Kevin Lau

Huzzah! I have just finished the fourth installment of the Percy Jackson & the Olympians  series, the book which is a build-up to the finale and eases fans into a darker tone. The last thing fourteen-year-old Percy Jackson wanted to do on summer break was blow up another school. Unfortunately, that is exactly what happens. Monsters that have not stirred for centuries are coming back with a vengeance, teaming with the Titan Lord Kronos and creating a massive army to take down the Olympian gods. To slow down their endeavors, Percy, Annabeth, Grover, and Tyson enter the mystical underground tunnels of the Labyrinth in hopes to find its creator, Daedalus, and convince him to their side so Kronos would not be able to maneuver his army wherever he wishes. However, it may take more than two half-bloods, a satyr, and a cyclops to reach their goal, and they may also find more than they expected. Much like with Sea of Monsters , the quality of  The Battle of the Labyrinth ...

I'm just going to come clean and say that I am so  behind on popular TV shows, but hey, at least I can binge-watch them instead of waiting a week for a new episode. Returning to Starling City after marooned on an island for five years, billionaire playboy Oliver Queen does what he promised his father he would do: Take down the people who have ruined his city. To do that, he must become someone his enemies would fear, a symbol others could look up to, someone separate from his family name. Not only must he become someone else, but he must become something else. Armed with a bow and lethal wits, Oliver Queen puts on a hood at night and becomes known as the Starling City Vigilante. His goals are clear, but what he doesn't know is that something bigger is at work. I believe it is safe to say that superhero stories such as Green Arrow can be better told through television than movies. The plots have enough room to develop, as well as the characters and the universe they'...

Three books down, seven to go! Also, this post contains spoilers for those who have not read the previous books. A few months after their journey to the Sea of Monsters and the return of Thalia, Percy and Annabeth receive a distress call from Grover, who claims to have found two demigods. During their rescue of the new demigods, the group runs Artemis, the goddess of the hunt, and her hunters. Unfortunately, Artemis soon goes missing, as well as Annabeth, leaving Thalia and Percy in an uneasy alliance with the Hunters of Artemis to embark on a quest to save them both. Nothing but danger lies ahead as old foes return and older evils begin to stir. Rick Riordan takes the series to a whole other level in this third installment. Much like the first book, The Titan's Curse  brings back a complex plot. There are multiple stories happening as well as the continuation of the series' arc. The writing is well-paced, picking the perfect times to add a high-octane action scene or a...

The quest to read the entire Percy Jackson & the Olympians  series continues with the second book, The Sea of Monsters ! So yes, spoilers ahead for those who did not read the first book (and the movie does not count). When an innocent game of dodgeball at the end of the school year becomes a fight to the death with giant cannibals, thirteen year old Percy Jackson is saved by his friend Annabeth and taken back to Camp Half-Blood. However, only worse things meet them there. Thalia's tree, the tree support the magical shield around the camp, has been poisoned, and the only way to cure it is to retrieve the Golden Fleece from the Sea of Monsters. Joined by Annabeth and his half-brother but full-cyclops Tyson, Percy embarks on an adventure to find the Fleece, but may run into an old foe in the process. The Sea of Monsters  is a worthy follow-up to the The Lightning Thief , though not as complex or well-written. The story is simplified, with a bit of extra plotlines to ...

Prepare yourselves for a dragged-out, two-hour Hunger Games  experience where Katniss Everdeen shoots only one arrow. Seriously, we get more arrow action in CW's Arrow , and that's on a TV budget. Shortly after surviving the 75th Hunger Games, Katniss Everdeen wakes up in the forgotten, underground base of District 13. Survivors of the bombing of District 12 are there as well, preparing for a revolution to overthrow the Capitol, and they want Katniss to lead the revolution (or at least be their mascot). At first, Katniss is against the idea, but when she finds out Peeta Mellark, her fellow survivor in the past two Hunger Games, is still alive and under Capitol control, she decides to bring the revolution to full force. I have not read the book (I couldn't get past Catching Fire ), but I do know Mockingjay  is not very long, only 400 pages. From my friends who have read the book, they have told me the movie covers about a quarter of the book and, honestly, feels like...

