My Favourite Genre

i love a good romance book/novel...
what i love about it is that the books always have a good ending
- the guy gets the girl (or visa versa )
- the lead dies and the partener is grief stricken.
i think any good book with a relationship that is soooo fictionous or when  some one important dies in the book or some one is heart broken  then to me it becomes a romance.
so practically any book that has a relationship is my kind a book and if you like romance go for the books that say in the blurb .....and then he/she meets this guy/girl..... cos those are always legedary

Top Ten books

1. Percy Jackson and The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan

2. Percy Jackson and The Titan's Curse by Rick Riordan

3. Percy Jackson and The Battle of The Labyrinth by Rick Riordan

4. Blue Blood by Ken Catran

5. Voyage with Jason by Ken Catran

6. Harry Potter and The Philosopher's Stone by J.K. Rowling

7. Harry Potter and The Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K. Rowling

0. Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows by J.K Rowling

8. The Chronicles of Narnia: The Last Battle by C.S. Lewis

9. Stardust by Neil Gaiman

10. The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

And yes, I know there are 11 books above. 

You will look up and you will realize that I typed a zero after 7.

 

                                                                        -jØseph

WHO I WANT TO MEET

I think i'd like to meet kaitlin burke from secrets of my hollywood life by jen calonita. kaitlin stars as samantha stevens in family affairs a very popular soap opera.
any way she decides she wants to go to school but not as her so she creates rachel rogers and goes to school as her. anyway her soap opera twin sky finds out and rats her out to the press. kaitlin handles this very maturuly and sets every thing right again.
i guess id like to meet kaitlin becuase  she acts like a down to earth celeb and isnt caught up in the fame and fortune like alot of celebs. i think she has good morals and is a very sensible character.....
if only it was a true story.

BOOK LIST

Sam's TOP 15 BOOK LIST:

Vampire Academy series (cant stand vampire books or twilight but these are awesome)

When the black girl sings

The DaVinci code ( don't believe it and classify it under fiction, also really good)

The lovely bones

My sister Jodie

GIRLS series by Jacqueline Wilson

The Diamond Girls

If I have a Wicked stepmother wheres my prince?

Wake, Fade and Gone trio

And Then Everything Unraveled... sequel

Ella Enchanted

Meridian series

I am the messenger

The Graveyard Book

Spud

p.s. I thought I would be original and have a top 15 and these books are NOT in order because I couldn't decide.

The lovely bones by ALICE SEBOLD

This story was about Susie Salmon, a young girl murdered at fourteen, sits in her heaven as she watches her family grieve, suffer and fall apart without her. Susie follows the lives of her family and friends as they struggle to cope with the aftermath of her death. In watching her family on Earth, Susie’s journey to understanding the life she was robbed of becomes the core in this novel “The Lovely Bones” by Alice Sebold.

Eventually, through this connection, Susie and her family gain a better understanding of the love, life, and unfortunate circumstances that often tie people together in the world. this is a great story, both book and movie brought tears to my eyes because it was so beautifully written.

The differences, comparison of movie and the book:

-Susie is murdered AND raped
-characters removed from the movie: Hal Heckler (Lindsay's boyfriend's brother), Ruana Singh (Ray's mom), Mr and Mrs DeWitt (track coach and English teacher)
-characters that play a larger role in the book: Holiday (their dog), Len, Samuel (Lindsay's boyfriend), Ruth, Ray, Lindsay, Buckley
-Len and Abigail have an affair before Abagail leaves
-Susie's body is dumped in the sinkhole at the BEGINNING of the book
-The book doesn't have as much with the "in between"--the only time it is really mentioned is in the beginning and it is more like a normal town, such as the high school is there because Susie wanted to go there and never got the chance, there aren't giant ships in bottles or anything like that
-Jack has a heart attack which is how he ends up in the hospital and why Abagail comes back
-Mr. Harvey leaves town sooner (or at least it seems like it because the book covers more years)

The movie and book have many differences, these are only a few, and if you like the movie I would recommend reading the book. And if you didn't like the movie I would recommend reading the book. The book in my opinion is 10x better than the movie. =D

And then everything unraveled by JENNIFER STURMAN

Awesome......I really loved this book! I honestly didn't know what to expect. I didn't hear much about this book before getting it, so I went in with just the same curiosity. It wasn't long before this book had me hooked.

