Book Review - 'The Help' by Kathryn Stockett

2020 EDIT: I'm changing my rating because, while I still remember 'The Help' being an enjoyable page-turner, it is a white saviour story. There's no getting around that hugely problematic and insulting trope, now that I am older and more educated on the many, many, many ways in which racism remains prevalent in our culture and society. White people cannot solve racism, not on their own at any rate. White people have always historically been the oppressors, the abusers, the ones with the power, the ones whose stories have always been valued over others'. Let POC authors write their own stories - no, they have been telling and writing their stories for centuries, nonstop; everyone merely needs to pay attention. Listen to the marginalised speak with their own, authentic voices. Listen to them speak from their own, real experiences. There are thousands-to-millions-of them out in the world. That's where we'll really learn something.

Final Score: 3/5





I've put off writing a review of 'The Help' for a long time, because I don't think I can write a proper one when its subject matter has so much history and sensitive connotations behind it. I am afraid of what I might say; afraid I'll offend someone with my opinions. After reading this book, I felt that although I could understand the social impact racism/oppression has had on African-Americans in the sixties, I couldn't say the same for its emotional and mental impact, due to the fact that I have never experienced it. However, being female I have experienced a form of discrimination, and bullying for being different. Plus I have an imagination, and writers of historical fiction - such as of the Tudor era - often cannot help but take a few liberties, no matter how much research they do, simply because they weren't alive in that time.

I'll only say that, as a story, 'The Help' is a wonderful, poignant - albeit flawed - page turner. There is a reason why it was a bestseller; no one had really written a book about the treatment of black maids in 1960s Mississippi before, and its themes concern both racism and sexism. It doesn't really have a happy ending either, despite the efforts of the main characters. Sadly, since achieving change in any society of prejudiced people does take a long time, it is a realistic ending also.

Kathryn Stockett obviously put her whole heart into her debut. She herself grew up in Mississippi in the sixties, and a black maid had looked after her when she was a child. In writing 'The Help', Stockett was giving her belated thanks to her now-deceased maid for all she'd done for her. Even though she has admitted to not knowing how to capture the voices of black women in the sixties perfectly, I think this can be forgiven, as the voices of Aibileen and Minny are distinguishable and reveal their individual personalities, secrets and painful struggles.

Heartfelt, humourous but still meaningful, and even a little sweet, I thoroughly enjoyed 'The Help'.

Really, it only has a star knocked out of its final rating for this reason: Skeeter. She is spectacularly dumb, and I'd speculated that she has to be because most of the events in the novel couldn't have happened otherwise. While I do take comfort in how 'The Help', in my personal opinion, manages to avoid the offensive Mighty Whitey/Caucasian superiority cliche by making the white "savior" of the black people very flawed, Skeeter is meant to be an educated adult, so her clumsiness and stupidity are a little much.

Anyone can take whatever they want out of a book which deals with racial oppression. I found 'The Help' to be very effective and unforgettable - a story needing to be told, regardless of the author's skin colour.

The book is definitely better than the film at least.

Final Score: 4/5

Book Review - 'Gregor the Overlander' by Suzanne Collins

2021 EDIT: Reread: Still a fantastic children's book. Funny and heartfelt, and now I recognise the more significant references to 'Metamorphosis'; it's not only the bug theme and the characters' names. It's also basically a retelling of 'A Wrinkle in Time', only set underground instead of across the universe. It also teaches lessons about racism without being preachy. And speaking of, I've caught on that Gregor and his family are people of colour! How did I miss that the first time reading?

'Gregor the Overlander' - one of Suzanne Collins' early books, and highly underrated. Read my original review for more of my thoughts, which remain unchanged.

Final Score: 4/5





Original Review:



'Gregor the Overlander' by Suzanne Collins is a children's book (or Middle Grade fiction in the US) that's a mix of 'Alice in Wonderland', 'A Wrinkle in Time', Kafka's 'Metamorphosis', 'Dinotopia', and Blue Sky's animated film 'Epic'. In my opinion, 'Gregor' is superior to over half of the comparisons I've just mentioned, and some more that're unmentioned. It is great, unforgettable fun for all ages.

