Book Review Thoughts: Endure by Sara B. Larson

Book: Endure by Sara B. Larson
Genre: Ya Fantasy
Rating: ★★☆☆☆

This is the third in the series which begins with Defy and continued with  Ignite.  (Links to those reviews.) I had high hopes for this book having quite enjoyed the first two, and so I expected to love it. Sadly, it fell flat for me. And maybe it's the non-reading mood I've been in, so take my response with a grain of salt, as they say.

In this book (spoilers for the first two books possible/probably, so beware) we have Alexa leaving Damian, her true love, to go and rescue Rylan, her other love (but not true love,) whom she left kidnapped by the evil Rafe at the end of the last book. This is the story of that journey, what happens to them along the way, what they find at the end of the journey, and how they rise above it all.

What they find is in fact, quite depressing and there were many moments where I thought there was no way to get out of this mess! But they do and it all ends in a final raging battle.

So, while the story overall is good and I fell in love with the characters in previous books, this book was hard for me because I suddenly didn't care and didn't feel connected and felt like nothing much was happening. (Even though I said above that they got themselves in pretty big messes, it felt like it took forever for that to happen!) And there were some pretty sad and devastating bits that I should have been really upset about, but...

I think, also, I may have been having a weird syndrome discussed by Jenny here on her blog post awhile back...that thing about being too critical when you're reading after you've been trying to do some writing yourself. (Not that I've been writing much lately either.) I don't know. I just wasn't feeling it! Ah, it was frustrating! It has literally taken me two months to read this very short book!

What's wrong with me!?

Bottom Line: An anticlimactic end to a perfect awesome fantasy series.

Other Reviews:

Sara B Larson continues to bewitch me with her craft and skill; the magical world that Damian and Alexa live in is one I’d love to be swept up in, and I consistently want to learn more about it. From The Book Cellar

The ending is bittersweet but also very uplifting. I say bittersweet because there were many, many deaths (seriously, who survived?!), but there is hope for those that survived. From The Eater of Books

it had so much action and adventure that I could hardly get a breath before it started all over again? From Addicted Readers

So yeah, Damian and Alexa is separated in the huge part of the story. Alexa is busy saving her best-friend Rylan while Damian is either preparing for a war or worrying about Alexa. If only we saw those parts, I can only imagine how stressed Damian is. From Blackplume

More Author Events: Kathryn Purdie, Cassandra Clare, Holly Black

Last night we found ourselves at a pretty big author signing event. It was Cassandra Clare and Holly Black! I've seen them doing promotions together for awhile and wondered if we'd have a turn in our area. Well, last night was it!

The auditorium was filled and many people were fangirling and even weeping in awe over meeting their favorite authors. It was fun to watch and I totally understood the feelings. Mostly.

We got a bunch of books signed, but they herded us through the line like cattle. Yeah, it frustrates me when that happens. Maybe I'll save that rant for another day. Maybe I've already done that rant, I can't remember.

But we had a great time and here are the pictures!

Cassandra Clare and Holly Black

Here we are in the crowd, waiting!
From front to back:
Jenny
Catie
Jenni Elyse
Jayne
and Toto

 

When I saw how she signed her name I was like,
seriously? :) 

 Last week we took part in a book launch for the debut of another Utah author, Kathryn Purdie. Her book, Burning Glass, sounds awesome.

Getting our books signed!
Left to right:
Kami, Toto, Jenny, Kathryn, Jayne, Abbie, me and Jenni Elyse

Here's Jenni getting her book signed.

Kami had to get off her pregnant swollen feet!
But isn't she cute!!

I love this picture of our group waiting in line.

Kathryn Purdie

And that's it.. until the next time! There are more coming up! It never ends...

