Wednesday, November 9, 2011

Mini Reviews: Happy Birthday to Me + Remembrance

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME
(Birthday Trilogy #1)
Brian Rowe
Paranormal Young Adult
314 pages
Self-published
Received from author for review

THE STORY (from Goodreads)
Seventeen-year-old Cameron Martin has a huge problem: he’s aging a whole year of his life with each passing day!

High school is hard enough; imagine rapidly aging from seventeen to seventy in a matter of weeks, with no logical explanation, and with prom, graduation, and the state championship basketball game all on the horizon. That’s what happens to Cameron, a popular pretty boy who's never had to face a day looking anything but perfect.

All Cameron wants to do is go back to normal, but no one, not even the best doctors, can diagnose his condition. When he finds love with a mysterious young woman, however, he realizes his only hope for survival might be with the one person who started his condition in the first place...


MY THOUGHTS
Despite its supernatural premise, Happy Birthday to Me is written in a way that makes circumstances seem fairly believable, the emotional depth and poignancy achieved during certain scenes enough to have us blinking rapidly to stave off tears as our hearts beat with a sympathetic rhythm for Cameron’s unenviable predicament. Unfortunately, the beautifully crafted quiet moments are often overshadowed by some seemingly unnecessary situations and behaviors that have us shaking our heads in dismay, the over-the-top reactions of friends, family and classmates to Cameron’s “disease” yanking the veil of believability from our eyes as quickly as the meaningful moments are able to raise it. We can’t help but long for more of the intimate family moments between Cameron and his image-obsessed parents as they all mature and come to understand just how much precious time they wasted on superficial trivialities, as those are the ones that are the most intriguing.

There is one rather large issue I had with this book and it’s completely personal in nature so it will most likely not be problematic for most readers, but it bothered me enough that I feel the need to mention it. My point of contention is likely directly linked to the fact that I’m rapidly approaching my 30th birthday and am therefore a bit more sensitive to the age issue than I would be normally, so I fully acknowledge that upfront. With that said, I found the utter shock and awe both Cameron himself as well as his peers expressed at seeing him at ages 28 and 30 to be a little off-putting. Cries of “is that you in there?” from his friends upon setting their eyes on his apparently ancient 30 year-old face seemed a bit overdramatic, and I’d like to think that if my 17 year-old self and my current self were side by side, my 30 year-old visage wouldn’t be completely unrecognizable and mind-boggling compared to my 17-year old one. I freely admit the reactions were most likely ratcheted up a notch for dramatic effect, and granted aging fifteen years in only fifteen days would be quite jarring, but there was a certain extremity to the reactions regarding his progression from 17 to 30 that rubbed me the wrong way.

Personal age issue aside and despite the somewhat questionable sincerity of Cameron's overall change of heart toward the end, the touching moments are well-done and it’s clear that Mr. Rowe is a talented writer, so I do look forward to more from him in the future.

Rating: 3/5


REMEMBRANCE
Michelle Madow
Paranormal Young Adult
314 pages
Available Now
Received from author for review

THE STORY (from Goodreads)
New Hampshire high school junior Lizzie Davenport has been reincarnated from Regency Era, England ... but she doesn't know it yet.

Then Drew Carmichael transfers into Lizzie's school at the beginning of the year, and she feels a connection to him, almost like she knows him. She can't stop thinking about him, but whenever she tries talking with him about the mysteries behind her feelings, he makes it clear that he wants nothing to do with her. Reaching him is even more difficult because she has a boyfriend, Jeremy, who has started to become full of himself after being elected co-captain of the varsity soccer team, and her flirtatious best friend Chelsea starts dating Drew soon after his arrival. So why can't she seem to get him out of her mind?

Even though Lizzie knows she should let go of her fascination with Drew, the pair of them soon find that fighting fate isn't going to be easy.

MY THOUGHTS
Remembrance is a well-written debut from Ms. Madow with a nicely paced story that keeps our desire to turn the pages relatively high, however, the plot itself and the characters we follow as it unfolds have some frustratingly all-too familiar qualities. Prevalent YA fiction elements appear in all their recognizable glory, with a new hot boy at school and instant electric attraction that turns swiftly into epic and transcendent love failing to be done in a way that elevates them out of the realm of trite and into something new and refreshing.

