Love Is Hell >> Book Review

Love Is Hell by various authors

(5 short stories)

paperback pages: 263

My Overall Rating 3 stars

Sure, love is hell.

But it's totally worth it.

In these supernatural stories by five of today's hottest writers-Melissa Marr (WICKED LOVELY), Scott Westerfeld (SPECIALS), Justine Larbalestier (MAGIC FOR MADNESS), Gabrielle Zevin (ELSEWHERE), and Laurie Faria Stolarz (BLUE IS FOR NIGHTMARES)- love may be twisted and turned around, but it's more potent than ever on its quest to conquer all.

From two students who let the power of attraction guide them to break the hard-and-fast rules of their world to the girl who falls hard for a good looking ghost with a score to settle, the clever, quirky characters in this exciting collection will break your hear, then leave you believing in love more than ever.

My Review

This is a book containing five short stories, called Love is Hell. 

As you can imagine there are five love stories which didn't have a good ending and had paranormal elements in it. 
I will begin by reviewing each one of them. 

SLEEPING WITH THE SPIRIT, by Laurie Faria Stolarz
My Rating 5 stars 
It is a story about a girl seeing ghosts and particularly one handsome boy who died in the house she is living in now. As you can imagine they get to know each other and fall in love. But sooner or later she has to let him go..... 
This is my favourite of all five stories and I think it has potential to be a really good novel. I hope the writer will turn this into a novel. 

STUPID PERFECT WORLD, by Scott Westerfeld
My Rating 3 stars
This story is being placed in the future, where we have teleporting and other technological achievements. It is a sci-fi story where two teenagers fall in love during a class project. They put themselves into our position (how we live today) to see how it was, because in their time everything is taken care by technology; even feelings I might add. During that journey they came across with things that they only new in theory. 
It was a nice story, interesting but to me it felt like a stranger; maybe, because I haven’t read any sci-fi fiction before. But I would gladly read this one if it was a novel. 

THINNER THAN WATER, by Justine Larbalestier
My Rating 2 stars
This story is held in a small village where everything runs like in the old days. No electricity no school for girls after 15, they have to marry. This girl though doesn’t want this life. She wants to go to the city to become a doctor. The day she decides to run away a boy comes and asks her to marry her and convinces her to stay, for a while before they both go to the city. Her parents don’t like him; they think that he is not even a human..... She doesn’t believe them and of course she is happy with him until...... 
I have mix feelings for this one. I like the paranormal stuff but didn’t like the setting. 
I don’t think that I would read this story if it was a novel... 


FAN FICTIONS, by Gabrielle Zevin
My Rating 3 stars
Ok this is not a fan fiction story. That was my first thought when I saw the title. I can’t really say much because I will spoil it, actually I won’t say anything just that it was a girl that read a lot. She was always at the library and was invisible to everyone, until she met him...... Saying even the slightest will ruin it for you but I must say I didn’t expect the ending.
It was a nice story, I think I would read it if it was a novel... 

LOVE STRUCK, by Melissa Marr
My Rating 5 stars
This is also my favourite of the five stories. It is about a girl that gets captured by a selchie. The selchie has no other choice but to follow her. They both are captured into this love-magic and she wants to end it. She starts having feelings for him but she constantly reminds herself that all this is a result of the selchie magic. So she found a way to end it. But now she feels sad...... 
I loved this one; I would defiantly read this if it was a novel. 

Now don’t expect to get attached to any of the character or to get to know them in dept. There are short stories......
Frosy 




Buy the book at Amazon | Book Depository  (Format Hardcover)
and Amazon | Book Depository (Format Paperback)
and Amazon (Format e-book, kindle)

Vacations From Hell >> Book Review

Vacations From Hell by various authors

(5 short stories)

paperback pages: 280

My Overall Rating 3.5 stars

Life's a beach...

and then you're undead?

