Book Review: The Young Elites by Marie Lu

Hello everyone,

Today’s review is on The Young Elites by Marie Lu.

Adelina Amouteru is a malfetto, a survivor of the blood fever that ravaged her nation and bears the scars. One night she runs away from home after finding out that her cruel father is sending her away to be the mistress of wealthy gentleman. However, when she cornered, she discovers that she has abilities linked to illusion that she didn’t know she had, and now she faces execution for the death of her father. But she is soon rescued by Enzo, a Young Elite and the leader of The Dagger Society – a society of Young Elites who are trying to help Enzo regain is rightfully place on the throne. However, they are also be hunted down by Teren Santoro who leads an army whose main duty is to hunt down any Young Elites, who are considered to be abominations by society, and he is especially interested in hunting down Adelina’s whereabouts. Adelina soon finds herself caught up in a world of political intrigue, as well as violence and darkness as she starts to come into her powers, which are unlink anything the rest of the Dagger Society have seen before.

The Young Elites has several themes, one of the most prevalent ones being that of sisterhood. Even though Adelina and Violetta – her sister – grew up keeping each other at arm’s length, that does not stop Delina from doing what she can to save her form the wicked Teren, even if it means betraying her new friends. We also see on Violetta’s part that she had been using her own power to suppress Adelina’s power so that their father would not discover it and try to exploit or kill her.

Another them based on a statement that Adelina repeats in her mind is that of kindness with strings attached. For all of her life she has either been mistreated by her father, or, when he does show her kindness, it is to try and get her power to manifest. The same thing happens with Enzo and Raffaelle, especially since Rafaelle tells Enzo to kill her because she does not know ow to control her power. However, they use her because they believe that she can be useful to their plans. The only person who shows her kindness with no strings attached is her sister.

There is also a minor theme of hypocrisy woven through the story. It turns out that Trene himself is a malfetto and a Young Elite, however he has dedicated himself to seeing them destroyed because he views them as demonic and he views killing them as appeasing the gods.

There is also a fight between good and evil, light and darkness, particularly within Adelina. She has the power to conjure up illusions and make people experience pain, which appears to be rooted in darkness and seems to try to take control of her and push her to destruction, however her compassionate and good side seem to prevent her from doing so. However, there are certain emotions that seem to make her more volatile to the darkness inside of her . It will be interesting to see how this continues to play out in the rest of the trilogy since she has been abandoned by her friends, her love has been killed and she can only rely on her sister to help her from giving herself over to the darkness. In a sense, it is almost like her humanness isf ighting against the inhumanness of her power.

Overall though, I found this to be a pretty generic YA fantasy, however, that being said, I do think it is a good book for someone who is fairly new to YA fantasy. And while I did like the book, I am still on the fence on whether I want to continue with the rest of the trilogy or not. 3.5/ 5 Stars.

Happy Reading,

Janelle L. C.

First Line Fridays #80 – The World Between Blinks by Amie Kaufman and Ryan Graudin

Hello everyone,

Welcome to another installment of First Line Fridays hosted by Reading is My Superpower.

The World Between Blinks by Amie Kaufman and Ryan Graudin

“The World Between Blinks is always there.”

Happy Reading,

Janelle L. C.

Movie Review: Ready Player One (2018)

Hello everyone,

Today’s review is on the movie Ready Player One.

Ready Player One is set in Columbus, Ohio in the year 2045, where the world is a horrible place to live, but many escape to the OASIS, a virtual reality unvierse created James Halliday and Ogden Morrow. Several years prior, James Halliday died and as part of his legacy he left an easter egg hunt in OASIS. Players need to collect three keys to unlock the door to a golden egg, whoever finds it becomes the inheritor of Halliday’s estate. Wade Watts is one of the players who has made it his mission to be the first to the egg, along with his online friend Aech, and the mysterious Art3mis. However, they will have to go up against the sixers, egg hunters for the sinister Nolan Sorrento who wishes to turn the OASIS into a hellish landscape of commercials, as well as exploit the users of the OASIS, the very thing Halliday despised – and he will stop at nothing to get what he wants.

