Time Bomb by Joelle Charbonneau

Time Bomb by Joelle Charbonneau

Published: March 13th 2018 by HMH Books for Young Readers

A congressman’s daughter who has to be perfect. A star quarterback with a secret. A guy who’s tired of being ignored. A clarinet player who’s done trying to fit in. An orphaned rebel who wants to teach someone a lesson. A guy who wants people to see him, not his religion.

They couldn’t be more different, but before the morning’s over, they’ll all be trapped in a school that’s been rocked by a bombing. When they hear that someone inside is the bomber, they’ll also be looking to one another for answers.

This book was one of my highly anticipated releases of March. Especially with whats currently going on with #MarchForOurLives, I was excited to see how the author tackles this subject. However, I found this book to be extremely predictable and too stereotypical to have really added anything to the current discussion. I felt that this book should have been much more complex than it was in so many ways than it was and it was just left lacking .

My biggest issue with this book was just how stereotypical all of our main players were. There was no real depth to any of the characters beyond their stereotypes and some of the characters really don’t change or take ANYTHING from the experience they went through and shared. The author did include a diverse set of characters – but they needed to be fleshed out and developed beyond the social stereotypes and the predictable secrets that they were holding onto. From Jocks who are in the closet, to a congressman daughter who feels like she is trapped being a person that she doesn’t want to be, to a teen who ha lost his mum and hates the whole world (and the friend he has who is trying to save him from himself), to the muslim who is IMMEDIATELY blamed for the situation without proof and the student who is bullied to the point of suicide – the characters are a wide cast of different people, but I wanted to get to know them on a deeper level and not just for their ‘secrets’.

I feel like this book tried to introduce too many social issues and didn’t actually talk about them in any great detail. I would have rather the book focused on 1 or 2 and had actually discussed them in depth, as opposed to touching on various and not bringing anything to the bigger discussion. I also liked the fact that Charbonneau introduced a political aspect with the legislation that Diana’s father was trying to pass (I don’t want to spoil it), but, again, I think it could have been discussed on a larger and deeper scale in a way that would have mattered.

I liked the fact that Charbonneau brought together a band of people who would usually have NOTHING to do with one and another and stuck them in a situation in which they had to rely on one another to get them through the situation. Especially when the characters find out that one of them is responsible for the bombing and the way that they had to continue to rely on each other whilst trying to figure out who it was.

This book was also too predictable for me. I already knew who it was right from the very beginning chapter of that character and I had guessed why they did it. It was too obvious in the way in which certain things were described and the things that they did – so, in this sense, I would have liked a bit more of a whodunnit that would have had me guessing throughout.

I would have also liked to have seen more psychologically repercussions after the event. I felt that only one character really showed any sign of struggling to come to terms with what had happened, whilst I felt that a couple of other really took nothing away from the experience itself. It annoyed me that there didn’t seem to be any character development at all and it was almost like nothing happened for them.

All in all, I struggled with this book. I felt like it could have added a lot more to the current discussion if it had been executed in the right way, as well as added something to other discussions such as suicide awareness and homosexuality in sports. I struggled to connect emotionally to any of these characters and it was just too predictable. I gave this 2/5 stars.

Switched by Amanda Hocking

Switched by Amanda Hocking

Published: January 3rd 2012 by St. Martin’s Griffin

Switched – the first book in the Trylle Trilogy…

When Wendy Everly was six-years-old, her mother was convinced she was a monster and tried to kill her. It isn’t until eleven years later that Wendy discovers her mother might have been right.

With the help of Finn Holmes, Wendy finds herself in a world she never knew existed – a world both beautiful and frightening, and Wendy’s not sure she wants to be a part of it.

I have had this book on my TBR for a while now. I mostly enjoyed the first book in the Kanin Chronicles, so I was expecting to enjoy this one as well since it is set in the same world. However, I was mostly disappointed with this book and I felt like I had to really push myself through most of the book.

I didn’t really care much for any of the characters. I felt like the MC, Wendy, wasn’t a very interesting character and I really struggled to care about what happened to her. I feel like she was a very whiny character and I constantly felt the need to just slap her a bit. She was constantly pessimistic, to the point of annoyance. I also didn’t see the romance between her and Finn. There was absolutely no spark between them and I really don’t understand what she saw in him because he was constantly acting ice cold to her and was pretty closed off from her. He didn’t really tell her anything and he constantly gave her the cold shoulder.

