kindlelitkat's review
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
After reading and totally loving Hunger (book #1 in the Riders of the Apocalypse series) going ahead and buying Rage seemed like a total no-thought-required decision. With their glossy covers depicting interesting and semi-abstract images of the items held by each horsemen's office, these are books that I desperately want on my shelf, rather then my kindle.
Of course, even more important then the lovely covers is the lovely writing. Continuing from the first book is the top notch blend of real world issues--in this case self harm--with an intriguing and fairly original paranormal component. This once again succeeded in delivering a unique story that had me unable to put the book down from start to finish.
Yet I seem to be giving you the sum of my review before it has even begun. Lets slow down a little and talk about Rage in detail..
My Thoughts
Of course, even more important then the lovely covers is the lovely writing. Continuing from the first book is the top notch blend of real world issues--in this case self harm--with an intriguing and fairly original paranormal component. This once again succeeded in delivering a unique story that had me unable to put the book down from start to finish.
Yet I seem to be giving you the sum of my review before it has even begun. Lets slow down a little and talk about Rage in detail..
My Thoughts
The first thing that I want to praise Rage for is the balance that Jackie Morse Kessler strikes between being honest about her (real world) subject matter while doing so in a way that isn't going to send readers running for the hills. Self harm / "cutting" is a delicate issue and certainly not a pretty one, yet it is something that many people deal with in real life. I like how she got to the heart of why, how this story, as entertaining as it was, had such sensitivity to Missy's reasoning. It's really, really hard to balance the real and the paranormal within a single novel, but again Jackie Morse Kessler has managed this difficult feat with an easy grace that alludes many stories.
The next thing I feel is worth saying is that Rage feels like a much more personal story--too Missy, not Jackie, just so we're clear--then Hunger did for Lisa. What I mean by this is that the aspects and manifestations of War that are shown in the novel are shown on a much more local scale. You aren't going to find Missy stirring up crap in (insert war ravaged country of choice here). I thought this was a wise move for two reasons: (1) It allowed Missy to be a sympathetic character. Since the "attacks" are on people who have wronged her, whom we see wrong her, I was able to still cheer for her. And (2) this prevents Rage from being outdated or, worse yet, from being dragged into any type of unwanted political scandal that could land anyone in hot water.
I'll also say I loved Missy and Death's interactions, but I'm going to get to that more below, so I'll just stick with that statement for now.
I absolutely loved Missy. She is strong yet flawed, passionate yet restrained and just all around complex and totally memorable. There were moments that I wanted to cheer for her and moments when I just wanted to give her a gigantic hug. Missy is a very 'real' character. She could say and do things that weren't always right, but for the large majority I didn't find myself going "You idiot! Why did you do that?". It is a testament to how good Jackie Morse Kessler is as a writer that I could stick with Missy through every step of her journey without finding serious fault with her, especially considering that the situations she faced were often things I have no way of directly connecting with.
Death, yet again, was his awesomely charming self. I really, really love (heck, probably am *in* love with...) Jackie's version of Death and for someone who is naturally drawn to "death" characters in fiction, I'd like to think of that as high praise. His sense of humor, his insightfulness and the overall quirky 'beat' to his character makes him steal pretty much every scene he's in.
The rest of the cast did what they were there to do and did it well, but this series is definitely not a "cast" production. It is, at least from reading these two books, very much about Death, the person chosen to be a horsemen, and that character's growth from the experience. It's not that the other characters are "bad", but rather that, essentially, this isn't their show to run.
Missy + Death = Awww! I totally loved the connection between these two. As with the romance that happened in Hunger, the romance in Rage is not center stage, but rather a subtle and elegant thing that compliments what is going on, rather then overshadowing it. There is an interesting and unique, albeit fittingly quirky, chemistry between these characters and while the ending we are left with certainly isn't tied together with a bow (which wouldn't work for this series anyway) I found it satisfying, hopeful and endearing.
Purchase or Pass?
I thought Hunger was an excellent beginning to a new series and I can gladly tell you that personally I loved Rage even more. This was a book that held my attention from start to finish and I would eagerly recommend this to fans of paranormal or contemporary YA, provided they are comfortable with the boundries of their genre(s) of choice blurring together. A rare treat, Rage comes highly recommended!
ravenclaw_princess913's review
To triggering for me with the girl have eating disorder and people bullying me about my weight
Content Warnings
Moderate: Eating disorder
loveleareads's review
4.0
Normally in short books such as this, I feel it is too short and the story is lacking of details. But Hunger blew me away. At about one hundred and seventy-something pages, it was packed full with a great story.
You've got to give Kessler props for her originality. Having an anorexic girl become a Horsmane of the Apocalypse, Famine no less, is beyond creative. I loved irony, and this was packed with it.
