Review: All Fall Down by Ally Carter

This book is the first in a, so far, promising series. It is intriguing and has really made me think about so many different aspects of life, from friendship to family to safety. As with other books by Ally Carter, 'All Fall Down' focuses on a strong female character who has to overcome difficulties with the help of those around her. The storyline was action-packed and intense; I found myself being drawn in so deep that it was physically hard to stop reading. With lots of twists and turns along the way, this book paves the way to an amazing series.

***

Truthfully this book is more of a 4.5 star book than a 5 star one, the only reason for that being the continued confusion within the book. Of course, as this reflected Grace's own confusion, it was an important part of the novel, but at certain points the levels of confusion were so high that it clouded the story, making the book harder for me to enjoy as a reader. At the end, when it was revealed that it was Grace who killed her mother, the confusion began to make sense, yet in the main part of the novel, it was slightly overwhelming. However, I am not saying that Grace's panic attacks from her memories of her mother detracted from the storyline, as they were vital to the story, just the confusion about what was going on.

The first few sentences of this novel illustrate well how spectacular Carter is as an author. She manages to draw the reader in and makes them want to read the whole book with only a few words. Obviously, the location in which this book is set helps in that aspect as well and again, I must commend Carter on making me, as the reader, feel like I was on Embassy Row alongside Grace. It was wonderful to see such a rarely talked about aspect of life, embassies and inter-country relations, come alive within this book. Politics is also seldom discussed among teenagers and this is a great opening to that world.

The characters within this book were definitely all individuals and there was enough exploration into their lives within this novel for me to think that I knew enough about them to read about their lives. I liked the diversity of Grace's friendship group and how she was determined to stay talking to Alexei, despite the hostile situation between America and Russia there. This book is important as it shows such good relationships between characters and the overcoming of difficulties that being from very different nations may bring.

While Grace was tracking down the Scarred Man, I was completely on the edge of my seat. As this book as only from Grace's perspective, I had no opinion but hers to trust, meaning that her judgments on people were very much my judgments on people. So, learning that the Scarred Man was on her side was a complete surprise to me, and a very well written surprise as well. When the story came together at the end of the book, it made me learn that sometimes the narrator can't trust themselves, yet alone other people, and the discoveries about how Grace's mother died were very powerful and moving.

Overall, this was a great, intense read and I would recommend this book to people who have read Ally Carter's work in the past as well as people who have yet to discover her work. I will certainly be buying the next book in the series when it comes out.

(Goodreads parallel)

Bookish Comments

Instead of doing a full review for these books, I have decided instead to write a small comment about each as I feel I can't do a review justice. These books are all ones that I read while on holiday in Lanzarote; you can read a lot on holiday it seems!

The Winners Curse by Marie Rutkoski - 4 stars

A really interesting and different concept. Slow in parts, but really heats up towards the end with amazing characters, especially Kestrel for her refusal to comply to the normal.

The Winner's Crime by Marie Rutkoski - 5 stars

A great sequel with so many moments that made me want to scream in frustration at the characters, but an amazing development to the plot. It left me really needing the final book, but I have to wait another year. This book is where the series shows itself as an amazing one.

Second Chance Summer by Morgan Matson -4.5 stars

At first I thought that this would be a light summer read, but it actually had a much darker storyline entwined with some fluffy moments. This book did make me cry a little at the end and the themes of friendship and family truly made this book great.

The Edge of Nowhere by Elizabeth George - 3 stars

This book had the potential to be great with the ideas of supernatural powers that it contained, but they were just not carried out at high standards. Also, there seemed to be this obsession over makeup and glasses making people ugly and it is not a good image to be giving young girls who would be reading this book. It's a series I will not be continuing.

Grave Mercy by Robin LaFevers - 5 stars

A wonderful mix of fantasy and historical fiction with a lovely bit of romance thrown in. I was completely drawn into this story and loved the assassin element to it. I can't wait to continue with this series. 

Review: The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han

This book would be a great beach read, though I read it the day before I went on holiday and now it has got me in the mood for summer. There are a few darker aspects to this novel in theme, but mainly it is a fluffy read about first love and cringey moments that can happen when you are falling in love with someone. The interweaving of flashbacks with the main storyline help to explain the relationships between the characters better and gives a greater understanding of why Belly's summers are so important to her. There are a lot of potential male love interests, each of them likeable in their own way, but sometimes it can feel a bit unrealistic because of the amount of them. I would recommend this as a holiday/beach read as it can be read quickly and is what I would class as a 'summer' novel, especially to anyone in their early teens as I feel it would appeal to that age range the most.

