This book started out as a very clever idea, an attractive, promising premise for a story. A man known only as Mr. Blank wakes up in an austere room with no memory of how he got there. Good premise, no? The writing lives up to the storyline. It is wonderful, minimalist, yet somehow very descriptive. The situation and mental tortures are almost Orwellian. The events and characters introduced were very intriguing. As you neared the end of the book you were starving to see how the author would tie all these mysterious events and people together.

Unfortunately, the ending made me so angry that I have ended up despising this book. Paul Auster is no Jonathan Fowles. Jumping into the story in the manner that he did shattered the entire point of reading his book. Well, if they are all just characters helping you live in infamy (which in and of itself is vain) then what the hell do I want to read your book for? No one cares if you live in infamy. You are not being deep by pointing this out when you have strung your reader along hoping for an ending to the story. It was even torture for Mr. Blank in the book when he could not find out the end to the story! You would think the author would realize what he is doing to his readers. If he does, then he is obviously having fun with the market. Frankly, I can’t believe the book was published with such a half-assed “deep” ending.

Later I discovered that the characters in this book are references to characters in his other books. This is wonderful and all, but the synopsis could have included this for the benefit of readers who haven’t read his past works. I don’t think I will be purchasing another one of Paul Auster’s book ever. Travels to the Scriptorium is a waste of time and effort if you have not read any of his other works. I also have a sneaking suspicion that even previous readers of Auster will find this particular novel stark, uninteresting, and an upfront waste of time.

This is without a doubt chick lit, the premise itself screams of it. So I wasn’t expecting anything deep, just a quick and lovely fluff read. That is exactly what I got, but like some forms of fluff, it was oddly addicting. Most women, by nature, fantasize about both real men and oftentimes imaginary ones. This is the common thread that links the readers of this book to Jane, the main character of Austenland.

Admittedly, quite a few things annoyed me about Jane as a character. She shared her first name with the writer who created her obsession (Mr. Darcy). I found this so matchy, matchy, and charming that it plucked at my nerves. There are a lot of odd coincidences in life, but in a book it seems incredibly forced and yanks you right out of the story. Jane’s pathetic attitude towards men who screwed her over was a real bother at first and for a great deal of the book I did not think that any significant change would occur in Jane from the start and end of the novel. Hale did not seem to address this issue into the end, where Jane finally gained the confidence to say no and end her life dangling on a string for men to eat then spit back out again. I found her much more sympathetic after she dropped the pathetic attitude.

The light bits in the beginning of each chapter about her ex-boyfriends and all the men in her life were laugh out loud funny. If only these poignant bits reflected the rest of the book. Many times the dialogue lacked a spark, an authenticity. Overall she improved as she reached the end of the novel, a welcoming change from the usual pattern. It became more and more funny as you read.

Though a lot of readers found this book predictable, which in many ways it was, I found myself believing Hale would take this novel in a different direction. I thought she would end up with Martin, the “real” guy. I was proud that she took it in the “follow your dreams” direction. It was a good fit for this particular novel.

Overall, it was a cute, addicting piece of fluff with enough Austen references to keep any fan good and happy.

I picked up this book on a Barnes & Noble bargain shelf. The flamboyant pink cover attracted the eye, but what forced me to page through was the fantastic and oh-so-true title. The corresponding essay was not a disappointment. I ended up reading 30 pages of it at the book store. I was hooked. Every other paragraph had me giggling at Rivenbark’s wry sense of humor. I had to purchase it.

Though I am a native to the technically Southern state of Maryland (the North thinks were Southern, the South thinks we‘re Northern, so who knows what we are), I found that many of these ironic stories and observations apply to everyday life of those both in and out of the South. That was the primary reason why I enjoyed it.

Some may believe you need to have kids to appreciate this side-splitting collection of essays, but I disagree. I have absolutely no intention of having kids, yet I found all the discussions about her family life to be relatable and downright hilarious. Perhaps, being an only child, I can relate to her daughter Sophie. Perhaps Celia reminds me a bit of my own mother (though a lot more funny). Either way, I found that these stories could easily be entertaining for everyone, at least a great deal of the American female population.

Ultimately, Celia Rivenbark is human, charming, and above all funny. This woman belongs in her field, without a doubt. I look forward to reading her other books.

This album was very raw and emotional. Overall I enjoyed it as a form of catharsis but their were quite a few things about it that turned me off, namely the metal cliches and all the talking.

Though I understand the depth of emotion she was attempting to get across, I found the very epic metaphors and comparisons she made to be almost laughable. All metal has this in some form or another, but it really stuck out in House of Secrets. Ultimately, her absurdly “metal” way of expression became funny at times and detracted from her message.

I found that Shattered Pieces and Suicide Trees would have been great if they had remained written pieces. Being read aloud to when I’m expecting music never works for me. There was far too much talking on this album.

The lead singer is no doubt talented. She can scream better than any leading man I’ve ever heard. I wonder if she can still talk after recording.

Either way, this album has its downfalls, but at the same time I think that anyone who has been through anything depressing or challenging in their lives can relate to some of their songs.

This is an incredibly personal album. It forces you to look at the darkest parts of yourself and of Tori. The lyrical composition is very emotional and very raw. I don’t think Tori edited herself at all when writing these songs and I definitely think this is a positive thing. Though at times her lyrics make no literal sense, they carry a great deal of depth and emotion. She is letting everything out and it acts as catharsis for both the singer and the listener.

