BOOK REVIEW: Beautiful Disaster by Jamie McGuire

Beautiful Disaster

Author: Jamie McGuire
Series: Beautiful, #1
Published: 27 November 2012 by Atria Books
(first published 2011)
Genres: New Adult, Contemporary, Romance
Format: Hardback, Signed Edition
Source: Birthday Gift
Links: Goodreads

Synopsis:

Abby Abernathy is a good girl. She doesn’t drink or swear, and she has the appropriate number of cardigans in her wardrobe. Abby believes she has enough distance from the darkness of her past, but when she arrives at college with her best friend, her path to a new beginning is quickly challenged by Eastern University’s Walking One-Night Stand. 

Travis Maddox, lean, cut, and covered in tattoos, is exactly what Abby wants—and needs—to avoid. He spends his nights winning money in a floating fight ring, and his days as the ultimate college campus charmer. Intrigued by Abby’s resistance to his appeal, Travis tricks her into his daily life with a simple bet. If he loses, he must remain abstinent for a month. If Abby loses, she must live in Travis’s apartment for the same amount of time. Either way, Travis has no idea that he has met his match.

Rating:

My Review:

This book was a disaster. There was nothing beautiful about it.

Here are a few of the key themes that run through this book:

• Sexism. Sexism everywhere. Man big and strong. Woman weak and subservient. Man incapable of cooking food for himself, must guilt-trip a woman to do the job for him.

• Misogyny. From characters of both genders. Goes hand-in-hand with the sexism, really.

• Abusive relationships. You cannot deny the fact that all of the relationships in this book are abusive. Travis is abusive towards Abby. America is abusive towards Abby. Travis's father and brothers are abusive of Abby. Abby is abusive of Parker. America and Abby are abusive towards Kara. There is no love in this book, only abuse thrown back and forth, normalised to the point of acceptance.

• Co-dependency. Travis Maddox, the campus hottie, is a dick towards any and every woman he comes across, until sweet little Marie Sue comes along and captivates him to the point where he can't even breathe unless she's in his line of vision. So that he can control her every move, of course.

• Slut shaming. Right from the beginning, we see endless pages of slut shaming. Pages of dialogue, pages of Abby's petty internal monologue. There was an intolerable amount of stereotyping going on in this book, and I struggle to understand how so many readers can accept this as part of any book. It serves no purpose other than to extend discrimination in the real world.

• Normalisation of drug use, alcoholic self-medication, physical violence and gambling. I cannot stand any of this in real life, and it's even more disgusting when characters' lives depend on these things for their survival, or for their appeal to readers. I don't know what's sadder.

I honestly went into this book with high expectations. I had heard only positive reviews, and I received a beautiful edition as a birthday gift from my best friend. So of course, I wanted to enjoy it, and that's why I read it so soon after receiving it, because I was overly confident that it would be amazing and addicting and just everything I love about contemporary romance novels. But as I read the book, it kept getting worse and worse with each chapter. Really, the stars just deduct themselves.

I would recommend you read literally any other book. Don't waste your time or money on this pile of shit.

BOOK REVIEW: Heir of Fire by Sarah J. Maas

Heir of Fire

Author: Sarah J. Maas

Series: Throne of Glass, #3

Published: 2 September 2014 by Bloomsbury

Genres: Young Adult, Fantasy

Format: Hardback

Source: Purchased

Links: Goodreads

Synopsis:

She was the heir of ash and fire, and she would bow to no one.

Celaena Sardothien has survived deadly contests and shattering heartbreak—but at an unspeakable cost. Now she must travel to a new land to confront her darkest truth...a truth about her heritage that could change her life—and her future—forever.

Meanwhile, brutal and monstrous forces are gathering on the horizon, intent on enslaving her world. To defeat them, Celaena must find the strength to not only fight her inner demons but to battle the evil that is about to be unleashed.

The king's assassin takes on an even greater destiny and burns brighter than ever before in this follow-up to the New York Times bestselling Crown of Midnight.

Rating:

Review and Discussion:

I debated long and hard before deciding on a 2-star rating. I almost gave it 3 stars for its slight redemption towards the end, but I couldn't deny myself the truth about this book: it was entirely underwhelming, disappointing, and enragingly boring.