I didn’t really like Finn as a character in general. As mentioned, he was pretty closed off and cold toward all the other characters. We didn’t see much depth to him as a character and I feel like we needed to see a lot more from him before I could have shipped him with Wendy.

I also struggled plot wise. Most of the book sort of plodded along at a pretty slow pace and not a lot happened. Between not much happening and constantly being cut off from information from Finn, Elora etc. I struggled to really want to read this book. Much like Frostfire, not enough information was given to the reader to make it interesting.

Having said that, the ending earned a star on its own. It definitely picked up the pace with the short scene at the end and I was so glad that there was something good to say about this book. I liked the pace of the ending and the way in which the characters really started to come together as a whole, rather than staying pretty separate the way that they did throughout the book. We got to see a couple of the characters really come into their element with the end scene.

All in all, I was pretty disappointed with this book, which is a shame because it has been on my TBR for such a long time. I am hoping that the series will pick up for me in the second book! I gave this book 2/5 stars.

All Rights Reserved by Gregory Scott Katsoulis

All Rights Reserved by Gregory Scott Katsoulis

Published: September 1st 2017 by Harlequin Teen

Speth Jime is anxious to deliver her Last Day speech and celebrate her transition into adulthood. The moment she turns fifteen, Speth must pay for every word she speaks (“Sorry” is a flat ten dollars and a legal admission of guilt), for every nod ($0.99/sec), for every scream ($0.99/sec) and even every gesture of affection. She’s been raised to know the consequences of falling into debt, and can’t begin to imagine the pain of having her eyes shocked for speaking words that she’s unable to afford. But when Speth’s friend Beecher commits suicide rather than work off his family’s crippling debt, she can’t express her shock and dismay without breaking her Last Day contract and sending her family into Collection. Backed into a corner, Speth finds a loophole: rather than read her speech—rather than say anything at all—she closes her mouth and vows never to speak again. Speth’s unexpected defiance of tradition sparks a media frenzy, inspiring others to follow in her footsteps, and threatens to destroy her, her family and the entire city around them.

This book was one of my highly anticipated reads for 2017 – the concept is completely unique and it had the potential to be amazing. However, I was completely disappointed with this book and ended up dnfing it.

The beginning of the book started out promising. We are immediately introduced to a world in which almost everything is paid for – words, gestures, fashion etc. We meet Speth, who is about to deliver her first speech (her first paid words) on her 15th birthday.  However, after witnessing her friend commit suicide, she decides to go silent instead – which causes chaos within both the system/society and her family. The beginning of the book had me hooked – I had to know about the world that Katsoulis had created and how it came about. However, I feel like, after a while, the book became relatively boring and repetitive, whilst not much was really happening plot wise.

I struggled to relate to the characters and the relationships between the characters because there was no real way that Speth could communicate. Her inner voice moaned a lot about the fact that she couldn’t communicate with anyone and how much she wanted to, but she decided to stay silent. It became repetitive and it affected the way in which Speth reacted and related to the other characters around her.

I also wish that there had been more world building around the way in which the laws came to be. There wasn’t much explanation as to why words became copyrighted and paid for and how society ended up the way it did. It would have helped the story along to know the backstory a little earlier – it took too long for the little information we did receive to come out.

I was extremely disappointed with this book, especially because it was one of my most highly anticipated reads of 2017. I did, however, like the concept of this book and the uniqueness of this book. I gave this 2/5 stars.

The Girl Who Wasn’t Dead by Samantha Boyette

The Girl Who Wasn’t Dead by Samantha Boyette

Expected Publication: September 12th 2017 by Bold Strokes Books, Inc

Prom was supposed to be the biggest night of senior year, but for Jenny Lewis it was the night she almost died. The night someone drugged her, loaded her in a car, and dumped her body in the river.

The next morning, her soaked prom dress was found on the riverbank. Her body was never found. People whispered that she’d killed herself or gotten drunk and stupid. People moved on, went to college, and stopped thinking about her. Months later, her ex-girlfriend and three other classmates received a text from an unknown number accusing them of her murder and claiming to have proof.

The text? It came from Jenny, not dead and ready to figure out who tried to kill her. There’s going to be an impromptu reunion and no one is leaving until the would-be murderer steps forward.

Note: I received an ARC copy of this via Netgalley. This in no way influences my opinion.

