Dust Review: Every Beginning Has An End

Hi readers,

Sorry its' taken me awhile to get this post up, but I've been ill, dealing with family matters and been busy keeping up with my new blog. Finally though, I can write about Dust and finish off the Silo series. I'd recommend reading the other two reviews first, because there will be possible spoils in this review. I also plan to keep this short, but also compared to the other books, this one is on the small side. I guess that's understandable though, because it's function is to bring the other two stories together in a dramatic final.

The book is well written and feels very pacey. Unlike the other two, there isn't much scene or background settings because its been covered in the other books and this actually works because it doesn't feel repetitive.  The characters are really good and realistic. Their actions and dialogue also feel really real and the reader can really connect with the characters. It was also nice that we were back with my favorite character, Juliette, and her friends from the first book.

The narrative switches between Juliette's point of view and that of Donald's and his sister's. This works well though because everything is kept on the same timeline and a nice tension is created between the characters. It also becomes clear that all the characters want the best for each other and Donald especially wants Juliette and her people to know the truth about things. Of course this does actually happen and allows the ending of the series to take place. 

Speaking of the plot; Juliette has encouraged her Silo to dig across to the other one she stumbled upon in the first book as she wants to rescue Solo and the kids. Their digging uncovers a machine, which they then use to help finish off the digging. With the silos joined a little bit of hell breaks loose-which is expected. Then Juliette starts to figure more things out, but before she can really plan her next step, she learns that silo 1 is going to shut them down. She tries to get as many people into the other silo as possible and they seal themselves in. 

Meanwhile, in silo 1, Donald is standing against all of this and he is still being mistaken as someone else with more power. He wakes is sister up and they try to find out if there is more outside then they can see. This they actually do, though Donald is taken down and his sister is left to try and pass the message on to Juliette, which helps the survivors escape the silo and go back to living on the surface. 

The plot does work really well and its a great ending to the series. The conclusion is rounded off and even though I know that there might not be any more books, I was hoping there might be! I could see some stories coming from the other silos and I'd love to read them. 

Overall, I would so recommend this series and these books to everyone. It has an original feel to the plot and characters, as well as the setting, which I love. even if you don't like dystopia or don't understand it, I would still suggest giving it a try. The plot isn't bogged down by the genre or the technical aspects and it is very character led. I still believe that the first book is the best novel I've read of this year and I'll be sad to move on from it. However, I'm now back to reading The Black Dagger Brotherhood and I shall be posting up that review next week. Thanks for reading and please feel free to follow this blog and check out my new one where I'm publishing daily short stories: http://thestoryfiles.wordpress.com/

The Tribe- TV Series Review

Hi readers,

As I've still not finished the next book I want to review, I thought I'd write about something different, but still give it a review. For the last few months, I've been addicted and having nostalgic moments to The Tribe TV series. As a teenager I watched this as it was shown on Channel five on Saturday/Sunday mornings. Though for some reason I remember seeing the first few episodes in a Saturday evening time slot. I didn't take to it, however, it started to grow on me and I become addicted to the series 3,4 and 5. 

The Tribe is about the aftermath of a virus which has wiped out all the adults, leaving everyone under 18/19 still alive. They now have to survive and rebuild the world. It's set in a near-future styled New Zealand city, though it looks very late nineteens (the time it was made and filmed) The focus was on one Tribe in particular; The Mall Rats. The stories of individual characters were told as well as showing how the youngsters were trying to work together to improve many things. Though there were subplots that look at the other Tribes/characters the Mall Rats were conflicting against or working with.    

In the first series, the characters start off in a world similar to that of a post-apocalyptic one. There is no law, rules, money, protection, guides, power, mains water or fresh food etc. In some aspects it is what most teenagers wish for! However, to go alongside these there is also danger, fear, sadness, loss, confusion and anarchy. Suddenly, having total freedom goes to the young peoples' heads -as it would do- and some go crazy with power lust. This is actually a theme throughout the series. Because of this and to do with the loss of their families and friends, the young people start to band together in tribes. Within the first few episodes, the Mall Rats come together as a tribe. They learn to be a family and overcome the difficulties; clean water, food, power, morality, for their new world. 

They also have to deal with typical teenage themes throughout all the series like friendships, betrayal, ambitions, love, loyalty, education, trust, dealing with fears, growing up, responsibilities, addiction, babies and finding their own ways. If that wasn't enough to deal with, they also have a third lot of things to overcome! These are trying to make and sustain peace, bring back laws and rules, overcome other tribe leaders who are seeking full control of the city, bring back education and hospitals and have things sort of the way they were before the virus. 

Across the other series, the characters do get chances to sort these issues and a lot more out. Progress is made on a lot of things and it can seen that the young people know they must start again from scratch to fix things. However, the city doesn't much change even though other tribes have tried to improve things, but when they leave things seem to go backwards again. Also Mall Rats come and go -especially in series 3 and 4. Thankfully the main ones do stay or else you know they will soon reappear. 

       

The main audience was teenagers, but it also attracted children and young adults. The Tribe had five full seasons before it was cancelled. I keep reading that a movie is due out this year, which rounds things off. Hopefully, it's true as I'd just love to see that! 

The next thing, I wanted to look at was the acting and the actual sets, but I'm aware of how much I've already writing, so I'm just going to touch on a few things. The acting does seem bad and clumsy at times. Being younger it didn't distracted me as much as it does now -maybe that's also because I have a film critic boyfriend- Of course I realize that they are all young people, most acting for the first time and that the Tribe probably had a low budget. There are one or two characters during the first and second series that really bug me, but later on you get to see that their acting has improved somewhat. 

There are also some plot lines and ends that are a bit silly or else don't make much sense. I've noticed that if a character goes 'missing' and the others don't look or seem to be looking for them that they aren't going to come back. Whilst if an effort is put in to find them, then you know that they'll be appearing soon. Also characters spend a lot of time 'looking' for each other. Okay, I get that there is no means of communication now and there is a lot of danger around, but it sometimes seems that these characters have nothing better to do then play hide and seek! Some of the teenage issues do begin to grate on you, but a number which are looked at, such as pregnancy, babies, bulimic and depressing are handled really good.

Being low budget meant that some of the cut scene which show parts of the set are constantly reused or rehashed. There's nothing much wrong with this because normally its only on screen for a few moments and just used to show a change in place and/or time. What bugs me though is when they use the older images for these cuts and you wonder why the editor couldn't get it right. Like for example; there is a graffiti wall in the Mall Rats home which during some cut scenes has different graffiti on it which dates back from different times. That bugged me for awhile. 

Lastly, the soundtrack. The same opening is used for all the episodes and that song 'Keeping The Dream Alive' gets stuck in you head, but it's not bad. Then there are two different end songs, both of which are good. (though you should beware that they reveal main plot points in the end credits) In series 1-3 the soundtracks mostly stay the same and are very limited. In the next ones, a new soundtrack was added and this gives a fresher tone to things and also there is a lot more variation. One thing I hate though is the low, defeated trumpet/trombone noise that gets played when a humorous or comedy relief moment happens. It's not need at all and sometimes you have to wonder why they put it in at the point because it doesn't make sense. 