Well, I guess that now Disney own Marvel, they've got the rights to every  series Marvel has published. At least they took something lesser known. Fourteen year old inventor Hiro Hamada is grieving the death of his older brother Tadashi. However, Hiro accidentally activates Baymax, a robotic caretaker Tadashi created. Hiro doesn't care for Baymax at first, but when Baymax inadvertently leads Hiro to the base of a supervillain that uses technology Hiro himself had invented, Hiro must use his inventive skills to figure out a way to stop the masked villain from possibly destroying the city, which may override Baymax's original purposes. Cute and fun, Big Hero Six  is Disney's latest animated film produced alongside Marvel studios. The animation is superb, the colors vibrant and the cinematography was great as well. The story was also great, with cute moments, funny jokes, and decent pacing, but not executed in the best way, keeping it from being the best animated f...

A space-travel movie with the storytelling of Christopher Nolan? Sign me up! When the earth starts becoming uninhabitable, Cooper (Matthew McConaughey) and his crew are sent to space to enter a black hole next to Saturn that leads to a galaxy with planets that may prove to be a new home for the people of earth. However, to do so, Cooper must leave his family behind with the possibility that he may never return. With the theory of relativity in play as well (time passing slower to some and faster for others), the crew must be as fast and efficient as possible. I tried to keeps my hopes low upon entering this movie, but it's hard to do that when you're about to see a movie from the same writer and director of Inception , The Prestige , and The Dark Knight  trilogy. Interstellar  still has Christopher Nolan's trademarks: the cinematography, the dialogue, the concept, the twist, and the science. However, a quarter of this three hour movie is a rough patch that brings...

As a fan of the video game Alan Wake  and also an avid reader, when I had learned a novelization of the game was made, I couldn't resist buying a copy and reading it. Best-selling novelist Alan Wake has been suffering from writer's block for the past two years. In hopes to cure it, Alan and his wife, Alice, go on a vacation to a small remote town called Bright Falls. Shortly after arriving in their cabin, a force of darkness kidnaps Alice and Alan wakes up in a car crash almost two weeks later. Trying to wrap his head around the scenario, Alan soon finds himself a target to the force of darkness, possessing the people of Bright Falls to stop him from saving his wife. It's a horror story Alan is unsure he could overcome and a mystery he seems to have written in a manuscript he has no memory of. I was ecstatic to start the book, but, unfortunately, I am a bit disappointed. For a book that praises creative storytelling, the writing of the book falls a little above basi...

Keanu Reeves, man. Keanu Reeves. Ex-hitman John Wick has retired for over five years. During those years, he settled down, found a wife, and put his past behind him. However, when his car is stolen and dog gets killed by a member of a Russian mob not even three days after his wife's death, John decides that enough is enough. He digs up his old stash of weapons and decides to bust some Russian heads mostly with headshots. I know, it sounds like a B-grade movie, and honestly, it is, but I mean that in the best way. The acting is great, the action sequences are very creative, and the tone of the movie is consistent throughout, being an enjoyable (and sometimes funny) action thriller with Keanu Reeves kicking butt. I've heard some reviewers saying that this is Keanu Reeves greatest performance, and I have to agree with him. There are a few lines in the movie that sounded plain and boring, but Reeves's acted it to a very enjoyable line. Best action flick of the year? It...

Here's how it went down: boy finds book, boy reads book, boy falls in love with book, boy finds out book is a series, boy reads entire series, boy continues onto spin-off series, final book in spin-off series is released, and boy decides to reread the  entire series before reading the finale. Yes, this is my second time reading this book, and I rarely read books a second time. Twelve year old Percy Jackson is struggling to make things right in his life. He's got dyslexia and ADHD, causing him problems when studying for school. At home, he's got to deal with his idiot of a stepfather. Oh, and monsters that seem similar to his Greek Mythology homework are appearing and coming after him. The only thing good in his life that he never wants to let go is his loving mother. However, when Percy and his mother take a trip to the beach, they are soon chased by another monster from the Greek myths. The monster kills his mother, and Percy barely makes it alive to a special camp f...

