The Gracekeepers by Kirsty Logan

I give it a solid four stars.  Where to begin.  This is a very different kind of story.  It is influenced by old Scottish myths and fairy tales.  Since I don't know these fables, I was a little lost at first but it isn't hard really to catch on.  Truthfully it was much more interesting than I thought it was going to be.  The opening chapters really threw me.  We start off with a young Callanish obsessing over gloves and slippers, going to the circus and being fascinated (then terrified) by the bear act. Then we jump to North pregnant and with the circus (I'm not spoiling anything here). Then to Callanish grown & a Gracekeeper.  But after the slightly confusing start it really was an interesting, albeit frustrating, story.  It is a tale of two women trying to be themselves in a world that wants to tell them to be anything BUT themselves.  Yes there are quite a few other points of view told throughout the story but all relate back to those two main characters.  Two women, both outcasts for different reasons who want nothing more than to just live how they want. It is a story about being comfortable with yourself no matter what others tell you.  It is also about a bond between two people.  An unexplainable attraction to one another and unconditional acceptance of each other. 

It was really was a wonderful story.  It takes place in a future where the world is no longer how we know it.  Land is scarce and people have been broken into two factions.  People of the land and people of the sea.  They basically hate each other for various reasons...mainly based on stereotypes that aren't true.  I guess even in a decimated future prejudices still exist.  Somehow a girl of the land forms an unexpected bond with a girl of the sea and it is rather beautiful.  So many things happen and so many people they trust try to hurt both of them before they can truly be reunited.  Their fates had always been intertwined.  Since the day Callanish saw North and her parents as a child to the day North shows up as an adult and then beyond.  They were always meant to find one another and be the each others family.  Lesson learned...all you really need is a hand to hold, even if that hand belongs to a friend and is webbed.   

SPOILERS

The hardships that both girls had to overcome was heartbreaking.  Callanish is different.  She is practically part fish (one of those myths) and has to hide her true self lest she be murdered by her friends and family.  Her mother resents her for a few reasons and she runs away.  She becomes a Gracekeeper that holds water funerals for people of the sea.  She is pretty but shy...she keeps to herself, she doesn't trust her secret with anyone.  Her adventure takes her away from the Gracekeep.  She realizes after meeting the circus folk that she needs to make amends with her mother.  I think it is because of the connection she felt with North.  She hated North because she was pregnant and Callanish wanted no pregnant women near her because of the death of her sibling that she blames herself for.  North tells her an unbelievable tale about the conception of her unborn child and Callanish realizes for the first time in her life she might not be alone.  She ends up trusting this bear girl with her secret and instead of shying away North accepts her. 

North is between a rock and a hard place.  She is the bear girl.  She performs in a floating circus with a bear.  She loves her bear more than anything.  Her boss and pseudo-father expects her to marry her childhood bff, his son.  He is so blinded by is want that he doesn't realize North and Ainsel don't actually love one another.  North wants to make the man who raised her happy but she doesn't want to marry this man or live on land as he wishes.  Also, she is pregnant with a baby she is 99.9% certain belongs to a merman.  She remembers the night like a dream, scales and sleeping on the beach but the baby is proof the encounter happened.  She never tells anyone of the baby, except Callanish and is shocked when Callanish believes her without question. 

Avalon (basically the evil step mother, even though she isn't North's step mother) is an awful character.  She is selfish.  She will do anything to get what she wants.  She says she loves Red Gold (North's pseudo-father and boss) but she still sleeps with her STEP SON to get pregnant and then does everything in her power to destroy North so that she will get the house on land.  She even goes to far as to fake a bear attack and burn down the circus to get what she wants.  She is terrible. 

The rest of the characters give depth to the story but these three women are really what it is about.  Avalon's selfishness get her the house she wants but also a home full of the circus folk she hates.  Sucks for her but she made that bed and will have to lie in it.  North loses her bear but gains the main ship in the circus, the Excalibur, as a gift from Red Gold for everything he's put her through.  She also gains a soulmate, Callanish.  In her travels to make amends with her mother Callanish comes across the circus again and helps North.  They sail off into the sunset together.  Callanish delivers North's baby girl, in a way making up for not being there for her mom and baby sister.  They live together at the Gracekeep, raising baby Ursa who is like Callanish, part fish-part human.  They have a home at the keep but they also have the gift from Red Gold.  They can travel the world if they want. 

