It’s hard for me to believe that I started this series a little over a year ago.The Remnant is the 10th book in the series. It picks up right where DeIt’s hard for me to believe that I started this series a little over a year ago.The Remnant is the 10th book in the series. It picks up right where Desecration left off- with everyone’s favorite Antichrist getting ready to bomb TF out of the believers at Petra.
Acting like a child on Christmas morning, Antichrist is estatic about the slaughters of millions of believers. He launches his most aggressive attack finishing it off with a missile that is promised to wipe Petra off the map for good… but the believers at Petra have God on their side and are not harmed. The flames that engulf their bodies cause them no pain at all.
Antichrist and his collegues cover it up in the media stating that the missile missed its target. But Buck Williams is still publishing his online magazine- The Truth- and makes sure the masses know what really happened.
Meanwhile we have some members of the Trib Force off on secret recue missions. We have some falling in love. We have some in such dire need of help it makes your stomach knot up in anticipation. The safe house in Chicago becomes compromised and our Trib Force is forced to search for a new place to stay.
As I continue to tell you all as this series goes on, the action DOES NOT STOP. Ever. The writing is garbage. The characters are pretty cookie-cutter, only occasionally do you see any sort of development in them before it’s back to the mold. But there is just something addictive about them…like how you think you’re only going to have a couple more Doritos and then suddenly the whole bag is gone. They’re exciting and fun.
These books have not turned me into a believer- nor will they. (Maybe if ¾ of the poplation disappears I might consider it.) They are a neat take on a Dystopian world that keep a quick and relentless pace. If you’re looking for life-changing literature, this is not it. If you’re looking for an entertaining read that goes quick, look no further. ...more
These books do not slow down. Since word one in the first book right on down the line, they have been nonstop action and adventure. I can’t stress enoThese books do not slow down. Since word one in the first book right on down the line, they have been nonstop action and adventure. I can’t stress enough how exciting this series has proven to be. It’s definitely a new look at the dystopian genre.
The Mark of Loyalty is officially put into effect. Worldwide, believers are losing their lives. They would rather give their lives in the name of their God than take the mark of the beast and spend an eternity in Hell. The Antichrist is on a mission to eradicate the Jews and Judah-ites alike. He no longer tries to hide his evil ways. Now that he has dubbed himself God, he can do as he pleases, and his word is all that matters.
The believers are being flushed out of hiding and being held in concentration camps before being beheaded. The story has definitely taken a much darker tone as the end of days approaches. And I have to say- I’m loving it. When times are darkest, your faith is tested and that’s what we see here. We see our Tribulation Force facing trial after trial and still, their faith remains as strong as ever.
The Antichrist plans to take up a new Kingdom, reclaiming Jerusalem as his new home. He has big plans for his arrival to be as disrespectful and obscene as possible. He plans to ride a giant pig down the walkway and have its throat slit on the holy temple. But the one true God strikes back with the next Bowl Judgement, inflicting painful boils all over the bodies of those who take the mark of the beast willingly.
We see a lot of true miracles happen. And they are really neat interpretations of the biblical prophesies. I love how the authors have put this story together around those prophesies. It’s amazing to me that they can have the mind to create such a vivid and believable story. Even “knowing” how things are going to play out(because it’s all been foretold), you still don’t really know anything. You don’t know who will make it through until the end, who will play what role in any of it, or how some of your favorite characters will survive the next 10 pages!!
These books just continue to keep a fast pace that makes it nearly impossible to put them down. You find yourself so immersed in this world, you forget these people aren’t real and the events are not actually happening. There is no greater feeling than that when reading! ...more
The Mark is the eighth installment in the Left Behind Series. I started this series about a year ago and haven’t regretted it at all. While this is myThe Mark is the eighth installment in the Left Behind Series. I started this series about a year ago and haven’t regretted it at all. While this is my first endevour with Christian fiction, it is not my first with dystopian. Not being a religious person myself, I was worried coming into it that I would struggle with the context of the story. Luckily, that has not been the case. I find the story to be compelling, interesting and very exciting. They have all been quick reads as well, which is nice.
Nicolae Carpathia has been resurrected and granted powers by Satan himself. That’s right, people. This is not a drill. The title “antichrist” is official. Due to his belief that he is now God, Carpathia mandates that statues be constructed in his image and that the masses worship those images at least 3 times a day. And he also introduces the Mark of Loyalty which has been prophesied already in the bible.
What is the Mark of Loyalty? It’s the Mark of the Beast. One needs to have it in order to trade or buy goods. And if one does not have said mark, they are given the choice of taking the Mark or losing their heads to the “Loyalty Enforcement Facilitator” which is a fancy way of saying guillotine. Obviously the days of accepting other faiths are gone. Our Tribulation Force is forced to go underground if they hope to stay alive to see the Glorious Appearing.