I first discovered this book on Netgalley, and after reading the blurb, I absolutely had to request it! It instantly drew me and I knew I had to read it and find out what happened. Unfortunately, I didn’t love this book as much as I wanted to and had to force myself to finish it toward the end.

This book centres around what happened to Jenny on the night of prom and trying to figure out who nearly killed her. She sends texts to characters who she believes may or may not have had something to do with it and gets them to meet her in a secluded cabin. The book is told from various POVs as each character recounts their version of what happened that night and where they were etc.

I think the biggest issue I had with this book was the fact that, for me, the multiple POVs all blended together. I didn’t feel like any one of the characters really had a voice that stood out on their own and I had to double check from who’s perspective I was reading before I carried on. I don’t feel like any new or explosive information was added by each of the characters every time the night was repeated, so the book felt extremely repetitive to me, to the point where I just wanted to put it down and do something else.

Another issue I had with this book was that it didn’t feel realistic enough for me. I understand Jenny being scared, but if someone had tried to kill me, I would not be meeting them in a secluded cabin four years after the fact – but rather would have gone to the police on the same evening! Jenny was too friendly with people she suspected to have had something to do with her attempted murder and even let a couple off the hook far too easily based seemingly on the history they have together. After certain events (no spoilers), I felt like the characters didn’t really care about it and it almost felt like it was thrown under the rug despite the seriousness of it.

Another issue with this book I had was that I had already figured out who it was based on their behaviour. It was easy to see who had done it because they were acting guilty – so the supposed plot twist that happened wasn’t really that much of a surprise to me. I don’t feel like the explanation that was given was really sufficient for the character to have done something that crazy and, again, I feel like it was thrown under the rug after the events were over.

What I did like about this book was the pacing of things after the ‘plot twist’ arrived. Whilst it was relatively slow through the first 70% and the last 10%, things started heating up and it made it interesting to read after the issues the rest of the boo faced. The events in the cabin in this 20% made me want to continue reading again – until about 90% where it slowed down and I didn’t really feel that the characters cared all that much.

All in all, I was relatively disappointed with this book and was expecting a lot more. It was repetitive and unrealistic, and the characters also felt 2D. I gave this book 2/5 stars.

The Revenge by Hannah Jayne

The Revenge by Hannah Jayne

Expected Publication: July 4th 2017 by Sourcebooks Fire

Tony just wanted a little revenge when he posted his ex’s location online. He never meant to lead a predator to her doorstep… 

After Hope breaks up with Tony and embarrasses him at school, he’s devastated. In a moment of revenge, Tony makes the location on her phone public. But a week later, when Hope calls Tony and begs him to stop the prank, he hears a shriek and a car door slamming. Then the call is dropped.

When Hope isn’t back at school the next day, Tony realizes that he may have put Hope’s life in danger. Can he trace Hope’s movements and save her before it’s too late?

Note: I received an ARC of this via Netgalley. This in no way influences my opinion.

When I first saw this on Netgalley, it was the first I’d heard about the book. The premise and cover drew me in immediately and I just had to read it. However, I was extremely disappointed with this book and I actually feel like it copied Gone Girl in quite a few places and things, but it lacked that oomph that Gone Girl had.

From the very first page, we are thrown in the middle of a break up between a popular girl (Hope) and not so popular boy (Tony). We are immediately given this background as to what happened to lead Tony to put Hope’s information online – and then he does it within the first couple of pages. I feel like I needed more than this to actually get into the story, the mindset of the characters and their relationship before it ended. I think it took me a little longer to actually understand the characters purely because we were just thrown into the middle of this high school drama.

The first sort of half of the book I actually felt plagiarised Gone Girl. It was extremely similar and it was basically Gone Girl in YA form. It was pretty much exactly the same, but I felt like Hope lacked that conviction and villainous side that Amy had in Gone Girl – which means it was done poorly in my mind. Hope needed something more to her character for her to be understood and portrayed as the kind of person who would frame someone for kidnapping her for revenge.

What I did like about it was the fact that it then changed from Gone Girl when things happen. I don’t really want to go into it because spoilers, but it was a good twist. It was needed because it was pretty sort of slow going up until that point because of the similarities between Gone Girl and this book.

Unfortunately, I was actually left with more questions that I was answers and I feel like the book ended so suddenly. I was actually confused when it said acknowledgements… and I was left thinking “Is that it?!?” I have so many questions left over and I feel like the book needs to be finished off properly, in a sense.

