Sapphique

Finn has escaped from the terrible living Prison of Incarceron, but its memory torments him, because his brother Keiro is still inside. Outside, Claudia insists he must be king, but Finn doubts even his own identity. Is he the lost prince Giles? Or are his memories no more than another construct of his imprisonment? And can you be free if your friends are still captive? Can you be free if your world is frozen in time? Can you be free if you don't even know who you are?

Inside Incarceron, has the crazy sorcerer Rix really found the Glove of Sapphique, the only man the Prison ever loved. Sapphique, whose image fires Incarceron with the desire to escape its own nature. If Keiro steals the glove, will he bring destruction to the world? Inside. Outside. All seeking freedom. Like Sapphique.

Catherine's Fisher Incarceron was very satisfying, and I think Sapphique followed the league better than most sequels do. The world of Incarcon is an amazing one; Fisher really knows how to create a world and how to trap the reader in it. Her writing is fluid and rich, and it all got better in Sapphique. I just think that a lot of the book's potential was ruined buy the odd ending.

Sapphique was Incarceron but more pumped. There was more action, more drama, more suspense and Fisher started to admiringly toy with cliffhangers. Already the first chapters have you standing on edge, and its hard to put the book down for the first parts of the book. Sapphique was also alternating between many point of views, giving us a good tour of each and every character and how they were struggling with the inner and outer problems.

I must say I loved the universe Fisher created. It was truly original and fresh, not something I see often in YA litterature. She crafted two wonderful books and I'm glad she didn't extend them into a trilogy, because when authors do that they often slip away from their original goal, and the story becomes a mess.

In Sapphique, I started caring for Jared and Keiro more, and also Incarceron itself. They are my two (three if you count the Prison as a being) favorite characters, simply because I like Jared's soft caring and Keiro's sharp attitude. Claudia, Finn and Attia, development-wise, stayed pretty much the same. I did not get to poke my head into the depths of their persona, and sadly didn't care that much for them. I did not learn much more about the Warden, either, and the unraveling of his true feelings for Claudia was nonexistent. We all knew that their father-daughter relationship was bittersweet, but it was nothing new. Some people were added to the cast, but they did not rise above their roll of supporting characters that are eventually forgotten.

The only drawback in the book is the ending; it felt rushed and was extremely odd. Many elements were left unexplained. The reader is not told the true nature of Incarceron, and why it has a voice, a mind and dreams. The whole concept of 'magicke' that Rix uses and that is the essence of the Glove is left for us to wander about. The dove and the eagle appear many times throughout the book, at various places, but no clear light is made on them either. It's easy to assume and guess the eagle represents the royal family, and the dove, Sapphique, but what was their connection? Another example is when Claudia enters Incarceron while having it in her pocket, it being the little cube on her father's pocket watch. How is this possible? There were many plotholes of this kind.

I an still unsure, and out-mostly confused on Sapphique's case. I liked the fact he was a legend, the hero of a myth whose real existence cannot be proven, and I would have been content on having him stay that. Yet, Fisher incorporated him back into the story in the most bizarre way imaginable, and without concrete explanations. The ending leaves the reader confused and asking for questions, and truthfully, it was just all so odd.

I cannot say the ending satisfied me, even if the rest of the book was amazing. It seems Fisher rushed the last hundred pages into a senseless mess, and its a bit of a shame, I dare say, for so many pages of good stuff to be ruined. The series still stands as a wonderful duo of books that will enchant many Young Adults. It has a brilliantly crafted plot, characters that are perhaps not memorable but fun to follow, but a rushed ending. Go read it still, and I rest my case.

-Beryl

Sapphique by Catherine Fisher
Rating: 9/10

The Giver

From Goodreads: In the "ideal" world into which Jonas was born, everybody has sensibly agreed that well-matched married couples will raise exactly two offspring, one boy and one girl. These children's adolescent sexual impulses will be stifled with specially prescribed drugs; at age 12 they will receive an appropriate career assignment, sensibly chosen by the community's Elders.

