Showing posts with label David Whitley. Show all posts
Showing posts with label David Whitley. Show all posts

Saturday, September 26, 2009

The Best and Worst of Covers (5)

Every Saturday, I will post one book cover I love and one I hate from books that I have read. I will post information on the edition of the book, the summary, and my thoughts of the cover. This week the cover that I love is Evermore which I'm about fifteen pages from finishing so expect the review very soon! Summaries from Amazon.


The Cover I Love: 
Title: Evermore
Author: Alyson Noel

Publisher: St. Mary's Griffin
Publication Date: February 3, 2009
Page
s: 320
Edition: Paperback
Reading Level: Young Adult   


Summary:
This opening book in a new series, The Immortals, will thrill many teen fantasy-suspense readers, especially fans of Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight series. Seventeen-year-old Ever survived the car crash that killed her parents, younger sister, and their dog. Now she lives with an aunt in Southern California, plagued not only by survivor guilt but also by a new ability to hear the thoughts of all around her. She tries to tune out all these distractions by keeping her hoodie up and her iPod cranked loud, until Damen, the cute new boy at school, convinces her to come out of her shell. Damen, however, is frighteningly clever—and has the strange ability to produce tulips from nowhere and disappear himself at critical moments. Noël (Saving Zoë, 2007) creates a cast of recognizably diverse teens in a realistic high-school setting, along with just the right tension to make Ever’s discovery of her own immortality—should she choose it—exciting and credible.

Thoughts of the Cover:
This cover is so pretty! I love the picture of the girl, she looks a lot like the girl I imagined Ever to look like. The blue tint is really pretty and the slighted raised up red tulips just puts it all together. Also, the glowing white title adds a nice touch. Evermore only came out in paperback, so  I can't compare the different covers. This cover is so good, I'm glad this is the only cover! I really liked the book so far, and I can't wait to see how it ends and read the next book in the series!


The Cover I Hate:
Title: The Midnight Charter
Author: David Whitley
Publisher: Roaring Book Press
Publication Date: September 1, 2009
Pages: 336
Edition: Hardback
Reading Level: 11-14
 

Summary:
Welcome to Agora, a secret and closed-in city where anything can be bought and sold – goods, people, thoughts, ideas and even emotions are traded in the market. A place without money, where selling is the only way of life and debt is death. The successful merchants rule, plague festers in the pitiless slums and children are possessions until their twelfth birthday.

In the ancient tower of Count Stelli, the city's greatest astrologer, two children meet, both of whom have been sold as servants. One, Mark, an emotional, imaginative boy who was sold by his father to the Count’s grandson in return for medical treatment. The other, Lily, a reserved and thoughtful orphan girl, now owned by the count. At first, threatened with being thrown out to die on the disease-ridden streets if they displease their masters, their only goal is to work and survive. But gradually, as they begin to understand that they can shape their own destiny, they each find their path – Mark within the system, trying to learn the secret of the powerful Libran Society and gain the security it brings; and Lily, rebellious, dangerous and determined to change the city forever.

How will they survive? Can their plans succeed? And why is the shadowy ruler of Agora, the all-powerful Director of Receipts, watching them from afar…? 

Thoughts of the Cover:
I really don't like this cover! The cover is really creepy looking, but the background is kind of cool. The book was pretty good but this cover is not the best. I received the ARC for review from Henry Holt, so I don't have this cover. If I would've seen this in a book store, I probably won't have even thought of reading it. The main reason I don't like this cover is the guy who takes up practically the entire cover, I really don't understand who he is even supposed to be in the book. Even thought the cover is ugly, I would recommend reading the book because it is pretty good. The sequel is coming out next summer, so I'm looking forward to that.

What are your thoughts on these two covers?

Sunday, August 16, 2009

The Midnight Charter Review

 
Title: The Midnight Charter
Author: David Whitley
Pages: 319
 Publisher: Roaring Book Press
Publication Date: September 1, 2009
My Edition: ARC Paperback
Reading Level: 11-14
Received From: Henry Holt's In Group

Summary from Henry Holt's website:

In the city of Agora, anything can be bought and sold. Even children are possessions until their twelfth birthday.


Mark has been sold by his father, and Lily, an orphan from birth, has bartered for her life. Thrown together by chance, in the ancient tower of Count Stelli, they face an existence of poverty and servitude, unless they can find a way to break free. But, unbeknown to Mark and Lily, they are being watched by the ruler of the city. Can they survive the traps and treachery that await them and discover the dark secret that binds them together? Their lives depend on this question: what is the Midnight Charter?

Review:

I couldn't put the book down once I started reading. The characters were fun to read about, and the setting was very different then anything I have ever read. The beginning was really good but towards the end it slowed down. I loved the characters, and how the author switched their stories every other chapter. The story plot and setting were amazingly unique. The ending was very su
rprising and left you wondering if there would be a sequel. The only complaints I have with the book is at points it was a little confusing, and I wish the ending was as good as the beginning. It's not for sure but I have read that this book will be the first of the trilogy. The Midnight Charter is David Whitley's first book, and I look forward to read other novels by him.

Rating: