Category Archives: Giveaways

Chosen Ones, by Veronica Roth

Posted on by

(Above synopsis provided by the publisher.)

“Sometimes Sloan wondered if the world had been worth saving.”

Sloan’s character really was the redeeming factor for this novel. She was coated in an assortment of layers and I was never exactly sure what she would do next.

The storyline progressed like a herd of turtles. Once one thing was over the group of Chosen Ones would move on to something else while meandering about their day to day business. I wasn’t exactly sure the direction the story was going until after halfway through.

Part One (p.1-121): Since the beginning picks up in the aftermath of events that are (at this point) unknown to the reader, a lot of the beginning was a little confusing about exactly what had happened. You pick up pieces here and there throughout Part One about what happened to them 10 years when they defeated the Dark One. Other than trying to figure out what happened 10 years ago, it’s mainly about their lives and relationships with each other since defeating the Dark One a decade ago. Part 2 (p.123-284): Something happens, and it’s exciting. But halfway through, it gets back to that slow crawl again. Part 3 (p.285-419): Stays at a moderate pace until the twist. Can’t tell you the rest.

I was happy with the ending, which is set up nicely for a sequel. The ending did answer a lot of my questions. Things started to come together, but getting there in a reasonable and timely fashion was backbreaking.

Though marketed as an adult novel, this is a YA book through and through. I enjoy YA novels, but this one wasn’t for me. Without Sloan’s character, I would have thrown in the towel. While the characters are supposed to be adults, they talk and act like teenagers. This will still be popular with a certain YA crowd though.

Check out this EW article to read an excerpt from Chosen Ones.

Watch this video Veronica Roth has shared on her Facebook where she explains some of the research she did for the magic used in Chosen Ones.

Read The Nerd Daily’s review for Chosen Ones.

Veronica Roth is the author of the bestselling series Divergent. Visit her website to view more of her books.

Read Publisher’s Weekly interview with Veronica Roth.

Follow Veronica Roth on Instagram.

Thank you to the publisher for sending me an advance print copy. Opinions are my own.

|Purchase on Amazon| Goodreads Review |

Apeirogon, by Colum McCann

Posted on by

“They seemed the most unlikely of friends, even beyond the obvious, one being Israeli, the other Palestinian.”

Rami and Bassam’s story is humbling. Centered around the Israeli-Palestine conflict, Rami and Bassam relive the day that each of their daughters died at the hands of a oppressive barrier that has effected more than just a perimeter. After each lose a daughter to violence, they learn to find solace in their grief and overcome the boundaries defined by their government.

“…everyone knew at least one child who was killed, and most of us knew several. You get used to it, sometimes you think it’s normal.”

It is a somber read with graphic gory scenes from beginning to end. Rami and Bassam’s recollections and revelations were heartbreaking. Just when I thought my heart couldn’t break anymore, it did. But the power and value behind the words is undeniable.
(The speeches they gave on pages 217-240 were unequivocal and would provide great dialogue for panel discussions and Socratic Seminars.)

There are only sections; most sections are about a paragraph in length, some sections are one sentence, some might be a small photo, though other sections are the length of a regular chapter. With a total of 1,001 sections, there are no chapters or parts.

It is a blend of fiction and nonfiction. For example: the story will be describing the anniversary of the time of deaths for the girls, so the very next section then discusses how the Greeks measured time in antiquity. Or, another example: there is a flashback when Salwa and her daughter are watching Arabian horses, so the next section goes into facts about Arabian horses. The fiction and nonfiction weave back and forth relying on each other. It jigsaws, using the previous section to build on the next section. The sequence is ornamental but blends cohesively.

I loved the book. It changed the way I think. When I wasn’t reading it, I was thinking about it. It had a profound impact on me.

“Truth is, you can’t have a humane occupation. It just doesn’t exist. It can’t. It’s about control.”

Visit Colum McCan’s website.

The Hollywood Reporter describes Colum McCan’s novel, Apeirogon.

Read The Guardian’s review of Apeirogon.

Colum McCan won the National Book Award for his 2009 novel, Let The Great World Spin.

Follow Colum McCann on Facebook.

|Purchase on Amazon| Goodreads Review|

Zero Percenters, by Scott Grusky

Posted on by

Set in the future year of 2024, the premise for the “zero percent” population is excellent, but the story and the characters were not there. For the greater part of the novel the main characters were climbing a mountain and meditating…with little to no purpose. During this time there were excessive descriptions and no plot progression.

The “zero percent” population refers to those who have digitized themselves and no longer require the basic needs that humans do such as food, water, etc. Each zero percenter is escorted by their concierge, who takes on the digital life form of their cell phone. Sounds interesting right….? I thought it would be.

There was no character development, though the basic premise for the novel provides an excellent opportunity since it is told from the POV of a concierge whose “human” is trying to decide whether to become a zero percenter or remain a true human. There could have been a lot of twists and developments.
It was all over the place, and I wasn’t sure what the purpose of the novel was for the majority of the story. Later in the novel it abandons focus on the science fiction element and mainly focuses on finding consciousness within oneself, but it was not done in interesting way.

Honestly, I don’t recommend this novel. Overall, it ended up being pretty boring.

I won this in a Goodreads Giveaway. Right now it is available free for Kindle Unlimited members.

Below is the synopsis for this book provided by the publisher. To get more information about this book click here.

Visit author Scott Grusky’s Facebook page.

|Purchase on Amazon | Goodreads Review |