Elizabeth is a difficult young woman to fully support as, instant love aside, she allows all those around her to be insulting and, at times, downright cruel without ever straightening her spine and defending herself. Drew blows hot and cold on a fairly unparalleled scale, either ignoring Elizabeth entirely or verbally berating her one minute and then comforting her and soothing the burns he caused the next. He’ll shred her heart with seeming ease and then come sauntering back cooing apologies and feeding her excuses she’s all too willing to swallow, somehow convincing her their love is stronger than anyone could possibly understand despite all evidence to the contrary.

Ms. Madow shows a great deal of promise in her creativity and writing style, her characterization in this book just presents more problems than we can ignore in order to become thoroughly engrossed in the story.

Rating: 2.5/5

26 comments:

  1. Happy Birthday To Me is one I've seen around a lot and it seems to have decent ratings but it's never really appealed to me for some reason. I think the shock that they express would be a bit hard for me to swallow as well. I mean I know a lot of people that I haven't seen since we were 17 (and I'm 30 now) but when I see their pictures most of the time I recognize them. But I guess some people age worse... I don't know if it would bother me, but it might.

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  2. I actually wish I could go back to thirty which would take my fast approaching birthday the highlight of my year (it is the big 60) I think I would really like Happy Birthday to Me as it would make me laugh for the reasons you had problems with.

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  3. LOL you're totally right, Jenny -- I don't think I'll be that unrecognizable when I'm older either! But the whole concept for that book is really cool, even if some things bothered you! I don't think I'd want to change in age like that though LOL! x)

    It's too bad you didn't like Remembrance as much as you hoped you did. :( But I'm really picky with insta-love too, and it could make a book so much less likable if it isn't done right.

    Still, awesome mini-reviews, Jenny! :)

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  4. Candace - It wasn't like he was somehow horribly disfigured, he just appeared 30 years old but you would have thought he looked 90 based on everyone's reactions and it was all just a bit much:) And men age better, so I can't imagine his girlfriend would run screaming from him at the sight of his 30 year old face.

    Jan - I started out laughing but then things just got a bit ridiculous for me and my age-sensitivity got the better of me:)

    Mimi - I enjoyed the concept and there were some great scenes, I just wanted more of the quiet moments and less of some of the more unnecessary ones. And Remembrance would have worked better for me if Elizabeth had stood up for herself, I have trouble when girls cow to emotionally aggressive boys who are pleasant one minute and cruel the next. Both are well written though!

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  5. I might just give them both a miss, ok I will give them both a miss. So many other books I want

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  6. Oh Jenny, your age issue is silly. :) While I haven't seen you personally, the picture with you and your dog is pretty adorable. (Just saying.) Great review for Happy Birthday to Me!

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  7. Oh, no...30 - how ancient! Actually I feel that way now that I just turned 30. I wish I was still 20 (well, sort of). It's funny to look at my friends on Facebook. We are all around 30 now. Some look exactly the same as when we were in high school and some look significantly older. Most of the girls look about the same unless they've gained a lot of weight (except for one old friend who I think did a bit of meth and now looks like she's 45...ick). Some of the boys look very different, either because they've lost hair, gained weight, or look more like men than boys. It's weird.
    I went to my husband's 20th high school reunion in August. It was very interesting to see how some people looked very old and some people looked like they were still in their 20s.

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  8. I really liked Happy Birthday to me. I have not read the other though. Thanks for both reviews~

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  9. Bloedeuedd - I had a few problems with both, but I think both authors have a lot of potential:)

    Jordan - I know it is! And I don't have a fear of turning 30 or anything, but this book made me feel like little children might run from me screaming when they saw my beyond-old face based on the reactions of Cameron's friends:)

    Alison - Right? It was just too over the top for me. Yes, some people age better than others, but it said at one point his body looked more toned than it had at 17 so I had trouble understanding why everyone was freaking out over his appearance.

    Savy - It had it's moments for sure! They both did:)

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  10. Happy Birthday Jenny! Oops, I only read the headline.

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  11. Jenny, I along with you on the age issue. Though I'm not as sensitive approaching 30 (I've always heard that I'm much older/maturer/have an old soul, etc.), I found it a bit offensive. At 17, you're still growing so I really can't see how 30 is ancient.

    Regardless, I don't think these two books are my cup of tea. So thank you for your reviews. :)

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  12. I got annoyed sometimes by the over-the-top reactions of everybody in Happy Birthday to Me too.

    I haven't heard much about Rememberance so it's too bad the pretty cover doesn't have such a great story to go along with it.

