Moonangel's Book Reviews 2013

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A list of all the books I've read this year.  To read my reviews, scroll through the pages.

My ratings (includes, +/-): A = excellent, B = Good, C = Okay, D = Bad, F = Don't bother reading

Children's Books:
Princess Diadora: Just an Ordinary Ballerina B
by Eddie Bee

The Tiger Princess B
by Sarah Renee

Fantasy/Sci-fi/Dystopia:
Divergent (1st book in the Divergent Trilogy) A
by Veronica Roth

Insurgent (2nd book in the Divergent Trilogy) A
by Veronica Roth

Allegiant (3rd book in the Divergent Trilogy) A
by Veronica Roth

The Hunger Games (1st book in The Hunger Games Trilogy) A-
Suzanne Collins

Catching Fire (2nd book in The Hunger Games Trilogy) A-
Suzanne Collins

Mocking Jay (3rd book in The Hunger Games Trilogy) A-
Suzanne Collins

The Way of Shadows (1st book in the Night Angel Trilogy) A
by Brent Weeks 

Shadow's Edge (2nd book in the Night Angel Trilogy) A
by Brent Weeks 

Beyond the Shadows (3rd book in the Night Angel Trilogy) A
by Brent Weeks 

The Soulkeepers (1st book in the Soulkeepers series) B-
by G.P. Ching

The Black Prism (1st book in the Lightbringer series) B
by Brent Weeks

Free Four (A piece of the Divergent book from Four's point of view) C
by Veronica Roth

The Transfer: A Divergent Story C
by Veronica Roth

The Circle B+
by Dave Eggers

Steelheart B-
by Brandon Sanderson

Oryx and Crake A
by Margaret Atwood

The Year of the Flood A-
by Margaret Atwood

Romance:
The Hunt - A Contemporary Romance (The Highlander's Hope) F
by Cali MacKay

Fifty Shades of Grey - Did not finish F
by E.L. James

Her Mad Hatter (Paranormal - Fantasy Romance) C
by Marie Hall

Short Stories:
A Walk to Remember B
by Nicholas Sparks

Inspiration/Motivation/Self-help:
Aleph B-
by Paulo Coelho

The Alchemist
by Paulo Coelho B

The Time Keeper A-
by Mitch Albom

Tuesday's With Morrie B
by Mitch Albom

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Princess Diadora: Just an Ordinary Ballerina
by Eddie Bee

I read this to my kids at bedtime.  It was cute and fun to read with illustrations.  It's about a princesses who learns that she prefers to dance with her friends then to dance with a private instructor because friends are more important then anything else.


The Hunt - A Contemporary Romance (The Highlander's Hope)
by Cali MacKay

I can't understand how this book got 4 starts on Amazon.  It is the most pathetic romance novel I've read.  All Cat and Ian do is bicker and fight throughout the whole book.  There's no substance.  No strong character development.  At times it feels as though maybe something good will come out of it but nothing.  It all goes in circles until they decide to marry in the end.  I still don't get any strong feelings about either characters and any of the other characters involved. 

The story is that Cat wants to find the hope necklace, a jewelry that belonged to a Scottish family's heritage.  On her quest, she crosses path with a wealthy Scottish businessman, Ian, who is supposedly a womanizer (but I didn't get that sense at all) who almost runs her over before she even learns who he is.  She later learns that the hope necklace belongs to his ancestors so they now go through his land to find it somewhere in a cave.  All through their search, they are arguing, disagreeing, she's running from him, running back to him, he asks her to marry him (why?  I still can't figure it out), she has to think about it but then she says yes. 

I actually ended up skimming a few chapters because it was always the same thing (arguing, disagreeing, etc.) in different settings.  The romance wasn't even there so I don't even consider this book a romance novel.  I'm not sure what to call it.

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The Tiger Princess
by Sarah Renee

This was an incredibly fun book to read to my girls.  I was also amazed that it was written by a 12 year old because the writing felt more like an adult author. 

It's about a tiger princess who lost her parents in a fire.  She keeps having dreams about them.  Her aunt and uncle take over as King and Queen when her parents died in the fire.  She feels trapped living with them.  She wants to be free of proper-ness and etiquette, yet she knows that someday she will be Queen and wonders what kind of Queen she'll be.  She wishes for her mother often to help her define who she is.  She's curious and smart and there's something special about her.  The fire turns out to be planned and not an accident and while learning this, the princess does her own research to find out who set her home on fire and killed her parents.  In the end, the truth and all the questions are answered.