It was full of mystery that you uncover along the way with the main character, Delia. But I also found loads of quirky humor that kept this story at a perfect balance. Delia is such a great character that anyone could enjoy reading about. When everyone is convinced that her mom, T.K. is dead, Delia knows there is more to the story. She never gives up on what she believes, even when everyone thinks she is wrong. Seeing her having to adjust from California to New York was fun to read about.

What I loved about all of the characters were how un-cliche they were, and how each of them brought something fun to the mix. You got the detective with the crazy ties, the friend who is ordered to parties by her parents to work on her social skills, the drone-like cousins, the two aunts who couldn't be any more opposite if they tried, and then there's Quinn. Quinn surprised me in a good way. At first, I thought he would be that cliche popular boy, but there so much more to him. We didn't get to see nearly as much of him as I would want, so hopefully we get lots more of him in the next book.

My absolute favorite character in this story was Delia's Aunt Charley. How awesome was she! She lives in a converted warehouse that was described as big enough to roller skate in, she LOVES to shop, she does whatever job appeals to her, she is an 80's teen movie fanatic, oh, and she loves ice cream! If you are a teen who has to be shipped off to live with someone until you can find your mom, Charley is the person you want to live with. Or maybe I am just as wacky as Charley.

I loved the mystery in the story and really I still don't know how it going to end. I found the book really funny too, Delia's descriptions of her cousin's facial expressions, just priceless. And Delia in general was just a great character, I really liked her. She was one of many strong characters in a great cast. with the cute ties to Natalie the girl that promised her parents she would go to a party to work on her social skills! The plot was fun and moved at a fast. I was left with so many more questions at the end, and was SO ready to jump into the sequel! And Then Everything Unraveled was a fantastic start in what looks like a fun and exciting series. I would rate this a 9 out of ten and recommend it for 12+.

trust me its soooo worth your time.

Best Book

Spud : The Madness Continues - Jon Van de Ruit

Finished this book a few days ago and I can say that this book is awesome. This is the second book in a series written by Jon Van de Ruit. Have to thank Samantha for introducing me to the first book which is also one of my favourites.

This book is written in the style of a diary. The diary belongs to a South African teenage boy named John 'Spud' Milton who's long walk to manhood is slower then ever. Turning 15 and still having no signs of puberty, Spud starts to think he is a freak of nature. Having a mother who wants to move to England, a father who sells illegal moonshine and a demented grandmother called 'Wombat', Spud isn't to excited to enter a new year that includes embarrassment and madness. One thing that Spud looks forward to, is no longer being the smallest boy at his boarding school. He is reunited with his dormitory mates, known as the "Crazy Eight" and the fun begins. Thinking that the new year will be a breeze, Spud is seriously mistaken. The Crazy Eight are caught doing illegal night swimming, Spud has girl problems and he lands a role as the "Dove of Peace" in a horrible play of Noah's Ark which he thinks is ruining his chances of becoming an actor.

This book is hilarious, and made me laugh so hard I started tearing up (though it doesn't take much to make me giggle). I think this book jumps to number one on my list because not only is it funny but the characters are very interesting eg, one of his room mates is 'Vern' who is mentally ill, talks to his cat 'Roger' and when frustrated or scared, he tends to pull out chunks of his hair. Also the story line itself makes you want to open the book, 'a boy who hasn't hit puberty has to survive an all boys boarding school'. "Spud : The Madness Continues" is an enjoyable book which will get you to chuckle even if you're a person that hardly ever laughs.
Recommended for those 13+
Rating of book 9.9/10

TOP 10

1. Spud : The Madness Continues - Jon Van de Ruit
2. Skulduggery Pleasant - Derek Landy
3. Harry Potter : Deathly Hallows - J.K Rowling
4. Spud : Spud BY Jon Van de Ruit
5. Boy in the Striped Pyjamas - John Boyne
6. Power of One - Bryce Courtenay
7. Twilight : Eclipse - Stephenie Meyer
8. Harry Potter : Half Blood Prince - J.K Rowling
9. Spud : Learning to Fly - Jon Van de Ruit
10. Twilight : Breaking Dawn - Stephenie Meyer

Also #1 - Home Before Dark - Ian Beck

Cars the movie vs. Cars the novelisation

i found that the movie was better than the novel as it obviously gave you the visuals as well as the speech, but, i could enjoy the book more as i could take my time to read it and also create my own visuals, even change the characters to suit how i thought it should have been.

