Book Review #800 - Beauty Queens by Libba Bray

The 50 contestants in the Miss Teen Dream pageant thought this was going to be a fun trip to the beach, where they could parade in their state-appropriate costumes and compete in front of the cameras.

But sadly, their airplane had another idea, crashing on a desert island and leaving the survivors stranded with little food, little water, and practically no eyeliner.

What’s a beauty queen to do? Continue to practice for the talent portion of the program - or wrestle snakes to the ground? Get a perfect tan - or learn to run wild? And what should happen when the sexy pirates show up?

Welcome to the heart of non-exfoliated darkness.

My Rating: 2/5

I went into this book having read back to back 5 star reads in The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo and The Light Between Oceans and so this could be a reason why I did not like this book.

The book started off really well and I was enjoying the story and of course the satirical humour but it just got to the point where this became too much. When I reached that point I wasn't even half way through and so in my opinion the book was way too long to sustain just a story and style of humour.

Comparing this book to The Lord of the Flies is interesting because in that book the characters lose their humanity over time whereas in this book I felt like the girls became more human the longer they were removed from their toxic lives.

One of the issues I had with this book was distinguishing the characters because sometimes they were mentioned by name and sometimes by the state they were representing.

There was a lot of representation in this book with there being a lesbian, a transgender and a girl with a hearing impairment. The only issue with this was the transgender was bullied when found to be transgender and this behaviour was never really challenged.

Overall, I really wanted to enjoy this book as I usually love survival stories but this one was just too weird for me. I should have realised that when the pirates were introduced.

Book Review #755 - How to Build a Girl by Caitlin Moran

The New York Times bestselling author hailed as “the UK’s answer to Tina Fey, Chelsea Handler, and Lena Dunham all rolled into one” (Marie Claire) makes her fiction debut with a hilarious yet deeply moving coming of age novel.

What do you do in your teenage years when you realize what your parents taught you wasn’t enough? You must go out and find books and poetry and pop songs and bad heroes—and build yourself.

It’s 1990. Johanna Morrigan, fourteen, has shamed herself so badly on local TV that she decides that there’s no point in being Johanna anymore and reinvents herself as Dolly Wilde—fast-talking, hard-drinking Gothic hero and full-time Lady Sex Adventurer. She will save her poverty-stricken Bohemian family by becoming a writer—like Jo in Little Women, or the Bröntes—but without the dying young bit.

By sixteen, she’s smoking cigarettes, getting drunk and working for a music paper. She’s writing pornographic letters to rock-stars, having all the kinds of sex with all kinds of men, and eviscerating bands in reviews of 600 words or less.

But what happens when Johanna realizes she’s built Dolly with a fatal flaw? Is a box full of records, a wall full of posters, and a head full of paperbacks, enough to build a girl after all?

My Rating: 3.5/5

I found this book in a store that was having a closing down sale and had some vague memory of hearing of it before so I picked it up and I am so glad I did as this book was unlike anything I have previously read.

I loved the family dynamic in this book especially between Johannah and her siblings. 

This book was a little crude at times and sometimes I found this hilarious and other times it made me cringe. For example, after reading the opening paragraph I questioned whether to keep reading but I am happy I did because I enjoyed this book so much more than I thought I would.

There were so many music references in this book which apart from The Beatles ones most went straight over my head. The references to The Beatles though were constant and really well done and I loved that there seemed to be at least one reference to them per chapter as they are my favourite band of all time.

Book Review #743 - Picture Perfect (Geek Girl #3) by Holly Smale

"My name is Harriet Manners, and I'll always be a geek."

It's the hilarious third book in the No.1 bestselling, award winning GEEK GIRL series!

Harriet Manners knows more facts than most. She knows that New York is the most populous city in the United States. She knows that its official motto is "Ever Upward". She knows that 28% of Americans believe we never landed on the moon.

But she knows nothing about modelling in the Big Apple, and how her family will cope with life stateside. Or how to "become a brand", as the models in New York put it. And, even more importantly, what to do when the big romantic gestures aren't coming from your boyfriend...

Does geek girl go too far this time?

My Rating: 3/5

Picking up a Geek Girl novel is always so refreshing because Harriet is such a fun and unique protagonist.

This book was set in the USA which was fascinating as each book so far in this series has been set in a different country.

This book centered a little heavier on the romance side of things than the previous books even though the main love interest Nick was barely present throughout. He just seems to pop and in and out of the story which makes it hard for me to form any kind of attachment to him.

