Tuesday, June 25, 2013

Review: SYLO by D.J. MacHale

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 SYLO
 D.J. MacHale
Series: SYLO #1
Genre: YA Sci-Fi
Publication date: July 2nd 2013
by Razorbill

Does Tucker Pierce have what it takes to be a hero when the U.S. military quarantines his island?

Fourteen-year-old Tucker Pierce prefers to fly under the radar. He’s used to navigating around summer tourists in his hometown on idyllic Pemberwick Island, Maine. He’s content to sit on the sidelines as a backup player on the high school football team. And though his best friend Quinn tells him to “go for it,” he’s too chicken to ask Tori Sleeper on a date. There’s always tomorrow, he figures. Then Pemberwick Island is invaded by a mysterious branch of the U.S. military called SYLO. And sitting on the sidelines is no longer an option for Tucker, because tomorrow may never come.

It’s up to Tucker, Quinn, and Tori to uncover the truth about the singing aircraft that appears only at night—and the stranger named Feit who’s pushing a red crystal he calls the Ruby that brings unique powers to all who take it. Tucker and his friends must rescue not just Pemberwick Island, but the fate of the world—and all before tomorrow is too late.  

-A copy was provided by Penguin Canada for review-


Almost a 4 star, SYLO starts off as your run of the mill YA sci-fi mystery but it ends up being much more complex than expected. I did really enjoy it, but I found that 1) we didn’t get enough answers even for a first book in a series and 2) it could have done with 50 or so less pages – which is likely linked to 1).

A strong aspect of this novel is how the beginning chapters really pull you into the story. Being engaged from the start is a wanted feat that is not often achieved. MacHale does this by getting right into the sudden deaths happening on Tucker’s island. He then keeps it up by introducing small chapter cliffhangers every so often throughout the book, which I’m personally a sucker for. Barring that, however, I wasn’t a huge fan of the writing style. Some of it simply felt off for supposedly being the voice of a 14 year old. And some of it felt cliché; for instance, the frequent use of “suspenseful” sentences like:

“”Thirty yards!” Kent called out.
…as the machine gun behind us opened fire.
We were about to cross the stern of the flaming destroyer when…
“Now!” Tori called.”

“I eased the wheel to port, made the gentle turn and…
…my moment of peace instantly vanished.”

I know this critique is more of a personal preference but there were a lot of these suspension points throughout that I found cheesy. Another small quirk is how, during normal conversations, a character was said to “scream” or “shout”. Either the author was hoping for a heightened tone effect, or these islanders are really freaking intense (and loud)!

“I think we’re making a big mistake.” Quinn said.
“Seriously?” I shouted. “Now you’re having second thoughts?”

-Sounds like a shouting match, don’t it? (It’s not.)

Our male protagonist, Tucker, is your average teenager who likes his simple island living, so when it gets quarantined and people start dying, he gets a little restless. Tucker is an average character; he’s not someone who’s especially memorable long term, but I didn’t dislike him. Same goes for the secondary characters. While most were charismatic, I didn’t get emotionally attached to them – which is proven by my lack of reaction when one of them dies. I did grow the most connected to Tori, one of the main secondary characters. I loved that she’s a tough girl who’s able to fend for herself; her intelligence, strength, and bravery shine through.

The plot itself is what’s truly entertaining in SYLO, and does make up for the aforementioned qualms, some. There is a ton of mystery from the get go, the sudden deaths being the first of many. There are unexplained aircraft hovering about – one of which explodes right in from of Tucker, never to appear in the news. Bizarre drugs that turn people into temporary supermen. Then there’s how insanely far the military is going to make sure no one leaves escapes. With an abundance of secrets on this island, it’s unfortunate that we become privy to very few answers by the end, though. I wish we’d gotten further into the bottom of it all; we barely scratched the surface. For that reason, I think the book could have been shortened 50 pages or so to stop the non-answers from dragging at times – it was not excessively so, but it did feel lengthy. At least the ending does show us how deep this bottom goes, and I really liked where the author went with it.

SYLO is what I would consider a boy book; a male protagonist, a lot of football talk, missiles, explosions, plenty of death, fighter planes, warships, and a kick-ass climactic battle at sea. Everything a boy-book loving girl like myself could ask for!

3 Hot Espressos

Review: This is W.A.R. by Lisa Roecker

Posted by on 06/24/2013 • 33 Comments

This is W.A.R.Lisa Roecker Genre: YA Mystery Publication date: July 2nd 2013by Soho Teen

This is W.A.R. begins with a victim who can no longer speak for herself, and whose murder blossoms into a call-to-arms. Enter four very different girls, four very different motives to avenge Willa Ames-Rowan, and only one rule to start: Destroy James Gregory and his family at any cost. Willa’s initials spell the secret rallying cry that spurs the foursome to pool their considerable resources and deliver their particular brand of vigilante justice. Innocence is lost, battles are won—and the pursuit of the truth ultimately threatens to destroy them all.