Ready Player One is based on the book by Ernest Cline (who was also one of the screen writers) and Spielberg did a great job adapting it. Even though there are some differences from the book, the changes that were made made sense in order to ensure that the movie wasn’t any longer than it already is. The most glaring differences are the different challenges for the keys and the golden egg, but what they are changed to fits with the flow of the movie, and even makes it more action-packed. Also it makes sense that they did this since there were probably licensing issues with all the cultural references in the book, especially since one of the challenges was to reenact Ferris Bueller’s Day Off by the players acting as Ferris.

The choice of actors was really well done, especially the casting of Nolan Sorrento, as soon as Ben Medelsohn comes on scree his whole demeanor screams corporate overlord and it’s great! However, there have been complaints that this movie is very heavy on CGI,but that is kind of how it is supposed to be since most of the movie takes place in the OASIS which is a Virtual Reality, and it is going to be more “animated” than the real world.

A theme that is woven throughout the movie is that life cannot be lived in a virtual reality, we do need to exist in the real world, even if it might suck. Also, if we live our whole lives in the virtual world we can miss out on some of the best things that life has to offer. It also touches on the subject of corruption and corporate greed.

Overall, I really enjoyed Ready Player One! I do get all the complaints about it, but for me this was a fun science-fiction action adventure video.

Happy Reading,

Janelle L. C.

Book Review: Enchanted Air by Margarita Engle

Hello everyone,

Today’s review is on Enchanted Air by Margarita Engle.

Margarita Engle is a Cuban American torn between the two worlds that make up her heritage. She loves Cuba and the carefree days she enjoyed when she would go visit her mom’s family, but she is stuck living in Los Angeles which is a far cry from the beautiful life of Cuba. But when the Cuban Revolution breaks out and ties between Cuba and the United States grows tense, Margarita must deal with the fact that her beloved Cuba may never be the place that she once knew it to be, and with the prejudice that comes with being half-Cuban and the hate between two countries.

Enchanted Air is a lyrical memoir told in verse. It is written in such a way that readers are transported along with the author through her experiences as a child and then as a teenagers. Very early on we see her struggle between her love for Cuba and her life in the U.S., “Am I free to need both, or will have to choose only one way of thinking?” (13). She feels like she has to choose between the countries and that she is not allowed to love both in their own ways. It provides a first-hand refection of what it was like being a young Cuban American during the Cuban Revolution, the Bay of Pigs and The Cuban Missile Crisis.

Margarita’s family is founded on the immigrant experience, because her mom is a Cuban immigrant, and then her paternal grandparents had to flee from Ukraine and have every few memories of their life there. And although their experiences are different from that of her mother who immigrated to the States to be with her father, but she longs to go back to her homeland and her family.

When the Cuban Revolution starts, the author has to deal with horrible and ignorant comments from her classmates and teachers because she is half Cuban. Even her mother has to undergo scrutiny just because she is Cuban, for example, she is interrogated by the FBI because they think she could be communist spy. And when her and her mother travel to Cuba for a short visit with her mother’s family, she discovers that the Cuban soldiers have animosity towards America and vice versa. However, despite Cuba being somewhat war-torn, the author remembers having and idyllic summer there when she as nine years old.

Against the backdrop of turmoil, the author discovers a love for reading, “Books are enchanted. Books help me travel. Books help me breathe.” (54). They provide a way from her to escape from the reality of everything going on around her. She also discusses the isolation her mother feels because she realizes she might not get to go back Cuba when tensions get even worse between them and the U.S. And the author herself reminisces about the day when she will be able to go back to Cuba to visit her mother’s family, even though things look bleak.

I loved this memoir and I am planning on picking up the companion memoir soon, and I will have a review for that too! 5/5 Stars.

Happy Reading,

Janelle L. C.

First Line Fridays #79 – Instant Karma by Marissa Meyer

Hello everyone,

Welcome to another installment of First Line Fridays hosted by Hoarding Books.

Instant Karma by Marissa Meyer

“Quint Erickson is late. Again.”

Happy Reading,

Janelle L. C.

Book Review: Someday We Will Fly by Rachel DeWoskin

Hello everyone,

Today’s review is on Someday We Will Fly by Rachel DeWoskin.