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  13. Couldn't do HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME for some of the same reasons that bother you. I don't so much mind it when my little students ask if I'm 40 (because anybody over the age of 16 is ancient) but I don't age well emotionally (I blame my parents). Seriously, I cried when I turned 20 and I've celebrated my 29th birthday a few times now.

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  14. Ohh I had Rowe on a spotlight awhile back and remember I still have this one archived to read...:D

    a 2.5 from Jenny? Thats another rarity for you....but I love the way you make even the books you didnt like sparkle...:)

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  15. JL - Hahaha thank you:) I'll take it even though it's not my birthday:)

    Rummanah - I don't mind being 30, I don't feel any different than I did before, the reactions in this book just made it seem like I SHOULD mind being 30 and that's more what I had a problem with. Yes, to a teenager 30 is probably old, but he literally freaks out when he looks in the mirror and sees his 28 year old reflection. He's not 90!

    Zahida - If it had been toned down a bit I would have found everything more enjoyable, but I thought the story was interesting:) I need Elizabeth in Remembrance to put Drew in his place a little more, let him know it's not okay to treat her the way he was.

    Jennifer - Maybe I'll celebrate my 29th birthday here in March again. And next year too ;-)

    Tina - I know a 2.5 is low for me, but Elizabeth let herself be a bit of a doormat and that always gets my panties in a bunch:)

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  16. Both of these sound kind of "meh" to me... Happy Birthday to Me has an interesting premise, though. (You make a good point about the 17 y.o. vs 30 y.o. appearance; I figure I'll look fairly similar, just more mature)

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  17. Well, considering the amount of weight I've gained since I was 17, I can totally understand that reaction. When I bump into people from hs, there is always a disbelieving, Is that You? shock in their eyes! LOL

    Nothing I've tried lately in YA has held my attention. I'm in a YA funk. So I'd probably lose patience with a character like Elizabeth quickly.

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  18. Dude, I'm sooooo feeling you!!! I turn 28 on Sunday! I'm hoping my 17 year old self and my 27 year old self aren't so far removed from eachother... I probabably shouldn't read this one yet!! Lol Rememberance has a gorgeous cover!!

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  19. I don't think that either of these are for me. Shame about Remembrance. Love the cover. *sigh* As far as the age thing.. I think you and Ashley need to first get a best friend who was 20 years older than you, then have an 88 year old friend. Puts age in perspective, I tell ya. Especially my 88 year old friend. She drives a convertible RED mustang! Love her!!

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  20. LOL. Ah, the "ancient" age of 30...I'm a large handful of years beyond that but, besides my hair and some extra poundage, I really don't look that different. Certainly not unrecognizable! And most teens don't think of 30 as *that* old.

    So hard when the characterization just doesn't work. Hope your next reads are 4+!! :)

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  21. I've had HBtM pitched to me for review three times now, and I didn't give it a second thought, but since your email and review, I'm thinking about giving it a chance. PS - pretty sure I look older at 25 than you do at "almost 30." So hush.

    Great reviews :)

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  22. I don't think either of these books would work for me thought HBtM sounds interesting. I am turning 40 in 5 weeks so I refuse to even comment on your 30 statement LOL :) (PS you look good)!

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  23. Great reviews! I have heard mixed things about Remembrance. Not sure if its for me or not. Sorry I have been MIA been super busy. Hope your having a good week. Happy Reading!!!

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  24. Age is just a number! I looked better at 30 than at 17. And yeah I read HBTM. It was pretty well written. I thought it was an great premise, but you're right so scenes were unnecessary. I did tear up towards the end. The sequel is out.

    I have Remembrance to read. Is it just me or does she look like Hillary Duff? I still want to read this one, I'll just lower my expectations.

    I like mini reviews though they seemed awfully full of information to me. They were great!

    Heather

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  25. I was debating reading HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME, and I probably still will (eventually), but I feel what you're sayin'. I'm 28 and besides my extra 30 pounds (while I try not to think about it), I don't think I look that different. I think if I was confronted with my 17 year old self, we'd be best friends. Seriously, I rock! LOL!!! If I encountered you as my 17 year old self, I'd want to be your friend, too!

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  26. I am not going to lie, I personally found Happy Birthday to Me to be too similar to Beastly for my liking- but glad that you liked the emotional depth and poignancy! And that is a booger about in the instant love in Remembrance, I have been really on the fence as to whether or not to read it.

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