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Review: Die for Me by Amy Plum (@harperteen)

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Die for Me is the first novel in the Revenants trilogy by Amy Plum. I’m going to a book signing for Ms. Plum next week (WHEEE!) and really wanted to have read her book before meeting her in person. Unfortunately, it’s not looking like I’ll be able to squeeze in book 2, Until I Die, before the event, but at least I now know who the characters are and what the basic story is.

The Plot

Die for Me is the story of Kate Mercier, recent orphan and new Paris resident. She and her sister, Georgia, moved to Paris following the death of their parents in a tragic car accident. Kate hasn’t been dealing with the loss well, and spends her days secluded in her bedroom in their grandparents’ house, reading books and wallowing in depression.

Eventually, her sister convinces her to venture out of the house and experience the beauty of the city. Kate begrudgingly takes her up on her advice, and winds up meeting a tall, dark and handsome boy named Vincent. Vincent and Kate begin a tentative courtship, but almost immediately, Kate realizes that there’s more to Vincent than meets the eye.

Shocked, Kate learns that Vincent is in fact a Revenant: an immortal being who feels the irresistible compulsion to sacrifice his life saving humans. He lives with a group of fellow Revenants in a giant Parisian mansion, and the group of them wander the city, looking for people to save. When they trade their own life for a human’s, they take 3 days to mend, then come back to life, good as new.

But no sooner has Kate absorbed the information that her boyfriend is an immortal kinda-zombie, than a darker truth is revealed: Vincent and his kindred are not the only Revenants. There are others. Except that they don’t feel a compulsion to save human lives; they feel the compulsion to end them.

My Thoughts

I have mixed feelings on this one. First, the plot point comparisons to Twilight are abundant and fairly obvious. I’m not going to go into the minutia in detail, because others have already done so (see examples here and here). Personally, I don’t actually mind if one book is really reminiscent of another, as long as it has its own spin on the subject matter.

Yes, this book has many similarities to Twilight, as they are both teen paranormal romances between a human and an immortal. But Revenants ≠ Vampires, Kate ≠ Bella, and Vincent ≠ Edward. So I don’t really mind that the story bears some resemblance to Twilight. I don’t begrudge Ms. Plum her inspiration (if indeed Twilight was her inspiration — I haven’t asked her, so I don’t know), because I honestly think genuine new ideas are a dying breed. If we demanded all books were utterly unique, there wouldn’t be much to read.

That said, while I don’t mind that Die for Me resembled Twilight, I also can’t help but compare the two in terms of what I liked and didn’t like.

Winner: Die for Me

I liked Kate. She seemed a relatively level-headed teen who tried to think through the bizarre situation she was in. Yes, she had her share of caution-to-the-wind “but I’m just so in love” moments, but mostly she tried to actually use her brain and make logical choices. She tried not to let her relationship with Vincent define her (although ultimately, it pretty much did), and didn’t turn into a puddle of goo every time he looked at her.

I also loved the Parisian setting. I’ve got to be honest: I’ve been to Paris, and I wasn’t all that thrilled with it. But I would love to go to the Paris that’s described in this book. Ms. Plum beautifully paints a picture of Parisian culture and nightlife that’s vivid and lush.

I enjoyed the Revenants mythology. It was a unique and intriguing (not to mention far less gross) take on the traditional zombie/vampire theme. I liked that most of the time, they appeared utterly human and didn’t have any defining [cough*sparkly*cough] characteristics. That made it a lot more believable that they were just walking around in public, mingling with the humans. And the “rules” of their existence made sense within the context of the story, which is always a must for me to enjoy a paranormal/fantasy/sci-fi anything.

And overall, I liked Ms. Plum’s writing style. She chose her words well and her writing style had a nice flow to it.

Oh, and the cover art? Die for Me wins, no contest. So pretty.

Winner: Twilight

I’ve got to admit: while I would never put Twilight up there as the greatest romantic literature ever (Jane Austen would roll over in her grave), Stephenie Meyer had a knack for conveying the belly-fluttery feeling of first infatuation (I’m not going to call it love. I’m not.) She was really good at putting those swoony feelings into words. And Amy Plum also does a good job, just not as good.

