The Death Cure By: James Dashner

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• Title: The Death Cure (Maze Runner #3)
• Author: James Dashner
• Publisher: Delacorte Press
• Publication Date: October 11, 2011
• Pages: 325
• Genre: Young Adult, Dystopian
• Recommended Age: 13+
• First Read: 2013
• Source: Library
• Rating: 4.5 / 5.0 stars

Well, I have to say, the ending was nothing like what I expected it to be. And even after reading it what, three times now, I still don't think that that was how it should have ended. But I am getting ahead of myself...

So this book is basically one huge heart wrencher, because you finally get to be out in "the real world" away from the confines (and protection?) of WICKED and be exposed to what the Flare really does to people. And can I tell you guys that I'm absolutely terrified of the idea of the Flare; the very idea that you slowly go insane and you lose all of your humanity to become something worse than the most primitive animal? It's horrible. And seeing people like this, especially when it hits close to home just makes me glad that I don't live in their world. That this is just a novel. 

I don't know how many times I almost lost it with this book because of even more revelations finally come to light, especially concerning the Gladers and the Flare. The Gladers are *finally* free of WICKED (hmmm where have I heard that before?) yet there are bigger problems at hand, and Thomas and his friends aren't really free from any of their problems. 

I liked that Brenda and Jorge are back, not dead, and are as fierce as ever, but even they can't get Thomas to stop whining and mouthing off. I also really liked the fact that this book, like the other two, was full of action and was fast paced. I also really liked how the book went full circle, but I never did find out more about Chancellor Paige, at least not as much as I would have liked, seeing she was one of the most instrumental people in the whole operation. 

I really don't like Thomas anymore ( I never really did in the first place) because he again, made extremely dumb decisions and just kept boo-hooing like he had the biggest problem in the world, not, I don't know, Newt or anything. 

But in the end, even though I was not entirely satisfied with the ending, I was glad that well, some people have the chance for a better future.

Oh, and WICKED is not good.

The Scorch Trials By: James Dashner

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• Title: The Scorch Trials (The Maze Runner #2)
• Author: James Dashner
• Publisher: Delacorte Press
• Publication Date: October 12, 2010
• Pages: 360
• Genre: Young Adult, Dystopian
• Recommended Age: 13+
• First Read: 2013
• Source: Library
• Rating: 4.5 / 5.0 stars

After ending in such a cliff hanger, The Scorch Trials picks up right where the The Maze Runner left off with the Gladers thinking they have escaped from WICKED. But things are not always as they seem, and the real trouble is only beginning.

Did I enjoy this novel as much as the the first book? Well, no, but it was still action packed and filled with revelations about WICKED, the Flare, and Thomas' role in the Trials. I think the reason why I did not enjoy this novel as much was because I was so entranced with the world of the maze and the glade that in a way, I couldn't quite get as much into the Scorch. But I did enjoy the book immensely in its own way because it provided a vastly different environment for the Gladers to explore in and to survive in.

This is what I pictured the scorch to be:

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I think my favorite part was when Thomas and Brenda were running through the city, just trying to survive and get to the safe haven they was promised to. I also liked that new characters were introduced and that they added a new complexity to the themes already there (as if things couldn't get complicated enough). I loved the original characters, Newt and Minho being my favorites, but I liked to see how the group dynamic would work outside the maze, and I wasn't disappointed. Minho was even sassier, if possible, and Newt was just so adorable that I could barely stand it.

Thomas though, was getting more annoying because he just couldn't stop asking questions (again) and just kept rambling and rambling and rambling blah blah blah about Teresa, about his feelings...I could have done a lot without that and instead focused on the action happening around them and the fact that people are trying to kill them!

The book, of course, ends in another cliffhanger (shocker) much like the first book did, not really providing any answers as much as more questions and even more WICKED.

Well, at least there's a third book, which I will gladly re-read again, but I won't like page 250 at all. And to quote Forrest Gump: Well that's all I have to say about that.

The Prom Book: The Only Guide You'll Ever Need By: Lauren Metz

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• Title: The Prom Book: The Only Guide You'll Ever Need
• Author: Lauren Metz
• Publisher: Zest Books
• Publication Date: March 28, 2013
• Pages: 160
• Genre: How-To
• Recommended Ages: 16-18 
• First Read: 2013
• Source: Goodreads Giveaway
• Rating: 3.0 / 5.0 stars

It's prom season and I thought I would get into the spirit by showcasing this book I received from Goodreads a while back. 

So it's coming. Prom. And a bunch of girls are going to be turning into Prom-zillas because they need that perfect dress. With those perfect shoes. For that all amazing one night of the year where girls can dress to the nines. And there will be this book guiding them to the promised land of stilettos and sparkly dresses.