It was a beautiful ending.  A refreshing ending.  It wasn't a story about romantic love.  Its more like a sisterly love but maybe more.  We don't get into it and that is perfectly fine. 

My thoughts towards the end.

08/13	page 284		88.0%	"There aren't many pages left but still a lot to answer. . . ."
08/13	page 294		91.0%	"If the bear dies, I'm throwing the book across the room...if Avalon lives I'm lighting it on fire."
08/13	page 315		98.0%	"Okay fine, I won't light in on fire only because Avalon is gonna hate that life, muahahaha"

I received this book for free from Blogging for Books to give my honest review.

Saint Odd by Dean Koontz

I actually finished this book over a week ago and forgot to review it (oops).  I've been busy.  With that said, I have mixed feelings.  I love it because its Odd.  He is still in my top 10 favorite fictional characters.  But there almost isn't enough of his internal banter that made me love him so much.  Don't get me wrong, it is there but its just background noise.  His internal banter is by far my favorite part of his personality.  He is smart and witty and just plain funny. 

It is still a great book with a few flaws but its worth reading.  Come on people its the LAST Odd book. You have to read how it all ends.  And let me tell you its a doozy. Do I recommend it, yes.  Will I say its the best, eh...no I can't but that could also be because I hate endings even though we all know they have to happen eventually.  And because it is the last of the series we have a parade of old and new characters coming back.  It is nice but it really hits home that this is really it. I won't spoil the ending here (well I will, in the SPOILER) but I will say I read the last 50 pages on a plane and I was that person...you know the one who is pretending not to cry and sniffling because damn you Mr Koontz.  So read it, for the love of Odd (ha) finish what you started.



SPOILERS

 








As stated before it was lacking some of the things that drew me to love Odd in the first place.  There was a bit of repetition but I think it was mainly for those who may not have read the whole series.  Annamaria is still an enigma.  Who is she???  Honestly I still don't know for sure but based on the ending, I think she is some sort of Goddess on Earth...a mother figure that took to protecting Odd.  I wish Edie would have been more prevalent, I loved her wit in the last book.  But we got a dose of her which was nice. Revisiting Ozzie felt right, along with adding in Chief Porter. They meant so much to Odd, it's nice that they were more a part of the final book.  Do I still miss Stormy?  Just as much as Oddie does.  I can't believe she was only part of one book...ONE.  But reading all of Odd's feelings about her over the series, I feel like she has been a constant, albeit background, character. 

What I missed...we don't see dead people!  I mean we do but not nearly like we should seeing as the entire effing series is about a young man who quite literally sees dead people!  Where were they?!!??!  Part of the allure of Odd is his descriptions of the dead and their antics trying to get him to understand.  It was lacking in this one.  Like I said, we got a few, but not nearly enough.  We had more of his psychic magnetism, which is fine but just not the same.  Also, where the heck were the bodachs?  They were such a massive part of the series and we don't see any.  That just doesn't seem right with it being the final novel and all.  At least have them mislead us.  Like suddenly bodachs are surrounding the damn because of the C-4 keeping everyone from focusing on the carnival where the actual threat is, something. 

Moving on...while I fully expected death in this book.  I sincerely HOPED it wouldn't be Odd.  I wanted him to live.  I know I know he gets his happy ending which is great.  Hi Stomy, missed ya honey.  But his death hurt.  He died a hero which was so fitting.  He saved everyone, such an Odd thing.  And truthfully, I was fine (even through the weird description of the next life).  I was fine until we hear from Ozzie.  Ozzie's final chapter freaking BROKE me.  I cried a little, come on...its like saying bye to a best friend here.  The part about his Urn and her Urn next to each other, really..I'm fine...*sigh*.  I laughed that of all the ghosts out there somehow Odd found a way to communicate with the living and give Ozzie his final memoir. So if we think of this as a true story (I'm not crazy I know its fiction) than Odd died in 2003 because the memoirs weren't to be published until after his death.  Hmmm what happened in 2003 that Odd could have saved us from.  Think on that. 

I'm going to miss this series but I do feel like we got the ending Odd deserved.  Not that he deserved death but his happiness with the people he has lost...They are destined to be together forever.