I had neutral feelings walking into the movie for two reasons: 1. The marketing really wanted people to know that Guillermo Del Toro produced the movie, which tells me nothing because he produces a ton  of movies. He's great with visual effects, though. 2. It's from the same animators as Free Birds , which is an awful movie. However, Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood  and Soul Eater  showed me that just because it's the same animators doesn't mean the story is of equal quality. Ever since they were kids, best friends Manolo and Joaquin have always competed for Maria's heart. After Maria returns years later from her studies, Joaquin has been named protector of Mexico and Manolo has grown up to become a lover of music, but forced by his father to go into bullfighting. Torn between fulfilling the family tradition or to follow his heart, Manolo makes a decision that incidentally leads him to his death. Having been cheated from living his life, Manolo goes on a journe...

As a fan of Lindsay Cummings's young adult debut novel titled The Murder Complex , I was eager to read the first installment to her middle-grade fantasy series The Balance Keepers. On a job to send a letter to someone who not only lives in the middle of the woods, but under it as well, eleven year old Albert Flynn discovers that he is a balance keeper, a destined guardian of the three realms that lie in the earth's core. His job? If one of the realms were to fall out of balance, it is up to him and his teammates (cautious Leroy and spunky Birdie) to restore its balance by finding a special item in the unbalanced realm before the earth is destroyed. However, before they can go into the realms, they must harness their magical abilities that are given to them through special Tiles. Leroy has a super sharp memory, Birdie can breathe underwater, and Albert... well, no one is entirely sure what power his Tile gives him. Unfortunately, as time goes on, the realm of Calderon bec...

Idris Elba and Taraji P. Henson star in... The Stay-At-Home Mom Horror Movie . When sociopath and escaped convict Colin Evans (Idris Elba) gets into a car accident, he goes to the nearest available house to borrow a phone, which ends up belonging to mother-of-two Terri (Taraji P. Henson). Terri's husband is out on a trip, leaving her alone with her her infant son and toddler daughter. However, she invites Colin into her home so he won't have to stay out of the rain to wait until the tow truck arrives. Although, when Colin starts giving off extremely creepy vibes, Terri realizes all too late that she may have made a mistake. When I saw the trailer for the film, I was expecting a good thriller to keep me at the edge of my seat. Instead, I got one hour of boring prolonged scenes and a thrilling final 20 minutes, the last 10 minutes being the best part of the film. I'm sorry, but I have to say that the person we're supposed to be cheering for to beat the bad guy is...

With the movie coming up on October 3rd starring Nicolas Cage, there was no better time to read this book! At a precise moment, all over the world, millions of people vanish. Cars and planes are left un-manned, causing chaos in the streets as everyone tries to figure out what had happened. Airline captain Rayford Steele also seeks for the truth, and when he comes home to find his wife and son to be one of the many who vanished, he knows what happened: an event in the Bible called The Rapture. The more he learns about the rapture, the more he feels the need to spread the word to others, because if what the Bible prophesied is true, the Antichrist would soon come to power and begin a seven-year reign of tribulation. This is the story of those left behind. I have seen the first two movies from years ago that starred Kirk Cameron and remember enjoying them. I attempted to read the children's series before, but it had gotten slow and boring not even halfway through the series. I...

When looking on YouTube for trailers of lesser-known games, I came across the title Alan Wake . The trailer pulled me in, hook, line, and sinker. Best-selling novelist Alan Wake has been suffering from writer's block for the past two years. In hopes to cure it, Alan and his wife, Alice, go on a vacation to a small remote town called Bright Falls. Shortly after arriving in their cabin, a force of darkness kidnaps Alice and Alan wakes up in a car crash almost two weeks later. Trying to wrap his head around the scenario, Alan soon finds himself a target to the force of darkness, possessing the people of Bright Falls to stop him from saving his wife. It's a horror story Alan is unsure he could overcome and a mystery he seems to have written in a manuscript he has no memory of. Alan Wake  is one of those rare video games that takes its story to a cinematic level. Split into six episodes, it's gripping, dark, and builds a  lot  of tension. It is absolutely amazing...

