Book: Univited

So when I started this book I had sadly forgotten what it was about. So the first few chapters did through me a little bit.  But needless to say I was totally into it.
I really liked Davy and found her to be a pretty believable character given her lifestyle and upbringing.
For the first 50 pages of the book I really liked. the first 150 as well. But soon after I started to feel myself drifting. The spark just wasn't there. And while the book was well thought out and had many great points something in the story was missing. The ideas are all good. But there was nothing to the way that things played out. All really great YA books and books over all really need that swift grace. that ease that carries the readers flawlessness into the next word. This book did not have that. It felt at times very man made.
As I read on the many good points like the people and the set up of the laws and all the moving parts around Davy was very good things like the world building fell sort. By the end of the book I had very little idea what the word around Davy looked like. Also I found many things by the end of the book very hard to believe * SMALL SPOILER* I'm sorry but it felt like they would have spent a lot more money on camera's and had people spying on the computers. * SPOILER DONE* 
Also how gruesome the book got by the end bothered me to no end. I'm sorry but I found that the author had so many different ways and place she could have taken things that she really cheeped out in the end.
With so much going for the book I found that the last 100 pages of the book really made it hard for me to give it a positive review. Is it a good book? sure in many ways it is, but that does not change the fact that I don't want to read any more books like this. Authors stop using gruesome details to shock the reader. It only shows a lack of real talent on your behalf.
Over all it had many great moments even though I was ultimately let down, I still look forward to reading the next book in the series.


( YA - 15 and up)
STARS: * * * 3.2          LEVEL: KILL ME GENE 



I was given a copy of the book by the publisher. This did not in anyway effect my review or thoughts on the book

Movie: Oz The Great And Powerful

 Let me start off by saying that I did not see this movie in the theater ( so no big 3D effect for me) because I had a feeling it was going to be a really bad movie.This movie was yet again another case of Disney throwing money out the window. It seems to me that all they can do is deliver their best worst movie.
The first problem with this film was that it tried to be a rip off Baz Luhrmann and the Wizard of Oz. Baz Luhrmann is a very talented but very hit or miss filmmaker. I was really shocked that they tried to make the film in a style so much like his.Also I felt that there was Tim Burton undertone that really threw off the story and the actors.
The one thing that made the movie okay to sit through was the CGI. But even  CGI could not cover up the bad storytelling and poor acting.There were so many mistakes in the film and scenes that should have been cut out. OR lines. So many lines that should have been rewritten. Really the film was weak all the way around. It had so much of it that was just pointless or poorly done.
There really were only a few good points in the film. The open credit roll was very good and I liked how they did that. That's something I would like to see more of in movies today.
Really the worst thing about the film was how long it was. I think that it could have been cut down to about an hour and forty-five minutes. That would have by far made it a much better movie. The fat would have been cut out and I would not have felt like I wanted to jump out of my skin watching it.
Over all I have to say that I was pretty let down with film even though I had the bar and my hopes set really low. I can not say that I would tell anyone to see this movie unless they were a fan of Wicked.

( PG-13)
Stars: * * 2.8

Book: Magic Under Stone

I could not wait to read this book! Finally there came a small break in my reviews for me to read this. 

At first I could not wait to jump right back in to the story and I had some pretty high hopes set up for this. 

This book started off really well and went on they way for a while. I found myself yet again lost in the magic of the world. But then as I was reading somewhere in the middle the story just seemed to have hit a wall.  It stopped moving along and the whole feel of the story changed. It lost its wonderful fairy tale epic feel and just became a little old fairy tale. And I found myself over all let down with the book. 

It seemed that everything I had loved about the first was not here. The ending to the book was the biggest let down of all. I read both books leading up to something that was rapped up all nice and pretty in 15 pages.It was rushed and half put together. Trying so hard to be a happy -ever- after that it was just a flop of an ending. And  I was very hurt with that. I wanted more.  I had been very in to the book and it just ended! Leaving me with nothing really to think about or hold on to. It had me feeling pretty glum about the book.

So all the characters from the first book were wonderful and really stayed true to who they were while still growing and changing in believable ways. As for the new characters that were added ? I did not care for them much at all. They felt half made. Like something was missing.  I could honestly not have cared what had happened to them. Violet I felt should have been rewritten or pretty much cut from the book. Her character was just a pill to read about and I did not care what happened to her at all.

Over all only read this if you want to see how the story ends.  What could have been done to make this book better? Epilogue! I would have added another 15 -30 pages to clean up the end give us some action and show us how all the characters had changed from when we had started the book. 

( YA - 13 and up ) 

Stars: * * 2.9