The Fold by Peter Clines

This book was fantastic! It it a gripping story that captures your imagination and doesn't let it go. As with any author I've not heard of I am leery but Peter Clines wrote a wonderful story.  And it isn't just Science Fiction craziness.  It is an in depth story. You learn about all the characters.  You get their back story and why they are the way they are.  There is humor. Seriously, the main character Mike is hilarious.  He is insanely intelligent.  He has an eidetic memory (remembers EVERY detail of his life exactly...it never fades) so he can be annoying but in an adorably awkward way.  He is like Sherlock mashed with the Doctor and a splash of Sheldon Cooper BUT he tries to act like a normal guy. 

The basic story is there is a secret government experiment going on to help with travel and things are "Funny".  This secret-ish government agency hires an old friend as a new set of eyes to see what's up.  He is a no one...a high school teacher but his memory is an asset the government needs.  Of course things go ten kinds of sideways and all hell breaks loose, quite literally.  And the best part is...it is NOT what you expect.  The author leads you down a path that makes sense and then slaps you in the face with a twist you won't see coming.  I highly recommend it, any fan of Mystery-Suspense who doesn't mind a touch of science fiction would love it.  At least that is what I think.  Additional thoughts in the spoiler.

SPOILER

I love Mike.  He is an annoying know it all but I think I would truly enjoy his company.  He tries so incredibly hard to be normal, it almost breaks your heart.  I love the way he describes his memory as ants.  They swarm with info because he remembers it all so he's clearly had to learn how to control them over the years so as not to go insane.  How he files things away and then retrieves them.  It is fascinating.

I knew something was up with the build team as soon as Mike got there but I had NO CLUE what was coming.  I really thought there was some sort of radiation thing going on affecting their memory and personalities.  I mean all they were doing was passing from one portal to the next, traversing hundreds of feet in seconds.  But when Olaf freaked out about the office and the pranks...I just knew it was going to be bad. 

Even when Bob came through a mangled mess I had no idea the twist about to slap me.  I thought maybe time travel or something.  After Mike and Jamie's bonding over drinks, I had hope for their relationship to blossom but it was clear Jamie was damaged so I wasn't expecting much. Then when she volunteered to retest after Bob, I died a little because I wanted her and Mike to be something, even if it was just friends.  But it was okay, she wasn't harmed and honestly she was so much nicer.  That should have been my clue! Then her and Mike hooked up and it was adorkable until he noticed her back sans scars and I didn't even get it then!

When Mike reveals that is isn't just a portal in their dimension, that it is opening doors in parallel worlds I actually squeaked.  I love stories with parallel worlds, said no Doctor Who fan...EVER!  So it is basically a dimension cannon but they can't control which dimension it opens...great!

The description of the bug people will give me nightmares for days.  Not because I don't like horror but because they were such good descriptions of such frightening things.  I hate roaches so all the comparisons to roaches and of course the actual plethora of green roaches creeped me out. 

The way it ended, I am kind of hoping for a sequel.  I would love to see more of what Mike and Jamie can get up to investigating other crazy phenomenons like this one.  It's like the X-Files meets Stargate! Excuse me while I geek out.

END SPOILER

It was such an adventure. I couldn't put it down! It was relatable.  Yes, its all sci-ency but there are other things we can all relate to... like even in fiction government is still really stupid (hey, it could kill us all...but can we make more).  Humans fail but we have the desire to survive.  We are selfish.  Knowing we don't know how something works won't stop us from messing with it.   We are curious by nature to a fault.  We strive to learn everything we can even if it might mean our extinction.








Thoughts while reading:

