Book Review: Avatar: The Last Airbender: The Promise Part 3

Avatar: The Last Airbender: The Promise Part 3
by  Gene Luen Yang, Michael Dante DiMartino, Bryan Konietzko, Gurihiru (Artist)

Date Read:  10/07/2012
Rating:  ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

This is my favorite of all 3 parts of The Promise. The characters were back to themselves. There was only one "sweetie" line. That "sweetie" just kills me. It sounds so funny.

The action and story also got really good, and moved quickly as all the characters came back together in Yu Dao. The Fire Nation and Zuko, The Earth Nation and King Kuei, the Yu Dao protestors, everyone is fighting everyone. Aang has to decide whether to continue with the Harmony Restoration Movement or if there is another way to Harmony than kicking out the fire nation.

I liked this because it was back to making our characters decide what was right. How can there be Harmony when you're kicking out a nation?

I also loved that it hinted at the creation of Republic City towards the end. And I loved the way it ended. [SPOILER: Azula is so crazy!! The art made her so menacing!]. I can't wait for the next series. And I'm hoping that there is more to it, because there is still a lot to explain what happened: the actual setting up of Republic City, what happened to Sokka and Suki, did Zuko ever find his mother? Best book in this trilogy though.

Book Review: The Demigod Diaries

The Demigod Diaries
by Rick Riordan

Date Read:  10/02/2012
Rating:  ★ ★ ★ ★

This book is such a nice addition to the Heroes of Olympus series. I love that you get a little taste of everything, and little bit of something new.

The first book is a diary from Luke Castellan. Well, if you've read the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series, you know all about Luke. This story is from when he initially ran away from home and met Thalia and Annabeth. We've heard about this story a lot, so it was fun to see it all happen. Especially since we haven't gotten a whole lot of Thalia. I enjoyed it. It also kind of lets you glimpse the reasonings why Luke made some of the decisions that he did.

The next story is about Percy and Annabeth. I loved it because there is a big hole from between when they kissed to when Percy went missing. So we never got to see them actually dating. So this story happens between those two points. Heremes of course needs Percy's help finding his caduceus. So on their one month anniversary (which you'll have to read how that goes), they have to go fight a monster to help Hermes. Percy is as always one of my favorite characters. He is so funny. I love it. Great story.

The third story is about Leo (from the Heroes of Olympus series). He is alsmost as funny as Percy. I really enjoyed this story, and I actually was happy I read this before reading The Mark of Athena, becuse it got me re-introduced to Jason, Piper and Leo, who I haven't read about since The Lost Hero. This story happens between the Lost Hero and The Mark of Athena. It is while Leo is building the Argo II. Leo was so funny. One of my favorite lines: "Leo hated singing. He cleared his throat and started warbling the first thing that came into his head - something he'd watched online while he worked on the Argo II. After a few lines, Candy hissed, 'That's not the Bacchanalian Jingle! That is the theme sing for Psych!' "

The final story is actually written by Rick Riordan's son, Haley. Riordan originally made up the Percy Jackson story as a bedtime story for Haley. He created an ADHD and dyslexic hero that Haley could relate to. He wrote it down and the rest is history. Now at 16, Haley is wanting to become a writer too and wrote "The Son of Magic" that was included in this book. It is not about any of the characters we know and love. It introduces us to a character that had chosen and fought on Kronos' side in the war. It shows us what happened to one of the kids after the war. And it introduces us to another character who was interesting. But most importantly, it helped us understand who controls the mist, and why monsters can smell demigods. I really enjoyed this story. To tell you the truth, I never would have guessed that this story was not written by Rick Riordan himself. He has definitely passed his author genes to his son. I actually look forward to reading more from Haley Riordan in the future. Maybe when his dad stops writing in Percy's world, Haley will pick it up.

There were also some fun activities included in the book. Things like word scrambles, word searches. There was even an interview of George and Martha(the snakes on Hermes' caduceus). There were also pictures included of each of the main characters. It was neat in some aspects - you got to really invision how Riordan has invisioned his characters. But then it also reminded me that Annabeth is BLOND, not brunette (but I always picture her brunette since I saw the movie before reading the books and she was brunette in the movie). But I really enjoyed this. Anyone who has read and loves the Percy Jackson books should definitely pick this up. It's a short and fast read, but definitely worth it.

