Mini Reviews

I've been reading up a storm, but don't seem to have the time or brain power to write up full reviews for all of these books. So mini reviews! Short and sweet.

Bitterblue by Kristin Cashore

I really liked it. I enjoyed Bitterblue finding her footing in the world, even if this wasn't the most inventive of the three books. I enjoyed her romance, the court intrigue, the secret (or as it turns out not so secret) ventures into her city. What I could have done without was the crew from beyond the mountains coming to visit. It felt rushed and unnecessary. Sure they discovered the world, but for my tastes it would have been better to end on a different note. Like maybe they show up on the last page or something, but we're not privy to what happens next. For how long it took Bitterblue to figure everything out, this last part felt rushed and crammed in. Regardless, I read it very quickly and enjoyed it quite a bit.
[Purchased  Book]

The Drowned Cities by Paolo Bacigalupi

Another one I had been dying to get my hands on. It was fantastic, but perhaps not as fantastic as Shipbreaker. And I only think that because I didn't connect to the characters quite as much as I did with those in Shipbreaker. That's not to say I didn't like them. Mahlia was pretty fantastic. I thought it was awesome to have a disabled main character and have her be capable, smart, and kick ass. We need more of that. I also loved having Tool as a main character, but I still didn't learn as much about him as I wanted to. I mean he is so crafty and such a rich character I wanted to get into his mind and really dig around. I am pretty much amazed at Bacigalupi's writing. It is stellar. I thought he did a fantastic job showing how useless violence is and how it can spiral downwards out of control until even children are forced to fight and no one even knows what they're fighting for anymore - only that they can't imagine any other way of life.
[Library Copy]

Double by Jenny Valentine

This was probably my least favorite of the three, which disappointed me because I've loved all her previous books. The ending was just too far fetched. And there was too much of "I'm a fake, they're going to find me out, oh no!" Without enough character development to back it up. And that ending. Mmmm. Did not work for me. I won't spoil it for you, but meh.
[ARC found on 4th floor]