Once again the family dynamic in this book was really strong and accurate. Harriet's father was as hilarious as always.

Overall, I am loving this series and I don't think I will ever tire of Harriet's witty and entertaining narration. 

Book Review #739 - The Happiest Refugee: A Memoir by Anh Do

Anh Do nearly didn't make it to Australia. His entire family came close to losing their lives on the sea as they escaped from war-torn Vietnam in an overcrowded boat. But nothing -- not murderous pirates, nor the imminent threat of death by hunger, disease or dehydration as they drifted for days -- could quench their desire to make a better life in the country they had dreamed about.

Life in Australia was hard, an endless succession of back-breaking work, crowded rooms, ruthless landlords and make-do everything. But there was a loving extended family, and always friends and play and something to laugh about for Anh, his brother Khoa and their sister Tram. Things got harder when their father left home when Anh was thirteen -- they felt his loss very deeply and their mother struggled to support the family on her own. His mother's sacrifice was an inspiration to Anh and he worked hard during his teenage years to help her make ends meet, also managing to graduate high school and then university. 

Another inspiration was the comedian Anh met when he was about to sign on for a 60-hour a week corporate job. Anh asked how many hours he worked. 'Four,' the answer came back, and that was it. He was going to be a comedian! The Happiest Refugeetells the incredible, uplifting and inspiring life story of one of our favourite personalities. Tragedy, humour, heartache and unswerving determination -- a big life with big dreams. Anh's story will move and amuse all who read it.

My Rating: 4/5

I have had this book on my TBR for sometime. I'm not that familiar with Anh Do as a comedian as I don't watch a lot of television but I became aware of this book because of the amount of "must read lists" I kept finding it on, the latest being the 2018 Dymocks top 100 which prompted me to finally read it. 

First of all I am a 5th generation Australian so I have idea what it is like to have cultural differences in your family but the way in which this book was written made everything very relatable and this was because it felt very genuine and never took itself seriously.

I loved that Do was able to take such a sensitive issue in society and make it such a fun, witty and hilarious read. 

The pictures used and their captions were particularly hilarious along with the clever antidotes involving his uncles. 

As soon as I finished this book my mum immediately started reading it as well. 

Book Review #731 - Ten Big Ones (Stephanie Plum #10) by Janet Evanovich

"I'm Stephanie Plum. My mother says that I'm famous and have to set a good example. She's right, but I'm from Jersey and truth is, I have a hard time getting a grip on the good example thing."

Swing off the Jersey Turnpike and you'll be in bounty hunter Stephanie Plum's neighbourhood. You'll know it because all hell will be breaking loose. Not that she looks for trouble - it just seems to follow her. In Ten Big Ones it explodes at a deli, and when Stephanie pegs a robber as a member of a vicious Trenton gang, they peg her as dead. Vice cop Joe Morelli fears she's in way too deep - even with the help of crime-solving, cross-dressing, bus driver Sally Sweet, and Stephanie's friend Lula riding shotgun as backup. With a notorious killer on her tail, Stephanie figures the best hideout is Ranger's secret lair...

 

 

My Rating: 7/10

 

 

Whenever I am unsure of what to read or unsure of what kind of reading mood I am in, I always pick up the next Stephanie Plum novel and so far I am yet to have been disappointed.

 

I've never really been a big fan of the romantic element to these books even though I find it is done in a very low key way, but in this book I started to find the love triangle started to take stronger focus and this bothered me.

 

Stephanie always puts herself first ahead of any love interest and in this book this causes problems with her 'boyfriend' Morelli. I can see Morelli's side of it as a gang was after Stephanie and she didn't seem to care but at the same time expecting her to become a stereotypical housewife was not something I could ever picture Stephanie becoming.

 

On the other side of the love triangle is Ranger. I still feel like he is too much of an enigma for Stephanie to choose given she is already in a relationship with Morelli.

 

The bounty hunting aspect has always been my favourite part of these books because even after 10 books, Stephanie is still completely terrible at it.

Book Review #700 - The Third Wheel (Diary of a Wimpy Kid #7) by Jeff Kinney

Love is in the air - but what does that mean for Greg Heffley?

 

 

A Valentine's Day dance at Greg's middle school has turned his world upside down. As Greg scrambles to find a date, he's worried he'll be left out in the cold on the big night. His best friend, Rowley, doesn't have any prospects either, but that's a small consolation.

 

 

An unexpected twist gives Greg a partner for the dance and leaves Rowley the odd man out. But a lot can happen in one night, and in the end, you never know who's going to be lucky in love.

