Come to Venus Melancholy

This was kind of an odd story. I can honestly say that I really like it, but I think the only reason that I do is because it reminds me of some of the characters from one of my favorite video games, Portal 2. The slightly crazy rambling was kind of amusing, and made the speaker oddly likeable, despite the fact that she had apparently locked me as the reader in some room. I got the impression that there was a kind of love hate thing going on between the machine and the user/reader (like it usually is with all machines) and in some areas of the story she seemed a little bit menacing. Especially when she commented that she would leave open a trap door for you to go in, but didn't promise that she would leave it open.I find that this type of character is usually the most fun to read, I'm mildly disappointed that this wasn't longer and more developed.

The Circus of Dr. Lao

This one was rough to get through. I didn't even get through it really. Getting through the first HALF has rough. I found it to be far too repetitive, and I got bored with it very quickly. When they first put up the ads for the show, and it went through about a good twenty people commenting on how they thought they might see the circus, I got annoyed, but I gave it the benefit of the doubt and kept going. Then they went through the twenty people again commenting on seeing the circus, and was that a man or a bear? That got old quickly. Couldn't finish it after that.

Troll Bridge

This was a pretty cute little story. I couldn't help but think of the troll and cohen as my grandparents, remembering the good ol' days. The trolls that are moving into the cities, getting different jobs that aren't guarding a bridge, made me think that this must be how my grandparents feel when they're looking at how this generation is going through life. There's not really any more family jobs where the kids take the job that their parents had. Things don't really have a simple pleasure like they use to, everythings getting bigger and more complicated.

Dawn

Dawn was a very enjoyable book for me. I found that the aliens were very fascinating, and the constant internal struggle with the heroine kept the book very gripping. Up to a point I both agreed and got extremely annoyed with Lilith's view on reproducing with the aliens. The aliens were very kind, and I liked them almost immediately. I felt in some cases she was overreacting to what the aliens were doing. They weren't out to do any harm, stop whining. The fact that they want to help, want to do what's best for them and the humans, makes it difficult to dislike them. And then, despite the fact that they're likable, they're also frustrating in their view on what's best for us. For example, when Jdahya said that their people had destroyed the ruins on earth, and Lilith got upset at him. I was also rather upset at the idea of what was left of our old culture being destroyed. Even though he pointed out that she was still alive. A logical answer yes, "you're still alive, why be upset about us getting rid of ruins?" and yet I just felt "That's not the point!". That kind of feeling of being torn between liking these creatures and wanting to slap some sense into them, i felt, was very well done. I really felt like I was always feeling what Lilith was feeling.

Babel-17

Sci-fi has always been a genre that was difficult for me to really get into. This novel didn't end up being that much different. The story itself was enjoyable enough, as were the characters, but I still felt as though it was lacking something that kept me from really loving it. Part of the problem that I typically have with sci-fi is that it tends to introduce too many characters and places at one time. When that happens, I tend to have a really hard time remembering who's who, what the person that's speaking was suppose to be like or look like, and because of that I'm kept from making any sort of bond with the characters. The characters are likeable, but not loveable. Another problem is when they begin to talk about things like technology, substances, places, in lengthy descriptions. A lot of the time I had a hard time wrapping my brain around what was being explained. There were times when I didn't even get that far, I only got the sense that what was being said was important, that I was SUPPOSE to understand something, but instead of grasping it, it flew straight over my head. There were also times where there was too little description, such as the environments, and I ended up getting extremely disoriented. The best example of this was near the beginning when the main character was getting together her crew.

Warbreaker

This is probably one of the most interesting fantasy stories I've read since Harry Potter. I enjoy how the writer brings the beauty of color up to such great importance to the characters, how it's a part of their soul, and their power. I also found the religious struggles to be a very interesting comparison between that world and our own. Sadly, I know that there are people (very powerful and religious people) who are corrupt, and attempt to corrupt their own God to heighten their importance in life. 
Unfortunate;y, I did feel as though there was one major flaw in the story (and it's mostly my own fault) is that a story that has different plots happening one after the other, and that typically doesn't work very well for me. Although I know in the end they'll tie up together in the end, I tend to skip the sections I don't find quite as interesting so I can get back to the other story plots. I did this especially with the character Vivenna, since I usually found her to be the least favorite (and most irritating)  of the main characters. I understand I probably missed a few "aha!" moments, but usually something would happen with the other characters, it would go to her story and I'd think "noooo, I don't wanna wait to know what happens!" and end up skipping ahead.

