logo
Wrong email address or username
Wrong email address or username
Incorrect verification code
back to top
Search tags: Crown-Publishers
Load new posts () and activity
Like Reblog Comment
show activity (+)
review 2014-01-30 03:29
Fourth Comings by Megan McCafferty
Fourth Comings: A Jessica Darling Novel (Jessica Darling Novels) - Megan McCafferty

It took me far too long to read this book. A whole month! The only reason I finally finished it is because it was due at the library. Don’t get me wrong. I didn’t hate it. It just didn’t interest me the way I wanted. It’s gone down hill since the second book. I’ll read the fifth one just so I can finish the story. I’m still hoping the series will redeem itself.

Jessica and Hope are back together! They’re subletting an apartment together and Jessica has a big girl job at a magazine she loves. Everything seems to be going well… until Marcus proposes to her. Now, she only has a week to decide if she wants to stay in New York and continue the life she’s built or leave it all to be with Marcus in New Jersey.

 

The first problem with this book is based on a bias, but whatever. There was not enough Marcus. There was basically no Marcus, since he was on a trip. You might say, “but Laura, these books are about Jessica, not Marcus.” Yes. They are, and Jessica is funny and all, but this series just isn’t as good without Marcus’s complimentary wit. Because of his absence I found myself pretty bored.

 

The plot is interesting, but extremely slow. I blame this on the fact that it only covers a week of her life. I can’t imagine filling up 300 pages with a week in my life. It sounds horribly boring… and it is. Plus, it’s a little like whiplash going from a book that covers three years of Jessica’s life to one that covers a week.

 

There’s one thing Jessica talks about that I just have to refute. She comes to the conclusion that Marcus is constantly changing and because of that she can’t have him in her life. What I don’t understand about this is that everyone changes. It’s just the way human begins are, especially at young ages. College is the time for change, but that doesn’t mean people can’t stay together. In fact, I think any two people in a mature relationship should be able to change and grow together. Maybe that’s just me.

 

I don’t particularly recommend this book, but if you’re reading the series, you have to read this one to finish it. It’s suitable for readers ages 16+ due to sexual content and language.

Source: www.owltellyouaboutit.com/posts/fourth-comings
Like Reblog Comment
review 2014-01-30 02:05
Charmed Thirds by Megan McCafferty
Charmed Thirds - Megan McCafferty

I was a little worried to start this one. My interest in the relationship of Jessica and Marcus is why I’ve enjoyed these books. When I read the back of this book I was afraid things between Jessica and Marcus would get really bad. As I predicted, I didn’t like this one as much as the last two. It’s just not as good without Marcus. It kind of felt like it lost focus a little bit, but perhaps that was the point, since Jessica lost focus. I guess that’s what college is about for most people. Maybe I’m judging it harshly because I’m already over that stage of my life.

 

It seemed like it was all crammed into this book too. There was nothing about Jessica’s life during the semesters, supposedly because she was so busy with class she couldn’t keep a journal. I can understand that. However, that means you get an entire semester’s information in a letter to Hope at the end of that semester. Sure, she explains anything important, but it still seems rushed. After two books spanning a year, why all of a sudden are flipping through four years of Jessica’s life in a little over 300 pages.

 

There’s not too much character development. I suppose the plot development makes up for this a little, but not much. I got a little irritated with Jessica this time. I think Marcus is great, and he obviously adores Jessica. He has great faith in there relationship, and that’s a good quality. Jessica is pessimistic by nature and convinces herself that Marcus is going to cheat on her or something. It’s like she tries to find reasons for them to break up, even tough she obviously wants to be with him. I think it comes down to her own self-consciousness, and that’s a quality I’ve never really noticed in Jessica. Sure, she’s not one to think she’s awesome or anything, but I’ve certainly never thought of her as self-conscious. Maybe I just didn’t pick up on it. I’ll have to read the fourth one a little more closely.

