Sister Wife by Shelley Hrdlitschka

Synopsis from Goodreads: In the isolated rural community of Unity, the people of The Movement live a simple life guided by a set of religious principles and laws that are unique to them. Polygamy is the norm, strict obedience is expected and it is customary for young girls to be assigned to much older husbands.
Celeste was born and raised in Unity, yet she struggles to fit in. Perhaps it's because of Taviana, the girl who has come to live with them and entertains Celeste with forbidden stories, or Jon, the young man she has clandestine meetings with, or maybe it's the influence of Craig, the outsider she meets on the beach. Whatever it is, she struggles to accept her ordained life. At fifteen she is repulsed at the thought of being assigned to an older man and becoming a sister wife, and she knows for certain she is not cut out to raise children. She wants something more for herself, yet feels powerless to change her destiny because rebelling would bring shame upon her family.
Celeste watches as Taviana leaves Unity, followed by Jon, and finally Craig, the boy who has taught her to think "outside the box." Although she is assigned to a caring man, his sixth wife, she is desperately unhappy. How will Celeste find her way out of Unity?
Torn from the headlines and inspired by current events, Sister Wife is a compelling portrait of a community where the laws of the outside world are ignored and where individuality is punished.

Review: This was a fairly good novel because I found the novel quite different and unique than other books I usually read. I enjoyed how the author illustrated different perspectives in the book, which made me have a fairly good understanding of polygamy. You could understand why people stay in the community of Unity from Nanette’s point of view, while having Celeste as the contrasting perspective, you would understand why staying in the community will have disadvantages. One thing I disliked about how the book kept altering perspectives was that since the book changed from first person narration from one character to another, I did not feel as emotionally connected with the characters. :/ As a result of that, it led to why I did not genuinely enjoy reading the novel as much. All in all, this was an fascinating novel that I would recommend to readers that are interested in learning more about plural marriages and/or religious polygamyà Quick read and different! Worth a shot J 

Rate: 3.8/5

Blackout by Jason Elam and Steve Yohn

Amazon.com Summary:
Some predicted the possibility, but no one expected this reality.Linebacker Riley Covington is still recovering from his father’s brutal murder when he is suddenly uprooted and shuffled off to Washington in a trade. As he gears up for training camp with a new team, he learns that the counterterrorism division has detected a new plot to detonate two electromagnetic pulse bombs over the United States. An attack like this could devastate the country, leaving people without power, communications, or transportation—with planes falling from the sky all around them. CTD scrambles to stop the attacks, but between interfering bureaucrats and a narrowing window of opportunity, it happens: The lights go out in New York City. No power. No cell phones. No way out. Amid the chaos, Riley joins his former Special Ops team to make sure the second bomb doesn’t get a chance to reach its destination.

Review:
These books can be hard to find, so I've been looking for this one for a while now. I've found this series fairly enjoyable, so I was anticipating reading this one. Blackout is the third book in the Riley Covington series (Monday Night Jihad is the first, Blown Coverage is the second).
I was really quite happy with the concept behind the novel. EMPs, and their destructive potential, are sorely underused and underutilised in thrillers past and present and so hearing how they were used here got me excited.
The authors tried to show two sides to an EMP attack in Blackout, that of the victims of the attack and that of the bigger picture (the geopolitics surrounding the attack, the race to stop the terrorists, etc.). The problem is, each side kinda deserves a book unto itself, with the former being perfect for a disaster/dystopian novel a la Revolution (the tv show) only right when the power goes out instead of 15 years later, and the latter being more like a Tom Clancy novel. As such, the plot does not delve QUITE as deep as it should into either. Which leads me to another issue...
Blackout is half action-thriller, half football novel (to be expected when the protagonist is a linebacker, and one of the authors (Jason Elam) a pro football player), and, unfortunately I am not a football fan. In other words, I didn't find the football related sections overly entertaining (although this is just a matter of personal opinion). One thing that IS hard to swallow is that someone can be a pro football player by day and a special-ops guy by night - I just find that more than a little unrealistic.
Also, Blackout wasn't as intense or fast-paced as it could have been, and it was lacking in action to some degree as well.
At times, it also seemed like Blackout was stealing from Joel Rosenberg's The Last Jihad series, thankfully though, it managed to get off that track.
All the other elements of the story were either good or passable, and the characters were quite well developed.
All in all, Blackout works as a fresh take on the concept of Islamic terrorism. A concept which, frankly, is starting to get a bit old. I would have liked to give it a higher rating than I am, but there's just not enough stuff in the book that's good enough, or distinctive enough to set it above the crowd and make it a great or even awesome book, instead of just a good one. In short, this book is very much middle-of-the-road in nature. Recommended for fans of terrorist/action thrillers (especially those post 9/11, Islam-related ones), Tom Clancy, football, or anyone waiting to read Joel Rosenberg's next book.
3.5/5 stars

