GIF Reviews: Rounding Up The Last Few Months Of Reading

I have been a terrible blogger this year. I haven't really had the time to blog and have considered just shutting it down several times. But I can never bring myself to do it. This blog has brought me a lot of joy and friendship over the past few years and I don't want to let that go. But it sits here, lonely and neglected, leaving me with an uneasy feeling of failure. I tell myself I'm just going to blog when I feel like it, but the pile of unreviewed books mounts and the task of getting back into it becomes more and more overwhelming. So, in an attempt to get past that and to start fresh in the new year - and see where that takes me - I'm cheating a little and doing the briefest reviews possible in an attempt to catch up, because I still want to log my feelings on each book but I don't want to write full reviews. So I'm going to do it in the language I'm most fluent in, other than English - GIFs, of course. Here we go...

The New World (Chaos Walking book 0.5) by Patrick Ness
In a sentence: This short story of how Viola came to the New World, and the crash that killed her parents, complements The Knife of Never Letting Go brilliantly.
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Rating: 3.5/5

The Ask and the Answer (Chaos Walking book 2) by Patrick Ness
In a sentence: The stunning, action-packed sequel to The Knife of Never Letting Go, that sees Todd and Viola separated and forced to make impossible choices that will leave you emotional, raw and bleeding all over the place.
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Rating: 5/5

The Wide, Wide Sea (Chaos Walking book 2.5) by Patrick Ness
In a sentence: A short story that gives a little bit of background info on Mistress Coyle, Viola's mentor of sorts, and tells of the impossible love between a Spackle and a human - a beautiful, bittersweet interlude that deserves a book of its own.
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Rating: 4/5

When Love Comes to Town by Tom Lennon
In a sentence: Rugby-playing bloke's bloke Neil comes to terms with his sexuality in 1990s Dublin - at times heartbreaking, at times touching, the book is let down by several plot holes and a lack of cohesion.
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Rating: 3/5

Ever by Gail Carson Levine
In a sentence: Bland, simple god falls for bland, simple mortal and the bland, simple plot drags on through bland, simple writing towards a bland, simple HEA.
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Rating: 2/5

The Legend of Sleepy Hollow by Washington Irving, audiobook narrated by Tom Mison
In a sentence: The classic tale of Ichabod Crane and the Headless Horseman is surprisingly funny in its original form, narrated perfectly here by the same actor who plays Crane in the new TV show.
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Rating: 3.5/5

Outlander by Diana Gabaldon, audiobook narrated by Davina Porter
In a sentence: WWII nurse and awful person Claire is on a second honeymoon with her husband in Scotland when she is pulled back through time; she soon forgets her husband when she conveniently ~has to~ marry a hot Scottish guy - who is also an awful person who beats her, but that's somehow OK because they have lots of sexy sexy sex times together.
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Rating: 1/5

Forever by Judy Blume
In a sentence: This story of first love and first times is important and fills me with nostalgia - but upon rereading it's hard to look past the frankly bad writing and story (which feels blasphemous to say but is sadly true).
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Rating: 2/5

Lady Windermere's Fan by Oscar Wilde, audiobook performance by Roger Rees, Eric Stoltz, Joanna Going and Miriam Margolyes
In a sentence: A delightful performance of the classic play, I found it entertaining but I didn't ~love~ it as much as some of Wilde's other works I've read (a.k.a. listened to) this year.
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Rating: 3/5

Monsters of Men (Chaos Walking book 3) by Patrick Ness
In a sentence: Edge-of-your seat, gut-wrenching conclusion to the Chaos Walking series that stays with you long after you've finished.
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Rating: 5/5

Snowscape (Chaos Walking book 3.5) by Patrick Ness
In a sentence: Basically an extended epilogue to Monsters of Men WHICH WAS 100% FINE WITH ME.
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Rating: 4/5

Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
In a sentence: Rich white woman goes missing, the husband is the number one suspect - but it's so much more than that, and left me feeling very, very conflicted.
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Rating: 3.5/5

Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead
In a sentence: This was a reread-a-long, and I unfortunately didn't love the book as much on the revisit - but I still liked it.
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Rating: 4/5

Fawn Brown by Zoe McAuley, audiobook narrated by Katherine Kellgren
In a sentence: Fawn Brown is Snow White's overlooked half-sister, revealing the "true" story of the fairy tale. This is a short novella with an interesting take on the classic story, narrated beautifully by Kellgren.
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Rating: 3.5/5