07/06	page 38		9.0%	"Me: Sooooo it's like a stargate...? *read a little further* "Don't say that in front of the scientists...they hate that comparison." Me: Soooo it's like a stargate, right...?"
07/06	page 94		24.0%	"I feel like all the mentions of "we aren't hiding anything" and "it's going to change everything" being said by different characters are important somehow"
07/07	page 132		34.0%	"I might coulda done without that vivid description but holy cow! Poor Bob...."
07/07	page 133		34.0%	""they don't seem to understand that his condition was new. They think he always looked like this." WTF!?!?!"
07/07	page 183		47.0%	""Did you all make a deal with the devil, and it runs on the blood of orphans or something like that?" Good one Mike..."
07/07	page 196		51.0%	"Wow that was one of the most adorable "dammit I actually like you" exchanges I've read in a while."
07/07	page 200		52.0%	"*spoiler* This is insanity!!!!! It's like timelines keep changing...wtf is happening?!?!? Where are the scars?!?!?!?"
07/07	page 205		53.0%	"OMG! Maybe they can find Pete's world....bring back rose and tentoo "
07/07	page 215		55.0%	"Even in books the best stories start off with "we got drunk""
07/08	page 253		65.0%	"Roaches covering the floor...that's a big ol' nope from me. Y'all are on your own!"
07/08	page 262		68.0%	"I'm going to have nightmares for a month...thanks."
07/08	page 273		71.0%	"I kinda want to be friends with Mike"
07/09	page 294		76.0%	"The gov't is just is dumb in fiction...Really smart person: "it will cause the end of the world!!!" Them:"But can we rebuild it?""
07/13	page 330		85.0%	"Um Jamie have you lost your mind..."
07/13	page 358		93.0%	"Are you f**king kidding me?!!?! Talk about indestructible!"

I received this book for free from Blogging for Books to review and give my honest opinion.

I don't know what that was but it WASN'T berry

I got these free to try from Smiley 360 for my honest review.  They get 2 stars because they are gummy and are easy to take that is where the kind of positive rating ends.  The rest of the aspects are 1 star.  I've taken many different gummy vitamins and while some tasted better than others, I've never wanted to spit them out.  These have a very distinct vitamin flavor.  You know what I am talking about, that smell when you open say a bottle of Vitamin B capsules, that is the flavor these leave you with.  The initial taste is a berry flavor that I can only describe as fermented.  So you start chewing and you feel like you are chowing down on solidified wine you left uncorked for a week.  Then once you swallow your palate is coated in the most unfavorable remnants of vitamin flavor.  I almost felt the need to scrape my tongue after each dose.  I've never taken a chewable pill and felt the need to chase it with something, preferably not water because I needed a new taste to replace this one.  It's not pleasant, at least not for me. 

I can't tell you if they worked as stated because I really couldn't stomach them.  I tried, I really did but the taste got to me.  Vitamins can be a chore, if you make it even more unpleasant by giving them a questionable flavor, I am not going to remember to take them...or force myself to swallow it.  I've seen many reviews saying how great they taste and good on them. I am glad they didn't have the same experience I did.  But I am telling you they tasted funky to me.

Try them at your own "risk"

The night is dark and full of....WTF man!?!?!?!

Sooooooooooooooo it goes without saying, I think but I will say anyways.  Below will be spoilers for the Game of Thrones Season 5 finale.  Potential for incomplete thoughts is high, please proceed with caution. Mind you I'm only 1/2 way through "A Feast of Crows" so I really don't know what has been going on outside of the TV Show.  It's a little long mind you but I had a lot of thoughts.

I didn't watch the finale on Sunday night or Monday because I wasn't home.  Can I just tell you how hard it was to stay away from spoilers...I basically had to stay off everything internet AND plug my ears saying "lalalala" every time someone said "OMG can you believe they..." And I have to note since day 1 (mostly) I have had four favs.  Four characters that I deem unkillable (do you hear that writers?!?!?); Tyrion, Jon, Arya and Dany.

**SPOILERS**

It was insanity all around.  I feel like the previous episode was a little better BUT I did enjoy the finale...well mostly.  We began and ended with a bang...kind of.  So I am not going in order of the show just in order of how things are arranged in my scattered brain.

Stannis...it really sucks to be you man.  You killed your adorable/trusting DAUGHTER because some fiery tart said "its what God wants" (really?!?!?!?), then 1/2 your army deserted you (and I believe they had every right to!), your wife hung herself (you can basically blame yourself for that one), your fiery tart abandoned you (you should really question who you put your trust in, man), and finally you were met with an army that made yours look very, very sad.  Oh not to mention you put up one hell of a fight, but thankfully Brienne was there to remind you how much your greed to rule the on the Iron Throne has cost you (you let that b**ch MURDER your own BROTHER)!