Stephenie Meyer also had an advantage with “the hook.” The thing that kept you needing to go to the next chapter, because you couldn’t just stop there. It’s why I tore through all 4 books of the Twilight saga in just a couple days, the same amount of time it took me to read Die for Me. I was interested, but the sense of urgency just wasn’t there.

Too Close to Call

I know that people keep saying that Kate and Vincent have a healthier relationship than Edward and Bella…but I’m just not seeing it. Both girls are kind of consumed. Both relationships go from just-met to can’t-live-without-you in a freakishly short period of time.  Both guys are just a wee bit stalkerish. And if the title of the book is any indication, I’m kind of guessing that at some point, both girls are ultimately going to sacrifice their lives so they can stay with their stud.

Yeah, Kate is less dramatic than Bella. I don’t see cliff jumping in her immediate future. And if Vincent left her, she’d probably be okay. Eventually. But it doesn’t change the fact that Kate basically clings to Vincent as the most/only important thing in her life.

A couple other thoughts:

Insta-Love

It’s out in full force in Die for Me. I have to admit, I’m one of those people that’s bothered by it, but also accepts it as a necessary evil in YA. I’m not sure I’d go so far as to say that Kate and Vincent’s relationship is realistic — I know that instant attraction takes place in real life, but the can’t-live-without-you super-devotion that develops in an extremely short period of time…I’m not convinced that it’s entirely realistic (although author Amy Plum thinks it is, which explains why it’s there).

Final Conflict

First of all, I saw the bad guy coming from a mile away. It seemed like the reveal of the bad guy was supposed to be somewhat shocking, but there was some extremely heavy foreshadowing that made it…not.

Then when it came down to the final showdown, everything felt a little too convenient. Of course things are possible with Kate and Vincent that haven’t ever been possible for anyone, ever. Because they’re just so deeply bonded after knowing each other a couple months, more than people who have been in love for decades. Of course. *sigh*

On the one hand, I get that it’s probably not as much fun to write/read about a “normal” relationship where they have to deal with the situations they’re in with whatever skills they already possessed (or didn’t possess). But on the other hand, why is this relationship so much stronger than other human-revenant relationships? They don’t know each other all that well, haven’t known each other all that long, and I don’t buy that their instant chemistry trumps another couple’s decades of intimacy.

I still found the end of the book exciting and mostly satisfying. I just kind of wish the way it got there didn’t feel a bit contrived.

Final Verdict:

I liked Die for Me. I just didn’t love it. And since it is bound to be directly compared to Twilight (it’s even being marketed as “the next Twilight” and fans are told “if you liked Twilight, you’ll love Die for Me”), I can’t help but try to think about which one I enjoyed reading more.

And honestly, even though I will be the first to admit that Die for Me is technically superior and has far fewer frustrating elements…I have to give the edge to Twilight. It had that pull, that sense of urgency that kept me reading late into the night even though I had a newborn baby who I just knew was going to wake up at 4 a.m. I didn’t feel that with Die for Me. It was just…good.

I still am interested in reading the sequel, Until I Die. Just because book 1 resembled Twilight doesn’t mean the entire series will, and I think I would probably enjoy it more if my mind wasn’t constantly drawing comparisons between the two. And again, I’m not saying I didn’t enjoy Die for Me. It just didn’t sweep me up and enthrall me like I wanted it to.

Content Guide: Contains violence, death, wartime images, mild sexual content.

Feature & Follow #93: Fictional Character Smackdown!

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Feature & Follow Friday is a weekly blog hop hosted by Parajunkee’s View and Alison Can Read. Each week, they’ll pick one blogger to feature, and it’s also a great way to discover new blogs and gain new followers. I’m excited to be participating this week, and can’t wait to discover some new blogs!

If you’re participating in the hop, I’d love it if you could follow me via the Linky Connect link in my sidebar, or you can sign up to follow me via email. I’d also really appreciate it if you’d leave a comment to let me know you were here. I’m still new to all this, so I want to know who’s out there in the blogosphere!