And there are bats. And bugs - lots and lots of bugs. And rats. I would have frigging loved this if I'd read it in middle school.

So yeah, I checked this book out solely because the author of 'The Hunger Games' wrote it, I won't deny it. It's Suzanne Collins's first novel. And while the writing and story progression certainly isn't perfect, I can see where she will improve in her most famous series that will put her on the YA map. 'Gregor' has similar themes of fighting for survival, bonds of friendship, and prejudice: specifically racism, which is always important for children to learn about and to understand why it is wrong and dehumanizing.

'Gregor the Overlander' borrows some recognisable children's story tropes - such as the ordinary kid hero falling down a hole into another world - from other works, and keeps them from being stale by making the characters believably human and sympathetic, even when they make bad choices. Even the creatures possess identifiable traits.

An adventure begins: One day in their laundry room at the start of the summer holidays, impoverished siblings Gregor and little Boots stumble upon the world of the Underland (no relation to Tim Burton's 'Alice in Wonderland (2010)' adaptation, thank goodness). This is a dark but fantastic society where pale-skinned and purple-eyed humans live among giant talking bats, cockroaches and spiders. But the one species they live in fear of are the nasty rats. There is also an ancient prophecy that is, at last, about to be fulfilled...

I love Gregor (who, despite being in a story where there're giant bugs, never gets turned into one himself, sorry Kafka fans). He is an eleven-year-old boy who, after his father disappeared two years before the start of his adventure, had to grow up quickly as the man of the house. He has to look after his two little sisters and senile grandmother. Mom tries her best, but everyone's confused and saddened by Dad vanishing and not coming back. Gregor is a responsible yet temperamental and snarky young man, but he has dreams and fears and doubts that a lot of children can relate to. His greatest weakness - apart from the anxiety issues caused by his dad being gone from his life - is heights. So to suddenly enter an underground world where flying on giant bats is the norm and tall buildings and crevices and chasms are everywhere, his acrophobia and other worries are challenged. No matter how Gregor may try to escape the Underland, he needs to confront his demons, as any hero should. He even first sets out on his quest for a rat attack for the selfish but understandable objective of finding his dad, who also fell to the Underland two years earlier; hence his disappearance.

Gregor also has flashbacks to the times he spent with his eccentric but loving scientist dad. And to his schooldays when he thinks about how he regards and treats other kids who have bigger problems than him. These are written in appropriate moments throughout the book and succeed in making Gregor a well-rounded, three-dimensional character to root for. Overall 'Gregor the Overlander', among other things, is a fully-realised coming-of-age tale.

Gregor's two-year-old sister Boots (real name Margaret), who is the first to fall down the laundry room air duct to the Underland, is absolutely adorable. A cuteness factor and comic relief, she is hilarious, and even thought-provoking. Boots is the embodiment of early innocence, and she holds no fear or prejudice towards anything, not even giant cockroaches, who she ends up making valuable friends with. She sees everyone and everything as her friend, and while that is a naivete expected of a toddler, if everyone had that attitude, both the Underland and Overland would be better places to live in.

Like most two-year-olds, Boots has the odd tantrum, and she contracts illnesses; she isn't angelic purity personified or anything like that. However I can say with undoubted credence that 'Gregor the Overlander' would not have been the same in fun and originality without dear Boots. Her catchphrases: "Gee-go!" (Gregor), "Me out!", and "I poop!".

Out of all the other characters - in the majorly-set Underland - the one I feel I should make significant mention of is Luxa. Luxa is the next in line to the throne of Regalia, a city in the Underland, and she is a girl with exceptional flying abilities when on her bat, Aurora. While she is cool, haughty and not afraid to show her authority, through Gregor's eyes she is too cocky and mean for a girl (naturally it's okay for a boy like Gregor to have these qualities; "boys will be boys" and all *sarcasm*). But thankfully he learns to sympathise with her (her parents were killed by rats) and see a different side to the future queen when she joins him on his quest to find his dad and stop the rats from invading Regalia. She saves Gregor's life a lot and helps him to understand the prophecy which seems to have set him up as a warrior and saviour.