This is a world in which the old live in group homes and are "released"--to great celebration--at the proper time; the few infants who do not develop according to schedule are also "released," but with no fanfare.

Lowry's development of this civilization is so deft that her readers, like the community's citizens, will be easily seduced by the chimera of this ordered, pain-free society. Until the time that Jonah begins training for his job assignment--the rigorous and prestigious position of Receiver of Memory--he, too, is a complacent model citizen. But as his near-mystical training progresses, and he is weighed down and enriched with society's collective memories of a world as stimulating as it was flawed, Jonas grows increasingly aware of the hypocrisy that rules his world.

With an eerie futuristic setting, Lowry is once again in top form--raising many questions while answering few, and unwinding a tale fit for the most adventurous readers.

We are so sorry for the lack of updates! Beryl and I are in our senior year of high school, and we didn’t think it was so much work! We’re both overachievers, so we hardly have any time for books and this site. Please stay with us, though! We’ll try to read enough to provide you a few reviews every month.

The Giver is a book the juniors read every year at our school, and they kind of hate it. All of them hate it, really, without exception. I don’t see why, though. I absolutely loved this book, even though it was rather plot-less. It was a book of feelings, and the author has the amazing ability to transmit her emotions through her words.

Jonas, our protagonist, is brave and intelligent, even in his young age. He has started to see things others don’t see, and has been chosen to be the next Receiver of memories of his community. The Receiver knows everything. He is taught everything of a world before Sameness, of the world we live in.

The world built is perfect, supposedly. But to me, it is simply eerie. A guy with whom I was talking claimed it was a magnificent utopia; I call it a disturbing dystopia. I guess it’s just how you look at it, really. Nonetheless, it was a fascinating world I would gladly read more about. I would hate to live in a gray world where everyone is the same. Colors and art are such an important part of my life, I would be unable to live without it, and the way this world works captured me. Who would’ve thought to create a world where people willingly accept never to think, never to choose, don’t ever see color, but also a world with no war, no fear, no hard choices?

The Giver is a book of tenderness, emotion, and feelings. It is amazing. It can make you feel the warmth of Christmas, make you fall in love with colors all over again, show you an orange sunset and give you the calmness that comes with it. But it also can make you disgusted with the world by showing you pain and hunger, though not with as much efficiency as it gives the happier feelings. I highly recommend and praise this book. I didn’t find it had much of a plot, but that might be because I didn’t fully understand the ending I recommend it nonetheless. It is a book you feel in your heart and cherish once you are done.

-Aithen

The Giver by Lois Lowry

Rating: 8/10

Unwind

In a society where unwanted teens are salvaged for their body parts, three runaways fight the system that would "unwind" them.

Connor's parents want to be rid of him because he's a troublemaker. Risa has no parents and is being unwound to cut orphanage costs. Lev's unwinding has been planned since his birth, as part of his family's strict religion. Brought together by chance, and kept together by desperation, these three unlikely companions make a harrowing cross-country journey, knowing their lives hang in the balance. If they can survive until their eighteenth birthday, they can't be harmed -- but when every piece of them, from their hands to their hearts, are wanted by a world gone mad, eighteen seems far, far away. In Unwind, Boston Globe/Horn Book Award winner Neal Shusterman challenges readers' ideas about life -- not just where life begins, and where it ends, but what it truly means to be alive.


This book contains scenes that honestly hurt me inside, disgusted me with human nature and made me want to cry. I recommend you start this book with a specific mindset, open-minded and not awaiting cute little fluffy scenes. This is not a cute and fluffy book; it is harsh, it is raw, and unless you know what to expect, it can even be a painful read. That is mainly why I tagged it as horror, as well as science-fiction. Reading it all in one sitting can be too much. I know I had to stop sometimes, unable to read on without giving what I had just learned a little thought. Or a whole lot of thought.