 

 

My Rating: 3/5

 

 

It had been a while since I last read a Wimpy Kid book when I decided to pick this one up. I find these books are perfect to read between dense fantasy books. I find it quick and easy to jump straight back into these books.

 

 

Even though this is the seventh book in the series, it still managed to contain the same amount of charm and humour as the previous six books did.

 

This book is centred around Valentine's Day and so even though the characters grew up a little, Greg was still at his immature best and managing to screw things up in ways only Greg could possibly manage.

 

 

I liked how this book centred not just heavily around Greg's school, but also his home life as the previous books seem to just focus on one or the other, or focus on one more than the other.

Book Review #698 - Three Men in a Boat (Three Men #1) by Jerome K. Jerome

Martyrs to hypochondria and general seediness, J. and his friends George and Harris decide that a jaunt up the Thames would suit them to a ‘T’. But when they set off, they can hardly predict the troubles that lie ahead with tow-ropes, unreliable weather forecasts and tins of pineapple chunks—not to mention the devastation left in the wake of J.’s small fox-terrier Montmorency.

My Rating: 3.5/5

This was a hard book for me to review because I had so many mixed feelings about it. On the one hand, I absolutely loved the humour! This book had me literally laughing out loud with tears in my eyes at times and it amazed me that a book that is almost coming up to being 130 years old could still have that effect.

On the other hand however, between the witty antidotes the narrative was quite boring with so much information about scenery and history of each little town they passed.

This book also contained a dog which I loved especially as he had a strong presence and personality. 

Book Review #687 - The Princess Bride by William Goldman

Beautiful, flaxen-haired Buttercup has fallen for Westley, the farm boy, and when he departs to make his fortune, she vows never to love another. So when she hears that his ship has been captured by the Dread Pirate Roberts (no survivors) her heart is broken. But her charms draw the attention of the relentless Prince Humperdinck who wants a wife and will go to any lengths to have Buttercup. So starts a fairy tale like no other, of fencing, poison, true love, hate, revenge, giants, bad men, good men, snakes, spiders, chases, escapes, lies, truths, passion and miracles, and ... a damn fine story.

My Rating: 4.5/5

This book contained just about everything you could possibly want in a book - action, romance, good v evil, and even a fairytale like plot. 

The book has a very timeless feel to it in that it feels like it was written centuries ago not in the 1970's. 

The characters were my favourite aspect of this book simply because they were all unique and memorable. My favourite character was Inigo and I loved his whole quest for revenge. 

Like the characters, the writing style was unique. It reads as a book within a book with the author acting as though he is annotating an original of the same story. There were one or two occasions where I felt like this was ruining the flow of the story but mostly I loved it. 

The comedic moments in this book (which is a lot) stems from the fact that no point does this book ever take itself seriously. 

I have now read more than a few books on the 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die List and this book is better than almost all of them so I am not sure how this book did not make the list. 

Book Review #644 - How to Train Your Dragon (How to Train Your Dragon #1) by Cressida Cowell

Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III is a truly extraordinary Viking hero known throughout Vikingdom as "the Dragon Whisperer"...but it wasn't always so. Travel back to the days when the mighty warrior was just a boy, the quiet and thoughtful son of the Chief of the Hairy Hooligans. Can Hiccup capture a dragon and train it without being torn limb from limb? Join the adventure as the small boy finds a better way to train his dragon and become a hero!

My Rating: 5/5

I absolutely love the film/TV adaptations of this book and its sequels and so I was surprised to find that the book was of the same quality. 

There are so many differences between the book and the film that I won't go into them except to mention the one that I loved the most and that was the fact that Toothless and the other dragons are able to talk in the book. 

I loved the adventure you can only find in children's books and am definitely adding this series to the list of books I will give to my nephews when they are old enough to read. 

Book Review #591 - Scott Pilgrim's Precious Little Life (Scott Pilgrim #1) by Bryan Lee O'Malley

My Rating: 3/5


Source: Library



Buy: The Book Depository or Booktopia



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Scott Pilgrim's life is totally sweet. He's 23 years old, he's in a rock band, he's ""between jobs,"" and he's dating a cute high school girl. Nothing could possibly go wrong, unless a seriously mind-blowing, dangerously fashionable, rollerblading delivery girl named Ramona Flowers starts cruising through his dreams and sailing by him at parties. Will Scott's awesome life get turned upside-down? Will he have to face Ramona's seven evil ex-boyfriends in battle? The short answer is yes. The long answer is Scott Pilgrim, Volume 1: Scott Pilgrim's Precious Little Life. 

