Review: Fade by Lisa McMann (Dream Catchers #2)

Fade by Lisa McMann (Dream Catchers #2)

Rating: PG-13

Genre: Paranormal, Romance

Score: ⭐⭐⭐

Page Count: 248

Book #2 in the Dream Catcher trilogy

Publisher: Simon Pulse

Published: February 10, 2009

Wake by Lisa McMann Review (Dream Catcher #1)

 

WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD! SKIP SYNOPSIS!

 

SOME NIGHTMARES NEVER END.
For Janie and Cabel, real life is getting tougher than the dreams. They're just trying to carve out a little (secret) time together, but no such luck.
Disturbing things are happening at Fieldridge High, yet nobody's talking. When Janie taps into a classmate's violent nightmares, the case finally breaks open -- but nothing goes as planned. Not even close. Janie's in way over her head, and Cabe's shocking behavior has grave consequences for them both.
Worse yet, Janie learns the truth about herself and her ability -- and it's bleak. Seriously, brutally bleak. Not only is her fate as a dream catcher sealed, but what's to come is way darker than she'd feared....

Review:
PROS:
1. First off, I liked this book just a little bit more than the first book only because this one actually had more of a plot. I thought the plot of this story was interesting enough and definitely more entertaining than the first book. This book was a bit faster paced and kept me interested longer.

2. Lisa McMann is a great author and I always enjoy her writing style when I pick up one of her books. I really love her writing and I'm in no way bashing her or her talent of writing. Sadly though, those were pretty much the only things I enjoyed about this book.

CONS:
1. This trilogy just isn't a series I enjoy all that much. This first book had interesting enough characters but they just get really annoying and even frustrating in this second book in the trilogy. First off, I felt Janie was just way too dramatic and made the stupidest decisions without thinking things fully through. I also thought she was just way too unrealistic with her actions and didn't seem to care about whether she was actually making the right decisions or not. I couldn't relate to any of the characters and I frankly just didn't care what happened to them. The characters just seemed to be completely unfocused on the task at hand when people's lives were in danger and that was really frustrating.

2. Even though this book had more of a plot, I just didn't think it had enough build up. Sure it was more exciting than the first book but it wasn't exactly heart pounding either. The story just felt a little choppy once again and some events that happened just didn't flow well with the rest of the story or didn't seem to fit in at all. It was pretty dull for most of the book and picked up a little a few times but wasn't all the gripping.

3. I just thought that this book relied way too heavily on the romance aspect of the story. I thought the book could've veered away from the romance and focused a lot more on character development and story build up. The romance was sweet, don't get me wrong, but it was just way too distracting and really annoying especially since Janie and Cabel seemed to be in their own little world most of the time. I just wanted to shake both of them and tell them to focus on the issues and their mission. The story was all over the place because it was very romance- based and I didn't enjoy that one bit.

4. Lastly, the plot and events just seemed very outlandish. I would've loved to see more of a paranormal aspect other than weird dreams. The plot was just way too out there for it to be a YA Fiction novel and like I said before, things didn't flow well because the story was kind of all over the place and nothing was honed in on to keep me connected with the story. It just felt too random and unbelievable for my taste.

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I hope you guys enjoyed this book review! If you have any other book requests you would like me to review, just leave a comment or send me an email! Read on bookworms! See you in the next chapter!

 

CHECK OUT MY OTHER REVIEWS FOR LISA MCMANN'S BOOKS!

Crash (Visions Trilogy #1)

Bang (Visions Trilogy #2)

 

 

 

 

 



Review: Wake by Lisa McMann

Wake by Lisa McMann

Rating: PG-13

Genre: YA Fiction, Romance

Score: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Page Count: 210

Book #1 of the Dream Catcher trilogy

Publisher: Simon Pulse

Published: March 4, 2008

 

For seventeen-year-old Janie, getting sucked into other people's dreams is getting old. Especially the falling dreams, the naked-but-nobody-notices dreams, and the sex-crazed dreams. Janie's seen enough fantasy booty to last her a lifetime.
She can't tell anybody about what she does they'd never believe her, or worse, they'd think she's a freak. So Janie lives on the fringe, cursed with an ability she doesn't want and can’t control.
Then she falls into a gruesome nightmare, one that chills her to the bone. For the first time, Janie is more than a witness to someone else's twisted psyche. She is a participant.

