YA

Review: Trust Me, I’m Lying by Mary Elizabeth Summer

Andge @ Down the Rabbit Hole

Series: Trust Me #1

trust me, im lying -mary elizabeth summerFans of Ally Carter, especially her Heist Society readers, will love this teen mystery/thriller with sarcastic wit, a hint of romance, and Ocean’s Eleven–inspired action.

Julep Dupree tells lies. A lot of them. She’s a con artist, a master of disguise, and a sophomore at Chicago’s swanky St. Agatha High, where her father, an old-school grifter with a weakness for the ponies, sends her to so she can learn to mingle with the upper crust. For extra spending money Julep doesn’t rely on her dad—she runs petty scams for her classmates while dodging the dean of students and maintaining an A+ (okay, A-) average.

But when she comes home one day to a ransacked apartment and her father gone, Julep’s carefully laid plans for an expenses-paid golden ticket to Yale start to unravel. Even with help from St. Agatha’s resident Prince Charming, Tyler Richland, and her loyal hacker sidekick, Sam, Julep struggles to trace her dad’s trail of clues through a maze of creepy stalkers, hit attempts, family secrets, and worse, the threat of foster care. With everything she has at stake, Julep’s in way over her head . . . but that’s not going to stop her from using every trick in the book to find her dad before his mark finds her. Because that would be criminal.

3 Drink Me Potions

I had been anxiously waiting a long time to get my hands on this book. The synopsis made it sound really suspenseful and good. But what I ended up reading was something on borderline mediocre.

Trust Me, I’m Lying started off strong. There was a conspiracy/mystery afoot! Somebody’s kidnapped Julep’s dad! *gasp* (By the way, Julep is an amazing false-name to give a child). There were interestingly strange clues left behind for her to solve and, fingers crossed, hopefully help her find her father. I absolutely love a good quest for cryptic clues. Amongst plot twists here and there, the ending didn’t satisfy as much, what with the build up in the beginning.

The plot twists had a few unexpected moments, and some that were WAY too obvious. For someone who doesn’t let people in very easily, Julep trusted others….well, rather easily. That’s all I’m going to say for that, and hopefully you’d understand why some things were seen a mile away.

As for romance and the “love triangle”….what love triangle?? There was obviously one guy she fell for, and another guy who was pining for her that she never let herself see that (no duh, since she doesn’t have many friends). Plus, I couldn’t see any chemistry building between Julep and either boys. Yes, attraction was definitely warranted for one of the potential suitors, but it wasn’t done well!!. Urgh, and that frustrates me. Just because he has a PRETTY FACE doesn’t mean there’s anything beyond mutual attraction. Which brings me to wonder, why did this hot guy fall for HER? Summer NEVER really mentioned why he cared about her in the end.

Oh. Hold on. You think I was annoyed in my above comments? Let’s see…how about we talk of that ENDING? With many mixed emotions currently running through my head, I’m thinking of settling on angry, WTF, confused, sad, and semi-satisfied. Too many? OK. Let’s sum it up to BITTERSWEET . I’m not sure what the sequel, Trust Me, I’m Trouble, will be about yet but since I wasn’t TOO too attached to anyone, I guess I shall give it a shot.

Although there wasn’t too much love coming from me, Trust Me, I’m Lying still earned a 3 star rating. It had its moments that surprised/jolted me awake. Julep was the only character that felt any bit real to me. Mary Elizabeth Summer put a lot of effort researching into “grifting” and how to con others. Yes, some tips were quite interesting (ie. innocent people always look a little bit guilty). But she lacked very heavily in the character building category.

With that said, I shall end off this rant–*cough* review with possibly the most-touching line in the whole book that actually made me feel something.

“Don’t worry,” I say. “I’ll watch the world while you sleep.”

Overall Recommendations:
Trust Me, I’m Lying has definitely done its research into conning others and learning how to wear different layers depending on the mark you’re dealing with. However, where its plot twists were somewhat mystifying and its scavenger hunt for clues were intriguing, it lacked HEAVILY in characterization (beyond building Julep’s character) and the chemistry between the protagonist and her 2 male suitors (erm, friends).
Oh, and its ending may be somewhat astonishing to those who were actually drawn into Julep’s story and life. Whatever feelings you may have, bittersweet would be my conclusion.

YA

Review: Control by Lydia Kang

Andge @ Down the Rabbit Hole

Series: Control #1

control -lydia kangAn un-putdownable thriller for fans of Uglies

When a crash kills their father and leaves them orphaned, Zel knows she needs to protect her sister, Dyl. But before Zel has a plan, Dyl is taken by strangers using bizarre sensory weapons, and Zel finds herself in a safe house for teens who aren’t like any she’s ever seen before—teens who shouldn’t even exist. Using broken-down technology, her new friends’ peculiar gifts, and her own grit, Zel must find a way to get her sister back from the kidnappers who think a powerful secret is encoded in Dyl’s DNA.

