Chuyển đến nội dung chính

The Secret

Reviews | April 2019

April started off as a really good reading month, but ended up not being so great towards the end because that's when I went into a reading slump that I couldn't really get out of it. I spent this month trying to catch up to my Goodreads goal so I read a lot of shorter books. It would've worked out if I kept it up but unfortunately, life had other plans. But, reviews! Reviews Bossman by Vi Keeland I don't know what it was about this book that didn't do it for me. I really thought this was going to be another one of those steamy books I love, but for the most part, it was okay. I think the past vs. present story line wasn't something I really enjoyed. While I get that the author was trying to show the tragic past of the male protagonist, I felt like it was dragged on too long. It could've been told as a prologue and then I would've felt more attachment seeing his side of the story as well. I found this to be a little predictable and overall meh in the sex...

Review | 3:59 by Gretchen McNeil

Title: 3:59 by Gretchen McNeil
Series: N/A
Genre: Young Adult - Science Fiction/Fantasy
Publication: September 17, 2013 by Balzer + Bray
Format: Hardcover
Source: Purchased
Rating: ★★★

Synopsis: Josie Byrne's life is spiraling out of control. Her parents are divorcing, her boyfriend Nick has grown distant, and her physics teacher has it in for her. When she's betrayed by the two people she trusts most, Josie thinks things can't get worse.

Until she starts having dreams about a girl named Jo. Every night at the same time—3:59 a.m.

Jo's life is everything Josie wants: she's popular, her parents are happily married, and Nick adores her. It all seems real, but they're just dreams, right? Josie thinks so, until she wakes one night to a shadowy image of herself in the bedroom mirror – Jo.

Josie and Jo realize that they are doppelgängers living in parallel universes that overlap every twelve hours at exactly 3:59. Fascinated by Jo's perfect world, Josie jumps at the chance to jump through the portal and switch places for a day.

But Jo’s world is far from perfect. Not only is Nick not Jo's boyfriend, he hates her. Jo's mom is missing, possibly insane. And at night, shadowy creatures feed on human flesh.

By the end of the day, Josie is desperate to return to her own life. But there’s a problem: Jo has sealed the portal, trapping Josie in this dangerous world. Can she figure out a way home before it’s too late?


Thoughts: This was one of those books that I was a little hesitant to read. I am not much of a science fiction fan when it comes to books, because they get a little confusing, but I really like McNeil's stuff, it's fun and she's just an awesome person, so I feel like my like for her books also comes from me liking her as a person (I've met her 3 times already.) I previously read Ten and enjoyed it, because of the classic I think.

Jumping into 3:59 made me realize two things: 1) I am still terrible at science and trying to wrap my brain around the way things work in this book, scientifically, was impossible; and 2) I knew it was predictable kind of story, but still didn't know what to expect. Basically, from reading the synopsis, you get the main idea of what happens in the entire book. And not much else happens, other than that. I'm not saying it's a bad thing, just that if the summary sounds like something you'll enjoy, then you most likely will.

The book opens up pretty much with Josie hating how her life is going because of several things (boyfriend cheating, betraying best friend, parents divorcing, etc.) so the chance to switch lives with Jo seems perfect. Except, obviously things aren't always what they seem...predictable right? Not only that, but Josie gets trapped by Jo in her alternate world so now she spends a good portion of her time trying to convince the right people that she is in fact another person and needs to get back to her other world. A few mysteries are solved, a few tragedies are overcome, and in the end, it all wraps up pretty nicely if not a bit sad. You get the last glimmer of hope in the last few pages that might leave readers wondering if there will be a second part (will there be??) and the end.

While I still love McNeil's writing, I wasn't able to attach myself to any of these characters. Yes, I felt a little bad for everyone I was supposed to feel bad for and so on, but I felt very meh about everyone. I was more interested in how the author would make the story unique in such a predictable plot and she did by adding a bit of suspense and some horror elements as well. So, for the most part, I did enjoy 3:59 but not as much as I was originally hoping.

Nhận xét

Popular Posts

Review | Forbidden by Tabitha Suzuma

Title: Forbidden  by Tabitha Suzuma Series: N/A Genre: YA - Contemporary Publication: June 28, 2011 by Simon Pulse Format: Hardcover Source: Purchased Rating:  ★★★ Synopsis:  Seventeen-year-old Lochan and sixteen-year-old Maya have always felt more like friends than siblings. Together they have stepped in for their alcoholic, wayward mother to take care of their three younger siblings. As de facto parents to the little ones, Lochan and Maya have had to grow up fast. And the stress of their lives—and the way they understand each other so completely—has also brought them closer than two siblings would ordinarily be. So close, in fact, that they have fallen in love. Their clandestine romance quickly blooms into deep, desperate love. They know their relationship is wrong and cannot possibly continue. And yet, they cannot stop what feels so incredibly right. As the novel careens toward an explosive and shocking finale, only one thing is certain: A love this devastating h...

Review | Love and First Sight by Josh Sundquist

Title: Love and First Sight by Josh Sundquist Series: N/A Genre: Contemporary Publication:  January 3, 2017 by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers Format: Audiobook Source: Library Rating: ★★★★★ Synopsis:   On his first day at a new school, blind sixteen-year-old Will Porter accidentally groped a girl on the stairs, sat on another student in the cafeteria, and somehow drove a classmate to tears. High school can only go up from here, right? As Will starts to find his footing, he develops a crush on a sweet but shy girl named Cecily. And despite his fear that having a girlfriend will make him inherently dependent on someone sighted, the two of them grow closer and closer. Then an unprecedented opportunity arises: an experimental surgery that could give Will eyesight for the first time in his life. But learning to see is more difficult than Will ever imagined, and he soon discovers that the sighted world has been keeping secrets. It turns out Cecily doesn’t meet traditi...

Love of Reading November BOTM \\ The Other Einstein by Marie Benedict

NOTE  →   I recently joined a Goodreads group in which a new book is chosen every month. I thought it would be a fun idea (for myself) to answer the discussion questions, instead of writing a review, on the book we read each month here on my blog. That way I can share my thoughts on it, but also discuss it with others across a few platforms without having to write two things. These posts may contain spoilers. Proceed with caution.  Synopsis: A vivid and mesmerizing novel about the extraordinary woman who married and worked with one of the greatest scientists in history. What secrets may have lurked in the shadows of Albert Einstein’s fame? His first wife, Mileva “Mitza” Marić, was more than the devoted mother of their three children—she was also a brilliant physicist in her own right, and her contributions to the special theory of relativity have been hotly debated for more than a century. In 1896, the extraordinarily gifted Mileva is the only woman studying physics at a...

Free $100