15-year-old Lillia is living in Warsaw, Poland in 1940 which has become occupied by the Nazis. Her and her family about to flee Poland, but mere days before they do, her mother, Alenka disappears. However, they realize they need to follow through with their plan and hope that Alenka joins them eventually. Lillia and the rest of her family travel a long way to Shanghai, the only place that will allow Jewish refugees in without requiring a visa. However, when they arrive in Shanghai, they realize that life there is not going to be easy, especially with the presence of Japanese soldiers throughout the city. They find a home in the shelter, however tragedy strikes and Lillia must do what she can to take care of her family, while still holding on to the hope that her mother will join them.

Someday We Will Fly is an interesting story that covers a part of World War II history that might necessarily be known to a lot of people. This is a novel about survival and resiliency, even in the darks of times. We see this especially when both Lillia’s father and her baby sister are sick and she does what she can to earn money, even if it means working in a brothel of sorts.

There is also an exploration of what it means to be human and how even those who might be misjudged as our enemies can be our greatest allies. For example, Mr. Takati, who is a Japanese businessman who befriends Lillia at the brothel and he treats her with decency. Later when the Japanese take over Shanghai he and his wife help Lillia by writing a letter to officials in Kobe, Japan -where her mother is stranded- to help her mother get the papers she needs in order to join her family in Shanghai.

This is also a story of hope and how something as simple as a puppet made out of trash can be used to bring a glimmer of hope to those in a very tough situation. However, the novel also does not shy away from showing the harsh realities that took place during World War II in the Pacific Theater, even the fact that the Japanese also put Americans in internment camps, which is something that isn’t often talked about.

Overall, Someday We Will Fly is a reminder about the complexities of World War II and that is a lot that most people don’t know because there is a lot that took place. But it is also a reminder of hope and compassion. 4/5 Stars.

Happy Reading,

Janelle L. C.

Video Game Review: Disneyland Adventures

Hello everyone,

Today’s review is on the video game Disneyland Adventures.

Taken from Microsoft.

Join Mickey and his friends at the happiest place on earth – Disneyland. Explore the parks, complete tasks and collect items for some of Disney’s beloved characters. Enjoy playing mini-games centered around some of Disneyland’s most popualr rides, and even get to ride on a few of them.

The start of the game to seem slow, especially with creating the avatar, and then completing some tasks for Mickey, but it starts pick up after the first few minutes. The whole game is very atmospheric and feels like you are walking through the actual park based of the original one in Anaheim. The music is also atmospheric and of course it is some of the tunes that Disney fans have grown to love over the years.

Players get to choose whether they want to be guided to the various characters or through the various tasks, which cna be useful considering how big the park is, but there is the option to do it without assistance. Besides running aroung the park, there are also shortcuts to get to the various lands, simply by clinck on them on the park map that can be found in settings.

People of all ages will enjoy this game, especially fans of Disney and Disneyland.

Happy Reading,

Janelle L. C.

First Line Fridays #78 – The One and Only Bob by Katherine Applegate

Hello everyone,

Welcome to another installment of First Line Fridays hosted by Hoarding Books.

The One and Only Bob by Katherine Applegate

“Look, nobody’s ever accused me of being a good dog. ”

Happy Reading,

Janelle L. C.

Book Review: Aurora Rising by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

Hello everyone,

Today’s review is on Aurora Rising by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff.

Taylor Jones is the star pupil of the Aurora Academy and as a result he gets to be the first Ace to pick his crew at graduation. However, he ends up missing graduation and as a result he gets stuck with a ragtag team of leftover cadets and he must figure out a way for them to come together. Then there is also the reason why he missed his graduation, he discovered an abandoned and decrepit ship in the Fold and inside was cryogenically frozen girl who was about to die if he hadn’t rescued her. However, there is something strange about Aurora, which happens to be the girl’s name, she was found a ship that disappeared over 200 years ago, and the destination that she says she was going to is in a restricted area, and there is no records of her family. Not only that, but when she stows away on his ship during his crew’s first mission, they all find themselves fugitives on the run, as well as something mysterious and creepy about those that are after them. What is really going, and how does Aurora fit into all of this?

Aurora Rising was an interesting Science fiction story, however it is also slow in some places, while also trying to accomplish too much plot-wise.