The other books in this series were amazing, and set up for what I had hoped would be an amazing series... which only made this book so much more disappointing. The series had hyped it up, and I had extremely high expectations. I went into this thinking I would rate it a full five stars at the end, but obviously I didn't get to that point. Let me explain to you all the things that derailed this series for me in this trainwreck of a book.

For one, I hated the unnecessary, excessive plot lines that were explored in this book. There were at least seven plot lines in this book, with many of them interwoven throughout and blended into one at times, and it was just too much for me to keep up with. There were storylines from Celaena (obviously), Chaol, Dorian, Adeion, Sorscha, Rowan and Manon, and all together in an almost-600-page-book was just overwhelming. I couldn't keep up half the time, and the focus shifted so frequently that I lost interest in each story very quickly.

Related to this, I felt that there were too many new characters, and that Maas was trying to get me to care about them. But I just couldn't. I had no interest in all these unnecessary, additional characters; all I wanted was to read about Celaena being a badass and claiming her world.

Manon's storyline bored me in particular. I could tolerate, and at times appreciate, the others, but I had no interest in Manon or what she was doing, and ended up skimming most of her chapters. I particularly didn't appreciate the animal fighting scenes that were present in much of her story, and I get that it's part of her character and what-not, but I hate the normalisation of animal violence. I cannot stomach it, even in fiction. It's a personal thing to me, but it just makes me uncomfortable and ultimately swayed my perception of Manon and her story. Not a fan at all. Not even in the end. Especially not in the end, actually! I was hoping that her story would be made relevant to the rest of the story by the end, with some detail linking her to Celaena or Chaol or Dorian or whatever, but that never came. So in the end, it just felt like unnecessary filler to increase the page count.

Which brings me to my next point: this book could have been amazing if it had been 200 pages shorter. It was unnecessarily long. This book had no suspense, no excitement, no drive for me to read it. I really had to force myself in the beginning, and by the time I got to the halfway mark, I was reading quickly just to get it over and done with. There were too many boring characters introduced that I just could not care about, and boring plot lines for them to exist. This book really just offered nothing, and it felt much more like a filler book than a book deserving of the "number one bestselling" title. Maas's writing was great, but the dull story just couldn't be saved by any amount of her skill.

As for some of the characters...

I didn't care anything for Rowan, and can't understand why the world has gone crazy for him. Rowan is hugely over-rated, and that annoys me because people aren't seeing him for what he really is: he is selfish, manipulative and cruel, and has absolutely zero good qualities about him. Maybe some people like that sorta guy, but I'm not interested in idolising fuckboys. The ridiculous thing where he was wordlessly communicating with Celaena was also ridiculous. Everything about him is stupid and I hate him and I can't stand that he is a part of Celaena's life now. I just want him gone.

Sorscha was the only new character that I liked, even though her storyline bored me to death. Her character was interesting, and I enjoyed learning about her. I just wish Maas would have given her a storyline more fitting for her awesomeness. Her character deserved so much better than developing a forbidden romance with the Crown Prince. And in the end, the potential of her character was ultimately wasted. Which was hugely disappointing, again.

Celaena lacked the badass punch she brought in the previous novels. Perhaps it's because she's in a new land or in her Fae form or whatever, but she just wasn't the same. She felt like a completely different character, one whom I hardly knew. Her identity as Aelin didn't really interest me, except for when she was talking about her history. I have come to adore Celaena, not Aelin, and I really hope that Maas can respect readers' favour for Celaena and not try to force us to love Aelin. I get that Aelin is a part of Celaena, but ultimately I feel that Celaena is her true identity. We are the makers of our own destiny, and she has made herself as Celaena for so many years that it would be a betrayal to neglect her and go back to being Aelin.

Which leads me to consider the question of whether I am interested enough to continue on with the story now. After Crown of Midnight, I thought I would undeniably love this series for anything and everything it offered. Heir of Fire proved naive me so very, very wrong. I definitely won't be pre-ordering Queen of Shadows, but I do still think I will read it eventually. At this stage, I won't be reading it in 2015. I will let its release day come and go, read some reviews from bloggers and reviewers that I trust, and pick it up when the mood strikes me. I think it's time for me to take a break from YA fantasy and read more of what I natually enjoy before forcing myself through another unecessarily long book.