Also there's Ripred the rat, about whom I won't give away anything other than to say he is awesome.

Throughout this review, I've sparingly mentioned that 'Gregor the Overlander' has a prophecy in it, which becomes a driving force for the book. I would like to take this opportunity to rant a little about prophecies in stories, even though I still really like 'Gregor'.

Prophecies are not uncommon in fantasy stories and franchises, such as in 'Narnia', 'Harry Potter' and even 'Star Wars'. However, in my opinion, this is a plot tool and Chekhov's gun that has become tiresomely overused - especially nowadays in fantasy films made by Hollywood, where clichés breed and unique ideas go to die. Many prophecies in fiction are often very vague and in fact serve very little necessity in the grand scheme of a linear structured plot. Not to mention, they can be written in so easily, and prophecies can be used as excuses for making little to no effort on stuff like character growth and development: Heroes in prophecy stories are not made, but born. These heroes don't have to train hard in anything or even learn anything because, according to something that's already written down, they are special no matter what they do or don't do.

Just... why can't coincidences happen anymore? Why no more surprises in store? Why can't average, relatable joes work hard to be special and important, unless they are apparently born to be so? Prophecy stories easily become very boring very quickly, as no one likes a perfect hero who gets everything he or she wants without really earning it, and who we already know will succeed because a prophecy says so.

When a prophecy is lazily-written in, with unexplained origins, and paints the hero as a Mary Sue predestined for special-ish-ness, then it is part of a mainstream phenomena where it is simply unneeded in a story. I like to respond to this phenomena with: "Fuck the prophecy!" (Apologies, I don't usually like to swear, not least in a review of a children's book, but I think my point might be made clearer this way).

That isn't to say the prophecy in 'Gregor the Overlander' is poorly-written. There is an origin behind it, it is written well in poetic verse (reminding me of the tragic songs Katniss sings in 'The Hunger Games'), and Gregor does get to grow stronger and learn a lot about others - and himself - throughout his daring quest. I still don't think it's entirely necessary in a book already fantastical and exciting, but I'll let that slide since it was published in 2003, before prophecies were being used all the time.

And the high points of this novel are just too good to ignore. The ending is beautifully written too; ambiguous, and yet it fits everything into place.

Prominent low points include: The wise old man stereotype (but there is a wise old woman as well to balance it out); only the minor characters die; and the revealing of a character to be a traitor happens too suddenly, with typical and nonsensical motivations. Also, is Luxa going to be Gregor's love interest in the sequels? And will Gregor become a king? To me, that would be rather predictable for an intelligent children's book series.

Oh the fun and joy and laughs and tears of reading 'Gregor the Overlander'. A fine edition to the "falls down the rabbit hole" (or "fish-out-of-water") style of books for children, where the subject of racism is written in subtly and effectively. Therefore adults can fall in love with it as well.

We'll wait and see if I'll carry on with this series, though. Sometimes I hate being so picky. I mean, it's Suzanne Collins!

Final Score: 4/5

The genuinely nice guys (male pacifists) in fiction - who want to be with the one and only girl they really love - why are they viewed as wimps and wusses (or even gay)? And girls who speak their minds and enjoy sex - why are they bitches and whores who need to be dominated and punished for demanding respect? I am sick of double standards. It's time to understand how it's poisoning our culture and our view of gender.

I think nowadays a lot of writers are more concerned with fanservice and pandering to what's popular right now rather than writing what they actually want. To which I say: One of the most basic lessons to learn about being a writer is that you can't please everyone.

Really, if your imagination must be hindered by money worries and what fanbases think they want, then you're no better than Hollywood focus groups.

Non-Fiction Book Review - 'The Art of Brave' by Jenny Lerew

My 150th book review!