Watching Lisa fight the battle with herself was excruciating and heart breaking. It always is when you're dealing with an anorexic protagonist. As the book goes along, Lisa learns what being hungry really means.
Kessler's writing was lyrical and went well with the subject.Her personal experience with this shown through the book. The story is very intense and true, but at the same time not too depressing. It's something that I think everyone should read.
I'm very much looking forward to the next three installments in the series. Very intense issues are tackled, and I can't wait for more of Kessler's writing.
You've got to give Kessler props for her originality. Having an anorexic girl become a Horsmane of the Apocalypse, Famine no less, is beyond creative. I loved irony, and this was packed with it.
Watching Lisa fight the battle with herself was excruciating and heart breaking. It always is when you're dealing with an anorexic protagonist. As the book goes along, Lisa learns what being hungry really means.
Kessler's writing was lyrical and went well with the subject.Her personal experience with this shown through the book. The story is very intense and true, but at the same time not too depressing. It's something that I think everyone should read.
I'm very much looking forward to the next three installments in the series. Very intense issues are tackled, and I can't wait for more of Kessler's writing.
kellyinbookland's review
5.0
One of the most intense and best books i have ever read.
Full review will be on yabookreads.com soon!
Full review will be on yabookreads.com soon!
wheems01's review
4.0
One night while attempting to overdose, a strange delivery man delivers a set of scales to Lisabeth Lewis and informs her that she is Famine and states, "Thou art the Black Rider; go thee out unto the world." Lisabeth, suffering from anorexia, now sees a horse in her backyard no one else can see, and is the proud owner of a set of magic scales. But how does one become Famine, one of the four horsemen of the apocalypse, when she can't even control her own life?
This book took me by surprise. When I first read the premise, I wasn't sure what to think of the book. It seemed to be a fantasy wrapped up in a book about a girl with an eating disorder. I tend to prefer my serious issue fiction separate from my fantasy, but I thought I would give it a try. I am glad I did.
This short book, is a prize. Kessler smoothly incorporates the fantasy and realistic elements. Lisa is a believable realistic heroine, who suffers from anorexia. She knows how many calories are in every bite of food, and sees nothing but a fat girl in the mirror. Turning this unlikely girl into Famine was a stroke of genius.
While the supporting characters are not as well developed as Lisa, they served their purpose and helped guide the reader through Lisa's story. I loved the character of Death, and really wanted to know more about him and the other horsemen.
This book was quirky and fun in parts, but didn't shy away from the more serious aspects of the eating disorder. I especially liked how Kessler handled the ending of the book, it felt both realistic and right for this novel. Hunger definitely takes a unique approach to a book about eating disorders, but one that informs and educates all the while making it more lighthearted than other novels on the topic.
Hunger comes out October 18, 2010. Now, if I can just get my hands on a copy of the sequel, Rage which isn't due out until April 18, 2011. I can't wait to see what happens next!
Cautions for sensitive readers: Some violence. Some readers may find the descriptions of eating disorders disturbing, but keep in mind, this book is depicting a struggle that some people face everyday.
jennutley's review
2.0
Two stars, by definition at goodreads, means "it was okay." I'm not convinced it was okay. It didn't quite deserve a single star. (Wish the goodreads rating system was 10 stars or allowed half stars.)
Another teen angst book with a great cover. And add to that a great premise. We've got an anorexic girl who becomes one of the Horsemen of the Apocalypse. Famine, of course. Love it.
But, I didn't like it. There was a real disconnect because the author tried to make our heroine good and make her want to be good. But famine isn't good. So the author needed to come up with a way to make famine good. Not an easy task. And it all just kind of fell apart. It might have worked to have Famine embrace that she was a necessary evil. A part of what has to happen to order to lead us to something better. Still, quite a stretch. I would have preferred someone willing to wallow in the delicious, unapologetic, darkness of it. Come on, horrify me instead. Don't sell me pink (but starving) butterflies.
I gave it two stars, however, because I think a lot of the anorexia and body image content was not bad.
I mostly want to say, give this one a pass. That said, I like the premise enough that I might try #2. It was short and there are only four books coming. I keep hoping to be surprised and delighted. Feel free to mock me about my trash reading.
Another teen angst book with a great cover. And add to that a great premise. We've got an anorexic girl who becomes one of the Horsemen of the Apocalypse. Famine, of course. Love it.
But, I didn't like it. There was a real disconnect because the author tried to make our heroine good and make her want to be good. But famine isn't good. So the author needed to come up with a way to make famine good. Not an easy task. And it all just kind of fell apart. It might have worked to have Famine embrace that she was a necessary evil. A part of what has to happen to order to lead us to something better. Still, quite a stretch. I would have preferred someone willing to wallow in the delicious, unapologetic, darkness of it. Come on, horrify me instead. Don't sell me pink (but starving) butterflies.