My girls loved this story.  They both cheered, "Yes!" when they learn of the villain's demise.  This was truly a wonderful read for my girls.  It made them sad, happy, laugh, and cry for the princess. 

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Trilogy: Divergent, Insurgent, and Allegiant
by Veronica Roth

Before I review this amazing trilogy, I need to point out that I initially learned of the 3rd book, Allegiant, first and had planned to just read Allegiant.  But, then, I learned that Divergent was made into a movie and would be out in theaters next year (March 2014). I figured I should read it first in case I choose to see the movie.  When I finished Divergent, I needed to know what happened next so I read Insurgent.  After that, I needed to know what happened in Allegiant.  I read all three books in about a day and a half.  I also now learned that Insurgent is also made into a movie.  I cannot wait to see the movies!  BUT, I am so glad that I read the books first because now I am in love with the characters.  I have so much compassion for them.  I feel like I know them or I have them in me.  I cried.  I laughed.  I was nervous and anxious.

I finished the 3rd book this morning.  We know that in the early morning we are more of ourselves than any other time in the day.  I had put the the book down to sleep but then I cried for the characters.  The tears spilled without much of my doing.  When I woke up, the emotions were still there, very strong.  I cried again but not for the characters.  This time it was for life itself. For love.  It makes me want to re-read the first book but I am so overwhelmed with so much emotion right now that I need to take a break. 

This is an amazingly powerful story.  All three books are amazing but if I had to choose which book I liked best, it would be Divergent, the first book. 

I don't want to give out any big spoilers and don't recommend seeing the movie first.  I think the book should be read first because from the movie trailers, I already know that it will not be as good as the book from what I've seen.

Divergent:

The story takes place a few centuries after the apocalypse in a dystopia environment.  It is written in first person through a 16 year old's eyes named Beatrice.  On Choosing Day, all 16-year-olds in each faction (there are 5: Abnegation, Dauntless, Erudite, Candor, and Amity) choose their permanent faction where they will be for the rest of their life.  Before choosing day, each person gets tested with an aptitude simulation in which they are injected with a serum that creates challenges in their minds that they have to overcome.  The test determines that Beatrice fits in 3 different factions, which is not normal, which makes her a Divergent.

Insurgent:

Begins right after Divergent ends.  The relationship between Beactrice and Four builds (and I love how it builds subtly). Secrets are revealed about the factions and Divergents.  Beatrice makes a hasty decision and things get tense.  Dauntless people are split and one specific leader of the Eridite, Jeanine, is pretty evil and wants to destroy Abnegations and Divergents.

Allegiant:

[This book was the most painful for me to read, especially that I accidentally read a spoiler, but it was still painful to read].

In this book, they learn the truth about the factions and the world they are in. 

I've read that this trilogy is similar to The Hunger Games Trilogy.  Unfortunately, I haven't read The Hunger Games (actually did start reading but never got very far because my daughter was reading it), but I did see the movie.  The movie was okay.  I know the book is much better so my goal is to finish The Hunger Games trilogy before I see the second movie.

I still think Divergent is way better than what I know of the Hunger Games because I love the phrases the author uses to describe life, people, love, emotions, family, etc.  She really knows how to make you think about them.  She really knows how to pull at your emotions.

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Divergent quote:

“You will be the first test subject, Tobias. Beatrice, however...." She smiles. "You are too injured to be of much use to me, so your execution will occur at the conclusion of this meeting."

I try to hide the shudder that goes through me at the word "execution," my shoulder screaming with pain, and look up at Tobias. It's hard to blink tears back when I see the terror in Tobias's wide, dark eyes.

"No," says Tobias. His voice trembles, but his look stern as he shakes his head. "I would rather die."

"I'm afraid you don't have much of a choice in that matter," replies Jeanine lightly.

Tobias takes my face in this hands roughly and kisses me, the pressure of his lips pushing mine apart. I forget my pain and the terror of approaching death and for a moment, I am grateful that the memory of that kiss will be fresh in my mind as I meet my end.

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I just finished The Hunger Games Trilogy (The Hunger Games, Catching Fire, and Mocking Jay) and have to say, they were all pretty good.  I happen to like Catching Fire the best though.

