Yep. I’m on my soapbox.
As you may or may not know, the ending to the Sookie Stackhouse novel was revealed on Charlaine Harris’s Facebook page yesterday by a fan. Don’t read any further if you don’t want any details about it, though I don’t directly say what the ending is.
I have mixed feelings on some things, but at the end of the day, I’m a reader.
There are a lot of upset fans, but I don’t even know if you can say the ending was “leaked”. Though it’s in Germany, the book is technically released now and it’s the digital age so of course information will travel fast. Honestly, I’m surprised it wasn’t “leaked” sooner. Makes me wonder where the ARC readers were. Wasn’t Harry Potter’s ending leaked? For the record, I think it’s totally lame to post spoilers out in the open for the masses and not give them a choice to decide to read it for themselves. But for those fans who cancelled pre-orders, I am curious as to if you’re glad the spoilers were released, giving you the option to save your money on assured disappointment, or would you rather have not known?
I’ve not read the series but I do watch the show (though I’m not emotionally attached to it), so I was considering giving them a try but followed my instincts to let it finish first before becoming invested, especially considering the general consensus from my closer friends who complain about how the quality of the series has degraded ever since the show began. From the general sound of things, I’ve already been reading series of superior quality so I don’t feel like I’m missing out. And after this debacle, I think I’ll pass.
While I don’t read these books, I know all too well what it’s like to follow a series (in books or film) and become very invested in the story’s outcome. I’m not up for paying upwards of $30 for entertainment that will only serve to piss me off more than make me happy. When it comes to authors, I do respect that it’s their work and their creation, but when you have a following I believe you do have a responsibility to them. And last I checked authors don’t do this for charity. It’s made a lucky number of them very wealthy and they wouldn’t be there without their readers. So it’s sad when an author’s attitude suggests that they’ve forgotten where they came from. It is impossible to please everybody. That’s one thing, but it’s another to pretty much say F and U to the following that got you there. The “privilege” to read someone’s work stops when people have to put down their hard-earned cash to get it. Like with any product someone pays for, there are expectations. No, you can’t please everyone but blatant misdirection and a bait and switch will piss off a lot more than if you deal it straight.
Kim Harrison has already weighed in pretty much asking that nobody threatens her because of what Harris has done. When it comes to The Hollows, though I love it, I’ve time and time again said that I’m glad it’s ending because I don’t really like being grabbed by my proverbial balls and that’s how it’s been for years. I’m too invested to turn back and though I am confident that Kim will deliver, you never really know until you know.
It’s one thing for a series to take a new direction and I lose interest, like Anita Blake . I enjoyed the first few books immensely but when ardeur came into the picture I realized the series wasn’t what I was hoping for and dropped it like a hot potato, especially when I finally caught up with library copies and had to start paying for them. I don’t miss them and don’t even care, and that’s totally fine. I didn’t feel misled when I stopped because at least it’d been happening for a while. I don’t even think I was that angry about it.
No, an author is never going to make everybody happy regardless of what they do, but that doesn’t mean it’s impossible to be reasonable. I’m not necessarily saying Harris wasn’t being reasonable because, as I said, I haven’t read it. But it definitely happens so I do understand the frustration.
Just my two cents, though for a number of you this is the case where time is more valuable than any dollar sign.
Vampire Academy Series Overview (Some Spoilers Included)
Instead of breaking it down book by book, I figured I’d just give my overall impressions of the series in one post. The first couple of issues of the Dark Swan comic aside, having never before read a full Richelle Meade novel due to some reservations about her writing (particularly how she can end a series), I decided to take the plunge into the world of Rose Hathaway. Though often reckless and rebellious, I liked the character. There were certainly some quirks that prevented me from loving her, but I definitely had moments of emotional investment in the series. I thought it was clever to use Rose’s shadow-kissed powers as a way to break from constantly using her point of view.
Meade has created vampire species that definitely have their own twist when it comes to Moroi v. Strigoi v. Dhampirs, even though it’s not my favorite take. It’s harder for me to buy into their powers as much when they have the same lifespan as humans; however, I did enjoy reading about their politics and their societal norms and social classes.