I gave it two stars, however, because I think a lot of the anorexia and body image content was not bad.
I mostly want to say, give this one a pass. That said, I like the premise enough that I might try #2. It was short and there are only four books coming. I keep hoping to be surprised and delighted. Feel free to mock me about my trash reading.
crtney's review
2.0
I just didn't care much for the story, the characters, or the relationships. The topic of eating disorders has been done before and this one just didn't measure up.
williamc's review
5.0
The premise of Hunger says it all: a 17-year-old-anorexic girl is cast as Famine, Horseman of the Apocalypse. If that weren't enough, Death bears a more than passing resemblance to dead rocker Kurt Cobain. From there, the only fear is whether Jackie Kessler can sustain the promise of her set-up. Fortunately for us, the book not only lives up to its potential, but clears the way for a fresh and fantastical Young Adult series that deftly connects its own mystique to very serious teen realities.
Hunger is like the perfect Young Adult mix of Stephen King's fantastic novel [b:Thinner|10605|Thinner|Stephen King|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1166254278s/10605.jpg|2791999] and Piers Anthony's [b:On a Pale Horse|76658|On a Pale Horse (Incarnations of Immortality, #1)|Piers Anthony|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1255570165s/76658.jpg|900764], but while similar to these stories (and to the Marvel comic book series "X-Factor" that inspired the author), Kessler creates her own superbly unique mythology. The perfectly named Lisabeth Lewis becomes -- in a very short span within a very thin novel -- a wholly believable voice that the reader craves more of by the story's end.
This novel took two hours to read, from purchase to finish. Highly recommended.
Hunger is like the perfect Young Adult mix of Stephen King's fantastic novel [b:Thinner|10605|Thinner|Stephen King|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1166254278s/10605.jpg|2791999] and Piers Anthony's [b:On a Pale Horse|76658|On a Pale Horse (Incarnations of Immortality, #1)|Piers Anthony|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1255570165s/76658.jpg|900764], but while similar to these stories (and to the Marvel comic book series "X-Factor" that inspired the author), Kessler creates her own superbly unique mythology. The perfectly named Lisabeth Lewis becomes -- in a very short span within a very thin novel -- a wholly believable voice that the reader craves more of by the story's end.
This novel took two hours to read, from purchase to finish. Highly recommended.
andrez's review
2.0
I was quite disappointed with this book. When I read the blurb I thought the concept was amazing, but then, while reading the book, I thought it was underdeveloped.
Basically, pretty much all the characters were quite flat, even Lisa, and I think the point of view it was written in didn't help much either. It was like, "okay, so this story has a purpose, a moral, and these are the puppets, you'll just be moving them around and the story goes like that" and it really bothered me. All we get to see of Lisa is her eating disorder and her problems with food and being Famine. Her relationships and the other people (besides Death and the Horsemen) just seemed to, I don't know, exist, I they didn't seem to have a purpose other than BE there.
The only character I liked a little bit more was Death. I liked that he was very pragmatic with everything and that he had a weird sense of humour.
As I said before, I was disappointed with the way the concept was developed. Of course I'm not going to give a lesson about the Book of Revelation (not that I could anyway) but still... it had so much potential and in the end... I just think it was taken a little too lightly.
The other reason I read this book was because of the anorexia message, and this I thought was better written, maybe because the author herself used to be bulimic, but I've still read better books about it.
I think this book was too short for its theme and concept and that it might have been better if it were all more developed. I'm still going to read the second book in the series, Rage (hey, people get better with practice!), but I won't be running to the stores to get it.
Basically, pretty much all the characters were quite flat, even Lisa, and I think the point of view it was written in didn't help much either. It was like, "okay, so this story has a purpose, a moral, and these are the puppets, you'll just be moving them around and the story goes like that" and it really bothered me. All we get to see of Lisa is her eating disorder and her problems with food and being Famine. Her relationships and the other people (besides Death and the Horsemen) just seemed to, I don't know, exist, I they didn't seem to have a purpose other than BE there.
The only character I liked a little bit more was Death. I liked that he was very pragmatic with everything and that he had a weird sense of humour.
As I said before, I was disappointed with the way the concept was developed. Of course I'm not going to give a lesson about the Book of Revelation (not that I could anyway) but still... it had so much potential and in the end... I just think it was taken a little too lightly.
The other reason I read this book was because of the anorexia message, and this I thought was better written, maybe because the author herself used to be bulimic, but I've still read better books about it.
I think this book was too short for its theme and concept and that it might have been better if it were all more developed. I'm still going to read the second book in the series, Rage (hey, people get better with practice!), but I won't be running to the stores to get it.