My top ten best books

Mayday by Clive Cussler

Stormbreaker by Anthony Horowitz

Point Blanc by Anthony Horowitz

Skeleton Key by Anthony Horowitz

Eagle Strike by Anthony Horowitz

Silverfin by Charlie Higson

Bloodfever by Charlie Higson

Double or Die by Charlie Higson

Hurricane Gold by Charlie Higson

By Royal Command by Charlie Higson

Stories of Winnie the Pooh by A.A. Milne (childhood favourite........)

-I have been reading the series' of the books by the same author.

Best Book I've Read (So Far)

Kiss by Jacqueline Wilson

I read this book in year 8... I think, after Cynthia and Maria really liked it... So yeah, this is probably the best book I've read because it had one of the most unexpected twists in the story (which I always love, especially when you have no clue its coming). It was also a book that made me cry.. which can sometimes be a good thing, showing that the author has really gotten through to you. I would probably give this book a 9.5 out of ten (just because the ending was slightly different from what I would have liked.)

This book is basically about a girl called Sylvie and her best friend Carl. They've been friends since there were babies. Sylvie has always believed that they'd end up married to each other. They even have a magical fantasy world that belongs to them alone — and the glass hut where it's all created, at the bottom of Carl's garden. However as they grow older and go to different schools, making different friends things start changing...

The ending is really sweet and I enjoyed reading about the over-all strong friendship they share. I would have liked just one thing to be changed, but I'm not going to say what that was in case anyone actually does want to read this book, because it would spoil it for them... but people (or more specifically girls) should really give this book a try...

I really liked how the author told the story from Sylvie's perspective, making us actually feel what she would have gone through. It really gave the whole story an interesting angle...

So anyway, try the book because it might become one of your Top Ten...

A series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket

This is for the 'write about your favorite series of books' task, and I have chosen A series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket. Most of you have probably read one book in the series ( there are 13 in total ) but you should definitely give them all another chance. The movie is based on the first 4 books so if you have seen the movie you could start by reading the 5th book if you like. Though beware, the film does not do the books justice.

Extremely charming, this series begins slowly but builds momentum from the 4th book onwards. These books are  utterly un putdownable and I read the whole series in a month. It would be possible to read them faster if they were all available at the same library =)

This series is about the Baudelaire orphans, Sunny, Klaus and Violet. Their parents died in a mysterious house fire, and they were forced to move in with their distant relative Count Olaf. He is evil and keeps trying to steal the children's fortune, left to them by their parents.Throughout the series Count Olaf disguises himself as different people in an attempt to fool the children, and acquire their money. However, the children are very clever and out smart him every time. Count Olaf is unfortunately quite tricky and causes suffering for the Baudelaire orphans.This series is very complex and each book has a different setting, that keeps it really interesting. The authors clever use of wit makes you want to keep on reading, I encourage you to do so.
I know some people find it hard to get in to the series in the beginning but I promise they get better.

Read them if you enjoy books with well developed and interesting characters, they are full of mystery and are extremely unique. These books have slightly dark themes but are still humorous.

My favorite books in the series are probably number 11, 12 and 13,
so enjoy..
Here are the books:

1. The Bad Beginning
2. The Reptile Room
3. The Wide Window
4. The Miserable Mill
5. The Austere Academy
6. The Ersatz Elevator
7. The Vile Village
8. The Hostile Hospital
9. The Carnivorous Carnival
10. The Slippery Slope
11. The Grim Grotto
12. The Penultimate Peril
13. The End

FANTASY :3

Uhm yeaah. this shall be the second part of the homework.

