Wishlist Wednesday #36

Wishlist Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Pen to Paperwhere we tell you about a book that is currently on our wishlist that we are excited for!

This week on Phil's Wishlist:
When Cassie was a little girl, her grandmother told her a fairy tale about her mother, who made a deal with the Polar Bear King and was swept away to the ends of the earth. Now that Cassie is older, she knows the story was a nice way of saying her mother had died. Cassie lives with her father at an Arctic research station, is determined to become a scientist, and has no time for make-believe.

Then, on her eighteenth birthday, Cassie comes face-to-face with a polar bear who speaks to her. He tells her that her mother is alive, imprisoned at the ends of the earth. And he can bring her back — if Cassie will agree to be his bride.

That is the beginning of Cassie's own real-life fairy tale, one that sends her on an unbelievable journey across the brutal Arctic, through the Canadian boreal forest, and on the back of the North Wind to the land east of the sun and west of the moon. Before it is over, the world she knows will be swept away, and everything she holds dear will be taken from her — until she discovers the true meaning of love and family in the magical realm of Ice.

Not many people have heard of this one. But it has gotten some pretty good reviews on Goodreads, and the synopsis sounds truly unique and interesting. I don't remember how I found it, all I know is that I want it. The idea of a polar bear king sounds awesome, and I can't wait to eventually pick this one up!

Carrie by Stephen King

Pages: 304
Publisher: Anchor Books
ISBN: 9780345805874
Genre: Horror


Review by Phil


Synopsis (Goodreads.com):
An unpopular teenage girl whose mother is a religious fanatic is tormented and teased to the breaking point by her more popular schoolmates and uses her hidden telekinetic powers to inflict a terrifying revenge.

My Thoughts (Spoiler Free)

So I really didn't want to do a review of this book, but it is the only thing I have read recently and haven't reviewed, so here we go.

Carrie is one of my all time favorite movies, seriously it is amazing. I have been looking forward to the new remake since they announced that Chloe Grace Moretz was going to be playing Carrie, and am officially obsessed with the story line. As many times as I have seen Carrie though, I had never read the book, so I deemed that necessary.

The script for the original Carrie movie came straight from this novel. Probably one of the best book-movie adaptations ever, everything matches up for the most part, except one major detail...the ending. I don't want to give away any spoilers, but it is very different from the movie. Don't get me wrong, if you have seen the movie, all of the same characters die, just not in the way that they did in the movie. I actually prefer the deaths in the movie compared to the book though.

This is the first Stephen King book I have ever finished, and overall I am pretty impressed. While this book wasn't scary in the slightest of ways, it was entertaining, and I really liked it, but not as much as the movie. Normally I would never give the advice, but really just watch the movie, it is the same exact story (dialogue and all), and it will save you from hours of reading what you could just watch in an hour and a half. 

I gave Carrie 4/5 stars.
♚♚♚♚♔



Project Cain by Geoffrey Girard

Pages: 368
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
ISBN: 9781442476967
Genre: Young Adult

Review by Geraldine

Synopsis (Goodreads.com): Fifteen-year-old Jeff Jacobson had never heard of Jeffrey Dahmer, the infamous serial killer who brutally murdered seventeen people more than twenty years ago. But Jeff’s life changes forever when the man he’d thought was his father hands him a government file telling him he was constructed in a laboratory only seven years ago, part of a top-secret government cloning experiment called ‘Project CAIN’.

There, he was created entirely from Jeffrey Dahmer’s DNA. There are others like Jeff—those genetically engineered directly from the most notorious murderers of all time: The Son of Sam, The Boston Strangler, Ted Bundy . . . even other Jeffrey Dahmer clones. Some raised, like Jeff, in caring family environments; others within homes that mimicked the horrific early lives of the men they were created from.

When the most dangerous boys are set free by the geneticist who created them, the summer of killing begins. Worse, these same teens now hold a secret weapon even more dangerous than the terrible evil they carry within. Only Jeff can help track the clones down before it’s too late. But will he catch the ‘monsters’ before becoming one himself.

My Thoughts (Spoiler-free):

When I first picked this book up, I had seen nothing but negative reviews; which made me really nervous to read it. Since the synopsis completely caught my attention, I decided to give it a try regardless of the negative reviews. And you know what? I'm so glad I ended up reading it, because it ended up being one of the most interesting reads of the year for me!

The characters incorporated into this book were both creepy and awesome! Seriously, all of the characters that were mentioned were based off of real serial killers along with the traits and personality that they had.

There was really nothing to complain about in this book, since I found out there was a companion book from a different character's perspective. I was at ease when it came to the questions I had after I finished the book, because I'm sure all my questions will be answered when I read the companion book.

 Although, some readers may not enjoy how the book switched from info dumps back to the storyline, I thought it made the book extremely interesting and captivating (but of course if info dumps bother you, I would not recommend this book for you). The info dumps gave you a lot of background information, and I loved the fact that they were mostly all facts. Yes, not just based on facts, but full on facts. The facts mentioned in this book intrigued me so much that I actually found myself researching these facts on my own free time!

 And can we just talk about the pictures in this book?! There were ACTUAL mug shots of the serial killers throughout the book which definitely added to the creepiness factor! I even had nightmares from just the thought of some of the things mentioned in this book. You'll have to read it to find out!

