Glee - Pilot Episode

Reviewed by The North Star

Don't Stop Believin'
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Song Time: 15 Minutes
So I've been watching Glee since it first aired in 2009.  It has had it's ups and downs but I really wanted to review the music.  I figured the best way to do this was by episode.  These are the singles that came out of the first episode (there may have been other songs but I will mainly be reviewing the songs they sold as singles).

On My Own - 8/10 - While writing this review it feels like forever ago that this show started. This was Rachel Berry's (Lea Michele) audition song for the glee club. This was also the only audition song that they released as a single. First off, I just love this song in general and you can't deny that Lea Michele has an amazing voice. This isn't my favorite version of the song but it's still pretty good.  I wish that she had sang this song later in the series when her voice developed more because listening to it now there are some parts that you can tell it's hard for her to reach.  Besides that I really like this song and I never skip it when it comes on but I never seek it out.

Can't Fight this Feeling- 7.5/10 - Even though I don't really care for the original I kinda like this version. The lyrics are cheesy and the song itself isn't good.  Finn (Cory Monteith) doesn't even sound that amazing on it.  I think I like it mainly because it reminds me of how good Glee used to be and how I wish it could be good again.  The first 50 seconds of the song are really good and after that the song goes down hill. It's a classic Glee song because it's the first time that Finn sings and he doesn't sound half-bad.  So if you don't intend on watching the show don't bother.

Rehab - 8.5/10 - Every time this song starts I think that it's a church song because they added a little part in the beginning where they sing "Ohio".  Anyways, this song is always entertaining.  It shows the complete opposite end of show choir.  They take a popular song and then make it as if it was a chorus song with crazy harmonies.  There aren't many solos but the choreography is amazing.   Whenever I hear it I always feel the need to get up and dance.  You can't compare this version to the original because the original wins every time but it's a good show choir song and in context of the show it's even better. Like Can't Fight this Feeling, if you don't intend on watching the show don't bother buying the song.

Don't Stop Believin' - 10/10 - I have never gotten sick of this song.  I remember sitting on my couch and hearing this song for the first time in a commercial for the show.  The second that I heard it I was hooked and I patiently waited for the Pilot.  This is the very last song in the episode and it gives me chills every time.  I love that it starts off a capella and then moves into half a capella, half back up band (meaning the characters are still singing as if it's a capella but a band is also playing).  To me this song perfectly describes the show.  It took an old song that used to be huge and then made it somewhat their own.  This is MUST HAVE on anyones iPod, Mp3 Player or phone.  It's classic Glee and is a good rendition of the song as well.

Real Teen Rating ~ B+ : Check it out sometime! 

Real Teen Download: Don't Stop Believin' 
(make sure you don't buy the Regionals version)

Reviewed by Living Destiny

On My Own - 6/10 - I'm not blown away by this rendition of the song. The notes get screechy or whiny at times, and it's obvious that when this song was recorded, Lea Michele simply didn't have the register for the song. It's especially evident in the big, climactic line, "the world is full of happiness that I have never known". It's almost cringe-worthy. I've heard a lot of versions of this song, and while this isn't the worst, it's definitely not the best.

Can't Fight This Feeling - 10/10 - I remember first watching this episode, and thinking this was the best song. And I still do. It has really nice, subtle harmonies, and Cory Monteith is a very talented singer. Yeah, it's a little cheesy, but I just can't get enough of it. I love this song, and there is literally nothing wrong with it.

Rehab - 8/10 - Funky choral harmonies in this one. This song was our first glimpse, as viewers, into the deep dark world of show choir. Not a solo audition, or a song in the shower, but a real, talented choir. It's interesting. I think the harmonies overpower the melody a lot, and that's not something I'm a fan of. It's good, but not fantastic.

Don't Stop Believin' - 10/10 - What a classic. When it first starts out, the vocals make you want to get up and move. The show did a great job of taking a famous song, and turning it into something fresh and new. When you hear it, you can't help but love it. The harmonies are spot on, there's a great guitar solo after the first verse, the ending is chilling, and all the voices sound really good together. Honestly, in four seasons of music, it's still one of the best that came out of Glee.