The Hunger Games

This story takes place after the apocalypse in a dystopia world too (like in the Divergent Trilogy reviewed above).  This story is all about taking kids (tributes) from each of the 12 districts to play in a game of death with the winning kid bringing a slightly better life to their district.  Katniss, in District 12, volunteers in place of her younger sister, who was picked as a tribute, ends up winning at the end along with Peeta, a boy from her district too.  The way Katniss went about winning really pissed off the president because it showed that she wasn't afraid of his control over her, which to the other districts translated to them as not having to be afraid of him too.  So then an uprise starts...but then maybe it was already in the works but Katniss just made it more powerful.

Catching Fire

Katniss returns home back to Disctrict 12 for awhile but then had to return to the capital for the next year's Hunger Game.  This time she's supposed to be victor who helps the new tributes that would be selected for the game, but because it was the year of the Quarter Quell, it means the victors from each district get to go back into the Hunger Game but only because the president changed the rule of the game.  During the game, something happened and Katniss was able to escape.  She ends up in District 13 and learns more about the uprise.

Mocking Jay

The rebels (from the uprise) take over the Capitol and over the president.

That's basically the storyline with all three books.  There's so much more going on though, like the relationship Katniss has with Peeta and Gale.  The friends and people Katniss meets and loves and loses.  The wars.  Her mother, father, and sister.  Her home.  It's very well written.

I kind of felt that there was too much going on.  I found myself getting lost sometimes about what was going on and had to re-read a few pages again just to make sure I understood correctly.  I'm glad that the story turned out the way it did, although, I think it went by too fast near the end. 

I really enjoyed the romance/love/relationship between Katniss and Petta, and Katniss and Gale and wondered who she would choose in the end or if one of the would die.  It kept the story moving.

Totally recommend reading before watching the movies because so much gets cut out in the movies.

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A Walk to Remember
by Nicholas Sparks

Beautiful story about love and lost.  Written in first person from Landon, a 17-year-old boy, about his short time with a girl named Jamie.  She's plain, religious, boring, but somehow Landon fell in love with her.  It was too late though and things went bad really fast.

It's heartbreaking and so completely sad.  I cried my eyes out.

I have not seen the movie and wanted to read the book before I do see it.  I'm glad I did.  I'm going to wait awhile before watching the movie though because I know it will be just as sad.

Compared this Nicholas story to the other story I've read by him, The Notebook, I'd say the Notebook was much better.

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The Way of Shadows
by Brent Weeks 

It started out slow and I still have 7 hours to go but so far it's picked up and I'm really interested.  It's a bit gory but magical (wytches, poisons, magic, swordsmanship, etc.).  It's sad too...the story of Doll Girl...how she nearly died at the hands of an evil man named Rat, whom literally left her for dead and scarred her face for life, yet Kylar still loves her and finds her to be yet so beautiful inside and out.  The whore house and all the secrets within it.  The different levels of power, secrets, lies, rulers, etc.  There's a lot going on but the main focus is on Kylar, a wetboy, and his growth into a man thus far.

A piece from the book near where I'm currently reading:

There were guards on every stair.  This wasn't good news.  Kylar had made his way surreptitiousl y through the party, trying to look so ordinary that no one gave him a second glance, but it wasn't easy...
     He made his way onto the back porch.  Normally, he would have avoided it, because it was liberally strewn with couples.  If one thing was guaranteed to make you feel lonely, it was seeing other people kissing passionately in an alcove in the moonlight.
     Now, though, Kylar was looking for a way to get to the second floor.  A balcony hung just above the porch, and if he could figure out a route, he could climb to it quickly enough that no one would even notice.  Of course, once he was upstairs, he'd still have to find the ka'kari, but he bet it was in the duchess's room.  People liked to keep their favorite jewels close...
     "Kylar?" It was a woman's voice. "Kylar, hello.  What are you doing here?"
     Kylar turned guiltily.  "Serah! Hello."  She looked like she'd spent all day getting ready for the night.  Her dress was modestly cut, but classic, beautiful, and obviously far more expensive than anything Count Drake could afford.
     "Wow, Serah.  That dress..."
     She smiled and glowed, but only for a moment.  "Logan's mother gave it to me."
     He turned and grabbed the rail.  Across the river, behind high walls, the castle towers gleamed in the moonlight, as near and unreachable as Serah herself.
     She came and stood beside him.  She said, "You know Logan is going to-"
     "I know."
     She put her hand on his.  He turned and they looked into each other's eyes.  "I'm so confused, Kylar.  I want to say yes to him.  I think I love him.  But I also-"
     He swept her into his arms roughly, throwing an arm around her back and a hand behind her neck.  He pulled her to him and kissed her.  For a moment, she gasped.  And then she was kissing him back.
     In the distance, as if all the way across the river, somewhere in the castle, he heard a door slam.  But it was so far away, surely it didn't matter.  Then he felt Serah stiffen in his arms and pull back.
     A hand clapped on Kylar's shoulder, not gently.
     "What the hell are you doing!" Logan shouted spinning Kylar around.