Book Review: Tiger's Destiny

Tiger's Destiny
by Colleen Houck

Date Read:  09/28/2012
Rating:  ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Alright. First, this is supposed to be book 4 out of 5. But this book ended like it was the end of the series. Don't get me wrong, the book ended the way I wanted it to, happy and tied up all the loose ends. But what am I supposed to do? It feels like the series ended. I have no idea what the final book will be about.

I was really happy that about half way through the Phoenix made Kelsey admit to herself why she pushed Ren away. I love both princes, but Ren was always my favorite. That sweet, loyal, doting guy. This character and the guys that are sweet but sarcastically funny are my favorite guys to read about. I never got as attached to Kishan as I was to Ren. But I did want Kishan to have a happy ending.

In this book, they finally get the last gift and have the opportunity to break the curse. But 5 sacrifices must be made. One of the sacrifices happens very early in this book and it broke my heart. And I did not expect what the last sacrifice was going to be until about 30 pages before it happened. It seemed fitting, but at the same time was incredibly sad.

The ending of the book was great. Loose ends tied up. There was even a wedding. So sweet. But I kept thinking that something would happen in the epilogue to let me discover what the final book would be about. But there was nothing.

A lot happened in this book. The stuff that happened at the beginning of the book felt like they happened several books ago. I thought the twists that happened were perfect. I expected a few and didn't expect a few.

Overall I have loved this series. I think I liked it because it was so different. I really liked seeing Indian culture, and it was just refreshingly different. There were still paranormal aspects, but it wasn't vampires and werewolves (which I do like, but it was nice to have something different). And I always get sucked into a love story - though the stupid love triangle irritated me. But what I liked about this was there was so much action, and their love story progressed. She didn't immediately fall in love with him. They had fights. Didn't think they were good enough for each other. But eventually they realized that they couldn't live without each other.

So. The bad guy is dead. They live happily ever after. What else is there to do??

Book Review: Insurgent

Insurgent
by Veronica Roth

Date Read:  09/21/2012
Rating:  ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

This book just started right back into the story. There was no recap. Now the cool thing is that Veronica Roth actually put a recap up on her blog if you need some reminding of what happened and who all the characters are. I thought that was really neat. And I agree with Roth that it would have been weird having a bunch of recap from Tris' POV. So that was pretty cool that she did that.

What I love about these books is how easily and quickly they read. I remember looking at the thickness of this book (525 pages) and thinking, what in the world is going to happen? But now that I'm finished, I don't know where those 525 pages went.

Tris is the same strong character she was in the first. But in this book, we see her dealing with events that happened at the end of the first book. It was neat to see someone have to overcome things. How certain things would trigger painful memories. But she also had this guilty conscience about her parents dying and killing Will that made her make some bad decisions. And she lied a lot. I didn't like how often she lied to Tobias.

Tobias has a bit of a struggle after (view spoiler)[ finding his mom. (hide spoiler)] Its interesting to watch him sort things out. And his struggle with loving Tris but being frustrated with her decisions and actions.

I didn't see the betrayal coming that happened in the book. I probably should have because I've seen that type of betrayal in another book...but nevertheless, it didn't cross my mind with all the other stuff that was going on. I also wasn't expecting the revelation at the end of the book. Though I was expecting something along those lines, it wasn't exactly what I was expecting. It was good though.

That ending isn't fair though. How can she just leave it at that? I'm glad that she resolved the relationship though, but not much else was resolved. It feels like The Hunger Games. Where there was a bad, oppressive regime, and the regime that rises up isn't any better. So I'm interested to see how this progresses in the final book. I hope it isn't as disappointing as Mockingjay was.

I would definitely recommend this series to anyone who enjoys dystopian young adult novels.

Book Review: The Awakening (Vampire Diaries #1)

The Awakening (Vampire Diaries #1)
by L.J. Smith

Date Read:  09/08/2012
Rating:  ★ ★ ★


This was enjoyable. I think I enjoyed it mostly because of Stefan and Damon and I enjoyed seeing the differences from the tv show.