Arya...DAMN GIRL, you really are a bad@$$!  I just love our murderous little Stark.  She has a list of revenge and by golly she is going to fulfill it.  That sick f**k, Meryn, definitely deserved to die but her means were...WOW.  She stabbed out his eyes and then repeatedly stabbed him in various places while asking if he knew who she was.  "I'm Arya Stark. Do you know who you are? You're no one. You're nothing." Yep, she is still one of my favs.  But I knew she would be punished for not following the plan Jaqen H'ghar (or who ever he is) had.  She went f**king blind!  Don't hurt my little Stark, dammit!  She'll still be a bad@$$, I just know it.  

Quit hurting Sansa!  I have grown to adore this character and I just can't help hating all the horrible things thrown her way.  She finally makes it to the tower to light the damn candle but OF COURSE Brienne isn't watching (even though she barely left her post up to this point) because she is off taking revenge on Stannis (I approve but your girl needed you chica!).  Then Ramsey's f**k buddy threatens her with Theon (Reek, whatever) close behind.  I wanted to cheer when Theon FINALLY showed some cojones...well not really since he can't but he killed that b**ch, saved Sansa and then they held hands and...JUMPED from Winterfell's wall.  What?!?!!?!?  That better have been a hell of a snow drift!  They better have lived!!! Do NOT kill my girl you jerks!

Tyrion is left to run Meereen in Dany's absence while Jorah and Daario (God he is so hot, sorry, not sorry) go hunt her down.  I mean b**ch left on a dragon last week (OMG so cool!).  Favorite exchange of the night.
“So mainly you talk.” – Daario.
“And drink.” – Tyrion


Dany...I didn't think we would see her this episode.  But we do and Drogon is showing his rebellious teenager side as he refuses to fly her back to Meereen.  I was cracking up!  He was like "no mom, we AREN'T going 'home' *yawn* take a nap with me." Then crazy girl wanders off and we last see her surrounded by a $hit ton of Dothraki...oh that CAN'T be good. . . 

That crazy b**ch killed Myrcella!  I knew the second she kissed her.  I was like "Oh crap!"  So Jaime comes clean, Myrcella basically said she knew all along.  She accepted that he was her dad and then f**king DIED!  Ahhhhh poor Jaime....he just can't catch a break.

I never in a MILLION years thought I would have feelings for Cersei but I so did.  She admits to only one indiscretion (sleeping with her cousin) to get out.  They strip her, cut her hair and make her do the walk of shame to the Red Keep.  I mean girl walked with her head high but the CRAZY peeps of King's Landing just shunned her.  They attacked her, threw rotted food and $hit at her.  Which by the way, where do those angry mobs get $hit from all of a sudden?!?! To top it off that holier than thou c**t is walking behind her ringing a GD bell saying "Shame" every few seconds.  How did Cersei hold together as long as she did?  Soooo was that The Mountain, resurrected (or clearly no longer dying), that lifted her up...WTF is going on here?

Are you kidding me Game of Thrones?!?!?!  Did you Mother F**kers really just kill off my FAVORITE Character!?!?!?  I had a feeling it was coming.  There was all this hinting that they would all turn on Jon Snow, especially that little f**ker Olly.  It was like he was saying goodbye forever to Sam (which that whole exchange talking about Sam getting laid was ADORKABLE!).  He is still the Lord Commander people, I don't think you are supposed to do that.  But he was deemed a "traitor" because he had a heart and tried to SAVE PEOPLE regardless of their background.  All the night's watch took a stab at him (literally).  Every plunge made me cringe, stop hurting him!!! And of course that little bottom feeder, Olly, gave the final blow.  What a douche!  As Jon laid DEAD on the ground I FULLY expected his eyes to turn blue.  I was hoping for it.  Because then next season he can come back and KILL all those mofos!  But then I remembered the fiery tart made her way back to The Wall...is she going to resurrect him?!?!?  Please, please, please...I will forgive your insanity if you bring back Jon (R+L=J, right? I believe!). 

So now it is over and I am pondering if I should drop the two books I am reading and pick "A Feast of Crows" back up because I am totally going through withdrawals and its only been 24 hours since I watched it!

The Room - Jonas Karlsson

What did I just read?!?  I am all about dark humor but this book was almost uncomfortable.  I understood it, I think.  Bjorn is clearly a different kind of person.  At the beginning he reminds me of Sheldon from The Big Bang Theory.  He is extremely smart and has no time for silly things like socializing.  He doesn't grasp social norms and is viewed by most to be a bit odd.  You can't help but hate him when you read this story.  He is an egotistical jerk.  He feels like he is better than everyone else and he isn't afraid to voice that.  Confidence is one thing but his actions are borderline sociopath.  Its a short story so it is an easy read but I wasn't a huge fan.  I give it 3 stars. 

