Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.41 AVERAGE
3.41 AVERAGE
funny
hopeful
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Look this is an objectively very bad book! It was written by a 13 year old and it shows. There is insta love, conflict arises only to be immediately and conveniently resolved. The characters are the very definition of Mary Sues. It is BAD. The book does not make ANY SENSE!
But i had so much fun reading it because I was obsessed with this book when I was little. The nostalgia was super satisfying even when the book was not. I hope the author is doing well somewhere, and will write something now that she is an adult. She has the bones of a good story here- just lacked the experience to pull it off
But i had so much fun reading it because I was obsessed with this book when I was little. The nostalgia was super satisfying even when the book was not. I hope the author is doing well somewhere, and will write something now that she is an adult. She has the bones of a good story here- just lacked the experience to pull it off
This book is simply amazing. I read it for the first time a few years ago and I loved it. I would never have realised it was written by a fourteen year old by the quality of her writing. The plot was amazing. I loved the fact that it contained suspense, mystery and pure, true love. It shows Hope and is an inspiring piece of work. Some people say that it is bad quality, but I don't agree. The plot is gripping, the character's well formed, and the actual writing is amazing. This is the best book I have ever read and I would be eager to read anything else by this author. It is a beautiful tale of love, Hope, redemption and more. Some people don't like it simply because it is written by a teenager, but the quality of this book is higher then many books I have read which were written by adults. I loved it.
I used to love this book when I was around 13/14, mostly because I also wanted to be a writer and I looked up to Flavia Bujor for having published a book at 14. Re-reading it now I noticed that some parts are sloppily written and could have used more development. It feels as if the publishing house was eager to publish a book by such a young author because this was in fashion back then.
The ending also isn't very satisfying, it feels rushed and basically nothing is resolved. There are also not one but TWO instances of love at first sight. The three main characters are very one-dimensional (sensitive, emotionless, vain) and there isn't a lot of description going on, making it hard to imagine things. It might have been better to not publish the book right away, but work on it for a couple of years longer.
However, I also realised how much my own writing back then was influenced by this book - some passages sound exactly like stuff I wrote. But the book also put a lot of pressure on me, since I told myself my writing was bad when I was still unpublished at 15 and people told me I wasn't talented because I hadn't published a book when I was still in school.
Nevertheless, I enjoyed re-reading the book now, since it's a nice fantasy story about three girls trying to save the world. Flavia Bujor had good ideas and it's sad that she never published another book after this one. I recommend it if you want to read something easy over the summer.
The ending also isn't very satisfying, it feels rushed and basically nothing is resolved. There are also not one but TWO instances of love at first sight. The three main characters are very one-dimensional (sensitive, emotionless, vain) and there isn't a lot of description going on, making it hard to imagine things. It might have been better to not publish the book right away, but work on it for a couple of years longer.
However, I also realised how much my own writing back then was influenced by this book - some passages sound exactly like stuff I wrote. But the book also put a lot of pressure on me, since I told myself my writing was bad when I was still unpublished at 15 and people told me I wasn't talented because I hadn't published a book when I was still in school.
Nevertheless, I enjoyed re-reading the book now, since it's a nice fantasy story about three girls trying to save the world. Flavia Bujor had good ideas and it's sad that she never published another book after this one. I recommend it if you want to read something easy over the summer.
I really enjoyed this book about a prophecy about three young women and the fate the battle of good vs evil. It amazes me that the author wrote this when she was just a teenager, and it saddens me a little that it's the only thing she has written so far (it's been 6 years since it came out). I would love to see me from this talented writer.
I read this when I was 12/13, and for me it was a beautiful introduction to the world of fantasy! A story about 3 strong and individual young women, I would really recommend this to any young girls looking for an entertaining, fantastical read.
Quite possibly one of the worst books I've ever read. I should've known when I saw the title, but even badfiction can be compelling in a comedic sort of way.
The frame plot is about a girl in a hospital who is dying and she has some sort of dream in which she either dreams that the main story takes place or has some sort of past life regression, which turns out to be the main story. Now this concept in and of itself can be very interesting, if done well. It's a shame it wasn't because I'd loved reading something like it.
The dream the girl has revolves around 3 girls, from various social backgrounds and all with a distinct personality (you can smell the mary sueism from a mile away), who have something to do with a prophecy and have to go on an epic quest to find 3 gems and save the day. On the way there they do nothing more than bicker and bitch against each other, and, oh yes, whine. The exact problem they're hoping to solve is not clear and why there's some sort of war going on is also unclear. They also meet a few men and fall in love with them, which was both bewildering and an hilarious hyperbole of the whole love at first sight concept, though in all probability unintended.