Thanks everyone! I look forward to “meeting” all of you!

So, moving on to this week’s question:

Q: Fight! Fight! If you could have two fictional characters battle it out (preferably from books), who would they be and who do you think would win?

Okay. This may be because one of my kids woke up crying for no reason, then I remembered I forgot to load the dishwasher last night, and then there was a bug on my coffee maker.

Needless to say, I woke up snarky this morning.

Anyway, I would like to have Bella Swan (Twilight) battle Hermione Granger (Harry Potter). And no, Edward is not allowed to save Bella.

Hermione would win. Duh. She would trounce her. Even if 11-year-old Sorcerer’s Stone Hermione was fighting 18-year-old vampire Bella, Hermione would win. Why? Because Hermione is resourceful, intelligent, and downright scrappy if need be. Oh, and also she knows magic. Lots of magic.

So yeah. I think what would make me happy this morning is a good smackdown of someone who needs a good smackdown, and Bella definitely could use one.

But Hermione is kind and fair, and she’d want to adhere to the rules of proper deuling (especially 11-year-old Hermione), so she wouldn’t leave Bella bruised and bleeding (well….maybe bruised). She’d just teach her a lesson about standing up for herself, even if you don’t have the boy you want, and how whining and moping isn’t the answer.

Then she’d probably help her up. Because Hermione is cool like that.

Review: The Host by Stephenie Meyer (@littlebrown)

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I know, I know. I just reviewed Twilight, so why the heck am I reviewing another Stephenie Meyer book so soon? Well, two reasons:

1. The Host is nothing like Twilight.

2. The trailer for the movie was recently released, and it is weird and kind of confusing. So if you are one of those people who saw The Hunger Games recently and wondered what that weird trailer with all the eyeballs was about, I am here to enlighten you.

The Plot

The Host is the story of two characters: A human, Melanie Stryder; and an alien, Wanderer. The kicker is that they’re both inhabiting the same body.

Melanie was one of the leaders in the human resistance, fighting to keep Wanderer’s alien race from taking over their bodies and consciousness, even after the aliens — or “souls,” as they refer to themselves — have already conquered Earth.

Obviously, she fails.

Wanderer is surgically inserted into Melanie’s body, reboots the hardware, takes a look around…and discovers Melanie’s still in there. Her consciousness, which is supposed to be snuffed out when a “soul” sets up shop, is very much present. And cranky.

What follows is an internal struggle between Melanie and Wanderer, as both fight to take control of the host body. And things only get more complicated when Melanie convinces Wanderer to seek out her allies in the resistance, bringing them both face-to-face with Melanie’s brother and boyfriend.

My Thoughts

First off, yes. This basic plot device has been used before: aliens who come to Earth and take control of our bodies. But really, most interesting plot devices have been used before. As long as it’s interesting and the author’s spin is unique and fun, I don’t care.

As for the book itself, I really enjoyed The Host. Ms. Meyer has come a long way from Twilight. Gone were most of the endless, repetitive descriptors; the grammatical errors; the absurdly cheesy metaphors. No, her writing is still not the gold standard against which all others can be measured, but then again, neither is the writing in most of the books I enjoy. But I can honestly say that if I didn’t know, going in, that this was the same woman who wrote Twilight, I would never have guessed it.

That’s a good thing.

Technicality aside, it was a good read. The pace was a little slower than that of your average YA novel; but then again, this technically isn’t a YA novel (although it’s perfectly appropriate for a teen audience). It’s definitely more character-driven than action-driven. There were parts that dragged, but I never got bored. And I have a bone to pick with part of the ending (Meyer left it open for a sequel, which is fine, but how she did it I found a bit creepy).

I don’t want you to think The Host is all plodding inner monologues, though. There’s definitely some good action and suspense in it, as well as a hefty helping of romance. Twilight it is not, but don’t be fooled: Meyer is a sucker for love triangles. Although, to be fair, The Host has more of a love square.

