Kelsey's Classics 2 (Actually another YA Book Recommendation)

Okay so I realized that just because I was reading a non- YA book didn't mean I had to stop posting and I kind of missed going on and on about stuff only I care about so here I am.
My favorite book hands down is "Looking for Alaska" by John Green who is my favorite author. I aspire to be him when I grow up. "Looking for Alaska" is a book about grief and having to live with unanswerable questions and falling in love. The last part isn't actually a gigantic theme but it is in the story.
John has a real knack for writing interesting and complex female characters and Alaska Young is the epitome of those things. I love her so much my cat is named after her. Most of the time I feel like authors write female characters that every guy falls in love with and I'm like WHY???? Like in "Twilight" almost every guy in the book Bella's age wanted her and I couldn't for the life of me figure out why. She seemed boring and uninteresting to me. This shit irritates me when I'm reading a YA book because it happens a lot but not with Alaska. She made the people around her want to know more and kept them guessing without really trying. I understood the attraction.
John also embodies what I love most about YA writing which is its simplicity. I think regular adult fiction writers try too hard with their language to make it unique or try to make themselves sound smart by using obscure words. The beauty of YA is that they don't try to do that. There's a certain beauty in the simplicity of the language that makes you focus on the figurative language. If that makes sense. I guess I just mean they don't use big words or go on long spiels describing things.
But anyway "Looking for Alaska" holds a special place in my heart and I think you should give it a chance to make a home in yours too.

Some Can Touch This ("Shatter Me" Part 2)

Guess what? Okay, I'll tell you. I finished "Shatter Me" earlier and I don't think I've had this much to say about a book. I feel like I have to say there may be spoilers at the beginning of all of my posts but it feels redundant sigh. Anyway LET'S GET STARTED
Okay, once again I'm going to try to not include too much of the plot. Let's just say Juliette and Adam have been on quite the journey. Also I want to say that if there is a love triangle (Juliette, Adam, and Warner) I will be very frustrated. Is it too much to ask for there not to be a love triangle in a YA series???
Also be warned Juliette and Adam like want to bang all the time. Whenever they're around each other, which is most of the time, they can't keep their hands to themselves. Goddamn teenagers.
Besides the repetition I mentioned in my previous post there were some other things about the structure (?) of this book that I find troubling. I personally don't feel connected to any of the characters. Except maybe Juliette. I can't really identify why but I think it could be that there isn't enough dialogue. I know that Warner is a terrible guy but mostly because Juliette tells me so. I don't know what it is but I feel a disconnect. It also could be because there hasn't been a face put to this Reestablishment group mentioned. And we haven't gotten a real good look at the outside world that is in such shambles. The only real evidence we have of that is when Juliette and Adam go to his house where Adam's little brother James lives.
I'm so torn because this story is very very interesting and I definitely plan on seeing it through. We'll see if I get more invested in the next book.
Just so anyone who actually reads my posts knows, I'm planning on taking a break from YA for a little while which means I won't be posting for a bit. These books may be included in a non YA book recommendation post in the future but for now I'm going to go back to my one true Adult Fiction love (Stephen King <3333). Until next time!

Can't Touch This ("Shatter Me" Part 1)

"Shatter Me" thus far has been quite perplexing but enjoyable. You know the drill, I'm half way through blah blah blah it's time to sit for a chat blah blah blah spoilers blah blah blah okay LET'S GET THIS SHOW ON THE ROAD (what does that even mean).
"Shatter Me" is a dystopian novel by Tahereh Mafi that centers around a girl named Juliette. When we first meet Juliette she's locked up in an insane asylum basically and she's getting assigned a roommate which wtf roommates??? Who are both crazy??? Anyway. Which is when we meet Adam, a boy who is from Juliette's childhood. I believe they're both supposed to be 17. Ugh okay so I'm going to try REALLY hard not to include spoilers even though I want to. Because I do find the basic storyline, plot, idea or whatever you want to call it for this book very interesting.
HOWEVER (yes, it's a big however) the language in this book, I feel, gets a bit repetitive which sometimes is the point. There are parts where she literally repeats the same phrase or word three or more times in one sentence I guess because we're in Juliette's head and people repeat stuff in their head I suppose. But that's not the repetition that bothers me. The author describes some things multiple times (like Adam's eyes) and uses the same words or metaphors and sometimes uses cliche figurative language (like that his eyes are blue and deep like the ocean). So because of this sometimes I feel like yelling I GET IT HE HAS DARK BLUE EYES.
But at the same time, at least when I first started reading the book, I found the language to be very poetic and quite beautiful. So maybe she found a few metaphors or phrases that worked off the bat and is kind of beating them to death with the bat. Idk that's just the feeling I'm getting the more I read the book.
Don't get me wrong, I'm enjoying "Shatter Me" very much. I'm not really sure why but I am.
Oh, I forgot to mention for some reason Juliette can't touch anyone or it kills them. She basically drains their life force and absorbs it. That's kind of important to the story.
Side note: when you type dystopian it tries to correct it to Utopian. Idk I find that interesting I'm weird okay bye.