We run into some old friends that we thought were dead or serving the antichrist. We find new believers and lose some friends to the cause along the way. The story just continues to roll on and every time you think there’s no way it could get more exciting, it somehow does. Our main core of believers get into these crazy situations but manage to find a way out. Knowing that not all of our faithful believers won’t make it until the end leaves you on the edge of your seat every single time.
I think the writers do a great job creating a very believable scenario around the biblical prophesies. The characters get a little more depth each time you encounter them. The shifting perspectives make for a suspsensful reading experience and keeps those pages turning! ...more
While things get harder and harder for our Tribulation Saints, the story gets darker and darker. Each trial and tribulation is proving to test our groWhile things get harder and harder for our Tribulation Saints, the story gets darker and darker. Each trial and tribulation is proving to test our group members in different ways forcing them to search for a strength they don’t know if they have. If you plan on picking this series up, I would stop reading this review because there are potential spoilers ahead.
In our last installment Rayford was having an internal struggle with himself. Dealing with grief and anger he decided the only way to appease these feelings was to murder the Antichrist. Leaving both Leah and Buck stranded in different parts of the world, he goes rogue and purchases a gun on the black market. Not just any gun, but one that is guaranteed to have devastating effects on its target. This gun, coincidentally, is the same on the Antichrist used to murder the two witnesses in Jerusalem.
Rayford, having made up his mind, attends the Gala with the intent to kill Carpathia. Only the gun won’t fire when he has an open shot. Then he gets bumped by someone- was that Hattie? Couldn’t be! She’s been captured by the GC and is being held against her will! The gun goes off. Chaos ensues. There is madness everywhere as people flee the area. Assassins left off with us not knowing who actually killed Carpathia. As there were a few different people with ample opportunity to pull the proverbial trigger, it’s the ultimate cliffhanger and whodunit.
Unfortunately, the Indwelling does not come right out and give away all the secrets. The first few chapters go over the details of what may or may not have happened. Then as the story unfolds, it is finally revealed somewhere in the middle of the book. But the GC is still spinning its own web of lies and laying the murder at the feet of Rayford Steele. After all, there is video evidence of him aiming a weapon at Carpathia.
As everyone else is out on secret missions, Chloe and Tsion are tasked with holding down the fort. The two of them are caring for Chloe and Buck’s son, Kenny. Trying to make sense of all that is being played out on national television about the murder of Carpathia and Rayford being the accused, Chloe comes to a very difficult decision. She informs Tsion of her intentions and asks him to carry out her plan in the event that she is unable to. So distraught at the mere thought of her son being taken into GC custody, she intends to kill her son and then herself if their safe house is discovered.
The GC community is planning for the grandest of all funerals. The Tribulation Force is once again scattered everywhere. There is an extreme amount of pressure and stress on all of them for their own reasons. On top of that they are concerned for their brothers and sisters who are spread so wide. The time is coming where the believers are going to be forced into hiding because they will require a mark to make purchases in the GC. Those that are hiding their identities as believers are coming to terms that their lives are soon to be turned upside down.
We have some major revelatory moments in this one. An out-of-this world experience for one of our believers. An almost-rebirth of another. A fresh start for two. And a brand spanking new believer. But amidst all of this, we lose yet another valued member.
These books continue to captivate me. Right time, right place kind of thing? Who knows? All I know is that I am enjoying the ever-loving shit out of them. I had to take a brief hiatus while I read another book with some pantsless people but I can’t wait to get back into it. As I have already said before, I am excited to see where the series goes. ...more
The Great Library Series continues. Jess and his twin brother have swapped roles in an attempt to save those they care about most. They’re merely pawnThe Great Library Series continues. Jess and his twin brother have swapped roles in an attempt to save those they care about most. They’re merely pawns in a giant chess game that they havent even begun to understand. In a world where the written word could very well mean a death sentence, Jess and his band of outcasts have challenged the authority of the Library by manufacturing a printing press.
Smoke and Iron proved to be my least favorite so far in the series. While I still enjoy the books, I think the author lost something along the way. I still adore the characters. I still enjoy the story being told. I am not sure what exactly is missing, but I have found my interest steadily decreasing as the series continues. When I read the first one I was completely enraptured with it. I enjoyed a majority of the second one. And the third one I had to start twice before I finished it. And now… there’s this one.
Part of my detachment with this one, I think, is that there are multiple POV’s now. Instead of sticking with the POV’s that have been telling the story up until this point, we now have several new ones. I know that sometimes stories being told from different perspectives adds a layer of suspense and mystery. In this book, I think it muddled the storyline and distracted from the overall story being told. I thnk it took me out of the story because I had to continually remember who I was reading. And on top of that, some of the characters sounded the same.
Some authors have the voice of several characters in their heads and are able to pull that off in a book. I think in this instance it was just too much of a good thing. Yes, the group was scattered, but that doesn’t mean we need a POV chapter from every single character in the book. Especially when their voices all sound the same. The only exception was Khalilia. I think the addition of her POV was excellent. In fact, the whole series might have been better based from her perspective rather than Jess’. I know, it sounds blaphemous to those who follow this series… but it’s just how I feel.