They then get into a fist fight where Kylar wins.  The back story is that Logan and Kylar are good friends.  They've known each other for about 10 years.  Logan was going to turn 21 and on his birthday (Kylar is 19), he was going to ask Serah, the girl he loves, to marry him.  I can't wait to find out what happens next.  This is what keeps me going....that and the other things going on as well. 

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I finished, The Way of Shadows, earlier today.  It was good.  This is the first book to a trilogy so I will probably read the trilogy.
 
Here's the cap of what happened after the scene from the book above:

During the party, somewhere in a bedchamber, Prince Alaine was murdered by his father's mistress who also slept with him (very twisted, I think).  Logan was supposed to marry Serah but learned that Serah had slept with Prince Alaine.  When Prince Alaine's father learned that his son was murdered he captured Logan and forced logan to marry his daughter, Jenine.  He wanted a grandson to take the throne so right after they wed, he tried to force them to make a baby.  While Logan and Jenine were in their bedchamber a war broke out around the castle.  The war was already in the works but the enemies (Khalidrons) just reached the castle and had begun to destroy.  The Khalidorans came with wytches who had great powers and control.  Their goal was to destroy the current ruler, whom was Logan's family.  Logan was taken from the bedchamber to be killed.  His wife, Jenine was slain and thrown at him to caress while she took her last breaths.  When they took Logan away to be killed, one of the wytches kept Jenine from dying...maybe to use as bait in the next book?

Argh...there's so much going on...good wizards...ther e were a few of them whom were doing their own thing trying to destroy the enemy.  I'm betting these wizards and Kylar will become friends and work together to destroy the enemy.  Rat...the guy that disfigured Doll Girl was supposed to have been killed by Kylar but a vurdmeister (an evil wytch/wizard type) saved Rat and Rat renamed himself Roth (long story to this).

Blintz, Kylar's master revealed that he has a young daughter by the whore house owner, Mamma K's sister (but really, it was Mamma K's and his), and that the enemy was going to use her as bait to kill him.  So in order to save his daughter from being tortured and killed, Blintz sided with the enemy, Roth and the Khalidorans.  Thus, it was what lead to Blintz demise but it wasn't because Roth did anything.  Blintz had to destroy his student, Kylar and refused to stop at anything.  Kylar had no choice but to fight and defeat his master (it was very sad...I nearly cried).  The fight was a decision Blintz made so his death wasn't an accident.  He had planned for it.

Kylar found the ka'kari (some type of power source) earlier in the story (just after Prince Alaine was murdered) and it went into his body.  He now had what's called the Talent, a power source, but it's way more powerful than his master's, the wytches, and the wizards.  He was able to destroy Rat for good.

At the end, the Khalidorans take over Logan's country but Logan had escaped.  So did Doll Girl, Mamma K and her daughter, and Kylar.  I'm guessing Serah and her family escaped too but not much was said about them during the fightings.

Anyway, it's a long story weaving in and out of so many different characters.  They all connect somehow or will connect in the next books, I'm sure.  I've found myself forgetting who was who.  Characters that were mentioned earlier in the story didn't show up again until near the end and by that time I had already forgotten their faces and which side they were on.  The stories to Blintz, Mamma K, Rat, and some of the others unfolds near the end.  For instance, I thought Rat had died but he was saved.  Blintz past was revealed.  He loved but because of the job he took as a wetboy he had to surrender love.  He taught that to Kylar but Kylar was different.  It was hard for Kylar to surrender his love for Doll Girl.  Everything he did was for.  To give her a better life away from ever stepping foot in a brothel.  Even though he was told never to go near her because the enemies' spies would learn of his weakness, he still would look out the window to see her passing, or try to find ways to watch her grow into a beautiful woman.  All the money he made from his work was sent to her all under a fake name.  But, she loved him too and would write back to the fake named person thanking him for the money and telling him that she was going to name him Azoth (Kylar's name before he took on the wetboy name) because he was treating her like Azoth would have.  She thought he was dead.  I want them to kiss but it never happened...or hasn't happened yet. 