I have only read three chapters of the book that this movie is based on and then stopped. I didn't like it. As for the movie, well, that's a different story. Thomas wakes up surrounded by a bunch of boys between the ages of 12 and 18 with no memory of who he is or how he arrived into this place the boys call The Glade. The Glade is surrounded by four large stone walls with only one way out, the entrance that opens once a day into the maze that surrounds them. Everyday, Runners go into the maze, trying to find a way out, but all efforts seems lost because the maze changes constantly overnight, with creatures known as Grievers prowling it. However, things soon go further downhill after Thomas's appearance, including the arrival of a girl that seems to remember Thomas by name. Taken over by curiosity, Thomas breaks the rules the boys have set in place to find a way out through the maze. Unfortunately, he manages to threaten their lives in the process. The Maze Runner  ...

Editor's Note: I have not seen all the movies that came out this year. Listed here are the movies that I have seen. Summer is over and, let's be honest, there were some amazing movies this year. Below, I have listed the best movies this year in my opinion (and I highly recommend watching them)! #5. Guardians of the Galaxy Already the highest-grossing movie of the year, Guardians of the Galaxy  is also one of the greatest movies this year. The script is well-written, each character having their own complex-yet-simple personas, and they are well-played by the actors. It's also well-directed and just all around fun to watch! #4 . Edge of Tomorrow Yet another sci-fi flick makes it into my list, and what better choice for fourth place than Edge of Tomorrow ? It's a time-loop thriller done right, with pitch-perfect pacing, edge-of-your-seat action, a fair amount of complexity and twists, and great lead characters portrayed by great actors! #3. How to Train Y...

Found-footage horror movie, anyone? No? Too cliche at this point? As Above, So Below  documents the journey of a group of excavators as they go through the catacombs that lie underneath Paris to search for the treasure know as The Philosopher's Stone. However, when the group attempt to go back up to the surface after recovering the Stone, things are different. Something threatens them, keeping them trapped, and using the nightmares of their past to manipulate them. As mentioned, As Above, So Below  is a found-footage horror movie, and it gets the basics right. The script for this film is, to be honest, rather intriguing. It's a combination of a treasure-hunter movie and a jump-scare horror film well blended together. The writer knows how not to give away too much information and leave just enough space to give the audience to come up with their own theories (so if you don't like those kind of movies, then you won't like this one). Everything else is in the fil...

"You live and you remember. Me, I live and I forget." Seventeen year old Molly Pierce has been having one issue for a year now: She's missing parts of her life. Instead of some kind of memory there is only darkness. However, when she witnesses a vehicular accident involving a boy she doesn't know yet he knows who she is, Molly's memories are slowly revealing themselves, showing her another life she lived and a relation she was completely unaware of. The Half Life of Molly Pierce  is Katrina Leno's debut novel and it is a mind-bender! Even though I may not be in the target audience (it's geared more towards the female demographic), I was still intrigued with the book's concept and the story itself. The structure is inspired by Christopher Nolan's first film Memento , and I can honestly say that if you are a fan of Christopher Nolan's story structure in his movies you will certainly find enjoyment in this book. All the characters in the ...

Ladies and gentlemen, I think we have found a winner for this year's best drama. Filmed over the course of twelve years with the same actors, Boyhood  follows the story of Mason from age 5 to age 18 as he struggles with his mother's unsteady relationships, adolescence, making sense of the world, and what he wants to do with his life. I didn't even watch the trailer for the movie before watching, the only knowledge of it being that is was filmed over the course of twelve years and that the actors age on-screen along with the movie. This alone is a groundbreaking move in filmmaking never done before, and I am glad to see that the concept didn't go to waste. Richard Linklater definitely captures the essence of a child becoming a young man is a spectacular and moving way, the casts performances throughout the movie remain true to the very end, and even though the movie is almost three hours long, the pacing is faster than what you would expect. Boyhood  is the com...