BOOK REVIEW: Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas

Crown of Midnight

Author: Sarah J. Maas
Series: Throne of Glass, #2
Published: 27 August 2013 by Bloomsbury
Genres: Young Adult, Fantasy
Format: Hardback
Source: Purchased
Links: Goodreads

Synopsis:

From the throne of glass rules a king with a fist of iron and a soul as black as pitch. Assassin Celaena Sardothien won a brutal contest to become his Champion. Yet Celaena is far from loyal to the crown. She hides her secret vigilantly; she knows that the man she serves is bent on evil.

Keeping up the deadly charade becomes increasingly difficult when Celaena realizes she is not the only one seeking justice. As she tries to untangle the mysteries buried deep within the glass castle, her closest relationships suffer. It seems no one is above questioning her allegiances—not the Crown Prince Dorian; not Chaol, the Captain of the Guard; not even her best friend, Nehemia, a foreign princess with a rebel heart.

Then one terrible night, the secrets they have all been keeping lead to an unspeakable tragedy. As Celaena's world shatters, she will be forced to give up the very thing most precious to her and decide once and for all where her true loyalties lie... and whom she is ultimately willing to fight for.

Rating:

Review and Discussion:

Firstly: this book was incredible. I read this non-stop between work and sleep, but even with all the interruptions, I was angry at myself for reading it too quickly. It was fantastic from beginning to end, and it left off on such a teasing cliffhanger that makes me so grateful to already have Heir of Fire sitting on my shelf waiting to be picked up and read straight away.

Secondly: I have no idea how much of a review this post is going to be; I strongly suspect that it will, instead, be one massive gush fest over Crown of Midnight, Celaena Sardothian and Chaol Westfall. With an appropriate excess of question marks because I have so many questions as to where the story will go on from here.

And so, without further ado...

U.K. Edition

How the heck can anyone prefer Dorian over Chaol?? Chaol is perfect for Celaena, and Celaena perfect for Chaol. Though he does have his many faults—blind loyalty to the king being the main one—he is completely excused because he has never known any better. His whole life, he has been conditioned to blindly serve the king. This ultimately causes his relationship with Celaena to fracture, but I think that served as a huge wake-up call for him. He is coming to re-assess his loyalties, and figure out what he wants for himself, and what is best for the kingdom. I understand that he and Celaena cannot be together for the time being, but by the end of the series, I hope that he will sort out his priorities and find his way back to Celaena's heart. #Chaolaena <3

And just to justify why I am not on board with Dorian and Celaena ending up together... Dorian is the king's son, and that can never change. Though Dorian may change his heart and mind on matters and choose to not align himself with the king's agenda in the future, the fact of the matter is that Dorian has been there, supporting the king, throughout the king's reign. Even if Dorian does 'rebel' and attempt to rise up against the king, he will always be the son of an awful tyrant, and is therefore ineligible for Celaena's heart (in my most humble opinion).

Okay, okay, okay. There is so much more to this book than Celaena's romantic interests. They were just the first thing on my mind because my favourite part of any book is the romantic side of things.

Celaena was incredible in this book. Seeing her as the King's Champion was pure delight. It was similar to the side of Celaena we saw in The Assassin's Blade, yet so much more badass. She is more mature, more aware of herself and her role, and is thus able to wow me with her incredible skills. There were so many scenes that filled me with such pride for Celaena: the opening scenes, the warehouse scene, the scenes with Grave and Lord Mullison, and of course, the whole chunk at the end. She went through some amazing character development in this novel, and I was completely blown away by how wonderful she is. I will always be in this story for Celaena; her love interests and dramas are just an added bonus.

And it wasn't just Celaena's character development that amazed me. Chaol, Dorian, Nehemia, Kaltain, and even the king to a certain extent, all underwent considerable character developments that really helped to progress the story. I felt a little underwhelmed by Dorian and Nehemia in Throne of Glass, but I really came to love them in Crown of Midnight. Kaltain showed promise in the previous book, and I am devastated by what her fate has been so far, but I truly hope that she can reach her full potential in the rest of the series. I am quietly rooting for a strong friendship to emerge between Celaena and Kaltain, and that Celaena can be a strong mentor for Kaltain through all the horridness she would have to overcome.

