One of the most amazing books I've ever read. The story follows the life of a young boy who grew up as a wealthy child in Afghanistan, who then flees...moreOne of the most amazing books I've ever read. The story follows the life of a young boy who grew up as a wealthy child in Afghanistan, who then flees to the United States where he and his father had to begin life all over again, and then returns to the war-torn nation to seek redemption for a grave mistake he made in his childhood. The book gave me a better understanding of a culture I honestly knew little of to begin with, but it also has many universal themes that anyone can relate to. These themes include the battle between right and wrong, the extremes children will go to to earn their parent's love or even respect, the everlasting effect that one mistake can have on your life. It's a wonderful and heart-wrenching story that everyone should read.(less)
This is definitely a quick read despite being over 700 pages long. The story keeps your interest, but that has a lot to do with the way Dan Brown spli...moreThis is definitely a quick read despite being over 700 pages long. The story keeps your interest, but that has a lot to do with the way Dan Brown splits up his chapters and intertwines different story lines, but also Brown always seems to hit on topics that I love (in this case presidential elections and NASA/ space exploration), which always keeps my intrigue up. However, there just seems to be something missing from this book. It didn't inspire the same awe in me that Angels and Demons and the DaVinci Code did. On it's own, the book is really good, but if you've read Dan Brown before it's just not the same quality you would expect.(less)
This is my favorite book EVER. I'm Agatha Christie fanatic, but this book is completely unlike anything else I've read by her. It's difficult to say m...moreThis is my favorite book EVER. I'm Agatha Christie fanatic, but this book is completely unlike anything else I've read by her. It's difficult to say much about it without giving too much away, so I'll just say if you like romances and mysteries you MUST read this book. You'll thank me, I promise!(less)
I love this book. As a little girl I wanted to be just like Anne, with her big heart and vast imagination. The young orphan who mistakenly ends up wit...moreI love this book. As a little girl I wanted to be just like Anne, with her big heart and vast imagination. The young orphan who mistakenly ends up with the Cuthbert family is a wonderful role model for young women (she studied hard and fought her way to the top of her class nearly a century before Hermione Granger made that acceptable).(less)
Worst ending to a trilogy ever. I loved the first two books, and even the first half of this one. However, halfway through the book it feels as though...moreWorst ending to a trilogy ever. I loved the first two books, and even the first half of this one. However, halfway through the book it feels as though Suzanne Collins gave up and just tried to finish the series as soon as possible. The ending is rushed, characters die for no real apparent reason except a poor attempt to create drama, and you just lose any emotional connection you had with the characters.(less)
This book did not keep my attention as much as I had hoped. I spent the first 400 pages or so unsure of whether or not I actually liked the main chara...moreThis book did not keep my attention as much as I had hoped. I spent the first 400 pages or so unsure of whether or not I actually liked the main characters. Nicholas Easter seems like a nice enough guy at first, but when you get a vague idea of what's going on his likability diminishes significantly because you know he's lying to and using everyone around him. But worst of all, you don't really know why until the very end of the book, so you stay lost and confused as to what his motives are almost the whole time. While the book was really interesting, the promised suspense didn't come until the last 80 pages or so. What I found most annoying was that a lot of the ends weren't tied up at the end of the story. You get a vague idea of some of the events that happened and what the purpose was, but no where near as many details as I wanted. This is one of the rare occasions when I can say that the movie is MUCH better than the book.(less)
I wanted to like this book, really I did. The story is great, no argument there. I think because I knew most of the story ahead of time (thanks to see...moreI wanted to like this book, really I did. The story is great, no argument there. I think because I knew most of the story ahead of time (thanks to seeing it as a middle and high school play) mixed with Tolkein's slow paced writing in which he feels the need to describe every single solitary detail, made the book almost painful to read.(less)