Book Review: Solitaire by Alice Oseman

Funfact: Radio Silence technically spoils the end of this book.

'I don't ever remember not being serious. As far as I'm concerned, I came out of the womb spouting cynicism and wishing for rain.'

My name is Tori Spring. I like to sleep and I like to blog. Last year – before all that stuff with Charlie and before I had to face the harsh realities of A-Levels and university applications and the fact that one day I really will have to start talking to people – I had friends. Things were very different, I guess, but that’s all over now.

Now there’s Solitaire. And Michael Holden.

I don’t know what Solitaire are trying to do, and I don’t care about Michael Holden.

I really don’t.

This is a book I have owned since it came out, many years ago. So many years ago, I do not remember why I brought it. Well, probably because it says it's not a Love story and even then I hated the fact that every book seemed to be a love story at it's centre and they were often very bad. 

This book is more about friendship than romantic love, but it's also sort of there. We also have sibling relationships and as well as dealing with being a family with a sick sibling, which from my experience was done pretty well.

The way mental health is dealt with in this book is so great. If you're someone who wants to know nothing then leave this paragraph now. I related to Tori hating everything because I too kinda hated everything when I was seventeen and then I realise that this book was slowly showing beginning to related even more to my seventeen old self in an important way. It's done so fucking well. It's remind me of my slow dive into that state of numbness and then mixed in with the guilt because wasn't allowed to be sick. But haha that doesn't stop it.

I've seen others hate on the mental illness rep and the fact the main character is a teenager. Tori is shitty person, most teenagers are, I think that's pretty realistic to the story. Reading other reviews is interesting because you can see where other people get real hanged up on.

The plot is about this website called Solitaire.com that is playing planks on the Grammar School that Tori goes to. It used to drive the characters interactions with each other to figure out whose behind it/why.  With the plot description, it might seem like a thriller but it's really not, especially it's usually going on in the background. The focus is very much on the characters and their relationships together.

In terms of rep, we have Queer supporting characters as well as the mental health side. It sort of comes into the plot, but it's realistic and fine besides that. They function for the most part like a straight couple. There's also autistic feel to some characters, not saying they meant to be coded autistic but you could read them that way.

Overall, I give this book 5/5 stars for soft muttering. I related to this book a lot so I really loved it. I don't know if I liked it so much because I related to it so much, but I think either way it was done pretty well. In terms of her other books, I like this book better than Radio Silence. They have similar themes/issues and I think it works better in this one. I'm doing an review of Radio Silence so I talk about it there. Both are good, but I think this one was better, I also get why that might be a me thing. This book does have issues, but I like intention over all.

Early Horrors

As of Monday, I have not been having a very good week, after having a weekend ruined of no internet. I could blame that on being missing online deadlines, but it’s not true. I never filmed the footage, I should have, I never wrote the words I needed, nor did I completely have no access to the internet. Though, it was terrible quality and only accessible through hanging out windows where its cold. This continued to Tuesday, till noon.

I ordered the special edition of the Welcome to Night Vale novel and on blink of its publishication, I got email saying there was issue with my order of book that had already arrived, but was in the same order as the Night Vale novel. When I called to find out what the issue was, I got a place I swear was called Kingies. Eventually, I got through to Waterstones (who else would I pre-order with?) and was cut off as the customer service person said it was not being published till…I called again and it was an issue with my payment which was another five minutes of me hanging out the window because I have no internet or landline. 

I also pointlessly emailed them in a bid to confirmed that I had miscalculated the publication of the new Robert Galbraith book. In the end, it was me being idiot and everything was fine in the end.

I am idiot with money.

Yarny is shutting down next month, just in time not to be there for NaNoWriMo. I probably won't do it, because of uni deadlines. Though, maybe I will because of uni deadlines and I'm feeling creatively stifled, because doing a writing course has been me feel limited.

Next Saturday is Halloween and you might get horror. It could be creative or just life horror. However, the most horrifying thing has already happened. Life without internet. 