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I'm wondering if Blintz really did die.  He was slashed by Kylar's sword which had poison on it.  The poison was what killed Blintz but I remember Kylar had swam in the ocean while following Blintz and Roth.  And the poison isn't effective (or loses it's effectiveness) once it mixes with water.

...interesting .

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Earlier this morning, I tried to download the 2nd book in the Night Angel Trilogy (the first book was reviewed above, The Way of Shadows) and couldn't log in to my library e-book account.  I thought maybe they had disabled my account for some reason but I was able to log into the regular library account, just not the e-book account.  So frustrating.  I really want to start reading the 2nd book.  I'm going to try to log in again tomorrow and if I still can't get in, I'll call them.

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I wasn't able to log in today either.  I've submitted a helpdesk ticket.  I need to read.

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I was finally able to download the 2nd book in the Night Angel Trilogy, Shadow's Edge, over the weekend and finished it this morning.  It was very good.

As before there was so much going on and more characters to remember than I could remember but they all somehow came together.  Kylar's master, Blintz, didn't die as I had assumed, but he wasn't in this 2nd trilogy.  I'm sure he'll be in the 3rd.

In this book, Kylar tried to live an ordinary life, unaware that his Talents was just growing stronger and more powerful than anything else.  He died a couple of times but came back to life.  When he dies, he goes to a middle world where a thing named Wolf determines if he should return or not.  He always returns but questions if/when the time will come when he won't be allowed to return.

Blintz daughter, Uly, was kidnapped by Vi, a wetgirl and then they were captured by a wizard lady named Ariel.  Ariel learned that Uly was also Talented...she was more of a wizard type then a wetgirl so Ariel took her to her compound to train.

A big war broke out between the Khalidorans and the rebels (what was left of the people of Ceacarean (Logan's home)...excuse the spelling).  Logan escaped the hole and ends up leading the war. There was a big disagreement before he lead the war...a queen named Terah didn't want Logan to be king and the soldiers were divided.  The only way to unite the soldiers was to have Terah and Logan wed.  So, they prepared for the wedding. Logan is 21 years old and I think Terah is 25.  During the ceremony Logan asked to address the crowd and when he does, he tells the crowd that he will not marry Terah just to gain power.  So Terah takes the power as Queen and makes Logan a Duke.  She then tells Logan to lead the soldiers in the first line of war.  But, there were some Lords/counts who believed in Logan (as their king) so they asked some of the trusted soldiers to protect him and die for him if they have to, to keep him alive.

The war consisted of soldiers, women and men on the Ceacarian side.  On the Khalidoran said, they had men soldiers, vurdmeisters, wytches, and a large beast made using magic that took humans, dead and alive, and jabbed it into itself to make itself more bigger and powerful.  It was a seriously scary and gross beast.

Vi ends up falling in love with Kylar.  She stole a special earring set from Kylar meant for Kylar and Elene.  The earring set had magic that binds two lovers forever.  The earrings, once in the lovers ears can never be removed.  The magic in the earrings bring the lovers closer to each other. During Vi and Kylar's destruction of the Godking, Kylar's gets stabbed and dies.  He was in the middle world with his body being restored when Vi thought he had died for sure and so she took the stolen earrings out of her pocket and put it on herself and Kylar.  She said her last goodbye to him and went after the Godking.  As she was fighting him, Kylar came back to life and they both destroyed the Godking.  Kylar, who was deeply in love with Elene, suddenly began to fall in love with Vi.  Then he touched his ear and felt the earring and saw the other half in Vi's ears.  He was bound to her and his feelings for her continued to grow.  Argh....this was just so sad.  I wanted him to marry Elene but this twist makes the story so much more interesting.  Apparently, Vi has a s.exier body and that was something that was attracting Kylar to her but it wasn't enough to make him want to sleep with her or marry her.  With the earrings in, he started to have feelings of love and sorrow and pain for her.  He was able to feel her innermost feelings.  Same with Vi but Vi was already infatuated with him before she had put the earrings in.

Anyway, I just downloaded the 3rd Trilogy, Beyond the Shadows, and will begin reading it shortly here.

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Finished reading the 3rd book of the Night Angel Trilogy, Beyond the Shadows.

