If You Like Books

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If You Like Books review of Dark Places by Gillian Flynn.

What I liked: Using a non-sequential timeline and multiple points of view can sometimes seem like a gimmicky way of concealing the truth from the reader. In this case, it makes sense. Libby was a young child at the time of the events surrounding a murder. Often we only have a limited understanding of what really went on at that time, so the flashback chapters pair nicely with her present day investigations into what happened. It is not the case of an unreliable narrator purposely misleading the reader.

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If You Like Books review of Chimera by Mira Grant.

If you like: tapeworms* family * the lesser of two evils

What I liked: I really enjoyed the final step in the evolution of Sal. During the first book she was just learning who she really was and spent most of the story living in the fog of the lies she had been told...

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What I liked: The infinite possibilities of new loops is one of the most intriguing parts of this series. Having been separated for so long by the danger of Wights and Hollowgasts, the Peculiars have evolved into varied sects, rather than a cohesive group. The decades and centuries that separate the loops allow them to vary widely. This allows the story to jump through many time periods and climates without the need for tedious travel explanations. The threads that tie together the Peculiar universe are interesting enough to engross the reader in this story and many imagined adventures...

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If You Like Books review of Armada by Ernest Cline.

If you like: space wars * puzzles * Independence Day Zach Lightman finds himself at the very center of a strange conspiracy. Unearthing the lengthy conspiracy put together by his father has haunted Zach. We all fear finding out we are crazy, and when Zach sees the logic in what his father believed, he starts to question himself. At the outset, the idea of a story where video games have been preparing us for interplanetary war could be ridiculous and cheesy. Instead, the book is a great series of “hell yeah!” moments. We all want our nerdiness to have a payoff. For Zach, the games he has been playing, both for enjoyment and in small part because he believes it brings him closer to his father, make him into a powerful force.

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If You Like Books review of Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell.

If you like: nerding out * Freshmen * fanfic

There are so many things about the world of Fangirl that drew me in immediately. As an avid Harry Potter fan, occasional fanfic reader, and MuggleCast listener, I quickly found that Cath developed a tangible quality to me. It is so much easier to immerse yourself in a world than to deal with the realities of your own. The passion of imagining everything that takes place off the page in one of those worlds creates a jumping board for creativity that can be difficult to unlock otherwise. The solitary nerd who is comforted by her fandom and has anxiety about exploring her world and making new friends is a character that is familiar, but Cath’s notoriety as Magicath sets her apart. She may be afraid of the outside world, but she also has many reasons to stick with the one she knows....

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If You Like Books review of The Magician’s Land by Lev Grossman.

If you like: heists * Alice * ghosts of the past

The Magician’s Land is the final book of the Magicians Trilogy. By now, Quentin has found Fillory, ruled Fillory, and subsequently been kicked out of Fillory. He has continued to struggle to find his way, but all the worlds seem to continue without him. He knows that magic is his true home, but the actions of his past continue to haunt him. He tries to create a new future, first at Brakebills, and then out in the human world. In spite of this, he knows that his true home is a magical land, and he strives to find a way to get there.

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If You Like Books review of You're Never Weird on the Internet (Almost) by Felicia Day.

If you like: sarcasm * the internet * memoirs You're Never Weird on the Internet (Almost) is Felicia Day’s story. It includes gaming, acting, running a company, and dealing with the variety people you meet online. When you run the company you can execute your vision, but there are also all sorts of complications. When you are the director, the writer, the talent, and the back office it's a never ending stream of work in progress. Felicia has managed to learn from all of this and gives practical advice for building your own empire like she did.

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If You Like Books review of Alive by Scott Sigler.

If you like: strength * amnesia * trusting your instincts Alive is a dystopian tale where a group of twelve-year-olds wake up in bodies that are not their own. They are much more mature, and all perfect specimens. They wake up trapped in coffins, and in various mysterious rooms. They have no instructions and no supplies. They carefully choose a path, and try to figure out what has happened that led them into this situation. With each new room they discover, and what they find inside, the sense of unease grows. Something has clearly gone wrong, but there seems to be know way to find out just what it was.

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If You Like Books review of Five by Ursula Archer.

If you like: murder * geocaching * determination In Five, Beatrice is a detective investigating a strange murder, when she discovers a mysterious set of clues. Little by little, she begins to understand the meaning behind the small details that were left behind. The more she learns, the more she becomes entrenched in the case. Beatrice is a  woman driven by her past, her instincts, and her pride. She cannot let the case go, or any detail escape her. By entirely enveloping herself in the path the murderer has lead her down, she comes ever closer to solving the crime and endangering herself

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If You Like Books review of The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins.