I will of course be continuing on. I have to see how this all plays out! I really hope that she finds the thread of this story again though and gets it back to what it was starting out. As of right now there are far too many side stories going on, too many perspectives and too many objectives. But, it’s still a fast-paced adventure. It’s a wild ride that travels through this awesome dystopian world that has captivated my heart. There are so many more things that I love in this series compared to my complaints and that is why I’ll be sticking with it....more
Book 6 shows us a much different side of Rayford. Rayford is consumed by rage. Where is this anger coming from? From all the loss. He lost his first wBook 6 shows us a much different side of Rayford. Rayford is consumed by rage. Where is this anger coming from? From all the loss. He lost his first wife and son to the rapture, his best friend and confidant, his second wife and a few other members of his Tribulation Force. It seems to never end, and he has had enough. He knows who is responsible. It’s the Antichrist, Nicolae Carpathia. And Rayford, filled with the grief and rage he feels, knows what he must do. Being the leader of this group means he must burden himself with the murder of Antichrist.
Rayford is short with his friends and family. He is rude and ruthless. His temper is near the breaking point. All the strain and stress of the last couple of years are weighing him down. But who can he turn to? Tsion is leading an online following in the millions. Buck and Chloe are new parents dealing with their own problems. He is mistrustful of their newest member. There is no one whom he can unload this burden on. This is his problem and his alone.
We have two relatively new believers who are acting as spies in the Global Community. One a pilot and the other a computer whizz. Between the two of them, the Tribulation Force is able to know what is going on, what is being plotted and what has actually transpired. The world is now filled with fake news, propaganda if you will. The Global Community is spinning stories out to explain away things that they do not want to believe happened.
While on a mission together, Rayford and new member Leah, encounter the sixth Trumpet Judgement. The Horsemen of the Apocalypse. These horsemen carry death with them in the manner of fire, smoke, sulphur and deadly snake strikes. Only the believers can see these deadly horsemen though, leaving the Global Community pointing fingers at the Tribulation Force and their followers.
The Global Community wants to celebrate its success over the last couple of years by hosting a Gala in Jerusalem. A wild party filled with sinful behavior. Imagine a nudist hippie festival turned orgy if you will. Drugs and sex and all sorts of dancing. Our Tribulation Saints are obviously appalled by this going-on. Things at this Gala get a little crazy. There are 4 murders that transpire as is prophesied in the book of revelations. I won’t go into the details too deeply here, but I will say that there is a truly remarkable moment. Some members of the Tribulation Force get to witness first hand the resurrection of two of the murder victims. This one will leave you with the mother of all cliffhangers.
Have I told you how fucking exciting these books are yet? I mean, come on already! No, they’re not perfect. But aside from Harry Potter, what book or series is? Just kick your feet up and stick your nose firmly between the pages. ...more
Appollyon is the fifth book in the Left Behind Series. Things continue to pick up as the world faces more and more Trumpet Judgements. Getting furtherAppollyon is the fifth book in the Left Behind Series. Things continue to pick up as the world faces more and more Trumpet Judgements. Getting further into the Tribulation-the period after the Rapture but before the Glorious Appearing- the world’s surviving population is facing yet another large blow to its numbers.
With the so-called blessing of the Antichrist, Nicolae Carpathia, the great conference of witnesses is scheduled to occur in Israel. After being exonerated of earlier accusations of the murder of his family, Tsion Ben-Judah is given “permission” to come back to his homeland of Israel to speak to the 144,000 witnesses prophesied about in the book of revelations.
Carpathia, not wanting to be outshone, makes a special guest appearance. Here he tries to assure everyone of his open and passive nature. He does not see any reason for open hostility. He wants everyone to practice the religion they believe in but wants this group to join the One World Faith. What he gets instead is a crowd that refuses to listen to him. It is then that Israel’s water supply turns to blood… at least for nonbelievers that is.
It is on the last day of this conference that all hell breaks loose. There is a Global Community attack which forces the Tribulation Force to flee. They head back to Chaim Rosenweig’s house that is basically an old fortress and is equipped with a helipad. But their escape back to the States does not go as planned. As they are running from the helicopter to the plane that will fly them to safety, one of our beloved members is shot and killed. Buck is unable to make it onto the plane at all leaving him injured and stranded in Israel. This is bad news for Buck since he is an international fugitive from the GC.
Meanwhile Hattie is rushed to the hospital. She is pregnant, but battling a severe illness, or more likely she is suffering from being poisoned by Carpathia. Will her baby survive? Will she? Do we want to know what the child of the Antichrist looks like?
Buck, still trying to get home to the States, finds his way back to Chaim Rosenweig’s where he can bide his time until arrangements can be made. The fourth Trumpet Judgement makes the stars, moon and sun 1/3 less bright causing temperatures to drop significantly. Now that everything is running on solar power, courtesy of the Global Community, this complicates Buck’s plans for rescue even further. The worst part? Chloe goes into labor while he is in Israel.
Once again this book is one hell of a page-turner. It’s nonstop action and excitement. You find yourself wondering if our Tribulation Force will ever catch a break knowing fully well that they will not. Not until they die and meet their maker or until the Glorious Appearing where they will be rewarded for their efforts. Their burden gets stronger by the day. They must save every soul they can and the window of opportunity is getting smaller and smaller.
I am so glad that I made the decision to pick these up this year. I have been fully immersed in this world that LeHaye and Jenkins have created. There is almost nothing I enjoy more than an end of the world tale. Death and destruction. Chaos. I love it. And this is proving to be a super fun and exciting series. ...more
Book 3 ends with a bang…or better yet, an earthquake. Not just any earthquake, the mother of all Earthquakes: the Wrath of the Lamb. This is a world-Book 3 ends with a bang…or better yet, an earthquake. Not just any earthquake, the mother of all Earthquakes: the Wrath of the Lamb. This is a world-wide earthquake that wipes out nearly a quarter of the world’s already depleted population. With our Tribulation Saints scattered world-wide, the need to know where everyone is will have you picking up book 4 without a moment’s hesitation.
Rayford’s new wife, Amanda, is MIA. The last anyone knew she boarded a plane to land at headquarters in New Babylon…but that plane crashed after having to pull out of their landing due to the earthquake. Surely Amanda can’t be lying dead at the bottom of the Tigris River. He’s already suffered the loss of his son and first wife to the rapture, his beloved leader and best friend. Has he now lost his second wife?
Chloe was last seen running out of the safe house. Buck goes there and tears the place apart, what’s left of it anyway. The streets are filled with carnage. Houses lie in heaps. There are lines down everywhere. Chaos ensues. Will Buck be able to track Chloe down while thousands of others are searching for their own lost loved ones?
Hattie, pregnant with the child of the Antichrist, is said to be at an abortion clinic. Is attempting a rescue safe? Can our Tribulation Saints risk running right into a trap? Especially when Hattie is refusing to accept Christ into her life? Is it fair for the Tribulation Saints to turn their back on non-believers?
The second and third Trumpet Judgements are threatening to wipe out yet more of the world’s population. We’ve got asteroids, poisoned waters and disease, people. It’s the fucking END OF DAYS and there is nothing you can do to stop it. And atop all of this, our Tribulation Saints are being asked to convert as many followers as possible.
These are merely a few of the things happening in this book. I can’t stress enough how exciting, fast-paced and action-packed these books truly are. It’s amazing how much gets squeezed between the covers. The split narrative makes for anticipation and excitement that is unrivaled. ...more
After completing the first book in a reading frenzy, I couldn’t wait to start the next one. And I didn’t. I picked up Tribulation Force without a momAfter completing the first book in a reading frenzy, I couldn’t wait to start the next one. And I didn’t. I picked up Tribulation Force without a moment’s hesitation. We pick up with Rayford, Buck, Chloe and Bruce Barnes who are all feeling the weight of their roles.
They know what is coming. They know who the Antichrist is. They know they must set themselves against him. But how can they do that when said Antichrist has more wealth than all those left behind combined? He now owns all the media. He is the head of UN and has even gone so far as to rename it the Global Community. He takes things one step to far according to our Tribulation Saints when he proposes a One World Religion.
But these Tribulation Saints know what they’re up against; what they stand to lose. So, what exactly are Tribulation Saints? Anyone who converts to Christianity after the Rapture, generally speaking. It is their duty to spread the word of Christ and convert as many people as they can.
When the Antichrist asks Buck to head the new Global Community-owned news outlet, Buck is left with no choice but to agree. And who better to fly the Antichrist than good ol’ Rayford Steele. Is this a mere coincidence? Or is Hattie Durham, secretary and plaything to the Antichrist, behind all of this? Faced with the moral dilemma of working for the Antichrist, both men agree they have no other option. To give themselves up believers means announcing that their boss is the Antichrist. Neither can afford to take that risk just yet. Besides…it never hurts to have an inside guy on the job, right?
How do relationships work in the world when you know there are less than 10 years left? Is it worth falling in love, getting married and having a child if you know you’ll be subjected to horrifying trials and tribulations? If you know you’ll literally be at war? This is yet another dilemma facing our little group of believers.
This was another exciting and suspenseful read that I thoroughly enjoyed. Listen, these books aren’t winning any literary awards by any means. The writing isn’t anything awe-inspiring. The characters tend to be one-dimensional and unwavering. So, what is it that keeps drawing me in for more? The story is fun. I can’t help it. It’s an end-of-times like I’ve never encountered, and I’m intrigued enough to keep turning those pages. I want to see who lives, who dies, what happens, if God actually comes down to Earth for the world’s biggest battle of Good vs Evil. This was a nice follow up to the first one, though the fast-forwarding of the time line kind of annoyed me.
