The Lost Files: Six's Legacy by Pittacus Lore

The Lost Files: Six's Legacy (Lorien Legacies #1.5) by Pittacus Lore ☆☆☆☆

Much thanks to my local library for carrying this ebook so I didn't have to buy it :)

I really liked this book. I Am Number Four is one of the few instances where I watched the movie before reading the book, and yet I loved them both nearly equally in the end. And one of my favorite parts of both is Six. I especially loved her toughness in the movie with her motorcycle and leather jacket (and Australian accent haha). So, getting to see her story and her background after seeing Four for so long was pretty awesome.

There wasn't anything in particular I disliked about this book to give it four stars instead of five. I guess mostly it was just because I didn't love it. I liked it a lot, but didn't love it. Part of that may have been because it skipped through time very quickly to be able to cover all her backstory over the course of about eight years in about eighty or so pages. Definitely a recommended read though for anyone interested in this series.

Crossed by Ally Condie

Crossed (Matched #2) by Ally Condie ☆☆☆☆

When I started the book it immediately took me off guard. It was an alternating narrative between Cassia and Ky, and I had to go back to the first book to see if I potentially forgot that the first book was that way. It was not. It was a little weird to suddenly jump into an alternating narrative without any forewarning. That being said, it was also definitely interesting. Seeing inside Ky's mind was a nice twist. The only downside was that often the narratives were very close to being the same and it dragged the story line a little.

Overall, I liked the book. The first book I had problems with the first half of the book, but quickly fell in love with the characters and the half way point and couldn't put it down. With this one, I had the desire to read it and finish reading it, but I didn't feel excited enough through the process. That's where it lost a star for me. I liked it, I'm still going to finish the series as the next book comes out, but I didn't love it.

In my review of the first book, Matched, I shared my favorite quote from the book, so it's only fitting that I do the same for this book. And so, my favorite quote from the book, the only one I highlighted: "I don't fool myself that I hold her together--she does that on her own--but holding her keeps me from flying apart."

Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins

Mockingjay (Hunger Games 3) by Suzanne Collins ☆☆☆☆

I just finished this book the night before last and I've been considering my review ever since. I gave the first two books of the series 5 stars each, and yet on this one I only gave it 4. I had to repeatedly question why I was taking away from the score like I was.

I mean, there are things I love about this book. Out of the three it was the only one to make me cry. Without being spoilery, I cried about halfway through the book when Katniss realized what it meant to break. And I was bawling uncontrollably at the end, especially with the cat. Those that have read the book will understand these well.

Basically it came down to this... I didn't like a lot of the things that happened in the book, but it's a book about a war and needless to say people will be lost. I'm actually coming to the conclusion I need to stop reading books where a war breaks out (especially after Harry Potter). The more I thought about it though, it wasn't why it lost a star. Even if I didn't like certain scenes, I have to admit that they are necessary to the story. No matter how sad that makes me.

My gripe with this book came in the last chapter or two. Time moved WAY too quickly. Days, weeks, and months were skipped over in the course of one sentence. And this seemed to happen every other page. It was driving me crazy because so much could have been done in that space. Besides all the wasted time, it was entirely focused on Katniss and I hated not seeing what happened with the other characters. I invested so much time in all the other characters besides her to never see their actions in the end.

In the end, there was so much that could have happened that was left out and so much I wanted to know that was never answered. It lost a star because I wasn't satisfied. That doesn't change the fact though that it was an amazing series and I'd read it again in a heartbeat. Can't wait for the movies!