Book Club Potional Reads 2016-2017

Every year I enjoy posting the list of books we as a book club are choosing from for our next year's schedule. Here's what we are pondering reading this next year:

Far From the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy
The Chosen by Chiam Potok
Great Expectations by Charles Dickens
All the Truth That's in Me by Julie Berry
Finding Audry by Sophie Kinsella
Bone Gap by Laura Ruby
All the Light We Cannont See by Anthony Doer
Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein
One of Nathan Hale's Hazardous Tales
Burning Glass by Kathryn Purdie
a mystery by Anne Perry
The Martian by Andy Weir
Still Alice by Lisa Genova
The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh
Quiet: The Power of Introverts by Susan Cain
I am Malala by Malala Yousafzai
A Christmas Memory by Truman Capote

So...what do you think? Any comments for us on anything in this list? Let us know what we simply MUST read, or simply MUST stay away from!

Currently: Feeling Relaxed

Listening: My Super Junior Ballads Spotify playlist that I created just for the soft mellow beautiful ballads by these most awesome guys. The exact song on this very moment, written by Siwon himself (the first guy to sing in this video) is this one... Don't Leave Me:

Watching: In ten minutes from this writing I'll be watching the final episode of Downton Abbey. The end of an era! Will it end happy? Will everyone find love? And then just one hour after that I'll be watching another crazy episode of The Walking Dead. Sigh. This show kills me!

Also, I started a new KDrama... Oh My Venus, about a girl who got fat while she was going to law school, and then she meets a famous trainer dude who also happens to be mixed up in a big time scandal. Hmm... do you think they can help each other? The craziness that will come from this remains to be seen!

Also, watching endless Super Junior videos... having ten years of promotions, shows and publicity to catch up on is hard work and requires much dedication!

Reading: Um... reading. Yes. Well, I read a some pages in Endure... I will finish that this week. And oh, I finished Little Women with the read along crowd! Reading will pick up it will!

Writing: I started back in on revising chapter 1 and 2 of the space opera. It needs so much help it overwhelms me.

Blogging: Coming up on NINE years this next week or two. I will celebrate with a new profile picture. Aren't you so excited? Also... BLOGGIESTA! Join us March 21 to 27. I need more challenge hosts. Email me!

Health Watch: I'm going on the starvation diet... don't eat all day, then binge at night. Stop. I know. It's bad. But... it's how it is. And I also decided to bag my bad feet and start exercising again. I created a Super Junior dance play list and am determined to learn those dances! And let's just say I'm dying by the end of a session... anyway, I like to think of it as Korean Zumba. All I know is, something has GOT to change.

Miscellaneous:

• We've started a garden project. As in, re doing the whole thing. Wish us luck.
• I cleaned the travel trailer in prep for a spring break camping excursion. It's been three years since we've taken it out. This could be interesting.
• Comic Con is coming up... we've bought extra tickets to see Buzz Aldrin. Also, we are hoping to figure out who we'll get pictures taken with. The really big guys are too expensive, but we may go for some of the "smaller" ones. LOL!
• We had a lovely Little Women RAL watch along on Friday! I love doing that!

And that's a few things that I've been up to. How about you?

Little Women RAL Part Three Discussion Questions: Chapters 34 to End

Well, good thing we had a RAL this month so I could at least finish one book! Another fun experience, co-hosting this thing! Thanks to everyone who participated! I had fun re-reading the book and thinking about it a little more deeply than I have in previous readings.

Jenni posted questions for this third part of the book over at her blog here. Here are my thoughts:

What do you think about the girls now? Has your opinion of them changed since the beginning or even the middle of the story?

I mean, I like them all. I've liked seeing Amy change and grow up. Meg bugged me a little with how she handles being a mom and her husband and stuff. Jo... I just wish she wouldn't be so... stubborn or something. But yeah, it's fun to see them all as older people.

At the end of the book, which character do you relate to most? Is it a different character than at the beginning?

I really can't decide who I relate to the most. I guess Meg's life is most like mine, so I'd probably say her. 

Do you think Beth should’ve died when and in the way she did?