Real Teen Rating ~ B: Check it out but, really, there's no rush.

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Oz the Great and Powerful - James Franco and Mila Kunis

The Gist

Oz is your average conman.  He runs a "magic" show with a traveling circus and every night makes people believe in his tricks and happily takes their money.  Despite all of this he still feels that he hasn't reached his full potential.  One morning after angering one of the other performers Oz jumps into a hot air balloon to escape being beaten to death.  As he flies away from the circus the hot air balloon gets caught into a twister and he is knocked out after hitting his head.  The next morning he wakes up in a strange land.  He lands the balloon and begins to wander around until he meets Theodora.  She explains to him that he is in the land of Oz and that he has been sent to save the land from the Wicked Witch.  Not knowing how to deal with this new found information Oz sets off down the yellow brick towards the Emerald City to see what awaits him there.

What We Think

Reviewed by The North Star

Run Time: 130 Minutes

Rating: PG

When I first saw the trailer for this movie I was really excited.  This movie looked awesome and I was glad that they were finally telling the Wizard's story and what happened before Dorothy came to town.  The more that I watched the trailer the more disappointed I became.  The film started to become cheesier and cheesier the more that I heard about.  Even with that in my head I still saw it opening weekend. I should have trusted my gut instinct.  This movie was not very good.  Extremely average at best.  The special effects were cheap, the acting was ehh and it was way too bubbly.

First off, I need to talk about the special effects.  Since this movie was produced by Disney I expected everything on the post-production side of things to be very well done because money isn't really an obstacle.  Apparently I assumed wrong.  It seemed as though EVERYTHING was done on a green screen and no one was ever on a set.  The atmosphere of the Oz world was pretty but seemed too impossible.  Yes, it's supposed to be other worldly and impossible but they seemed to push the boundaries a little too much.  Everything seemed very out of proportion.  The flowers were too big.  The trees were to big.  The animals were too small.  I think you get the point.  Speaking of animals, one of the main characters in the movie was a monkey who lived in Oz.  I never believed for a second that it was an actual monkey.  Even though this monkey lived in the crazy world it should still look like a real monkey.  I could go on and on about all of the flaws with the specials effects in this movie but after a while it would all begin to sound the same.  All that you need to take away from this is that Disney should have either hired people more qualified or given the people they hired more money to do what they needed.  

Second, I wish that the cast hadn't been all famous people.  Maybe because this was a big budget film and they could get all huge stars?  I can understand the main character is an A-list actor but the whole cast? I felt like I was watching Les Miserables again, this time without the singing.  Anyways, if a movie is going to have all stars playing the roles could they have picked some better stars?  I mean I like Mila Kunis but her acting in this wasn't great.  She seemed way to over-the-top and cartoonish.  The same goes for Rachel Weisz.  She was always an extreme in the movie.  She was extremely angry.  She was extremely sad.  There was never an in-between.  Even when she was trying to be sarcastic or even subtle it wouldn't work and it came off as very cheesy.  As for James Franco he wasn't on the ball either.  I'm pretty neutral when it comes to James Franco but this movie made me lean towards the not liking him side.  He was supposed to be playing this sleezy con-man and I never got the feeling that he was sleezy.  To me it just felt like he had nothing else better to do than con people.  I never thought that he actually enjoyed taking other peoples money, which is what a con-man is supposed to do.  Perhaps he didn't do as well because of the director but I will talk about that in the next paragraph.  All of the actors unfortunately did along the same lines.  Everyone seemed to lack enthusiasm for the movie and their characters.  No one stood out as a strong actor and every minute that went by I kept hoping that it would get better and it didn't.
I will keep this next paragraph short because I could talk about it for hours but it's extremely opinionated and it only really has to do with Disney.  I wish that the film had been darker.  It felt like a lot of fluff to me.  As I said above about James Franco he could have been so much creepier.  The wicked witches could have been uglier and meaner and actually.....evil.  Oz was supposed to be run-down and nasty because the witches were running the land but it seemed perfectly fine to me.  All of the things I just mentioned could have made the film 10 times better but if Disney had it in their heads that the target audience was 9-10 year olds then it would make sense for them not to do that.  With that in mind, Toy Story is also meant for the younger audiences but I love it and for that fact so does my dad.  Just saying.
All in all this movie was not good.  Don't get me wrong, it wasn't the WORST thing I have ever seen and I wasn't begging for it to be over but it had a lot of problems that could have been easily fixed.  If you have any younger siblings or cousins I would say bring them but don't expect to be as entranced as they are with the merry old land of OZ.