-A copy was provided by Soho Press for review-

There are so many things I disliked about this book that I decided to review…

Stacking the Shelves (60)

Posted by on 06/23/2013 • 35 Comments

Stacking the Shelves is a meme hosted by Tynga’s Reviews featuring the books we got this week, and I also mention blog news/happenings of the past week. 

It’s going to be a short post this week as my mailbox was pretty lonely, but I did find a few good reads at the sales tables which I’m pretty happy about. Also if you missed it this week, I listed my top zombie books on this week’s Big Girls Don’t Cry – on the zombie subject, just got back from seeing World War Z and I though it was pretty awesome! The story and zombie lore were both so well thought out (note that I haven’t read the book, but I do hear it’s nothing like it). Anyways, there were also 2…

Interview + Giveaway: The Well’s End by Seth Fishman

Interview + Giveaway: The Well’s End by Seth Fishman

Posted by on 06/22/2013 • 33 Comments

I’ve got a special treat for you today. Seth Fishman is here to entertain us and talk about his fantastic looking upcoming YA Thriller novel, The Well’s End. To end with a bang you can enter to win your very own ARC and some signed art!

The Well’s End Seth Fishman Genre: YA Thriller Publication date: February 25th 2014 by Putnam Juvenile

A deadly virus and an impossible discovery unite in one enthralling can’t-miss read.

Sixteen-year-old Mia Kish has always been afraid of the dark. After all, she’s baby Mia, the one who fell down a well. That was years ago, though the darkness still haunts her. But when her classmates and teachers at ritzy Westbrook Academy start dying of old age from a bizarre and frightening virus…

Fresh Batch (New Releases June 23rd – 28th)

Posted by on 06/22/2013 • 10 Comments

Exclusively titled for Xpresso Reads, Fresh Batch features the hottest releases of this upcoming week.

Flavor of the week:

Ashes on the Waves  Mary Lindsey Publication date: June 27th, 2013 by Philomel/Penguin

Liam MacGregor is cursed. Haunted by the wails of fantastical Bean Sidhes and labeled a demon by the villagers of Dòchas, Liam has accepted that things will never get better for him—until a wealthy heiress named Annabel Leighton arrives on the island and Liam’s fate is changed forever.

With Anna, Liam finally finds the happiness he has always been denied; but, the violent, mythical Otherworlders, who inhabit the island and the sea around it, have other plans. They make awager on the couple’s love, testing its strength through a series of cruel obstacles. But…

Review: Another Little Piece by Kate Karyus Quinn

Posted by on 06/21/2013 • 31 Comments

Whoa! This book has to be one of the strangest reads I’ve come across. I can see how its eccentric nature will not be for everyone, but for me the beautiful, often disturbing, writing style captivated me and never let go. It’s not the type of story that just anyone could pull off, the author definitely did some thinking outside the box for this one, and Quinn has my two thumbs up.

Calling this book Another Little Piece is quite fitting, as it felt like with every turn of a page, another piece of this mind-boggling puzzle was put in place – or at least moved a tiny bit closer. And this review is especially hard, because in almost every piece lies a spoiler. The first of these spoilers comes…

Book Girls Don’t Cry: Zombiefied!

Book Girls Don’t Cry: Zombiefied!

Posted by on 06/20/2013 • 34 Comments

Inspired by Book Buzzers, Book Girls Don’t Cry is a weekly feature where we each discuss/vent/advise on the chosen weekly bookish topic. Don’t miss Jenni on Mondays, and Amy on Saturdays:  

Must Reads – For the Zombie Fans!

This week we decided to take a favorite genre or ours and do a top list. So, of course, you know me and my zombies! So if you love zombie books as much as I do maybe you’ll find some more to add to your lists, and leave me some recs in the comments, too! 🙂 FYI – these are not really in order, because that would be too hard >.<

—The Last Bastion of the Living by Rhiannon Frater—

This is definitely one of my all time favorite…

Hidden by Catherine McKenzie: Meet the Characters!

Hidden by Catherine McKenzie: Meet the Characters!

Posted by on 06/19/2013 • 16 Comments

As part of the Hidden blog tour, today I’ve got the wonderful Catherine McKenzie dropping by to introduce us to her characters. This books sounds great and the fact that it was blurbed by the author of On The Island intrigues me even further! So let’s see what it’s all about! 🙂

Hidden Catherine McKenzie Publication date: June 18th 2013 by HarperCollins

When a married man suffers a sudden fatal accident, two women are shattered—his wife and someone else’s—and past secrets, desires and regrets are brought to light

While walking home from work one evening, Jeff Manning is struck by a car and killed. Not one but two women fall to pieces at the news: his wife, Claire, and his co-worker Tish. Reeling from her loss, Claire…