I'm still relatively new to graphic novels and when I saw this at my local library I decided to pick it up as I had seen the movie adaptation. 

This book was clever, unique and hilarious. I liked it so much more than the film and am looking forward to reading the rest of the series. 

Book Review #586 - To the Nines (Stephanie Plum #9) by Janet Evanovich

My Rating: 3.5/5


Source: Bought


Buy: The Book Depository


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Stephanie Plum's got rent to pay, people shooting at her, and psychos wanting her dead every day of the week (much to the dismay of her mother, her family, the men in her life, the guy who slices meat at the deli...oh, the list goes on). An ordinary person would cave under the pressure.

But hey, she's from Jersey.

Stephanie Plum may not be the best bounty hunter in beautiful downtown Trenton, but she's pretty darn good at turning bad situations her way...and she always gets her man. In To The Nines, her cousin Vinnie (who's also her boss) has posted bail on Samuel Singh, an immigrant who becomes an illegal alien by violating his Visa and extending his stay in the United States. When the elusive Mr. Singh goes missing, Stephanie is on the case. But what she uncovers is far more sinister than anyone imagines and leads to a group of killers who give new meaning to the word "hunter..."

In a race against time that takes her from the Jersey Turnpike to the Vegas strip, Stephanie Plum is on the chase of her life.

It has been a while since I last read a Stephanie Plum book and I really enjoyed being back in her universe. 

This book fell a little flat for me. I still enjoyed it but I didn't feel like it added anything to the entire series. 

The love triangle is starting to annoy me - and I still (like Stephanie) can't make up my mind between the two guys. 

The added family drama was definitely humerous but I would have liked more of Grandma Mazur. 

Overall, this is just another great book in what is becoming one of my favourite adult series, I just hope I don't leave it this long again to read the next book.  

Book Review #581 - The End (A Series of Unfortunate Events #13) by Lemony Snicket

My Rating: 3.5/5

Source: Bought


Buy: The Book Depository 


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Dear Reader,

You are presumably looking at the back of this book, or the end of THE END. The end of THE END is the best place to begin THE END, because if you read THE END from the beginning of the beginning of THE END to the end of the end of THE END, you will arrive at the end of the end of your rope.

This book is the last in A Series of Unfortunate Events, and even if you braved the previous twelve volumes, you probably can't stand such unpleasantries as a fearsome storm, a suspicious beverage, a herd of wild sheep, an enormous bird cage, and a truly haunting secret about the Baudelaire parents.

It has been my solemn occupation to complete the history of the Baudelaire orphans, and at last I am finished. You likely have some other occupation, so if I were you I would drop this book at once, so THE END does not finish you.

With all due respect,

Lemony Snicket

This is the thirteenth and final book in the A Series of Unfortunate Events series and one of my favourite books in the series as well. 

Finally some questions were answered in this book but the ending created even more questions. 

The unique writing style wasn't as witty in this installment and the plot was weaker than the previous ones but I overall enjoyed this book a lot more than the previous ones. 

The new characters were all intriguing and I thought it was about time someone other than the orphans saw Olaf as the villain that he is - and he got locked in a cage for it. 

I wasn't a big fan of the ending as it didn't wrap things up neat enough. There was a sudden and weird romance and just as a whole it was rather disappointing. 

Book Review #575 - Hyperbole and a Half by Allie Brosh

My Rating: 5/5



Source: Bought from a charity shop



Buy: The Book Depository



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This is a book I wrote. Because I wrote it, I had to figure out what to put on the back cover to explain what it is. I tried to write a long, third-person summary that would imply how great the book is and also sound vaguely authoritative--like maybe someone who isn’t me wrote it--but I soon discovered that I’m not sneaky enough to pull it off convincingly. So I decided to just make a list of things that are in the book:

Pictures

Words

Stories about things that happened to me

Stories about things that happened to other people because of me

Eight billion dollars*

Stories about dogs

The secret to eternal happiness*

*These are lies. Perhaps I have underestimated my sneakiness!

I bought and finished this book on the same day - that virtually summarizes just how much I enjoyed this book. 

I found this book hilarious and incredibly fast paced. It was just simply very fun to read. 

My favourite chapters or stories were the one about the cake and any of the ones involving the dogs. Also the goose - pretty much every chapter is memorable and funny.

I had not read or heard of the blog upon which this book (and plenty of other stories) originated from but I am definitely going to be checking it out.  

