THE HUNT By Andrew Fukuda
Categories: Horror, Suspense
If you think it’s wise to be fearful of deadly creatures that eat human flesh, creatures that surpass us in speed and strength, the vampires in The Hunt are your type of monster. Gene and his father were the last humans alive in the society of vampires, hiding what they truly are by cleverly adopting the mannerisms and behaviors of the vampires. When Gene’s father rushes home one day with bite marks on his neck and races off into the sun to save Gene from what he would soon turn into and destroy himself in the sun’s rays, Gene is left completely alone. He still goes to high school to avoid suspicion, still shaves all his body hair away and keeps out of the sunlight to maintain their appearance. He does not swing his arms when he walks or laugh, he chomps down synthetic bloody meat and drools at the mention of “herpers” (humans), he blends into the vampires each and every day.
That alone would have made for a promising scary story. But things really fire up when Gene is chosen in the majorly anticipated vampire hunt of the last herpers. A lottery is set up to randomly select a handful of lucky vampires to vie for the prize of a human snack, but the special twist this year is that it’s not one captively-bred herper, it’s five of them. Being in a competition to hunt down and devour human flesh is not ideal for Gene, and would compromise his very life.
This book was so suspenseful and wonderful, I was so anxious to read the sequel and wrote it on my calendar the day I knew when it would come out (Guess what? It’s out now). Gene was an incredibly brave and clever guy, keeping his cool in situations where I would have undoubtedly lost my nerve and gotten eaten by ravenous vampires. Yet he still empathizes with the vampires because they are all he truly knows.There were twists and turns, surprises, close calls and action right up to the last page. It was eerie and chilling and original. There is some blood and mild gore but nothing that would be considered graphic. It was so good when the sequel came out I read it in a day, even though I was already in the middle of a great book I tossed it aside once I realized that The Prey began right where The Hunt left off. An awesome addition for any frightening fiction fan.
Bonus Mini Review!!!
The Prey By Andrew Fukuda
Categories: Horror, Suspense (sequel)
FOR THOSE WHO HAVE READ THE HUNT ALREADY!
Spoilers- you have been warned thusly...
Last warning...
Ok so The Prey!! What an amazing thrill ride. We pick up right where we left off on the river with Gene and Sissy and the kids. Being chased by blood thirsty vampires with every intent on consuming their flesh. I was so sucked into this dang book that I stayed up way past my bedtime one night to get further... and then finished the whole thing in under a day. There were surprises about Ashley June, the Scientist, the trail they set out on and the things they find on the way. It was nerve-wracking and impossible to put down, a great sequel. I am so excited for the third (final?) in this thrillogy (series?) to some out in September. If you begin this book, I advise lots of available free time in which to soak it up and a friend to run over to (preferably one who’s also read both) whom you may scream and ponder and obsess about with.The moment I was done I raced over to my co-worker/friend and yelled “Oh my god!!!” And we talked about it for a good ten minutes just gushing over all the events of the book, a specific part we both got choked up about, and threw out much speculation over what was to come next. It was extremely absorbing!
The Last Werewolf By Glen Duncan
Categories: Fiction, horror
I was almost indifferent to the first half of this novel. It was beautifully written, but our antihero Jake lacks the zest of life. Having been around for two hundred years, he’s seen it all. Now the task force secretly rooting out all werewolves from the world have given Jake his final warning, “You’re the last.” He will be hunted down the next full moon when he changes, probably beheaded, if the task force has their way. But Jake is depressed already, the only companion he has is the faithful Harley. Saving Harley while in werewolf form when he was a young man about to be murdered was the only heroic thing Jake admits to. ‘Fuckkilleat’ is the werewolf mantra. In human form, Jake has no extraordinary abilities or traits. When it comes down to it, the whole thing read to me like a James Bond thriller (spies, captures, ransoms, escape, surveillance, double-agents) where our James Bond could care less about how it all turned out. Instead of hatching plans to survive, Jake is “pleasantly revisited by that seductive phrase, Come what may…Come what may… Come what may.” He refers to life as the “Boring drunk at the office party, keeps seeking you out, killing you with pointless yarns and laughing bad-breathed in your face at its own unfunny jokes.”
All this changes in the second act. It was a pleasant surprise and vastly transformed the whole landscape of this novel. Once things headed in an upward trajectory I was compelled to see how it played out for Jake. I preferred the purpose driven werewolf. Jake might not be a good person, but he’s resigned himself to the ways of living life with the hand he’s been dealt. Turning into a werewolf and consuming a person every month might do that to a person. This book is not typical werewolf folklore; the heart of the story is driven by Jake’s capacity (or inability) to forgive himself. Anyone with a love for language and second chances will enjoy The Last Werewolf.
DIVERGENT By Veronica Roth
Categories: Science Fiction, Young Adult
Here’s a story about Beatrice Prior, who lives in a futuristic (dystopian) Chicago. Her society is divided into five fractions that collectively create a functioning society. The Candor value honest above all else. Abnegation are selfless. Dauntless are known for their bravery. Amity are peaceful. Erudite thirst for knowledge and are supposed to be highly intelligent. Every year every 16 year old must decide which fraction to dedicate their lives to. For Beatrice, raised in the Abnegation, it means staying with her family or embracing her true self. After her choice, there is a long initiation process that pushes each teenage to their limit. Failure to succeed means being cast off as fraction-less, banished from society.
