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review 2017-04-08 00:00
Internet Famous
Internet Famous - Danika Stone Internet Famous - Danika Stone Rating: To Come

Thank you to the publisher and author for providing this arc as a giveaway which I gratefully won!

I am so looking forward to reading this interesting book. The plot sounds so intriguing, I mean an a romance blossoming over an internet blog...genius! Not to mention, that cover is incredible!

Full review to come!
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review 2016-11-01 18:36
All the Feels by Danika Stone
All the Feels - Danika Stone All the Feels - Danika Stone

I am so disappointed in this book. I'm not going to lie, I had high hopes. Mostly because I had never seen a book that was all about fandom before. I like fandom a lot. I love finding a video game/anime/manga/book series to nerd out over. I love reading fanfics, seeing fanart, and watching multiple AMVs over and over again. And I wanted to see this book portray fandom as something fun and exciting! And, at first, this book did that. 

 

Let's start off with the positives. This book praised the creative side of fandom. When people get involved and create their own stories and art and images promoting their passion for a particular show/game/book etc. And I loved that! I loved that this book was saying so many positive things about fandom and how fans love something so much they want to share it with others because that IS what happens when you get involved in something you love. You create things, you share things, you talk to other fans about that thing that you love. It's so much fun and this book portrayed that accurately.

 

Another thing I think this book did great on was its portrayal of sexuality. I love how it talked about how sexuality can be fluid. How it's normal to be bisexual or gay or straight or anything in between. I love that. Because a lot of time, for many of us, sexuality is fluid. Perhaps you thought you were gay but it turns out you're pansexual. All of that is normal and for many of us, it takes time to discover who you are and that's okay, too. I liked that about the book.

 

Now... the things I didn't like about the book... EVERYTHING ELSE! I praised this book for representing fandom correctly, yes? Well, that only pertains to ONLINE fandom. Because the moment everything was taken into reality, the book does a 180 and starts shitting on fandom. I kid you not. There's a part where the two main characters Liv and Xander, who also get on my nerves but I will talk more about that later, go to Dragon Con and they are both so bloody rude! Liv never met any of her online friends so they all begged her to come to Dragon Con, to which she kept saying, "I don't know if I'm going." (Another thing that annoys me about her is she is such a downer to everything!) But the moment her love interest, Xander (not a spoiler; we all know he's end game), tells her to come, she jumps right in! Anyway, so she's finally there, meeting her online friends and the entire time she and Xander are rude to them all!

 

There's one character there named Joe and she is a very popular fic writer in the fandom of Starveil to the point where everyone knows who she is and loves all of her work! Anyway, when they finally meet her, all they did was comment on the fact that she was way too old to be in the fandom and poke fun at her weight. The compared her fingers to sausages! They said it must be embarrassing to write fics in her spare time! What, just because she is older and a bit heavy doesn't give her the right to have fun? What the hell?

 

When it came to another girl in the group, Sarah, she had extreme anxiety, to the point she couldn't talk in person, only text. And we know what that's like. Most of the time, we readers know exactly what it's like to have anxiety to the point it's almost crippling. But do you think Liv cares? No. Xander gave Liv a "sympathetic look" because Liv had to deal with Sarah being awkward. I don't know where they are coming off. Liv couldn't go on a bloody see-through elevator without having to cower into Xander's chest. Hypocrite.

 

One more character I want to talk about before moving on to the main characters. Brain, he's known for making manips for the fandom, was completely awesome and supporting and badass online but the moment they met him in real life, he's a completely asshole. Like getting drunk and cursing at waiters kind of asshole. Now, I know not everyone you meet online is going to be a nice person, but Liv has known these people for years online. They each formed a friendship. Why is it that even when you've known each other for so long, you're treating each other like strangers? It's like the author wanted to give the message that fandom is only good if you keep it online and "online friendships aren't real friendships." No! We've all heard that crap before from close-minded people. Online friendships are just as legit as "real life" friendships. Don't give me none of that crap that fandom only belongs online. That is NOT true! You can have fun with whatever fandom you're in online as well as real life! If you've ever been to a convention, you know this to be true!