I also enjoyed and admired the fact that a pop album could not only contain Tori’s very unique lyrics but instruments that you rarely here in modern songs, such as brass horns and the harpsichord. I didn’t think I’d ever hear a harpsichord outside of an Emilie Autumn album.

The highest points of the album were definitely “Blood Roses”, “Father Lucifer” and “Hey Jupiter”. Admittedly, I did not enjoy the second half of the album nearly as much as the first half.

This album is a living testament to not only Tori’s undeniable talent but her complex personality and emotions. I think everyone, especially women, should listen to this album and think about themselves.

This is most definitely party music. Rob Zombie has re-mixed some of his best for this album that will surely have you wanting to do a dark strip tease. “American Made Music to Strip By” takes party music in a completely different direction. It shows that you don’t need to listen to hip hop and R&B to bust a move. You can have your cake and eat it to!

There is nothing like sexy music with an edge. Loved this album.

This book was not a fantastic peace of work, but it was good for a beach-type of read. It was simple, easy to read through, with enough plot intricacy and subtle humor to keep me entertained. I have not read the first book, so I was a bit confused about the plethora of references to the other novel. Hopefully they will make it more clear on the book’s cover next time. Admittedly, the bits they referenced back to did pique my interest and I think I may read “The Dead Room” in the future.

I enjoyed Joe and Genevieve as a couple, though I believe Graham jumped into the closeness of their relationship a bit too early. It might have been a bit more suspenseful for everyone if she had kept them in limbo on their romantic relationship for awhile. Something different though I suppose.

The connection to Poe were what kept me interested. The red herrings throughout the book was appreciated, because I felt like I couldn’t predict what was going to happen. I still believe the entire story crumbled at the end, as though Graham could not come up with a suitable ending and simply threw one together. It was not paced correctly and seemed very, very random.

Graham should have gone in or out with the paranormal thing. Frankly, I wanted to see more of the ghostly things or take the out entirely. To me they simply hovered around in the story for deux ex machina purposes, which was extremely irritating. The ghosts seemed to have no other purpose but to tell the characters things and get them out of trouble when there was no other feasible escape method. Graham made a half hazard attempt to create minor conflict between Joe and Genevieve With the ghost thing but ultimately that fell short and didn’t seem legitimate. Overall, an interesting read for something I purchased on sale at the grocery store, but could have been a lot better.

This new NIN has me a bit torn. I’m not too fond of it, though I would most likely love it if I hadn’t listened to “The Downward Spiral” first.

Some of the excessively rhyming songs ended up getting annoying. I didn’t mind them in the long run I suppose, but certain tracks became very tedious because of this. “The Hand That Feeds” had a good idea in mind, but the lyrics themselves fell pray to the sing-songy lyrical setup, this was also the case with “Love Is Not Enough”.

My favorite tracks were “You Know What You Are” and “The Collector”. I also enjoyed “The Line Begins to Blur”.

I do understand that people want Trent to grow out of his angst subjects but truthfully I found this album to be the whiniest album of them all. The other albums seemed to be getting the point across in a more complex and thoughtful way. There is nothing wrong with being simplistic and straightforward, but I prefer the style of his previous work. The simplicity brought out the pure whiny factor much more, to the point where it became annoying in some places. He had to change sometime though. I hope the progress takes him in the right direction.

Overall this album was a lot more simplistic (in musical composition) and mainstream than his previous albums and though I enjoyed his edgier work more, I still found With Teeth to be worthy of consumption and I still respect Trent Reznor immensely. There are some low, cringe-worthy points and it could be quite a snore sometimes but in the grand scheme of things it wasn‘t nearly as bad as some people make it out to be

Though I didn’t like it as much as I liked “The Downward Spiral” it was still pretty good. “Survivalism” and “Capital G” were the best tracks.

his album is incredibly unique. There is nothing out there anything like Emilie Autumn. Her self-created genre, called “Victorian Industrial”, is a singular mixture of edgy industrial beats, classical violins and harpsichords, accompanied by Emilie’s equally vicious and pure vocal work.

Many of her songs were filled with clever references to historical figures and fictional characters. The subtle sexual innuendo and reference to Catherine Howard was greatly appreciated in the track “Marry Me”.

A lot of the tracks seemed to deal with her mentioned rape when she was 18 and I found many of those tracks to be the most powerful. This includes “Gothic Lolita”, “God Help Me”, “Let the Record Show”, and “I Want my Innocence Back”.

All that makes Emilie Autumn is wrapped up in this album. Victorian period, sexuality, rape, history, psychology, and a sharp tongue. I have far too many tracks I enjoy on thus album to possibly pick an ultimate favorite, but if I had to pick one it would most likely go to “Opheliac”.

And no offense to Emilie, but I found the song “Thank God I‘m Pretty” to be pretty hypocritical. The lyrics themselves were quite clever and her voice is lovely. But she of all people shouldn’t be discussing her audience not paying attention to her music and only to her body. No one is making her perform in lingerie. Just a thought. Still enjoyed the song though. My only complaint aside from that nitpicky detail is that at times she picks the strangest moments to change her vocal pitch and repeats certain lines of her lyrics too much. Sometimes they over-distort her voice with effects as well. I understand the industrial they’re going for, but there is a place for it.

Overall, Emilie Autumn has crafted a very unique genre with stimulating music and thoughtful, deliciously sarcastic lyrics. She is definitely one of my favorite artists.