Elena was a brat at the beginning. I really hated her character, so arrogant and snobby. She changed and stopped being so annoying once she was with Stefan.
The differences from the show are interesting. Even the last names of a lot of the characters are different. I kind of liked the back story on Stefan and Damon better in the book. It isn't as much of a role reversal. Damon was more Damon back then, and then the vampire just kind of amplified those characteristics. I feel like the crow and the fog were explained much better in the book. I think the tv show thought it was kind of cheesy, but they threw it in for people who liked the books, as a kind of tribute to the book.

The book read so quickly. Things happened so fast. Especially the romance between Elena and Stefan. She just met the guy. He avoided her. He saved her. And then she loves him? The worst case of insta-love I've ever seen! The tv show has MUCH better character development and relationship development.

But the story really kept my interested, despite its faults. I definitely want to read the next one, especially with that ending! It's like she just picked a place to end and cut it off mid story!

The similarities between this and Twilight is crazy. Obviously Stephanie Meyer read this before writing her books. I even think she took the title for her book from the Vampire Diaries.

I think everyone should watch the tv show because it is one of the best shows I've seen in a while. But I think reading the books is good too, to understand what the show is based on. But I have to say that I liked the show much better than the book.

The Vampire Diaries: The TV Series - Blog #2

I just finished season 2!!  This season wasn't quite as interesting as season 1, mostly due to the fact that season 1 was all about character development, whereas there wasn't as much character development in season 2.  But the second half of the season I was completely hooked again.

I really enjoyed seeing Tyler progress.  That was a new storyline that was very interesting to watch unfold.  And I liked how it brough Tyler and Caroline together.  They were both much better together.

I was really worried that the love triangle was going to start this season.  But alas, not really happened.  We know that Damon loves Elena (but we kind of already knew all that).  But I like how Elena didn't just all of a sudden love both boys.  Now, of couse she loves Damon, he's like a brother to her, like family.  But she isn't IN love with him like she is with Stefan.  And I liked seeing that bond between she and Stefan stay strong.  These characters are so likeable.

I was flabbergasted when Damon tried to save Elena by making her become a vampire at the end of the season.  It is kind of suitable to his character to have done that, but at the same time, I wasn't expecting it.  But I was always curious what Stefan and Elena's plans were for the future.  Elena is going to grow old.  What is going to happen to them?  It was never mentioned.  So I'm glad Stefan made her have to own up to the fact that she didn't want to be a vampire, she wants an entire lifetime of choices as she grows up.  But now I'm left to wonder, as Stefan is, what is to become of their relationship then?  If she wants kids, she can't have them with Stefan.  So she's going to break up with him and marry someone else?  That's lame.

JENNA!  Omg.  I cannot believe what happened to Jenna.  I did not see it coming.  Someone needs to seriously stab Klaus in the heart with a stake.  First he turns her into a vampire, and then he kills her???  I am praying and praying that there is some way to bring Jenna back.  But then, if there is, what kind of chaos would that bring?  I really liked Jenna.  And I liked her relationship with Alaric.  Now Elena and Jeremy have no parental figures.  The closest they have is Alaric.

John Gilbert finally came around to being a good guy.  I figured he would.  For Elena's sake anyway.  He may still hate vampires, but he has compassion and love in his heart.

I felt like the second to last episode should have been the finale.  With the ceremony of Klaus breaking the curse and not being killed by Elijah.  With Damon being bitten by Tyler, will he live or die?  It had a much better season finale feel.  Then they go and put another episode in, which was pretty lame.  It just showed Elena caring for a dying Damon.  Stefan trying to find a way to save his brother and in the process becoming a monster again (maybe??).  And then Jeremy gets shot and brought back to life and he sees all the women he loved that have died??  How weird is that ending?!  I'm hoping season 3 clears this up fast, and I hope it's not as weird as it seems right now.

