The Hunt Review

Wow… So I just finished reading The Hunt by Andrew Fukuda and it was one of those books I could not resist doing a review for, and a good review at that. This was a fantastic book, and to start the non-spoilery section, I'm going to tell you why.

So in this book humans are no longer the general population, and even though it never actually says the word "vampire", it's quite obvious that all the humans have been eaten by these vampires who are now populating and ruling the country. Everyone thinks that the only humans, or hepers as they are called, left are the ones in the Dome, in the Heper Research Institute. But Gene, a human boy of 17, living in this community, knows better. He's always been careful, always brushed his fake fangs and lathered on sun-repellent products to prevent a tan or sunburn, always made sure he had deodorant on to mask his heper smell. But when things start to go pear-shaped, people start to suspect him, and hiding has never been so difficult.

The best way I can explain this book is by saying that it's very Hunger Games-esque. Except with vampires, which sounds cheesy, but really, it's not, it's dark and violent and scary. I felt like I was walking on a tightrope whilst reading this book, walking next to Gene, and I was experiencing everything he was. I suggest you go read it and head straight back here to discuss!

***SPOILERS***
Phew. That book was so stressful, so tense, I'm still shaken up by the ending. I really did like this book, and I'm super excited to read the next one, which has been released thankfully! So I'll start with my personal favourite thing in this book- the writing.

I haven't read many books that have writing like this. Writing that is so sophisticated but still grabs you, writing that is so poetic that even humans being devoured sounds beautiful, which makes it so much creepier. The scene where they were eating dinner at the Institute, and explaining the drip cups, and the raw meat, I was so repulsed and grossed out, but when I think of this as a movie scene, I see cheesy blood and almost shlock horror style scenes… I really do think it's the writing, hauntingly beautiful and disgusting, that sets the scene.

But then we are shown that this writing isn't inconsistent, when he uses the same writing style for all the romantic scenes between Ashley June and Gene, and I certainly wasn't feeling repulsed and disgusted during that scene.

Besides the writing, I think the whole plot was fantastic, and there wasn't a moment once they were in the Institute that I wasn't worried for Gene, empathizing with him, going through the same things he was. It was a little slow at the start, but once we got into it, the pace notched its speed up by about five hundred. It was very clever, investing us in this tightrope-situation Gene was in, where one bad move would make him dead.

The plot twists in this were rather predictable, well, that was what I was thinking when Gene got selected for The Hunt, and also when Ashley June revealed herself to be a heper too. It didn't take a genius to guess that he'd get selected, or that the one girl who seems to like him and the one girl he seems to like is human. But I certainly did not expect the bombshell at the end- that the scientist appears to be  his father. I don't know how that will all work out, but I cannot wait to pick up the next book.

Okay, now onto my general thoughts. There were some really creepy scenes in this book, like when he wakes up and finds all the hunters in his room, and the sunlight streams in. At first I thought that maybe he was dreaming, but no, he wasn't. I was so worried that they'd wake up and realise he was a heper and they'd eat him. And as I've already mentioned, the idea of poor Gene having to eat the raw meat an drink the blood made me feel sick, and I was certainly sure that this wasn't a cheesy vampires-versus-humans book.

It was also interesting that unless you read the blurb, which some people don't, you wouldn't have known Gene's name until he told it to Ashley June, in fact the whole name thing was interesting to me, because in this book, most of the characters have names that Gene has given them, like Gaunt Man (who I had suspicions about being a heper), Crimson Lips and Frilly Dress. I found that really interesting, but not only that, it isolated these other characters from Gene, made them seem more distant. Particularly when he went into the Dome and the other hepers gave him their names, it really made a clear separation between hepers and the others in my mind.

Gene as a character was not a stereotypical YA boy. If he was, I can just see him standing up against all the vampires with Jace Wayland-style bravado, confronting them. He is very quiet, and pushes everyone away to prevent anything bad happening, like them finding him out and trying to kill him. He also seems to try and convince himself that the other hepers are savages, even though he is one, and he's almost stuck up, but then, when he reminds himself that he is a heper himself, he says things like "I am a fake person" which I don't see stereotypical YA boys saying. They'd say something along the lines of "I am a human. And I will avenge our race". I thought, however, that he was the perfect character for what he was and the setting he was in. I also thought that his character perfectly balanced against Ashley June's, and also Sissy's, but I'll get into the complex, hidden love shapes soon.

