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Review: City of Bones

City of Bones (Mortal Instruments, book1) by Cassandra Clare

I give this book a 4.

LikeIt

A book about the existence and intermingling of angles with human beings, why wouldn’t I like this?

This is the Nephilim genre at its YA best, as its heroine Clary encounters the world of Shadowhunters for the first time. Clary isn’t a social outcast just waiting for some adventure to enter her life. She’s a normal teen with normal issues, but soon learns that she’s so much more. A chance encounter at a nightclub opens her up to a whole other world that exists in the shadows.

After Clary’s chance encounter, all she wants to do is go home and forget what she saw and hopes that “they” forget seeing her. But that would be too easy. Chance encounters or not, the world of the Shadowhunters was destined to come knocking at her door, and her mother knew this all alone. The problem now is that her mother is missing and she has to depend on strangers to help her find answers.

I really liked this book. I must admit that I allowed myself to be too hyped before reading it and was thus left a little disappointed. I wanted more, but I guess that’s why it’s a series. It’s no secret that I struggle with the YA genre. I have enough problems of my own that make it difficult for me to relate to the struggles of the ever changing, growing, and maturing mind of teenagers, but this book was good.

I adored the lore of this story and the way it plays into the actions of the characters. I liked the mixture of mysticism and magic. There were times, however, when I felt there was too much going on. There were too many creatures and beings to keep up with, but I guess it all worked for the story in the end.  This a definitely a good read for teens, but even adults with a passion for fantasy will enjoy this one.

*I was hoping for a little more spirituality to be infused with a story of this nature, but it is what it is.

This review has been posted to GoodReads.

If you’d like to obtain a copy of this book, try this link.

Thank you for taking the time to read this post. If you like it let me know and share it with others. See you next time, Toi Thomas. #thetoiboxofwords

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Review: Childhood’s End

Childhood’s End by Author C. Clarke

I give this book a 5.

LoveIt

This is a wonderful book I wish I’d read sooner. Everything I’ve always known and loved about alien invasion plots seems to have been influenced by this book in one way or another.

The book starts out by describing the harmless but startling invasion of the Overlords. Within very little time, the soft-spoken, and at that point, never seen Overlords have rid the world of war and violence and made it subtly clear that they plan to stick around for a very long while. Of course, people being people constantly wonder and question the motives of the Overlords, but since no lives are being taken, peace abounds around the land.

Generations go by before the Overlords present themselves to the public, for good reasons that are clearly explained in the book. After that, the earth begins to reach its almost utopian pinnacle.  The one and only thing that really seems to be lacking in this new perfect world is the desire and or opportunity to explore new things. So of course, there is one man who decides to tackle this deficiency, with unexpected results.

More and more generations come and go until such a time that man has begun to evolve. Finally, the Overlords are ready to reveal their true purpose, but by that time, it doesn’t really matter anymore. There’s something more in store for the fate of the earth.

Wow, is the first thing that comes to mind each and every time I think of this book. The most riveting notion throughout this book is the sense of the unknown. Every time one thing is explained and all is well, there’s something else to keep you guessing. The story comes to a very clear and compelling end, but even then you are left wondering, and not because the author didn’t feel like filling the reader in. There are some things in this world that we just cannot understand. We can either accept them and move on with our lives, or we can let our desire to know destroy us.

While children and even some teens may not understand all the themes and scope of this story, I would recommend it to anyone. Sci-fi fans are sure to love this story, but anyone who’s ever been plagued by wanting to know more will appreciate this book.

This review has been posted to GoodReads.

If you’d like to obtain a copy of this book, try this link.

Thank you for taking the time to read this post. If you like it let me know and share it with others. See you next time, Toi Thomas. #thetoiboxofwords

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Review: Brave New World

Brave New World by Aldous Huxley

I give this book a strong 3.

Okay

This is a compelling story that seems to have not only to be written as a warning for the future, but also to just make you a little angry at human intellect. Set in a future of “perfection”, Bernard doesn’t feel as happy he’s told he should. He decides to visit a “savage” reservation to gain perspective only to find that he isn’t the “rebellious lone wolf” he thinks he is. In the end, Bernard is the product of the world he lives in, but he still manages to cause a ruckus in the lives of others before realizing this.

This book shows what a wonderfully peaceful existence life could be through control, conformity, segregation, a lax moral code, and drug-induced feelings of happiness. I found this book to be very sad, but shockingly real. This is the story of what could happen to the world, but I hope it doesn’t.  Not that teens would be interested in this book, but I’d recommend it to them (with their parent’s permission). This is a book that plucks a lot of nerves and may not be for everyone, but is definitely worth reading. I see this book going over well with male readers.

This review has been posted to GoodReads.

If you’d like to obtain a copy of this book, try this link.

Thank you for taking the time to read this post. If you like it let me know and share it with others. See you next time, Toi Thomas. #thetoiboxofwords