Soo i'm here to talk about (discuss ?) my favourite genre of books, and that's fantasy. i'm not sure why i love it actually. probably because i've been playing video games, specifically RPG's since i was fairly young .. ahhh but wait. scratch what i said before. i know exactly why i love fantasy stories :O can't be bothered clicking back and backspacing -.-

§ it's because of how the stories are usually worded. they create such a vivid scenery in your head, and it's entirely up to you how you want it to look like - from the characters, the entire setting, to the little details the book tells you about. i love imagining, rather than having something tell me that "THIS is how it is", and "THIS is how it looks like."

§ still on the whole imagining thing, i love the way that new worlds are created by words. places that are so surreal, so far away from the world we know. it really makes me want to go to those places, to see if they're really the way that they've been depicted. it just makes me want to escape.

§ I. LOVE. DRAGONS. i don't know why, i just seem to have some sort of fetish for them. they're so powerful but elegant but deadly but magical. and i don't know where i got this fetish from, i just kinda have it. ehh come to think of it, i kinda just like mythical creatures in general. harpies, treants, elves, gargoyles, (shut me up), medusas, shamans, necromancers, UNICORNS!, whatever the plural for pegasus is, creeps (lol DOTA.), fairies, sprites, elemental guardians .. ANWYAY. uhm so, let's look at it this way ~ i love dragons. dragons appear in many fantasy stories. therefore, i love fantasy stories. make sense ? no ? ohwell.

§ i believe in magic. there. maybe not the whole reciting spells and marking seals kinda magic, but it's just something i like to believe in. so what.

So all in all, i love fantasy books. while reading them, they make me forget about the real world and enter a new and unknown one, somewhere far away with different ways of daily life. what we know here is completely different from what's true there. places that may be so much different from where we are, depending on which story you're reading really .. uhm yeah i could go on but nahh. i think this is getting too long. so yeah here's a few fantasy books i'd recommend reading ~~

► The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness. LOOVED THIS.
► The Story of Stone by N.M Browne. LOOOOVED THIS TOO.
► Dragon's Keep by Janet Carey. currently reading at the moment, but it's pretty cool.
► Enchantress From the Stars by Sylvia Engdahl. LOVE LOVE LOVED THIS ♥ mix between fantasy and sci-fi. GENIUS. one of my favourite ever ever books.

The End ? :D

My Top Ten Favourite Books by Vince Exconde

These books aren't really in order coz i like all of them equally ., so yeah ., :D

Harry Potter series-J.K Rowling
Thieves Like Us-Stephen Cole
Thieves Till We Die-Stephen Cole
The New Heroes: The Quantum Prophecy-Michael Carroll
Trash-Andy Mulligan
Skellig-David Almond
The Power Of One-Bryce Courtenay
The Boy In The Striped Pyjamas-John Boyne
The Silent One-Joy Cowley
See Ya, Simon-David Hill

Top Ten Books I've Read

Well, yeah... this is my list, it's not really in a particular order... but i do like the first three the most.

Kiss by Jacqueline Wilson

Skellig by David Almond

The Day I Killed James by Catherine Ryan Hyde

A Perfect Ten by Chris Higgins

Mixed Bags By Melody Carlson

What Every Girl (Except Me) Knows by Nora Raleigh Baskin

Mates, Dates and Cosmic Kisses by Cathy Hopkins

The Summer Of Cotton Candy by Debbie Viguié

How To Survive Summer Camp by Jacqueline Wilson

A Series Of Unfortunate Events: The Penultimate Peril (I know Zoë already said this, but I like it too, and you would have to read all the other books in the series to understand this one anyway)

Romance (:

If it isn't about romance, I probably wouldn't even give it a second glance. The only times I'll be seen with a book that has absolutely nothing to do with romance is when it's a book we have to read for an assessment or something like that.

I actually don't know the REAL reason why I 'love' romance so much. It just catches my eye.. and heart :D .. I like the way it describes the emotion and most of the time, it explores the true meaning of 'true love' and 'falling in love' .

I absolutely love books that'll put tears in my eyes. It means that it has a deep meaning to it and I've understood it ♥ .

