Between the Lines - Jodi Picoult & Samantha van Leer

Publisher:
  Simon Pulse/Emily Bestler Books/Atira
Release Date:
  June 25, 2013
Market:
  Secular
Genre:
–Young Adult, Fantasy
Length:
–352 pages
My Rating: 
   3.5/5

BEFORE READING

 About This Book (from Amazon)

In this delightful companion novel to Off the Page, #1 New York Times bestselling authors Jodi Picoult and her daughter and cowriter, Samantha van Leer, present the YA novel that started it all! Filled with romance, adventure, and humor, the magic jumps off the page (literally) in a story you’ll never forget.

What happens when happily ever after…isn’t?

Delilah is a bit of a loner who prefers spending her time in the school library with her head in a book—one book in particular. Between the Lines may be a fairy tale, but it feels real. Prince Oliver is brave, adventurous, and loving. He really speaks to Delilah.

And then one day Oliver actually speaks to her. Turns out, Oliver is more than a one-dimensional storybook prince. He’s a restless teen who feels trapped by his literary existence and hates that his entire life is predetermined. He’s sure there’s more for him out there in the real world, and Delilah might just be his key to freedom.


CRITIQUE

 I don’t clearly recall where or how I discovered that Jodi Picoult had written a YA book. But I was intrigued and immediately requested the book from my library. 

Picoult wrote this book with her daughter, Samantha van  Leer.  Samantha, at just 16-years-old, was the originator of the book concept.  I do think it’s good to keep this fact in mind.  Picoult and van Leer managed to collaborate on something that made it to the #1 spot on the NY Times  bestseller list. 

I don’t know that I would say the book is quite that good.  I think Picoult’s name carried it to a certain degree.  You can certainly feel the two authors’ different voices at times.  However, overall, I think the book was well executed. 

I started out reading an e-book version and quickly switched to the paperback copy.  I wanted to make sure to fully experience all of the amazing drawings and text changes (both font and colors).  I do think those added to the overall book experience.

I loved the first four pages of the book.  They did hook me as a reader and draw me in.  From there on through, I was at times deeply engaged in the story line and at other times less enthralled.  But throughout I wanted to know what Delilah and Oliver would try next, how it would work out, etc.

Even though the book jumps between modern life with Delilah and the storybook world of Oliver, I was never lost or confused as far as what was going on.  I think the transitions were well done and clearly noted at chapter breaks.

Delilah, I believe, is more fully developed that the other characters.  She is a very realistic high school girl struggling with fitting in, friendships, and home life.  I was rooting for her the whole time.

This book is great for its target audience:  7^th grade and up.  I even think it would be okay for readers a bit younger.  There is some kissing but really nothing concerning or offensive in the text. 

I didn’t realize until writing this review that a sequel is due out this summer.  I will definitely be picking that one up to read as well.

Pros

·         Cute, creative story concept ideal for the target audience

·         Beautiful illustrations and type

·         Engaging characters

Cons

·         At times, the author voice seemed to shift

Seeker - Arwen Elys Dayton

February 9, 2015

Publisher:
  Delacorte Press
Release Date:
  February 10, 2015
Market:
  Secular
Genre:
–Young Adult; Fantasy
Length:
–448 pages

 About This Book (from Amazon)

The night Quin Kincaid takes her Oath, she will become what she has trained to be her entire life. She will become a Seeker. This is her legacy, and it is an honor.
As a Seeker, Quin will fight beside her two closest companions, Shinobu and John, to protect the weak and the wronged. Together they will stand for light in a shadowy world.
And she'll be with the boy she loves--who's also her best friend.
But the night Quin takes her Oath, everything changes.
Being a Seeker is not what she thought. Her family is not what she thought. Even the boy she loves is not who she thought.
And now it's too late to walk away.

How and Why I Acquired This Book

I acquired this book as an Advanced Reader Copy from the publisher in exchange for my honest review.

My Expectations about This Book

I selected this book because I enjoy young adult, including dystopian and fantasy YA.  The promo copy said the book would appeal to fans of Divergent, which I really enjoyed, and The Hunger Games, which I found okay.

The book’s cover is compelling and mysterious. 

 CRITIQUE

 Were my expectations met?

My expectations for this book were not met.  If I could sum up the story in one word, it would be “confusing.”  I read many genres of books, a lot that have a confusing start.  But the author manages to pull it all together and make sense of it in the end.  Not so here.  I was sorely disappointed in this book.