We also explored more of the castle and the fantasy world in Crown of Midnight. Whereas we were quite limited in Throne of Glass, this novel allowed Celaena to explore more of the castle and Rifthold, which was fantastic. Through others' perspectives we also get to hear a little more about the rest of the world, such as Eyllwe and Terrase and Wendlyn, etc. Also learning about the different types of magic, how they came to an end ten years ago, and the way it is being used today was all an incredible learning journey, and I feel so immersed in this world that I might just never want to leave. It is what leaves me most excited for Heir of Fire; seeing more of the world in a completely different kingdom, with different perspectives on everything. It is so, so, so exciting!

But, above all, the most exciting part of this book for me was the surprise element, in that I never knew how it was going to end. Every twenty, fifty, hundred pages, my predictions of how the book would end changed drastically. Whereas the plot of Throne of Glass was hugely predictable, Crown of Midnight was full of surprises. It started off on a blank slate, and I had no idea where it was going to go. The surprises, twists and turns, and new characters kept me guessing the entire time, and compelled me to read the story as fast as I possibly could. The ending was completely unexpected, and such a cliffhanger, so I'm keen as a bean to read Heir of Fire as soon as possible.

And although I did absolutely love this book, I had a few minor issues that kept me from rating it a full five stars. My main concern was that there was just so much going on all at once, so many different plot lines, that I was easily confused at times, and wasn't able to fully engage with each line. Perhaps if the multiple plot lines had been streamed a little differently, I might have enjoyed it all a bit better, but alas, I was somewhat confused at times, which took away from the reading experience.

The death of a certain precious character was also not okay. I am still heartbroken, and although I can accept why that character had to die, I can't see at this moment why it was completely necessary.

I was also frustrated with Celaena's to-and-fro with Archer. It was reminiscent of the idiocy that we saw from Celaena in The Assassin's Blade, which had me all kinds of angry and frustrated. So much death and unnecessary heartache could have been avoided had Celaena not been so caught up in her past alliances and taken action on her own accord.

Despite these little setbacks, I did thoroughly enjoy this sequel, and I enjoyed it far more than Throne of Glass. This book left me feeling all kinds of excitement for the rest of the series, and so I'm going to conclude this review here and get into reading that lovely tome!

BOOK REVIEW: Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas

Throne of Glass

Author: Sarah J. Maas
Series: Throne of Glass, #1
Published: 7 August 2012 by Bloomsbury
Genres: Young Adult, Fantasy
Format: Hardback
Source: Purchased
Links: Goodreads

Synopsis:

When magic has gone from the world, and a vicious king rules from his throne of glass, an assassin comes to the castle. She does not come to kill, but to win her freedom. If she can defeat twenty-three killers, thieves, and warriors in a competition to find the greatest assassin in the land, she will become the King's Champion and be released from prison.

Her name is Celaena Sardothien.

The Crown Prince will provoke her. The Captain of the Guard will protect her.

And a princess from a foreign land will become the one thing Celaena never thought she'd have again: a friend.

But something evil dwells in the castle—and it's there to kill. When her competitors start dying, horribly, one by one, Celaena's fight for freedom becomes a fight for survival—and a desperate quest to root out the source of the evil before it destroys her world.

Rating:

Review and Discussion:

I now feel that I can rate this book four stars with much more conviction than when I read it the first time around. Then, I had forced myself to love it because of the hype. Now, I feel like I am able to honestly express my appreciation for this book and rate it the four stars it deserves. I now feel much better about the characters and this fantasy world, and am now legitimately excited to dive into the rest of this series.

“She stood not ten feet from the King of Ardalan. Freedom or death lay at his table. Her past and future were seated on a glass throne.”

Reading The Assassin's Blade is what allowed me to enjoy Throne of Glass to its full potential. The prequel novellas allowed me to get to know Celaena Sardothian as Adarlan's Assassin. I was able to know who she was as herself before she became the Crown Prince's Champion. I feel that Throne of Glass, on its own, does not adequately explore Celaena's character. It alludes to her past, but doesn't give any details, yet uses her past as a significant driving force for her actions, her morals and her ambitions. The first time around, it was incredibly frustrating to not have enough information given about Celaena's character. After reading The Assassin's Blade, however, I feel that I was able to appreciate and understand her character on a whole new level.

