Review: Up in Flames

Up in Flames by Abbi Glines
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Actually, I stopped following this series after I read You Were Mine . I'm not saying that the series goes bad or anything like that. It's just after reading the last one, I didn't feel quite excited about the next books anymore. And then, I stumbled on this book on Goodreads and I thought, "hmm seems an interesting book", "about Nan, I'm curious, I think I need to give it a shot", and moreover "oh the last one on the series thank God" and so on and so on.

I wished I got something more from Nan's story that would end this series with a worthy conclusion. How does it feel to stand on her shoe, why did she behave that way, does she redeem herself for all her faults to people around her, does she find a love that will be able to make her 'see the light'; those were some questions that fueled my curiousity. Does this book answer those questions? Well... yes, I guess, in some ways, but it doesn't give me satisfying answers I need.

This book told me how Nan always feeling sad and angry and dissappointed, but the story-telling cannot make me feel any sympathy for her. It told me that she never received the love she craved and she deserved and how the dissappoinment drived her to be the queen b*tch she was, but then I wonder whether she got a random amnesia and forgot about how her brother, Rush, loves her so much and then I made up my mind that she was just a spoiled greedy girl who just couldn't get enough and that just it. Maybe Abbi Glines intended to build her character that way, so that thought drive me to another quoestion: does she redeem herself for all her faults to people around her? Well, (view spoiler)[she admitted (to herself) that she behaved very bad to them. She and Blaire now have a good relationship and its wonderful to read how she sincerely loves her nephew. She may had redeemed herself when she help saving Harlow's life (hide spoiler)]. So yes in a way she did it, but remembering those books where she screwed people around her so bad, in my opinion, she needs to do more than that. Though I know many of you people were all so forgiving and think that Nan have done all thing that she needs to do. Well, no matter. Just different ways of thinking.

And the last one, about her love life.

I'm a hopeless romantic but somehow I the love story was a bit too much cheesy for me. I'm happy that finally she found someone who really sincerely wants her the way she wants, but the attraction between Nan and her hero was much too physical. Tooooo physically if you know what I mean. The fact that the story between Nan and her Man build too fast make me fails to understand the depth of the feeling's of the characters.

I hoped Abbi Glines had written more about their interaction that wasn't based on sexual activity, that Nan would find someone who could not only love her but also make her overcome her attitude problem, realized her mistake at once, see past her grief and to be grateful for all she ever had. I wished her hero would more than a 'hot guy who was very good in bed'. Because Nan antagonism way had become a legend in the entire series, I also wished to find something enlightning that would completely absolve her from her long-established title. But then, for a book that having three POV (and more) in a shorter length compare to its predecessors, I guess I couldn't ask for more than what the book had given me. Oh by the way, on the plus side, I like the twist.

Finally, I don't think this book managed to give the proper closure for this series, but, just like what my stars say, "it was ok". Fortunately, if you are looking for a book with a lot of dramatic plot in it with a bad girl whose being fought over by two hot and fierce (cave)men, you could give this book a shot.

View all my reviews

Review: Certain Girls

Certain Girls by Jennifer Weiner
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

2.5 stars

Because JW is good writer. She hooked me up right when I read Good in Bed. I read novels for entertainment, and I do enjoy GiB. It was as if read a story about my friend and laughed and i cried for and I'm happy for Cannie throughout that book. That was why once I've heard about the sequel i was quite excited.

But then, things started to go downhill.

I won't say this book is bad written. It was well-written, so well so that (view spoiler)[I cried quite hard when suddenly Peter died of heart attack (hide spoiler)]. It was sad, really. And I know JW want to give us a message that anyone (Cannie, in this case) could be strong whenever an unexpected tragedy happen in life. And because life is a bitch. So you must be strong for yourself and people around you.

Well, if that was the case then I think it would be much comfortable if THAT twist happened at the beginning part of the book so we could follow Cannie's struggle from drowning in sorrow untill she reach a point where hope was in reach. The fact that the twist happend just in a few last pages just didn't feel right for me.

Besides, (view spoiler)[by Peter's death (hide spoiler)] , I feel like being cheated. You know, in Q&A section with JW on GiB (I bought the translation version from local publisher) there was this question whether reader would see Cainne again, and she (JW) said maybe not in her own book, but in other book with different main characters and storys that was also take place in Philadelphia, because Cannie was not an interesting character anymore for her as a writer because JW prefer a character that was still struggling in her life and Cannie has had her happy ending and was right where she was belong. That was why, after I read Certain Girl , I was like, "wtf Jen you was saying this things then you did different thing entirely". And that was the thing that dissappointed me the most.

But then again I wouldn't say this not a good book--It is a good book. I would give it 1 star if it is not. So, instead I gave 2,5 stars for it. But I would not recommend this book if:

1. You already read the first book, kind of ruined the mood you've got after finished GiB, it did

2. You looking for a happy ending (this book did not end with entirely tragedy, there is some happines in it, but it was kind of wiped out by one depressing twist)

I'm not quite excited anymore for her book after read this one because I'm a HEA fan myself and this book let me down. But JW is a good writer, so it was possible that some time in the future I'd like to read her other books. Well, preferably a HEA one.

Oh, one more thing, I will be grateful if anyone would kindly recommend writers with writing style like her but HEA-oriented for me. It was like thousand books out there and I just doesn't have any idea where to begin.

View all my reviews