Prose & Dialogue

The story’s prose is choppy.  The dialogue (even the internal dialogue of the characters) doesn’t seem natural.  It’s all very stilted in its feel.  Additionally, while some of the time jumps in the narrative make sense, others are completely random (For example, the chapter on Maud’s childhood that comes in the middle of things that have no connection.)

There were similes and metaphors that either didn’t make much sense in context or jolted me out of the story to try to rationalize out.

Characters & Points-of-View

I don’t believe any of the main characters were fully developed.  Most are decidedly bad and only bad.  Quinn, the main character, is a bit more complex but still seems to vacillate between being all good or all bad depending on the section of the story we’re in.

Nothing in the story really made me concerned about the characters, their well-being, how they would end up, etc.  It was all very superficial.

Some supporting characters just popped in and out randomly (Shinobu’s mother) without really contributing to the story or main characters at all.

The multiple points of view (which I’m generally good with in a book) just added to the overall tangle.

Story Structure & Pace

I really was lost in this book from the start.  Just as things would start to make sense and I’d feel like I was getting a grasp on the story or characters, something random would be there to confuse me again.

There were also many inconsistencies in the story where the characters were doing one thing but all of a sudden they weren’t.  For example, the Drudges were cleaning and working on their weapons but the text said that “neither moved as they spoke.”  They were cleaning their weapons; that requires movement.

Back story was interspersed throughout.  Sometimes that helped.  Sometimes it just made the reading more confusing.

As far as the ending, I don’t even know what to say about that other than I finished the book wanting it to be so much more than it was.

Conflict & Tension

All of the conflict and tension seemed contrived.  The characters were definitely at the mercy of their situations instead of being decision makers for their own destinies.

Research & Story World

The author’s note indicated that Dayton does extensive research for her books, visiting the various locales mentioned (Hong Kong, London, Scotland).  I don’t know how much of that comes across in the book since the story is set in the future.

Romantic Tension

There is a romantic triangle that is predictable from the start.

Spiritual Connection & Speculative/Supernatural Elements

I don’t believe there were necessarily spiritual connections or supernatural elements in this book.  There was time travel and fantasy. 

Although there is mention at a few points about energy fields around people’s bodies and how the healers can fix anomalies in those.  I guess that would be a bit New Age.

Questionable Content

More conservative readers would want to know there were sexual vibes, and implications between characters.  Many violent descriptions of fights and murder.  Drug use, drug dens and drinking were common in the story line.  Also, one of the characters is involved in prostitution.

Originality & Predictability

I think that the concept Dayton was working with is a good one.  Characters traveling through time and space (although most of the characters in this book it was just from location to location) to change the past/alter the present/affect the future is interesting.  Having teens train their childhoods in order to do so and believing that it is to right wrongs only to discover something different is compelling.

The story was just too confusing to hash out that plot line.  I spent most of the book trying to figure out what was going on and why that I never was able to engage in the bigger picture.

I was guessing all the way to the end…and even at the end.  In this case, that’s not a positive.

Audience Appropriateness & Appeal

The target audience is young adults 14 and older.  And I believe it would appeal to some.  Readers that age don’t necessarily look for depth of character or consistency in story.  However, I would say some of the content is best left to those who are older. What is the target audience?

As a movie, I believe it would be rated PG-13 based on the violence and drugs.

Despite the comparisons made on Amazon, this book has very little in common with Divergent, Hunger Games, and the like.

Engagement, Entertainment & Investment

Seeker was a quick read, as is the nature of most YA books.  I did keep turning the pages in the hopes it would start to make sense and things would fall into place.  It didn’t. 

It is the start of a series.  So perhaps it becomes clear in later books; I have no desire to find out.

This is not a book I would recommend to others.

 CONCLUSION

Pros

·         The concept could have been interesting

Cons

·         Confusing

·         Story has little to no flow

 

***This review will also be posted on The Christian Manifesto review website on 2.26.15

The Ordinary Princess - M.M. Kaye

This is one of my favorite books from when I was young. I just finished reading it to the girls as their bedtime story.


M.M. Kaye just has such a whimsical way to her word choice and use of those words. And I love the story concept. A fairy’s mischief creates a princess who is most ordinary…something not quite acceptable in the royal kingdoms. However, despite this perceived issue, Her Serene Royal Highness Amethyst Alexandra Augusta Araminta Adelaide Aurelia Anne (Amy for short) is ready for adventure and a good life lived on her terms.

I can say that I enjoy the story concept because when I was younger and dreamed of being an author myself, I fashioned many at tale from this concept.

It is a delightful read.