WAH WAH WAH ("Where She Went" Part 2)

I finished "Where She Went" last night but I'm trying to not be too overbearing so I held off as long as I could on posting about it. But I feel like I might explode if I don't get to talk about this book so HERE WE GO also please assume there will be spoilers  okay great.

Omfg I don't even know where to start. I absolutely loved, as I said in my previous post, that "Where She Went" is from Adam's perspective. It was the perfect way to continue the story but make it new in a way. I believe these two books can be read separately and enjoyed individually. 

Ugh I don't even have words for how this books ends. I really don't want to tell you what happens but I think I have to. So we finally find out what happened to Mia and why she cut Adam out. She had to work through some shit without him which is totally understandable. I can forgive her for keeping Adam on her hook since she didn't exactly do it on purpose. Ugh I just have to stay it THEY GET BACK TOGETHER!!!! AND SHE'S THE ONE WHO BOUGHT HIS GUITAR!!!! Okay there I got it out. 

I'm just so happy it didn't end how I thought it would. The author kind of leads the reader to believe that Mia is just trying to give Adam the explanation he deserves. Adam thinks she's trying to give him closure. But we find out that she's been keeping tabs on him. After working through all of her anger she missed him and wanted him back but didn't feel like she deserved him. But yay happy endings.

If you're a sucker for love and happy endings then you're kind of required to read these books I'm sorry. 

UP NEXT: "Shatter Me" (which I think is part of a series but I'm not sure) by Tahereh Mafi

I hate being right :( ("Where She Went" Part 1)

Sigh sigh sigh so I started "Where She Went" and am about half way through. Let's discuss how we don't always get what we want. At this point if you're not weary of spoilers then idk there's probably no hope for you. LET'S GO
Reading the back of the book told me I was right in my predictions for what happens to Mia and Adam although obviously not exactly how I thought. Mia goes to Julliard. Adam's band takes off. They grow apart as people do. What's so tragic about this is that it wasn't mutual. Mia grew into New York and her new life and for seemingly no explanation doesn't include Adam. He tries desperately to hold onto Mia until it's painfully obvious she's already let him go.
Since this one is told through Adam's perspective (which I like) we don't really totally know where Mia is at. We know that Adam is not doing as well as the public might think. That Mia cutting him out didn't leave him unscathed. We know that Mia graduated early from Julliard and is starting a tour and that she may or may not be dating a big shot in the Classical Community.
This book makes me so sad. I think one of the saddest things that can happen is two people going through hell just to become strangers.
Sigh but hopefully, as "If I Stay" did, this one will have a more hopeful ending.

THANK GOD ("If I Stay" Part 2)

Or whoever that I was totally right as usual (just kidding kind of).  I tore through this book like a bacon cheeseburger and just finished "If I Stay" which is by Gayle Forman I don't think I mentioned that in my previous post about this book. Without further adieu, let's commence the fangirling.

Ugh I'm having so much trouble trying to put into words why I loved this book so much. I guess I loved how obviously it's dealing with dark and tragic topics like death and loss but remains hopeful and beautiful in the end. Like it's so awful and horrifying that Mia lost her parents and little brother. That alone is traumatizing. But while in this "here but not here" state that she's in she's reminded that she hasn't lost everything, that her life can still go on. She just has to want it.

Adam's little plea to her at the end where he asks her to stay omfg  GO AWAY TOO MUCH LOVE. It was so nice to see their love develop in a way that felt organic. It wasn't love at first sight or perfect like YA lit can sometimes portray young love. The only thing that was perfect about Mia and Adam was that they fit together and once they did there was no pulling them apart.