Overall, if you've not seen The Tribe or you've done when you were younger, I'd say watch it. The pros of it do out way the cons and yes, not everyone is going to like it, but the plots and the themes it deals with are good and you can relate to them. Most of the actor and characters are good to watch and there are some cute ones. Though sometimes the costumes and make up choices leave you puzzled or else laughing your head off.         

Websites;
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Tribe_(TV_series)
http://thetribe.wikia.com/wiki/Main_Page

Images from;
http://www.ebay.com.au/bhp/the-tribe
http://thetribe.wikia.com/wiki/Category:Series_1
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Series.5.main.cast.jpg

The Legend of Drizzt Book 1: Homeland Review; This is the Underdark

I’ve had a craving for a little while to read a fantasy novel. Maybe playing Dungeons and Dragons had reawakened my fantasy side and I wanted to indulge in it more. Only I didn’t want to read LOTR again or Warhammer books, I wanted something slightly different but just as good. My search was a little in vain, so I give up and re-read The Hobbit in prep for going to see the movie. But I wasn’t satisfied afterwards and wanted more....but not Tolkien or Prattchet. My boyfriend suggested a new author; R A Salvatore and has it turned out he was just what I was looking for because he writers fantasy novels set in the DD world.

Though he has written a number of other books and series, it’s to the character he’s most famous for that has been my introduction to Salvatore and DD novels; Drizzt Do’Urden.  

Drizzt, a drow (dark elf) is born into Menzoberranzan; an underground matriarchal world of betrayal, war, magic and monsters. Almost scarified at birth, but saved due to his older brother’s death, Drizzt must learn the way of Loth, the Spider Queen and also the skills of a warrior. However, he is no normal drow and keeps hold of his humanity, which all drow loose as they are taught the ways of Loth and to despise the world above. Though he is part of a society which would be considered evil to the above world, Drizzt stands out by his questions on killing and drow history. Somehow though his words are overlooked by other drow and he is able to keep his feelings hidden.

The plot of the story is all about Drizzt growing up and coming to realise that everything he knows is possibly wrong and he no longer wants to be a part of it. Through events he can be seen to arise to challenges and fully develop as a character. In a way the reader grows with him. We are with him in the moments before his birth when the plot twists are being set up and then as he grows up and becomes an adult. There is a lot of fighting in the plot, but it is kept fresh by the different monsters and different reasons. We also get to see Drizzt improve his fighting skills and he becomes very impressive with his swords. I was gripped straight a way into the plot and the setting, finding the 3^rd person narrative working well and giving the reader an eye over anything. The cuts to different characters and their plotting, helped move the story along and created a much bigger picture throughout the novel.

The other characters are just as intriguing as Drizzt. There are his sisters and brother fitting the bill as fighting siblings and trying to outdo each other in order to impress their mother. She is a great character being all power hungry and desperate to improve her family’s status in Menzoberranzan. Zak, the master swords man, who trains Drizzt his deeper connects to him than first seems, but during the cuts to his thoughts, the reader can see how similar in nature the two of them are. The antagonists are other drow, who use magic, which is a nice contrast to the use of weapons, but they are just as power hungry as Drizzt’s mother and want the same thing. Lastly, there is Guenhwyvar, who I liked straight a way, he is a magic panther and Drizzt’s only friend. The similarities can be seen in their fighting styles and they complement each other well too. It was nice to have an animal companion for a change!  

I really like Salvatore’s writing style, because it is fast pace, gripping and full of information that just sinks into your head. You learn a lot about drow society, but you don’t realize it from the way it is written. The vocabulary is a bit simple in some places, but this just helps the speed of the story telling. Like the Warhammer books, Salvatore makes his fantasy writing as simplified as possible, leaving out long descriptions of settings, battles and other events. This allows the reader to imagine more things and that is something I like doing. Also you don’t want to be bogged down by needless details when reading a world that many would be familiar through playing the game. Which is what I found having played the DD drow trilogy, because that is set in the same area. It’s the little details and drops of humour that add to the greatness of this novel. It is very easy to read over these or not take them fully in because of how they are placed within the story. However, I didn’t find myself flicking back to re-read, because I was just able to take the whole thing in. The dialogue of the characters is great and a lot of raw emotions come through the words. Which is great because the reader should always be able to see the emotion that way and not through the writer stating it. There was nothing heavily accented or old fashioned and the use of the drow language wasn’t over used. It really is an easy book to read and I shall be picking up the second on soon.

Ps. As an added note, I thought I’d say that the character of Drizzt’s reminded me of Malus Darkblade by Dan Abnett and Mike Lee, set in the Warhammer world. Malus is also a dark elf who though evil must fight things more evil then himself. I did think that this was interesting and though it has been awhile since I read him, the books have enough differences between them.  

Images from:

www. Listal.com
www. t411.me
 

The Black Dagger Brotherhood- Lover Reborn Review: 'Can his heart let go?'

I waited ages for this book to come out and then another age to actually read it! It's the 10th book in the Black Dagger Brotherhood (BDB) series by J R Ward. At the time I also believed it to be the last one, but then I found out at the end and also on line that there'll shall be another one! I'll admit though that the size of the novel and the 572 pages did seem a bit daunting at first. However, I then became lost in Ward's Caldwell, NY with her vampire warriors and I forgot all about it.

The first book in the series is Dark Lover and this sets out the main plot in all the other books. There is a vampire member (or soon to be) of the Black Dagger Brotherhood. Which is an elite band of warriors who serve the vampire king and fight to defend vampire civilians against their enemies the Lessers. The vampire meets his true love and that's either another vampire, or a half vampire or a human. They'll try to get together but things/others get in the way or/and they start believing that the other one doesn't actual want them. Often there's some kind of falling out and then a resolving at the end where they do get together. There are also a number of subplots such as the war with the Lessers, the war with another band of warriors, random events that happen to members of the BDB. So it falls very nicely into the supernatural romance genre.

All the books have a third person narrative and can be split into two different points of view (POV); that of the BDB members and that of the Lessers/rouge vampires. The main narrative comes from the points of view of the hero and heroine. The sub narratives switch often. The first sub followers individual members of the BDB and creates something of a snap shot of what's happening in their lives as a back drop to the main plot. The second sub is individual members of their enemies and gives a good look into plans/happenings within this area. In writing from so many characters' view points readers will worry that they'll become lost and forget who's who, but Ward has actually pulled it off very nicely. She's done this in a number of ways; firstly by giving each vampire his own book. Which means that we get the full story of each vampire in depth without having to get him mixed up with anyone else. Though the vampires basically go through the same romantic events, Ward has made them so different from each other that they all stand out. After I read the first three I was able to recognise each vampire by only a few words.

Secondly, Ward uses the second sub narrtive of the enemies to balance the novel out. Yes, it can get a bit triedsome having to read what a lesser character is secretly ploting when all you want to do is see if the lovers are going to make up. However, its nice to be taken out of that story sometimes and allowed to see what else is happening in the world. Thirdly, somehow the subplots and different POV don't distract from the actual action. The narrative is written in such a style that the main plot doesn't become drowned out by subplots and readers aren't easily lost amongst plots and characters.