This was a great story, full of thrills. There was hidden agendas, betrayal, passion, solidarity, lots of action. I was impressed with the amount of character growth Beatrice accomplishes, even changing her name to Tris to further distance herself from the girl she used to be. A love interest named Four, a tough and closed-off Dauntless training instructor, makes things complicated for Tris. Her brother joins a rival fraction. Family and fraction secrets are discovered. I enjoyed the escape of this book; it was an action movie inside my head. If you liked the Hunger Games you should really read Divergent. The sequel is titled Insurgent and is also available. Read this before they make it into a movie!
GONE GIRL By Gillian Flynn
Categories: Mystery, suspense
There’s always going to be books you read that, once done, you think about it for a long time afterwards. Any book in my mind that I regularly recommend is usually one that grabbed hold of me and didn’t let go until hours after the last page was read, sucking me into a sticky web of character depth and plot twists.
Gone Girl was one of those books.
After two different friends said I needed to read this book, I was almost hesitant. Surely it couldn't be that good? But this story of a married thirty-something couple was superb. Meet Amy and Nick, who met in New York and had a relatively charmed life (or so it seems). Until it isn’t. Nick is the All American good-looking guy who falls for the crazy, lovable Cool Girl. Both lose their writers jobs in New York magazines and move back to Missouri to care for Nick’s demented father, cancer-ridden mother. It’s written in alternating viewpoints, in two different times of the couple’s relationship. The story ebbs and flows from the moment that golden Amy (gasp! Sigh!) goes missing from her home on the couple’s fifth wedding anniversary. I was captivated by Amy and Nick, each so likable as the lies and ulterior motives and depth of longing and hatred came creeping out.
It’s a twisted, consuming love that the Nick and Amy share. One quote that I threw out to my husband as his video game was loading “I thought we would be the happiest couple around. Not that love is a competition. But I didn't understand the point of being together if you’re not the happiest.”
This is one of those books that the plot pulls you effortlessly along, and I’d hate to give anything away by over sharing. As much as the ending was dark and ominous, it thrilled me a bit. I savored the ending, because it was poetic and fitting.
If you only have time for one read this winter, curled up on your favorite chair with the wind howling outside, make it this book.
THE SELECTION By Kiera Cass
Categories: Young adult, fantasy
In a dystopian future, America Singer lives in the middle of a caste system with her family. The country, formerly America, is now divided into different fractions with a royal family dictating over all castes. The royal family’s eldest son is of marrying age, and the king and queen decide to arrange his marriage based off a selection of all the finest eligible young ladies in the land. This is a problem for America because she has no interest in raising her status in society. More importantly, she is secretly in love with a man below her station. Handsome Aspen has been meeting with America in secret to steal kisses and dream about their future. When America is chosen to enter into the competition to vie for the Prince’s affections, her mother has to bribe her into even filling out the paperwork. I liked the quick-paced story; nothing in this book was drawn out.
The back story of why America as a country fell was interesting and nothing outrageous (sorry, no aliens or zombies), China came to collect on its debt and America was unable to pay so war broke out with many more countries clamoring for a slice of the pie. This story takes place in the aftermath of all that, where the royal family has been established a short while and has been unsuccessfully bringing the people back together. The main character was likeable and full of spunk (she makes a bet with the prince and asks that if she wins she is allowed to wear pants in place of fancy ballroom gowns). There’s a lack of imagination in her name, she is a singer by profession and it’s also her last name. Mostly the story was a pleasant escape to relax into. Strong lead female character, who was likable. I read it on my Kindle while on vacation and found myself up quite late one night just to finish it. The sequel will be titled The Elite, due out in April of this year. Any fan of fancy gowns, dating shows or teenaged heartache will enjoy this book.
BOSSYPANTS By Tina Fey
Categories: Non-fiction, comedy, autobiography
Tina Fey is hilarious. Her ability to create a book that had me laughing out loud even though I have zero interest in “show-business” is proof of that. She possesses a wit that made it delightful to read through her childhood and adolescence. Even that awkward stage of young adulthood was told with an honesty that made me pause and think about how the start of every comedian ‘s career must be paved with a constant demand to prove you’re funny. She also goes into her Saturday Night Live career, the highs and lows of performing and writing for one of the most iconic television shows in comedy. There’s a chapter explaining the enormously successful Governor Sarah Palin skit that took place during the 2008 Presidential campaign.
I really enjoyed her overall empowering message that women are on par with men in terms of, well, everything.Tina’s advice to women in the workplace is as follows, “when faced with sexism or ageism or lookism” etc, “ask yourself, ‘If this person in between me and what I want to do?’ If the answer is no, ignore it and move on. If yes, use the Sesame f Street film piece ‘Over! Under! Through!’ Do your thing and don’t care if they like it.” Quite inspirational.
There was a chapter that describes her attempts at being skinny, the negative consequences of progressing with that attempt, cold all the time, hungry all the time, and her journey back to being her regular size. Friendship with Amy Pohler is talked about a little, and as a huge Amy Pohler fan I only garnered more respect for the pair of them. Tina talks about her husband, the road to parenthood, the beginnings of her successful venture called 30 Rock. There’s a story about how her and her husband went on a cruise for their honeymoon and, unbeknownst to them, could have died.If you like random photos added to a story, this book has them. Not too many, but enough to add a little something to chuckle at. For anyone who enjoyed SNL, likes funny and driven women, this book will be something you should read.