***

I think the title of this book lets it down in a way. It makes it seem very superficial and although parts are, the book does go deeper than that. It touches upon divorce, drinking and terminal illness, all of which are serious issues. When I picked up this book I expected it to be very superficial because of the title. Whereas I thought I would be getting groups of girls in bikinis trying to get with as many guys as possible over the summer, I actually got someone who was struggling to fit in and was dealing with the changes that being a teenager brings. I got a character who I could like, which was the opposite of what the title led me to expect.

The flashbacks in this novel were often to quite cringe-worthy scenes, but they led me to be able to understand each individual character better and gave me an insight as to why they acted the way that they did in the present day. It was interesting for me to see how things had changed between Conrad, Jeremiah, Belly and Steven over the course of the summers and how easily they went from being a group to trying to go their own separate ways. They changed as they aged and it is good to be able to see that as a reader because it means that we can feel like we know more about them and connect to them more.

Out of the three love interests for Belly introduced in this novel, I have to say that Cam appealed to me the most, though that is my own personal preference. He was smart and kind to Belly throughout the novel, even when he started to realise that she had feelings for Conrad. I think that we could all do with a guy like Cam and as it seems that Belly has given up on him, I would happily fill that spot in his life.

I can understand why Conrad would draw the attention of Belly and many other girls. Being honest, most cannot resist the pull of someone on the edge, someone who you're never fully sure about and that is what Conrad represents in this book. Personally, I found him to be more than a bit rude in places. Still, throughout the novel it was hinted at that he had feelings for Belly and I could see her making him a better person.

Jeremiah is someone who I felt slightly sorry for in this novel. He was being kind and nice and supportive, but that seemed to get him nowhere with Belly. However, I feel that a friendship between those two characters could benefit them both and would be best for the continuing storyline, though I guess it won't be done, as a friendship can be just as or even more important than a romantic relationship. That is something that is so often undervalued in YA fiction. I just hope that by the end of the series they are still friends.

Belly's courage is something that I definitely admire about her. She eventually told Conrad what she was feeling with no frills or beating around the bush and that is a very hard and brave thing to do. Admitting that you like someone is never easy, and that was only made harder by the fact that she knew she was putting their friendship on the line. Also, she dealt with the news that Susannah's cancer had returned as well as she could have been expected to, but in really quite a mature way. She didn't give up on her as other people might have, instead planning on sticking it out with her. That is something that not a lot of people who have the choice to leave can manage, as demonstrated by Susannah's own husband.

Overall, this was an interesting and entertaining read that is great for summer. There were too many love interests for my liking, but the storyline was good and I will be reading the next book when I can get it.

(Goodreads parallel) 

Review: Blue Monday by Nicci French

As I am someone who doesn't often read adult crime novels, this is a great introduction to that genre as it doesn't get in too deep with piecing together the actual crime and has a lot of people in the story who you can relate to in different ways. Frieda has a classic case of wanting to help, but not always knowing the best thing to do and going on hunches more than she really should. Still, it is interesting to have a book written from the perspective of someone who really shouldn't get involved too deeply with the crime world, but manages to anyway. It is also good that she has the escape of not being involved, technically, with the case at hand. The combination of different perspectives within this book and the storyline itself were very engaging. I found myself caring about what happened to certain characters and wanting to find out what the outcome of all the events would be. There were some extra twists and turns in the plot that really made me enjoy this book. If you're new to crime fiction or if you are searching for a different side to crime fiction, then I would really recommend this book, and series, to you.

***

I have to admit that I have already read the third book in this series, 'Waiting for Wednesday', but as I read this book I tried to forget as much as I could about what I had learned from that book and entered this book as if I had never heard of Frieda Klein before.

One of the things that I really liked about this book was the insight I got into Frieda's mind and life. Her line of work is one that I do not know much about and have not heard much about, so I am naturally interested in it, especially as it is something so powerful. She has the power to help or hurt people by the role that she plays in their lives and has experienced so many different things through her work. All that combined means that she is very easy to follow as a main character and she is also quite likable because you feel like she could help you or be your friend if she were real.