With this being the tenth book I'm finding it hard to talk about it individually, but I'll properly go into more depth about it later. It's easy to talk about the books as a whole series because they have so much in common and follow a linear larger plot. I really love this series and yes it does have something to with the whole vampire thing and the fact that it's horror/supernatural/romance genre. But it's also because of how Ward writes. Her use of narrative language, description and dialogue appeals to me greatly. But before I launch into that, let's look at Ward's vampires!

These vampires stand out because they are not your stereotypical vamps, though they do have some connects to typical vamps. Firstly, these vamps like to live in family groups and they can have children, though at a massive threat to the lives of the females and the young. Secondly, they can't go out in the sunlight and I can't actually remember if the reasoning behind this is stated (I read the first book three years ago and have read so much since then!) They are fine with religious symbols, garlic and stakes. They don't sleep in coffins and they can't turn into animals. They can only feed on a vampire who's the opposite sex to them. The blood gives them nutrition, strength and allow them to heal faster. They can also eat and drink real food though. They have supernatural healing abilities which means that they can come back from near death injuries. They can also create a mist in which to hide from enemies, hide their homes or hide fighting scenes from the public. They also embrace technology; they have phones and computers, defensive tech, TVs, music, a range of cars and the latest med tech. They have a large range of weapon choice, but they all use guns and daggers.  They also have their own language with the common words often appearing in the novels. Ward has a glossary at the back/front of the books which appears to get longer every time! But also you get use to these words and have to look up the translations less. They mate for life and have marriages, though a female can sometimes take on two males if she wants, but males get very over-protective of their females! They also have a Goddess who they pray too. The BDB vamps are warriors and take the description as such. They are often described as being very tall, muscular guys, seeming to fit the Greek warrior image more than that of stereotypical vamps. The other vampires do take on a more typical vamp image though.

 The characters in the novels are all well written. My favourite happens to be Rhage the star of the second book which I read first and so got me into the BDB. Ward brings each character to life through their background stories- which can often be very sad-their descriptions and dialogue. All the main characters have a lot of depth to them and the reader gets to see them develop throughout their individual books. Afterwards or before their books they take something of a background check and though some things are touched upon the main develop is left in their own stories. This works well because you get interested in each character, you want to find out more about them and how their current behaviour has come about. Plus they don’t just disappear once their stories have been told.  
 
I really like the heroines. All the women in these novels are strong, independent and capable of controlling their males. They have interesting back stories too and seem very realistic. Ward has also made such that they are matched up to their perfect lovers. And this comes across well as the characters easily compliment and complete each other. The development of the heroines mostly centres on their discovering and coming to understand love. Whilst the males often have to overcome their past or issues they currently have.

The other characters in the novels and yeah there’s a lot of them all feel realistic and well developed even if they are only background characters like the servants. This just brings the story more to life though and gives it added depth. It does work having characters like this because the reader is aware of them all the time without really knowing it. Plus also we don’t have to question what a character is doing there because we understand it from the narrative.      

 Ward uses a language relating to the New York setting of the novels. At times this slips into something of gangster style. Which I’ve to admit I’m not so keen on as I don’t think it adds anything to the novels. Swear words are common place and the vocabulary is adult, though it is a simple language that she uses throughout. The pace and flow of the language is great and it allows fast reading whilst soaking everything up. There’s no sudden jumping to different scenes as everything just flows nicely on. The dialogue she gives her characters is also very good. It feels real and you can image the characters actually saying those words. Ward gets a lot of emotions across in her dialogue, whilst still staying to the point. Some of the characters have accents, which does work fine because it’s only a handful of them and not everyone single one!      

So finally, Lover Reborn is the story of Tohrment and No’One. Tohr’s character has long been established and readers have followed his recent tragic events. Now though he’s about to find love again with the most unlikeliest vampire! However, it does turn out that they are well suited for each other and they are able to rediscover love once more. Once they’ve gone through all the trials though! The subplot to this is one that started in the previous book that of the other band of warrior vampires. These guys are old fashioned, shunning technology and preferring to have very basic lives. They want to take over the BDB and plan to use the recent Lesser attacks to swing the civilian vampires into choosing them. The other subplot is that of an angel- Lassiter- trying to get back into Heaven by getting Tohr and No’One together. This novel’s main theme is all about letting go of the dead and learning to live and love again. I’m pleased to say like the other books it does have a happy ending!

Overall, I love this series and I’m so happy that there’s another book coming out! The novels are so well written, the characters good and entertaining, the plots work well and also sometimes they can keep you wondering about how it’s going to work out happy in the end, which is what I like. They work well as modern vampires too and Ward has made them unique enough. The language and dialogue is great and flows nicely. Ward has written some other singular books and also another series which is about angels. I’ve those books, but haven’t read them yet.

Next time I’m going to look at another series; The Lords Of The Underworld by Gena Showalter.        

Images from;

www.weltbild.de
www.ebay.com

 

Fifty Shades Of Grey Review: 'Ladies know what to guard against, because they read novels that tell them of these tricks'

 

Well, I've done it. Done what I said I wasn't going to do when the madness started this summer. I've officially read Fifty Shades of Grey. Why? I hear some people cry. Well, it's for two reasons. Firstly, so I can now discuss the book knowing I've read it and have a complete opinion about it. Secondly, from a writer's point of view I wanted to know why this book was so popular, why people were saying what they were about and if I could gain anything from writing in a same vein. As a writer, it’s important to read the 'now' popular books because the publishing industry often likes to publish similar styled books on the back of one that is currently very popular. Once they know that this is the kind of thing people are reading, they are eager to look for more. There's nothing wrong with that and I should point out that I am happy for E L James. She has managed to do what published and unpublished writers can only dream of and there's nothing wrong with that. However, and before people start thinking this is going to be a 'good review' of the book, I should point out that it's not going to be. My inner reader and writer have a massive disliking for this novel and I want explain why I've so many issues with this book. (This may turn into a massive rant, but it shall be a very backed up rant!) I plan to try to keep my language suitable for all readers, but you should know right now that it's not going to be possible with this genre of book. However, I shall try and use different words that mean the same thing, which Blogger.com and readers shouldn't take offence to. Also the FS memes was an idea suggested by a friend and though I wanted this post to be serious the book makes it impossible to do so. Also some of the memes express my views really well.  

The origins of books are often questioned. Authors sometimes say they have no clear idea where their books came from, others say they seeking answers to a certain question, exploring the possibilities of a person or event. FS came from Fan Fiction...Twilight Fan Fiction....Now I've nothing against FF, I've never felt the need to write any myself, though I've often wondered about characters in that frame of mind, but who hasn't done that in some form? As far as I know, none of the characters I've written in my novels are based on characters from another piece of work. That's not how my mind thinks when I write. Need I get into the whole Twilight thing?? I don't want to, but I just know it's going to have to pop up again. So, I best get this out of the way too. I hate Twilight with a passion. Good for Meyers for written a very popular book, but once again that's where it ends. I feel like she has almost shamed vampires by what she's written. Moving on!
 