**SPOILERS**
He really is just awful.  His privileged attitude would not be appreciated here in my office.  He would have been asked to leave quite quickly but this is another country so they clearly have different rules. The way he views his co-workers is almost filled with hatred but it isn't hatred because his type of personality doesn't have time for hate.

I started to get suspicious of The Room when he took Hakan in for a chat and the man seemed visibly "shaken" afterwards.  I don't think anyone would have just listened to Bjorn's rant.  Hakan acted confused, as if he didn't know what happened.  But then Bjorn took Margareta in there for the Christmas party and it sounded like a heated (in a good way) exchange.  My only niggling thoughts were, why was she so "weird" when they exited The Room.  Then the following day when she acted cold towards him and asked if he was on drugs.  Something isn't right. 

When it is revealed The Room doesn't exist I cringed.   I can imagine Hakan standing there while Bjorn is just staring.  He must have been terrified, is this man having a seizure?  Then Margareta.  No wonder she was so weird afterwards.  An, I am assuming attractive, man says lets get out of here at the company party must mean "lets go get it on" or something of that nature.  So being brought to The Room and having him just trance out must have been terrifying.  And to realize the heated exchange only happened in his head (I think), how distrubing.

I really hated the character, he was unpleasant to say the least but I began to feel bad for him.  Once the co-workers and boss realized something was wrong they shunned him.  While I can understand that someone with delusions can be frightening for some, there are ways to handle it.  And one of those ways does not involve department meetings to point out that a person is clearly mental in front of everyone. And why was he still there.  He should have been committed, at least for evaluation, not permitted to stay and continue his delusion.  Then when his work is shown to be clearly superior, they STILL didn't get him help when he mentions The Room again.  I get it is a place in his mind where he escapes and apparently has amazing revelations.  But he doesn't realize it is just a place in his mind.  It reminded me of Sherlock (BBC's newer Sherlock) saying for everyone to be quiet because he had to go to his mind palace and think.  The difference is that Sherlock KNEW he was escaping into his brain to work out a problem, whereas Bjorn is 100% certain he is walking into an actual room, that his co-workers are lying to him about its non-existence, and he is increasingly paranoid. 

I am still not certain any of it was real.  About half way through this short story, I started to wonder if the whole workplace was a delusion.  That when he was asked to leave his old job because he was too good for it, he wasn't actually committed to a psych ward and this office environment was his brain's way of dealing with things.  Especially when you get to the end and the building is being infiltrated by men in suits with ear pieces and he escapes into The Room, his co-workers are "beating" on the door yelling his name and he is somehow absorbed into the wall. 

Maybe...just maybe....I almost was to relate it to Identity (movie 2003).  Like the entire story we are inside his fractured mind, in a mental institution.  That everything that happens (everyone we meet) is a personality the psychiatrist is trying to "deal" with.  Or they are all other patients/doctors in the hospital.  But something goes horribly wrong and he retreats further into the recesses of his mind.

Or I am over-thinking this entire thing and his job was his job and his boss really was that selfish and kept on feeding into his delusion until he what...killed himself...became catatonic...blew up the building...I'm really not sure...?

Thoughts as I read:

Page 12 — June 1, 2015

"She had a framed child's drawing near her computer.  It showed a sun sinking into the sea.  But the drawing was wrong..."

What a dick

---

Page 13 — June 1, 2015

"Occasionally I felt like going for a pee after five minutes, but always made sure I saw out the whole period.  It was good for the soul, character-building and obviously the relief of finally easing the pressure was that much greater."

Wtf!?!?

---

Page 19 — June 2, 2015

"It was if I was thinking: I ought to go into the room."

Wow....really...obsessed much

---

Page 20 — June 2, 2015

"I realized that she was one of the rare breed of alert women, of whom there are fewer and fewer."

I want to stab him in the face!

---

Page 27 — June 2, 2015

"Don't think of it as a reprimand.  More as an observation."

Omg I really want to hurt him

---

Page 31 — June 2, 2015

"I realized a long time ago that dismissive remarks like that could be sexually motivated."