Book Review #544 - Half my Facebook Friends are Ferrets by J.A Buckle

Sixteen-year-old Josh hopes to be a metalhead someday. Maybe then he would finally be considered as cool as his dad was. Right now, he's just a wannabe. He's never been kissed, he keeps getting weird mail, and a big chunk of his Facebook friends are, well, ferrets. Josh documents his teenage woes with a hilariously honest voice. From arguments with his nagging mother to awkward encounters with girls, from figuring out his future band name to learning the truth about his late father, follow Josh as he navigates his embarrassments and his triumphs.

My Rating: 3/5

I received this book for review from Hardie Grant Egmont. 

Given the small amounts of male narrators in young adult literature, it was refreshing to read a book from a male perspective especially one as unique as Josh. 

I loved that this book was set in a journal format as it made it very quick and easy to read and would do well in the hands of a reluctant reader. 

Whilst this book was quite humorous, I don't think it was anywhere near as funny as was intended. 

Overall, this book does well at conveying serious issues in a very simplistic manner for children to understand and relate well to. 

Book Review #535 - The Battle of the Labyrinth (Percy Jackson and the Olympians #4) by Rick Riordan

Percy Jackson isn't expecting freshman orientation to be any fun. But when a mysterious mortal acquaintance appears on campus, followed by demon cheerleaders, things quickly move from bad to worse.

In this fourth installment of the blockbuster series, time is running out as war between the Olympians and the evil Titan lord Kronos draws near. Even the safe haven of Camp Half-Blood grows more vulnerable by the minute as Kronos's army prepares to invade its once impenetrable borders. To stop the invasion, Percy and his demigod friends must set out on a quest through the Labyrinth - a sprawling underground world with stunning surprises at every turn.

My Rating: 5/5

This is my new favourite Percy Jackson novel. This series just gets better and better and I regret waiting so long to read them (especially when they have all been sitting on my bookshelf for years). 

I loved the whole concept of the labyrinth and the monsters contained in it. 

There was a lot more depth in this book compared to the others and this was largely due to the maturing of the characters. 

I loved that Tyson played a larger role in this book than in The Titan's Curse as he is one of my favourite characters. 

There was a lot of action in this book including a great battle scene. 

I had planned on reading a contemporary book or something else before I started The Last Olympian but with the way this book ended quite ominously I couldn't help but delve straight into Percy Jackson's last adventure. 

Book Review #534 - The Titan's Curse (Percy Jackson and the Olympians #3) by Rick Riordan

When Percy Jackson receives an urgent distress call from his friend Grover, he immediately prepares for battle. He knows he'll need his powerful demigod allies at his side; his trusty bronze sword, Riptide; and . . . a ride from his mom.

The demigods reace to the rescue to find that Grover has made an important discovery: two new powerful half-bloods, whose parentage is unknown. But that's not all that awaits them. The Titan lord, Kronos, has set up a devious trap, and the young heroes have just fallen prey.

Hilarious and action-packed, this third adventure in the series finds Percy faced with his most dangerous challenge yet—the chilling prophecy of the Titan's curse.

My Rating: 5/5

This book is the sequel to The Lightning Thief and The Sea of Monsters. 

I am marathoning these book so expect reviews of the rest of the series soon. 

Given the way The Sea of Monsters ended I'm not sure why I waited so long to continue with this series. 

This series just seems to get better and better and as someone who doesn't know much about Greek Mythology, I love how much I am learning just by reading a book that I actually enjoy. 

I really enjoyed the amount of action contained in this book and it is definitely my favourite so far in the series. 

I can see a slight change in Percy and Annabeth's relationship so I am intrigued to see where they go as they continue to mature as characters. 

Book Review #530 - Hard Eight (Stephanie Plum #8) by Janet Evanovich

Hard Up

Fugitive Apprehension Agent Stephanie Plum has a big problem on her hands: Seven-year-old Annie Soder and her mother, Evelyn, have disappeared. Evelyn's estranged husband, Steven, a shady owner of a seedy bar, is not at all happy. Finding a kidnapped child is not an assignment for a bounty hunter. But Evelyn's grandmother lives next door to Stephanie's parents, so Stephanie follows the trail left by Annie and Evelyn-and finds a lot more than she bargained for.