Ashley June, who's name isn't really Ashley June, but that's just what Gene decided to call her. I liked her from the start, defending Gene and helping him out of difficult situations. At some points, I was sceptical about my heper-suspicions for her, but they still stayed strong, and when she was in the library and taking out her fake fangs, I almost whooped in triumph. Not only because she's a very interesting character, but because Gene needs someone like her to push him into doing things. Gene, who isn't very loud or controlling, needed Ashley June, an assertive, strong and brave companion. Gene is smart, yes, but without Ashley June, I doubt he'd have been able to pull off anything to get him out of The Hunt alive and well. Their characters balance perfectly, and they work together well. I'm hoping for a sweet reunion in the next book.

The hepers in the Dome were very interesting characters, and seeing Gene interact with them had to be one of my favourite scenes (despite me stressing continuously about someone finding him there), and I think there are some interesting love triangles forming. Well, not even love triangles, a love square, I guess. Epap, the annoying, distrusting older boy is quite obviously in love with Sissy, the fearless leader. Obviously, Ashley June and Gene are somewhat together, but I'm sensing some connection between Sissy and Gene. Maybe it's nothing, but Sissy and Gene would work well together as a couple, and particularly while Ashley June's not there, I think there will be some tension between Sissy, Gene and Epap. Just a suspicion, I'm not sure.

What I'm most concerned about is that Ashley June is still stuck in the Institute. Gene will go back for her, in the next book, I'm sure… I hope… And if he doesn't, what will the people at the Institute do with her? I think she'll have to live, so I don't think that she will be killed or anything, maybe she'll escape?

I'm also worried about that scene where the guy was creeping them out by explaining about the Heper Farms and stuff, and even though I'm fairly sure he was lying, what if he isn't? What if there is thousands of hepers in farms? Gene would be very tempted to free them, I'd think, and of course, we've got to worry about the general population trying to eat them.

So that's what I thought about The Hunt, and I can't wait to grab the next one and start reading that, and finding out how Gene's father fits into this.

So please share your thoughts below, and leave your twitter name as well for a shoutout or follow! Have a great day!

love,
lily xoxo

Stargirl- Recommendation

Yes, yes I know I've been super-slow with posting and the intervals between posts are really irregular. I'm actually so sorry I've been super-busy; just hang in there and I will reward the loyal!

So today, my recommendation is one of my all-time favourites, a book called Stargirl, by Jerry Spinelli. I first read it almost four years ago now, and loved it, and finally got my own copies two years ago for Christmas. I haven't seen them in any other book store since then.

Stargirl is a reality-based book about a girl who's different, a girl who wears florals and plays a ukulele on her first day of school, in the middle of the cafeteria. She's a girl who sees the world differently, who people don't know how to treat her.

And then there's Leo. Ordinary, quiet, reserved. And he's completely and utterly captivated by her.

Stargirl and Leo must figure out who they really want to be, and if the other can fir into their world. They must work through the people who stare, their little quirks, and they must try and fit into the world. Or so Leo thinks. Does Stargirl really want to fit in at all?

This is one of my favourites because it's timeless. I've read it countless times and every time it means something different to me. When I first read it, it was a cutesy tale that I really enjoyed. But every time I read it, I see in between the lines, the underlying themes of love and all the mistakes everyone makes in this book fit together and mean something I'll leave for you to figure out.

Stargirl is one of the best characters ever. She makes you feel free, makes you feel like you can do things you couldn't before. Makes you feel, however hopeless you are, that there is hope. And this definitely shines through in the sequel, Love, Stargirl, which I also recommend you read.

So please, please, please read it, come back and start up and conversation with me about whether you liked it or not and we can discuss :) I'm also willing to reread it again and post a review if that's what people would want. As always, if you leave a comment, add in your twitter name and I will follow or shout you out.

Have a lovely day!
love,
lily xoxo

What I Read Over December/January

Hey! Yeah it's been forever and I am infinitely sorry... I've been so busy, please forgive me!