Unfortunately, I was really disappointed with this book. Despite the fact that is was an extremely quick read, I was left with more answers than questions by the time the book suddenly ended and I feel like there were way too many similarities (to the actual point of plagiarism) to Gone Girl. I gave this book 2/5 stars.

Rebel’s Blade by Frost Kay

Rebel’s Blade by Frost Kay

Published: March 8th 2017 – Self Published

NOTHING IS BLACK AND WHITE

Secretly trained, swordsmith Sage Blackwell steps up to run her family’s forge when her father falls ill. Sage desires to help the neglected Aermians but is bound by duty to provide for her own… Until, that is, she’s offered a chance to make a difference.

THE REBELLION

Sage knows the risks; imprisonment or death, and yet, she’s still willing to take them to protect her family. But when plans unravel, Sage finds herself facing the devils themselves, her sworn enemies, the princes of Aermia.

THE CROWN

Tehl Ramses is drowning; crops are being burned, villages pillaged, and citizens are disappearing, leading to a rising rebellion. As crown prince, and acting ruler, Tehl must find a way to crush the rebellion before civil war sweeps through his beloved kingdom. He’ll do whatever is necessary to save his people. Yet, his prisoner is not at all what he expected.

ONE STORY. TWO SIDES. ONE GOAL: SAVE AERMIA. 

Note: I received an ARC of this from the author. This in no way influences my opinion.

Unfortunately, this was a DNF for me. Which is a shame, because the plot itself was actually pretty good as far as I got (about 55%) – however, my issues mostly lay with the characters, which is, ultimately, why I DNfed.

I want to start with the good. I enjoyed the plot as far as I got. It was fast paced, it kept me on my toes and there was always something going on. I do feel like it sort of slowed down towards where I stopped reading, but I imagine it picks back up. I was told the ending by someone else who has read it (mostly because everyone was raving about the ending and I was just being a nosey tyke really) and I just… wasn’t all that impressed? Not sure if it was because I missed a beat by not reading the rest or whether it’s because I have high expectations because I read A LOT of fantasy, but it just didn’t wow me like it did others who finished this book.

My major issue with this book (and the ultimate reason for me putting it back down) was the characters. For me, it is really important that I form some kind of bond with the characters and, as a result, empathise with them. Unfortunately, I didn’t form this bond with the characters, despite the multiple POVs that were shown. I didn’t really care what happened to the characters and who lived or who died – so I found it really easy to just put the book down and do something else.

My other issue with the characters was that the multiple POVs began to bleed together after a time so, when I did put the book down to do something else, I had to try and remember whose perspective I was reading – which I mostly did through the interactions with the other characters. Whilst they were separate at the beginning – they did sort of change throughout and became too similar for me.

All in all, I actually quite enjoyed the plot (mostly) but my issues with the characters led me to stop reading the book. I gave this book 2/5 stars.

Shooter by Caroline Pignat

Shooter by Caroline Pignat

Published: May 3rd 2016 by Razorbill

A lockdown catches five grade 12 students by surprise and throws them together in the only unlocked room on that empty third floor wing: the boys’ washroom. They sit in silence, judging each other by what they see, by the stories they’ve heard over the years. Stuck here with them–could anything be worse?
There’s Alice: an introverted writer, trapped in the role of big sister to her older autistic brother, Noah.
Isabelle: the popular, high-achieving, student council president, whose greatest performance is her everyday life. 
Hogan: an ex-football player with a troubled past and a hopeless future.
Xander: that socially awkward guy hiding behind the camera, whose candid pictures of school life, especially those of Isabelle, have brought him more trouble than answers.
Told in five unique voices through prose, poetry, text messages, journals, and homework assignments, each student reveals pieces of their true story as they wait for the drill to end. But this modern-day Breakfast Club takes a twist when Isabelle gets a text that changes everything: NOT A DRILL!! Shooter in the school!
Suddenly, the bathroom doesn’t seem so safe anymore. Especially when they learn that one of them knows more about the shooter than they realized…

I was really excited about getting a copy of this book and getting around to reading it. I really enjoy reading books with this kind of genre, so I guess that I had hyped it up a little bit in my head. Unfortunately, it did not live up to that hype! I feel like I didn’t really get what I was asking for and the shooting itself was secondary to the lives of the 5 teenagers that were stuck in the bathroom.