Though sometimes, its a bit unrealistic but theres nothing i can do. Its just a story :D

Some really AMAZING romance books:

Perfect Chemistry & Rules of Attraction by Simone Elkeles

A Walk To Remember by Nicholas Sparks

Last Song by Nicholas Sparks

Tricks by Ellen Hopkins(this isnt fully about romance, but its okay)

Basically all the books in my TOP TEN are awesome romantic books.

TOP TEN BOOKS :)

I'm going to do it in a countdown form. So it goes from least favourite to my favourite.

10)SLAM! by Nick Hornby

9)The Naughty List by Suzanne Young

8)After by Kirstin Harmel

7)Before I Die by Jenny Downham

6)Last Song by Nicholas Sparks

5)A Walk To Remember by Nicholas Sparks

4)Twilight Saga by Stephenie Meyer

3)How to Ruin a Summer Vacation (series) by Simone Elkeles

2)Leaving Paradise & Return to Paradise by Simone Elkeles

1)Perfect Chemistry & Rules of Attraction by Simone Elkeles (theres one more book in the series)

Yeap, thats my TOP TEN :D

Top Ten Book List:

It's technically 22 books, whatever..






1) Pretty Things - Sarah Manning
2) Red Tears - Joanna Kendrick
3) Why Weeps the Brogan? - Hugh Scott
3) It's Kind of a Funny Story - Ned Vizzini
4) Will Grayson, Will Grayson - John Green and David Levithan
5) The Perks of being a Wallflower - Stephen Chbosky
6) The Mysterious Benedict Society (it's a trilogy) - Trenton Lee Stewart
7) A Series of Unfortunate Events (it's a whole series, sue me) - Lemony Snicket


I had to be honest, I could not think of 10 of my favorite books and I did not want to put any on the list that I did not love 100%. To be fair, because I put two series of books on there, there are really 22.



These are all lovely.
You should read them immediately.




















End.

Best book I've read by Vince Exconde

This is the first of the two we had to do for homework ... :D For me , the best book I've read has to be "The New Heroes: The Quantum Prophecy" by Michael Carroll. I really liked this book because of the plot of course, but what I really enjoyed was the plot structure. Yes, the plot is the main thing in a book but making it interesting is more interseting and harder to do. This book is about superheroes (of course) and super villains (obviously). I've always wanted to read one about superheroes and luckiliy I found this one. Anyways, as I was saying the plot structure was the main reason that made me keep reading this book and in a normal book the author introduecs a plot, which happened in this one as well (kinda expected really) but a few pages along, the author introduces a twist that SPLITS the plot in half, therefore it looks like there is two plots but it's just actually one but both halves link bank to the same ending. So the book starts off with a split plot, i thought (big deal) and this got me kinda bored. BUT then the author puts another trick in the book and introduces a whole new plot from the past day (oh by the way , the first plot is set in the present day) which made it kinda confusing at first since one plot is in the present and one's in the past but the excitement picks up when the authir puts the two halves of the first plot together (clever right ??) BUT a few chapters along , he MERGES the plots together !!! (more celver !!!! XD) BY doing this, the story's mystery unfolds as the facts from one plot and the facts from the other fit like a puzzle. Its kinda like telling the story from different point of views but this time, its the WHOLE plot that's told in a different perspective. This has probavly been the most interesting book I've read in terms of structure and YES the author has TONS of tricks up his sleeves when you read this book. :D I give this book a 9/10 for the plot and 11/10 for the structure !! I hope this was good !! Please comment !! :D :D

Twilight vs Twilight

Uhm yeah this the "Compare a book you've read with the movie version of that book" thingie we hafta do. Soo yeah, I'm here to compare the book Twilight written by Stephenie Meyer to the movie version, directed by Catherine Hardwicke. Mostly because I think it's the only movie I've seen that was based off of a book that I can clearly think of :S

I'm suree most people would agree with me on this - and that is that the book is waaay better than the movie, and that applies to the other books as well. And there's a few of reasons why I say that ~

►The book has so much more detail that leave you thinking about the story, while the movie left out quite a bit of it. The movie also just gives you a certain thing to look at, while it's completely up to your interpretation what the scenes look like when you read the book. You can imagine what Bella and Edward look like, instead of looking at Robert Pattinson. -.-
►While it's pretty much still the same storyline, something about the movie is just .. off. It's not that I hated it with a passion, because I did enjoy it. ish. I mean maybe it's the acting or the actors themselves, or the fact that they actually made the vampires sparkle. It just really doesn't live up to the awesomeness of the book.
►The romantic bits were more .. well. romantic, in the book. Again, it's mostly because of the whole, "completely up to your interpretation" thing.

