Book Review – ‘Slide’ by Jill Hathaway

Interesting.

Genre: Y/A, Paranormal, Mystery

No. of pages: 250

From Goodreads:

Vee Bell is certain of one irrefutable truth–her sister’s friend Sophie didn’t kill herself. She was murdered.

Vee knows this because she was there. Everyone believes Vee is narcoleptic, but she doesn’t actually fall asleep during these episodes: When she passes out, she slides into somebody else’s mind and experiences the world through that person’s eyes. She’s slid into her sister as she cheated on a math test, into a teacher sneaking a drink before class. She learned the worst about a supposed “friend” when she slid into her during a school dance. But nothing could have prepared Vee for what happens one October night when she slides into the mind of someone holding a bloody knife, standing over Sophie’s slashed body.

Vee desperately wishes she could share her secret, but who would believe her? It sounds so crazy that she can’t bring herself to tell her best friend, Rollins, let alone the police. Even if she could confide in Rollins, he has been acting distant lately, especially now that she’s been spending more time with Zane.

Enmeshed in a terrifying web of secrets, lies, and danger and with no one to turn to, Vee must find a way to unmask the killer before he or she strikes again.

I really enjoyed this book, but there was something about it that felt juvenile and incomplete. This is a short novel, but I really had to force myself to read it at times… and others, I couldn’t put it down. The pacing is all over the place.

I can’t help but compare it to the ‘Wake’ trilogy by Lisa McMann. The same concept, similar characters (but less profanity.) Where the Wake trilogy was gritty, dark with flawed characters, ‘Slide’ was light, easily read, and skimmed around the edges of the difficult. It could have been so much more gripping, but the author did not take us down these dark alleys, favouring an after-school-special feel.

Sylvia “Vee” was a likeable character for our protagonist, her inner musings relate to the thoughts all of us have through the torturous teen years. I’m not sure if she was meant to come off as grungy or emo with chipped black fingernails and pink hair, but none of that came through in the narrative. She was more Katy Perry and Avril Lavigne.

It still astounds me that she did not even attempt to speak to an adult, whether it be her father or a police officer when faced with the seriousness of a murder of someone close to her. And with the events that happened after that, it’s a wonder she was even able to function. Especially since she was eating caffeine pills like candy – do you have any idea what those things do to your body and brain chemistry with long-term use? It lost the magic and realism from that point.

While I loved the mystery of this storyline, and the pacing finally being sorted out in the second half of the novel – there was too much wrong with it contextually. Facts that should have been researched. Maybe this should have been set in an alternate universe to give a better, more impactful setting for the novel to take place.

I really loved Sylvia’s younger sister Mattie – how she behaved and coped with the shock of her friend’s death. That was painted so realistically that I just about applauded. Two thumbs up.

Zane as the leather jacket clad best friend (and outsider) was a little cliché. At least he wasn’t brooding or controlling or overly jealous. He was right on the cusp of me rolling my eyes. On the whole, I like him, but there was no stand out attraction to his character. I felt there could have been a bigger altercation between him and Sylvia so we could see what he was made of.

Sylvia’s Dad – NOW let me do an eyeroll! He annoyed me from start to finish. That’s all I’m going to say, not only to avoid spoilers, but to stop me from devolving into a massive and unflattering rant…

One thing that really annoyed me is that every time Sylvia did her thing, sliding into someone’s head, it always seemed to be at the exact right moment for her to grab a clue to the mystery she was trying to work out. It is a kind of surveillance right? What happened to those times where the subject was doing nothing of consequence? It felt too convenient for me. Detective work is a lot of long hours researching and waiting for something to turn up. Sylvia had all of the clues handed to her. *face palm*

I was waiting to find out about the mythology of Sylvia’s ability, or even her theories as to how she came to have this ability, but there was nada. I do like how she finally started to embrace it and begin to get a modicum of control. That was pretty cool.

For me to give it a higher rating it would need a few tweaks, a dash of tension and angst and about a hundred pages longer to explore the themes and mythology. Maybe it gets touched on in the second novel ‘Impostor,’ but guessing from the title, it may just be another light mystery.

I’m on the fence about whether I’d recommend this, with so many other engaging books out there, it’s not a big miss. But I’ll reserve judgement until I read the second instalment to see if it can sway my opinion either way.

Overall feeling: Of two minds

© Casey Carlisle 2017. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Casey Carlisle with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

Book Review – Gone by Lisa McMann

Bringing new meaning to sleeping your life away.

Genre: Y/A, Fantasy, Paranormal

No. of pages: 214

From Goodreads:

Things should be great for Janie—she has graduated from high school and is spending her summer with Cabel, the guy she’s totally in love with. But deep down she’s panicking about how she’s going to survive her future when getting sucked into other people’s dreams is really starting to take its toll.
Things get even more complicated when she meets her father for the very first time—and he’s in a coma. As Janie uncovers his secret past, she begins to realize that the choice thought she had has more dire consequences than she ever imagined. 

It took me a while to pick up this final book in the Wake Trilogy… mainly because, even though I enjoyed the first two books, I wasn’t all that invested in the story. That, and I wasn’t sure if this conclusion would do the series any justice.

Well, ‘Gone’ totally blew my expectations away.

I enjoyed this much more than the other two – maybe because there was less forced lexicon to connect with the YA audience, maybe because it wasn’t so over the top, or maybe because a lot of questions got answered. It has been two years since I read the previous novel, ‘Fade,’ and I think the break did me some good.

There is always plenty of action and controversy in these novels. And yes, the writing style annoyed me, but ‘Gone’ was better in all accounts in comparison to the previous two instalments.

I enjoy the bitter-sweet of this series – how Janie’s ability comes at a cost, and she has to weigh her conscious over whether to use it for good, bad or try and supress it. It gives her an inner strength that I really respect. In the start of the series, Cabel was continually coming to her rescue, but by this book, they were in more of a symbiotic, equal relationship.

I have a love/hate affection with this series. The premise is great, but the writing style, juvenile; and some of the mechanics in the plot a little too convenient or fantastic. The mythology of Janie’s ability is organic, and I loved how it is spread throughout all three books, and some questions don’t really get answers, although we get some resolution in Janie’s acceptance of her fate.

The real crux that lifted this book above the rest for me was that there is more character development and spiritual dilemma, moving away from the action/conspiracy centred story lines in the start of the series.

While not an outstanding novel, it provides a satisfactory culmination to Janie’s predicament, and we really get to see her shine. A great fast paced read with a paranormal twist.

Overall feeling: Yes!

© Casey Carlisle 2015. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Casey Carlisle with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

Book Review – ‘Fade’ by Lisa McMann

Falling asleep was the least of my worries…

Genre: Y/A, Paranormal, Mystery, Romance

No. of pages: 248

From Goodreads:

SOME NIGHTMARES NEVER END.

For Janie and Cabel, real life is getting tougher than the dreams. They’re just trying to carve out a little (secret) time together, but no such luck.

Disturbing things are happening at Fieldridge High, yet nobody’s talking. When Janie taps into a classmate’s violent nightmares, the case finally breaks open — but nothing goes as planned. Not even close. Janie’s in way over her head, and Cabe’s shocking behavior has grave consequences for them both.

Worse yet, Janie learns the truth about herself and her ability — and it’s bleak. Seriously, brutally bleak. Not only is her fate as a dream catcher sealed, but what’s to come is way darker than she’d feared….

Fade surpassed Wake in bucket loads for me – more action, more mythology about Janie’s ability, and more Cabel yumminess!

The pretence of walking through other people’s dreams fascinated me, and the fact that Janie could use it in a way to read people’s minds was even better. Uncovering more about her ability and folklore behind it equally grabbed my attention, and was glad we got to explore Janie’s special talents further than in Wake.