James then rewrote FS after people started saying it was good and changed a few things....mmmmm..I've never read the original FF and you can't actually get a hold of it anymore because she took it all down. Did she do this in a bid to get more books to sell or because she was worried about being found out that all she had done was changed the names from that of the Twilight cast? There's a lot of stuff going around about all this background stuff and truthfully, I don't care. The book was discovered and published...though I'm sure it only got published because of the increasing popularity on the Internet because honestly, I don't know how it managed it....

 

 

 

All through summer, the only thing I heard was people talking about this book. How good it was and how amazing the characters where, how it made them feel 'free' and more passionate. Well, good points to a book that makes people feel that way...but even before I'd read anything about it or picked it up, I knew it was terrible and just a passing fashion. I mean how is it possible for a book based on Twilight, from a first time writer, to take over the world? Well...having now read it I can explain my theory. Before I even get into reviewing it, I shall admit to a shocking thing; within the first few chapters I became addicted. Not because of how it was written, the plot, the characters, my connections to it or because it stirred some deep feelings inside of me, I like the rest of the world had to discover what made Christian Grey tick. And now I know the answer to that, I can't believe I got so into this book!
 

First off this book smacks of Twilight so much. The main characters; Christian and Ana read just like Edward and Bella did. They are one dimensional, have a limited vocabulary, never fully develop and follow the stereotypes of innocent and evil characters. You'd think that James would have made some attempt to change her characters and allow then to develop when she rewrote it....but nope. The plot is also the same! Girl meets boy, but she can't have boy and believes he doesn't like her. She tries to convince him that he should like her and it turns out that he has liked her all along. Then girl can't cope with his demands and ends it. There are probably a lot of books that also have this plot story at their core and they are probably a lot better! Okay, one thing at a time.
 

So, Ana. She's 21, a new grad from college, wants to go into the publishing industry, she has a love of British Literature and Twinges English Breakfast Tea. Believable so far right? Okay....she's also a virgin, never had thoughts about sex, never touched herself, never fancied a boy real or fictional. Still believable? Yeah, maybe in the 1800's! But this is the twenty-first century and I don't believe a single word of this! Maybe, if this could have been explained like with her being religious and it being within her faith to behaviour like that or if there had been some trauma relating to this. But no. We are made to believe that Ana is a complete innocent who has no interested in boys. We are also made to believe that she is like Tess from Tess of the d'urbervilles. I've not read it, but I can see some similarities because they are both young, innocent women who get used by 'evil' men. She also claims to be clumsy -remind you of anyone?-but that hardly comes across in the second half of the book. Why are all innocent girls made out to be clumsy? I don't know, but she really didn't need to be and it just didn't work for the heroine she is trying to be. Ana then falls for the guy of her dreams completely out of the blue and I'll get on to him in a few. But she's never experience wanting or love before, so how does she know what this is? And why has it taken her so long? Then we get the whole cliché of her wanting something she can't have and if she'd just stayed away like her instincts, friends, family, even the man himself had said, this book would have been so much shorter and better for it too! But no, she like any innocent girl has to go and get mixed up with a guy who's past is dark and leads to his 'odd behaviour.' And she puts up with his demands, she agrees to things when she's clearly not ready, she wants to impress and change him because she's so in love with him! Then after everything, she is pushed too far and finally sees sense! Problem is she's too involved and we know that in book two she's going to go right back to him!

 

 

Christian is 27, multi-millionaire, owner of his own company, has everything a person could dream of, loves classic music, playing the piano and gliding. Somewhat believable....not believable is his dark and mysterious background, which is the real draw of the novel, as I pointed out before. He was adopted into what he says is a 'perfect family'. He's never seen with a woman, though he attracts them all the time. (He surrounds himself with blonds too.) He's made out to be a Greek God and untouchable, like he's the most sexist thing to walk the planet....seriously??? I felt nothing, no attraction, no sympathy, no connection. (Beside from my deep feelings of rage at badly written characters). We learn he was abused until he was four years old, though how much he remembers about this and his birth mother I would really question. When he was fifteen he got seduced by an older married woman, a 'Mrs Robinson stereotype' as it comes across. This is where he turned 'bad', though he says something along the lines of it saved him, because he got involved in BDSM. I'm going to get to that in a minute. He comes across as being very controlling, all ways wanting his own way, bipolar with his mood swings, aggressive and very set in his ways. A man to be avoided! What really, really bugs me about him though is that fact that he really steals Ana's innocence. (If you suspend your disbelieve about that and god, you'll have to do that for other things as well!) All the love/sex scenes they have echo rape and violence to women, he introduces her to BDSM when she clearly has no interest and is scared of it. He doesn't take the time to get to know her personally, preferring to stalk her and he struggles to communicate. We know he's not going to change, no matter what he says!

 

 

 

As for the other characters in the book? I could go on about them too, but we've a lot to get through, so briefly. They are all just as badly written! I couldn't connect with any of them and they were all so boring. I had a major problem with all the single males who Ana knows because they all fancy her. Why do writers think it’s okay to do this? So Ana might believe she's not pretty, but why have a bunch of guys we don't carry about pop up throughout and try to date her? We know she wasn't interested in the past, so why do they carry on when they must know this too? It's really not needed. The whole thing of them being there to make Christian jealous? What's the point?! He all ways gets what he wants and he's so not going to let any of them stand in his way! Ana's attitude towards her best friend and housemate is annoying. Understandable though because I got annoyed with Kate too! She's perfect, someone Ana wants to be like, but she has more sense. Or does she? She stays away from Christian only to get with his adopted brother! We don't know anything about this guy, why should we be bothered about their relationship? And why does Ana act like they're having the perfect relationship when she can't possibly know? Parents bug me in this book too. I giggled at the advice Ana's mother give her because it sounded so unrealistic and didn't suit the mum's character. We learn a lot about Ana's parents and hardly anything about Christian’s. These characters are just there being useless and trying to make other characters seem real. Oddly, I did manage to connect with one character and that's Tyler. I really felt for him having to be at the call of a spoilt, control freak. Clearly, he gets paid well and has dedicated his life to his job. I was interested about how he was always in the background and could pop up without anyone noticing....Is he a ninja? What he says also interests me, it’s clear he likes Christian a lot and worries about him. He's happy that Ana is on the scene and maybe he hopes Christian will settle down and become more calm? I'd like to find out more about his character.