I have heard mixed reviews about this movie, and, now that it's on Netflix, I decided to try it out. Also, it's an indie film with a budget of only $1 million, so you've gotta give the filmmakers a chance. When a family get together leads to an argument at the dinner table, one of the family members notice something outside the house. An arrow shoots through the window, killing the family member, and soon the family must defend themselves from the killers in animal masks. However, one girl shows remarkable skills in fighting back, creating problems the killers never expected. You're Next  is not a groundbreaking horror-slasher, but it is well-executed and enjoyable. The cinematography is well-done, the acting on par (with a surprisingly strong female lead), and, though some predictable, plot twists you wouldn't see coming. Also, unlike other horror films, all questions are answered the the movie wraps itself up nicely. The script is great, all the dialogue r...

My mother listened to the audio book, my father watched the movie, and here I am, having just finished a printed copy of this magnificent book. A man and his son walk a road in a post-apocalyptic world with one goal: Make it south, to the coast, to survive the winter. With only a pistol with two bullets, their supplies in a grocery cart, and each other, they struggle to survive from starvation and avoid the danger that lurks in the darkness that surrounds them. The Road , in itself, is a masterpiece. It is a collection of poems written simply and used to tell the story (so, yeah, cool your jets, grammar nazis). The story is intriguing, the details vivid, and the prose gripping. The world Cormac McCarthy creates is realistic and quite disturbing. There were times when reading the book when I cringed or had to re-read some parts because I couldn't believe what I had just read. And the overall stories of good and evil and a bond between a father and son are extremely well exec...

As a fan of the book of the same name by Lois Lowry , I went to the theater with hopes that The Giver  would be an alternate version of the book that works better as a movie than it would if it followed the book word for word. I was not disappointed. Jonas (Brenton Thwaites) lives in the community, the perfect place to live. There is no such thing as pain, suffering, or color and everyone does their job they are assigned to. Jonas, however, is not assigned a career like everyone else, but selected. He is now the new Receiver of Memories, being trained by a man who makes himself only known as the Giver (Jeff Bridges). As the Giver trains Jonas for this special role, he also shows Jonas that there is more to his world than the community. There's history to it, both good and bad, and secrets. As a movie and book adaption, The Giver  is artistically well done, transitioning from black and white to full color as the story progresses. Some changes are made from its source mat...

As a fan of the Murder Complex  series and highly anticipating the sequel, The Death Code , I was excited to finally have a chance to buy an electronic copy of the prequel titled The Fear Trials. Her father calls it the Fear Trials. It's a set of tests fourteen year old Meadow Woodson must take to prove to her father that she is ready to defend herself in the small part of the dystopian world known as the Shallows. However, she draws the line at taking the life of another person. She does not want to learn her father's methods on surviving in this kill-or-be-killed world and is set on proving that there is another way. However, an event unfolds to where Meadow must overcome her moral standards to save the one she loves most. Taking place two years before The Murder Complex , The Fear Trials  still kept me on edge even considering the fact that it's a prequel and I already knew which characters were going to make it and which ones weren't. The action is well-writ...

I'll be honest. Ever since this movie was announced, I was certain it was going to fail. Surprisingly, I was half wrong (but I'm still half right). Created in a laboratory fifteen years ago and now reside in the sewers of New York City, teenage turtles Leonardo, Donatello, Raphael, and Michelangelo can't help but, against the orders of their master Splinter, sneak out to the surface and stop an organization called the Foot Clan from overrunning the streets of New York. After their latest escapade, they are discovered by news reporter April O'Neil (Megan Fox). Finding out that April's knowledge of the turtles puts her in harm's way and that she also shares a past with them, the turtles try to protect her from the Foot Clan and their leader, Shredder, who has a plan to overrun New York City once and for all. Like I said in the beginning, my expectations for the movie were low. In fact, I was ready to hate it, but I tried to keep an open mind. Though the fi...

With the movie coming out this Friday, I thought it best to read this book as soon as possible. Jonas lives in the community, the perfect place to live. There is no such thing as pain or suffering and everyone does their job they are assigned to. Jonas, however, is not assigned a career like everyone else, but selected. He is now the new Receiver of Memories, being trained by a man who makes himself only known as the Giver. As the Giver trains Jonas for this special role, he also shows Jonas that there is more to his world than the community. There's history to it, both good and bad. The Giver , a children's novel, is a book that it surprisingly well done. At least, until the last thirty pages. Everything before that, though, is fantastic. Lois Lowry executes the story from an angle of a naive boy, having Jonas learn the difference between what is morally right and what is morally wrong. The pacing is steady and though the dialogue feels out of place at times, the story...