It does deal with some interesting themes, namely with stereotypes and how they are not always true. For example, Kal is from an alien race that is looked down upon by the rest of the galaxy, not only that but he is also from the warrior faction of that race which is known to be genocidal. As a result some of the crew members are wary of him. Aurora is also viewed suspiciously because it is discovered that she has powers and she has very little control over them. The novel also touches on the topic of refugees and how they are not always treated the way they should be, especially when they are on the run from a war-torn country.

Aurora Rising also deals with lies, conspiracies and cover ups, especially when the truth about what happened to Octavia III – the planet Aurora was headed to 200 years prior – has been covered up and wiped from history. When Aurora tries to tell others about what she remembers, no one seems to know what she is talking about.

The villain of the novel is very interesting, because of just one person, it is a gestalt that also takes the form of a virus of sorts that zombifies its victims. However, I do wish that we were given more details about it, because it leaves readers with more questions than answers about what is going on. Also, randomly Aurora ends up being a part of the weapon that can be used to destroy this evil entity, which kind of makes sense, but again very few details are given about this, probably to get readers to pick up the next book in the series.

Some other reviewers have stated that the problem with Aurora Rising tries too hard to be like Guardians of Galaxy, and that is definitely true. However, it is still a fun read for those who are looking for something that reads similar to those movies.

Overall, this was an okay read, but it is definitely a let down for fans of The Illuminae Files. And even though the ending was intriguing, I still don’t have a desire to continue on with this series because I found myself both bored and confused for most of it. 3/5 Stars.

Happy Reading,

Janelle L. C.

Movie Review: Lady Bird (2017)

Hello everyone,

Today’s review is on Lady Bird directed by Greta Gerwig.

Lady Bird is set in Sacramento in 2002, following Christine McPherson, who prefers to go by Lady Bird. She is a senior at a Catholic High School and dreams of going to college on the East Coast, despie that fact that she has poor grades, a poor work ethic, and her parents can’t afford to send her to a fancy school. She also doesn’t get along with her mother, who she is constantly butting heads with. During her senior she goes on a coming-of-age journey by joining theater, getting her first boyfriend, her first break-up and her first time having sex, as well as rebellious acts she knows will drive her mother up the wall. But she will discover that getting everything she want might not be what she needs!

Lady Bird opens up with a quote from Joan Didion, that seems to serve almost as the central theme of the movie, she wrote, “Anybody who talks about California hedonims has never spent a Christmas in Sacramento.” This also goes along with a quote from Lady Bird in the opening scene when she tells her mother, “I wish I could live through something.” Which is an interesting statement when one thinks that this scene takes place almost a year after 9/11. However, this also lets viwers know that Lady Bird feels trapped by her mom’s expectations and decisions – a theme that is examined throughout the rest of the movie. Her momther wants her to a school in-state because Lady Bird’s grades aren’t great and her parents can’t afford to pay a whole lot towards her college education, a fact that is later compounded when her dad is let go from his job. Her mom really wants the best for her daughter, but she wants to do so within their means.

As the movie goes on we see her join theater because it is a way fr her to be performative in a less destructive manner. There she meets and falls for Danny and we see them get to know each other and shre their first kiss, which is juxtaposed with a fight with her mom and her dad losing his job. And event hough her mom cares deeply for her family, it is also seen that she can be somewhat passive aggressive and manipulative if things do not go the way she thinks they should be going.

Throughout the film, Lady Bird does several questionable things such as stealing a magainze from the grocery store, throwing away a teacher’s grade book and attempting to cheat on a test. This continues after she breaks up with Danny, after discovering that he is gay, and she sets her eyes on bad boy, Kyle and as a result she tries to get in with the cool crowd to get to know him more, but she also lies to her newfound friends because they are more well-to-do than she is. She also struggles with entitlement throughout the movie. She feels that she is owed getting into every college that she applied to even though she has bad grades, etc. She is also very self-centered, making decisions that benefit her, even if they might hurt others around her, especially her desire to get out of Sacrmento, which she refers to as the “Midwest of California.” However, after a few hiccups along the way, Lady bird also begins to understand her mtoher a bit better, especially after she is far from home at the end of the film.

Overall, I can see why Lady Bird was/is a popular movie, but it just didn’t appeal to me. While her journey is interesting, I found Lady Bird extremely unlikable and never once did I root for her. Maybe it’s also because I personally can’t relate to most of her experiences. 3/5 Stars

Happy Reading,

Janelle L. C.