Real Teen Rating~ C- : I’d much rather read a book.

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Magic Mike - Channing Tatum and Alex Pettyfer

The Gist

  Magic Mike
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Mike works a lot of jobs. Contractor, business manager, furniture design. It's his night gig that really makes him money though. Mike is a male stripper. When he meets Adam through a contracting job, he brings him to the club to help out, and ends up getting him a job as a performer. Mike takes Adam under his wing to teach him about girls, growing up, and stripping, and tries to protect him from the seedier side of the business.

What We Think
Reviewed by Living Destiny
Run Time: 110 minutes
Rating: R
Before I even start this I have to say, I just read the tagline for this movie. "Work all day. Work it all night." That's hilarious, and probably the funniest part of this movie.
And now, I have to apologize for the gist. I thought about just writing they all strip a lot, but that didn't seem in depth enough. Although that's basically the whole plot. In the very beginning of the movie, it seemed like it had potential. The budding friendship/mentor thing going on between Channing Tatum and Alex Pettyfer was entertaining, and I wanted to see where it went. And then it went right down the tubes. I can't even tell you what the story is, because I don't know. It hops all over the place. And here's the thing: if this were a movie solely about stripping, like I think we all expected, that would be ok. The plot would take a backseat to the constant bombardment of muscled men taking their clothes off. But there wasn't much stripping. They really tried to have a plot, to give this movie some sort of substance. And it really didn't work. There were drugs everywhere, to the point where I couldn't tell when someone was or wasn't on drugs. There was one scene where it blatantly hinted that Alex Pettyfer and Matt Bomer, another stripper, were going gay for each other, and then it never came up again. Come to think of it, I'm not sure Matt Bomer was even in the movie after that scene. The dialogue was dull and boring, and a lot of the characters seemed unimportant. There were at least eight male strippers at one point, and I could identify half of them. 
Then there was the actual stripping. Now, I'm far from an expert on this subject. But isn't it supposed to look attractive? I mean, that is the general idea. Admittedly, we watched this movie at like 8:30 in the morning, which wasn't the best idea, but still. It in no way looked alluring. It was uncomfortable to watch. I don't know what I expected, but it wasn't this. Channing Tatum went up a couple times and did some hip hop dancing a la Step Up. Besides that, every dance was essentially the same, and they always ended up with a guy in a thong pulling some random girl up from the audience and pelvic thrusting into her face. Is that what stripping is? Am I just under informed? Because to me it was awkward and the exact opposite of sexy.
The characters weren't developed well. Channing Tatum was the deepest one, but since he was the main character, that made sense. And even he was pretty flat. Just a meat head, really. Some emotional depth, but not much. Channing Tatum is a fairly decent actor, but with a character like this, the acting falls short of phenomenal. He falls for Alex Pettyfer's sister Brooke, played by a Kirsten Stewart-esque Cody Horn who has the emotional range of a sloth. It seems like she's angry a lot, but she always looks bored when she's angry, so it's hard to tell. She has a boyfriend at the beginning of the movie, but essentially he's a plot device to put off a hook up with Mike. Matthew McConaughey is in this movie too. He's the business owner/manager of the strip club. Looks nice, plays dirty, the typical pretty sleaze. Nothing too exciting. He does it well, but honestly, it's been done before.
I will say, I was impressed by Alex Pettyfer. I mean, his character was awful, don't get me wrong. Acted out, didn't listen, blah blah blah. All the characters were bad. But his acting was actually good. And this is coming from the same person who said, and I quote, "his acting is centered around brooding and looking into the distance." He was so much better than the last time I saw him. He's really learning the craft, and for someone with his looks, it's not like he has to. It's nice to see, and he did well with the poor writing and lack of character development he was given. Hopefully he keeps it up, and I'll be looking for his next movie soon.
Basically, it's a stripper movie. You can't expect it to be cinematic genius. But you can expect it to be better than this. Less than two hours felt like five when I watched it, and that's not exactly a selling point. It was dull, confusing, and hard to watch. Supposedly parts of it are based on Channing Tatum's younger years. If that's what your youth was like, I'm sorry you couldn't find anything more entertaining to do.
Real Teen Rating ~ D: Use it as an excuse not to do something