 

 

 

Now, I've already pointed out the core plot of the novel, but I'll look at it in more detail now. It starts off with Ana having to go and interview Christian for the student magazine, because Kate has the flu. It's not really love at first sight, but they both feel an odd attraction to each other. Then the rest of the book is spent with them trying to have a relationship, whilst Ana gets Christian to talk about his past. And yeah, that's about it...there's no second or background plots and once you know Christian’s secrets, there's no real reason to carry on reading. It's written in a first person narrative, so we always have Ana's point of view. Reasoning behind this? So, that female readers can connect with her and we can remain in the dark about the actions of the other characters. Maybe, if this book had been written in third person or we had a spilt narrative between Ana and Christian, it would have more depth than the cardboard it feels like. Ana's voice bugs me; it’s too full of conflicting emotion, too full of her whining about things and repetitive statements. Also we get her thoughts all of the time! I can't recall another first person narrative- there probably is one- where though technically we are in the character's head all of the time, we get what the character is thinking in an italics. Why? To make her more expressive? To make her words stand out more and readers to take notice? To me it wasn't needed and you could more or less pick it up from the actual narrative.
 

The pace of the plot is actually very fast and you do get into the novel quickly. Problem is it lacks a constant flow to the different scenes and jumps the linear time frame all the time. Granted we don't need to know what the characters are doing word for word all the time, no story does that, but the writing is very jaggy in the movement. Generally, this doesn't impact on the reading, but to me I like the words to flow probably. Major thing that also bugged me was how Ana keeps referring to her 'sub- conscious ' and her 'inner-Goddess'. Yeah...have you ever talked to your sub-conscious and actually heard it whisper things to you? Seriously? It's called a sub-conscious for a reason! Because most of the time we're not aware of it! Why does James make us believe that Ana has such a deep connection with her inner self and mind? To be honest it’s really not needed, we can see through the narrative and her thoughts what's going on, why make this inner-Goddess character act like Jimmy Cricket? Ana doesn't even follow it's advice anyway. I guess her turning into a donkey and becoming trapped inside a whale would have been an interesting plot development!
 

This book falls into the romance/erotica genre and has been classed by most as 'mommy porn.' Everyone knows that this book contains a lot of detailed sex scenes, nearly all involving BDMS in some way. Once Ana and Christian get together, it never ends and the plot gets lost. I'm fine with these kinds of scenes in books. It's a normal fact of life and it’s what people do. Also it can tell a lot about the characters and link to their backgrounds without the use of words. From my own experience and reading a lot of supernatural romance books, I know that writing these scenes can be a hard task. You want to convey to the reader what's going on and what the characters' feelings/thoughts are in a very short space. However, you can go into too much needless detail and leave nothing up to the readers' imaginations in the search for finding the perfect way to describe the scene. That's what I really feel about these scenes in FS. It feels unrealistic and clumsy, there's no real passion between the characters and the description of the 'after effects' are blown out of proportion.

 

 

 

 

Now the BDMS. James says she did a lot of research, but has she ever experienced anything to do with this? I've read a few reviews which contain people who take a part in this views on the book. Even without having done this though, I feel these scenes were wrong. In a way she seems to have got the wrong idea about what BDMS is. She uses some unsafe techniques, e.g. The cable ties that Christian uses to tie Ana's hands together. Really unsafe as it can cut off blood flow and also feel really unpleasant. And Christian’s playroom is extreme and packed with everything, making it seem unrealistic. And what is up with that contract and not being able to tell anyone? James is really pushing this. Ana should be able to talk to someone about things, having never experienced anything she could do with some actual advice instead of just the internet! And we all know how crazy things can get on there! It just seems that Christian throws her into the deep end of all of this and Ana goes along with it because she's in love with him. I didn't get that thrilled by any of this, maybe because it was badly written or unrealistic. James said that she didn't want to show violence to women, but once again it feels like this is the case. She's using BDMS to symbolise the relationship between Ana and Christian. He's in complete control of her life, she can't escape and he can do whatever he wants to her. For me though, the worse part of this is that James uses Christian’s dark past to explain why he got into BDMS. So, do only bad, traumatised, dark, mysterious men and innocent virgin girls practise this? No! These people are completely normal! They just enjoy a wider experience. I could go on with my unhappiness about this, but I'm not going too. Go to Wiki read about this stuff and then make up your own mind.

 

 

 

The audience of the book is married, (housewives) women who lack sex lives or feel bored and want to fantasise. That's how it's managed to spread so much, because it looks at women's fantasies and appeals to them. It's spread to other women of all ages and even some men. Actually I think that the Kindle has helped make it more available to people who'd not want to be seen in public reading it. I read the book on the bus a few times though and didn't notice anyone glaring or trying to speak to me. Then again I'm not embarrassed by what I read. There really has become some stigma about being seen or admitting to have read this book now. Frankly, I don't think it matters, there has been banned books before and there'll be banned books in the future. People have a wide range of tastes and there's nothing wrong with that.

 

 

And now we finally get on to the language used within the book. (Prepare for another full blown rant.) This book is so badly written it's laughable. Just try reading aloud a page or so to yourself or someone else if you like and listen to how the language sounds. Yeah, it might use an adult vocabulary, with a handful of random words that a few people wouldn't know, a ton of swear words, technical terms and odd phrases. But it's so repetitive and to prove this I'll paste and copy some of a table that someone actually spent time doing and posted online;

Word Count:
"Oh My" - 79
"Jeez" - 82
"Murmur" - 68
"Murmurs" - 139
"Whisper" - 96
"Whispers" - 103
"Fifty" - 16
"Lip" - 71
"Subconscious" - 82

Now granted that all books repeat words throughout and most authors go and find similar or same meaning words to use. But that doesn't happen here and what we've got is a very fix vocabulary. Okay so using the same words might make the reading faster, but it gets so boring. I got annoyed that Ana was always biting her lip and that they were constantly talking in low voices to each other. Also Ana's favourite phrase is 'Oh my.' What is she? Straight out of the 1800's again? The fact that she never seems to have anything else to say is tiresome.

 

 

 

 

Speaking of which the dialogue is so bad. I know that writing dialogue is mega hard. Making speech sound real in written words is near impossible. You can't capture the true meanings, the feeling behind the words and what's left unsaid, which actually happens in real speech. It's possible to have good and close to speech dialogue though. Epic fail for this book! It’s so unrealistic and it's trying too hard. I've no sense of the characters' voices which I should get from their words. It feels bogged down with words that could easily be cut and its mega repetitive. Slightly good thing? The use of the emails and texts. At first I liked how James used this as she made the formatting of their communication very clear. But god, she dragged it out so much and over used it that I just become so bored and wanted to put Ana and Christian in an empty room and make them have a deep talk. I get that they can only truly expresses themselves though technology. It's the way the world is now, people find it a lot easier to say things to people and connect. Fair enough, but a relationship can't carry on with people only expressing themselves in this way!

 

 

About half way through the book, Ana suddenly comes up with this nickname for Christian 'Fifty Shades.' From then on this is used and parried up with different things. When I first read it I laughed and thought that James had suddenly came across the novel's title and then wanted try out a few different ways of putting it. Highly possible, but it also has connects with Christian’s character being mysterious and Ana unable to fully classify him. It also makes the BDSM a 'grey area' though and I really disapproved of this.
 