This book offers detailed instructions from snagging the right dress to everything in between and it's a pretty solid guide to everything a girl needs to know. What I liked the most about this book is that it addresses the fact that prom can be very expensive if the proper steps are not taken and that the author reminds girls to pitch in by helping pay for the cost of dress, shoes, and everything else. I also liked how it also had handy places to write down appointments, sketches, and memories from prom, so that girls don't have thousands of loose paper everywhere. I  also really liked the fact that this book did not focus on snagging a date for prom, but instead focused on the creative process and excitement a girl feels on the days leading up to the big event, showing that even though a date would be nice, it's perfectly acceptable to just have a girls' night out as well!

If I did have any qualms about this book, I would have to condemn the fact that it kind of just glazed over the safety issues that one can encounter prom night. I mean, let's be honest: teenagers after all do not usually just sip apple juice on prom night and I would have liked the book to make consequences a little more forceful, even if it took the sparkle of the book away a little. 

And speaking of sparkle, if you haven't guessed it yet, this book is for hard-core girly girls, and though I'm towards the middle of ultimate girly-girl and "one of the guys" kind of gal, I still really enjoyed this book, and when the time comes for my prom, I'll be sure to glance at this book.

Maia and Icarus By: James A. Perez

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• Title: Maia and Icarus
• Author: James A. Perez
• Publisher: Barrow Court Books
• Publication Date: August 1, 2013
• Pages: 200
• Genre: Middle Grade, Greek Mythology
• Recommended Ages: 10-13 
• First Read: 2014
• Source: Goodreads Giveaway
• Rating: 3.0 / 5.0 stars

Maia and Icarus is a delightful little read that incorporates one of my favorite subjects, Greek mythology. Maia is at the center of the book, having never known her father and finding out that she is half Greek. With this revelation, she travels to Greece to (hopefully) find out more about her past. She gets more than she bargains for when she realizes that the stories of Greek myth are very much alive. Various adventures ensue with a dashing young Icarus, in the world of the gods that leaves Maia with the experience of a lifetime.

The plot line of this novel has a lot of potential in the fact that numerous elements of mythology can be further developed into a deftly woven story line that incorporates the many aspects that this book is based on. I feel that if the book went more into depth about the origins of a lot of the Greek aspects, then the world would feel more believable.

Also, although I did get to know Maia quite well, I did not quite get to delve into the other character's personalities as I would have liked, particularly Icarus. Oh, Icarus. He is a character that I felt that I should have gotten to know better. I barely knew anything about him other than he had a dashing smile and his father was the famous Daedalus. I also felt that I did not have enough interactions with that of Maia's Greek family, other than Uncle Dorian, Helena, and Grandmother.

I know that this is the first book in a new series and that Maia has a lot of secrets that she has yet to find out, but I wanted a more concrete base in which to ground the first book in a brand new world. Maia and the reader are finding out new information at the same time, but it would have been a little helpful to have a little background information on Maia's family, especially her father. But I suppose that that is the fun in finding out at the same time, right?

I genuinely do enjoy this book and eagerly await the next installment of Maia's adventures. I cannot wait to find out more about this new world of Greek mythology that the author has created and hope that Icarus makes another appearance in addition to a deeper level of character development.

The Maze Runner By: James Dashner

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• Title: The Maze Runner (The Maze Runner #1)
• Author: James Dashner
• Publisher: Delacorte Press
• Publication Date: October 6, 2009
• Pages: 374
• Genre: Dystopian, Young Adult
• Recommended Age: 13+
• First Read: 2013
• Source: Library
• Rating: 5.0 / 5.0 stars

I've read this series a few times now, and I thought it was time to finally write a review about it. And it's about time I share the magic of the maze with everyone who hasn't read this series yet.

If you ain't scared, you ain't human.

The plot itself was fast paced, engaging and cringe-worthy in the right places, making it one of my favorite dystopia YA series. And I like this particularly because of the fact that it contained a plot that was not so heavily centered on a love triangle or a couple in love. Sure Tom and Theresa have their moments, but I feel like we get to know the other characters just as well and we are able to fall in love with each of the relationships between the characters.

Hands down my favorite character in this book, and consequently the entire series is Newt because there is a strength within him that does not exist within the other characters. Newt is everything in a hero, and though he is not the main character, I feel like he contributed just as much as Thomas did.

I also really liked Minho because he provided the sort of dry comic relief that I enjoyed, in addition to having the coolest job in the Glade. I love the relationship between the three boys, Minho, Newt, and Thomas because they shared a brotherhood that could only come from enduring an extraordinary experience together.

My favorite aspect of this book was the fact that we as readers found facts out at the same rate as the main character, Thomas did. I felt like I was part of the story because I felt disoriented along with Thomas when all of these new vocabulary words like "greenie" and "shank" were thrown at me. And I felt like I was becoming one of the Gladers when the new vocabulary words did not disconcert me anymore and just seemed natural. That was a great feeling.

