[Review] Cruel Beauty by Rosamund Hodge

Cruel Beauty
Rosamund Hodge
YA, Paranormal, Fantasy, Romance
Published: January 2014 (Balzer + Bray)
Format: digital
Pages: 342
Rating: 3 of 5
 

Based on the classic fairy tale Beauty and the Beast, Cruel Beauty is a dazzling love story about our deepest desires and their power to change our destiny.

Since birth, Nyx has been betrothed to the evil ruler of her kingdom-all because of a foolish bargain struck by her father. And since birth, she has been in training to kill him.

With no choice but to fulfill her duty, Nyx resents her family for never trying to save her and hates herself for wanting to escape her fate. Still, on her seventeenth birthday, Nyx abandons everything she's ever known to marry the all-powerful, immortal Ignifex. Her plan? Seduce him, destroy his enchanted castle, and break the nine-hundred-year-old curse he put on her people.

But Ignifex is not at all what Nyx expected. The strangely charming lord beguiles her, and his castle-a shifting maze of magical rooms-enthralls her.

As Nyx searches for a way to free her homeland by uncovering Ignifex's secrets, she finds herself unwillingly drawn to him. Even if she could bring herself to love her sworn enemy, how can she refuse her duty to kill him? With time running out, Nyx must decide what is more important: the future of her kingdom, or the man she was never supposed to love.

Warning: Spoilers!!

Nyx was a fun character - snarky and determined, but when you really look at her, she was so confusing. She could never make up her mind and didn't try to infiltrate at all like she was supposed to. She trained basically her whole life to marry Ignifax and then when she finally is married to him, she allows her anger to take over her multiple times. She doesn't try to hide her rage. I found her to be a weak and immature girl that tried her best to act strong but simply couldn't control her emotions. It do find it endearing that Ignifax could look past her faults and still love her.

Shade was the shadow of the Gentle Lord and bound to him. He was a captive of a curse and due to this, Nyx empathized with him. She found herself to be rather drawn to him and this feeling of companionship caused her to kiss him in a moment of thoughtlessness. I mean, that's all good and well. I don't particularly commend the idea of kissing random men, but I get it. But the problem arises when Nyx starts to read into it. She deceived herself into the idea that Shade loved her and she loved him. I seriously doubt that she did, I suspect that the lack of emotional support she received in her life drove her to believe this.

Ignifax, the Gentle Lord, was much better to me, but that could be because we weren't in his head. He had experiences with people that made him dislike humans for their pettiness. But he seemed to understand how corrupt the people that wanted to make deals with him were and thought they deserved what came to them. I honestly agree with him. It was their own foolishness that caused them problems. Past his initial characterization of being sort of a jerk, Ignifax turns out to be a charming and intelligent man that wants companionship.

The love triangle aspect was sorta annoying, but I forgave it for reasons that are revealed at the end.

I did feel that the relationships between the characters could have been expanded upon. It felt like they were glossed over and left to a time skip to say, "they spent time together." I did like how all the lust was called "lust" and not sugar-coated with the word "love" for a long time. I seriously wish that this was a New Adult or Adult book because I would have loved more of the "steamy" scenes. At the point in the story where Nyx and Ignifax were in a relationship, it really bothered me because she would hit Ignifax a lot. I know it didn't hurt him, but the emotional implications behind her actions can hurt more than the actual act itself. She did apologize at one point, so there's that. One other thing that bothered me, though, was when Nyx returns home and her sister tells her that if she truly loved her, she would kill her husband. Nyx was so quick to agree and I really hate that. Her character seemed so much more than that and I feel that maybe this could have been accomplished in another way.

The writing itself was very lovely and I will probably be reading Hodge's other books. The pace was alright. The beginning was boring and full of information, but it was important to read. The middle had parts that dragged and were repetitive. The ending was... I don't know how to describe it. It was trippy and I still don't really understand how it worked. I know what happened, it's just I don't get why it worked out like it did.

The world building, though, was odd and confusing. I liked the mixture of Roman/Greek mythology, but it was mentioned so often. I don't know why it would be as it didn't add anything to the actual story at points. I feel that it could have been less defined, especially since I don't really know that much about it and it just served to confuse me for a brief moment and didn't add much to the story. The magic element was also confusing to me. I just think it was badly explained at first, but as the book went on, I started to understand how it worked a little bit more. This take on Beauty and the Beast was new to me and I really did enjoy it, even through all of my complaining. I enjoyed how Hodge seemed to mix together more than one fairy tale, as well.

TL;DR

Good:
+ unique twist on fairy tale retelling
+ mixture of multiple fairy tales
+ complex characters
+ lovely writing
+ lusty scenes were spot on

Bad:
- Nyx couldn't decide what she was doing and feeling half the time
- magic was confusing and explained badly, imo
- overkill with mythology references
- can start to drag at points
- love triangle/insta-love vibes
- confusing ending
- character relationships were lacking

Final Rating:
3 of 5

[Review] Simon vs the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli

Simon vs the Homo Sapiens Agenda
Becky Albertalli
YA Contemporary Romance
Published: April 2015 (Balzer + Bray)
Format: ebook
Pages: 303
Rating: 3 of 5
 

Sixteen-year-old and not-so-openly gay Simon Spier prefers to save his drama for the school musical. But when an email falls into the wrong hands, his secret is at risk of being thrust into the spotlight. Now Simon is actually being blackmailed: if he doesn’t play wingman for class clown Martin, his sexual identity will become everyone’s business. Worse, the privacy of Blue, the pen name of the boy he’s been emailing, will be compromised.