So today will be sort of like a reflection of all the books I read over the December-end of January period. I've been conveniently keeping track of every book I've read over this period, and if you see a book you've read or want to read, feel free to leave a comment requesting a review or a proper recommendation where I can explain it in more detail.

Anyways, my goal for this period was twenty books… which means twenty books to two months, twenty books to nine weeks, which averages to two books per week… and I did it! *throws confetti in the air over you and starts singing Planetary (GO!) by My Chemical Romance* Let's get into this.

The first book I read was Allegiant, by Veronica Roth. Allegiant is the last book in the Divergent trilogy, and I have a review for it here if you missed it [http://mywordsarearrows.blogspot.com.au/2013/12/allegiant-book-review.html]. I really liked this series, but I must admit that this is my least favourite book in the series. I give it 3/5 stars, but I do recommend the series as a whole.

Next I read Beastly, by Alex Flinn, which was a book I picked up from my library when they were giving away some books for free (you can imagine my excitement at free books). I also have a review for this book, and you can see it here [http://mywordsarearrows.blogspot.com.au/2013/12/beastly-book-review.html.] This is a story about a boy who thinks looks are everything, and learns the hard way that they are not. I wasn't blown away with this book for several reasons you can see in my review, but overall it was a good story and a great idea. I also give this one 3/5 stars.

After Beastly, I picked up another book I managed to grab from my library, The Declaration (review for it here: [http://mywordsarearrows.blogspot.com.au/2014/01/the-declaration-book-review.html]). This book was probably my Christmas book for the year, as it was fantastic. It's a dystopian novel about a girl in a world where adults live forever and youth is illegal. Not only was it fantastic in terms of writing and plot, I was in awe of the subtle love story behind it, the innocence of two fourteen year olds finding comfort in each other. The author, Gemma Malley, now follows me on twitter, and I may or may not have squealed. I highly recommend it. 5/5 stars.

This book I grabbed from K-Mart because it was on special and it looked like a book I read a while ago that was fantastic. It's called Here Lies Bridget, and it's about a girl called Bridget Duke, rich girl, queen of the school, and notorious mean girl. The book follows her journey and her realisation that she's made huge mistakes. I liked this book, and it was a quick, nice read that has good morals behind it. I recommended it a while ago here- [http://mywordsarearrows.blogspot.com.au/2014/01/book-recommendation-2.html]. I give it 4/5 stars.

There's a store I found that has second-hand books, and quite cheap, as well. So you can imagine that I had a field day sifting through the books and buying just a few… maybe more. One of these books was Betrothed, and it's about a girl who's always been different. She has many severe allergies and her ears are slightly pointed. Not to mention the fact she's adopted. She finds out she's a faery, and that she's betrothed to a handsome faery prince. I didn't like this book at all, but it was so cheesy and soppy that I found it hilarious, so it gets 1/5 stars for being entertaining.

The next books I read were a series, from the same book store as above, with four books, called Beautiful Dead series, by Eden Maguire. I did enjoy these books, because they were fun to read, however, some times plot convenience was just a little too unbelievable, and they weren't exactly intellectually stimulating. It's about a girl called Darina, and at her school, four kids have died over the last year, the fourth being her boyfriend, Phoenix. In a desperate and heartbroken attempt to find him again, she starts seeing visions of him. But are they just visions? She gets caught up in the world of the Beautiful Dead, and has to solve the mysteries surrounding their deaths. The four books are called Jonas, Arizona, Summer and Phoenix, after the dead kids, and in that order. I give the series 3/5 stars.

After Christmas, I spent Boxing Day reading the rest of the series after The Declaration, which I got as a present (yay!). The next book is called The Resistance, and although I still loved the series, this book was probably my least favourite. Peter was being mean and annoying, and nothing was going right. Maybe it's just me and my inability to accept any sort of change. The next book after that is called The Legacy, and although it was better than The Resistance, the first book will always be my favourite. I give the series as a whole 5/5 stars, still.