 

Now for the main characters. Liv is so annoying. I already mentioned how she is a downer. Well, she also overreacts. TO EVERYTHING. At the beginning of the book, she meets a guy, asks him out, finds out he has a girlfriend, and makes the biggest scene out of nothing. All she had to do was say, "Oh. Okay. Cool. I didn't know." And move on! Not run away crying like a dolt. Then, later on, she does the same thing when this guy and his girlfriend invites her to be in the relationship with them. Polygamous relationships are not for everyone and I understand that, but don't judge those who are comfortable in that relationship. As long as there is consent on all parties then what's the big deal? Liv had to CALMLY and COHERENTLY tell him that she was not into that sort of thing. The guy is actually understanding. He would probably have dropped it and continued to have a friendship with her. But no. Liv had to freak out and continue to judge him and his girlfriend. By the way, inviting Liv into the relationship was his girlfriend's idea. See, Liv? Judgmental. 

 

And she's also a horrible friend! Remember, she has never met any of her online friends before. They all begged her to come to Dragon Con so they can all hang out. And I already said how horribly she treated them. But not only that, the moment Xander said let's go, she ditches her friends! Saying that she was relieved he did that. What kind of a person does that!? Her attitude about it was no better. She just laughs at every single thing Xander does as if he's the funniest dude to walk on this planet and she's completely fine with doing whatever as long as she's with Xander!

 

And speaking of Xander... I hate his guts. I do. He's possessive to the point of concerning. He didn't want Liv to talk to other guys even though he had his own girlfriend. He kept flirting with Liv even though he had his own girlfriend (and this is not the same thing as with the polygamous relationship. In that relationship, the girlfriend was aware of what her boyfriend was doing with another girl. In Xander's case, his girlfriend wasn't aware of his flirting with Liv. WHICH IS WRONG! That's close to cheating, Xan.) And he also kept commenting on Liv's body as if she were a piece of meat! Nothing but lewd and crude comments about how she has all the right curves and how he wanted to ravish her. Just horrible comments like that, and Liv fell for it every time. As if that was romantic. No! That is NOT romantic! That's bloody creepy and disgusting! How could anyone fall for someone talking nonstop about their body? Making obscene comments about their breasts? It was revolting to read.

 

Okay. That's it. I think I ranted long enough about this book. It's been a while I felt the need to rant about how much I disliked a book so much but I had to. I was insulted, being someone who is very much active in fandom myself, that someone would write something like this to try and paint a negative picture about something that is fun and good. Fandom is not perfect, no. But it's not as bad as this book makes it out to be, It can be fun and can be good. There are so many talented people who pour their hearts into the medium they love AND it's not just something they do only online. They carry that passion with them into the real world and that's what makes going to conventions fun! Because you get to see other people like yourself out there doing the same thing you're doing and it's amazing!

 

I can't recommend this book. It is a horrible representation of what fandom is truly like. The characters are terrible, The story is not even resolved properly with one of the characters and... ugh... this book is just a mess. I probably could go on and on about all the things wrong with this book... but I'll stop here. I'm just so disappointed in this book. I wanted to like it. I really did. But I didn't.