Source: www.owltellyouaboutit.com/posts/charmed-thirds
Like Reblog Comment
review 2013-05-21 19:10
Second Helpings by Megan McCafferty
Second Helpings - Megan McCafferty

Though I enjoyed the first installment of this series, this one blew it out of the water. The tension between Jessica and Marcus is even stronger, and their relationship is what I love most about these books because it’s so unconventional. They’re not your “normal” teenagers. They’re quirky and I can really appreciate that since I am admittedly pretty quirky myself. Jessica’s character loses me a little bit in this book. She can be so blind sometimes. She also might be more cynical than I am. I didn’t relate to her as much. I think I understood Marcus a little better.

 

McCafferty doesn’t disappoint with her witty reparte on high school drama and backstabbing. She really captures the essence and horror of high school. You’re always told that high school will be the best time of your life, but McCafferty begs to differ. She reminds us all of every embarassing moment and all the childish gossip that we all had to endure in our teens. It’s nice to read about a normal teenage girl and think I know exactly what she means because I’ve lived it.

 

My only complaint is that it closely resembles the 80′s teen movie in the end. This is kind of appropriate since Jessica loves the teen films of the 80′s, but it’s a bit too cheesy for me. I don’t mind cheesy in movies, but it just doesn’t work well in books. However, McCafferty redeems herself jsut a little by giving us a not-so-perfect ending and the promise of another book. All in all, a good read and better than the first. I finished it eager to see what the future held for both Jessica and Marcus.

Source: www.owltellyouaboutit.com/posts/second-helpings
Like Reblog Comment
review 2013-05-21 18:24
Sloppy Firsts by Megan McCafferty
Sloppy Firsts - Megan McCafferty

When I first opened this book, I expected to be reading about a whiny, angsty teenager. I was pleasantly surprised by the very clever Jessica Darling. Her thoughts and opinions are the kinds of things I can remember thinking to myself in high school. Well, Jessica has more wit than I did, but the basic ideas are the same. I also expected to loathe Marcus, since he was the bad boy who encouraged the late Heath in his drug addictions, but again I was too quick to judge. Marcus is one of the most intriguing characters I’ve ever come across. In this early book of the series, he puts on quite a show. Jessica seems to be the only one noticing it. I was just as surprised as Jessica to find that their friendship is as easy as breathing. It’s something Jessica hasn’t actually grasped at this point in the series, but I did. See, Marcus doesn’t pretend, ever.

 

Jessica, on the other hand, is a master at pretending. That is, except when she’s with Marcus. With Marcus she can be herself. She doesn’t have to worry about offending or stepping over the line because that’s something he does to others daily. I realize that I’m focusing a lot on the characters, but that’s because I feel like the characters really make this book.

 

If there’s a theme to this book I would lean toward the consequences of judgement. This book is full of examples of Jessica’s poor judgement of others coming back to haunt her. She is constantly misjudging people, though some of that doesn’t become apparent in this volume. I think that this dilemma is mainly due to the fact that she spends so much time in her own world and her own thoughts that she fails to observe things closely. It’s a character flaw that I share with her. I’m often oblivious to the problems of others because I can’t get out of my own head long enough to notice what’s really going on. It amazes me that her friends are so forgiving of this characteristic, but then again so are mine. I suppose that’s what is so wonderful about friends.

 

The writing itself is nothing terribly special. McCafferty is very witty, but matter-of-fact in her writing. There’s no pretty analogies. It’s just Jessica’s thoughts, plain and simple. I like this because it’s appropriate for this story. It’s also similar to the way I write, so I suppose I would appreciate it.

 

I’ve read through the third book of this series, so I have more to go on than this book. The thing that has me loving these books is not the writing or even really the plot. There is just something very unique about Marcus and Jessica. Maybe it’s that they’re much more real than the usual characters I come across in books. I can relate to them or I know people just like them. That’s always something I look for in the books I read.

Source: www.owltellyouaboutit.com/posts/sloppy-firsts
More posts
Your Dashboard view:
Need help?