The Elite by Kiera Cass

“You know that you’ve found something amazing, and you want to hold on to it forever; and every second after you have it, you fear the moment you might lose it.” 

WOW. The Elite is the second book of a dystopian trilogy which began last April in 2012. Let me just first remind you all, I LOVE DYSTOPIANS. However, it seems the only romantic dystopian plot possible goes like this:

First Novel: Girl is poor and helpless, but has the passion to change her world. Girl miraculously receives an opportunity to vent her passion. Girl leaves family and boyfriend. Girl gains attention of world. Girl meets new guy, whom she falls in love with. 

Second Novel: Girl continues to vent passion and change world. Girl is torn between the two guys she loves. Basically nothing hugely plot changing happens.

Third Novel: Revolution is completed. Girl successfully changes world for the better. Girl choses the guy she loves. 

Seriously, all romantic dystopians are like this. Just look at The Hunger Games and Divergent. This is not to say that they aren't good books... However, a different take on this over-used plot line would be nice. 

The Selection is the first book of this series and a novel I thoroughly enjoyed reading. However, I knew to lower my hopes for the second novel. I find that the second novel (or movie!) of a romantic trilogy seems to be the most disappointing, most often. There is nothing interesting going on between their relationships during the second novel, only hesitation and "teenage-angst" as the action all occurs in the final book.

Here's a short summary from goodreads:

Thirty-five girls came to the palace to compete in the Selection. All but six have been sent home. And only one will get to marry Prince Maxon and be crowned princess of Illea.

America (the main character) still isn’t sure where her heart lies. When she’s with Maxon, she’s swept up in their new and breathless romance, and can’t dream of being with anyone else. But whenever she sees Aspen standing guard around the palace, and is overcome with memories of the life they planned to share. With the group narrowed down to the Elite, the other girls are even more determined to win Maxon over—and time is running out for America to decide.

The Elite met my low expectations. Basically, America continues her angsty, insecure pondering on whether Maxon or Aspen should be her future husband. Furthermore (in my opinion), she actually does less for Illea than Katniss did for Panem and Tris did for the five factions. America has a good character, but she hasn't made any progress in saving Illea so far. This is the second book, which means all the action and important changes will have to be crammed into the third book. That's unbalanced plot distribution, which really hinders the success of the series. You're definitely going to be bored while reading this book. Unless you enjoy shallow, over-used dialogues like this one: (Summary only :P)

America: Oh Maxim, I love you. But wait, I think I like Aspen too. Wait for my decision!
Maxim: Oh American, I love you too. I'll wait... but if I have to wait too long, I'm choosing someone else.
America: (Still can't decide)
Maxim: *flirts with other girls*
America: Maxim! Come back to me. I'm going to choose you!
Maxim: Yay! I'm starting the marriage preparations!
(Few days later)
America: Wait, I actually still don't know.
*Repeat summary dialogue*

Okay I think you get the idea. Anyways, if you didn't get the message yet. I was REALLY disappointed after reading this book. To me, it was shallow, had an over-used plot, had characters with no depth and was just too predictable. Zero plot twists. 

The only redeeming quality I can speak of is Maxim. He just sounds like a good looking person. So if I were to fangirl from this book, I would be Team Maxim. 