My major issue with the language is that it has a lot of British idioms. Why when this book is set in the USA and has no connect with Britain, beside from Ana's love of British Lit and tea? Well, James is British and as far as I know has never been to America. She used Google Earth to get the settings and backdrops. Okay, not that much of a problem as lots of writers do this and set their books or have scenes which involve different places where they might not have been. But not being able to describe things to the reader probably makes the settings unreal. At times I questioned if the setting was Britain or America and a reader should never have to do that. It also reflected on the characters as well and their dialogue. I don't understand why she just couldn't have set the book in Britain. Did she think she wouldn't get as much of an audience? Did she believe that the American setting fitted more perfectly for her characters' backgrounds, or was she really trying to write Twilight? Frankly, if this book had been set in Britain and honestly, I can see no real reason why it wouldn't work, I think it might have been a bit better. At least we'd have lost of the confusing idioms!

 

 

 

 

There are two other books; FS Darker and FS Freed and I shall not be reading them. I've no urge to sit through another 500 odd pages (twice!) of this. Oh and they are making it a movie! Three movies actually! Please, I want to be spared from this...Twilight was bad enough! But I do sort of want to know how they are going to do it....make an X-rated version straight to DVD and have a 16+ version at the cinema? If I ever see it I'm going to laugh all the way through it which is what I did with the book.
 

With that I'm going to wrap things up. At the end of the day I really didn't like this novel, it didn't work on a whole number of levels, what with the writing being so bad and the characters being so unrealistic. The idea is a good one though, but I wish it had taken a different view or been constructed with more knowledge. I'm happy that James got somewhere and I've nothing against her, it just bugs me how such trash can be published and become popular! I know everyone's got different tastes and are not all book critics, that's fine, but please let’s just make this a phrase and get back to reading better novels.

 

 

 

 

Images from:

www.fanpop.com

http://www.webring.org/hub/altlibrarianwebr?

http://www.quickmeme.com/50-shades-of-grey---blue/?upcoming
 

 http://whatcanilearntoday.wordpress.com/2012/05/12/did-50-shades-of-grey-start-out-as-twilight-fan-fiction/

http://memebase.cheezburger.com/tag/50-shades-of-grey

http://www.fanpop.com/spots/fifty-shades-trilogy/images/31680051/title/collection-50-shades-memes-fanart

http://chzscience.wordpress.com/tag/50-shades-of-grey/

http://failblog.cheezburger.com/tag/50-shades-of-grey

http://www.picstopin.com/600/50-shades-of-grey-dont-see-what-all-the-fuss-is-about/http:%7C%7Cp*twimg*com%7CAxSdksVCQAEtAAk*jpg/

Word count from: Word Count: http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/340987215?

 

 

 

 



Howl's Moving Castle Review- 'You who swallowed a falling star, o' heartless man'

 

  

Today, I'm writing a review about my favourite anime movie, Howl's Moving Castle. I've just finished reading the novel by Diana Wynne Jones and I can't believe how different the plot of the movie is to the book. Jones states that the idea of a moving castle was suggested to her by a boy she meet on a school visit and that she has also been fascinated by fairy stories. The major thing I love about this book is the front cover. The art work really draws you in! It's two-tone purple and green colours, the black bold words and all the images that seem to have been fitted inside the letters. It looks magical and fantastical and very attractive to the eyes of children. The book, like the movie, has an intended audience of kids, but adults can just as easily love it.

The language used in the book reflects that of a young readership and I found it simple and quick to read. There's not so much in the way of fantasy vocabulary, but when it does appear one of the characters explains it. Like 'seven-league boots' which are basically boots that can travel very fast. The imagery is also great, though I had the movie stuck in my head for much of the first half of the book. The scenes with the marsh covered in flowers and the descriptions of the different towns and cities really make the settings come alive.

The description of the characters is also really good, though once again it's hard when you've got the images of the characters from the movie in mind, but the book characters soon take over and they do have many differences. For me the character of Howl didn't come across in the book as good as he did in the film. He's still handsome and vain, a powerful but cowardly wizard, however, he's very childlike and doesn't come across as being heroic. Sophie on the other hand did work for me and there's a lot more about her family background too, which works well to explain on a deeper level why she doesn't mind carrying on her family's business. I was impressed by how Jones used the transform of Sophie into an old woman to allow a different look at the world and the people through older eyes. It's odd to think how true it actually is and how people of different ages look and understand something. Also, Sophie does have some magical powers and though these are hinted at in the movie, they come out more in the book. Michael the other main character in the story does appear the same as well, though you get to see him actually practising magic and making spells.

There's also a lot of other characters and though some appear in the movie they are very different. The antagonist, the Witch of the Waste, comes across as being in the form of a beautiful woman, kept that way by magic and she is also attracted to a fire demon. In the movie she is an older, fatter, wrinkly woman and for me this image just works better. I don't know, maybe it's because she looks more evil witch like? Both characters still have the same goal; to get Howl's heart and the back-plot that goes with the Witch is also the same; Howl tried to court her and then changed his mind about her and she got anger and cursed him.

The movie dramatically changes three of the other characters in the book who are important to the plot. They are the scarecrow, the dog and madam Suliman. Now, I'm not big on spoiling plots, but the next part might contain some.... Now, firstly the scarecrow in the book is actually a golan and has been created of different parts of different men and sent on a mission to collect the missing parts. In the movie he is just the missing Prince. The dog in the book is actually a dog-man, who's been cursed by the Witch and can sometimes transform back into a man again to speak. In the movie, this dog is just a dog owned by Suliman and sent to watch over things. Suliman in the movie is a woman and in the book Sullivan (as it's spelt) is actually a male wizard, who's become lost in the Waste looking for the Prince. Now in both contexts these characters work well, but I can see why they were changed for the movie, because the plot was different and needed the characters to act differently.



The book was published in 1986. And that feels like a very long time ago and actually it was out two years before I was born! The movie came out in 2004 and was directed by Hayao Miyazaki. I've many reasons why I love this film and it's always the first thing I put on when I'm feeling down or ill. The art is awesome, the details in the background are always there and help give more depth to the film. The characters are very addictive. Howl, voiced by Christian Bale in the English dubbed version, is really cute and sexy.  Calcifer, voiced by Billy Crystal and Sophie voiced by Jean Simmons, work well along side Bale.

One of the biggest changes from the book is the steam punk style that appears. Now Jones said this was because of Miyazaki's love of flying machines and that he was interested in the war which appears as a very, very small sub-plot in the novel. Miyazaki made this the actual sub-plot of the movie and it works well because it creates tension/horror, gives the characters something to discuss/do and reflects on humanity. For me the book lacked the tension and this is because the plot is focused on the characters' relationships and developments. I actually love the steam punk style in the movie and think that it adds so much. Now if the book had had some of that, it would have made it even better for me and created a much more fantasy style world.

My favourite scene has to be the one where Sophie starts cleaning and goes on a complete rampage. It makes me giggle every time. It does appear in the book to less effect though. Oh and also the castle is a different shape in the book! It looks more castle like and made out of black bricks. I prefer the Miyazaki version. My favourite scene in the book? It's a difficult one, because no one scene really stood out as the book tends to jump from one action scene to another. With the endings too, I prefer the movie one because you believe that there is a chance that Howl and Calcifer could be dead and that creates a high emotional tone. In the book and granted this is a children's fairy tale story, everyone pairs off and lives happy ever after, rather suddenly at the end. In the movie only Howl and Sophie get together which works better.

