Book Review #487 - Boys Don't Knit (Boys Don't Knit #1) by T.S. Easton

Ben Fletcher must get to grips with his more 'feminine' side following an unfortunate incident with a lollipop lady and a stolen bottle of Martini Rosso from Waitrose. All a big misunderstanding of course. To avoid the Young Offenders unit, Ben is ordered to give something back to the community and develop his sense of social alignment. Take up a hobby and keep on the straight and narrow. The hot teacher he likes runs a knitting group so Ben, reluctantly at first, gets 'stuck in'. Not easy when your dad is a sports fan and thinks Jeremy Clarkson is God. To his surprise, Ben finds that he likes knitting and that he has a mean competitive streak. If he can just keep it all a secret from his mates...and notice that the girl of his dreams, girl-next-door Megan Hooper has a bit of a thing for him...Laugh-out-loud, often ridiculous, sometimes quite touching, and revelatory about the knitting world, Boys Don't Knit is a must for boys and girls...

My Rating: 4/5

I received this book for review from The Five Mile Press.

This book was witty and amusing and takes full use of the diary format. 

Ben was an intriguing character. He is happy being who people want him to be and it is not until he discovers knitting that he becomes the person he wants to be.

The knitting aspect was something I wasn't really sure of how it would work but I ended up finding it rather interesting.

Ben's family dynamic, especially with his father was conveyed in a light natured way but had a serious element to it as well which I think a lot of people could relate to.

This book had a very British feel to it which I loved.

Book Review #486 - Wickedpedia (Point Horror) by Chris van Etten

Cole and Greg love playing practical jokes through Wikipedia. They edit key articles and watch their classmates crash and burn giving oral reports on historical figures like Genghis Khan, the first female astronaut on Jupiter. So after the star soccer player steals Cole's girlfriend, the boys take their revenge by creating a Wikipedia page for him, an entry full of outlandish information including details about his bizarre death on the soccer field.

It's all in good fun, until the soccer player is killed in a freak accident . . . just as Cole and Greg predicted. The uneasy boys vow to leave Wikipedia alone but someone continues to edit articles about classmates dying in gruesome ways . . . and those entries start to come true as well.

To his horror, Cole soon discovers that someone has created a Wikipedia page for him, and included a date of death. He has one week to figure out who's behind the murders, or else he's set to meet a pretty grisly end.

My Rating: 3/5

I received this book for review from Scholastic Australia.

I found this to be a pretty slow read. This was not necessarily a negative thing - it just took me longer to read than I had expected.

This book reminded me heavily of the Goosebumps books from my childhood.

Throughout the book I kept thinking of how well this book would work as a Pretty Little Liars type drama so I wasn't surprised when I read the author biography and discovered the author is also a television writer.

The writing style was a little choppy. The main issue was the execution. There were just small details that needed more tying together.

Overall, I found this book to be unique, entertaining and thrilling. Horror is definitely a genre I need to read more of.

Book Review #485 - Paper Aeroplanes (Paper Aeroplanes #1) by Dawn O'Porter

It's the mid-1990s, and fifteen year-old Guernsey schoolgirls, Renée and Flo, are not really meant to be friends. Thoughtful, introspective and studious Flo couldn't be more different to ambitious, extroverted and sexually curious Renée. But Renée and Flo are united by loneliness and their dysfunctional families, and an intense bond is formed. Although there are obstacles to their friendship (namely Flo's jealous ex-best friend and Renée's growing infatuation with Flo's brother), fifteen is an age where anything can happen, where life stretches out before you, and when every betrayal feels like the end of the world. For Renée and Flo it is the time of their lives.

My Rating: 4/5

I received this book for review from Five Mile Press.

I loved how realistic this book felt. The characters and the plot were both very genuine.

The book is told from alternating chapters between two 15 year old school girls Flo and Renee.

Flo is the more reserved of the two and her unwillingness to stand up for herself frustrates Renee.

Renee likes to put up a tough exterior but she is ultimately as insecure as Flo.

Both of the girls come from broken families and their home life is very poor. The book is about the two bonding over this common thread.

I will definitely be reading the sequel very soon.

Book Review #484 - Seven Up (Stephanie Plum #7) by Janet Evanovich

BLOWN UP

All New Jersey bounty hunter Stephanie Plum has to do is bring in semi-retired bail jumper Eddie DeChooch. For an old man he's still got a knack for slipping out of sight--and raising hell. How else can Stephanie explain the bullet-riddled corpse in Eddie's garden? Who else would have a clue as to why two of Stephanie's friends suddenly vanished? For answers Stephanie has the devil to pay: her mentor, Ranger. The deal? He'll give Stephanie all the help she needs--if she gives him everything he wants...