The storyline that this book follows is one that can easily strike fear into lots of people. Nowadays parents have become overprotective of their children because they fear that the worst will happen if they are left alone for just a second and in their minds this book could reinforce that fear they have and make their actions seem justified. As a reader, from the start of the novel we could tell that these two cases were connected, but it was very cleverly put at the start of the novel as it meant that when the final twist at the end told us that Terry was in fact Joanna, everything from the beginning of the novel began to make sense. I suppose that this story also draws in on the pain it can cause families if they are unable to have children and demonstrates the lengths that people will go to to get what they want. It can become quite scary if we think about it for too long, but that is why I'm thankful that this book is a work of fiction.

Even though I only live a couple of hours away from London, it is a place I rarely visit and that is why I enjoyed reading about the different parts of London in this book. As Frieda tended to walk when she could, it also meant that we got to see more of the city and we got to see the city in more detail as it wasn't just described as a blur passing by through a window. Novels that are linked to a specific place can often hold more meaning as it is something for the reader to be able to relate to and I think that this was done particularly well in this novel. I can tell that knowledge like this stems from a personal interest by the writer(s) and seeing a writer put part of themselves into a novel makes it a lot more meaningful to readers.

If I had to give a reason for not giving this book five stars, it would have to be that at times I felt like there were too many characters for me to be able to keep track of and remember well. Each character was important to the plot in some way or another, but at times it felt like I was surrounded by a crowd rather than reading about individual characters.

Overall, this is a great opening book to the series as it creates likeable characters and has an interesting plot line that you aren't always sure about where it is leading. I look forward to reading the rest of the series.

(Goodreads parallel) 

Review: Dance of Shadows by Yelena Black

As a dancer myself, I was drawn to this book as not many , well barely any, books have dance as their focus. After finishing this book, I will say that I was impressed by the amount of dance in this book, such as the rehearsals and the steps, and how the power of dance was represented through the plot. This book deals well with the pressures that are put onto dancers for not just performing at their best, but also with keeping up with other aspects of their lives; it's something that I feel is often ignored. There is also an huge element of mystery in this book which kept me engaged throughout the novel. Added to that, the twist at the end meant that this was a really enjoyable read. I would recommend this to any dancers in particular as I feel that we're almost underrepresented in fiction, but also to anyone else who enjoys mystery with a splash of urban fantasy.

***

The reason for Vanessa wanting to join the Academy immediately got me interested in the story. Obviously, a missing sister is never a good thing, but it meant that I was instantly suspicious of everyone who would have known Margaret while she was at the Academy. That sudden suspiciousness allowed me to be alert throughout the whole novel and the constant reminders from Vanessa about why she was there in the first place throughout the novel were an important structural part as they meant that the whole novel linked well. In addition to that, Vanessa thinking that she saw her sister as various moments reminded me of the struggle that she was facing. Losing any family member is hard, but it is worse when they're not dead and you don't know what fate they've met.

Although it was not introduced until later in the novel, one of the best parts of this book to me was the introduction of the fantasy element. It was the perfect explanation for what had happened to the missing girls, as by the end point I was realising that what had happened to Margaret and the other girls would be hard to explain by any other means. It added another level to the novel beyond the initial mystery and as it was only told to the reader when the novel was already nearing its conclusion, it helped the levels of tension to rise and everything to come together. I really commend Black on how the end of this novel was done as it allowed an end that not only left me satisfied, but also wanting more.

In terms of romantic interests, I have to admit that I wasn't that impressed with Zep. The date that he and Vanessa went on at the start of the novel was sweet, but from then on it only seemed like they were dating because they were the two leads in the ballet. There was no spark and no passion. On the other hand, over the course of the novel, the idea of Justin as a romantic interest started to appeal to me. Yes, there was the slight issue of him stalking Vanessa, but once it was revealed that it was only to keep her safe, it made me respect Justin a lot more and start to realise who's interests he had in mind. I think I would be happy  if at the end of this series he and Vanessa ended up together.

Friendship was also a key theme in this novel. This book covered the issue of friends leaving for boyfriends/girlfriends well and also explored the pressures that dance can put on friendships. It is not easy being the best at dance and it is not easy doing not so well at dance. It puts strains on friendships and can be really harmful to them, but in this novel they managed to overcome that, which sets a really good example to all dancers. The only thing that I would pick up on as not liking about the friendship is that Elly disappeared at the end of the first week of term, yet the friends acted like they knew her completely. Maybe if more time had been left between them starting at the school and the disappearance then their total concern would have been more believable.

Overall, this book was a nice quick read with high levels of tension and an important insight into the struggles that dancers often face when trying to become the best that they can be. That added to the introduction of a fantasy element has meant that I will definitely be looking out for the next book in this series.

(Goodreads parallel)