Next, I read a book my sister bought for me, called Just Like Fate. This book is about a girl called Caroline who has to make a huge decision, one that will affect the whole of her life from then on. The book follows the storyline of both outcomes, and I did like it, because it was different and fun, even if at some points it got a little slow. I give it 3/5 stars.

My sister also bought me a book called Seventeen and Gone, by Nova Ren Suma, who wrote Imaginary Girls. It's about a girl who starts to see other girls who've gone missing, seventeen year olds just like herself. I didn't really like this book; it was a struggle to get through and it really didn't grab me. I think for me, the characters were too distant and there was nothing that helped me invest myself in the story, even though it was a good idea. I don't think that Nova Ren Suma's distant writing style grabs me unless I'm invested in the characters, and in this book, I just couldn't. I give it 2/5 stars.

Next, I read another one of my holiday favourites, Angelfall by Susan Ee. This book follows a girl in a post-apocalypse world where angels rule. It's dark and interesting and awesome. I seriously recommend it because I really, really loved it. I recommended it a while ago, you can see it here- [http://mywordsarearrows.blogspot.com.au/2014/01/book-recommendation.html]. I give it 5/5 stars.

I continued my Angelfall streak when I ran out to the nearest bookstore the next day to grab World After, the next book. I loved this book just as much as the first one, and I won't spoil it, but the ideas in it are genius and particularly one of the locations. I also give this one 5/5 stars.

Ah, Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater. It took me a while to get into this book, but once I did, I tore through it. And as I say in my review (here- [http://mywordsarearrows.blogspot.com.au/2014/02/the-raven-boys-review.html]), I felt like I was on a boat. The story follows a girl, who's a psychic's daughter, with a strange and dangerous prediction hanging over her head, and a rich boy, with everything he wants and a strange obsession with the supernatural. Their worlds collide, and they discover that things are much, much darker than they originally thought. I give this book a 4/5 star rating.

Next came Sea of Monsters, the second book in the Percy Jackson series. I read The Lightning Thief, the first book, just over a year ago, and I didn't really like it. But my friend made me continue the series, and I made a promise, so I shall fulfil it, and continue the series. I liked SOM a lot more than the first one, but it still isn't totally engulfing me. I will continue reading, and if you want, I can publish shorter reviews of all the books as a side-thing, Lily's Journey Through The Percy Jackson Series. I rate this book 3/5 stars.

It was a mistake to give me Christmas money, because after the next shopping day I went on, I came home with four books. Yep, four. The first of these that I read was These Broken Stars, which was recommended to me, and also the cover is beautiful, so I bought it, not expecting much. But I actually really liked it! It's about a girl, the richest in the galaxy, and a boy, a war hero, following a rags-to-riches story. They unexpectedly get thrown together, and have to survive, alone, on an abandoned planet. My recommendation for it is here- [http://mywordsarearrows.blogspot.com.au/2014/02/book-recommendation-4.html]. I rate it 4/5 stars.

Another book I managed to grab was Pawn, by Aimee Carter, and although it was a good idea, I didn't love it as much as the previous book I read. It's set in a dystopian world where everyone is ranked based on usefulness on a scale of one to seven. When Kitty is offered to change her three for a seven, a rank that can only be inherited, she jumps at the chance, sacrificing many things and starting up something she would never have guessed. I rate this one 2/5.

My twentieth book was The Hunt, by Andrew Fukuda, which I have a review coming up for. I really liked The Hunt, because it was different, the characters are different and it was spectacularly written. It's about a world where vampires are the general population, and they have almost sent humans, or hepers, into extinction. Little do they know that Gene, seventeen, normal human boy, is living among them, right under their noses. In an unexpected change of events, Gene is thrown away from his home, and people start to suspect him… I rate this book 4/5 stars, and I suggest you go and read it so that you can tune into the discussion on my review soon!

So that's my twenty books, and now I'm moving on to read The Dream Thieves, by Maggie Stiefvater, the second book after The Raven Boys. Hopefully I can be putting up a review soon! I'm also going to try and get my hands on a copy of The Prey, the book after The Hunt. And then I have even more books that I have ordered so there is going to be lots more reviews and recommendations soon!

As always, leave comment and your twitter name and you'll get a shout out and a follow from me :) Have a lovely day!

love,
lily xox