Top Ten Books I Thought I'd Like MORE/LESS Than I Did

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Books I Thought I'd Like More 

 1. The Ask and The Answer by Patrick Ness - It reminded me too much of Mockingjay, which I unfortunately read first so reading the former felt like more like a rerun and it's original tale's uniqueness somewhat lost it's luster. Coin = Coyle; Snow = Prentiss; Rebels (Districts) vs Town (Capitol).(But the third book, Monsters of Men, I loved! It was amazing!)

 2. Matched and Crossed by Ally Condie - I did enjoy the lyrical dialogues for the most parts and also characters like Indie, Vik, and Eli were welcome additions in the second book. But it was just quite too sleepy for my taste. Some more action scenes would have made me like it more.

 3. Why We Broke Up by Danile Handler - Only because I could not relate to the story. But it was well written, very earnest. And I loved the illustrations.

 4. Fire by Kristin Cashore - Characters and dialogue were a bit too soap opera-dramatic for me. I liked Graceling and Bitterblue better.

 5. The Lover's Dictionary by David Levithan - Adored Levithan's Dash and Lily's so I picked Lover's Dictionary as my second Levithan. But I did not quite love it as much, only because I couldn't relate since I lack experience on the matter of relationships and breakups.  (Same reason as no.3 entry) Hee Hee. 

 6. Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger - Read this 3x in the hopes that I'll get it. And after the 3rd reading, still no great shakes. It's was an okay reading experience but it isn't something I truly adore, like my sister does.

 7. Divergent by Veronica Roth - Based on the premise of the story, this is something I would really love. Although it is action-packed and fast-paced. But after reading it, I did not get the thought provoking questions about society and life and mankind and the future, like the other dystopian reads I've had. It was also quite hard for me to grasp the idea of humans only cultivating one value more than the others.

Books I Thought I'd Like LESS

 1. Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky - Another one of those YA books that I felt I was just too old for. But I am glad I went ahead and read it because it one of my best contemporary reads. The story is not limited to a certain age group really.

 2. Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver - Initially, I thought that a story featuring mean girls would not sit well with me but it turned out differently. Love the whole "groundhog day" premise. It's a great story about identity and redemption and friendships.

 3. Northern Light by Jennifer Donnely - I thought I will get bored by this but it I was surprised by how much it was a page turner for me despite it being a historical YA set way back in the 1900s. One of my best reads last year.

 4. In Hero Years...I'm Dead by Michael Stockpole - This is my best superhero novel read to date. Love the world building and the tastefully done parody to famous comic book superheroes.

 5. Bud not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis - I never thought I'd enjoy a historical middle grade read this much. But I did. It's a wonderful coming of age tale, plus the dialogues are hilarious.

6. Under the Never Sky by Veronica Rossi - After not liking two dystopian reads that much, I was quite determined that this one would follow suit. But it did not turned out too bad after all. The story and world building was quite good, the characters were not bad too.

Comments

  1. UnknownApril 23, 2013 at 6:44 AM

    I didn't know if I'd like Under the Never Sky either, and it's now one of my favorite dystopian series ever.

    TTT at Krista's Dust Jacket

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. TinApril 23, 2013 at 7:57 PM

      Under the Never Sky came quite a surprise really, in a good way. I haven't had the chance to read the second installment though. Have you?

      Thanks for dropping by Krista! I will be sure to check out your list.

      Delete
  2. UnknownApril 23, 2013 at 1:30 PM

    I loved A Northern Light! It's one of my favorite historical novels. I hated Matched - the pacing was just wrong. Under the Never Sky took some time to get used to, but once I did, it was great.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. TinApril 23, 2013 at 8:11 PM

      I'm glad you loved A Northern Light! I adored Mattie and Weaver. Matched really could have used some speeding up and action. And at the start of Under the Never Sky, I wasn't quite keen on it as well. But I'm glad I went ahead with it because it presents an interesting concept, an ultramodern world existing side by side with a primitive/tribal one.

      I'm going to head on over and see your list Becca! :)

      Delete
  3. marieApril 24, 2013 at 7:01 AM

    I've been hesitant to read Matched. I haven't heard many good things about the book, so I've skipped it every time I've seen it on the shelves at the library. I really did have high hopes for it after the first time I saw the cover, I thought it looked awesome!

    I really fell in love with Divergent and the characters, but I didn't like Insurgent as much. I'm just a bit obsessed with the dystopian genre. I might have to look into Under the Never Sky. =)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. TinApril 24, 2013 at 7:01 PM

      Hi Marie! I agree, the cover of Matched does look pretty cool, but sadly the book itself fell a bit short for me.

      If you are into dystopian lit, have you tried the Chaos Walking Trilogy by Patrick Ness? It's one of my favorites. I also think you'll like Under the Never Sky. It depicts an ultramodern world existing side by side a primitive/tribal one. :)

      Delete
  4. UnknownApril 24, 2013 at 5:41 PM

    I have Before I Fall sitting on my shelf, unread. I've heard so many wonderful things about it, and I need to pick it up soon!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. TinApril 24, 2013 at 7:05 PM

      Hi Emma Lee! You should pick it up soon! I find that it's a little different from most of the contemporary YAs I've read, what with the idea of reliving the same day of your life 7x over. :)

      Delete

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