Anyways. 

2/5 If you start the series, you could just skip this one. You're not missing out, I swear. 

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

 Oh jeez where do I start with this book? Well, if you must know, basically when you're done reading this book you'll probably be depressed for a couple days. Alright lets actually get started. 

This book is about a 16 year old girl named Hazel Lancaster, who is diagnosed with Stage 4 Thyroid Cancer when she was thirteen. She is able to live longer because of a experimental drug called Phalanxifor, which isn't real by the way. She narrates the story in a  quirky pessimism yet non-cliche way, which is very forgiving for a book that deals with cancer patients. Her parents force her to attend a cancer support group regularly which she obviously isn't impressed with, but when one of her friends in the support group brings along his friend, Augustus 'Gus' Waters in he immediately notices her and strikes up a friendship with her. They bond over reading Hazel's all time favorite book, An Imperial Affliction. Throughout the book, they fall in love with each and face difficult challenges involving their cancer situations and themselves. 

I DEFINITELY recommend this book to basically anyone, even a dog. 

5/5 

A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry

Set in 1975 India during “The Emergency” when the Prime Minister, Indira Gandhi, “ruled by decree”, A Fine Balance tells the stories of four people who, because of circumstances, end up living together in a small flat.

Dina Dalal, a woman left with no man to love. Maneck Kohlan, a rich guy who had grown up on a small mountain village near the Pakistan border. And of course, the uncle and nephew, Ishvar and Om Darji; members of a caste so low they were untouchable. 

The stories of the past of these characters create a depth of understanding in the reader and as their story unfolds, we feel emotionally invested in their future. One thinks they're about to read a one sided opinion on the times where Gandhi was PM, but that's almost just an event that helps set the scene. The characters and their uniquely woven stories and the way they intertwined is what really made this novel such a good book. I can see why it's on Oprah's list! This book is just straight up simple language. You don't see any thesaurus use in here, but that's what makes this book so good. The simplicity of the words, and the complex plot meshed together creates this beautiful story. The characters feel so real especially the uncle and nephew that when they're being annoying, I felt annoyed as well at their foolish behaviour! The plot is interesting as well, I kept on flipping the page to find out where everything was taking me. 

Ugh! I just can't put it into words how good this book is! Yes there are times when some events are stretched, or times where one wishes the author would go into more detail, but those are mediocre complaints because the story this book has to tell is just incredible. I cried at the end of it, if that's enough proof. 

5/5 definitely!

Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro

\Alright, where do I begin? Well, this was a tedious novel to begin with because the pace of the plot was rather slow…if you are the type of person to read a few chapters and put it aside because it bores you, then this will be the type of book that you will most definitely give up on during the beginning. Here, I will warn you, do not put it aside. The story will slowly entice you as it gets more fascinating while the plot slowly reveals itself. When I read up to PART 2 of the novel, I literally stayed up all night trying to finish the story. You know the feeling where you tell yourself when you will stop reading after the next chapter, but then it leaves you hanging and pondering even more so you must finish the following chapter…and then the next? Yeah, well that’s exactly how I felt when the story started piecing itself together. Kazuo Ishiguro is a rather talented author that wrote Never Let Me Go in first person narration, using Kathy as a character. This was an ingenious idea because there was almost no bias inflicted upon me since Kathy is a passive and calm narrator, allowing the readers opinion to show. As a result of how she is not opinionated, this also lets the readers step into her shoes and experience everything she had been or is still going through…which is very tough.

I must say I hated this book at the beginning, but as the story progressed and grew, my emotions grew with it, thus I felt strongly connected to the characters. This novel will teach the readers what is morally right or wrong and how being wilfully ignorant will have future consequences.