 

Review:

PROS:

1. I got so many requests to review this book as well as a ton of people telling me to hurry up and read this trilogy! I'm a fan of the Visions trilogy by Lisa McMann and I've heard a ton about this book series (all good things) and so I decided that I would finally pick it up and check it out for myself. Here's the review!

 

2. The characters were interesting ones to say the least. Our main character, Janie, doesn't exactly have the best life and the last thing she needs is a weird ability that she doesn't even know what to call. I liked her character because she isn't in the best situation, especially since her mom is always drunk and passed out on the couch. She's a bit of a loner and doesn't really have any friends that she actually likes. I think this book has a great cast of characters that are likeable in a sense and I thought they were all interesting, especially since one of our characters, Cabel, seems to be hiding something from Janie throughout the whole book.

 

3. I thought the whole dream aspect of the story was really cool. I liked how some of the dreams Janie was sucked into would last anywhere from a couple of minutes to a few hours and I thought it was cool how they not only transported her into whoever's dream she was seeing, but it also affected her physically. Though I find it odd how no one noticed her practically having a seizure when she was seeing someone's nightmare in the library or on the bus but I guess that's a problem for another day.

 

4. I loved Lisa McMann's writing in this book, as always. I thought it was interesting how the book is written in parts and also in a timeline. You knew exactly when there was a flashback and what was happening in the present. It was a really quick read because most times the book was written in paragraphs, some a few sentences, others even just a couple of words. Needless to say, I think I found a new favorite author to add to my growing list.  

 

CONS:

1. The reason why I didn't give this book a five-star rating was because, even though I enjoyed the book overall, it lacked a plot. It felt like I was just following Janie around as she goes through her every day life as a teenager with a weird ability to see people's dreams. The only real plot I could get from the book was when Janie tried to figure out who was having the nightmares with the monster in them and after she eventually found out who that was, the book kind of did it's own thing from that point on with no real direction towards a bigger part of the story. I liked this book enough to continue on with the trilogy but I really hope the next book has a defined plot.

 

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I hope you guys enjoyed this book review! If you have any other book requests you would like me to review, just leave a comment or send me an email! Read on bookworms! See you in the next chapter!

 



Bang by Lisa McMann

Bang by Lisa McMann

Rating: PG

Genre: YA Action, Romance

Score: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Book #2 of the Visions trilogy
Page Count: 242

Publisher: Simon Pulse

Published: October 8, 2013

 

Jules should be happy. She saved a lot of people’s lives and she’s finally with Sawyer, pretty much the guy of her dreams. But the nightmare’s not over, because she somehow managed to pass the psycho vision stuff to Sawyer. Excellent. Feeling responsible for what he’s going through and knowing that people’s lives are at stake, Jules is determined to help him figure it all out. But Sawyer’s vision is so awful he can barely describe it, much less make sense of it. All he can tell her is there’s a gun, and eleven ear-splitting shots. Bang. Jules and Sawyer have to work out the details fast, because the visions are getting worse and that means only one thing: time is running out. But every clue they see takes them down the wrong path. If they can’t prevent the vision from happening, lives will be lost. And they may be among the casualties…

 

Review:

PROS:

1. After reading the first book in the trilogy, Crash, I fell so in love with the story and really wanted to hurry up and pick up the second book. I wasn't able to do so, however, seeing as tracking down this sequel took literally months! When I finally got my hands on it, I was so excited to get started on it and only just recently picked it up. After starting and finishing it in just a few hours, it's needless to say that I desperately need to find the third book!

 

2. The characters were just as amazing in the second book as in the first. I really loved Jules in Crash and thought she was a very good main character and I really loved how she was strong, driven and didn't give up easily and pretty much welcomed danger. I really loved seeing all the characters develop even more in this second book. I'm so in love with the other characters and really enjoyed getting to know them a little better.

 

3. I fully enjoyed the storyline in this book! It was very interesting and had an air of mystery throughout the entire story. It kept me on the edge of my seat for a good half of the book when everything seemed to be building up to an epic climax. From the very first page it had me hooked, had me wondering what the heck was going on and what was going to happen next. 

 

4. I felt like this story had a little something for everyone. The romance was just too sweet and perfect, the action was thrilling, the comedy was hilarious and overall, it was just an amazing sequel to an amazing first book. I recommend this trilogy to anyone who's looking for a thrilling read with other elements thrown in or for someone who just wants something exciting and fast-paced. 

 

Age Recommendation: 14+

 

I hope you guys enjoyed this book review! If you have any other book requests you would like me to review, just leave a comment or send me an email! Read on bookworms! See you in the next chapter!