Hard Risk

Steven Soder is somehow linked with a very scary Eddie Abruzzi. Trenton cop and on-again, off-again fiancé Joe Morelli and Stephanie's mentor and tormentor, Ranger, warn Stephanie about Abruzzi, but it's Abruzzi's eyes and mannerisms that frighten Stephanie most. Stephanie needs Ranger's savvy and expertise, and she's willing to accept his help to find Annie even though it might mean getting too involved with Ranger. Stephanie, Ranger, Lula (who's not going to miss riding with Ranger), and Evelyn's lawyer/Laundromat manager set out to find Annie. The search turns out to be a race among Stephanie's posse, the True Blue Bonds' agent-a Rangerette known as Jeanne Ellen Burrows-and the Abruzzi crew. Plus, there's a killer rabbit on the loose!

Hard Eight

Strap on your helmet and get ready for the ride of your life! Hard Eight. The world of Stephanie Plum has never been wilder.

My Rating: 3.5/5

I found myself in a bit of a reading slump and having fallen behind in my reading challenge (I read this book in late December) at the worst possible time I decided to pick up this book because it seemed like the perfect time to read it. 

I recommend this series whenever you find yourselves in a reading slump as these books are fast, easy to read and not to mention hilarious reads. 

For those who don't know much about this series, it's an adult crime series that follows protagonist Stephanie Plum, a woman who upon losing her job sets out to become possibly the world's worst bounty hunter in history. 

These books never fail to make me laugh with its weird characters, awkward moments and Stephanie's inability to look after her car. 

The love triangle element in this series went in the opposite direction for the first time. I am not too interested in the romance on either side of the triangle. 

Book Review #525 - The Penultimate Peril (A Series of Unfortunate Events #12) by Lemony Snicket

Dear Reader,

If this is the first book you found while searching for a book to read next, then the first thing you should know is that this next-to-last book is what you should put down first. Sadly, this book presents the next-to-last chronicle of the lives of the Baudelaire orphans, and it is next-to-first in its supply of misery, despair, and unpleasantness.

Probably the next-to-last thing you would like to read about are a harpoon gun, a rooftop sunbathing alon, two mysterious initials, three unidentified triplets, a notorious villain, and an unsavory curry.

Next-to-last things are the first thing to be avoided, and so allow me to recommend that you put this next-to-last book down first, and find something else to read next at last, such a s the next-to-last book in another chronicle, or a chronicle containing other next-to-last things, so that this next-to-last book does not become the last book you will read.

With all due respect,

Lemony Snicket

My Rating: 3/5

This is the second last book in this series and so things are finally starting to wrap up. A lot of the characters (especially the villains) from the previous 11 books made an appearance which was really interesting and humerous. 

I liked how there were some sentences written in a mirrored type format as for a children's book it is important to be fresh and unique. 

The setting of the hotel was interesting and it had a very Hogwarts feel to it at times. 

Book Review #522 - An Abundance of Katherines by John Green

Katherine V thought boys were gross

Katherine X just wanted to be friends

Katherine XVIII dumped him in an e-mail

K-19 broke his heart 

When it comes to relationships, Colin Singleton's type happens to be girls named Katherine. And when it comes to girls named Katherine, Colin is always getting dumped. Nineteen times, to be exact.

On a road trip miles from home, this anagram-happy, washed-up child prodigy has ten thousand dollars in his pocket, a bloodthirsty feral hog on his trail, and an overweight, Judge Judy-loving best friend riding shotgun--but no Katherines. Colin is on a mission to prove The Theorem of Underlying Katherine Predictability, which he hopes will predict the future of any relationship, avenge Dumpees everywhere, and finally win him the girl. Love, friendship, and a dead Austro-Hungarian archduke add up to surprising and heart-changing conclusions in this ingeniously layered comic novel about reinventing oneself.

My Rating: 3.5/5

This was the last John Green book that I had yet to read. 

Like with all John Green books, An Abundance of Katherines contained a lot of unique, eccentric characters. 

I found the protagonist Colin rather annoying at first but was surprised by how fast I seemed to warm up to him. 

The use of footnotes didn't bother me by the end of the book as much as I thought they would especially when it took me a while to get used to them. 

When I first read the summary of this book I thought that it was extremely unrealistic that someone could get dumped 19 times by girls with the same name. When Colin was first introduced however I soon understood how that was possible. 

Colin's friend Hassan was my favourite character in the book. He definitely wasn't a stereotypical Muslim and I found him to be the funniest part of the book. 

With the success of the The Fault in Our Stars movie and with the Paper Towns movie on the way, I can definitely see An Abundance of Katherines being on the big screen in the future as John Green's writing just has a very cinematic feel to it.