Overall, I did love the book, though it is very different from the film. I also found out that Jones has written two other squeals; Castle In The Air and House Of Many Ways. Though I properly won't get around to reading them as I've so many on my list now and I just wanted to read Howl because of the links to the movie. And now I get to move on to Fifty Shades of Grey....




Images from:

http://yabookshelf.blogspot.co.uk/2011/04/bevy-of-book-covers.html

http://matttrailer.com/howls_moving_castle_2004

http://www.sheezyart.com/art/view/1344506/
 

Norwegian Wood Review - This Bird Has Flown

The weather is really bad right now. Had about a month's worth of rainfall in the last 24 hours and they say that more is to come over the next few days. Luckily, my town hasn't flooded, which is saying something as the river is only across the street from my house. I heard on the lunch time news that a few towns and villages had been taken over by the rapid down pour. So, I'm grateful that it doesn't look like this will happen to me! I do love the rain though. I like watching it fall and wondering how I can best describe it in a story. The weather can set a whole range of tones and moods, just like nature and the seasons. Which brings me on to this post's subject, Norwegian Wood by Haruki Murakami.

Published in 1987 and set in 1960's Japan, this is a tragic love story with two different love triangles. It is also the most recognized of Murakami's work. Now romance novels aren't my thing, yeah I do like some love stories in the horror or supernatural books I read, but I like it to be a sub-genre more than the actual genre. I first heard about NW on a late night TV book show and added it to my list of books that I should read someday. I can't remember what the TV review said as it was about 4/3 years back. I read NW last year-ish and straight away fell in love with Murakami's style of writing. Not being able to read Japanese, I read the English translation of the book. During my MA Creative Writing, I had a class on translation which was very interesting and I realised that most people probably don't think much about the language side of things when they read. It's easy for a writer to translate another writer's work and there's okay money in it, but what got me is that sometimes the writing translator won't stay true to the original work and can try to make it their own. This is a problem I had with the 3rd Murakami novel I read- Hard Boiled Wonderland and The End of The World.

NW is translated (by Jay Rubin, 2000) well and seems to have stayed true to Murakami's style. His writing is so poetic, that after a few chapters you forget you are reading fiction and find yourself believing it to be poetry. This is because he uses a simplistic, yet full of meaning, short and rhythmic vocabulary, which is very readable. The imagery he creates is also amazing and beside from LOTR, I can't think of another book that has blown me away through the pictures that the words can create. I've never been to Japan, but through Murakami I was able to visualise a very clear image of the novel's settings and well, it felt like Japan was on my doorstep instead of being hundreds of miles away. As for the characters, I took to their names well, but that's because I'm use to it from the manga/anime that I love. You also get a clear picture of the characters and their lives. You can deeply connect with them all and sympathize with the events they've had to face in life.      

The themes in NW also fits in with this, as there's love, tragedy, heartache, suicide, solitude, sex and growing up. The narrator of the novel Toru is reflecting back on his college years and the loss of his true love. This comes about because he hears the Beatles singing 'Norwegian Wood', a song about an affair. (Though I've lived in Liverpool, the home of the Beatles for the last 3 years, I'm still not a fan of their music.) So, that explains the title of the novel, but other connects can be made as well. Such as the backdrop for much of the novel is set near Kyoto in a mountainous/forest area and the main female character, Naoko's favourite song happens to be NW. At times affairs do happen in the book and also the song's meaning 'this bird has flown' can be read as someone become free through dying, which towards the end of the book is something that can be sensed. There is also something about the tone of the name that gives it a depressed, dark feeling and that really does linger under the surface of the novel. 

The reason why I wanted to write this post was because I watched the movie of NW today. Though I know it's only been a few days since I wrote about The Hungry Games, my mind is still interested in reviews. I still don't plan to make a large feature about them on my blog though. But it's nice to have more focus to my writing for a change. So, the movie which came out in December 2010, is a good representation of the book, but for me and like The Hungry Games, if you've not read the novel it can be hard and confusing to follow. The film is in subtitles, but there is actually very little speech, which reflections on the main characters' love of solitude and not being able to openly discuss their feelings. Another thing that threw me was the student civil unrest, which is explained in the novel, but not the movie and though Toru is seen to stand against the unrest, he doesn't share his thoughts on it, like he does in the novel. However, this theme appears not to have any meaning in the overall content, rather it's a reflection of the turmoil that is happening in Toru's life.

The main thing that strikes you about this movie is the deep connect to nature. There's so many great shots of the landscape through the changing seasons. This is a much better backdrop to reflect the characters' feelings. The Japanese clearly have a thing about nature and love showing it off in all it's glory. One of my favourite parts was towards the end of the film where Toru goes to stay in a cave near the sea for some nights. The raging sea reflects his anger and loss so well, it was difficult for me not to be crying along with him. When he returns home he looks like the sea has worn him down, as it does to rocks and all the tragedy of his life is reflected in that moment. However, he knows he has to go on living. I like the scenes in the woods too, because of the symbolic meanings of finding solitude and reflection in nature. The woods become something of a secret place for Toru and Naoko. 

The first love triangle is clear from the start with Naoko dating Kizuki and them being best friends with Toru, who is hiding his feelings for her. The second triangle is between Toru, Naoko and Midori. Once again though Toru can't really have Naoko because she's mentally unstable, so he turns to Midori instead. This story does have something of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet about it for me. I guess it's because of the whole tragic love story and the fact that a few characters commit suicide. The movie did capture the 60's in Japan though and I guess when people overall think about that country they still have an ancient image in their heads. So, it was interested to see how 'westernise' Japan was in that era. 

Like with most other Murakami novels there is an underlining confusion for the reader. This isn't really to do with the Japanese setting, it's more how to do with Murakami's style. His characters will say and do things that sometimes don't make much sense or else appear wrong. This happens more at the endings than anywhere else in the books. I got the same sense at the end of the movie that I got at the end of the book. That confused, unsure sense about what the characters were going to do next. There seems to be no real closure or certainty from the characters, though we know this has all been a reflection from Toru, so clearly he has gone on living and coped well with letting go of the past. (I don't think that came across in the movie, though there were a lot of flashbacks). I think one of the reasons why Murakami's novels end like this is because he's letting the reader draw their own conclusions. That said, NW is an awesome book and Murakami is a writer to fall in love with.        

Images from:

http://www.onexday.com/2009/october/30.html

http://moviedroneblog.blogspot.co.uk/2011/02/preview-norwegian-wood.html

http://www.buzzbox.com/news/2012-01-05/haruki-murakami:norwegian-wood/?clusterId=7695650

The Hunger Games Review - May The Odds Be Ever In Your Favour.