I was pretty excited to read this book, being it is Stephen King's only novel appropriate for a younger audience. In the kingdom of Delain, King Roland is poisoned. Framed for the crime of murdering his father, the king, Prince Peter is thrown into prison and his younger brother, Thomas, is crowned king. Although, little do the brothers know, Flagg, a magician and closest advisor of the now dead King Roland, is working behind the scenes to make sure King Thomas completes his plans in turning the kingdom towards chaos. However, even the greatest plans leaves room for failure, including Prince Peter's plan of escape and the dark secret Thomas had seen through the eyes of the dragon. Though the main plot of the story is quite basic, Stephen King take this tale to the next level. Characters, both main and side, each have their shining moments and are very well fleshed out in this story. Simple enough for a child to understand, the story moves at a slow but steady pace. Also...

When you watched The Avengers , did you stop to wonder how much better it would be if there were more sass between the characters? Well, look no further than the tenth installment to the Marvel Cinematic Universe (which also works well as a stand-alone movie)! At a young age, Peter "Star-Lord" Quill (Chris Pratt) was abducted by aliens. Now living among the galaxy twenty years later as an intergalactic thief, his latest job lands him in deep and unsettling waters. It turns out that the orb he stole from ancient ruins was also wanted by the universe's biggest baddies, Thanos (Josh Brolin) and Ronan (Lee Pace). Ronan sends one of his assassins, Gamora (Zoe Saldana), after the orb and Star-Lord, with a bounty on his head, is soon caught between Gamora and bounty hunters Rocket Raccoon (voiced by Bradley Cooper) and human-like tree Groot (voiced by Vin Diesel). When all four are caught and arrested, they also meet Drax (Dave Bautista). An unlikely bond forms between the...

If Lucy  is proof of anything, it is that a movie, no matter how good the acting or visual effects are, is only as good as its script. Unknowingly and unwillingly participating in a drug trafficking operation where the drugs are bagged and put inside the person's body, the bag Lucy holds within her is broken open, releasing a powerful drug which allows her to use more than 10% of her brain. She can analyze problems faster, perform telekinesis, can telepathically see around the world, and control electrical objects. However, when she realizes that without the rest of the drugs her body will not be able sustain itself, she sets out to find the other bags of drugs until she finally reaches 100%. Roll credits. Seriously, the movie ends right when she reaches 100%. Though some may conclude this to be a film with an open ending, I believe Lucy to be an entirely incomplete movie throughout. Sub plots are started throughout the movie, but are never resolved or even touched base on...

Hannah Baker is dead. Everyone knows that. Suicide. However, there is something that only a few people know: before her suicide, Hannah recorded 7 audiotapes of her story, 13 reasons why she finally considered suicide as her final option, and Clay Jensen is one of those reasons. After receiving the tapes on his doorstep one day, Clay is drawn to listen to what Hannah has to say not just about the other people involved with her problems, but about him as well. Maybe finally he could find out what kind of person Hannah Baker really was. Little does he know that what is on the tapes will change his life forever. Simultaneously narrated from two perspectives, Jay Asher's debut novel is an accomplishment in my eyes. The concept of the writing was intriguing and well written from the perspectives of Clay and Hannah. Another thing that was extremely well done, and Asher must receive praise for this, is the emotions it makes the reader feel. When Hannah Baker is describing her life, ...

