Skip to main content

The Finisher by David Baldacci

By
Brief synopsis (no spoilers): The city of Wormwood is the only place Vega Jane, her brother John, and fellow Wugmorts (villagers) have every known. When Vega's mentor at work suddenly disappears leaving Vega a map of the Quog (area that surrounds Wormwood), her entire world view comes crashing down when she finds out that most of what she thinks she knows is built on lies.

Category: YA

Why I chose this book: Sounded interesting as I was looking for audio book to listen to

My personal opinion (the review): I have mixed feelings about this book. Vega Jane is an interesting enough character and most of the story line works fine, but there were also so many unanswered questions that I just felt frustrated. The how and why of all of her after hour trips to Stax never get explained and the way that she discovers her "powers (I'm not even sure what that is supposed to mean) and her special tools just don't work right. I liked the characters of Delph and Duff but almost everyone else fades into one lump sum of drinking, crass men. It seems that there are only a dozen or less women in the story (And Baldacci's use of "male" and "female" to refer to people became really annoying for me.) I'm interested enough to keep listening to the second story, but overall it's not one that I would recommend.

Warnings
Language: A dozen or more instances of hell, bloody (as in bloody hell, etc), and I think there were one or two damns
Violence: Lots - minor/moderate graphic fight scenes 
"Adult" situations: None
Death: Yes, not main characters

Movie rating equivalent: Probably R for language and violence

Protagonist description: Vega Jane just wants to do right for herself and her brother John, but when things start to spiral out of control she isn't afraid to ask hard questions and do what it takes to find the answers. 

Point of view of story: 1st, Vega

Book length: Long

Story flow: Relatively smooth, however I feel that some parts were not needed (having Vega fight in the duelim didn't really do anything to further the plot except show Vega's ability to reason things out combined with quick thinking in the moment. 

Grammar and spelling issues: There are some alternate words used. Wug=human/villager, sliver = minute, Noc = moon, session = year, day = light, 

Character connection (no spoilers): I'd love to know more of Morrigone's past and Duff's future.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Tap the Magic Tree by Christie Matheson

By
Summary: Every book needs you to turn the pages. But not every book needs you to tap it, shake it, jiggle it, or even blow it a kiss. Innovative and timeless, Tap the Magic Tree asks you to help one lonely tree change with the seasons. It begins with a bare brown tree. But tap that tree, turn the page, and one bright green leaf has sprouted! Tap again—one, two, three, four—and four more leaves have grown on the next page. Pat, clap, wiggle, jiggle, and see blossoms bloom, apples grow, and the leaves swirl away with the autumn breeze. (Amazon) Attention Span/reading level: Perfect for my three year old. I would say that ages 2-10 would really enjoy something like this. It really keeps kids engaged and makes them feel like part of the story. There is one word to one sentence per page. Good uses for book in teaching: Interaction, that the reader takes part in making the story, what a tree can do (leaves, blossoms, fruit) Favorite part:      Child: The fact that ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Improbable Libraries Alex Johnson

By
Concept: " A visual journey to the world's most unusual libraries." Author : Alex Johnson, a journalist and consultant . Both parents were librarians.  Monologue score  (1-10) (how entertaining): 8 - Overall I found this book quite interesting. I loved seeing all the ways that people were working to bring books into the community and how many were trying to create a sense of community through books. The pictures did a great job of helping to visualize how these libraries are being used.  Difficulty level: 3- Not very hard. Each of the seven sections (Libraries on the Move, Animal Libraries,Tiny Libraries, Big Libraries, Home Libraries, Mobile Libraries, and Not Libraries) starts with a short introduction and then gives a picture (or three) of the library described.  What I Learned/Review:  I really found this to be an enlightening and uplifting book. Having been a librarian and having a love for books in general it warms my heart to see all the ways that ...
1 comment
Read more

Magic Bitter, Magic Sweet by Charlie Holmberg

By
Brief synopsis (no spoilers) Maire has a talent for baking. She can imbue her creations with emotion or even simple abilities. Peace, love, memory, strength, alertness, etc. She is forcibly taken away from her home, and spends the rest of her time trying to get back to the only family she knew. She also has help from a mysterious, ghostly person, who appears to know her well. Category YA Fiction Why I chose this book I've loved every other book the author has written My personal opinion (the review) I love the stories by Mrs H, and have come to expect some pretty fantastical things- she has an incredible, unstoppable imagination. But this one really stretched me; it was almost too weird, too "out there". I don't care, though, I'll keep buying everything she publishes. Happy ending, good love story, gripping plot line. Weird or not, it was a great read. Warnings Language: None Violence: Some. Not frequent, not very graphic, but heart-wrenching "Ad...
Post a Comment
Read more