first installment of the Midnight Dragonfly series: a misunderstood teenager, romance, big secrets, a little naivety, great personal growth, and an ending that will make the reader's jaw drop. Mostly, I was just happy there weren't any vampires. I give this one four out of five stars and look forward to the second book.

"Sector 64: Coup de Main" by Dean M. Cole

Book Details:
Title: Sector 64: Coup de Main
Author: Dean M. Cole
Published: 2011- Published by Author
ISBN: 978-1-460-96253-4
Genre: Science Fiction
Pages: 262
Rating: 1 of 5
Read in: 6 days



My Review:
I really enjoy science fiction as a whole, and I really wanted to like this book. However, that did not happen. A barbaric alien race is vaporizing everyone on the planet and it's U.S. Air Force Lieutenant Jake Giard and two of his fellow wing-men to the rescue! Unfortunately, they could not rescue me from falling asleep during most of the book...


My biggest issue with this book has nothing to do with the story itself. The copious amount of spelling, punctuation, capitalization, tense, and grammar errors made me cringe constantly. I started to mark these instances, but they are so common that I soon gave up. I understand that this novel is self-published and probably never graced the eyes of an editor, but I am a firm believer that one should edit one's work before submitting it to the general public. I'm far from perfect in these areas myself, but I do know how to use spell check and failing to catch so many errors makes the entire text seem sloppy and may cause the eyes of avid and critical readers to spontaneously bleed. Lines such as "Let's not waist [sic] Major Pell's sacrifice..." and referring to the "soul" of a shoe make me wonder how much attention the author paid to what he was writing.


The author of this novel, Dean M. Cole, is an Army vet and pilot and he uses his expertise in this area to be highly descriptive when it comes to pilot protocol and physics throughout the book. I appreciated that he is so knowledgeable, but it often left me wondering what he was talking about. I'm not well versed in physics or pilot lingo, so I felt a little left out in some parts. Another word usage problem I found was the unbelievable number of times "buddy" is used. This became a problem before I even finished the first chapter!  


I had a very difficult time connecting with any of the characters and I think this was because of how weak the majority of them are. For an Air Force fighter pilot, Victor Croft is amazingly faint at heart. He is so scared and anxious almost the entire book, to the point that I was shocked he never broke down and cried. This is pretty unbelievable behavior for a war vet. I also felt that Jake's girlfriend Sandy was completely unnecessary. She played no important role in the book and only caused unnecessary distractions from the plot line.


I did appreciate the basis of the plot though. I loved that the author made the human race descended from wayward aliens. Also, the technology introduced throughout the novel was very fascinating- especially the "Turtle" ship and EVA suits. the author showed great vision and creativity in the invention of these items.


Overall, I found the dialogue to be painfully cheesy and riddled with a vast over-abundance of cliche phrases, such as "assuming makes an ass out of you and me" and "the more things change, the more they stay the same." The characters are flat and not memorable, and a little more original content would have been nice.. I give it a one-star rating.

"Conversations and Cosmopolitans: Awkward Moments, Mixed Drinks, and How a Mother and Son Finally Shared Who They Really Are" by Robert Rave & Jane Rave

Book Details:
Title: Conversations and Cosmopolitans: Awkward Moments, Mixed Drinks, and How a Mother and Son Finally Shared Who They Really Are
Author: Robert Rave & Jane Rave
Published: anticipated November 2011 by St. Martin's Press
ISBN: 978-0-312-55423-1
Genre: Memoir
Pages: 288
Rating: 4 of 5
Read in: 3 days


My Review:
Wonderful, Wonderful, Wonderful. I recently received an advance copy of this novel and I'm very glad I did. This mother/son team delivers a very accurate look into homosexual culture, as well as its effect on family life. This memoir contains some extremely eccentric New Yorkers that will keep any reader sufficiently entertained. 

The first thing I really enjoyed about the book was the format. The other part of the book's format that I enjoyed was the authors' alternating voices each chapter. First, the reader gets Robert's story, then mom chimes in afterward to give her perspective. This prevents them from competing for the reader's attention and creates a clear-cut separation of thoughts, opinions, and experiences during each situation presented. A 20-something gay New Yorker's perspective is clearly much different from his middle-aged Midwestern mother's. As time goes on however, we see the differences become less and less as  mother and son connect on deeper levels.


An author can paraphrase and summarize communications between the characters, but the Raves took it to a whole new level, including online messaging transcripts, e-mails, and letters written during the pivotal events in their lives. These give a more accurate look at the relationship between mother and son, and show the evolution of their relationship as they both become more comfortable and familiar with Robert's lifestyle, and become more comfortable in their own relationship to each other.


I especially liked chapter sixteen, titled "The Daughter-in-Law You'll Never Have (Also known to my parents as my best friend Melissa). I laughed out loud several times during this chapter! The crazy antics Robert and his best friend get into during a weekend out in New York City were a welcome change from the chapters of sadness and awkwardness from loneliness, rejection, credit card debt, and trying to "make it" in the real world. I also really liked that Melissa brings Robert out of his shell more than any other person we encounter, requiring him to down massive amounts of sugar and Diet Coke to keep up with her voracious energy and enthusiasm. She's confident and suave, where as Robert is unsure and awkward. A perfectly matched duo to run amok in Central Park and Midtown, chasing guys. 