MESSED UP

As if things weren't complicated enough, Stephanie's just discovered her Grandma Mazur's own unmentionable alliance with Eddie. Add a series of unnerving break-ins, not to mention the bombshell revelation leveled by Stephanie's estranged sister, and Stephanie's ready for some good news. Unfortunately, a marriage proposal from Joe Morelli, the love of her life, isn't quite cutting it. And now--murder, a randy paramour, a wily mobster, death threats, extortion, and a triple kidnapping aside--Stephanie's really got the urge to run for her life...

My Rating: 4/5

This is the seventh book in the Stephanie Plum Series. I love how in incorporates the series numbers into the titles so it is obvious what order the books are in.

The situations Stephanie gets herself into and the randomness of the people she meets is just hilarious. As long as they keep being this funny, I will continue to read whatever amount of books that are published.

The romance in this book starts getting serious with Morelli pushing for marriage. I am like Stephanie though, I can't decide between Morelli and Ranger. I think Stephanie and Ranger would be good together but it is hard to overlook the history she has with Morelli.

Just when you think Stephanie's family couldn't get any more dysfunctional, her 'perfect' sister turns up unexpected with her daughter who thinks she is a horse.

Grandma Mazur wasn't as involved in this book as she has been in the previous books but the inclusion of Mooner made up for it in terms of humour.

Book Review #483 - Platinum (Golden #2) by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

Lilah knows the rules better than anyone, but between her newfound visions, an absolutely fatal attraction to a boy who isn't real, and the threat of a supernatural enemy with a sting deadlier than any Queen Bee, it's going to take everything she has to stay on top at Emory. And to prove once and for all that - highlights and high heels aside - those who make the rules are the only ones who can break them.

My Rating: 3/5

This is the sequel to Golden.

Golden is told from Felicity's point of view and Felicity who doesn't fit in with any of the school cliques, however Platinum is told from Lilah's point of view and Lilah is the head Golden and the most popular girl in school.

It was interesting to read from Lilah's perspective as it gave great insight into the politics involved in their warped ideals of social standings.

The paranormal aspect was stronger in this book than it was in Golden which I really liked.

The main problem I have with this book is that I just feel as though I don't find it captivating enough.

Book Review #482 - Golden (Golden #1) by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

When Lissy James moves from California to Oklahoma, she finds herself in the middle of a teenage nightmare: a social scene to rival a Hollywood movie. And if understanding the hierarchy of the Goldens vs. the Nons isn’t hard enough, Lissy’s ever growing Aura Vision is getting harder and harder to hide, and if she’s not careful, she’s going to become a Non faster than you can say “freak.”

But it’s becoming clear that Emory High has a few secrets of its own. Around the halls, the term “special powers” goes way beyond one’s ability to attract the opposite sex, and there may be something more evil than the A-crowd lurking in the classrooms. Lissy can see a lot more than the average girl, but she’s about to learn the hard way that things aren’t always as they appear and you can’t always judge a girl by her lip gloss.

My Rating: 3/5

I have quite a number of Jennifer Lynn Barnes' books on my bookshelf, Golden is the first I have read.

This book tells the story of Felicity who moves from California to Oklahoma. Upon arriving in Oklahoma she is immediately exposed to the popular group who refer to themselves as Goldens.

The Goldens are all super arrogant and pretty much carbon copies of one another with no substance.

This book focused too heavily on the cliques and immaturity of high school life rather than the unique paranormal aspect.

The paranormal aspect being that every female in Felicity's family has some kind of ability. Felicity can see auras. At first Felicity hates her gift and throughout the book she learns that she must learn to develop it as it is impossible to ignore it like she would like to.

I didn't like too many characters in this book as they weren't developed enough but Felicity's sister Lexie was one of my favourites. She was genuine, bubbly and very down to earth.

Overall I enjoyed the concept of this book, but the execution failed to live up to its potential.

Book Review #486 - Paper Planes by Allayne L. Webster

Niko and his family are trapped in Sarajevo during the Bosnian War. The siege lasts for three years and Niko's family struggle to find enough food and avoid the snipers whose targets are civilians in the streets. Niko and his friend Nadim take refuge from the bombing in the stairwell of their apartment building and together they find hope in the midst of a war they did not start but must try to survive.

My Rating: 3.5/5

I received this book for review from Scholastic Australia.

This book tells the story of 11 year old Niko and his family during who live in Bosnia during a war.

Niko is trying to grasp the brutal reality of his upturned world through his childish innocence.

This book definitely opened by eyes to the fact that I take the safety of my life in Australia for granted when Niko and his family risk the impossible for a piece of a life here.