U.K. Edition

Admittedly, this is a negative critique of Throne of Glass and its feasibility to serve as an adequate first novel in a high fantasy series. It falls short in a lot of ways, but it presents the reader with so much potential for what the rest of the series could be. Readers shouldn't have to read The Assassin's Blade before reading Throne of Glass, but in my experiences, if they want to get as clear a picture of the characters and the world of this fantasy series, it is an absolute requirement. Which is hugely disappointing, because the prequel novellas should not be required reading to enjoy the actual series.

Another shortfall of Throne of Glass is its lack of world exploration. The world building is excellent, but I found that the book itself didn't explore enough of the world to enhance the building that took place. We hear of all these places in Erilea—Bellhaven, Skull's Bay, Terrasen, the Red Desert, Eyllwe, etc—but none of them are explored. We are restricted to the castle at Rifthold, and very briefly, the death camp in Endovier. With so much of the world alluded to, it was disappointing that we explored so very little of it. The Assassin's Blade definitely compensates for this, and it allowed me to better appreciate the world when reading Throne of Glass.

Thus, without having read The Assassin's Blade, I know I would not have enjoyed Throne of Glass to its full potential. Given a full appreciation of the world and Celaena's incredible character, Throne of Glass becomes a fantastic read. It is epic, thrilling, mysterious, intelligent, witty, hilarious, wholesome and inspiring.

I definitely enjoyed the first half of the book much more than the second half, mostly because the love triangle really starts to emerge and I have no time for the ridiculous love triangle forming. I also found that the double plot was almost too much for this one novel, and could have been explored a bit more than what was allowed. I was definitely more interested in the competition story line than the mysterious murders story line, but alas, they were both entertaining enough to keep me hooked.

Celaena's character was definitely the highlight for me, and her character development is what has me keen to continue on with Crown of Midnight. Her love interests, the plot, the motivations of other characters are all the least of my worries; I am invested in Celaena's character, and she is my first interest in reading these books. Everything else now is just an added bonus.

I'm hoping the rest of the series won't now disappoint me, as I've worked so hard to finally enjoy this first book. Having heard tidbits over the years of the intense shipping rivalries, I'm nervous as to how that will impact the story, Celaena's character, and my enjoyment overall. I've also heard of some pretty significant backlash against Sarah J. Maas herself recently for her poor interactions with readers, which makes me nervous about investing my time in the series. Alas, I am keen as a bean to read Crown of Midnight, and I'll be sure to share my thoughts with you on that when I'm finished.

BOOK REVIEW: The Assassin's Blade by Sarah J. Maas

The Assassin's Blade

Author: Sarah J. Maas
Series: Throne of Glass, #0.1-0.5
Published: 4 March 2014 by Bloomsbury
Genres: Young Adult, Fantasy
Format: Hardback
Source: Purchased
Links: Goodreads

Synopsis:

Celaena Sardothien is her kingdom's most feared assassin. Though she works for the powerful and ruthless Assassin's Guild, Celaena yields to no one and trusts only her fellow killer for hire, Sam.

When Celaena's scheming master, Arobynn Hamel, dispatches her on missions that take her from remote islands to hostile deserts, she finds herself acting independently of his wishes—and questioning her own allegiance. Along the way, she makes friends and enemies alike, and discovers that she feels far more for Sam than just friendship. But by defying Arobynn's orders, Celaena risks unimaginable punishment, and with Sam by her side, he is in danger, too. They will have to risk it all if they hope to escape Arobynn's clutches—and if they fail, they'll lose not just a chance at freedom, but their lives...

A prequel to Throne of Glass, this collection of five novellas offers listeners a deeper look into the history of this cunning assassin and her enthralling—and deadly—world.