All the stories do come together in the end. It was pretty interesting and really exciting.  It was also really sad too...+ gory, magical, etc.  Also, Master Blintz DOES come back to life.  I was really excited about that.  He's like 700+ years old or something.  In this last book, he does not get any more chances at another life.

General story recap:

Logan finds out that his wife Jenine is alive.  Elene and Kaylar end up at the Chantry (Sister Ariel's compound) where Vi and Uly are training to strengthen their Talents.  Elene and Kaylar got married.  Vi uses all her strength and magic to keep away from feeling the sexual tension during Kylar's and Elene's love making.  With those magic earrings, she could feel everything Kylar feels so Sister Ariel found a way for her to use her powers to stop those feelings for awhile.

The 3 wizard/prophet friends at the beginning of the book split up (Feir, Dorian, and Solon).  Feir ended up with a war captain chasing after the Curoch (a special magical sword), Dorian fell in love with Jenine (Logan's wife...Jenine still thinks that Logan is dead and vice versa until near the end when the war is just about to end) and followed her to Khalidoran castle.  His father was Garoth...the evil Khalidoran Godking who tried to take Ceacarian but was destroyed by Kylar and Vi.  But, Dorian is a good man/wizard/prophet. And, Solon went to find the girl he loved some years ago hoping that she will still feel the same about him.

Elene learns that she's pregnant with Kylar's baby but she learned that she would die soon (and her baby would die too) so she kept her pregnancy a secret.  Kylar knew that Elene would die, just not how.  He knew because he learned in the middle world that every time he died and returned to life, a person he loved would die and never come back.  He also learned that the 5 or so times he died before had nearly killed a man's (he thought as his father) family.  He asked the Wolf to turn things around and undo his death but what's done was done.  He was heartbroken and thus the quick marriage before he would lose his love forever.

The big war broke out.  Biggest one with all the people that were involved coming together.  It all made sense at the end.

Okay...I didn't think I'd actually cry but I did.  This is supposed to be a fantasy novel so I was surprised at myself....LOL!  There were parts of the story that didn't make a lot of sense like the glowing dragon stamped on Logan's arm.  That came into play during the last war but otherwise, I had no idea what its purpose was or why it was even on him, like why he was chosen or if it was accidental.  It could have been on Kylar or anyone else's arm.  Maybe it was just timing or something but it was never explained clearly.  And also, in the end, it didn't play an important role anyway because the evil power that was almost destroyed returned and brought back all the evil soldiers and creatures before it was completely eliminated.

Here's a clip of the novel that really touched me.

This is where Solon returned to the home of the girl he once loved 12 years ago and still loves, Kaede.  He wanted to see if she still loved him.  When he got to her home he was immediately jailed.  Kaede came to his cell and they spoke:

"....I've been undoing the damage he (Solon's brother) inflicted on this kingdom ever since.  In nine years, I haven't been able to fix half of what he destroyed in three."  (said Kaede).
     Solon was aghast.  "And you never married."
     "Never remarried."
     "Oh."
     "I've been too busy.  Besides, they call me the Black Widow, those who hate me.  I don't mind.  It's good that they fear me.  For all that I'm a hundred times the monarch your brother was, I made missteps early and alienated some who might have been friends.  I have learned since, but some men will never forgive a slight.  My hold on this throne is a daily struggle - one that you could easily upset.
     "I have no desire for a crown.  I will swear that in front of all the court."
     "Then what is it you want, Solon?"
     His eyes never wavered.  "Just you," he said.

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Fifty Shades of Grey
by E.L. James

Husband asked me to read this book so I downloaded it and started reading.

It's a horrible book.  I couldn't even get past chapter 1 and it was very hard to finish chapter 2 but I did it just to see if I might change my mind about how I feel about the book.  I didn't change my mind.

There's very little to no character substance.  The initial move/interest in the story, the interview with the CEO was pathetic.  Ana already determined that she hated him, Mr. Grey, yet she couldn't stop some weird attraction to him.  How is she attracted to him if she thinks he is some kind of control freak?  I will never understand this.

Also, there's too much usage of the words, crap, double crap, and holy cow.  I hate those words in books.  Don't mind them in every day life but in a book?  That's too childish.

I don't plan to go past chapter 2.  It was too much for me to try to deal with the language usage, vocabulary used, and short conversations that lead to nothing.  I don't even want to know what happens further in the book.  I'm pretty sure the writing will annoy me more than anything.

How is this book one of the best out there and that they are making it into a movie?  I don't get it.