UNLESS SHE BREAKS THEM UP IN THE SEQUEL OMFG I'm so scared to read "Where She Went" because I'm guessing Mia goes to Julliard and Adam's band does their thing and sigh stupid fictional life getting in the way of fictional love. 

 But I guess I'll find out and report back with my findings. 

If I Can Stop Reading This Book ("If I Stay" Part 1)

Okay so I know you're probably getting sick of me (3 posts so quickly?? who am i??) But I'm halfway through "If I Stay" (and, spoiler alert, loving it) and am itching to gush so LET'S GO! Oh, wait, be careful of spoilers I may or may not include blah blah blah okay now LET'S GO
Alright so I actually wasn't super excited for this book. I guess I didn't want to get excited about something that had a bit of hype surrounding it. I was pleasantly surprised to find its exceeded my expectations.
This story, so far, has reminded me why I love young adult fiction. It's so much more than teen romance. Young adult literature tackles tough issues like death and broken homes and grief (I could go on forever probably) in a unique way and sigh I feel reinvigorated.
I love how Mia's family is depicted. It sounds so idealic to me to have parents like hers. It almost seemed too perfect but the author did include Mia's insecurity with not feeling like she belongs in her family which was a nice balance.
Also omfg ADAM. That little scene where he asks her to play him like a cello was so sweet and I loved it. He also seems a little too perfect but aren't they all?
Now I know the whole point of the book is that she has to decide if she wants to go be with her parents in whatever is after this life or stay and be with Adam and (maybe) her little brother. Since there's a second book I'm guessing she decides to live. But we'll see.
I'm rushing through this book so you'll probably hear from me again shortly.
Also I just realized I only have 100 pages to go. Oops.

"One to save the world, one to destroy it." ("The Enchantress" Part 2)

Welp I just finally ended my journey with Josh and Sophie Newman and sigh I suppose it's time to reminisce and what not. Beware of spoilers that may or may not be included in this post.
Okay so I don't remember a whole lot of the entire series but enough that this series coming to a close kind of makes me sad in a nostalgic way like Harry Potter except not as intense. I started this series when I was 17 and remember becoming so fascinated by all these new things I was learning through storytelling. I honestly believe "The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel" has the potential to be held up against Harry Potter. It is as deeply complex and comes full circle in the same way. Ugh it's so beautiful I want to puke.
Now I absolutely recommend these books but there are some things you should be aware of before delving. There are a lot of characters. Like "Game of Thrones" amount (okay maybe not that many) and if you have a bad memory like me you might get confused sometimes. And, as I said in my last post about this book, the author includes a lot of obscure and not so obscure lore and mythology which you don't necessarily need to know but definitely enhances your reading experience if you do. Ugh and let me just say I thought I was going to be insanely heartbroken by the end of this book. So many people were dying and it looked like the "twins" would be separated. But it's not all doom and gloom thankfully.
What I'm trying to say is this a beautiful series that will probably make you smarter. Just saying.

I know I'm late to the party but "If I Stay" is next from my bookshelf.

The Series for Smart People ("The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel: The Enchantress" Part 1)

Welp I'm halfway through "The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel: The Enchantress" so let's have a chat. If you're into that kind of thing. here's the standard warning of spoilers that may or may not be in this post HERE WE GOOOO

Alright just so y'all know this is another series that I started many moons ago and am just now getting around to finishing. I'm a big ole lazy pants so I didn't re-read the previous books as a refresher as I should have done. I had to get reacquainted with the characters and the story which wasn't as easy as it was with the previous book I read. This one has six books in it and I'm on the last one so there was quite a bit I had to remember. 

The story centers around twins (I think they're 15. I'm not sure if that's relevant.) Sophie and Josh who get thrown into a mythical and magical world that's been in existence forever basically. The author of this series, Michael Scott, is like an expert in mythology and folklore and is a super smarty pants and it definitely shows in these books. I remember having to look up a bunch of shit while reading them (stuff I've since forgotten sigh). He used mythical characters already in existence to create a very interesting and complex story. As my title suggests, this is not a light read. Don't get me wrong, it's not "Lord of the Rings" or anything but it's probably as close as you can get with a YA series. 

I would try and explain a bit more of the plot but honestly I don't think I could do it justice. Like it deals with magic in the elements and alchemy(hence the inclusion of Nicholas Flamel as a character) and different worlds (called shadowrealms) and different time lines and powerful old creatures. Idk I think it's super cool.