Book Series Review-The Dark Tower series by Stephen King

 

I am rolling through the Dark Tower series by Stephen King. I am currently on the 4th book (just started) and am loving it! I will do a combined review of the books that I've finished so far. This *may* contain spoilers but I'll try to avoid them as much as possible. 

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First impressions were a bit iffy. You basically get thrown into a world that makes no real sense when you crack open The Gunslinger. You're on a depressing journey with this guy that's looking for someone or something. He's Roland of Gilead. A Gunslinger, but you don't know exactly what that means. The story is disjointed and chaotic but something about it tickles your brain and keeps you reading. 

Roland eventually meets up with Jake, a boy who isn't from Roland's world or time line. Speaking of timelines...you aren't quite sure about that with Roland's world. When is it? Where is it? There's things that show you that they have technology, or had technology, but everything is crumbling and decrapitated. Roland's world has "moved on." This is a phrase that's said often, but explained very little. 

Roland is on a quest to catch up to The Man in Black, for some reason. It's vague. It's intriguing. It kept me reading and engaged. Things happen along the way. Action and adventure. Good stuff! 

The first line of the book sums it up perfectly. "The Man in Black fled across the desert, and the gunslinger followed." 

That's pretty much the story. 

The 2nd book in the series gets even more funkier with the timelines and the characters (sometimes one character has multiple personalities!) and is an even wilder ride that the first book! The writing is tighter, you get more character development. Roland gets fleshed out more. There's time travel-ish, with characters from the 60's, 70's and 80's. And then whatever time Roland is from. It can be a tad confusing before everything is pulled together but when it does it's glorious! We're introduced to Odetta/Detta and Eddie. His new companions.  More time travel shenanigans happen. Some personality shifting happens. And a lot of weirdness happens. The 2nd book was much better than the first, with better more cohesive story threads and fleshed out characters. 

Definitely a good start to a LOONG series. 

So the 3rd book takes the funky fun even further. The trio (Roland, Eddie and the newly Susannah..formerly Odetta/Detta) are on their journey to find the Dark Tower. On the way, they have to rescue and reunite with Jake...remember from the first book? Well he is pulled back into Mid-world and right smack into danger. So the gang has to get him out of said danger so all of them can get back to the tower plan. 

Again with the time travel-ish, and again with the shifting of realities. It should be getting old by now but it's not. King's writing continues to get better with each of these books. You can tell he's getting more and more comfortable with the characters and with the weirdness (I mean duh, it's Stephen King..right?) And you as the reader are also getting used to all the random crap that's being thrown your way. 

Oh oh oh and this book is where you are introduced to the bestest character ever! 

My dude Oy the billy bumbler. 

 Like for reals, once this handsome fella stepped on the scene, it became the Oy show. 

Roland who?

Also there's a talking insane train named Blaine. It's wild man, and I am on this ride til the end. 

I'll post another series review when I get through the next few! 

Have you read this series? What do you think? 

Review: This is Not A Test

Blurb:

It’s the end of the world. Six students have taken cover in Cortege High but shelter is little comfort when the dead outside won’t stop pounding on the doors. One bite is all it takes to kill a person and bring them back as a monstrous version of their former self. To Sloane Price, that doesn’t sound so bad. Six months ago, her world collapsed and since then, she’s failed to find a reason to keep going. Now seems like the perfect time to give up. As Sloane eagerly waits for the barricades to fall, she’s forced to witness the apocalypse through the eyes of five people who actually want to live. But as the days crawl by, the motivations for survival change in startling ways and soon the group’s fate is determined less and less by what’s happening outside and more and more by the unpredictable and violent bids for life—and death—inside. When everything is gone, what do you hold on to?

My Thoughts:

This book is dark. It's not pretty, there is just no way around it. It's brutal, it's honest, and it's what life would probably be like in a situation like this! Courtney Summers has written a book that's so visceral and ..well let's just say when you open this book, just go ahead and clear a day off your schedule. You will NOT want to stop!