 

 

I've never really written reviews before. Yeah, maybe I did a brief one or two before about a book I was reading for uni or one which I really loved. To me there always seems to be a tone of reviews out there covering the whole range, so why add one more to the list? Because for some reason whilst I was watching this movie I thought 'won't it be interesting to write a review and do it from the point of view of a writer.' I bet this film has been reviewed by film and book critics a like and that there are hundreds out there, many of which are properly really good. I've never been one for reading reviews of anything before. I think that at first I didn't have time to read or watch reviews and then it became because I didn't want to know; I wanted to watch or read in my own time and make my own judgement influenced by anyone else.

Lately, and maybe it's because of my boyfriend and the fact I suddenly have a lot of time on my hands now, I've started to become interested in book, film and comic book reviews. I've been watching a few on blip recently and maybe that has part inspired me. However, I wanted take a different point of view from the normal film and literature critic styles, not saying I've not got the intelligence to take one of those views- I've a degree in English lit and know how to de-construct a book to death- but this being a blog about becoming a writer and with myself trying to become a published author, I fancy that this view point would be more valuable.

So, here's my writer's review on The Hungry Games.

I already know this is a bit of an out dated review with The Hungry Games (HG) books and movie rush already over, but I only just got around to watching the film today. I was aware of the books before I heard about the releasing of the film, however hearing the whispers that HG was the next Twilight and the next big thing in teenage fiction put me straight off. For me, I've never actually got into teenage fiction, all of my writing is adult fiction and I've never been drawn to reading much teenage stuff. Though I was a massive fan of R. L. Stein and the Point Horror novels when younger.

With HG I refused to jump on the bandwagon like everyone else. It didn't interest me especially when I found out that the plot was similar to Japan's Battle Royal films and manga. I love both films and find them fascinated. I've read some of the manga too and actually found it a lot more in depth and graphic then the films. So, I was even more sceptic about the HG book. I couldn't see how someone could take the idea of teenagers being forced to fight to the death much better then the Japanese. (If you've not actually seen this film then do.) Now the author of HG Suzanne Collins said that she wasn't aware BR existed and her book had no ties to it. For me as a writer, I find that a bit hard to believe. Yeah, I know there's no original ideas left and that writers recycle stuff all the time, but for her not to be aware of it until it got pointed out seemed a bit off. However, there are very few similarities between HG and BR.

 

 

 

I received the first HG book as an overdue Christmas present from a friend who thought it would be the perfect thing for me. I then also learned that the movie was due to come out. Interested to see what all the fussy was about- the same thing I did with Twilight-I thought I'd give reading the book a go. I was prepared as a reader and writer for it to be terrible, for the characters to be like cardboard cut outs and all samey, for the plot to only have one focus and frankly for it to be an American rip-off of Battle Royal.

I got proven wrong. The book is written wellish and has a clear story arc. The language used is as one expects for a teenage audience, simple with a touch of adult vocabulary The pace is also fast and you can become gripped by the unfolding events. The characters appear realistic and you get time to learn the main characters backgrounds and grew sympathy for them. Truthfully, I wasn't that taken with the book, I'd properly just finished reading some complex book for uni at the time or was reading a supernatural romance novel. I don't want to say because I'm not into teenage fiction or in touch with my child self. I did however prefer it over Twilight because it was better written and the characters more engaging. I've not read the other two books though I do have them.

So, the film. For the first twenty minutes or so I sit there thinking if you've not read the books or any reviews, then you won't have a clue what's going on. The exposition at the beginning is really bad and can be a bit confusing to what has happened and what is going on. How the dystopia happens and why their society ends up as it does isn't examined fully and though the book goes a bit further into this, I still had many questions as to why we were being made to believe the stereotypical warring man has driven humanity to this. Battle Royal has a better explanation for why society has choice to go down the path of killing the next generation. In my mind and realistically thinking I can't see humanity ever choosing to go down this root. I know that reality TV is getting worse all the time and people are becoming desensitised to things, but still.

After that shaky start you get what feels like a lot of time to learn and sympathise towards the main characters Katniss and Peeta. I know that this is important to draw the audience in and get them on the characters side, but I felt that too much time was spent doing this. You also get flashbacks through the film and though these are well placed it can be difficult to understand what's happening. Rather strangely, whilst I'm writing this and I'm discussing HG with my boyfriend and we just came up with a good explain of the problems with these flashbacks. He wanted to know why the bread that Peeta gives Katniss is so important because that isn't explained at all in the movie. Having read the book it was clear in my mind! Katniss and her sister are staving and by Peeta giving her the bread she was able to survive. This allows a strong link to form between them and fits in with the whole survival theme.

 

 

I have to admit that the romance between Katniss and Peeta though it was a faked romace just for entertiment was a lot better then the romance in Twilight. However faked or not, the romanace didn't go anywhere and then once it started become the soul focus and the fighting was placed in the background. None of the other characters became romaticly involved and they were only interested in killing each other. Another difference to Battle Royal as lots of characters in that were romanticly involved and some even used it to an adventage. Also the focus is always on Katniss and you only see the other characters when she engages in them. Battle Royal shows you lots of characters and their backgrounds. As I writer I'd be keen to have explored the other tributes' backgrounds and actual give readers the choice about who to support.

For me the script did come across as an okay adaption of the book, though there clearly were some confusing parts that could have easily been explained or explained differently like the bread thing, it only took me two minutes to explain that. Also one small thing that did bug me was how Katniss got that Mockingjay pin. In the film she finds it on a stall and the old woman gives it to her, in the book it's the Mayor's daughter who gives her the pin. The pin is meant to symbol hope and be a good luck token. It also symbolises Katniss district and rebellion against the games. but this isn't really dealt with and actually slight confusing note, I'm not sure if the pin mockingjay pin does represent district 13 as no mockingjays live there and Katniss doesn't know what one is until she's told....So, I'm not sure about that point, maybe that's my mistake though....

The acting was good, but I do have to agree with a few other reviewers that Jennifer Lawrence didn't properly represent the image of Katniss that appears in the book. Yeah, I know with a fictional character finding someone to match the image of that character in the writer's head is hard! The other two books, Catching Fire and Mockingjay (which is being divided into 2 parts) are being made into movies and have predicted release dates of November 2013 and November 2014/2015. If I actually read the books and go to see them is up for some debate right now....

So, what else can be said about HG? Well, technically it is the next Twilight, only I don't think it's going to set off a whole sub-genre of teenagers fighting each other books. Similar, to Twilight though the ideas and themes behind it are good, but the way it's written effects how these ideas and themes are transferred to the reader. Thinking in terms of teenage fiction though and actually getting kids back into reading is a hard thing to do. Technology is a very hard medium to battle against and so any book that gets mass of kids and even adults to read it can only be classed as good. That's not to say it's written well though....but still any author who can achieve that has gained my respect.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Images from:

http://www.elenaandreou.com/2012/03/01/the-hunger-games/

 

http://540-edalb.deviantart.com/art/Battle-Royale-Demotivational-147565910

 

http://22vels.deviantart.com/art/The-Hunger-Games-Movie-251671127

 

http://www.movie-poster-artwork-finder.com/tag/the-hunger-games-poster-artwork/

 

 

And just to remind you of the link to my boyfriend's web show.

http://blip.tv/tyas