Well, I'm ready for season 3 now.  It released to DVD and Blu Ray on Tuesday.  But I'm cheap, and I can't afford to spend $40 on a tv show ($20 I'll pay in a heartbeat!).  But today it released on Netflix streaming.  So tonight I will start a Vampire Diaries Season 3 Marathon!!

The Vampire Diaries: The TV Series - Blog #1

I have recently gotten hooked on the Vampire Diaries tv series, thank to Netflix.  I have successfully watched season 1 within a week!  I am a couple episodes in to the second season.

This show is VERY entertaining.  I can’t believe how it hooked me after about 2 episodes.  I just thought it was going to be something I could watch casually while my husband continues to finish his book.  But no, I was sucked in and can’t get out!  And Brandon sat down and watched an episode with me, and got hooked too.  So now I can’t watch any episodes without him.  It has been a long time since a tv show has been able to make me so attached. The next one would probably be Castle.  But I watch that on tv on current seasons, so I only get an episode per week.  The Vampire Diaries, since I was 3 seasons behind, I can watch back to back to back episodes.

One of my favorite things about this show is the fact that the characters are so interesting.  I really like Elena’s character.  She is likeable. She is strong. She has flaws. And she has normal reactions to things like vampires!  And I like that she has morals.  And her characters sticks to those morals. She stands up for her friends.  Overall just a great character.

I love Stefan too.  His character is similar to Edward from Twilight.  Edward was the reason I read Twilight and enjoyed it so much – not Bella.  I hated Bella.  And I hated Jacob.  This show takes a similar premise (two boys fighting over a girl), but you actually end up liking everyone involved…most of the time.  Stefan has that brooding, serious personality, but that is why he cares so deeply for Elena.  And he can joke when he wants to.  He’s a gentleman and wants to protect Elena at all costs.  But I’m really glad that he didn’t just take off when he thought he could hurt Elena (when he was addicted to human blood), like Edward ran off from Bella.

Damon.  Oh boy.  This is one of the most interesting characters I’ve seen. The only one to compare recently is Rumplestiltskin in Once Upon a Time.  Damon comes into the series as a bad guy.  A true vampire.  A monster.  But over the course of the first season, you start to see that he does have a small bit of humanity in him.  And Elena and Stefan begin to pull that out of him.  The show does a great job of making me hate Damon and then by the end of the episode he reels you back in to liking him, despite his faults.  He usually has a reason for his bad deeds, even if they are in fact bad deeds.

There was a point in season one when Stefan gets hooked on the human blood after many years without it.  Stefan’s characters hits a low point, which makes Damon have to step up.  After Stefan is brought back up to his previous stature, Damon stays up too (most of the time).  This was kind of the turning point of Damon’s goodness.  You now know that even though he tries to hide it, he does have good in him.

The season finale shocked me.  The whole series I was surprised most of the time.  Which is impressive, because I usually can predict what is going to happen – but I’ve only predicted a few things.  This finale though, wow.  Those last 2 scenes.  When Damon kisses who he thinks is Elena, and she kissed him back!  I was shocked!  Mostly because it would have been soo out of character for her.  But I never predicted that it was Katherine until she went in the house and attacked Uncle John.  And the scene was so violent to end a season on!  Wow.

I just love this show. I can’t believe how much I love it. And one episode is just not satisfying.  Each episode ends on a cliffhanger.  I’m trying to catch up because season 4 starts on October 11.  But season 3 is not available on Netflix.  I believe it comes out on DVD on September 11, but I’m not sure whether it will show up on Netflix instant streaming.  I sure hope it does so I can be ready for Season 4!

Just started season 2 though, and it’s interesting watching Caroline deal with becoming a Vampire, especially since her mother hunts vampires.  And the werewolf thing is interesting.  There are a couple scenes where I can’t help but say some lines from Twilight because the scenes are so similar.  But I really love this show.

For a moment I was surprised when I found out it was on the CW.  But then I remember how much I thoroughly enjoyed Gilmore Girls, and I wasn’t shocked anymore.  Though, this show is much darker than Gilmore Girls.

Okay, continuing to watch more episodes of Season 2.  Hoping to find out what Katherine is up to.  I really don’t like that vampire.