A spiraling, intense, romantic story set in 2150—in a world of automatic cars, nightclubs with auditory ecstasy drugs, and guys with four arms—this is about the human genetic “mistakes” that society wants to forget, and the way that outcasts can turn out to be heroes.

5 Drink Me Potions

Warning: This review contains awestruck praise for authentic science in a YA novel

Upon a second time reading through Control, I will have to say the story hasn’t gotten any duller than the first. Sci-fi has never been something I truly loved, especially because the world building can get confusing depending on how the author goes about describing it. Too many technological advances and strange government systems can become explosively hard to follow and understand.

BUT, this book does not sway into that category. The world building is not the centre of the story, but rather the scientific (or rather, genetic) and occasional technological advances in the year 2150. As a lover of science, I CANNOT express how awestruck I am to see real science put into a novel. It sucks when science fiction takes the liberty of submerging into science fantasy. Lydia Kang keeps the science real but still maintains a level of imaginative fiction in her storytelling.

And at the end….it is MINDBLOWING to see how the science ties in perfectly to help fight off adversaries. Who says science can’t be used for the odd fight or two?

Zelia and her gang of misfit mutant friends are also very well-depicted. Thrust into a new world where people with naturally born mutations are left to live in isolation for fear of elimination by the government, each character has their own quirky personality. Sure, they may not be original personalities, but after reading so many stories, you can compare many secondary characters to someone else in another book.

As for the plot pacing, it wasn’t very action-packed or anything because at the heart of the story, there is a scientific mystery to be solved. Zelia is trying to identify what “trait” that her sister Dylia may have that the rival mutant house (Aureus House) wanted so badly. So yes, labwork makes up a chunk of the story as well as chilling within Carus House (aka the “good house”).

Wait a second. Let’s pause here. You say this sounds like X-men? Now let’s just hold it right there. That is NOT an excuse to not read the book. All stories have central themes and archetypes that they follow. It just so happens that this kind of theme is representative of stories that contain kick-ass mutants who are fighting for their survival. So please, just give it a shot, will you?

Overall Recommendations:
Control is a scientific phenomenon in YA literature, with hardly any other in comparison to its keen scientific nature. Packed with a sizzling romance and funky characters (and the occasional plot-twister), readers don’t need to come from a heavy science background to appreciate its cleverness.
Although…if you did, then that would make the book so much more of a pleasurable read.

adult

Review: The Thousand Dollar Tan Line by Rob Thomas and Jennifer Graham

Andge @ Down the Rabbit Hole

Series: Veronica Mars #1

the thousand dollar tan line -rob thomasFrom Rob Thomas, the creator of groundbreaking television series and movie Veronica Mars, comes the first book in a thrilling new mystery series.

Ten years after graduating from high school in Neptune, California, Veronica Mars is back in the land of sun, sand, crime, and corruption. She’s traded in her law degree for her old private investigating license, struggling to keep Mars Investigations afloat on the scant cash earned by catching cheating spouses until she can score her first big case.

Now it’s spring break, and college students descend on Neptune, transforming the beaches and boardwalks into a frenzied, week-long rave. When a girl disappears from a party, Veronica is called in to investigate. But this is not a simple missing person’s case. The house the girl vanished from belongs to a man with serious criminal ties, and soon Veronica is plunged into a dangerous underworld of drugs and organized crime. And when a major break in the investigation has a shocking connection to Veronica’s past, the case hits closer to home than she ever imagined.

3 Drink Me Potions

The Thousand-Dollar Tan Line was a very quick read. It was impossible to put down. Rob Thomas picks up right where the 2014 movie stops. Therefore, it’s essential that the movie be watched first before this book is read, as there are plot continuity from the movie.

However, the 3 star rating was from the lack of romance, although I’m loving the LoVe that is still running through. The mystery was not Thomas’ best work, in my opinion. Don’t get me wrong, his red herrings were still brilliant, but I found plot holes where he could have gone and elaborated a bit more. For example, what’s with the drug cartel plotline he threw in there? The dangerous Gutierrez cousins were certainly an interesting aspect. I am hoping there would be more continuity in the next book, Mr. Kiss and Tell. Here’s to fingers crossed!

As for the actual conclusion to the mystery, it was a little disappointing. Yes, it was unexpected, but I guess I was hoping for something crazier and more “OMG that never crossed my mind but it makes absolute sense somehow”. That was how I felt of Season 1 and 2’s conclusions of Veronica Mars.

Either way, here’s to fans who’ve waited forever. The characters we love and of course, LoVe rekindling, this has been a much-anticipated read that is still very enjoyable !

Overall Recommendation:
My quick pointers in regards to this story is….
1. LoVe wasn’t to my satisfaction. Here’s the anticipation of more LoVe in the next installment!
2. Mystery was compelling, with lots of red herrings, but it just wasn’t to par with Thomas’ normal level of cleverness, in my honest opinion.
3. VERY IMPORTANT! Watch the TV series, but most DEFINITELY the MOVIE FIRST. There is too much continuity to not have at least seen the movie before reading. Plus, there would be more of an understanding behind each character if the TV series was watched also.