With some messy dynamics emerging in his once tight-knit group of friends, and his email correspondence with Blue growing more flirtatious every day, Simon’s junior year has suddenly gotten all kinds of complicated. Now, change-averse Simon has to find a way to step out of his comfort zone before he’s pushed out—without alienating his friends, compromising himself, or fumbling a shot at happiness with the most confusing, adorable guy he’s never met.

Warning: Spoilers and all that jazz

So, to start off, this book was cute and fun. It was light and nothing too, too dramatic was happening. The references to popular culture was nice, although if you somehow didn't get them, then that sucks. The obsession with Oreos was, uhmm, cute. But at the same time, I was like, "Shut up. Oreos aren't that good." I feel like a lot of what I didn't like was because I don't really relate well, while I understand that other people would relate better and enjoy that more than me. I found the reference to anime and manga interesting, but the moment she said Fruits Basket, I was like, "Noooo, not that one!" Which once again makes the relating thing hard. (I'm sorry to anyone I offend b/c I don't like Fruits Basket and/or Oreos =p)

One thing that bothered me was that Simon didn't know his friends. Is he just a selfish person? I don't understand how they can have a deeper relationship if he doesn't know anything about them. I get that he was trying to make up for that, but still, c'mon Simon. Get with it.

The love interest was obvious enough, but if you just forget about it for a while and try to stop guessing all the time, I think you'll have a better time. It makes the reveal a lot cuter and shocking. 

There are things I liked, like that the characters were all different from each other. I think that made them realistic. The little dramas that sprouted up among the friend group. So real. My friends did that all the time. The writing was very appropriate for the voice of Simon. It was very teen-esque.

The relationships between the side characters made for a nice subplot. It wasn't finished off or completed in a full way, which I like. Life doesn't just come to a close, it keeps going on and shaping.

The one major problem I had with the book was that it was too cute and light. It will be easy to forget. I don't think I wanted more, I just don't handle these types of stories well. I like character building and focus on their relationships, so you'd think I'd like this one more. But really, in the end, it wasn't enough for me. I wouldn't stop you from reading it, I would really recommend it. Just bear these things in mind.

Final Rating: 3 of 5

[Review] Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe
Benjamin Alire Sáenz
YA Contemporary Romance
Published: February 2012 (Simon & Schuster)
Format: Ebook
Pages: 368
Source: Bought
Rating: 4 of 5
 

Aristotle is an angry teen with a brother in prison. Dante is a know-it-all who has an unusual way of looking at the world. When the two meet at the swimming pool, they seem to have nothing in common. But as the loners start spending time together, they discover that they share a special friendship—the kind that changes lives and lasts a lifetime. And it is through this friendship that Ari and Dante will learn the most important truths about themselves and the kind of people they want to be.

Warning: Spoilers ahead. Like, for sure.

To start off, I need to get it out in the open that I seriously loved the way this book was written. The dialogue took over a lot of the characters interactions, leaving some room for personal interpretation during scenes. I can understand how this could be unlikable to some, but my personal preferences make it a good point.

The characters: Ari is a very fleshed out character. In some ways he reminds me of Holden from Catcher in the Rye. (please don't hate me) His uncertainty is powerful to read, the changing ways he views his parents, and the way he obsesses over certain things. Dante, on the other hand, is a ball of energy. Always the one that branches out and explores. At first I thought that his character was more 2D than Ari's, but after I rethought it I realized that he had his own struggles. His discomfort at being what he is, he doesn't really accept himself. He is an emotional creature and I can empathize with this.

I love that the characters actually have a relationship with their parental figures. In too many books, the parents are skipped over and the importance of the internal functions between parent and child are lost. Not only that, but the parents all had their own personalities and pasts and problems. They felt real.

The plot: I understand that there isn't one, in a traditional sense. This I don't mind. In fact, I encourage it because I am that kind of person. I don't really read to get somewhere, I read to enjoy the characters. I want to feel them and their emotions. I could read a whole book dedicated to the details of someone's home so long as you can feel the attachment and stories.

The writing: Beautiful! Simple, but sometimes it would hit me hard. I loved that small hints would be included where Ari would feel something more towards Dante. Subtle, but necessary and not overly obvious. The lack of romance in general is pleasing to me. I mean, I love fluff and all, but it's so refreshing to feel the characters beyond just "I love this person." More raw emotion with proof of their uncertainty and wavering thoughts, that's what I want. And this book did it.

The downfalls:
• The cliche of the conflict. When Dante is beaten up for kissing a boy. I understand, I really do. But it also feels like a cop out and I feel cheated.
• I felt that Ari accepted very quickly that he is in love with Dante after his parents told him that. I mean, yes it was obvious that he was, but I also thought he would have a harder time taking that in. It was all this build up to it and maybe I would have preferred not to have a definite love relationship. Either that or show more of his confusion towards his feelings for Dante. I don't know, maybe I'm asking for too much.

Overall: I really enjoyed this book. A hard 4 on the scale. This coming to terms sort of thing is something I really enjoy, a delving into the life of the character. It's a whimsical sort of thing and one that I enjoy immensely. It was a quick read and one I'd suggest to most people.

Final Rating: 4 of 5

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