Zoo by James Patterson

Author: James Patterson

Genre:  Thriller, Science Fiction, Horror, Mystery

Target Audience:  Adults

Reading Experience:  7.5/10

Story:  8/10

Writing:  7/10

My Verdict:  7.5/10

Who hasn't heard of James Patterson?  I mean, the man has books virtually EVERYWHERE.  It scares me whenever I want to find out how many books he has written to date.  Because if I'm ever hooked, I won't be able to keep up.  I'm still trying to cope with the fact that I recently became a Stephen King fan; keeping up with his writings will be a challenge.  And don't get me started on Dean Koontz!

New rating system!

Hello Bookworms!

Seeing that the reviews are a little... unorganized, I decided to make a default structure to review the books from now on.  Here's the roundup:

Cell by Stephen King

Give me a second.  Let me put my cellphone away.  I'm just going to hide it in the bottom of the clothes' hamper and put it all in the closet.  I'm going to close the closet doors and sit as far away from it as possible.  Okay... now I'm ready.

Stephen King's Cell.  You know the man, and you know that his name is synonymous to blood, violence, horror and brilliant storytelling.  This book was no exception.  It had all of those and much, much, more.

I love apocalyptic/post-apocalyptic stories.  I've never actually read a book with that theme, so when I came across this book in the internet, knowing it was a zombie-like novel AND knowing it was written by the great Stephen king, I decided to give it a go without a second thought.

The story is simple yet engaging and fascinating in a gory way.  I'll draw a scene for you.

Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton

"Welcome, to Jurassic Park!"

You can hear it, can you?  The fanfare?  You hear it while you picture yourself in the Toyota Land Cruisers, which are painted bright green with stripes.  It's automated and you move through dense vegetation, in a secluded island off the coast of Costa Rica, and you near a large, wooden gate.  As you get closer, the music gets louder, the gates open and you go through it.  You have time to look up and notice how colossal it is.

Then you're inside.  Nature stretches before you and all around you. You have arrived, you're finally there, back in time, eons!

The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins

I thought I would review one of my favorite thrillers so far (besides Gone Girl).  The Girl on the Train is a fast-paced, engaging thriller that hooks you from the first chapter.  Without giving too much away, the story is about Rachel, a girl stuck in time and routine, lamenting everything she has lost and regretting the person she has become because of it.  Rachel takes the same commuting train every day, twice a day.  The same thing over and over.  The only thing that gets her through the day is watching a couple - who she names Jess and Jason, since she doesn't know them - every time she reaches one of her stops.  She sees their life, how perfect it is.  It is nostalgic to her.  She used to have a life like that, once upon a time. and she enjoys watching Jess and Jason as they have breakfast, as they embrace, as they smile and love each other.  It's all perfect.  She evens creates imaginary lives for them: their families, their personalities and their hobbies.  There is no need to meet them personally.  Beauty can be admired from afar.

The Spinning Heart by Donal Ryan

My description of this book would have to be summarized as a "wonderful, all-too human, underrated beauty".  I've never heard of it before, and I haven't even seen it in stores (do they even sell it on stores?  I have to check.  I need to buy it!).  I came across this book while searching the lists in GoodReads (I know I mention it a lot, but it's heaven for us avid readers).  I actually stumbled upon it while searching for a specific type of book.  My sister and I tried out the 2015 Reading Challenge (I won, of course).  One of the challenges stated that I had to read a book set in a place I've always wanted to visit.  Ireland came to mind, and I searched high and low for a book set in Ireland.  I came across this book on one of the lists.  It was short, it had a simple plot, and most importantly, it was set in Ireland.  I gave it a go.  I bought it through my Reader and sat down to read it.

The Shining by Stephen King

Ah!  The Shining!  Everybody knows the title and the horror it represents.  Everybody has heard of it at least once.  The first thing that comes to mind is the scene where Jack Torrance tries to bring down a door with an ax while his wife screams helplessly on the other side.  And that's the image people who haven't seen it get upon hearing the name.  Those that have seen it, like myself?  We recall the cascade of blood from the elevators, the ghost in the bathtub, the twins, the creepy hotel... and of course, REDRUM.


What about the book?  The book was WAY better than the movie.  But I will only review the book for now.

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs

I was going to review a book from my "Favorites" list, but since the trailer came out not long ago, I thought it would only be fair to review this book, since I read it not many weeks ago.  Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs.

If you haven't seen the trailer yet, directed by the creative and unique Tim Burton, then you can check it out here (just so you get an idea of what it's about, and so that you can get as excited as I was watching it).  It looks promising.  Eva Green and Asa Butterfield are, in my opinion, perfect for the roles of Miss Peregrine and Jacob respectively.  Can't wait!

Okay, so, Miss Peregrine and her Home for peculiar children.  It's the first of a trilogy (Hollow City being its sequel followed by Library of souls).  

And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie

I thought it would only be fair to review one of my favorite books next: And Then There Were None, by the brilliant Agatha Christie.  This one is short, I promise (JaJa).  If I write too much about it, I may give away the plot twists and ending, so I'll be brief.

I came across this book when I was searching for books with "great and unexpected plot twists".  This book appeared on all of the lists I came across, so I decided to give it a go.  It did not disappoint.  It had me guessing to the very end.

Making the description as brief as possible, it's the story of ten people that find themselves summoned to an island (called Indian Island) for different reasons by a millionaire host going by the name of U.N. Owen.  These people come from different parts and different worlds, but they share one thing: a wicked, dark secret, that they guard very carefully.  

But when the host never shows up, the group of people become restless.  Each of their secrets are laid bare for all to see, and the atmosphere becomes cold and tense.  What is the meaning of this?!  Then the first guest dies.  Panic ensues.  These people have no communication with the outside world whatsoever, and they can only leave by boat, which hasn't arrived yet.  At the peak of their panic, when they are trying to make sense of what happened, another falls.  Then another...

The remaining guests start pointing fingers (like we will do, as we read the book) only to come face to face with dead ends and brilliant twists.  Who is behind everything?

Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell

                                                                                                                                                                   

"Your life amounted to no more than one drop in a limitless ocean!" "Yet, what is an ocean but a multitude of drops?" - David Mitchell, Cloud Atlas

Hello bookworms!  I wanted to make my first post about the book I recently finished.  And what a book!  It still lingers in my mind, the effect it had once I finished it.  I figured it would not only be a good way to start this blog, but also a way to introduce people to this gem.

Cloud Atlas, by David Mitchell.  At first I didn't know it was a book.  I saw the trailer for the movie first, and decided against watching it because it seemed too confusing, unfocused.  I had no idea what was going on when I first saw the trailer.  So I paid little to no attention to it.  I asked my friend about it, who simply said that he found it boring and confusing.  I didn't need convincing after that, so I passed.