I really enjoyed the introduction to the book. A random awakening and being faced by a rabbit… it was a bit crazy and it definitely had me turning the pages to see what was going on! I also liked the introduction to each of the characters and their voices. They all seemed so different at the beginning, especially because the personalities were different and you had a range of the typical crowds you would have found in a secondary school. However, the voices seemed to begin to mesh together as the book went on and I often found myself having to go back to see whose perspective I was reading. The two voices who really stood out on its own was Xanders (who was socially awkward) and Noahs (an autistic character, whose perspective was written in a complete unique view…).

I definitely feel like the shooting was a secondary subject in this book. Most of the book actually focuses on the lives and issues of the 5 teens stuck in the mens bathroom in lockdown. We were faced with the typical issues of feeling lonely and insignificant and having absolutely no idea what they wanted to do after leaving secondary school (because they were at that point), along with the issues of stressful home life, college applications etc. It all came spilling out between the teens, who usually would never talk to each other or even look at each other on a general basis. It was almost like all this stuff came spilling out and then they remembered they were under lock down, and a school shooting was under way. It seemed very disassociated from each other – almost like I picked up a different book from about 65%.

Another issue I had with this book was how the shooting was actually resolved. It didn’t resemble real life at all and it was almost insulting to people who have suffered the horrors that happen in a school shooting like that. It was an extremely fake kind of thing and almost resembled a comic book like Xander was talking about. It didn’t seem very factual and didn’t actually focus all that much on the shooter himself. I was expecting more and I was definitely expecting someone who was stuck in the bathroom to be in on it in some form or another, but I was very disenchanted and disappointed with the whole thing.

All in all, I was pretty disappointed with this book because I was expecting some spectacular. I always have high expectations of books like this because of the subject matter and I am disappointed when it doesn’t live up to the seriousness of the nature of the book. I gave this book 2/5 stars.

The Shadow Queen by C. J. Redwine

Lorelai Diederich, crown princess and fugitive at large, has one mission: kill the wicked queen who took both the Ravenspire throne and the life of her father. To do that, Lorelai needs to use the one weapon she and Queen Irina have in common—magic. She’ll have to be stronger, faster, and more powerful than Irina, the most dangerous sorceress Ravenspire has ever seen.

In the neighboring kingdom of Eldr, when Prince Kol’s father and older brother are killed by an invading army of magic-wielding ogres, the second-born prince is suddenly given the responsibility of saving his kingdom. To do that, Kol needs magic—and the only way to get it is to make a deal with the queen of Ravenspire, promise to become her personal huntsman…and bring her Lorelai’s heart.

But Lorelai is nothing like Kol expected—beautiful, fierce, and unstoppable—and despite dark magic, Lorelai is drawn in by the passionate and troubled king. Fighting to stay one step ahead of the dragon huntsman—who she likes far more than she should—Lorelai does everything in her power to ruin the wicked queen. But Irina isn’t going down without a fight, and her final move may cost the princess the one thing she still has left to lose. (Goodreads)

I love fairytales and retellings are also pretty awesome – as long as they are done right. So, obviously, this made my TBR list as soon as I saw it! So, to say that I am disappointed is upsetting. I didn’t really care about the book and I practically dragged my way through it! Albeit putting it down fairly often to do other stuff!!

There was no world building. We are chucked into the author’s imagination with the expectation to understand what is going on and what the author is trying to convey. I didn’t care about Ravenspire or Eldr or the people within it – all because I no idea what I was being thrown into and what was normal.

The same can be said for the characters. I think Leo was the only one I really cared about because he was someone who I could easily relate to and also someone who I could easily imagine being friends with. The rest didn’t even make a dent in my imaginary characters list. I didn’t care a monkey’s fart about what happened to them – they could have been killed and I literally wouldn’t care. There was no depth to any of the characters. There was also no noticeable difference between the characters even with the swapping of POV’s. In short, they were boring.

I am hoping the the rest of the books in this series of short stories will be better! This book took forever to read based on the fact that I was just bored. I didn’t care about the land or the characters and I found it way too easy to put this book down – which is just wrong on so many levels!! I gave this book 2/5 stars.

The Winners Crime by Marie Rutkoski

Book two of the dazzling Winner’s Trilogy is a fight to the death as Kestrel risks betrayal of country for love.

The engagement of Lady Kestrel to Valoria’s crown prince means one celebration after another. But to Kestrel it means living in a cage of her own making. As the wedding approaches, she aches to tell Arin the truth about her engagement… if she could only trust him. Yet can she even trust herself? For—unknown to Arin—Kestrel is becoming a skilled practitioner of deceit: an anonymous spy passing information to Herran, and close to uncovering a shocking secret.