Now on to the review itself.

I hadn't read any other 'The Art of --' books before this one. In hindsight I guess I should have, since I love film and animation and researching the behind-the-scenes and thought-processes of what makes a film what it is. It just so happens that on a visit to my old university, the library contained 'The Art of Brave' and no other 'The Art of --' books. Strange. Is it because this particular animation book is so rich in detail in going over the process of animating - of hand-drawing and computer-generating? And because it emphasizes how a good, well-thought-out story is the most important thing in all films, including live-action? Are the rest of the 'The Art of --' books null and void then, even the Studio Ghibli ones? 

I'm not so sure about the others, and I'm not a librarian, so I'm just making up my own rubbish here.

Regardless, I guess I should feel lucky that the only 'The Art of --' book my university has is about one of my favourite Pixar films - and one of my favourite animated films period.

I'll start by saying that 'The Art of Brave' does indeed contain wonderful and diverse illustrations that really express character and show what the animators and directors had in mind during the development process of 'Brave'; even before Pixar green-lit it. Aside from drawings of Princess Merida and her awesome red hair, and of bears ranging from the cute to the terrifying, there are a lot of details going into researching Scotland and its highlands, moors, atmosphere, weather conditions, and myths and legends. Seeing as my family and I are planning a trip to Scotland in the summer this year, I would say that 'The Art of Brave' could count as an excellent tour guide! The medieval Scottish setting is a beautiful landmark in 'Brave', but the commenting directors and producers keep coming back to how they did not forget the true heart of the story. 

Which is the love between a parent and a child, and family bonds. 

Therefore the characters and their designs and personal development are just as important to the film as the setting, and free reign is given when it is in animation, where anything is possible. 

'Brave' as a whole contains many subtle layers and themes to its story. It subverts elements of the traditional Disney princess and fairy tale formula, including the missing/dead mother and the evil witch and queen. It also says a lot about what it means to be a princess in reality, despite the fact that the film is still a fantasy. Forget for a moment about it being "feminist" and "empowering". There is more to it than that. What I interpret 'Brave' to really be about is: 

1. Changing tradition can be okay as long as you want to do so for selfless reasons. 

2. Being brave enough to admit to and learn from mistakes is a mark of a real hero. Don't repeat the tragedies recorded in history or legends.

3. Explore outside your comfort zone and be true to yourself, but respect others' point of view as well. Understand their position, and love them for who they are, and they may return your affections.

4. Stay close-knit to your family - even when your legacy is within a mere thread of tapestry, rather than in large, imposing stone. 


Many lessons which are important for children - and adults - to learn and to understand.

I think that people who did not think much of 'Brave' when they first saw it - thinking it too simple - would find that there is a complexity to the film when they read 'The Art of Brave', and come to appreciate it a bit more. It is fascinating to read how the concept came about and what could have been during the six years it took for Pixar to make 'Brave' - their thirteenth feature film and their first that is a period piece, a fairy tale, and which features a female protagonist. 

Fans of the film will love 'The Art of Brave', however fans of animation and people studying the art form will too find it useful and captivating. Of course it has flaws - there is no mention of 'Brave''s original title, 'The Bear and the Bow', nor of co-director Brenda Chapman leaving the project four years into production. I guess it would look too negative, which isn't exactly honest, but neither is it lying; just omitting unimportant information. Animation is very complex; it is a time-consuming and expensive business, and this art book is only 160 pages long.

The artwork is outstanding, and so is reading about its roots. If only libraries had more 'The Art of --' books lying around.

Final Score: 4.5/5

I've read a few quotes and forums that say that 'Twilight' is a good story for teenage girls because there is nothing better for them out there.

While there are worse stories than 'Twilight', that statement is still wrong and shows just how unwilling people are to take responsibility and see what's harmful to women. Girls DO have better stories aimed for them. And just as important, they DESERVE better stories.

There are misogynists under the delusion that women have contributed nothing in history, and that they can't write.