In this must-have collection, five of today's hottest writers-Libba Bray (A GREAT AND TERRIBLE BEAUTY), Cassandra Clare (CITY OF BONES), Claudia Gray (EVERNIGHT), Maureen Johnson (13 LITTLE BLUE ENVELOPES), and Sarah Mlynowski (BRAS & BROOMSTICKS)- tell supernatural tales of vacations gone awry. Lost luggage is only mildly unpleasant compared to bunking with a witch who holds grudge. And a sunburn might be embarrassing and painful, but it doesn't last as long as a curse. Of course, even in the most hellish of situations, love can thrive...

From light and funny to dark and creepy, these stories have something for everyone. When vacation time comes, you definitely won't want to leave this collection at home!

My Review

Vacations From Hell is a book that holds 5 short stories. Stories about vacations, that didn’t end up well. And of course each of them had their share of paranormal.

I will review each one of them. It’s really hard to give you an idea for each of them without spoiling them because of their short length, the stories start right away.
So I’ll try my best.

CRUISIN, by Sarah Mlynowski
My Rating 1 star

This story follows two girls that are cruising when they hear rumours of vampire attacks on cruises. Basically these two girls go on vacation without their parents and the one of them has a goal to achieve. This goal though seems to be interrupted by vampires or maybe not. I can’t say much because I will spoil it. 

Overall I didn’t like it.

I DON’T LIKE YOUR GIRLFRIEND, by Claudia Gray
My Rating 5 stars

This story is about witches and a group of women that practises their magic. 

Every summer they gather together in order to practice magic together. For their husbands it’s a vacation, because one of the rules says that men are forbidden to know about their magic. 
Cecily doesn’t want to go because Kathleen will be there. They hate each other. 
Cecily though finds out that Kathleen has been messing around with magic, breaking one of the rules. She tries to tell her mother but she doesn’t believe her so it’s up to her to try to solve it. 

I liked this story, it’s my favourite of all five stories and I would definitely read it if it was a novel. There was an incident actually that I wanted to share with you. My highest rated stories were actually kind scary and definitely creepy. So when I was reading this story, there was a scene where this Cecily was practising her magic under the light of some candles. And while I was reading the exact scene the lights in my house went off, and if I was alone I would surely have freaked out! Lol.

Overall I would suggest reading this short story if you like reading about witches.


THE LAW OF SUSPECTS, by Maureen Johnson
My Rating 5 stars 

I loved this story! 
It’s about two sisters who go to Paris for the summer but they end up in an old village where there is no phone line and their cell phones don’t have any bars. If it wasn’t only for that, there aren’t also any people near them expect their really scary neighbour that lives next door. 

I can say there isn’t anything really paranormal in it but it’s for sure creepy and scary. I now look at my neighbours with another eye. Lol.

There is also a small romantic encounter in this book. Nothing as a full length book could provide but let me tell you something I got from this story. Looks can deceive.

Overall loved it and I hope it becomes someday a full length novel.

THE MIRROR HOUSE, by Cassandra Clare
My Rating 3.5 stars

Ok, this reminded me her trilogy Mortal Instruments. The story wasn’t similar to her trilogy, but the sister and brother thing was. 
So this is a story about a brother and sister who are in love. 

They are not actually blood related but by law related. Their parents got married and now they are on their vacation all together trying to hide the fact that they are more than brother and sister.

As the days pass they find a beach where a strange lady lives in a house full of mirrors. That lady captures her brother and now it’s up to her to find the way to save him. 

Overall, not crazy about it. The brother and sister set me off a little, mostly because she has already done it but the story line didn’t appeal to me much.

NOWHERE IS SAFE, by Libba Bray
My Rating 4.5 stars

I liked this story a lot! And it was the scariest of them all!

So this story is about 4 Americans who travel around Europe and they come across a small village with a weird name and even weirder reputation. In their travel brochure it says that the village is haunted by evil spirits. They laugh about it and think they should see the place thinking it will be an ordinary, even boring village.
What they find though is human sacrifices to the Satan and they wish they hadn’t gone there.

I can’t say much but it’ll make your skin crawl.

Overall I would like to read this as a full length story but I would make sure it’s day and long before I go to bed.


Frosy


Buy the book at Amazon | Book Depository  (Format Hardcover)
and Amazon | Book Depository (Format Paperback)