All around, I quite enjoyed it and give it a solid 3 star rating....more
Growing up my sister and I had similar interests in books. While she read the newest R.L. Stine Fear Street I was holding my Goosebumps book in a whit
Growing up my sister and I had similar interests in books. While she read the newest R.L. Stine Fear Street I was holding my Goosebumps book in a white-knuckle grip. As time went on and our interests turned from books to parties and boys, we still shared a love of all things horror. She and I would swap Stephen King books like most sisters swap clothes-unwillingly and with a degree of fear that the other would somehow diminish its quality by merely touching it.
There was a period of time where my sister and I grew apart, I suppose it’s a phase that siblings go through- maybe not all, but most if I had to guess. A few years ago, I was browsing the library’s book sale at the Farmer’s Market when I came across a few of the Left Behind Series books. Their covers drew me in. No matter what any book lover says, to say the cover doesn’t impact the reader’s desire is bullshit. (Go ahead, throw your stones, but it isn’t ME you’re lying to.) But there was something else, a tickle in the back of my mind. I grabbed Left Behind and quickly scanned the little blurb on the inside cover. I distinctly remember rolling my eyes at the thought of reading a religious book. I set it down and moved on to other sections.
That tickle in the back of my mind never quite left, and every Wednesday I saw those books still sitting there waiting for someone to come by and snag them. Finally, one day it clicked: my sister had read these. Did she like them? Had she gushed over how good they were? Had she warned me they were too church-y? What was it she had said? Well, there was only way to know so I asked her. She said that she read the first 4 or 5 and while they were pretty heavy on the religious side, they were also fast-paced, exciting and a new approach to the “same old-same old” of dystopia. Definitely worth it if they were being sold for $1 a book. Of course, I took her advice and bought them and figured I’d get around to them.
There they sat for the last 2 or 3 years. I wanted to wait until I had them all but hey, shit happens, right? Sometimes when you stare at a book long enough if reaches out and slaps you. That’s about what happened here.
I’ll be honest here. I’m agnostic through and through. I believe there’s something but my problem is that I tend to want to believe in everything. I can’t accept that there’s nothing, but I can’t accept that there is only one answer to the age-old question. I don’t want to argue with anyone, I don’t want to be disrespectful to anyone or belittle anyone else’s beliefs. I’m a live-and-let-live type. All I ask is that everyone else abide by those rules as well when responding to this review.
Rayford Steele is flying a big ol’ plane across the Atlantic when he decides to finally act. He has been daydreaming about his twenty-something senior flight attendant. Sure, they’d had drinks and dinner before a time or two between flights. She casually brushed his arm from time to time as well. But Rayford, being a married man, had never actually done anything wrong. He was receptive of her subtle cues that she was interested in him, but he let his mind do what he didn’t have the gall to do physically. Until now. The plane is set to autopilot and it’s going to be a long time before they touch down in England. When Rayford exits the cockpit to search for Hattie with the intent of finally taking their “relationship” to the next level, he is surprised to run into her…literally. He no sooner walks out and she basically falls into his arms. But something isn’t right.
Hattie is scared. She alerts Rayford that passengers are missing. He, of course, reassures her that they must be on the plane. After all, one can’t just exit a plane midflight. But as he begins to check the plane, he finds that she was not mistaken. More than half of his passengers are missing. Their clothes, however, are not missing. As Rayford and Hattie, and other staff members try to keep passengers calm, Rayford goes one step further and begins trying to reach anyone who can help explain this bizarre situation.
But deep down in his heart Rayford knows. His wife had told him of this, had she not? Was this not the very reason Rayford had felt compelled to cheat on his wife in the first place? She had recently become so devout it had driven a wedge between her and her husband. At least, that’s how Rayford excused himself in his mind. His wife had been negligent to him in her pursuit of a more spiritual life. The church she went to was full of nutters according to Rayford. They seemed weird and pushy. And if there’s one thing an analytical minded person doesn’t like, it’s being pushed too hard too fast. It was too much and pushed him right out the door of the church altogether. But she had warned Rayford that God was going to rapture his church and if he didn’t follow her lead, he’d surely be left behind.
One of the passengers on the plane is Cameron “Buck” Williams, international journalist with a long list of accomplishments that came very early in his career. He has a way with people and a way to get the story out in an unbiased way that people not only respected, but admired.
When the plane lands back in the US rather than its original destination of London, the scene is like something out of a movie. There’s chaos and panic. There’s fires, accidents, death and even suicide as people find out that they’ve lost their entire family. Phone lines are a hit and miss and millions of people are all trying to find out what happened to others. Buck, ever the journalist, is listening to the different accounts of what may have happened. Was it aliens? Some weird chemical reaction? Had the Russians developed a super-weapon that vaporized millions of people in one shot? Was it God’s rapture? What could it possibly be?
As the story unfolds we find out that millions of people worldwide have vanished with no sound explanation-every explanation seeming as far-fetched or bizarre as the next. We also find out that every child is gone; babies vanished during delivery. Women who were pregnant were no longer.