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The Monstrumologist - Rick Yancey

The Gist

The Monstrumologist
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Will Henry is an elderly man who just passed away. He knew nearly nothing about himself, thought he was older than he could have possibly been, and had no relatives of any kind. A mystery, until the director of the nursing home Will Henry had lived at finds his journals. He gives them to a local author, and that's where Will Henry's story, however unbelievable, starts to come out. Young Will Henry was an orphan apprenticed to an eccentric man known as a monstrumologist, who worked in the study and capture of monsters. He's used to late nights, strange visitors, and dangerous monsters. But he wasn't used to this new breed of monsters that comes in 1888, when he's only twelve. Huge, muscled, and with an appetite for human flesh, these monsters must be stopped at any cost, and Will Henry and his guardian Doctor Warthrop don't have much time to prevent the biggest massacre the world has ever seen, carried out by beasts that the world doesn't believe exist.

What We Think
Reviewed by Living Destiny
Number of Pages: 434
This book, man. This book. I'm not even going to bother with some witty intro, because this book.
The concept is fantastic. I've never heard of anything like it, especially not as a young adult novel, where most books consist of some weird romance that involves vampires, zombies or mermaids. A man who studies monsters. And that's the loosest description of this book. The monsters aren't anything common either. No werewolves or yetis or chupacabras. Lots of weird Latin names for beasts that sound terrifying. Told by an old man through his twelve year old self, presented to the reader by an adult author who reads the journals left behind. It ought to be confusing, but instead it's captivating. I spent a solid four hours laying on top of my dining room table, because I couldn't be bothered to even move while I was reading this book, let alone to put it down.
The writing style was awesome. The book was just so well written. I get really excited about really good books, so bear with me. The descriptions were real. It was like I was actually there, like I could see and smell and touch. I was immersed in the world of the novel. And sometimes, that was pretty disgusting. There were moments where I sincerely thought I was going to throw up, which is something I haven't done in at least four years, even when I'm sick. I don't have a weak stomach, but it was worded so precisely and in exactly the way I would have seen it, that I started to think I'd need a bucket nearby. But don't let that be off-putting, because it was incredible. If a book can affect you that much, that one factor alone makes it worth reading. And there's many more factors than just that. 
I will say that some of the language was a little fancy. That's the one downside. Lots of big words, even some that I wasn't quite sure of the meaning without the context. But the language made sense when considering the narrator. It's essentially the diary of a twelve year old boy from 1888, but written from the memory of the boy who was over 100. At his death, supposedly, the narrator was 131 years old. It makes sense that in that time he gathered up a lot of big words. So even if the large words are sometimes dense, they are fitting. Especially given the time period. 1888 is a long time ago, and the language was different back then. And that's another thing the author did well, was the time period. It seemed accurate, and I liked the choice to make it so far back, in a time when monsters were something that people would actually believe in. Nowadays, creatures of the dark are only seen in movies, and people don't seem to do as much believing in the things they can't see.
I loved the characters. Will Henry is amazing, both his twelve year old self and his 100-something year old commentary. He's a tough young kid, with no one left in the world and no one to turn to other than his father's boss, the monstrumologist. He's put through a tremendous amount of stress and terror, and he deals with it remarkably well, but in a way that is believable. He's dedicated to his new guardian, but still understands when the good doctor goes totally overboard. And the doctor was an interesting one. Doctor Warthrop is seriously passionate about his work. To the point where he stops eating and sleeping, and makes himself very ill. But that sort of passion is, in a way, inspiring. He's harsh, and perhaps a bit insane, but he's entertaining to read.
The pace of storytelling never lets up. It starts out exciting and it doesn't stop to get dull anywhere. It just continues to grow until the climactic battle, and finally it smooths into a satisfying ending, but it stays interesting. There were never points where I felt bored or uninterested. Rick Yancey, the author, certainly knows how to hold his readers. 
One last point. First and last lines are extremely important. They have to be powerful, or the book won't catch. Technically, the first line of this book is talking about the director of the nursing home, and it's interesting enough, but the first line of chapter one is better. The first line written in the journals. It automatically pulls you in, and holds you until the last line of the epilogue. The last line is actually a quote from earlier in the book, but it's so intense and a little creepy. It's one of those things that makes you stop and reconsider your entire life. Scary stuff.
I loved this book. I think I could talk about this book for about as long as the book itself, so I'll stop it here and just say this. I loved it. Without a doubt one of the best young adult books I've ever read.
Real Teen Rating ~ A+: Why are you still reading this, go buy this book now!

