And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie

And Then There Were None
By Agatha Christie 
Publisher: Harper Collins
Date Published: 1940/2011
Pages: 247

     First, there were ten - a curious assortment of strangers summoned as weekend guests to a private island off the coast of Devon. Their host, an eccentric millionaire unknown to all of them, is nowhere to be found. All that the guests have in common is a wicked past they're unwilling to reveal - and a secret that will seal their fate. For each has been marked for murder. One by one they fall prey. Before the weekend is out, there will be none. And only the dead are above suspicion.

Can you believe this is actually the first Agatha Christie novel I've read? I've seen plenty of visual adaptations of her stories, from TV specials, movies, to plays, but never really sat down with one of them. I called myself a sucker for mysteries and had never read anything by the Queen of Mystery!

I read And Then There Were None right at the end of my summer break, devouring it in about a day. It has a lot of the elements you'd expect: creepy, large house isolated from the rest of civilization, inclement weather, people with suspicious backgrounds, dark rooms, plenty of room for the killer to hide. Everything was pulled off well; there were more than a few times where I actually felt frightened. The poem about the Ten Indians, and the porcelain Indians that were smashed each time one of the characters died was a nice, creepy touch that heightened the urgency of finding the murderer.

I didn't expect that ending at all! And that's what makes the best mystery sometimes.
My first venture with Agatha Christie was a positive one, and I have Murder on the Orient Express to look forward to!


 

Top Ten Tuesday: Books Unread on my Shelf

 

Top Ten Tuesday is an original weekly meme created and hosted by The Broke and the Bookish

1. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte : I don't know how I haven't gotten around to this yet! My interested in Jane Eyre was piqued by the most recent film adaptation starring Mia Wasikowska and Michael Fassbender. I've always been a bit wary of the Brontes because of the darker tones their writings possess, but I think it would be a good challenge for me. And there's the fact that Jane is me or I am Jane...

2. Juliet by Anne Fortier : Modern Romeo and Juliet?! I also don't know how I've just let this one sit on my shelf for so long. I've heard mixed things about this, so maybe that's why I haven't opened it yet.

3. The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern : A circus, magic, and romance- all enticing things in one acclaimed bestseller- I'm just going to stop saying I don't know how I haven't finished this yet.

4. Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro : Luckily, I've chosen to read this one for my English class this month, so I should have a review up when I'm done!

5. Sarah's Key by Tatiana de Rosnay : I've also heard good things about this one, and I believe the movie adaptation has come out, or is coming soon.

6. The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson : Do I even have to explain why this is another book that I should have already read? Two movie adaptations, lots of talk, strong female character...

7. What Happened to Goodbye by Sarah Dessen : I think Dessen's books are always kind of hit-and-miss. I love This Lullaby and Just Listen but was not really a fan of Lock and Key. I think I stopped reading What Happened to Goodbye because the beginning was a bit slow.

8. Beauty Queens by Libba Bray: One of my favorite series of all time is the Gemma Doyle trilogy. I think Bray's forays into the modern world (as seen in Beauty Queens and Going Bovine) are just something that I have to get used to, since I was really drawn to her writing in Gemma Doyle.

9. Halo by Alexandra Adornetto : Most of the reviews I've read about this one haven't been particularly favorable, calling it another Twilight with a cliche supernatural romance and vapid female narrator. At the same time, the whole concept of angels really does interest me.

10. Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie : A mystery classic! I'm a sucker for mysteries.

I plan on getting to all of these... eventually!

The Hunger Games: Official Trailer

The trailer for Suzanne Collins' The Hunger Games was released this morning. The film will be released in theaters March 23, 2012. If you haven't already read the trilogy, now would be a great time to! It's never too late to start. The Hunger Games really re-kick started my reading addiction into action and was probably the main inspiration for this blog.



On another note, I should have a whole slew of reviews coming soon; college application season has been crazy!

Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins

Anna and the French Kiss
By Stephanie Perkins 
Publisher: Dutton
Date Published: December 2, 2010
Pages: 372

     Anna is looking forward to her senior year in Atlanta, where she has a great job, a loyal best friend, and a crush on the verge of becoming more. Which is why she is less than thrilled about being shipped off to boarding school in Paris - until she meets Etienne St. Clair: perfect, Parisian (and English and American, which makes for a swoon-worthy accent), and utterly irresistible. The only problem is that he's taken, and Anna might be, too, if anything comes of her almost-relationship back home.

As winter melts into spring, will a year of romantic near - misses end with the French kiss Anna - and readers - have long awaited?

    I don't deny that I was initially wary of reading this one. Everything from the title to the cover to the plot to the characters to the setting seemed to radiate cheesiness. Anna and the French Kiss seemed But I was completely, utterly wrong and I'm extremely glad that I was.

I finally gave in and picked Anna up at the library after reading more rave reviews from other online bloggers. What exactly was it about this book that had everyone else swooning? I still can't exactly say, but something- or everything- just works. It was fantastic. 

Perkin's writing is fluid and engaging; after the first couple of chapters I couldn't put the book down. I might have devoured this in one weekend instead of starting my college applications-Shh! She put such care into the characters- Anna and Etienne especially- and I found myself invested in Anna, Etienne, and their group of friends. While I thought some of the supporting characters were lacking, I didn't mind because I was completely captivated by Anna and Etienne the entire time. And the setting! I don't think this novel would have been as effective if the story took place anywhere else besides Paris. It didn't feel like Perkins was forcing the plot and her characters into the setting, as some authors often do, Paris being the "City of Love."  

Maybe Anna works because everything feels natural. The setup isn't exactly anything new or groundbreaking- new girl travels to a foreign country, meets boy, they fall in love- but I appreciated that the entire journey felt realistic. Anna and Etienne's relationship developed gradually and I felt every high and every low they went through. As Anna fell in love with Etienne, I also fell in love with him. I'm quite tired of recent YA books that seem to force the romance and push for an immediate "love at first sight" angle. This novel was such a refreshing break to that trend and presented a love story that I could really believe in. The dialogue was also witty and I believed that these words could come out of the mouths of a bunch of teens.

I don't think I can write a review that will do this book any justice. Anna and the French Kiss seems to perfectly capture that feeling of falling in love and while it was not flawless, it's one of the best YA books I've read this year. I was hoping that I would be able to contain myself from finishing it today because I just didn't want it to end, but paradoxically I couldn't stop reading. I think it's always the ones that surprise you that stay with you the most. I could keep going on and on about this book, but I recommend that you read it yourself as soon as possible. I'm not looking forward to returning Anna to the library, but I'm sure I'll get my hands on my own copy soon for gazillions of rereads to come.

Forgotten by Cat Patrick

Forgotten
By Cat Patrick
Publisher: Little, Brown Books
Date Published: June 7, 2011
Pages: 288

     Each night when 16 year-old London Lane goes to sleep, her whole world disappears. In the morning, all that's left is a note telling her about a day she can't remember. The whole scenario doesn't exactly make high school or dating that hot guy whose name she can't seem to recall any easier. But when London starts experiencing disturbing visions she can't make sense of, she realizes it's time to learn a little more about the past she keeps forgetting-before it destroys her future.

    Forgotten first caught my attention when Paramount bought up the rights for a movie adaptation starring young Oscar-nominated actress Hailee Steinfeld (a favorite of mine). This was months before the novel was even released on store shelves. I was intrigued.

     The premise for Patrick's debut novel is great. A teenage girl wakes up each morning unable to remember the past, but has the ability to "remember" visions from the future- until they happen. The best part of Forgotten for me was reading to see exactly what the ramifications of London's affliction were and how she dealt with them. The fact that she seemed to accept who she was despite her strange circumstances was admirable.There were a few instances where London wondering if she could rid herself of her problem, but they didn't drag the story down into a hole of angst.

      At the same time, I didn't particularly like her. Patrick's characterizations came off a bit flat and the dialogue and narration were cheesy at times. London's relationship with Luke was adorable but slightly cringe-worthy at times. I did genuinely like Luke, however, and was glad that this wasn't another "I love you but I have to stay away from you"set-up because I'm getting quite tired of those in YA fiction.