Here is the summary of the story: Kathy, who is thirty one years old, lived her past at a boarding school called Hailsham, which was secluded on the English countryside. This acted as a barrier to prevent every student, as people liked to call them, from entering into the real world and learning about what is happening out there. Kathy gets separated between her two childhood friends, Ruth and Tommy, as they all finally grow up, but when they all enter the outside world and somehow begin to renter into one another’s lives again, they can’t help but to look back upon the past. “And so, as her friendship with Ruth is rekindled, and as the feelings that long ago fueled her adolescent crush on Tommy begin to deepen into love, Kathy recalls their years at Hailsham.” –Goodreads. As the story unravels and the truth behind their past is told, it is hard to not feel any connection to the characters. That is my little blurb without trying to reveal too much of the story or to give away too much…but I must say, this book is filled with love, romance, friendship, and childhood, you would not want to miss. A rather fascinating read towards the end, which was totally worth waiting for. Enough said, here is the trailer:

By the way, Kazuo Ishiguro is also the author of The Remains of the Day if anyone is interested.

Code by Kathy Reichs

 Note: I did read this earlier in the year, but it's still worth posting a review of it here - especially if it convinces you guys to read it!

Amazon.com Summary:
The Virals are put to the ultimate test when they find a geocache containing an ornate puzzle box. Shelton decodes the cipher inside, only to find more tantalizing clues left by "The Gamemaster." A second, greater geocache is within reach--if the Virals are up to the challenge.
But the hunt takes a dark turn when Tory locates the other box--a fake bomb, along with a sinister proposal from The Gamemaster. Now, the real game has begun: another bomb is out there--a real one--and the clock is ticking.

Review:
For those who don’t know the series, Virals is about how 4 teens (Tory (the first-person protagonist), Hi, Shelton and Ben) get infected with a modified strain of parvovirus, which, instead of killing them, gives them canine-like abilities which they can essentially turn on and off at will. Code is the third book in the series. In a word, this book was AMAZING (think the word amazing only sung in falsetto). It had a crazy intensity to its suspense which the other books did not, and it got a bit away from the Nancy Drew-like feel of the previous two. About halfway through the book, the plot sinks its claws into you and will not let you put the darn book down until you finish it even though it’s past 2 AM already (I know this from experience). Not to say it lacks suspense before that point – there’s plenty throughout the book – it just takes that long for the tension to build to the point where the book is “unputdownable”. Some reviewers thought the antagonist was too “out there” or too much like a “comic book villain”. I did not find this to be the case at all – the antagonist very much resembles the villain from Déjà Vu as a character and I didn’t find that villain, or the one in Code, to be “cartoonish” in the least.
Unfortunately though, the book wasn’t perfect. My biggest problem was that comic relief, which was so perfectly used in the first two books, was lacking in this one. This was a little understandable due to the greater intensity of this books premise, but I still missed it. In addition, surprisingly little of the book is given over to the subplots that added a certain levity to the other books, and even when they do appear, they’ve grown surprisingly darker than they were. To give a couple examples, the Ben/Jason pseudo-love triangle/rivalry actually gets violent (they both have huge crushes on Tory but she is completely clueless and has essentially friend-zoned both of them), and a member of the Tripod (a group of female bullies at Tory’s school) now suspects Tory of being a witch. One thing that has NOT changed from the first two though is the sheer ditziness and naivete of Tory’s dad’s Southern belle of a girlfriend – Whitney. Her presence, while it is a painful annoyance to Tory, provides a good part of the comic relief that there is in Code.
Another thing that made the previous two books very distinctive is their use of twists. Code has its own twist as well, and it is one that one will never see coming, but it doesn’t make much of a difference in the way the book plays out, so that department is also a little lacking.
My final (small) issues with Code were the sheer simplicity of some of the puzzles the Gamemaster gave the Virals to solve (I figured a few out before the characters did) and a bit of a typo midway through where Tory turns off her canine abilities yet keeps using them somehow.
All in all though, I loved this book. It was intense, fast-paced and awesome. This series is highly recommended to all Maximum Ride fans (especially since these books don’t have half the issues with them that the Max Ride books did). I eagerly anticipated this book for half a year and did it ever deliver. It ends with just enough of a cliff-hanger that I simply CANNOT wait for the next book.
4.5/5 stars