This book sports one of the most nerve-racking scenes I ever read, one that made me cringe in my sleep and lose a little faith in humanity by its cruelty. It’s a hardly even a graphic scene; the little that is said, though, is sufficient to let my own mind create a horrible mental image. This and the final scenes of Feed by M. T. Anderson have the same effect on me: they leave me weeping.

In spite or because of this, Unwind manages to be one of the greatest books I’ve read in a long time. It has detailed, likeable characters who all sport different characteristics even though they are all, somewhere deep inside, the same. Shusterman even manages to make me feel sorry for some of the bad guys sometimes.

The world created in Unwind is terrifying. The very thought of being allowed to “unwind” your child, sell all his parts to people who want new ones, is chilling. Certainly one thinks one’s own parents would never do that to them, but what if they did? What if they sold your heart, lungs, legs, eyes, brain, your everything, because you’re getting on their nerves, making them mad? Personally, I could never do anything of the sort to my kin, but the very thought that some could makes me mad, and sad.

The ending made me very happy. It’s a good ending, and I like good endings. Bad ones are too painful; bad ones suggest there is no hope. Though I would love another book, I think this one finished very well and doesn’t necessarily need a sequel. In fact, I’m afraid a sequel would screw up the whole thing.

Sadly, the present-tense writing style sometimes got on my nerves and made me rather frustrated. It felt quite strange at times, and though I think it was used to create a feeling of urgency, it didn’t quite succeed with me.

Unwind is an amazing book, a definite must-read for everyone out there who has the guts to do so. If you do, brace yourself for this one. It has well-constructed characters that I was attached too. It has an original plot and story, and the whole Bill of Life concept is unforeseen. A terrifying book that manages to open our eyes a little more to the world around us and to what we might become.

-Aithen

Unwind by Neal Shusterman
Rating: 9,6/10

P.-S.: My brother tells me there is going to be a movie about Unwind. I don’t know if this is the truth, or simply a rumour, but I will try to find out for you lot. If there is a movie, I will definitely go see it as soon as it comes out, if only to make sure it gives justice to this amazing book.

Beryl's review:

I won't repeat all Aithen said, because I loved Unwind equally. It perhaps didn't have the same effect on me as it did on Aithen; I didn't react as emotionally as she did. Nonetheless, it was a great book, great plot, a must read.

I think the only lack in this book are the descriptions. I know that this book was meant to open our eyes on feelings, actions, and consequences, but I disliked the fact none of the characters were described. I ended up imagining their looks by myself. This is only something that annoyed me. It's not a detail that should turn down people to read this book. There's way more attention on the feelings and personalities than on the physics, and that's good.

Read this book. That's all I can say.

-Beryl

Rating: 9,6/10

The Maze Runner

When Thomas wakes up in the lift, the only thing he can remember is his first name. He has no recollection of his parents, his home, or how he got where he is. His memory is black. But he’s not alone. When the lift’s doors open, Thomas finds himself surrounded by kids who welcome him to the Glade, a large expanse enclosed by stone walls.

Just like Thomas, the Gladers don’t know why or how they got to the Glade. All they know is that every morning, for as long as they could remember, the stone doors to the maze that surrounds them have opened. Every night, they’ve closed tight. Every thirty days a new boy is delivered in the lift. And no one wants to be stuck in the maze after dark.

The Gladers were expecting Thomas’s arrival. But the next day, a girl springs up—the first girl ever to arrive in the Glade. And more surprising yet is the message she delivers. The Gladers have always been convinced that if they can solve the maze that surrounds the Glade, they might be able to find their way home . . . wherever that may be. But it’s looking more and more as if the maze is unsolvable.

And something about the girl’s arrival is starting to make Thomas feel different. Something is telling him that he just might have some answers—if he can only find a way to retrieve the dark secrets locked within his own mind.

AITHEN'S REVIEW:

This was a very fast read; I started it the day after I finished Boneshaker, and finished it two days later. It was absolutely impossible to set down, and is gifted with one the greatest science-fiction plots I’ve ever read.