Ahhhhhhhhhhhh

---

Page 39 — June 2, 2015

"Margareta greeted almost all of them in an equally warm and friendly way, which put me in a worse mood seeing as she really ought to realize that she was devaluing the impact of her smile if she used it on everyone."

Beating head on desk.....worst character...EVER

---

Page 41 — June 2, 2015

"I have to ask you something personal....Are you on drugs?"

Pahahahha, ok I like Margareta

---

Page 42 — June 2, 2015

"Obviously she was a junkie.  All that smiling.  That optimistic outlook.  It was a chemically produced friendliness."

Wow...just wow....I know he's supposed to come off as a twat but sweet baby Jesus

---

Page 50 — June 2, 2015

"The other day. You made me come with you.  And then you just stood there like that."

He's a nutter....the room doesn't exist....its in his head!

---

Page 53 — June 2, 2015

"...its a wall."

The fact that he isn't starting to second guess himself is disturbing

---

Page 85 — June 3, 2015

"I think it's very unsettling. How's anyone supposed to know if he's there or not?  This way we can never be sure"

Okay he's a nutter but I feel bad for him. He clearly needs help and they are so mean to him.

---

Page 91 — June 3, 2015

*after having God knows how many meetings with Karl**

Omg what if his job IS a Mental hospital and this is his delusion?!?

I received this book for free from Blogging for Books to review.

Infinite (Newsoul #3) - Final Thoughts

I know it came out last year but I just got around to reading it.  So I am not sure how I feel about the entirety of final book. While I enjoyed it for the most part I did find some of it a bit tedious to read. It has taken me a while to finish it, I even took a break and read something else in the mean time but I had to know how it all ended. So I gave it 4 stars, it really felt like more 3.5 stars but with the insane last quarter of the book, I couldn't bear to give it only 3. While I loved the first in the series immensely and the second as well, I just don't have the same feelings for most of this book.

The only thing that really kept me reading was finding out so much more about the fantastical creatures that have come to exist in this new world of ours. I mean who isn't intrigued by Dragons, Phoenixes, Trolls, Centaurs, Souls stuck in between (Sylph), etc. That was what kept me going. So if you read the first two you have to read this one. (Oh and you have to read the Novella, Phoenix Song, before this...it explains things more) It is a must so you can at least know what happens to our little hero and her love (and her friends).

**SPOILERS**
 
I can't tell you how many times I wanted to smack Ana upside the head for being silly. But I forget she is still very young and this is her 1st (and only) life. Sam...oh Sam, you can't help but love him. He is pigheaded sometimes but he really is a wonderful character. Stef is still abrasive but she cares deeply for her friends. Sarit, I could totally be BFFs with her, she is so genuine. These are the ones that I connect with.

I miss Cris but am so glad that him being Sylph now, has helped Ana communicate with them and know what they want from her. Honestly I just loved how Ana was never scared. Well I take that back, she was always scared but she took that fear and did something with it. She overcame the obstacles, she did what was thought to be impossible. She learned how to communicate with not only Sylph but she befriended a DRAGON, saved/bonded with two young centaurs and had a heart to heart with a phoenix. I can see why Dossam was so smitten with her. She didn't let her differences hold her back. She might be in her first life but she didn't just give up. She didn't just let things happen. She made a stand! She said no! She had the guts to do what was right, even when everyone else just ran away. (yes, that is an altered, yet VERY appropriate, quote c/o Rose, from Doctor Who).

While everyone she knew and loved died around her she still managed to stop a horrible evil, Janan, from taking hold of her world, of her friends. She was given the opportunity to be immortal and live forever with Dossam but she knew why it was wrong and as tempting as that was she still stopped him. She took the "light" from Janan into herself. Instead of becoming greedy with power she sacrificed herself so that her friends could live, they could be reborn and live their one life that they were always meant to have.

Her reward for being the martyr was being reborn. She was allowed to come back. Allowed to have her one true life with Sam. The phoenix gave her that, at least that is how I see it. It is a very sugary ending but it was done well. I don't know what happened to the Dragons (Acid Breath!) but I hope they are okay. I really did start to like them. And I am happy with the final words, "I've been reborn." It isn't "I love you" or anything that lovey. But it is so fitting for her, she isn't a "newsoul" anymore.