The writing is beautifully honest and bare. Sloane's character may be cold but this is her conditioning. After years and years of abuse she see this event as a means to an end, but the people around her change this in so many ways. It's a tragic, brutal, and beautiful story. It's definitely now one of my favorites!

Book Club Read: The Testament of Jessie Lamb

About:
 A rogue virus that kills pregnant women has been let loose in the world, and nothing less than the survival of the human race is at stake. Some blame the scientists, others see the hand of God, and still others claim that human arrogance and destructiveness are reaping the punishment they deserve. Jessie Lamb is an ordinary sixteen-year-old girl living in extraordinary times. As her world collapses, her idealism and courage drive her toward the ultimate act of heroism. She wants her life to make a difference. But is Jessie heroic? Or is she, as her scientist father fears, impressionable, innocent, and incapable of understanding where her actions will lead? Set in a world irreparably altered by an act of biological terrorism, The Testament of Jessie Lamb explores a young woman's struggle to become independent of her parents. As the certainties of her childhood are ripped apart, Jessie begins to question her parents' attitudes, their behavior, and the very world they have bequeathed her.

My Review: 
This book was thoroughly thought provoking. The premise is unsettling and was well presented by Jane Rogers. Jessie Lamb is a normal girl growing up in a world that is changing. Women can get pregnant, but they die. The babies too. Scientists are trying to figure out what is going on and how to stop it, but at what cost? Girls. Girls are either volunteering or being coerced into becoming "sleeping beauties" and thus basically killing themselves for the good of human kind.

This book brought up so many questions in my mind as I read along. Jessie Lamb starts to doubt her world and grown ups in general. Why should she go to school and be a doctor if humans are on the way out? Why should the world keep going in the same direction? What can young people do to stop it? Why are women always punished for man's faults? This is what I mean by thought provoking.

There is a slight twist, or at least I think that is what it is intended to be, but I guessed it pretty early on. Normally that sort of thing would be a strike against the book, but it didn't annoy me at all. I'm not going to give out spoilers, but it makes the first part of the book all the more intense.

I am so very glad that I read this book and got a chance to read it. I hope that my review has piqued your interest, as I highly recommend this one! It's stark and intense, but in the end there is hope. Even if it's just a little spark of hope. It's still there.

This book releases on May 15.


This book will be discussed on Linus's Blanket today!

Ravished by a Highlander

FORBIDDEN LOVE

Davina Montgomery is no ordinary English lady. For her own protection, she's been locked away from society, her true identity the Crown's most closely guarded secret. Until a shocking betrayal--and a bold rescue--land her in the arms of a fierce Highlander, a powerful warrior whose searing gaze and tantalizing touch awaken her body and soul.

UNDENIABLE DESIRE

As the firstborn son of a powerful Scottish laird, Robert MacGregor has no loyalty to the English throne, but he's not the kind of man to leave a woman in distress, even if she is English. He vows to deliver Davina to safety, unharmed and untouched. Yet one stolen kiss leaves them both smoldering with desire...and desperate for more. With Davina's secret threatening to destroy his clan, Rob must choose between everything he holds dear and the one woman he can't live without.

My Review:

These books are usually trashy smutty fun. To be quite honest, if I see a half-nekkid man on the cover with ripply abs and a big ole phallic sword jutting out, I think...hmm...no plot. This book definitely challenged that notion. This is really a honest case of the old standard, "don't judge a book by it's cover," because yeah..don't do that. This book is good! There is a LOT of plot and a LOT of good stuff. Front to back, it's full of fun. The characters are interesting and real. The steamy scenes are steamy without being well...too smutty (yes there is such a thing!)

This book was so much fun to read! Just the right amount of action, romance, and naughty bits ;)

I give it a 4.5/5! :)

What's Coming Up in March?