The Bronte sisters, Jane Austen, Mary Shelley, Louisa Alcott, Emily Dickinson, Daphne du Maurier, Harper Lee, Enid Blyton, Ursula K. Le Guin, Sylvia Plath, Anne Rice, Margaret Atwood, Diana Wynne Jones, J.K. Rowling, Suzanne Collins, Laini Taylor... Add other female writers - spread the word!

Oh and not forgetting the best selling author of all time, Agatha Christie!

Book Review - 'Angel Fever (Angel, 3)' by L.A. Weatherly

I'll write a quick rundown of my thoughts and feelings regarding 'Angel Fever', chapter-by-chapter. These reactions will be as non-spoilerific as I can make them; however because they'll cover the final chapters as well, I will say that this is a spoiler review, just in case. The reactions will also be in short sentences (I apologise, I'm not a gif person).

The purpose of this stylistic choice is to put across why I think this final book in a trilogy is on an epic scale, in spite of its shortcomings:


Prologue:

- Nice, but why is this in a prologue?

Chapter 1:

- Oh, that's why; a time skip.
- So are all ninety-eight of the new Angel Killers teenagers?
- They're saying "Shit" now; things got serious.
- Good, Willow's making female friends... but one is in love with Seb, and this bothers her for some reason.

Chapter 2:

- Romance time with Willow and Alex...
- ... but urgent plot is urgent.
- Willow dear, why are you comparing Alex's and Seb's chests?
- Is this the part when Alex gets separated from Willow?

Chapter 3:

- Raziel has his own human harem.
- And Miranda is now haunting him. Foreshadowing!

Chapter 4:

- Dun-dun-dunnnnnnnnnnn!!!!!!!!!

Chapter 5:

- All hope already seems lost, though why does Alex blame himself for this? Is this meant to contrast with how Willow blamed herself for people's deaths in the prologue?
- Then again, the Angel Killers are counting on and trusting Alex as their leader.
- He and Willow nearly get killed and Willow saves his life. So she's not helpless at all.
- Alex inadvertently kills a man simply for doing his job. This won't be mentioned again.

Chapter 6:

- Seb may be falling for another girl, but can't get over Willow, even after all this time.

Chapter 7:

- Raziel is hated by his own kind now, but at least the humans still think he's literally God's gift to them.
- Oooh what does he have planned now?

Chapter 8:

- Willow and Alex's birthday party (I guess them having the same birthday really is meant to be just a coincidence, nothing more to it).
- =sigh= Willow is obviously jealous when she sees Seb with another girl.
- Willow and Seb have an argument, no kissing at least (yet). On top of all the hopelessness, she is confused by boy trouble. Again.
- But the poem Alex gives to her is the sweetest piece of writing ever.

Chapter 9:

- Seb might be leaving. Good riddance at this point.
- Kara's back!
- Poor Claudia.
- A mention of Cully! Hallelujah!

Chapter 10:

- Nice new background on Alex's family life.

Chapter 12:

- Naked showers with Alex. Sounds yummy.
- Sam is coming with Willow to find Alex, not Seb. A huge step-up; no love triangle crap is forced here.

Chapter 13:

- =ominous foreboding music= Wow...
- ... wait, how could Alex have done what he just did when he's still got an injured arm?

Chapter 14:

- Yeah he's coming back...

Chapter 15:

- Willow to Seb: "You can't be my brother again. Not now, not ever." Well that's gonna change.

Chapter 16:

- Suicidal angels. Every plan has its downsides.

Chapter 17:

- One of my favourite chapters. Willow is growing up and becoming stronger, but it's because of a boy. Yet I don't mind this. It's very well written and heartbreaking to read about.
- And hello Grant... goodbye Grant!

Chapter 18:

- Uh-oh. Judgement Day.
- Holy shit, (presumably) young people genocide.
- Willow, having a death wish and being a fighter are not the same thing.

