Reviews written by Kelly Goodwin

As I start The Scorch Trials, all I can think is, why do they bother? I understand that when pushed, humans have a very strong survival instinct. But I feel like these kids have been pushed beyond the farthest limits you could set, and are still expected to keep going....

A tyrant regime, a secret that could change everything AND a forbidden romance - what's not to love? But as I attempt to formulate my thoughts into coherent sentences, I'm seeing a re-occurring trend: the evil queen wasn't frightening, the big secret didn't blow my mind, the characters were lack-lustre...

As always, Ellen Hopkins is able to blow me away with her stunningly beautiful prose. I don't think I could ever actually dislike a book by her, as they're so elegantly written. Never read an Ellen Hopkins book before? Then you are in for a treat with this sample: ...

After being promised action, adventure, steampunk and peculiar people, I was pretty excited to start The Peculiars. What I got was a little action, a little less adventure, proto-steampunk, and very few peculiar people. So while I enjoyed reading The Peculiars, I can't help but feel a little disappointed. ...

Pure starts of frustratingly slow and secretive. We're leaked bits and pieces about the world in which Pressia lives, but these clues do little answer any questions about how the world has reached it's current state. Other then deducing that there was some kind of nuclear explosion, laced with fusion-causing...

After reading the summary foreshadowing a faerie prophecy about death and destruction, you would think this would be a dark and twisted, serious read. But that is so far from the truth! Paranormalcy had its moments of darkness, but its an overall light and fun read. At...

This book frustrated me to no end! I eagerly consumed chapter, after chapter, becoming more and more upset with Calla's choices. Its one of those books that, come the end, you want to throw against the wall - one of those books that you can't help but love because it...

**Because you read the book in it's entirety, before learning New Girl's name, she will be referred to as NG in this review. New Girl was a fast-paced page-turner with overly-dramatic characters and a predictable ending. I found myself both unable to book this book down, while...

The first hurdle I had to overcome was the odd language Dashner had created for the Gladers. I don't feel like it added anything to the plot, and after learning that they had only been Gladers for about 2 years, I couldn't understand how they had come to adopt such...

I read a review that said that there are stories that require that you suspend any and all disbelief, or you'll find that you're constantly asking yourself how this type of world came into fruition, considering the rebellious nature so inherent in human nature. Matched is definitely one of those...

I felt the pacing was a bit better than in its predecessor Hunger (which I really struggled to get through for the first 2/3), and there are a couple of scenes which will haunt me later in dreams (like when Bug finds that Panda has crashed a car over the...

Action? Check. Strong characters? Check. Suspense? Check. Solid world-building and completely innovative plot twists? ... Not-so-check. I'm quickly learning that I LOVE dual PoV and Legend is no exception. I loved reading from both June and Day's PoVs, as I felt like it really helped me connect...

I wanted to love this book. A YA contemporary spin-off of a Shakespeare classic? Brilliant! But while the plot held my attention, there were a few too many plot holes, I couldn't relate to any of the characters, and the mythology of the Mercenaries and Ambassadors wasn't explained well. ...

I am a little torn with this one. On the one hand, I really enjoyed The Iron King. It was a fun, fast read, touching on lots of things that I love - faery lore, magic, mystical realms and otherworldliness and some romance. But at the same time, I was...

I enjoyed The Iron King. Ash was unapproachable and thus intriguing, Puck was so over-the-top charming that he was endearing, Grimalkin's cool aloofness had me desperate to figure him out and the concept of the iron fey, a new type of fey bred out of our obsession with technology, was...