The Magicians

I was a little iffy on the book The Magicians. It was a relatively good read, and it really felt like a real college for magic in the sense of how the characters behaved. A lot of times I was really comparing it to my own college life. There was the older kids you wanted to hang out with, but seemed to just stay within their own groups, the shy one who had great talent but had low self esteem, and the guy that seemed to live to be obnoxious. I couldn't help but laugh at the fact that I new someone just like every character in the book. In that sense, the book was very well written. However, I also felt that it was a bit slow, and not really exciting. I don't know if that was on purpose, maybe the writer was doing it do get the feel of college classes. Slow, uneventful, learn what you are given, with the occasional fun distraction. One of my favorite parts (don't really know why, probably because it was the first exciting thing to happen) was actually when the beast first appeared in the class. It made me think it was some kind of comparison to when dangerous individuals come into colleges carrying weapons and threatening the students and faculty. I also liked the part when they had to turn into geese in their 4th year for their next lesson. I felt like that was also a comparison to oversea learning. Having gone overseas myself on a school trip, I know it can be pretty tiring (not to the extent of the characters but still) It feels like it's the first time you ever really step out, get away from school and family and see something so new and different that it changes you a little.
Overall, The Magicians was pretty enjoyable. I wouldn't mind continuing the series at some point.

Kwaidan

Kwaidan was a really fascinating read for me. I often really enjoy ghost stories from other cultures, mostly because they tend to be so vastly different from the ghosts that I'm use to hearing about. With the Kwaidan they had spirits that came from nature, separate their heads from their bodies, can actually come in contact with humans, as well as appear as the normal ghosts that we normally hear about. To me, it's just a really refreshing and new experience, and I found that the stories weren't really scary, just either disturbing, sad, or kinda funny.

Interview with a Vampire

I really enjoyed the book "Interview with a Vampire". The whole time I wouldn't help but think how much I felt exactly like the interviewer. I often got sucked into the vampires story, almost feeling mesmerized as he told it, and when he stopped, I felt myself jolt back to reality, much like the interviewer seemed to do. I felt that were really enjoyable to follow, especially the main character who, although he is the typical vampire that I normally read about, had a greater sense of charm and personality that I honestly appreciated. Like most vampire novels it made me question the morals behind vampires. Such as, if I were a vampire, would I really be considered evil? Would there be a way to save myself? I think that's usually the biggest question in all vampire novels, especially when you question it while you're in the realm of religion. In all honesty, I'm still up in the air about it, and that there's really no straight answer to it.

Monster Island

After finishing Monster Island, I was really surprised at how much I actually enjoyed it. The story was very gripping, and I found that I just didn't want to stop reading at the end of each chapter. I felt the fear of the characters, the fighting/running sequences were all very exciting. I was especially pleased with Gary the worlds smartest zombie. I'd often wondered why zombies did what they did, how was it that they were able to function, how and why was it they ONLY attacked the living, and never themselves or anything else. If I ever bothered to watch something to do with zombies (because again, I'm not a horror fan) no one ever gave an explanation to these questions. I felt that the character of Gary did a superb job of giving us a reasonable insite into the mind of a zombie. My only complaint was that it really didn't give us a chance to grow fond of many of the characters (with the exception of Dekalb and Gary) so that when there was a death, I only shrugged and thought "hm....shame" as opposed to a real heartfelt dissapointment at the loss (with the exception of the ending).

Frankenstein

I'd grown up always knowing who Frankenstein and his monster were. I knew that the story was about a scientist who had created a big dumb monster made out of sewn together body parts. When I first began to read the story, I was expecting the version that I had always known. I was extremely surprised at how different the book really was. I kind of have mixed feelings about it, mostly leaning towards negative, though that may be just because I'm not a huge fan of horror in general. I found myself getting annoyed with Dr. Frankenstein more often than not. I felt that his personality, moods, and thoughts sometimes swung a bit too quickly, especially in the instance where he was creating his monster. At first, he had been so full of pride and excitement, and as soon as the monster was alive, he immediately fell into the character of "woe is me". A gradual change of his feelings might have made that a little less annoying.
I was pleasantly surprised at the Frankenstein monster. The fact that he was intelligent and sympathetic yet dangerous helped to create a very memorable character. Which, I figure, is obviously why the story is so famous.

Horror

Horror films

Corpses being used and/or coming to life
Secret passages
Mysterious noises/visions that make the main characters go off in search of its cause
moving paintings
Storms
murder/death
Darkness
fog
objects appearing or moving mysteriously from one place to another
animals give off weird reactions
mobs
insanity
curses
a walk through the graveyard
hooded robes and masks
castles
cobwebs