Janie has really embraced her power in this sequel – both physically and supernaturally – combining to match her already established mental strength from Wake. It was excellent to see a character in a book give a big dose of proactive behaviour.

We see her embrace her situation –claim her power. Not only her gift, but train her body to its peak performance… even when faced with inevitable disability. It’s this kind of fighting spirit that kept me reading.

Cabel really is the James Dean of McMann’s world. He had undeniable swagger and maturity that leaps off the page. The way he is there foe Janie is amazing. Despite the failings (for me) with the language and writing style, the romance of these two characters outshines any of that to bring this book home.

We deal with some more controversial topics in this instalment, like its predecessor, and at its heart Fade is like a detective novel.

Extremely fast read, colourful language (as in the first instalment) and each arc in the storyline is explored thoroughly. I may have rated Fade higher if it weren’t for Lisa McMann’s writing style – for personal preference, short abrupt sentences and throwing in slang and superlatives may give it a ‘young’ and edgy feel, but it kept dragging me from the story.

Overall reaction: Well, that was unexpected…

    

© Casey Carlisle 2015. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Casey Carlisle with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

Book Review – Wake

From Goodreads:

For seventeen-year-old Janie, getting sucked into other people’s dreams is getting old. Especially the falling dreams, the naked-but-nobody-notices dreams, and the sex-crazed dreams. Janie’s seen enough fantasy booty to last her a lifetime.

She can’t tell anybody about what she does they’d never believe her, or worse, they’d think she’s a freak. So Janie lives on the fringe, cursed with an ability she doesn’t wand and can’t control.

Then she falls into a gruesome nightmare, one that chills her to the bone. For the first time, Janie is more than a witness to someone else’s twisted psyche. She is a participant.

This is a weird little book that quite frankly, I loved to bits. Its premise is unusual, lending to an original storyline. The main characters are flawed in that anti-hero way, giving depth to what could have turned out to be a disaster.

If I wanted to get technical and pick this book to pieces, you probably wouldn’t read it, but judged solely on its entertainment value, it rates high on my metre. Yes, the language is choppy and reads like a teen girls journal (but that is the target market right?) and some of the plot points a little unrealistic; but it is a fantasy, so you need to roll with the punches.

‘Wake’ was a very quick read – I completed it in one night. Its style is quite abrupt and in your face, so don’t expect an eloquent tale of a reluctant hero. I hate to say, but it almost feels like a first draft, where you are scrambling to get down the story before an edit to have it flowing properly. Having said that, I feel the writing style adds to the ambience and subject matter. As Janie, the main character, is pulled in and out of consciousness, so is the reader.

I can’t say I predicted the direction of this novel all that expertly, and it felt as clunky as the writing, and often dwelled in that ‘after-school-special’ feeling with some of the topics thrown in the storyline. Given all these faults, ‘Wake’ still captured my imagination.

Janie’s narration, and her living situation were a little difficult to relate to. I know in YA books the parents aren’t that present, but it felt unrealistic in this case and had me glancing sideways at times thinking ‘Oh brother!’

Cabel, the new guy (well, re-invented) and Janie have this “come here, no, go away relationship,” which was annoying, but managed to pay off at the conclusion of the novel. I’m still not certain I wholly liked the development of these two, but I think it came down the writing style of Lisa McMann, rather than the plot. If you can get past the slips of realism they are actually a cute and complimentary pair.

Carrie, Janie’s rebellious best friend brings some great colour (and language), although their friendship felt more like it was out of convenience than some deep connection. Nonetheless she is a great voice of reason in the novel and is one of my favourite characters.

I would still recommend this read, such an imaginative premise, dealing with complicated and taboo issues unabashedly. Being such a quick read I can overlook some of the issues I had about its style (hence 3 kisses instead of 2) and jumped into the second instalment of this series, ‘Fade,’ soon after. (I will say I enjoyed this sequel far better – be sure to keep an eye out for that review!)

A good little read when you have insomnia :p

   

© Casey Carlisle 2014. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Casey Carlisle with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.