As Arin enlists dangerous allies in the struggle to keep his country’s freedom, he can’t fight the suspicion that Kestrel knows more than she shows. In the end, it might not be a dagger in the dark that cuts him open, but the truth. And when that happens, Kestrel and Arin learn just how much their crimes will cost them. (Goodreads)

This book basically took me forever to finish. I was really into it at the beginning and then the book just got boring and went downhill from there. The end captured my attention once again – but to get there I had to wade through the rest of the waffle!

Like I just mentioned, I really enjoyed the beginning of the book – it was a page turner and I was glued. I loved the characters and the events that were unfolding. I am not sure at what point, but this book took a downturn. I found myself struggling to actually pic up the book and read it and I started binge watching tv shows instead of actually reading the book.

I didn’t ship Kestrel and Arin and I didn’t ship Kestrel and Vertex. For me, both romances were fairly dull and there was no meat to them. I know I should probably at least ship Arin and Kestrel – but they were dull together and I didn’t get those all important feels whilst reading there interactions or even when reading the times that they were thinking about each other! I was just bored. That I wasn’t going to ship Kestrel and Vertex was pretty much a given. It was pretty much a forced engagement, which had no feels (obviously!!).

I also found Kestrel fairly irritating. I am not exactly sure why, she didn’t really do that much wrong. I just feel like her character was missing that all important relatability that just ruined it for me. She was very much a bleugh character who really could have done with some character building!

As I mentioned earlier, this book recaptured my attention at the end when everything escalated! I was glued to about the last 20 pages and I just couldn’t put it down. I was shocked and miffed at her father – I understand loyalty to your country, but how could you do that to your daughter?? I felt really sorry for Kestrel, but I have a feeling that this series is going to end a certain way – it always gets worse before it gets better!

For a series that gripped me from the beginning, I was really disappointed with this book. I feel like the author blundered through the middle part of the book and only had a stroke of genius at the beginning and the end! I gave this book 2/5 stars.

The Wrath and The Dawn by Renee Ahdieh

A sumptuous and epically told love story inspired by A Thousand and One Nights

Every dawn brings horror to a different family in a land ruled by a killer. Khalid, the eighteen-year-old Caliph of Khorasan, takes a new bride each night only to have her executed at sunrise. So it is a suspicious surprise when sixteen-year-old Shahrzad volunteers to marry Khalid. But she does so with a clever plan to stay alive and exact revenge on the Caliph for the murder of her best friend and countless other girls. Shazi’s wit and will, indeed, get her through to the dawn that no others have seen, but with a catch . . . she’s falling in love with the very boy who killed her dearest friend.

She discovers that the murderous boy-king is not all that he seems and neither are the deaths of so many girls. Shazi is determined to uncover the reason for the murders and to break the cycle once and for all. (Goodreads)

I have finally given up on this book as a lost cause – that is to say, I DNFed it. I have been trying to read it and get into it for what feels like forever, but for some reason, it is just not happening! I jumped onto this bandwagon (reluctantly, I might add) because of all of the hype surrounding it. While a lot of people seemingly love this book, I am one of those who just didn’t/doesn’t.

I am not even sure if it was the book itself or me. I found it difficult to actually connect to the people and the events happening because it all seemed so jumpy. One minute our main character, Shahrzad, hates the Caliph and the next minute she is fighting urges to kiss him and what not. The flow of events just didn’t seem right to me – which is probably why I found it so hard to get into this book.

The jump between Shahrzad’s point of view and Tariq’s wasn’t obvious. If I put the book down and came back to it a while later, I would often forget who and what I was reading and I would have to skim back a couple of pages just to figure it out. I found myself doing other stuff – like catching up on GoT or Pretty Little Liars instead of wanting to read this book.

The only character I actually liked was Jalal. His witty, easy going character was refreshing to read after ploughing my way through the rest to get to his parts. He is someone that I could easily get along with – he is just one of those characters that you can’t help but love.

The Hype Monster got its teeth into this one, which is a shame. I think this is one of those books that is considered to be marmite within the book world – either you love it or you hate it. I personally didn’t enjoy it, but it should still be read and you should still form your own opinions about this book! Based on Jalal’s character, I am going to give this book 2/5 stars.