I must say that this was a pretty damn exciting read. Coming from no religious standpoint I read it as a Dystopia and therefore enjoyed the ever-loving shit out of it. Was the writing the best? No. Were the characters fleshed out? Meh. Was it predictable? At times. Did it convince me that God was real? Hardly. But it was written well enough to keep this reader on the edge of her seat…her seat at work, at home, at the dentist…I literally could not put it down. It’s written in split narratives so the suspense builds nicely. There were parts, as I said that were predictable but I was also wrong on quite a few fronts as well. The story develops and you do grow to really care about ~most~ of these characters, if not all of them.
If you’ve seen these books around and been teetering on the edge of the fence, I say go for it. I am as cynical as they come and I enjoyed the fuck out of this book. But do yourself a favor and set your personal feelings/beliefs aside and read it for what it is…. a fictional story about the end of the world as we know it. You might be surprised.
The Long Walk is a short story by Richard Bachman, aka a much younger and much more cynical Stephen King. It centers around Ray Garraty, one of the 10
The Long Walk is a short story by Richard Bachman, aka a much younger and much more cynical Stephen King. It centers around Ray Garraty, one of the 100 boys selected to participate in this year’s Long Walk. What is the Long Walk you ask? Exactly what it sounds like: a long fucking walk.
The Rules: Keep walking. Keep up the pace. If you don’t, there are armed guards there to put a bullet in your head. Get too tired? Get shot. Stop to chat? Get shot. Run off and try to get free? Get shot. Slow down? Get shot. Catch pneumonia and struggle to keep up? Get shot.
What happens if you are the last man standing walking? Well, you get whatever you want for the rest of your life, or so the story goes. You get all the riches. You get comforts unimaginable. But will it matter if your mind is gone?
This book is just one giant mindfuck from start to finish. We are inside the mind of Garraty and we get the firsthand experience of what it’s like to walk nonstop day and night through the elements. He’s supplied water and a lovely food supplement that’s squeezed through a tube along with some crackers for good measure.
Garraty is interested in learning about the other boys who willingly volunteered to partake in this walk, the biggest sporting event of the year. He’s still not sure why he volunteered, but it’s buried somewhere deep in his mind. Will he find the answers he is looking for? Will he come out on top or will his be one of the 99 bodies scattered along the side of the road?
I loved this book the first time I read it many years ago, and I loved it even more the second time around on audio. For a book where the premise seems simple and boring, it is an enthralling read. No matter what format you choose, you will not be disappointed.
I am not going to lie, I struggled a bit to get into Ash and Quill. I can’t really say what it was exactly that made this one more difficult to get inI am not going to lie, I struggled a bit to get into Ash and Quill. I can’t really say what it was exactly that made this one more difficult to get into, but I was not fully immersed like I was the first two. In fact, after the library (the regular one in my home town, not the Great Library in Alexandria) refused to let me renew it, I took it back with a “well-fuck-you-too” attitude.
When I heard that book 4 was scheduled for release, though, my tune quickly changed. I re-requested Ash and Quill and told myself to pull up my big-girl-britches and get a move on. That’s just what I did too. You see, had I made it a chapter further into Ash and Quill the first time, I wouldn’t have been so keen to hand it back to the library. Things really picked up once I got past a certain part and I once again found myself at the mercy of Rachel Caine.
While escaping the Library forces in London, Jess and his group of friends end up being sent far, far away. Where they end up is horrifying: Philadelphia!! Now, Philadelphia can be terrifying under normal circumstances, but in a ruined world led by those crazy “Burners” it is much worse. Burners are against the Library. But they’re also against the smugglers. They burn books. *sobs* It’s literally the worst thing ever. And in this world, they run the show.
Jess and his friends are in some serious trouble here. They have to be able to prove to the leader of the Burners that they are worth more alive than dead. They also need to figure out how to escape. But even if they escape the city of Philadelphia, there are Library troops just outside the wall.
Fugitives from the Library and living in hostile quarters make for one fuck of a story, people. I have to say I was pleasantly surprised where this book went. Caine is not afraid to toy with her readers’ emotions, leaving us all on the edge of our seats and in constant fear for the lives of our characters. She has created a believable dystopian world that any booklover would find horrifying. What I love is that characters die. I know, that sounds weird, but I like knowing characters are in danger. It feels real to me. In this particular case, these characters fully understand and accept that were they to die, it would be for a cause they believe in.
What started out on the slow side turned into an enthralling read. I would have had the 4th book sooner, but the goddamn libraries in my area didn’t have it until weeks after its release. SDJF HUIFHSEKGHDJKGK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Not the libraries fault, I know. Just venting my own frustration. It was especially frustrating because Caine left us with yet another cliffhanger that felt like a punch to the gut.