Upcoming Giveways: March 14th-21st 500 Business Cards from Uprinting.com

Upcoming Reviews:

• Stormrage by Richard A. Knaak-Read and Reviewed
  
• The House of Tomorrow by Peter Bognanni-Read and Reviewed
  
• The Imposter by Kip Kreiling-Read and Reviewed
  
• Rabbit: Chasing Beth Ride by Ellen C. Maze-Read and Reviewed
  
• The Seeker in Forever by Alan Fox
• Hemingway Deadlights by Michael Atkinson
• White Cat by Holly Black-Read and Reviewed
  

Upcoming Blog Tours:

• She-Rain by Michael Cogdill March 17th-Read and Reviewed
  
• Vampyre Blood by George Earl Parker March 23rd-Read and Reviewed
  

Challenge Reads:

• (playing catch-up) The Fellowship of the Ring
• (playing catch-up) Stone of Tears

Quick Review: The Bone Chamber

The Bone Chamber was fun. It's action packed and full of suspense. It's the second in the Sydney Fitzpatrick series but I didn't have any problems following the story. There's enough back history provided that things flowed smoothly. I really enjoyed the character development. Griffin and Sydney are great characters with plenty of chemistry! The suspense was well-written and pretty intense. The twists and turns are actually kinda surprising and definitely not formulaic.

The Bone Chamber is definitely for those that have a fondness for action driven stories, with just a dash of (hinted) romance. I enjoyed Burcell's writing and will definitely pick up more of Robin Burcell's books! The phrase "page turner" would be an understatement for this one!!

Quick Review-Searching for Whitopia

Rich Benjamin's book makes you think. I laughed and winced at times, occasionally all at once! This isn't a light fluffy read though. It is a timely look at an old problem. This intelligent and thought provoking book hits on the nasty R word..racism. Rich takes a look at parts of white America and how they live, secluded and clustered away from the world and the big bad changes they see in the future.

I will say that I appreciated Rich's approach. Not all white people are afraid of people of color and not all white people are afraid of change. He makes that clear, which helps this book have a balance that other books fail to reach. This book is definitely for those looking for a witty and absorbing "serious" read.

Quick Review-Size Eight in a Size Zero World

It's really hard for me to write negative reviews, because well I want to be a nice person. I didn't HATE this book, that's such a harsh word, but I didn't like it either. I love a good love story. I love a good chick lit book. This book fell flat for me.

Lindsay is the mother of two children, whom seem like great kids. Her husband isn't very supportive or emotionally responsive to her. He treats her like a slave and doesn't interact with their children. Every single scene he is in we are reminded of how douchey he is. Okay we get it. Her marriage is doomed and she is emotionally unfulfilled. So? She has a job. She has connections and friends. GET A DIVORCE! Yeah the player in your apartment building is hot, but he's just that. A player! Even after she is shown many many MANY signs that he is not that great of a person, she still is smitten. BUT my main problem was that Lindsay just became incredibly selfish. She seems like a good mother in the beginning but gradually becomes this self-involved mushball. She lets her husband walk all over her and then let's Mr. Studly walk all over her too. She does things that as a mom made me cringe. Yeah, us Mommies need to let loose and go wild! After all we aren't dead, but we also have responsibilities that are more important. Lindsay seems to let the men in her life control her. I was hoping by the end she would see that she could support herself and be a strong woman, but that was not what we were given. The end of the book it seems like she's morphed into another character and one that I didn't really like.

I'm sorry I know this is coming out really harsh, but I'm being honest. I didn't enjoy this book. The characters never really grabbed me. Just when Lindsay seem to be developing as a person, she backslides and disappointed me. By the end of the book I was sad by what she had become. I'm not against being sexually extroverted, but by the end of the book Lindsay was acting like a fool.

Maybe it just wasn't a good choice for me. I hold no ill-will towards Ms. Cagen. I seem to be one of only a few, that didn't enjoy the book. To be fair and give a balanced review, I've found a few more positive reviews for this book. Have a look for yourself.

Check out these other reviews:
Press Release

http://www.free-press-release.com/news-racy-biting-funny-book-on-nyc-life-size-eight-in-a-size-zero-world-1260936277.html

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