The Devil You Know by Trish Doller Review

Started: August 29, 2016 | Ended: September 3, 2016

"Better the devil you know than the devil you don't."

-Noah

Title: The Devil You Know

Author: Trish Doller

Genre: Young Adult, Thriller, Contemporary

Length: 246 pages

Rating: ♥ ♥ 2/5

Goodreads Summary: Eighteen-year-old Arcadia wants adventure. Living in a tiny Florida town with her dad and four-year-old brother, Cadie spends most of her time working, going to school, and taking care of her family. So when she meets two handsome cousins at a campfire party, she finally has a chance for fun. They invite her and friend to join them on a road trip, and it's just the risk she's been craving-the opportunity to escape. But what starts out as a fun, sexy journey quickly becomes dangerous when she discovers that one of them is not at all who he claims to be. One of them has deadly intentions. 

A road trip fling turns terrifying in this contemporary story that will keep readers on the edge of their seats.

Review: Okay, this story was slow. You guys don't know this, but I am not the kind of reader that will force myself to finish a book I'm not interested in and sadly this was one of them. It might have been that it got better, but I was 3/4th through the book and frankly, I was bored. It wasn't thrilling and I wasn't on the edge of my seat. It was just kind of boring.... The main character wasn't that interesting and nothing was happening. I understand if a book as a little bit of a slow start, but over half the book? I don't know, it just wasn't my cup of tea. 

I do; however, encourage you guys to give it a go if the summary hits your interest. Do not take my word too strongly. For me, it just wasn't a capturing read. I just personally couldn't get into the characters or the story line, but that's just me. I hope you are all doing well. If you've read this book or if you do, I would love to know whether you like it or not. I'll see you all later and as always, happy reading. 

A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness Review

Started: August 16, 2016  | Ended: August 29, 2016

"You will tell me a fourth and it will be the truth."
-The Monster

Title: A Monster Calls
Author: Patrick Ness
Genre: Young Adult, Horror, Fantasy
Length: 216 pages
Rating: ♥♥♥♥ 4.5/5
Goodreads Summary: The monster showed up after midnight. As they do.

But it isn’t the monster Conor’s been expecting. He’s been expecting the one from his nightmare, the one he’s had nearly every night since his mother started her treatments, the one with the darkness and the wind and the screaming…

This monster is something different, though. Something ancient, something wild. And it wants the most dangerous thing of all from Conor.

It wants the truth.

Review: This story captured grief and death in the best way imaginable. For someone who has personally lost someone they were extremely close to, this story hit home within be more than I could have ever imagined. The connection with how the character was feeling brought back the memories of how I felt at the time. As if no one would truly know what I was going through. The way this story is written was a little hard for me to get into. It took me longer than I thought it would to actually get through this short story. The graphics with in the book made the book much more creative. I think anyone who has lost someone should read this particular book. 

Mr. Ness has captured what most people can't actually put into words. I feel as though I have lost something now that I am finished. As if there is a piece of me missing within it's pages. I would recommend this book twenty times over if I could. Overall, it was an incredible journey and I'm glad I grabbed this book from the shelves.

Where it All Started

It has been a super busy week for me and I apologize that your Friday update is coming on a Sunday, but here it is. I wasn't really sure what to talk about this week. I thought maybe I would talk about where this love of reading came from.

When I was little my mother used to read to my brother and I before bed every night. She read things like, The Christmas Shoes, The Children of the Red King Series, and she even started Harry Potter. Even with books in my childhood, I hated reading. I was terrible at it. I mixed up letter constantly and it took me the longest time just to read regular, everyday words.

For some reason me brain knew the word, but I just couldn't seem to say it out loud. All of this just burned a fire of hatred for books. I didn't understand why everyone loved them. However, through all of this, I still did read a little. During the summer our local pizza parlor did this reading challenge for kids. It was if you read so many books you got this small free pizza. Naturally I wanted the pizza so I swallowed my hatred for reading and just kept at it.

In my middle school years I didn't read at all unless it was something I had to, like a textbook or something. Yet, when my Freshman year of high school finally rolled around, I met one of my friends that loved reading. She talking about it all the time and I thought maybe I would give it another go. Still as a Freshman it was a little hard for me to get into it.

It was difficult to focus on a line of text. My eyes were constantly jumping around the page and never really reading the words. Then Sophomore year came around and I met one of the girls I call my best friend. She told me if I wanted to get back into reading, which I was never into, that I should read Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher.

It really seems like the rest is history. After that book I was hooked, I read every single day. It's like my eyes had been cleared to this mystery. Still to this day I have trouble with reading, especially out loud. I have gotten better, but it's still hard sometimes. I don't think I will ever give it up though. It's weird now to think I hated it.

That's a little bit about me. What got you guys into reading? Did you hate it at first? I would love to know your stories. I hope you all have a wonderful Sunday and as always, happy reading.