I also loved the maze itself, with its enigmatic persona, it was a character unto itself. And if there is anything worse than being in a maze, it's being in a maze with monsters that want to kill you. And it is delightfully suspenseful to read those scenes because you never know what's around the next turn. I'm sure Dashner took some of his inspiration from the Labyrinth in the Greek myths, just as Riordan and Collins did for some of their series but I liked the way Dashner portrayed the maze as not something to get through, but something to escape because the Gladers are stuck in the middle of it and don't have to travel through it to get to another destination.

Genius. Stunning.

If I did have any complaints with this book, I would have to call out Thomas for asking so many questions that he just could have waited to ask!! And the fact that interrupts and doesn't keep silent when people are trying to explain things to him. Oh well. I'm nit-picking.

But seriously, go read this book before you watch the movie. Because although the movie is pretty great (though they took some creative license that I condone to an extent) with a stellar cast playing the Gladers, the book is where the magic starts.

I am the Messenger By: Markus Zusak

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• Title: I am the Messenger
• Author: Markus Zusak
• Publisher: Alfred A. Knopf Borzoi Books
• Publication Date: May 9, 2006
• Pages: 360
• Genre: Fiction, Young Adult
• Recommended Age: 15+
• First Read: 2014
• Source: Library
• Rating: 5.0 / 5.0 stars

So this was me, reading I am the Messenger for the first time: 

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Needless to say, Markus Zusak blew me away. To the moon. To Mars. To the next galaxy.

The book starts out innocently enough, with Ed Kennedy as a deadbeat cabdriver, hopelessly in love with his best friend, and living with an ancient dog, the Doorman. His life has been an endless cycle of card games and dead ends.

But then Ed casually stops a bank robbery.

And then he receives the first card in the mail.

And that's when Ed becomes the messenger, going around town, becoming the (not so perfect) guardian angel of his little Australian town. But as he delivers his messages around town, Ed cannot help but wonder: Who's behind his mission?

Zuzak's language is poetic without being flowery because it speaks directly to the human soul and I cannot help but fall into it every time I read one of his books. The magic that this story weaves is even more magical than if the author had included glass slippers because he is able to transform a young man who is the "epitome of ordinary" and urge him to change people's lives. I just fell in love with Ed, flaws and all because he didn't have any magic powers, was not particularly attractive, nor was particularly smart, at least in the bookish sense. The fact that he was just a regular guy trying to find his place in the world and picked out to care about the lives of others was perfect.

It's extremely difficult to write a review about this book because no box will ever contain just how "marvelous" this book was because it encompasses so many themes-of love, acceptance, joy, and loss- without being preachy or cliched. There's a simpleness to the way this book is told that deals with such complex themes that both breaks my heart and gives me faith in humanity at the same time.

Ed will take you on an adventure, and all you have to do is get in the back seat of his cab.

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The Secrets of Montresor By: Michael Stolle

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• Title: The Secrets of Montresor (The French Orphan #2)
• Author: Michael Stolle
• Publisher: Createspace
• Publication Date: November 27, 2012
• Pages: 298
• Genre: Historical Fiction
• Recommended Age: 15+
• First Read: 2013
• Source: Goodreads Giveaway
• Rating: 4.0 / 5.0 stars

Overall, I quite thought this book was an interesting and fun historical fiction read. The details are very loosely based on actual history, with a great amount of creative filling in with details. The book started out pretty slow and lagged some places, but overall, it was an interesting read. If one really likes getting into the details of 17th century life, then this is the book for them, but I feel that more impatient readers would tire of the details quickly. But I liked the details and the richness that it lent to the overall plot of the story.

The blurb of the book promised a continuation of Pierre's journey as the author sort of left the reader hanging in the first book, but if readers were hoping for a quick ending to the quest that Pierre was promised, then they will be a little disappointed. This book really focuses on Pierre's misadventures as he continues on his journey, mostly at his newly acquired chateau of Montresor, as the book is aptly named. A large part of the book is concentrated at the chateau, but eventually it moves on, picking up the pace of the book once again. I felt that the blurb was a little misleading because the true quest that was alluded to in the first book is not really described in depth again until the last fifty or so pages of the book. But I guess that is what a third book is for, right?

With the adventure and historical context, of course comes the romance associated with France, nobility, and rich teenage boys in 17th century Europe. The romance in this book is not overwhelming, but does add a nice little subplot to the overall themes of the book. It is adorable, and at times on the border of scandalous to 21st century eyes, but is authentic to the atmosphere of the book. Armand especially, would be the nightmare of most fathers today: a dashing, charming, and short attention spanned young man.

I did like this book, though it got a little long sometimes. But I am extremely glad that I finally finished it, after receiving the book quite some time ago! I await the third installment of Pierre and Armand's adventures!