I thought it was interesting how even though this series is YA, the characters are more sexually active than heroines in a number of adult novels who always have one excuse or another as to why they’re still virgins. It is at least realistic in terms of how teens behave these days.
This series was a little uneven for me because there would be stretches of time in the books where I’d be extremely bored and then moments where I couldn’t put the book down. I did think there’d be more action for her overall as a guardian. Book 4 was my favorite without a doubt and I probably don’t have to explain why for those of you who have read it.
Spoiler territory
Dmitri and fangs = totally hott. I wish he could have kept them.
As for characters in general, I didn’t really have a favorite character here. Rose and Dmitri had a great love story (though the drama got exhausting) and fantastic chemistry, but I can see why Adrian had fans as well. I liked him more as a character, though I didn’t like him with Rose. I was a bit disappointed in this love triangle (if you could call it that) because I clearly knew how things would end so any scenes with Adrian were an absolute waste of time. There wasn’t even a contest when it came to who meant more to Rose, so I resented the raw deal he received at the end when it could have been avoided all together. It made me not as happy for Rose and Dmitri because it was at his expense. I know that happens sometimes, but that’s just how I felt about it. I absolutely loved the ending scene when she describes Lissa ascending the throne to take her place as queen. The imagery was absolutely perfect and it really hit me, the journey they went through surviving death at all turns, leaving to school to rebel only to return as laughing stocks, and yet ultimately she became queen. Extremely poignant.
After finally finishing the books I insisted that would take a break to read other series before jumping into its spin-off, Bloodlines, but after that ending I really couldn’t help myself and decided to dive right in. I’ll let you know how that one is going for me in the next post! But I can say that Vampire Academy at least served as a gateway to one of my new favorite series.
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Review + Giveaway! Twice Tempted (Night Prince #2) by Jeaniene Frost
Synopisis: Leila’s psychic abilities have been failing her, and now she isn’t sure what the future holds. If that weren’t enough, her lover, Vlad, has been acting distant. Though Leila is a mere mortal, she’s also a modern woman who refuses to accept the cold shoulder treatment forever–especially from the darkly handsome vampire who still won’t admit that he loves her.
Soon circumstances send Leila back to the carnival circuit, where tragedy strikes. And when she finds herself in the crosshairs of a killer who may be closer than she realizes, Leila must decide who to trust– the fiery vampire who arouses her passions like no other or the tortured knight who longs to be more than a friend? With danger stalking her every step of the way, all it takes is one wrong move to damn her for eternity.
Review
I enjoyed the first Night Prince novel immensely. As I’ve said before, Vlad is easily my favorite character of the franchise, so I’m super happy that he gets three books. He’s a very frustrating character at times with arrogance that knows no bounds, but Frost knows how to make the payoff worth it. I found the glimpse into his ruthless nature and past to be a highlight of the story, though I feel as if we’re still only scratching the surface. Leila was pretty cool in this book. I like that she’s a capable heroine, though clearly her humanity hinders her abilities and that’s a major focus of the novel. I wish the villains were fleshed out a little more, but it looks like book 3 will round that all out. I’m looking forward to it. There’s an excerpt of the next Cat & Bones book as well. I do hope we see more of Vlad and Leila in that installment. I don’t believe we saw him at all in the prior Cat and Bones novel and he was sorely missed.
I think it goes without saying that this is a definite recommend for fans of the series.
*Review copy provided by the publisher.
Giveaway
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Ever After (The Hollows #11) now $7.99!
What a surprise! Usually we don’t see a price drop until the fall, but for ebook readers it’s come early! I’m not sure if this is temporary or not, but based on my poll a number of you were planning to wait for a price drop. Well, now you have it:
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Freebie Friday! Angel’s Ink: The Asylum Tales
Hi Guys! Apologies for the sparse posts. I’ve been spending pretty much every free moment I have working on an unrelated project for this deadline coming up. That, and I fully immersed myself in the Vampire Academy and Bloodlines series so that I can review them as a whole. So reviews are pending but Kindle and Nook users, if you want to give Jocelynn Drake’s Angel’s Ink: The Asylum Tales a try, here’s your chance to do it for free!
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