Bottom line: I enjoyed The Host. It’s not “great literature.” It’s not going to change the way you think about anything (unless you have very strong views about alien colonization. No judging here). But it’s interesting, it’s exciting, and it made my heart race and my tummy flutter at all the right times.

I found myself thinking about it after I finished (always a good sign). I’m looking forward to the sequel (The Soul, which Meyer may write someday if she feels like it) and for the film adaptation. Even if the trailer is weird.

Content Guide: contains mild violence

Review: The Twilight Saga, by Stephenie Meyer

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Based on a vast amount of research (which consists mainly of mentally cataloging the Facebook and Twitter updates of my friends), I’ve determined that there is a definite line in the sand when it comes to readers (especially readers of YA and fantasy books):

“Do you like Twilight?”

Those on one side of the line view those on the other with disdain and derision. The other side of the line is jaded, cynical, pretentious, snobby.

Or the other side is immature, pedestrian, unsophisticated, Philistine.

I promise this is not a cop-out, but I fall pretty solidly on the line. I kind of love Twilight while kind of hating it. And here’s why.

What is Twilight?

For those of you who have been living under a rock, Twilight is an enormously popular YA series by Stephenie Meyer. There are four books in the series: Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse, and Breaking Dawn.

It has also spawned an even more enormously successful move franchise starring KPattz (yes, I did just refer to them as KPattz. Whatcha gonna do about it?).

I’m going to talk about the series as a whole, because I highly doubt I’ll ever feel motivated to review each book on its own. Besides, odds are if you’re going to read one, you’re going to read them all. Obviously, spoilers ahead.

Here’s the Cliff’s Notes summary of Twilight: It is the story of a teenage girl named Bella Swan. Bella meets a mysterious boy at school named Edward Cullen. Edward acts really weird around Bella — kind of like he can’t stand to be anywhere near her — which turns out to be because he is a vampire, she smells unspeakably delicious, and therefore he can’t stand to be anywhere near her.

Before too long, she gets him to spill the beans about his vampire-ness, and they fall in love despite her mouth-watering aroma.

Bella also gets chummy with Edward’s vampire “family,” some of whom have special powers.

Oh, and Edward is also telepathic.

Edward and Bella have a tumultuous courtship, made even more complicated by the fact that Bella’s good friend Jacob is also in love with Bella.

Oh, and Jacob is a werewolf. Werewolves hate vampires. And vice versa.

[Aside: Although Twilight has an irrefutable love triangle, am I the only one who never understood the Team Edward, Team Jacob nonsense? Wasn’t it 100% obvious and inevitable that Bella never even remotely considered choosing Jacob over Edward? Didn’t New Moon make that abundantly clear?]

Assorted and increasingly threatening scenarios play out as Edward and Jacob battle (mostly figuratively, sometimes literally) for Bella’s heart. Friendships are tested. Villains rise and fall.

It’s all very exciting, and they all live [er…more or less] happily ever after.

Why I Love Twilight

I’ll admit it. Twilight is a highly addictive series. I devoured all four books in as many days. I was completely swept up in it. I keep trying to put my finger on exactly what swept me up, and here’s the best way I can explain it.

Twilight is kind of like a Twinkie. On the one hand, there’s not a lot of substance to it, there’s no real benefits to consuming it, you really shouldn’t think too hard about what’s in it, and most people are kind of embarrassed to admit they like it. And yet, it’s inexplicably delicious. And after consuming one, you kind of feel like the damage has been done, so you may as well go ahead and have another.

I really enjoyed Twilight, and I have a hard time explaining why. It is inexplicably delicious. It keeps me coming back for more. And there is something in me — the intangible, subconscious, reflexive part — that can’t be shaken from this stance, no matter what the logical, intellectual part of me thinks. Which brings me to…..

Why I Hate Twilight

First of all, none of the main characters in Twilight are all that sympathetic. Bella is the worst — she’s co-dependent, self-destructive, whiny, self-loathing, clingy, selfish, and irresponsible. Considering that the books are all written from her perspective (with the brief exception of a few chapters in Breaking Dawn), this can be more than a little frustrating.