Book Review: The Eye of Minds by James Dashner

I'm sorry Micheal, I'm afraid I can't do that.

For Michael and the other gamers, the VirtNet can make your wildest fantasies become real. And the more hacking skills you have, the more fun. Who wants to play by the rules anyway?

But some rules were made for a reason. One gamer has been taking people hostage inside the VirtNet with horrific consequences.

The government needs Michael to track down the rogue gamer, but the risk is enormous and the line between game and reality could be blurred forever . . .

The plot is quite interesting, but so saw the twist. I guess from half way through the book. It sort of obvious, but it’s not. I felt like there was a twist so then the twist would obviously be that.

Dashner has created an interesting world. Virtual Internet worlds have been a thing since the 80s. You do it naked for some reason; you can just image all the dodgy things people do in their coffins (that what the box things you lie whilst in the virtual world is called). Sell safes (I don’t think that’s right phrase) are fun.­­

The chapters have this weird layouts where there parts in them and don’t really get why. It doesn’t really serve any purpose that I can work out. 

We have the typical trio, two boys and one girl (who usually ends up dating one of the boys in the trio and that totally doesn’t get old). Michael is the main character with Bryson and Sarah being the back-up.  It is a bit formatted but I like to think that Bryson is actually 40 year man with two kids he doesn’t see, deciding maybe he attempt another go as being a stand-up comedian and Sarah is a 12 year old boy who just starting to notice other boys. We do only meet them in the virtual world. This is more a plot/world driven book, you just have to like the characters enough that you care if they die, which I did find myself doing.

Overall, I gave this book 4 out of 5 stars for tangents. I do plan to continue the trilogy. I am intrigued.

Book Review: Adorkable by Sarra Manning

 I hate both the main characters, they're both prejudice, shallow and their judgement is always questionable.Still its a very readable book.

Jeane Smith's a blogger, a dreamer, a dare-to-dreamer, a jumble sale queen, CEO of her own lifestyle brand, and has half a million followers on Twitter.  

Michael Lee's a star of school, stage, and playing field. A golden boy in a Jack Wills hoodie.  

They have nothing in common but a pair of cheating exes. So why can't they stop making out?

I like to start out by saying that this is how Jeane Smith describes herself (in third person because that what you do on the internet)on her blog. She describles her self as "a dreamer" and "a dare-to-dreamer". This really bugs me as there the same thing, to be "a dreamer" you've got to "dare" to be one and it just adds nothing.

This is obvious YA Romance novel, so mainly about the Jeane and Michael relationships. So the characters should make the book. To be bluntly honest, before I even finish Chapter One my opinion was that they're both deserve each other as they're both arseholes. Jeane little Goth comment was really where I got my distaste of her. You know she meant to be an outcast but makes fun of other outcasts. She sort of does that a lot. She also is very much not a dork. She seems rather fake in her weirdness. I mean I just don't buy it all.

Michael is petty much the popular cliché. Likes only people who wears labels.

 Also there was no cheating exes. Basically, their girlfriend and boyfriend at the start of the novel, like each other and because frankly the starting relationships were in terrible states, they broke up and start seeing each other. The exes are both rather boring and I didn't care if they show up again. Jeane attitude as having made her ex-boyfriend is my favourite thing that made her so very unlikeable.

Oh, If you wondering, I still think they're both petty much arseholes after reading the whole book.

However, even though the main characters are completely unlikeable -Actually the only characters I like is Michael's family. How could they have gone so wrong with Michael?- This book is really readable, it like you just need to know what these idoits are going to do next.

Also there actually a few good things about this book, such as the point of view changes each chapter between Jeane and Michael which really work for this book. You also get to see how they lie to themselves straight away with conflicting versions of events.

 It also petty realistic portrayal of teenage life (once you get past Jeane is big deal on the internet and the Guardian is meant to really like her). There's sex, underage drinking and a really boring party.

So I gave this book a 3/5 stars because I did enjoy reading it. So I guess I recommend this to anyone who likes observing idiots and doesn't care if the main characters are that likeable.