 This book does not get enough credit, it truly is one of the most underrated books I've read this year! It will not disappoint and I definitely recommend it! 4 stars!
♛♛♛♛♕

Wishlist Wednesday #35

Wishlist Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Pen to Paperwhere we tell you about a book that is currently on our wishlist that we are excited for!

This week on Phil's Wishlist:

Claire Kincaid’s family has been in business for over fifty years.

The voodoo business.

Part of the International Guild of High Priests and Priestesses, a secret society that have practiced voodoo for generations, the Kincaid’s run an underground supply house for authentic voodoo supplies. Claire plays along, filling orders for powders, oils and other bizarre ingredients in the family store, but she has a secret.

She doesn’t believe.

Struggling to reconcile her modern sensibilities with a completely unscientific craft based on suspicion, Claire can’t wait to escape New Orleans – and voodoo – when she goes to college, a desire that creates almost constant conflict in her secret affair with Xander Toussaint, son of the Guild’s powerful founding family.

But when a mysterious customer places an order for a deadly ingredient, Claire begins to realize that there’s more to voodoo – and the families that make up the Guild – than meets the eye.

Including her own.

As she bands together with the other firstborns of the Guild, she comes face to face with a deadly enemy – and the disbelief that may very well kill her.

Cover lust was part of the initial want for this book, and then when I read the synopsis and found out that it was about voodoo it peaked my interest even more. I'm currently caught up with the current season of American Horror Story, which has some voodoo aspects interwoven into the story line, and I really am enjoying this season. I'm worried because this story line sounds awesome, but I'm scared the amazingness that it could be will be watered down because it is YA. Then again I thought the same thing about Daughter of Smoke and Bone, but I love that series more than literally anything in the world. So we will see, but I hope it'll be good, if not I will be upset.

StackofHardbacks Meets for the First Time!

Phil and I finally got the chance to meet in September as you previously saw in his post about the National Book Festival. If you had questions when you read that post such as "how was it like meeting a booktuber in real life?" then I've got all the answers for you! Phil and I decided to film the Meeting a Booktuber Tag where we answered questions about meeting a fellow booktuber. As readers of our blog, I also hope you guys get to know us a little better after watching this video. Enjoy!


Wishlist Wednesday #34

Wishlist Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Pen to Paperwhere we tell you about a book that is currently on our wishlist that we are excited for!

This week on Alyssa's Wishlist:

 The One by Kiera Cass

 The Selection changed the lives of thirty-five girls forever. And now, the time has come for one winner to be chosen.

America never dreamed she would find herself anywhere close to the crown—or to Prince Maxon's heart. But as the competition approaches its end and the threats outside the palace walls grow more vicious, America realizes just how much she stands to lose—and how hard she'll have to fight for the future she wants.

From the very first page of The Selection, this #1 New York Times bestselling series has captured readers' hearts and swept them away on a captivating journey... Now, in The One, Kiera Cass delivers a satisfying and unforgettable conclusion that will keep readers sighing over this electrifying fairy-tale long after the final page is turned.

I promised myself a long time ago that I wouldn't get sucked into any more girly girl book series but Kiera Cass has apparently made a liar out of me. That's okay, Cass. I'll forgive you so long as you guarantee that America ends up with Maxon. If that doesn't happen... I'll be very, very unhappy. Also, if this release date gets pushed back - again, I'll be very, very unhappy. (I'm looking at you, HarperTeen).

The Coldest Girl in Coldtown by Holly Black

Pages: 419
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
ISBN: 9780316213103
Genre: YA Dystopian/Vampire

Review by Phil

Synopsis (Goodreads.com):

Tana lives in a world where walled cities called Coldtowns exist. In them, quarantined monsters and humans mingle in a decadently bloody mix of predator and prey. The only problem is, once you pass through Coldtown’s gates, you can never leave.

One morning, after a perfectly ordinary party, Tana wakes up surrounded by corpses. The only other survivors of this massacre are her exasperatingly endearing ex-boyfriend, infected and on the edge, and a mysterious boy burdened with a terrible secret. Shaken and determined, Tana enters a race against the clock to save the three of them the only way she knows how: by going straight to the wicked, opulent heart of Coldtown itself.

My Thoughts

I read the short story that this book was based off of about a year ago, and I really liked it. When I heard that Black decided to make a full length novel of the short story I was really excited. I preordered this an everything, and overall I am very happy with it.

While the short story and this book have rarely anything in common except in title and world, they both were amazing. The short story left the reader yearning for more of the world of the cold-towns. In this book we delve deep into the cold-towns, as well as a new main character, Tana, and her adventure within the towns walls.

The writing was actually amazing in this book, the quotes before each chapter were beautiful, and a great addition, so I need to give Black credit for that. Although I wish the quotes had been in a different font because I constantly found myself not being able to read some words #ohwell. Along with the quotes, the dialogue as well as Tana's struggle throughout the book was vividly portrayed, which made the book really enjoyable to read.

I feel like this review it really boring, and I am trying not to be I swear, but I don't know how else to say my opinion, this book was just really good. Also that cover #thefeels.

I gave The Coldest Girl in Coldtown 4/5 stars, and am now officially a Holly Black fan!

            ♚♚♚♚♔

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