I'm glad she stuck around for awhile and didn't die right at first when she got sick. She was able to see the babies and all. But still. Her's is a sad story.

How do you feel about Laurie’s romantic decisions? Did his relationship with Amy seem developed enough to be sincere?

I think it COULD have been, but it was a bit rushed. I don't blame him for looking toward Amy to get consoled though. But he did and I think he was surprised himself that it worked.

How do you feel about Jo’s romantic decisions? Do you think they were consistent with her character?

Ah, Jo. Jo Jo Jo! Why? I have no idea if what she did is consistent with her character. I just don't know. I mean, the professor seems to be good for her, but really, Would Laurie not have been too? 

What do you think about the names the girls and their husbands gave to their children?

Weird. Especially Jo naming one of her's Teddy. What's with that?

If this was your first time reading Little Women, what do you think? Did it meet your expectations? Would you read it again? If this was a reread, do you feel the same as you did when you read it the first time? Or, has your opinion changed?

On this re-re-read I noticed the gender things much more... and all the old fashioned ideas and LMA seeming to try too hard to counter all that. I felt cringy in a few places. But I still love the over all feeling of the story, the feeling of family and home and togetherness.

Do you have a favorite quote or passage from Little Women?

There's lots but I only highlighted a few. Here's one that I especially like:

"People who hire all these things done for them never know what they lose, for the homeliest tasks get beautified if loving hands do them."

Would you change anything about the story if you could? If so, what?

I just would like to see how things would be if Jo and Laurie ended up together. I mean, you know. Let's just try it that way once and see what happens, yes? And maybe while we are at it, let's let Beth live and be the nice aunt that helps everyone. 

Even though the setting for Little Women is quite different from today’s world, do you think we can learn anything from this story? If so, what?

Oh, we can learn tons. So many little nuggets of truth and wisdom. And how family and good friends connections are the thing.

Thanks everyone for participating in our latest effort at a RAL. I'm sure we'll do another one some day! So stay tuned!

Remember we'll be watching the movie tomorrow at 7:00 pm Mountain. Join us on Twitter using #LittleWomenRAL and watch along with us!

February 2016 Reading Wrap Up

My daughter going home from the hospital
with her new daughter. 

And well. February. The month of no reading. I finished one at the beginning and one at the end. I guess better than nothing, eh? What can I say... the books got boring and the dramas got good. And the grand baby was born, and that's really all the excuses I have.  Here's hoping for a bit better show by the books in March!

The two books I read this month:

Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard: Mare thinks she is going to be sent to fight in the army, but instead, she finds herself in the Place of the Golds. Then everything changes.

Little Women by Lousia May Alcott: The story of four sisters, their family, their relationships and their growing up years. We had a fun RAL this month with this one!

Plans for March:

• Um... read? Maybe?
• Read Life After Life for book club.
• Finish Endure.
• Maybe start Winter.
• Read the new Lindsey Leavitt I got the other day.
• Maybe read the new Kathryn Purdie book I got the other day.
• Mostly, let's just work on reading again... shall we?

How about you? Do you plan to read this month?

Top Ten Tuesday: Books Not Set in the U.S.

Since I've been into immersing myself in other cultures (in one other culture?) recently, I thought I'd do a quick top ten on some of my favorite books which do not take place in my country (or my country of origin.) So... if you're in the mood...


Ten Books if you're in the mood for something that is NOT set in the US or Britain:

The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon (Spain)
The Far Pavilions by M.M. Kaye (India)
Snow Flower and the Secret Fan by Lisa See (Japan)
The Long Walk by Slavomir Rawicz (Siberia and Nepal)
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak (Germany)
The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini (Afghanistan)
A Single Shard by Linda Sue Park (Korea)
The Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck (China)
Fiesta of Smoke by Suzan Still (Mexico)
Jellicoe Road by Melina Marchetta (Australia)

Lovely lovely books, the lot of them! Read them! Read them now!

What's on your Broke and Bookish list today?