Clearly, I don't have anything negative to say about this book. The characters are strong and continually develop as life throws more their way. It's not only about a son's homosexuality and how the family changes once they find out, but it says a lot about the love and loyalty of a mother to her child. Despite discrimination and negative responses in a small town, Jane stands her ground on several occasions and speaks out to protect and promote her son and his lifestyle- even to close family friends. I give it four out of five stars.

"The Faculty Club" by Danny Tobey

Book Details:

Title: The Faculty Club

Author: Danny Tobey

Published: June 1, 2010 by Atria (imprint of Simon & Schuster)

ISBN: 978-1-4391-5429-8

Genre: Thriller

Pages: 307
Rating: 3 of 5

Read in: 3 days

My Review:
I have to say, I'm torn. This novel could almost be in league with one of Dan Brown's. However, there were a few things about it that really irked me.. I refuse to give this book a negative review- it was very well thought out and the puzzles and history throughout fascinated me! 

One major positive for me was that the author stressed the desperation Jeremy's peers had to get into the V&D. Daphne throwing herself at Jeremy sexually in order to secure his help winning the debate and Nigel's library breakdown were perfect examples of the lengths students would go to to secure a spot in this secret society. Words between characters can only go so far to express such things, but their actions spoke volumes. 

Another thing that really struck me was word selection. In line 25 of page 214, the author writes: "Then his spindly arms unfolded like spider legs and bootstrapped his long body through." This sentence has and incredible amount of imagery for how short and sweet it is! I don't believe I have ever read "bootstrapped" anywhere else, but the action is spot-on for how this lanky man would look crawling out of a small tunnel. I even stopped reading to mark the page for future reference. 

I very much enjoyed the Dan Brown feel of the novel. From the secret society and mind-bending riddles to the underground labyrinth of unknown dangers and crazy religious ceremonies- it's the perfect read for history buffs and conspiracy theorists everywhere. Tobey obviously did his research for this book and the effort shows. Some favorite instances of mine involve the Ship of Theseus, a homunculus, and a replica of the Capuchin Crypt. 

Another point I'd like to bring up is the use of pictures on page 265. To be honest, I'm still not sure how I feel about them. When I first reached the page, I stopped and marked "Why start using pictures now??" in the margin. It makes sense to use them here, to give the reader the full experience of what the characters are looking at, but why not have them throughout the book? I find pictures and illustrations a wonderful change of pace in a novel, but having the only two pictures in the entire book on the same page feels very random to me. 

The main problem I had while reading was the lack of names for the school Jeremy attends and several characters. I understand that the author may not be able to use the name of a real university for publicity reasons, and maybe even for copyright reasons, but there are multiple sentences that just sound awkward for the lack of a proper noun. By page 2, it has simply been referred to as "the greatest law school in the world"... Twice. I disliked the repetition, but soon got over it. Though it did come up a couple more times throughout the novel. When it comes to characters, if you're going to give them lines, they should have a name. Just my feeling on the subject. In the mock trial scene, the author only refers to the judges as "the former U.S. Attorney" and "the retired Supreme Court justice". I know they are very minor characters, but if the narrator recognizes them by their careers, he would understandably know and use their names. My last naming concern pertains to Arthur "Humpty Dumpty" Peabody. Yes- the man has a nickname. Yes- a college student would most certainly refer to him by said nickname at some point in time. But....all the time?! Jeremy doesn't even use his given name except while the man's bleeding out all over his desk. Even after that, you would think the characters would have a little more respect for the dead and stop referring to him as "Humpty Dumpty". I mean, Jeremy watched the man die! I know I'm nitpicking, but these are some things I think about when I'm reading. 

What graduate students plan their lives around that of someone they've only known two weeks? I get the whole "been to hell and back together" thing could probably drive the two people together, but if I was in Sarah's place, I would be furious with Jeremy for much longer than the book even covered. Although he 'unburdened' her by telling her secret in front of all attending the mock trial, it still was not his secret to tell and I will stand by that belief until the end of time. Sarah tried to KILL HERSELF. She wanted to die because of the hell he thrust upon her, but the reader would never know she was ever that upset to the point of suicide. She never expressed any kind of anger towards him besides the command to "get out" of her hospital room. She recovered from his breach of confidence at a pace that makes it seem unreal. 

The end nearly infuriated me. I was left with an immense sense of wonder. What happened to the newly initiated students? We followed the three from the beginning, and suddenly their situation means nothing to the protagonist. He showed so much compassion and caring towards Nigel and Daphne that he allowed them to use him to get to the top. But, once Sarah enters, they're completely forgotten? Even if Jeremy could care less the outcomes of Nigel, John, and Daphne, I'm sure other readers are like me and would've appreciated a little knowledge on that front. 

Overall, I had to give this book three out of five stars. I liked it and would definitely recommend it to friends. However, it was a quick read and could have used a little more...something. The plot line flew by.