If you haven’t picked this series up yet, do yourself a favor and get to the library. We’re lucky to live in a world where the library isn’t the enemy. ...more
Paper and Fire is the second book in what is proving to be my new favorite series. The end to the first book dealt us a heavy blow(view spoiler)[ the Paper and Fire is the second book in what is proving to be my new favorite series. The end to the first book dealt us a heavy blow(view spoiler)[ the death of our beloved Thomas Schreiber (hide spoiler)]. And now our group is scattered within the walls of Alexandria.
Jess has reason to believe that Thomas is being hidden in the bowels of the library, being held captive for daring to invent something he thought would better the Library. Jess makes it his personal goal to find out once and for all what actually happened to Thomas.
While the others aren’t super thrilled about going on a potentially deadly rescue mission, they all know they have no choice. They can’t allow Thomas to be tortured and then removed from the records- essentially removed from history. The Library is ruthless and sinister, yes, but if they can save Thomas, it will be worth it.
This installment was so fast-paced and exciting the pages almost caught fire from me turning them so quickly…. see what I did there? Did ya? 😉 (I know, super corny, I can’t help it.) But seriously, I’d go into detail but if I say anymore it would require me spilling the beans on some major plot points!
I will say that I enjoy some of the relationships in this series. I think Jess’ instalove with Morgan is a tad ridiculous. But hey, we were all teenagers once, convinced that our love was the real thing. And it is Young Adult, so some cheesy love and heavy make out sessions are in order. There’s lots of quivering and shudders and shivers. You know, all that mushy-gushy shit that I can barely tolerate. It’s just something I have come to accept about YA, though. It’s to be expected.
I encourage anyone who enjoys YA, Fantasy, Alternate Reality, or Dystopia to pick this series up as soon as humanly possible. I can’t remember having so much fun reading a series as I have with this one. ...more
The Great Library Series is a story with an alternate reality. In this world, the Great Library of Alexandria was never destroyed. The world’s most brThe Great Library Series is a story with an alternate reality. In this world, the Great Library of Alexandria was never destroyed. The world’s most brilliant minds and their scrolls were never lost. The secrets of Alchemy are available at your local Serapeum. Sounds awesome right?
Wrong. The Great Library and its Archivists are now fully in control of who reads what. They are the governing body and hold supreme rule over all. There’s a huge black market for books, actual physical books. The Library doesn’t let you have those, oh no! You must have your reading material transmitted via alchemy to your tablet. And don’t be fooled- your reading material is being heavily monitored.
Jess Brightwell, our MC, is a twin. He is also a book smuggler for his father. The Brightwells are one of the biggest names in the Black-Market trade of illegal books. Jess, is of course, very resourceful and one of the best in the business. When his father tells him, he has been accepted by the Library for an apprenticeship, Jess doesn’t know what to think. His father is asking a lot of him. Go and join the Library after years of running illegal books right under their nose? Not to mention, his father expects him to continue the family’s trade from inside the Great Library itself!
Once Jess arrives at the Great Library in Alexandria, he soon realizes he is going to have to do a lot more work than he thought. The apprenticeships aren’t just handed out. These kids must earn them. As the class gets smaller and smaller Jess gets more and more nervous that he will be cut. The handful left are the brightest he’s ever met. And on top of worrying about whether he’ll make it through to be a scholar, he is trying to keep his identity as a smuggler quiet.
We meet a cast of characters that are really well-done. I won’t name them all but the few that stuck out the most to me were: Scholar Wolfe (our instructor), Thomas Schreiber (our lovable German) and Khalila (our Hermione Granger). There are quite a few others, but those are the ones that I loved the most. Their dynamic works. Their characters feel real and seem fleshed out.
Starting this book, I thought it was going in one direction and it took a hard left. It wasn’t necessarily for the worse, but I wanted more of where I thought it was going. I really enjoyed the world that Caine has created here and thought that could have been explored a bit more. With that being said, I still enjoyed where she took it. It was a very exciting read with a rich atmosphere. I had a hard time setting it back down! ...more
You there? Ok. I’m about to have a Veronica Roth rant and I figured you’d enjoy it.
I am so disappointed. More than most fans wereKELLY!!! I need you.
You there? Ok. I’m about to have a Veronica Roth rant and I figured you’d enjoy it.
I am so disappointed. More than most fans were with Allegiant. Personally, I loved Allegiant, but hey to each their own. This book, however, is a different story altogether. When I read Carve the Mark I loved it! I could not get enough of Cyra and Akos. Two star-crossed lovers if ever there were.
The world was a little much. I am not going to lie. I was overwhelmed with the vastness of the intergalactic world Roth created. There was just too much of it. The language she tried to throw in there was inconsistent and unnecessary, but the characters and their interactions made Carve the Mark all that it was to me.
The first few chapters of the Fates Divide pick up where Carve the Mark ended. Typically, this is great. Not this time. Roth decided to kill off the villain in the opening chapters leaving me wondering what all the development was for. Why spend all this time building a great villain just to have him killed uneventfully in the opening pages? Because plot.