The most hilarious part was when two of them freaked out over the death of the third, when apparently she wasn't because death had decided to go on strike. That slight hint of absurdism was refreshing to say the least, but overall the book lacked imagination and the climax was cliché at best, with the dying girl deciding that she needs to fight for her life like the three ladies of her dream.
That said, I did like reading it, because honestly, it's easy to read. Easy sentence structure, no subclauses that go on for 40 pages, easy vocabulary. It's sad that it couldn't have been applied to a better plot, but then again, the author was rather young. I hope she develops in her writing skills. and then maybe I'll be seduced to read another one of her novels. As things are though, I think not.
The frame plot is about a girl in a hospital who is dying and she has some sort of dream in which she either dreams that the main story takes place or has some sort of past life regression, which turns out to be the main story. Now this concept in and of itself can be very interesting, if done well. It's a shame it wasn't because I'd loved reading something like it.
The dream the girl has revolves around 3 girls, from various social backgrounds and all with a distinct personality (you can smell the mary sueism from a mile away), who have something to do with a prophecy and have to go on an epic quest to find 3 gems and save the day. On the way there they do nothing more than bicker and bitch against each other, and, oh yes, whine. The exact problem they're hoping to solve is not clear and why there's some sort of war going on is also unclear. They also meet a few men and fall in love with them, which was both bewildering and an hilarious hyperbole of the whole love at first sight concept, though in all probability unintended.
The most hilarious part was when two of them freaked out over the death of the third, when apparently she wasn't because death had decided to go on strike. That slight hint of absurdism was refreshing to say the least, but overall the book lacked imagination and the climax was cliché at best, with the dying girl deciding that she needs to fight for her life like the three ladies of her dream.
That said, I did like reading it, because honestly, it's easy to read. Easy sentence structure, no subclauses that go on for 40 pages, easy vocabulary. It's sad that it couldn't have been applied to a better plot, but then again, the author was rather young. I hope she develops in her writing skills. and then maybe I'll be seduced to read another one of her novels. As things are though, I think not.
Noooot as good as I remembered. The whole part with Joa and that most of the book was a dream made it feel weak to me. The dialogue was crazy unnatural. But then again, the author is 15, and this is the translation. But still.
adventurous
funny
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I hold a lot of compassion for books by young authors because I can see myself in them. It’s the same type of material and style I would be writing in at her age at this time, and while the book isn’t mature or fully formed, I still found myself giddy with childhood excitement while reading it.
This would make for a great re-write and professional edit for an adult, or even young adult, audience. It especially would make a great trilogy or series. The timelines were so quick and rapid, the conclusions to the problems so easily solved, I found myself lost thinking the events would have been impossible if they actually took place. Extending the storyline to build in weeks and months of development over large scale events taking place in a matter of days would do wonders.
This would make for a great re-write and professional edit for an adult, or even young adult, audience. It especially would make a great trilogy or series. The timelines were so quick and rapid, the conclusions to the problems so easily solved, I found myself lost thinking the events would have been impossible if they actually took place. Extending the storyline to build in weeks and months of development over large scale events taking place in a matter of days would do wonders.
Uno dei libri della mia infanzia. L'ho scoperto quando avevo 11-12 anni e solo alle medie l'avrò letto tre volte. FInalmente l'ho trovato su IBS (che sia creato un monumento in onore di questo sito) e lo sto rileggendo. E' certamente un libro per ragazzini, ma, sarà che da piccola lo adoravo, lo sto amando anche ora, a 10 anni di distanza. Davvero stupendo, e ben scritto se si considera che la scrittrice aveva 15 anni all'epoca (il che non ha fatto altro che incentivare la mia ammirazione per questo libro e alimentare il mio sogno di diventare scrittrice). Lo consiglio a tutti!
I must say I was very surprised to find out so many people despised this book. My mom and I listened to the audiobook version of this story on a road trip one summer, and we both thoroughly enjoyed it. This was, however, many moons ago, so I'm wondering if maybe the bloom of youth blinded me to the shortcomings of this book? I had been yearning to revisit this story, but now I'm almost afraid to, in case it falls short of my delightful memories of listening to it the first time.