WARNING:  The following review contains spoilers for Rise of the Planet of the Apes . Ten years after the virus that increased the intelligence of chimpanzees but killed off almost all the humans was spread across the world, the apes are at peace. It has been two years since they had last come into contact with a human and they wonder if the humans have all died out. That is, until they come across a town of survivors in San Francisco who are naturally immune to the virus. Both humans and apes don't want war, but each side is skeptical of the other, making the chance for peace slim. It is best to keep this review short and simple. Appealing not only visually but story-wise as well, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes  is another amazing summer flick. Well directed, written, and acted, alongside pitch perfect pacing, intense action sequences, and an intriguing unpredictable story, this film has become one of my top candidates for movie of the year. 5/5 Stars

When I saw the full trailer for this movie, my expectations weren't necessarily high. When forced to move out of there neighborhood, 13 year olds Tuck, Alex, and Munch decide to spend their last night together to do something big: follow the maps they received on there phones. The maps lead them into the desert where they find an injured alien they name Echo. Echo, with the ability to manipulate electronics and mechanical objects, gives the kids a set of maps on their phones which leads to parts of machines he needs to repair his ship. The boys are thrust into a high stakes scavenger hunt, trying to understand Echo and hide him from the authorities who threaten his existence. In a basic sense, Earth to Echo  is a modernized found-footage E.T. Overall, the movie works well for its target audience, but not much farther than that. The dialogue is rather corny at times and the chemistry between the actors are just above tolerable. A problem I had with the movie was that I notice...

I am a growing fan of Stephen King and I felt that I can't properly call myself that until I read his debut novel Carrie . Carrietta "Carrie" White's entire life is nothing to be desired: she is constantly bullied at school, she has no friends, and her psychotic over-religious mother believes Carrie to be a devil spawn. However, no one knows the power she possesses, the ability to move inanimate objects at will: telekinesis. At first, she keeps it to herself, practicing and testing her limits, until one night when enough was enough. For a story that could easily have been covered in 100 straightforward pages, Stephen King extends the story to 245. Going back and forth between the present story and the documentations of the events in the end, King's debut novel is reasonably paced and masterfully written with characters that feel real and bone-chilling moments (I shuddered a few times reading this). Though there were some parts where the story could have ...

Having read and enjoyed The Fault in Our Stars  by the same author, it was recommended that I read John Green's Printz-winning debut novel Looking for Alaska . Miles "Pudge" Halter lived a rather uneventful life, having no friends and finding a great interest in famous last words. He wanted something big to happen to him, a Great Perhaps, and requested to his parents that he go to Culver Creek Boarding School, the same school his dad went to. Upon entering, he finds a real shift in life: friends, pranks, and the "gorgeous, clever, funny, self-destructive, screwed-up, and utterly fascinating" girl down the hall named Alaska Young. Told through the eyes of Miles, Looking for Alaska  spends the school year telling of his events and the possibility that he may be in over his head looking for the Great Perhaps. Amazingly written, John Green gives Miles Halter a realistic voice in this YA novel. All the characters are fleshed out as well, including adults (whi...

"Count to three. Relax your mind. Now survive." The Murder Complex  is Lindsay Cummings's action-packed debut novel set in a dystopian future where the murder rate is higher than the birth rate. When I read the synopsis, I was intrigued. When I started reading it, I couldn't stop. The Initiative watches everyone, everywhere, but not for the good of the people. Make one wrong move and the officers (known as Leeches) will not hesitate to shoot. Meadow Woodson, recently turned sixteen, lives with her father, her older brother Koi, and her younger sister Peri. Throughout Meadow's life, her father has taught her to survive any situation she may come across, making her well able to defend herself armed with just a dagger. Getting a job in this world is a test she is ready to pass by any means necessary. Zephyr James, seventeen, is an orphan who works for the Initiative (called Wards). Every week, he works with his friend Talan to clean up the bodies in ...

Editor's Note:  I am not familiar with the light novel this movie is based on titled All You Need is Kill  (now republished as Edge of Tomorrow ). However, I am now in dire need of finding said book. Cage (Tom Cruise), unwillingly put into battle against an alien army called Mimics, dies in only a few minutes after the battle begins then suddenly wakes up 24 hours earlier. After dying a second time and waking up again at the same 24 hour mark, Cage realizes he is in a time loop, reliving the same day over and over again. Using this ability to his advantage, Cage teams with Rita (Emily Blunt) to work on a strategy to defeat the mimics. However, all efforts are hopeless when the enemy seems to have the same ability. I've heard great things about this movie, but I had no idea it would be this  amazing! The action is edge of your seat, the time loop execution is very well done and doesn't ruin the pacing of the film, and the visual effects and acting are top notch. Ha...