If you like: an unreliable narrator * multiple POV * dreams The Girl on the Train is the story of Rachel and her observations from the train. Each day Rachel travels by her old home and catches glimpses of the life her ex-husband, his new wife, and baby. She also observes the lives of another couple, who live in her favorite house just down the street. She lets the whims of her imagination comfort her, imagining the perfect life of the couple. Her illusion is shattered when Megan goes missing, and Rachel realizes she is a witness and a part of Megan’s disappearance. Rachel is an alcoholic, which makes it difficult for the police to trust her word. Her obsession with her ex, and her own blackouts leave her wondering just how much she knows.

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If You Like Books review of Paper Towns by John Green.

If you like: road trips * the Cool Girl * cryptic messages In Paper Towns, Quentin spends an adventure filled evening with Margo, his next-door neighbor and unrequited love, the night before she disappears. This is not the first time she has disappeared, but Quentin worries that something has changed this time. He tears apart her life and possessions for clues about why she left and where she may have gone. She has left ambiguous clues for her family before, but Quentin knows this time is significant because she left the clues for him. Along with his best friends, he devotes the last weeks of his senior year to finding Margo, and trying to understand who she really is.

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If You Like Books review of The Long Utopia by Terry Pratchett and Stephen Baxter.

If you like: Furballs * imagination * first contact The Long Utopia continues to explore the expanding world of The Long Earth and all that it entails. The culture of the world has changed dramatically over the years that the Long Earth has been fully realized. As much as people know about the Long Earth, there are always new things to be revealed and discovered. The more people explore, the more the secrets are stumbled upon. The curators of the Long Earth continue to emerge and work together and find each other, no matter how many worlds apart they are.

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If You Like Books review of Dark Rooms by Lili Anolik.

If you like: bail bondsmen * private schools * dreams Dark Rooms is the story of Grace and her sister Nica. After Nica is found dead in the graveyard between the house where they live and the private school they attend, Grace lives surrounded by her ghost. Nica was the favorite subject of their mother’s photography, and so her watchful eyes remain around the house pleading at the family from beyond the grave. The devastation of having Nica die just as she was going to leave her behind when she attended college has jostled Grace, and her careful life unravels in the aftermath. Both of her parents are also disrupted, each hiding from reality in their own way.

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If You Like Books review of Tomorrow and Tomorrow by Thomas Sweterlitsch.

If you like:  holding on to the past * uncovering the truth * Stay Tomorrow and Tomorrow is the story of a future that is disturbed by a disaster in Pittsburgh and the reality of living with the fallout from it. Dominic works for a research company that searches the cache of digital archives throughout the recent history of Pittsburgh and tries to solve any insurance related queries, specifically looking into whether a death was accidental or a murder. He mourns the loss of his wife and often visits her and relives memories of their life together. Haunted by her memories, Dominic seeks solace in drugs and eventually becomes overwhelmed by his life and the cases that he works on. Dominic is then approached by mysterious new doctor and benefactor, who push him headfirst into a world he never expected.

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If You Like Books review of The Black by Paul E. Cooley.

If you like: the mysteries of the deep * isolation * "The X Files" Ice             The Black tells the story of a drill team that finds a cache of oil deep underwater that seems too good to be true, and is. At first they cannot fathom how such pristine oil exists in nature. As they run more tests they discover that it is anything but perfect. Unfortunately, they realize this too late and soon it becomes a matter of life and death for the crew of the Leaguer. With an unbelievable creature hunting them through the ship, they must desperately cling to whatever salvation they find, however bleak.

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If You Like Books review of Last Night in Montreal by Emily St. John Mandel.

If you like: leaving * memory * driving In Last Night in Montreal, Lilia has spent most of her life leaving. As a child, she was abducted in the night from her mother’s home by her father, and has been on the run ever since. Lilia and her father could never stay in one place for long for fear of being caught, and Lilia did not want to be returned to her mother. As time went on, Lilia she did not know how to live life in one place and was always on the verge of leaving. After leaving her boyfriend Eli in New York, she finally returns to Montreal. There her past and her present come crashing together, clarifying the events of her life for her and those in her wake.

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If you like: dystopias * family drama * female protagonists For Darkness Shows the Stars is the story of Elliot, a Luddite, and her efforts to manage the family estate in a dystopian future. Her father and sister prefer the benefits of owning an estate to the day-to-day activities of managing it, and much of the labor falls on Elliot.  She works alongside the Reduced, those who were mentally stunted by the scientific tinkering and war of generations past and are now the wards of the Luddites, and Posts, the offspring of Reduced who have the mental capacity and skills of the Luddites. The spurning of technology and hasty retreat underground protect the Luddites for the tragedy that befell the Reduced, and now they continue to be wary of all changes in technology and other feats of science. The Posts realize that any difficulties can be overcome with time, and struggle to find a place for themselves in the new world that is emerging.