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review 2013-09-06 00:00
Ctrl Z
Ctrl Z - Danika Stone 3.5 to 4... interesting story.... the changes on narration where a little confusing but the suspense was WOW!!!
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review 2013-06-14 00:00
Ctrl Z
Ctrl Z - Danika Stone Bellissimooooooooooooooo!Recensione sul mio blog:http://pleaseanotherbook.tumblr.com/post/54934335323“No” she said bitterly.”’Cause I fuck things up. It’s what I do! Just ask Shireese”“And so what if you do?” he argued. “I have totally fucked up my life! I’m so messed up, I don’t even know how the hell I’m gonna fix it, but when I think about what matters, it always comes back to you. I love you, and it doesn’t have to make sense”. “Ctrl Z” è il nuovo libro di Danika Stone che sicuramente vi ricorderete dall’intervista che mi ha lasciato durante il Mese della Romance. Dopo “The snake and the coins“ credevo di adorarla, ma dopo questo nuovo libro sono letteralmente in estasi. La Stone ha una capacità straordinaria di creare dei protagonisti veri, con mille problemi, che sembrano vicinissimi a noi, anche se hanno vite complicate. E insomma al momento non ho molte parole, ma credetemi quando vi dico che questo è uno dei libri più belli che ho letto quest’anno e che entra di diritto tra i miei preferiti.Indigo Sykes ha passato gli ultimi anni cercando di dimenticare da dove viene. Ha una laurea, una nuova vita e una esistenza tranquilla. Tutto quello che ha sempre voluto… Ma tutto questo si ferma bruscamente quando l’incontro inaspettato con l’hacker Jude Alden cambia i suoi piani. Una storia d’amore si sviluppa tra i due, anche quando episodi del passato di Indigo minacciano di dividerli. Perseguitata da una storia di fuga, la sicurezza di Indigo conquistata duramente viene distrutta in mille pezzi quando le attività illegali di Jude li trascinano entrambi in un gioco pericoloso. E la rete di hacker e crimine sotterrano si stringe intorno a Jude la storia oscura di Indigo viene a galla e i due devono trovare un modo per salvarsi o rischiano conseguenze pericolose per entrambi.Effettivamente non so da dove iniziare, credo di essere leggermente in imbarazzo perché non posso scrivere solo è bellissimo! La Stone è capace di scrivere delle storie al cardiopalma senza risultare stucchevole, delle romance così dannatamente perfette, con un carico emotivo inimmaginabile e uno stile unico che lasciano sempre un segno nel lettore. La tecnica è quella della narrazione in terza persona e l’alternanza dei punti di vista di Indigo e Jude. Non si ha mai una divisione netta, non ci sono mai stacchi di prospettiva, la narrazione è fluida, scorrevole e si amalgama in maniera perfetta. La storia è piena di colpi di scena, tutto sembra essere già scritto eppure la trama continua a sorprendere ad ogni capitolo. Mentre ci avviciniamo al centro della storia temiamo per i nostri protagonisti e ci rendiamo conto che è incredibilmente difficile smettere di leggere. All’inizio si ha un incontro casuale tra i due protagonisti, che si sfiorano in un locale di sfuggita, ma lasciando un’impronta profonda, capace di sconvolgerli. Quando si rincontrano, in maniera inaspettata e nell’ultimo posto che pensavano è inevitabile avvicinarsi l’uno all’altro. Quello che sorprende e che adoro di questa scrittrice però è che non si ha un’evoluzione rapida e improbabile tra i due protagonisti, ma anzi i due si avvicinano lentamente, costruendo un rapporto basato sulla fiducia e sulla conoscenza. Certo l’attrazione è inevitabile, gli incontri per prendere un caffè insieme o i messaggi che si scambiano, sono certamente testimonianza di una passione che nasce fulminea, ma nessuno dei due vi agisce in maniera sconsiderata. Indigo è uscita da una storia difficile, che l’ha lasciata in uno status mentale fragile e insicuro, che va a minare la sua fiducia negli uomini. Incapace di fidarsi e lasciarsi andare, con un passato che l’ha vista vivere per strada da sola, senza nessuno, per lungo tempo, Indigo sa come difendersi, sa cosa fare e dove andare, anche se questo significa dover rimanere da sola e rinunciare ad una storia seria. Un’artista, amante del disegno e della pittura si è scritta al college per iniziare una nuova vita e liberarsi una volta e per sempre del passato che continua a tormentarla. Ma di certe cose non ci si libera mai fino in fondo, continuano a rimordere la coscienza finché non si esplode. Avvicinarsi a Jude sembra lenire certi dolori, salvo poi lasciarla completamente allo scoperto e vulnerabile, e costretta ad intraprendere una strada che non aveva mai immaginato.Anche la vita di Jude è stata difficile e traumatica e non riusciamo a capirne i risvolti fino alla fine, quando tutti i pezzi del puzzle si riuniranno, perché la Stone non lascia niente al caso, tutto è calibrato per sorprendere e affascinare. Ingenuo e affascinato da un guadagno facile e veloce si lascia coinvolgere da un suo collega in un affare illecito e dai contorni non proprio legali e lentamente si ritrova con l’acqua alla gola, incapace di uscirne. Leale, super carino, un genio assoluto con il computer, Jude è un uomo disperato che cerca di sopravvivere come può in una situazione più grande di lui. Spaventato e sempre più innamorato di Indigo cerca di aggrapparsi all’unica cosa che funziona in un mondo allo sfascio. In un continuo tira e molla, in un’altalena emotiva che li porterà ad essere più vicini che mai Jude e Indigo devono fare i conti con la malavita organizzate e le loro rispettive insicurezze e paure e capire se il gioco vale la candela.Il particolare da non dimenticare? Il video per un corso dell’università…Emozionante, pieno di colpi di scena, incredibilmente ben scritto, questa è la romance dell’anno, che vi terrà incollati alle pagine e non vi permetterà di fuggirne. Piena di misteri e di scene dolci e passionali è assolutamente perfetta e vi farà innamorare di una scrittrice che sa perfettamente cosa fare. Trovate un except del libro qui.Non lasciatevi scappare questo libro meraviglioso.Buona lettura guys!Io non posso che ringraziare Danika Stone per essere sempre così straordinariamente carina, nell’avermi scelta per recensire i suoi libri e per avermene mandata una copia a casa. Gliene sono immensamente grata.
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review 2013-06-02 00:00
Intaglio: The Snake and the Coins - Danika Stone "And then they half-ran, half skipped the last eight blocks to her apartment, their bodies connected by their crossed arms. Half a block away, their combined shadow looks like wings of a single sea bird, wheeling in a bright sky. Two blocks further, and they looks like two boats, alone on an endless ocean. One block from that, and their joined bodies merged into a symbol of infinity."