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Ripper - Stefan Petrucha

The Gist

  Ripper
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Carver Young is an orphan. His parents left him when he was a baby, and fourteen years later he wants some answers. As an aspiring detective, he's sure he can figure out who his parents are. When his orphanage is being moved, and all the oldest kids must be adopted, Carver is taken in by a cantankerous gentleman named Hawking, a detective with the Pinkerton Agency. Carver is sure he'll be able to find his parents with Hawking's help, but in New York City in 1895, something bigger is out there for Carver. There's a murderer on the loose, and while the police force, detective agency, and all of New York is on the lookout, it could be up to Carver to stop him.

What We Think
Reviewed by Living Destiny
Number of Pages: 427
This is kind of a guy book. I mean, not to stereotype books to one gender or another. But it's certainly not the usual paranormal romance, high school life, fluffy love story that is generally marketed to girls. Even the cover looks nothing like the cheesy sort of thing that's most commonly written today. And I really have to mention the cover, because I love it. It's simple, eye-catching, intriguing. I know the rule is don't judge a book by its cover, but come on. We all do it. And the cover is the reason I picked this book up.
It's an interesting plot line. Serial killers and orphans. Always fun. It's set in 1895, which means it takes on the extra challenge of being historically accurate. It does a good job of that. None of the dialogue is too modern, the setting is definitively New York City in 1895. It's very believable, and actually in the back there's a little section that verifies the existence of some of the elements of the story during that time period. 
Also, it's incredibly well written. Not only is it time period-accurate, it draws you in. It has good pacing and excitement, and a few twists thrown in that I wasn't expecting. It's high action without being gory or absurd. And the characters aren't irritating, and I think so many characters in so many books get really annoying. Carver is a strong, intelligent young man. He gets emotional at times, but not so much as to be weak or whiny. It's understandable. He doesn't figure things out too quickly, like characters sometimes do, if the answer isn't obvious. If it's difficult to understand, he finds it difficult to understand. He's like a regular person, which is why he's so great. His friend Delia is also great. She wants to be a reporter, and gets adopted by two reporters. She's determined and independent, which is no small feat for a young woman in 1895. She's not quick to trust, but she thinks fast on her feet. Finn is a good character too. He's sort of the "bully", who's mean to Carver at the orphanage, and he and Carver get into tiffs pretty often, but they balance each other out. He's not the typical meat head bully, although he is physically strong and quick to get into a fight. He has an emotional range. It's refreshing. I really loved Carver's mentor, Hawking. He was mysterious and obtuse, but he really helped Carver to learn and investigate. He wasn't the most supportive character, but something about his sharp language and attitude made him lovable. Basically all the characters were fantastic. And Teddy Roosevelt is a character in it as well, because he was the police commissioner in New York at that time, so he's in the story, which I think is wicked cool.
I don't normally like historical fiction. And I'm not sure if this actually classifies as historical fiction, but it is set in history, so...I'm not sure. But I know that I thoroughly enjoyed this book. There were historical elements, with Roosevelt and references to, if the title didn't make it obvious, Jack the Ripper. All the gadgets Carver uses from the Pinkerton Agency seem so high tech, even though they probably aren't so fancy. The descriptions make you feel like you're really there, because the author has a very effective use of language. It makes me want to read more of his books, although looking it appears he mostly writes Nancy Drew graphic novels. Weird. Anyway, it's a good book. I've read it twice so far, and I'm thinking about reading it again. Very worth it, and one of the best books I've read recently.
Real Teen Rating~ A-: Read it!