Chapter 19:

- Major character death. L.A. Weatherly is fearless, unlike many other YA authors.
- Evacuation. The plot keeps moving and it thickens. Never a dull, static moment when you're an Angel Killer.
- We finally see Seb's father.
- Seb has moments of insight and reflection; this is what I like best about him.

Chapter 20:

- Willow and Kara have a moment of both story progression and character development. We need to see more of this in stories for girls and women.
- Willow can function and survive on her own, and make her own decisions. Again, more of this is needed in YA involving a female lead.
- Plus her talent for fixing cars isn't forgotten about, and it's very handy.

Chapter 21:

- Cute and wonderful character-defining moments for the lone wolf Willow...
- ... then Seb shows up and ruins them. I knew it was too good to be true.

Chapter 22:

- Well at least Seb isn't annoying. And Willow has other things to worry about, like her mother and the fate of the world.
- More genocide...

Chapter 23:

- More moments of danger, and no forced hot sexy love. At this point Willow is only acting like a human being would - a damaged and traumatised human being.
- Cabin love flashbacks. Whatever, I don't care anymore =shifts away=.

Chapter 24:

- I knew it.
- Another great chapter, all 33 pages of it.
- Miranda does have an important role to play after all.
- Ohhhh noooooooo!!!!!

Chapter 25:

- Well, that's a relief.
- This chapter might have been more effective if the reader had gotten to know Meghan a bit better.
- Back in Pawntucket, and the author remembers Nina! And Jonah! They're part of the main cast now.

Chapter 26:

- And welcome to Expositionville!
- Nina is a lot nicer than when we last saw her. Glad she's still friends with Willow.
- Apart from Jonah, where are all the other adults? They can't all be in an Eden surely. And what about the little kids and babies? Are teenagers really the only people Willow has ever been in contact with all these years?
- Willow is playing the part of the oh-so-tolerable "denier of being a hero and world savior despite overwhelming evidence that says otherwise".
- But at least she still wants to help people and kick Raziel's arse.

Chapter 27:

- So Seb is finally over Willow. Would he be if he hadn't happened to have found another girl?
- And here comes Alex...

Chapter 28:

- Why would Alex not figure out the time differences between worlds yet? Surely he's read newspapers while travelling all the way from Denver to Pawntucket.
- And all is forgiven. OR IS IT!?
- Teenagers learning how to make bombs? In any other context, that would be highly questionable and scary in a YA book.

Chapter 29:

- No, go away Raziel. I want to see more of Willow and Alex.
- Raziel has no conscience after all then. I mean, I'd kind of figured that out already - with the multiple orders for genocide - but still.

Chapter 30:

- All is not peachy. Reality sets in and it is not romantic.
- "Do you want something to eat first? We've got canned stuff, or more canned stuff." Ha, I love Jonah.
- Wait, when did Nina and Jonah have time to travel and come back to Pawntucket without risk of angel detection?
- About the Planned Parenthood thing... can half-angels have children? It's never discussed.
- Willow, as much as I understand your feelings, you are a hypocrite for being angry at Alex for lying to you when you've just lied to him about all the Angel Killers being alive.

Chapter 31:

- Willow is officially dead inside? A woman, but a bitter one? Not what I'd call progressive, but I'm sure she'll get over it.
- Things can only get worse in the relationship department now. Oh and in the human-and-angel war too, of course.

Chapter 32:

- Poor Zaran.
- We finally see Aunt Jo again.
- I'd say this is contrived, but it forwards the plot and weaves things together so nicely, like Alex's threaded aura bracelet from Willow.

Chapter 34:

- Yep, I'd say that THAT little adventure with no consequences IS contrived.

Chapter 35:

- The time has finally come, and Willow doesn't seem to care at all about Alex's feelings or if he dies, despite everything that's happened in the last 500 pages.

Chapter 36:

- Willow, Alex and Seb are all at their lowest point in battle.
- I suppose Willow won't get lost in the angel's world after all.
- But she won't be a damsel in distress; she has power and knows how to use it. And her angel is an awesome friend.