Soo overall I definitely like the book a lot better than the movie. The movie just has so many things missing from it, in my opinion, while the book is much fuller. And I dunno, I just have something against Robert Pattinson D:< he made Edward look .. weird. :/
Aaand that's about it. Thanks for reading if you read this.

A Walk To Remember by Nicholas Sparks

I got this book by chance. It was just on the self and I thought 'oh, i should give it a try'. This is a book to remember. I absolutely loved it and would definetly recommend it to anyone looking for a good romantic book.

It is about a 57 year old man remembering what happened when he was 17. His name is Landon Carter. When he is in high school he chooses drama instead of chemistry because he taught it would be easier for him. There he meets Jamie Sullivan. She is the ministers daughter.

Landon and Jamie grew up together, but they never really talked to each other. Jamie is a helpful girl who strongly believes in God. She is the type of girl that would carry a Bible everywhere she went. Landon is the laid-back type of guy. He also believes in God, but doesnt show it as much as Jamie does.

One day Jamie asks Landon to play the lead role in the school play, and he accepts because he didnt want to hurt her. Slowly they start getting closer and they soon fall in love.

This book made me cry because of the unexpected part near the end of the story. Though i was kind of frustrated with Landon, he was still a good character.

I would give this book a 9/10 because it kind of tells me that "Love is like the wind. You can't see it. You can feel it" I absolutely loved it and I honestly wouldnt forget it anytime soon

What Every Girl (Except Me) Knows by Nora Raleigh Baskin

"I'm assuming I'll turn into a woman someday whether I know anything about being one or not. But being womanly is something you definitely have to learn. Girls probably don't even know they're learning it. But one thing for sure is that it has to come from a mother.

And a mother is one thing I don't have."

I chose this book because it seemed really interesting and i didn't have much time. I would give it a 7/10 and recommend it to anyone from 10-14.

The book is mainly about a girl called Gabby Weiss, her mother died when she was three and she lives with her dad and brother. What i found really interesting was the way she observed the little things all the other girls do and take for granted. She was almost trying to teach herself to be a woman. But when her dad and his girlfriend are thinking of getting married she is over-joyed that she finally has a mother in her life. After a lot of ups and downs, and Cleo (her dad's girlfriend) leaving and coming back, she finally realizes she doesn't have to try so hard. Being a girl is not something you have to learn, it just comes naturally.

Trash by Andy Mulligan

I really wanted to read this book after reading Ms Comer's review coz it was really interesting and i completely agree . :D I think that the title just gives it away , yeah you guessed it , its about trash. And as much as i hate to say this , its about poverty and how it affects people . This book is set in the Philippines (where i come from) and i can say dat i agree with the author , it is pretty messy back home. Anyways , the story follows the adventures of three best friends Raphael , Gardo and Jun Jun (aka Rat) and their lives as dumpsite boys digging through the Behala dumpsite in Manila hoping to find something valuable to sell . However , one day Raphael finds something that immediately gets the police on their tail and its gonna take a very long time to solve the mystery . (and yes , it involves LOTS of puzzle solving) But eventually , after lots of twists and turns and help from their friends , they solve the BIG puzzle . :D I won't focus about the plot itself in this review coz it's just gonna ruin it for you guys and you can't really tell half of this story's plot coz then the mystery's just gona confuse you . LOL . :P Moving on , what i loved about this book is the fact that it is written in different point of views , what i mean by this is dat d author splits the story in parts , like chapters and in each chapter , each character updates d reader on what they are going through . I realy like this touch by the author coz in one page , its Rapahael saying something about how he feels with their current situation then the next page Gardo says something COMPLETELY opposite to how Gardo feels . i think the author did this to show each character's personality in a unique way (WHICH I THOUGHT WAS VERY CLEVER :D) By doing this , we as the reader can figure out the mystery behind the story ourselves since the story is told from different perspectives meaning everyone tells the reader what they see with their own eyes and how they feel about it. Finally , i also like the fact that this book is written in an author's point of view that is not FILIPINO . i dont mean to be racist but , i kinda liked that coz it showed me how the author viewed the Philippines , how he felt about writing about the Philippines . Because me , as a Filipino, i am 100% certain dat if a Filipino author wrote "Trash" in their point of view , it will be COMPLETELY different mainly coz the Filipino author sees it in a different way coz he/she knows wat its like in the Philippines therefore he/she wouldve written it in a different structure . please comment !! :D Vince Exconde