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Hotel Transylvania - Adam Sandler and Andy Samberg

The Gist

Hotel Transylvania
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In 1895, Count Dracula built a hotel, to keep his daughter Mavis, and other monsters, safe from the humans who hate monsters. Fast forward to present day, and his hotel is always packed full, and no human has ever entered. Surrounded by a creepy forest and graveyard, the monsters have been safe from human pitchforks and angry mobs. On Mavis' 118th birthday, she wants to go out and see the world. Dracula just wants to keep her safe. And then Jonathan, a real live human, walks into the hotel lobby. Mavis thinks he's fascinating, Dracula thinks he's dangerous, and if the other monsters knew he was a human, there would be chaos. What's a vampire to do when what he's always feared most turns out to be not quite as bad as he thought?

What We Think
Reviewed by Living Destiny
Run Time: 91 minutes
Rating: PG
I love animated movies. Seriously. Give me green tights and call me Peter Pan, because I am never growing up. There's something about them that, when done right, is magical. They can make anyone find their inner child. Hotel Transylvania is no exception. The storyline is pretty clever. The idea of monsters being afraid of humans has, I'm sure, been done before, but I think the idea of putting them all in a big hotel is original. A monster vacation spot, the way humans flock to sunny islands for vacation. All the monsters come to Hotel Transylvania.
Along these same lines, the script is very well written. The dialogue is funny and witty, but also moving and emotional at times. It does a good job of running the emotional spectrum. It's realistically funny too, in the way that what the characters say isn't anything unbelievable, like being too witty or too clueless. It sounds natural. When Dracula talks to Frankenstein, or Wayne the werewolf, or Murray the mummy, or even Griffin the invisible man, it's evident that they're close friends, and have been for a while. They have that easygoing, slightly mocking way of speaking to each other that I know I have with my best friends. What I didn't expect was the way Jonathan's relationships developed through the movie, not just with Mavis, but with Dracula. Jonathan falls for Mavis, so of course his relationship with her will play out as a bit of a romance, and his lines portray him to be the slightly awkward young man that we can see he is. But before watching the movie, I didn't expect Jonathan and Dracula to become as close as they do. I figured most of their interactions would be yelling, and Jonathan would spend more time with Mavis. On the contrary, he spends equal time with both vampires, and his relationship with Dracula gets deep, complicated, and close, very fast. They're basically bros. It was really nice to see, and I thought it was done spectacularly.
The voice acting was great too. Adam Sandler was the only one I could tell right away, and that's only because they have him sing in the beginning. For the most part, I didn't know who anyone was, and maybe that's because I was drawn into the story, but it was a good thing. I watched the movie a second time, knowing who voiced what character, and it made the movie a different experience. The characters were colored by my opinions of their voice actors. Some I love, some I hate, and the characters changed. That's the problem with animated movies, I think, so I'd recommend watching it without knowing who's who.
It was animated really well. Everything just looked interesting, and a little unexpected. Frankenstein was blue, the mummy was fat, the zombies weren't very corpse-like, and the human looked quirky, with his bright red hair. The colors were eye-catching, even with the amount of black in it for the vampires. I think that's part of the contrast, the very colorful Jonathan coming into the lives of the two vampires who only wear black.
This movie hits on some big themes. Wanting to explore the world, death of a loved one, soul mates. It's way more intense than I thought it would be, but it doesn't come off that way. On the surface, it's a lighthearted kids movie. Nothing too scary or too inappropriate. Just fun. With a big musical number in the end, complete with crazy vampire-human rapping. But there are some great messages in here too. I laughed, I...well I didn't cry, but I made a sad face. I laughed some more. Animated movies should do that. Get you laughing and leave you with a positive message. This one does, and I think it has a better love story than any princess movie.
Real Teen Rating ~ A+: If you haven't seen this movie you are a deprived soul!

