Ricky Pine's Blog, page 140

Review: Need

Need by Joelle Charbonneau
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I'm surprised to see how little love Joelle Charbonneau's been getting on Goodreads. Ever since I can remember, I've seen buttloads of bad reviews for The Testing and its sequels, but I loved how evil those books were, and how they expertly Hunger-Gamed standardized tests and college admissions. This book is a different kind of evil, a modern-day Twilight Zone story about a diabolical new social network, invitation-only, rolling out to stud...

Review: Johannes Cabal: The Fear Institute

Johannes Cabal: The Fear Institute by Jonathan L. Howard
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The third adventure of old Johannes Cabal is, once again, Something Completely Different. The titular place enlists Cabal's help on an expedition into the land where Lovecraft's famous Eldritch Abomination creations reside - according to legend, anyway. Howard warns us from the outset that this book is going to be nightmarish, so we shouldn't laugh at it at all...and yet, that's exactly the reaction I have for...

Arrow's Most Diabolical Cliffhanger Yet

***SPOILER ALERT***

"Come, they told me, pa-rum-pum-pum-pum
A newborn king to see, pa-rum-pum-pum-pum..."
- "The Little Drummer Boy"

*sigh* Well, my loyal Pinecones, I'll just let Stephen Amell speak for me re: the above song.

Don't think I'll be listening to Little Drummer Boy anytime soon. #Arrow— Stephen Amell (@amellywood) December 10, 2015

Yeah, after they used it as the soundtrack to Felicity getting shot last night, I'm gonna change the station every time I hear this song. Even the excellen...

Review: The Iron Warrior

The Iron Warrior by Julie Kagawa
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

It took a long time for Kagawa to finish this series, and good thing too - she clearly took that long time, that extra time, to make sure it ended right. Ethan and Kenzie have already proven themselves worthy successors to Meghan and Puck and even Ash, and this book only cements that awesomeness of theirs. The whole time, the stakes are unbelievably high, as there's still that one tiny hope that Keirran can be redeemed in spite of the...

Review: The Elfstones of Shannara

The Elfstones of Shannara by Terry Brooks
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

So it's this book that the upcoming Shannara Chronicles MTV series is based on...cool. Coolcoolcool. I say that's better than them going for adapting Book 1, which, while still good, feels a little too Tolkien for a TV series. This book felt a little more personal, a little closer to its protagonist, and a little more adventurous too. Oh, but that ending, though...I'm dreading the day the TV series adapts that part. :(

Since t...

Review: Prince of Fools

Prince of Fools by Mark Lawrence
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

While reading the Broken Empire Trilogy before this spin-off goes recommended, it's not entirely necessary, because this book is largely standalone. And good thing, too, because it's pretty different in tone than Lawrence's earlier post-apocalyptic fantasies. Jalan is far more likable than Jorg Ancrath, largely because of his somewhat Tyrion-esque personality. And the unique circumstances in which he finds himself, along with an even...

Review: Through the Dark

Through the Dark by Alexandra Bracken
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

My ratings by story:

* "In Time" - 3/5. It's nice to get a different side of the Darkest Minds world, but did it have to be narrated by such an unlikable dude?

* "Sparks Rise" - 4/5. Here's some crazy action, and quite a few feels.

* "Beyond The Night" - 5/5. Even after our heroes won the war, this glimpse of America in recovery shows that the process isn't quite done yet, so the series still doesn't have a real fairytale ending.

V...

Review: Ice Like Fire

Ice Like Fire by Sara Raasch
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The sequel to Snow Like Ashes is pretty different in one key way from its predecessor - it's less about war and more about diplomacy, about trying to unify the kingdoms of Primoria. Of course, this "peace in our time" can't last very long, and boy howdy, after page 400 or so, war is back in a very, VERY big way. Along the way, though, we're treated to a nice little tour of some of the other kingdoms that weren't featured too much in Book...

Review: The Game of Lives

The Game of Lives by James Dashner
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

As expected, the general of the Dashner Army concludes this series in style. Lingering questions about Kaine, the Tangents, and the Mortality Doctrine are answered - usually in the form of wild and crazy plot twists, natch. The ultimate endgame of this series has some of the more shocking results of any of this year's best YA releases - including the unexpected, and quite unwanted, death of a major character, one who has a little so...

Review: Winter

Winter by Marissa Meyer
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I'm not happy that I didn't get to read this book before the Goodreads Choice Awards were done - because had I gotten that chance, I would've voted for Winter for sure. It's overtaken Library Of Souls, The Fate Of Ten, Final Strike, and The Rose Society as my favorite book of 2015, an honor only the long-delayed, promising-to-change-the-game Bone Labyrinth stands a chance of taking away now.

Marissa Meyer's latest is 800 pages of perfection. It...