So this series starts off with a new concept with dragons and riders... if you watched the Eragon movie you didn't miss much. I think what impresses me the most is that Chris was just a teenager when he wrote Eragon. I think this is good teenage reading.
Good in that, it didn't make me want to puke, it actually had a plot, and wasn't completely predictable.
Chris really hits his stride in the following books. The plot only gets better and more interesting. The originality of the dragon background and exposition is great. While I did find some characters boring and read through their parts as fast as possible to get to the good stuff, I understood why it was in there.
I would suggest this for a good teenage sci-fi read when you don't have a mind-blowing book available. These books were good reads but they were not "Omg, i have to finish this and find out what happens next" books.
Cross reference like-ability: I like the John Flanagan Series better, but if you liked the Ranger's apprentice Series then you would like this series.
Sunday, January 20, 2013
Wednesday, January 2, 2013
Beautiful Creatures... ugly reading
So I decide to read Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia after seeing the preview in the theater for the movie.
The movie looks decent enough although obviously targeted to a younger audience than myself. However, even if I was a teenage girl, I would still be disappointed in this book. It tried way too hard to be meaningful and came out flat and cheesy.
First off, it's written from the point of view of the sixteen year old guy... uh... no... just no. Listening to a guy decide whether or not he is in love or one of the 'cool kids' at school will make you want to puke. Making a guy give all the details a teenage girl would want is wrong.
Take 'I Am Number Four'... written from the point of view of a guy... doesn't make me want to hurl. Maybe because the author IS a guy and knows how to write in that style.
The plot also sucks. So this young 'Caster' (aka witch) girl will either go light or dark when she turns sixteen. Doesn't seem like she has a choice. So 95% of the book is her agonizing over it and wanting to be a normal girl. Again, don't ask me why the author chose the boy to be the narrator. Then in an "Oh My God I totally saw that Coming" way, it turns out she might have a choice or be able to decide on her own. This all happens in about one page and is delivered in a very lame way.
The book has a sucky ending too which I guess is supposed to leave room for a sequel. I won't be reading it.
This book actually made me mad at the author. There is a quote from Martin Luther King, Jr. in the front about hate, love, light and dark. I'm pretty sure MLK would never have read this drivel or endorsed it.
It's as if the author wanted to comment on prejudice and hate in a high school setting (seriously?) while putting sci-fi and romance in there as well. Maybe if she stuck to one or even two themes the novel wouldn't have been a horribly messy disappointment. Or maybe the author should get counseling about their high school years before writing a book.
Cross reference like-ability: If you thought the Twilight series was too deep and didn't have enough social and emotional drama, this is the book for you. Or if you are a 12 girl who has no idea that boys don't really think about their feelings 24/7.
The movie looks decent enough although obviously targeted to a younger audience than myself. However, even if I was a teenage girl, I would still be disappointed in this book. It tried way too hard to be meaningful and came out flat and cheesy.
First off, it's written from the point of view of the sixteen year old guy... uh... no... just no. Listening to a guy decide whether or not he is in love or one of the 'cool kids' at school will make you want to puke. Making a guy give all the details a teenage girl would want is wrong.
Take 'I Am Number Four'... written from the point of view of a guy... doesn't make me want to hurl. Maybe because the author IS a guy and knows how to write in that style.
The plot also sucks. So this young 'Caster' (aka witch) girl will either go light or dark when she turns sixteen. Doesn't seem like she has a choice. So 95% of the book is her agonizing over it and wanting to be a normal girl. Again, don't ask me why the author chose the boy to be the narrator. Then in an "Oh My God I totally saw that Coming" way, it turns out she might have a choice or be able to decide on her own. This all happens in about one page and is delivered in a very lame way.
The book has a sucky ending too which I guess is supposed to leave room for a sequel. I won't be reading it.
This book actually made me mad at the author. There is a quote from Martin Luther King, Jr. in the front about hate, love, light and dark. I'm pretty sure MLK would never have read this drivel or endorsed it.
It's as if the author wanted to comment on prejudice and hate in a high school setting (seriously?) while putting sci-fi and romance in there as well. Maybe if she stuck to one or even two themes the novel wouldn't have been a horribly messy disappointment. Or maybe the author should get counseling about their high school years before writing a book.
Cross reference like-ability: If you thought the Twilight series was too deep and didn't have enough social and emotional drama, this is the book for you. Or if you are a 12 girl who has no idea that boys don't really think about their feelings 24/7.
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