Rating:

Review and Discussion:

Last year, I read Throne of Glass, but I didn't exactly love it. I rated it four stars after my first reading, but ever since I have felt that my rating was too generous. I was caught up in the hype, and wanted to love it, but I came away from the book feeling confused and unsatisfied by the characters, the plot and the world-building. I could feel the series had potential, but I just wasn't able to appreciate it at the time.

I has been about ten months now, and I was finally in the mood to read some fantasy and pick up the series again. This time, however, I thought I would start with The Assassin's Blade so that I could learn more about this fantasy world, how it operated, Celaena's past as an assassin, etc. And on that front, this book did not disappoint.

U. K. Edition

From the very first short story that this collection offered, I felt that I had a much better grasp on Celaena's character than what I was able to gain from Throne of Glass. In this collection, we are exposed to Celaena's life as an assassin, her traits, her values, her actions, her manner of assassination. I felt that this understanding of her character was lacking in Throne of Glass, because the story starts right at the end of these short stories, and everything from Celaena's past is assumed, or revealed in short, unsatisfying snippets throughout the story. I am glad that I have now read The Assassin's Blade for it has given me more insight into Celaena's character, and it has made me appreciate her and her story a whole lot more.

Similarly, the short stories also give more insight into the world in which the series takes place. In Throne of Glass, we are only exposed to one very small region of this fantasy world, and limited in what we see of this world also. The Assassin's Blade, however, takes us all over the continent of Erilea. Whilst many different places are referenced in Throne of Glass, in The Assassin's Blade, we actually get to go there with Celaena and see more of her world. We get an understanding of the different cultures, the different mannerisms, the different lifestyles in each area of the continent, and I found that it was very helpful in getting a grasp on the world for the rest of the series.

The main reason why I read this book was to prepare myself for the rest of the series, and it definitely delivered on that front. I have a much stronger understanding of Celaena's character and her history, and also of Erilea. This book, therefore, served its purpose for me.

However, I did find the book to be a little flat at times; quite often I found that the plot was unexciting and slow, and riddled with plot holes or plot twists that came with no surprise. This was the most disappointing element of this book. While it was rich in world-building and character development, I felt that it really lacked in terms of its plot. Acts of betrayal from characters believed to be trusted could be seen from miles away, and it was somewhat frustrating that Celaena was so quick to trust without questioning motives or conspiracy theories. If she's the greatest assassin in the land, she should have been more skeptical of information provided to her and taken it upon herself to find truth and motives before believing those who had betrayed her previously. This was the main thing that bothered me in this book, because the plot twists were so easy for me to see, they should have been equally obvious to Celaena. If they had have been executed more myseriously, perhaps, these plot twists could have been epic and undeniably thrilling.

This collection can be read in one of two ways: as a single, episodic novel (as I read it), or as individual stories to pick up here and there whenever the mood struck. I would recommend the first method if you're looking to deepen your understanding of the fantasy world before or during your reading of the series. Otherwise, if you've read the series in its entirety, or have no interest in picking up the series until you get a small taste of it, I would recommend reading the stories as stand-alones. Granted, you would still have to read them in order to avoid being spoiled on earlier stories, etc, but they each have a conclusive ending that will leave you satisfied for the weeks between picking up the next story. They are enjoyable and beautiful in their own ways, each with their own message of bravery, strength, courage and determination.

My favourite of the short stories was definitely The Assassin and the Healer, which I've heard has been many people's least favourite. It is the shortest, and not much happens by way of plot, but I found it was undeniably beautiful. It showed the bond between two women who came together to support and each other up to their full potential. It was sweet and beautiful, and truly inspiring.

I think that the best story, however, was The Assassin and the Empire. This story packed the most punch, and it was most relevant to Celaena's background and how she ended up in her situation that begins Throne of Glass. It was mysterious and gripping, and though the plot twist was still predictable, not everything was made clear in the end, which still has me thinking and second-guessing everything each of the characters have ever said and done. This story definitely held my attention moreso than the others, and it definitely redeemed my opinion on the collection as a whole.

Alas, with mixed views on this book, overall I did enjoy it. It served its purpose of giving me a better insight into Celaena's character and the fantasy world of Erilea, and it was mostly enjoyable. I am excited to now move onto re-reading Throne of Glass with a better appreciation for the characters and the kingdom, before then reading the rest of the series with more enthusiasm.