Salome by Oscar Wilde, audiobook performance by Rosalind Ayres, James Marsters et al.
In a sentence: A historical/biblical play with feminist undertones - although a little hard to follow at first, this performance really was wonderful to listen to.
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Rating: 3.5/5

Language A to Z, audio lecture series by Professor John McWhorter 
In a sentence: An engaging intro into linguistics using a word for each letter of the alphabet as a clever and interesting framing device.
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Rating: 3.5/5

Saving Francesca by Melina Marchetta, audiobook narrated by Rebecca Macauley
In a sentence: I revisited this emotional and authentic story of a teen girl dealing with her mother's depression - and her own issues - via audiobook, with lovely narration by Macauley.
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Rating: 5/5

The Piper's Son by Melina Marchetta, audiobook narrated by Michael Finney
In a sentence: The heart-wrenching follow-up to Saving Francesca, this time from the perspective of Hot Mess Tom Mackee and his aunt Georgie - a revisit for me via audiobook again, with good narration from Finney.
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Rating: 5/5

Revisit: Saving Francesca by Melina Marchetta

So. Here's the thing. Melina Marchetta is one of my all-time favourite authors. She is my idol. But I've only ever read two of her books. I KNOW. But I have an excuse! Kind of. You see, for the majority of my teen years, Looking for Alibrandi was the only Marchetta available. I adored it. Obsessed over it. Reread it at least once a year (and often more frequently). I identified so strongly with Josie, and felt like this book just got me in so many ways. It was a cherished friend (and is still one of my favourite books, BTW). I longed for Marchetta to write more, so I could devour fresh words of wisdom and realism. Then Saving Francesca came out. I was 17 and... kinda disappointed.

I liked it, don't get me wrong. I liked it a lot. But I just didn't have the same connection to Frankie that I had with Josie. My subsequent wariness, and the fact that I grew out of Young Adult books for a little while (or thought I had, at least!), meant that I didn't rush to pick up the books Marchetta released in the following years. Then, thanks to a friend thrusting The Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants on me, I rediscovered how awesome YA could be. I started blogging, and read countless reviews and comments on the amazingness of Marchetta's other works - some even said they were better than Alibrandi. Big. Call.

Needless to say, The Piper's Son, On The Jellicoe Road and Finnikin of the Rock quickly joined my ever-growing TBR pile. My plan was to reread Saving Francesca before tackling The Piper's Son, then on to Jellicoe Road before finally diving into Finnikin. The hitch in this plan was that every time I picked up Francesca, I couldn't bring myself to read it. Not because of my first experience with it (because I had actually really liked it), but because I knew it touched upon issues that had recently become a very sensitive subject for me. I was afraid of how it would make me feel.

Then last week, I did something that I am both incredibly excited and extremely nervous about: I signed up for a writing course taught by Marchetta. I am more excited than nervous, actually. I'm downright ecstatic. But the reason I mention it here is because it gave me the kick up the butt I needed to finally get over my fear of Francesca - or, at least, that fear was eclipsed by a frenzied desire to absorb every word Marchetta had ever written ASAP.

I'm so, so glad I reread it. Because Francesca, of course, is absolutely amazing. The very reason I was afraid to pick it up (recent personal experiences) meant that I was able to appreciate it - and yes, connect with it - in a new and powerful way that I couldn't as a teenager. It's not an easy read (though it's beautifully written); Francesca's sadness, and her mum's depression, permeate the book. But it deals with the issue in such a tender, realistic and ultimately hopeful way that, by the time I turned the last page, I actually felt a lot better than I had before I picked it up. Like Alibrandi before her, Francesca touched upon so many aspects that were completely relevant to my life, and made me feel good about them. As though I wasn't alone. My feelings for Francesca might just be on par with my love of Alibrandi. Which is really saying something.

The Piper's Son, here I come.

Rating: 5/5

Eye Candy
I pictured...

Caitlin Stasey as Francesca

James Sorensen as Will

Xenia Goodwin as Justine

Alicia Banit as Siobhan

Khan Chittenden as Jimmy

Fine Print
Genre: Young Adult
Published: 2003, Viking
Get It: Better World Books