The story starts with Thomas, who, one morning, wakes up to find he doesn’t remember anything about himself except his name. Also, he’s in a dark elevator, and he is quickly going up. The very first sentence seems to have a pull, wanting you to read more, and faster, in order to understand everything that is going on.

Sadly, I didn’t feel much attached to Thomas, because he was a rather typical hero. Courageous, fair, intelligent, though luckily not a beautiful and mysterious sue, he was a little too close to the perfect man to make me completely happy with his character. But the other characters were very good, and I liked them much more than I liked him. Newt was one of my favourite characters, and Minho wasn’t very far behind. I also really liked Gally, even though he was a “bad guy”. Honestly, I kind of thought Thomas was annoying, but I could pretty much ignore him most of the time and concentrate on the extraordinary plot.

The story was very original, one of the most original I’ve read in a long time. A bunch of boys are stuck in the middle of a maze, the Glade, and are trying to get out of it. They have a whole community going on, with farms and stuff, and their whole life revolves around solving the maze, and getting out of the maze before nightfall. Indeed, during the night, horrible creatures called Grievers roam the maze in search of lost boys to eat. The Grievers were disgusting things, seemingly unbeatable, and I hated them passionately and was rather afraid of them throughout the book.

The whole mystery and secret behind how the boys got to the Glade, and who put them there, and why, and why their memory was erased, was mesmerizing. I couldn’t wait to get explanations about everything, like all the characters in the book. Also, I loved the many little clues that were disseminated in the novel, and I was very glad to see my predictions were only half right.

Only one thing seriously irked me: the telepathic communication between Thomas and Teresa. It wasn’t even necessary to the story, and it added a touch of cliché to the novel. This is negligible, though, since it never occurred very much anyways.

Finally, I think this book was, in some aspects, a little similar to Ender’s Game, by Orson Scott Card. I really loved the whole Ender saga, and I’m certain anyone else who did will like this book too. Overall, this was a terrific piece of science-fiction. I think it deserves more recognition, and definitely more reads.

I find it quite hard to say as much about good books than about bad books; therefore I will end this short review now and tell you to go find The Maze Runner and read it. I just can’t wait for the sequel.

-Aithen

The Maze Runner by James Dashner
Rating: 9,3/10

BERYL'S REVIEW:

Utterly disappointed. This book was just, so boring.

The characters were a joke. Thomas is your common gary-sue and hero that is there to save the day and that knows how to do everything and can deal with everything. His voice was weak and and made the entire story seem unoriginal. I didn't care for any of the other characters, perhaps maybe for Minho because he was actually entertaining, but really, I couldn't relate to anyone deeply enough to enjoy the read.

The plot seems very original, but I think it could have been better. There could have been more to the maze, more mystery, more SOLVING and more riddles. I don't know, but it wasn't enough. The resolution also wasn't amazing. And the Grievers, the evil creatures who eat the little kids? They didn't seem scary enough to me. Really, a lot of elements in this book were plain and flat.

Just as Aithen said, telepathy between the common guy and common girl; blah.

I browsed through the last 100 pages because I was so bored and couldn't take it on anymore. The story never did hook me up, picked up very slowly, and I was very annoyed at first when things were explained only, like, 200 pages after they were supposed to be explained. Aithen though it was mysterious and made you keep reading. I was just annoyed and irritated and it was no fun.

It could have been a great book if the characters were interesting and didn't speak some wannabe-cool slang ('shunk-face' and 'klunk') and if there was way more action and mystery and something to cling to in the story. No really, I disliked this to the point of not finishing it. I could have gladly just been told the spoilers and skipped this read.

For once, Aithen's and mine's reviews are very different. Consider this book wisely before picking it up. If you're more like Aithen, you'll like it. More like me, you won't. I'm not discouraging anyone to read it. I just think that this book is the kind of book you either like, or don't. In my opinion, it could have been much much better.

-Beryl

Rating: 6,4/10