Chapter 37:

- This is Willow's fight.
- Highly implausible and slightly anticlimactic, but an exhausting and breathtaking end to a trilogy.
- And Timmy in the photograph is not forgotten about.

Chapter 38:

- She still loves Alex, but is too shaken to show it.
- How will the world recover after global angel brainwashing, acts of regional genocide, and earthquakes?

Chapter 39:

- Humanity can move on. That I believe. I'm not cynical. (Though when taking religion into account...)

Chapter 40:

- The suspense just keeps coming!
- Why is Willow so modest about being a hero when she is one?
- That is beautiful - a perfect place for our favourite couple to kiss and make up.

Epilogue:

- Willow is still sad, but she can move on for real now. She has literally felt everyone's emotions and thoughts and she can protect them as well as herself. She is healing with love, but she's proven she can live without it. So she has at last grown up.
- Wait, is this another case of a boy getting all the credit for a girl's hard work? I hope not.
- I wish we could have seen more of Meghan.
- Cabin make-out: where it all started and where it all ends.
- Everyone who is said to be dead stays dead. This series is good at subverting tired cliches and cop-outs.
- So... where is Kara? And Liz? Are they still excessively traumatised or does everyone still living have a happily ever after?


There you are. Mixed feelings mixed with moments of danger, suspense, romantic love, family love, logistics, and everything coming together in a neat, fine package make 'Angel Fever' truly an epic conclusion to a book trilogy. If L.A. Weatherly did plan everything from the very beginning, then I am impressed; if not, then I'm even more so. This series is a cut above the rest of what some might call average YA literature, in my opinion.

Similar to the first installment, it has undeniable flaws. Nevertheless, in the end I loved it. And what a spectacular end at that!

But before I leave it there, I wish to talk about one particular element in the 'Angel Fever' trilogy that makes it stand out from your typical YA fantasy romance:

It shows how actual relationships work and function.

Everything that is said and done has consequences. This is effectively shown when we see what happens when two people - especially teenagers - fall in love with one another and become a couple. Nobody is perfect. No couple is perfect. No love is perfect. Because with every moment of peace and giving between lovebirds, there are disagreements and arguments as well. For every "I love you", "I will never leave you" and "You are my life for now and forever", there are the "whys" and "hows" and "whos"; the moments of uncertainty, doubt, confusion, anger, bitterness; all the things that are normal in a relationship. Especially in Willow and Alex's case when they are so inexperienced at being in love on top of dealing with angels and people out to kill them and they have to save the world - something they cannot even begin to know how to accomplish. Every romance is a challenge in itself. When you love someone, it is your responsibility to try to make things work out. How will you both be happy? Just being with someone isn't enough: human beings need more than that. They are complicated and complex and need more clarity and compromise when it comes to spending the rest of their lives with their "true loves". L.A. Weatherly writes this beautifully for a YA audience, without resorting to contrivances and melodrama (well, mostly). The relationship that Willow and Alex have is complicated and of course they are going to have troubles and trials and tribulations. But that's life. That's what being with another person means; maybe not right away but overtime the challenges and responsibilities will become more apparent. Perfect couples with no problems are not only boring, but unrealistic. Willow and Alex and their romance feel real because they have problems, and they have priorities and more important things to worry about than their hormones. But they still clearly care for each other.

But the ultimate question becomes this: Is it worth it? Is Willow's and Alex's teenage love worth fighting for? After reading three 500-700 page books about them now, I will answer: Hell yes. They're both great characters on their own and their chemistry is cute and has a lot of emotional and psychological backing to it. They are worth it. Their romance is worth it. They can be happy together. And I will be rooting for them all the way, for now and forever.

I'll be sad to say goodbye to them. But what a journey!

Series Verdict: Highly recommended for people not wanting to read a typical YA fantasy romance.

Final Score: 4.5/5

PS: I think Alex Kylar is a great action hero and would make a star out of his actor if the 'Angel Fever' series were to be adapted into a movie franchise.