Blade by Tim Bowler

A fast-paced suspense story! I have found another book that is a page turner and is exciting to read! This book was short but it is a part of a four book series. At first I disliked the main character because of his attitude and his lifestyle but as you read on you will find out more about Blade and how he had to live on the streets alone as a teenager. He is very tough and resourceful which helps him get through challenges and get away from gangs chasing after him. Short to the point sentences helps with the quick speed of the story telling. The story is colloquial and is told through Blade talking to you(he calls you Big-Eyes) as if you were there beside him which i thought was very unique and interesting. As the story progresses he will come accross one of the gang members and her child and he takes them along with them even though he prefers being alone. This helps me understand his personality more as I see his lighter and more caring side of his personality. I would recommend this to teens but not children as Balde is sometimes rude and they might learn from him. I would rate this book a 8 out of ten and I am looking forward to reading the next book to the series. :)

ARTEMIS FOWL : The Opal Deception Against the other Artemis fowl books i rate this one my second favourite topped by the first in the series. This book is the fourth in the series and takes place after the events in The Eternity Code at the end of which Artemis allows the faeries to erase all his memories about them and their encounters. This means he starts off on as clean a slate (for a criminal genius). However deep in the bowels of the earth trouble is rising in Haven City as the criminal mastermind Opal Koboi escapes confinement and sets out to take revenge on those that foiled her evil plan. This book makes use of all the features that makes Artemis Fowl an award winning book series including his sarcastic personality and Butlers real world view combined with a winning plot to make a great book for light reading

Voyage with Jason by Ken Catran

Voyage with Jason is an adventure/Greek mythology book, which is why I chose it. The book is based on the adventures of Jason and the Argonauts and their legendary quest to find the Golden Fleece. The book is slightly altered to make the story more 'realistic' compared to the old legend. The book was very interesting, because the way Ken Catran altered the story is very impressive and explained the events that are very different from the legends, but still made sense at the same time.

 Interestingly, the book was not told by one of the heroes like the other books, but by Pylos, a boy shipbuilder who was rescued from a brutal overseer by a man who seems like nothing more than a big country bumpkin. When I found out who the man was, like Pylos I was quivering with awe..

(no, I'm not going to spoil it for you!)

After this encounter Pylos is dropped straight into the strangeness that surrounds Jason's quest for the Golden Fleece with his company of heroes. That sounds grand and glorious, and it is, but Pylos views the great heroes of the Argos (their ship) with a stranger's eye. The story he tells has not been prettied up and decked out with laurel branches and gold leaf. He describes legendary people who are all too human, countries where the gods still fight over who will be worshipped and who will be forgotten, violent barbarians with scary moustaches, women with deadly grudges, and kings whose motives are highly mixed. This is a wonderfully believable book about human beings who still manage to accomplish heroic things, and about the ways they find to trip themselves and one another. 

I liked how the book had many interesting characters and most of them had different skills and personalities, but some of them were kind of lifeless; only saying one line/minor involvement. But the story was still amazing, and I loved how it was shown from the perspective of a peasant boy in a voyage with princes, nobles and heroes. I give it an 8 out of 10 because I really enjoyed the book and it was very well written by a very good author; Ken Catran makes adventure and glory both reachable and dark.

-Joseph