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Katana - Cole Gibsen

The Gist

Katana
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Rileigh is a regular teenager, a skater girl who wants nothing more than to relax over the summer, hang out with her best friend Quentin, and maybe catch the eye of new guy Whitley. That lasts right up until the last day of school, when she and Quentin are attacked in a mall parker lot, and Rileigh single handedly fights off three muggers. Now there's a voice in her head, a warm silk through her body, and a fighting ability she never had. Just as Whitley is finally showing interest, Rileigh keeps getting attacked, and a strange boy named Kim shows up claiming to understand what's happening to her. She'll do anything to go back to normal. But how's an ordinary teenage girl supposed to know who to trust when she can't even trust her own body?

What We Think

Reviewed by Living Destiny

Number of Pages: 375
I can't justify my reading of this book. I saw it in the bookstore, and there's really no reason I should've picked it up. It's got an atrocious cover and it sounded stupid. And I bought it anyway. I am ashamed and it's all my fault. But if you buy a book you have to read it, right? So I read it. I'm just really sad about it. Here we go.
The plot was just eh. A girl whose past life was a samurai. I'm pretty sure it's been done. Or maybe it was just written so poorly I felt like it had. So the girl is a samurai, and her samurai self keeps popping out to save the day, and the girl decides she's being possessed and freaks out and basically spends the whole book looking for ways to exorcise herself out of herself. Because that makes sense.
The characters were awful. I don't think I liked any of them. Rileigh, the main character, was so whiny and superficial and obnoxious I wanted to cry. She tried so hard to be normal, but also to stand out. Please stop contradicting yourself. She refuses to listen to anyone, and honestly, she's just stupid. Really stupid. Her best friend Quentin is gay. Of course. I think it's becoming a requisite of young adult novels. Every new book published must contain at least one gay best friend. Getting old real fast. He wasn't that funny, or actually that helpful. He was always there for Rileigh, so that's a point in his favor. Kim was creepy. Also, Kim as a boy name? Couldn't have picked something that sounded a little more masculine? But he was creepy, and he didn't really understand societal rules. Like people won't believe everything you say when they first meet you, even if you are supposedly attractive. They won't believe you the second, or even third time, if you're saying something outlandish like you're actually a samurai and so are they. The three other samurai are almost bearable. Braden, Drew, and Michelle. They're ok. Braden and Drew are kind of the epitome of the word "bro", and Michelle is a little overbearing. They've got a weird relationship, and there are some hints of incest in a strange, past life samurais way. It's complicated. Oh, and I forgot about the mom and Dr. Wendell. Stupid. That's all. The mom is really stupid. She's only there to give Rileigh a back story and a reason to have issues. Dr. Wendell is a plot device, nothing more. Useless.
Here's something I've noticed about the author, Cole Gibsen. She tries too hard. She adds in weird plot twists that are unnecessary and don't make sense. She adds in convoluted bits that don't advance the story. It's a valiant attempt to be edgy and entertaining, but it falls flat. She writes mediocre dialogue that is witty and snappy, but not realistic sounding. At least that's sort of ok, and she should have stuck with it instead of adding in too many false leads and cliches worth of a dime store mystery novel. A mysterious intruder, a ransacked room - and I'm sure the word ransacked was used - it's all overdone.
The ending was actually not bad. Confusing, and wicked bizarre, but not bad. Exciting, dramatic, suspenseful, and not too predictable. The very end was a bit frustrating, but typical of Rileigh's character. At least Gibsen stuck with the characterization she started with. But of course it's a series. It could stand alone, it really could. But it won't, and there are more to come. That will probably be just as mediocre. I'm so thrilled.
Real Teen Rating~ C-: Read it if you're bored

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