     Still, Forgotten kept me on the edge of my seat purely by its intriguing premise. The end of the novel is clearly set up for a sequel and I'm interested in where Patrick plans on taking London, Luke, and the rest of the characters.

Note: I'm back! I know it has been way too long; summer school and a host of other things have kept me extremely busy. But I'm anxious to return to that huge stack of books I still need to get through! 

Divergent by Veronica Roth

Divergent
By Veronica Roth
Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books
Date Published: May 3, 2011
Pages: 487

In Beatrice Prior's dystopian Chicago, society is divided into five factions, each dedicated to the cultivation of a particular virtue—Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent). On an appointed day of every year, all sixteen-year-olds must select the faction to which they will devote the rest of their lives. For Beatrice, the decision is between staying with her family and being who she really is—she can't have both. So she makes a choice that surprises everyone, including herself.

During the highly competitive initiation that follows, Beatrice renames herself Tris and struggles to determine who her friends really are—and where, exactly, a romance with a sometimes fascinating, sometimes infuriating boy fits into the life she's chosen. But Tris also has a secret, one she's kept hidden from everyone because she's been warned it can mean death. And as she discovers a growing conflict that threatens to unravel her seemingly perfect society, she also learns that her secret might help her save those she loves . . . or it might destroy her.

    I wasn't so sure it would live up to the months of hype surrounding it, but Divergent greatly surpassed all of my expectations with flying colors. The setting was great, the plot was engaging , the characters were amazing. If you were me, you'd probably be thinking, Another teen dystopian novel? Many of the elements in Divergent are similar to say, The Hunger Games, but Roth managed to create something original that captivated my attention the entire way through. The concept of a society made up of different factions was really intriguing and I found that I only predicted a couple out of a myriad of plot twists. It's been a while since I've been so thoroughly surprised and entertained by a book! I like Tris, the narrator. I think I'm still learning to connect with her, but I really felt for her toward the end of the book. But I'm glad that she was flawed, and that there were moments when she made mistakes without remorse. She felt real. I adored Four, and appreciated that he was different from the usual "hero" we've been seeing a lot in YA nowadays.

   I finished this book earlier today and I'm still at a loss for how I should even begin to fully and coherently express my happiness with it in this review. It's not working, so I'll just leave it at this: if you haven't read Divergent, go now! By far the best debut novel, and novel (period) I have read this year so far. I couldn't put this book down and I suspect my teachers may be a bit cross with me. For once, I'm not that annoyed that this is going to be another trilogy.

If I Stay by Gayle Forman

If I Stay
By Gayle Forman
Publisher: Dutton Juvenile
Date Published: January 1, 2009
Pages: 196

     In a single moment, everything changes. Seventeen-year-old Mia has no memory of the accident; she can only recall riding along the snow-wet Oregon road with her family. Then, in a blink, she finds herself watching as her own damaged body is taken from the wreck...

    Oh what an absolute sob fest.
     I had heard about If I Stay for a while now, but just managed to get around to reading it now. I'm not sure I loved it as much as most people have, but there was something touching about the story, in how simple it was. I'll admit that I teared up in more than a couple places.

    I think I found that I couldn't completely connect with all of the characters because they just seemed so perfect... and thus distant? Or perhaps they were supposed to come off that way, as about half of the book is composed of flashbacks from Mia's point of view, and half of the book happens from Mia's perspective as a silent, detached (literally) observer.

   Despite its flaws, If I Stay was really beautifully written. Like the book's strong theme of music, Forman's writing comes off as quite lyrical. The story may not be particularly original or humorous but I appreciated its introspective nature and the ending, though a cliffhanger, was wonderful.
   I guess knowing that a sequel was recently released, helped ease the questions of "What's going to happen? What?!"  that were racing through my head at the end! But at the same time, the story could have ended there and I would have been content.

Note: I've decided to stop using the rating system because I didn't like having to constrain myself to choosing between a 4 or a 5 or a 4.5 and etc.! And sometimes it's really difficult to sum a book that way.