We move on to a new argument that is mundane and seemingly pointless but of course leads to a war. Because everyone in the galaxy wanted said villain dead but as soon as he’s killed everyone gets all up in arms over a.) who did it and b.) how it was done. WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK. Who gives a shit? He’s dead. Be happy. Celebrate.
Then we get a bombshell. And I can’t sugarcoat it, Roth definitely pulled the carpet out from under my feet with this one. It was a doozy! Instead of it bringing our two lovers closer together it, OF COURSE, drives them apart. Akos leaves without a word to Cyra. They’re both filled with self-loathing and each have their own secret missions. Where they could have just spoken with one another like responsible adults, they act like immature assholes and go their separate ways.
YOU DON’T UNDERSTAND MY FRUSTRATION HERE.
Cyra and Akos were wonderful and Roth fucking ruined them in this sequel. I just don’t fucking understand what she was going for here. “Ah, I’m all wounded and broken and misunderstood”. Give me a break!!!! They had great chemistry and their relationship was a beautiful thing and what I wanted here was to see them together, holding hands in public and rubbing their love in the faces of EVERYONE. Instead we get a pointless war. We get characters with no meaning. We get POV’s that we don’t need that serve to add confusion to an already muddled storyline. I kept waiting and waiting for this to get better. It never did. I can’t even begin to tell you how angry I am. (Maybe as angry as Kelly was when she got to Allegiant?) I just felt like she dropped the ball big time here.
Now, I am not saying I won’t ever pick up another book written by Roth, but MY GOD WOMAN, you’re better than this!!! This “world” was way too much and not enough at the same time. Figure it the fuck out and start again.
Undivided is the last book of the UnWind series. By the time all was said and done I was completely uninvested in these characters. What started out s
Undivided is the last book of the UnWind series. By the time all was said and done I was completely uninvested in these characters. What started out so strongly ended so poorly.
Our cast of characters have lost sight of who they are. And, like the previous installment, they are indecisive and spread out all over the place. We get an additional 14 side story lines that seemingly came out of nowhere to add plenty of confusion to the storyline.
Lev’s whole storyline just drove me nuts. It was great in the beginning to see someone who was brainwashed into believing that being unwound is a holy experience. But where his story went from there was just….UGH. I can’t even come up with a word that explains it well enough! Lame? Overdone? Desperate? Pathetic? I think, honestly, given where the story goes, Lev should have just been killed off in book 2. I just did not fucking care about anything he had going on past the first book.
Risa and Connor are supposed to be madly in love with one another. We are told this repeatedly throughout the book. But I just didn't feel it. Some authors are WONDERFUL at creating relationships that feel real. You read these couples and know that they belong together. You are reminded of your hormonal teenage years where LOVE was everything and there was nothing in the world that could stop it. This romance was forced and just did NOT work.
All the side characters seemed to be distracting to the whole storyline. I feel like the author meant to use them as a way to tell a broader story, but it just didn't work. They were either underdeveloped, thrown in last minute or so overdone you weren't sure what the REAL storyline was.
The ending of the series did very little for me. I just thought there were aspects that could have been done better, and a LOT of things that could have been left out completely. It felt like things were thrown in as an afterthought and it just did NOT work for me. It makes me sad because as you all know, I just love YA Dystopians. (I also feel bad because my dear friend Ashley recommended these to me and I always hate when I don’t jive with a book a friend recommends.) Overall the series would get a 3 star rating from me. I really enjoyed the first two but the last two were HUGE disappointments.
Unwholly is the second book in the Unwind Dystology. Everyone should know by now that my favorite thing in the world (other than HP) is YA Dystopian. Unwholly is the second book in the Unwind Dystology. Everyone should know by now that my favorite thing in the world (other than HP) is YA Dystopian. So when these books got brought up in a group of pantsless friends, I nearly wet my pants.
I was hooked from book 1; a unique storyline and a haunting one as well. Just a quick recap: in this world unruly children are sent to be “unwound”. This means that their body parts are harvested against their will and used for transplants….but they’re not really dead. Their body parts are conscious of the fact that they have been placed on another body. Very haunting concept indeed!
When we get into book 2 we pick up just about where we left off. However, we are now being introduced to a new charcter….an abomination. His name is Cam. But is he human? Can a person really exist if they have never truly been born? You see, Cam has been created by using ONLY harvested parts from other unwinds. Each piece has been chosen for different reasons creating a “perfect” person. From head to toe he has been sewn together like Frankenstein’s monster. But is Cam a monster?
One thing we learn very early on is that Cam is in love with a girl. Throughout his training and education he comes across a picture of a girl and is instantly taken with her beauty. But she isn’t just any girl…. No, she is Risa Ward.
Connor, Lev and Risa are on the run….from more enemies than they can keep track of.
This book is action-packed and really sent the storyline in a new direction. It brought on questions of morality and makes you question what you think you know. So far, my favorite of the series. ...more
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