Edward and Jacob are slightly more tolerable, but I honestly couldn’t figure out what exactly Bella saw in Edward (other than his breathtaking beauty – more on that later). He seemed kind of stiff and dull, not to mention overbearing. And Jacob, while definitely more fun, still had moments where he was a weird blend of macho and emo, neither of which are qualities I find all that attractive.

All the supporting characters – the Cullens, Bella’s friends at school, Bella’s father – are much more likable. Or at least more entertaining.

Secondly, the writing is abysmal. I’m speaking solely in a technical sense right now, as obviously there’s something about the writing that is also amazing, since it’s kept millions of people riveted through four long-ish books. But technically, it’s appalling. The most glaring fault is Ms. Meyer’s tendency to use the same descriptors over…and over….and over.

I found myself physically throttling the book every time I read (again) that Edward’s skin “sparkled like diamonds.”

Speaking of which, Bella’s constant need to describe every facet of Edward’s gorgeousness got really old, really fast. We get it. He’s pretty. He’s super-pretty. Now let’s move on please. Surely there’s another reason you’re hopelessly in love with him beyond the fact that he’s pretty. Yes? No?

Lastly (and I realize this is probably not a turn-off for most of the reading audience), Twilight vampires are just too…nice. They don’t burst into flame in the sun — nope, they just get even prettier with their sparkly skin. They can even stroll around outside, perfectly unharmed and unsparkly, on a cloudy day! (Although I have to say, I think sparkly vampires are marginally better than vampires who avoid bursting into flame by wearing copious amounts of sunblock).

Once you let vampires go play in the sunlight, it kind of ruins a lot of what makes them spooky. They don’t have to hide out in underground crypts. No, they can live in fabulous mountaintop mansions. They can hold jobs, go to school, fall in love, get married. They don’t have to hunt at night. They might do it anyway because it is easier, but it’s not imperative.

And unless you think colored contacts are frightening, they don’t even look scary. Nope. They look like this [Disclaimer: I realize I’m referring to the film and not the actual book. But this is pretty much how they’re described in the actual book, so I think it’s valid]:

She’s one of the scariest ones!

Which is not as scary as this:

or this:

Ah, Spike. You’ll always be my favorite.

or even this:

Their posh-ness and refinement made them creepy. Plus, their activities and amusements were WAY more freaky than even the baddest baddies in Twilight.

The Verdict

I honestly don’t know if I can recommend Twilight to you. Can you overlook some writing faux pas, a good amount of cheese, and an infuriating main character, as long as the story’s entertaining? Are you a hopeless romantic? Do you like your monsters a little soft around the edges? Then you’d probably like (or even love) Twilight. [Full disclosure: If I had to answer the above questions about myself, my answers would be maybe, mostly, and no. And I still liked it.]

Do you consider yourself a literature snob? Does it frustrate you beyond words when an author uses the same adjective to describe the same thing multiple times? Do you tend to turn your nose up at things that would appeal to 14-year-old girls across the globe? Then Twilight is most likely not for you.

I apologize that I just wrote a fairly long review, only to come down on the side of “I can’t pick a side.” But that’s pretty much where I stand. Some days, I love Twilight. It makes me happy and giddy inside. Other days, I hate it. It drives me nuts. It makes me want to throw things (and mail Stephenie Meyer a thesaurus). But overall, I think I love it more than I hate it.

Ms. Meyer may not be a great writer (at least not in her first venture), but she is a great storyteller. She got me to care about characters I didn’t even like. She kept my attention through an entire book dedicated to moping. And she even managed to make me not too upset when I was promised an epic battle and was instead given an epic staring contest. I honestly can’t think of another author who got me so heavily invested in her storytelling that I could overlook all my (many) problems with the writing, the characters, and the essence of the story itself.

It’s kind of perplexing.

Content guide: contains some violence, mild sexual content, some dark themes concerning suicide and mortality, and some vampires who actually DO kill people.