This book was beautiful and poetic, scarring and catastrophic.

COVER

I didn't know how i felt about the cover imagery at first. I thought a little cheesy but then as i was reading the book i was amazed if fit the book perfectly. It almost reminds me of the Gone with the Wind cover with Clark Gable on the front showcasing love but a destructive undertone (as we can see ships crashing in the back)

THE PLOT

The story is about an Art Student Ava she uses mediums of oils and acrylics creating true images of her dreams as well as her more dangerous medium spray paint, her tag well known as Booker. One day after class she finally has a conversation with another student in her core art class, a Sculptor named Cole. She has an instant connection with him, which excited but scares her at the same time. She feels as if she has known him before and he feel exactly the same way.

We are then intercepted by Kip another known graffiti artist notoriously known for his rebel against the war. He meets Ava at his art show and himself and his agent want to offer their working services to Ava getting her into an documentary and showcasing her work.

Ava and Cole both come from a troubled background. Ava's mother disappeared after abusing a six year old Ava while her father was away in Europe playing for the Symphony Orchestra. Cole grew up with a strict military father and troubled mother then at the age fourteen his older sister was killed on her first deployment from the US Army, leaving the family broken.

Ava dreams of a time once past which involve herself, Jonathan & Thomas (Kip & Cole) two love interests which appear to be part of her past life, and once she wakes she paints scenes from these dreams confusing both Cole and Kip.

To me this book is about love in all aspects. It shows us how beautiful but destructive love can be whether it be falling out with your first, second or even third love, losing the love of a parent or sibling and even gaining love; the hopes and the fears we face when we feel we might lose it. Love is powerful.

CHARACTERS

I like Ava as a person, she's had to deal with a lot and she's making something of her life the way she knows how. She a very cautious person due to her abusive mother but she eventually lets people in. I love that she has become a independent and strong woman.

I'm kind of in love with Cole, he was quiet but authoritative at the same time and he is good for Ava, their relationship is rocky and they both have a lot to learn to make it work. Kip, I DO NOT like Kip. I feel like he's one of those guys who expects everyone to drop what they're doing so he can be in control, which is exactly the opposite of how Ava treats him (Yay for Ava).

I really enjoyed this book and cannot wait to own the second book, which of course i'll need to get on paperback now :).

I give this a rating of...4*
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