Author: Zakiya N. Jamal

Zakiya N. Jamal was born in Queens, raised in Long Island, and currently resides in Brooklyn. In other words, she’s a New Yorker through and through. She holds a BA in English from Georgetown University and a MFA in Creative Writing with a concentration in Writing for Children and Young Adults from The New School. She has been published in Romper, BuzzFeed, People.com, Thought Catalog, and more. Her non-fiction essay about her "Cuban Impostor Syndrome" can be found in the Latinx anthology, Wild Tongues Can’t Be Tamed. You can find her on Twitter at @ZakiyaNJamal.

Woman Crush Wednesday: Rosie Dunne

Posted on by Zakiya N. Jamal in Blog

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If you haven’t read Love, Rosie (or Where The Rainbows End) please do so immediately. The story follows the WCW of the day, Rosie Dunne, and her best friend, Alex, through their lives of missed opportunities, complete misunderstandings, and tells a tale of love and loss all told through emails, letters, and IMs.

I specifically chose Rosie as my WCW because not only is she hilarious she’s also a very strong character. She has a bit of a rough go of it during her life but she makes it work. She doesn’t quit when things get hard and does everything she can to keep moving forward even when every obstacle seems to be standing in her way.

My heart broke for Rosie multiple times in this book and of course she made many mistakes but at her core Rosie is a genuinely loving and caring person that often put other people’s needs before her own. I loved watching Rosie grow from a young child to a reckless teen to a precarious young adult to a semi-wise grown up.

Just as most books these days there is a movie version of the novel but I do advise reading the book first if you’re going to see the movie. The movie itself isn’t bad but they did have to remove a lot of the story in order to shorten the film and although some may argue the shortening of the film is better than the long winded romance we’re given in the novel, I for one loved seeing Rosie and Alex take two steps forward and one step back (multiple times) in their relationship in the novel. But to each their own.

Honestly though, Rosie is a character you should get to know. She’s one of my favorite female characters and I love her wit and sass in this novel. I might have to go and reread this book now. I almost forgot just how much I love it. Good thing I own it.

‘[Greg] is the luckiest man in the world to have you, Rosie, but he doesn’t deserve you and you deserve far better. You deserve someone who loves you with every single beat of his heart, someone who thinks about you constantly, someone who spends every minute of every day just wondering what you’re doing, where you are, who you’re with and if you’re OK. You need someone who can help you reach your dreams and who can protect you from your fears. You need someone who will treat you with respect, love every part of you, especially your flaws. You should be with someone who can make you happy, really happy, dancing-on-air happy.’ – Love, Rosie

Book Review: End of Days

Posted on by Zakiya N. Jamal in Book Reviews

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Synopsis from Goodreads:

End of Days is the explosive conclusion to Susan Ee’s bestselling Penryn & the End of Days trilogy.

After a daring escape from the angels, Penryn and Raffe are on the run. They’re both desperate to find a doctor who can reverse the twisted changes inflicted by the angels on Raffe and Penryn’s sister. As they set off in search of answers, a startling revelation about Raffe’s past unleashes dark forces that threaten them all.

When the angels release an apocalyptic nightmare onto humans, both sides are set on a path toward war. As unlikely alliances form and strategies shift, who will emerge victorious? Forced to pick sides in the fight for control of the earthly realm, Raffe and Penryn must choose: Their own kind, or each other?

With World After I was disappointed with the lack of Raffe and Penryn scenes. End of Days completely makes up for that (thank you Susan Ee).

Similar to World After, End of Days picks back up right where the last book left off. I love all the books in this trilogy just about equally but this book may have been the best end of a dystopian trilogy I’ve ever read. I still have some lingering questions (we’ll get to those later) but overall Ee did an excellent job of wrapping things up perfectly.

In this novel Ee gave us a lot of action, the same amount of gruesome scenes, the perfect amount of romance (enough to appeal to my shipper heart but not so much that it felt like chick lit), and she gave us a kick butt heroine who still had the hormones of a teen but didn’t let that stop her from being, “Penryn Young. Daughter of Man. Killer of Angels.”

Seriously, Raffe is hot and all that but Penryn made this book for me. I’m so tired of seeing these dystopian heroines being portrayed as the hero but they actually do nothing. Katniss, although great, really didn’t change anything. She was just a symbol. Tris did actually change things but I’ll save my comments about that for my review of Allegiant.

My favorite part about End of Days was Penryn really coming into her hero role. She was making her way there throughout the novels with multiple heroic acts but this was the first time we really got to see Penryn be a leader and I loved it. No matter what her feelings are for Raffe she never lets that get in the way of protecting herself, her family, and mankind from the angels. To me that makes Penryn the ultimate boss. You go girl!

Now if you don’t want to be spoiled stop reading here because although I loved the book there’s one question that was not answered that needs to be brought up.

Again, stop reading if you don’t want to be spoiled.

Last warning, there are spoilers ahead.

Have you left yet? Okay, good.

Overall the book was great and yes it tied up the trilogy nicely and I’m so glad Raffe and his Watchers (who are my favorites, by the way) are staying on Earth and Raffe and Penryn get to live happily ever after. Except, do they? Because isn’t Raffe basically immortal? So won’t he not get older? How will that work?

They can get married and have kids but Penryn will age and Raffe won’t. How will they handle that? Or is Raffe somehow mortal now? I need to know! Ee please answer my questions. Give me a short story or something.

Moreover, do a second epilogue because honestly I could’ve done without the first one. It didn’t really add anything to the book other than letting us know Paige will be okay, which really could’ve been just another sentence in the last chapter to be honest. Why give us an epilogue and not explain Raffe’s immortality? Or go further into the future and so the world actually becoming better and the angels being gone. I rather the book just ended with the last chapter because the epilogue was truly disappointing.

Even so, I still love this book and the trilogy as a whole. A job well done indeed.

Favorite Line: 

‘You accept me just the way I am, regardless of whether or not I even have wings. Even when I had my demon wings, you’ve never looked at me with pity. You’ve never wavered in your loyalty. That’s who you are—my brave, loyal, lovable Daughter of Man.’

Stars: 5 out of 5. Even with the unanswered question I still have to give this book five stars. I’ve reread scenes from this book so many times it’s kind of embarrassing.

Borrow or Buy: Buy. Is this a real question?

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Man Crush Monday: Hector “Jesse” De Silva

Posted on by Zakiya N. Jamal in Blog

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Take a hot, Mexican gentleman from the early 19th century and place him in the 21st century and you not only have a genuine nice guy but I’d say a diamond in the rough. Too bad this guy is a ghost.

Jesse, the male lead in Meg Cabot’s Mediator series is everything you could want in a guy. He’s charming, funny, hot, and your knight in shining armor when you need him (although he totally understands that you can kick butt on your own). Unfortunately, Jesse is dead. And not hot vampire type dead, I mean really dead.

Which makes it very interesting that he’s clearly the love interest for one Ms. Susannah Simon but that’s what makes these books awesome (besides the crime fighting and other amazing plot points).

Although the Mediator series isn’t new I’m surprised by the amount of people that have never heard of it much less read it. If you’re one of those poor unfortunate souls please pick up these books and fall in love with Jesse ASAP. You won’t regret it. Trust me.

‘I may have been dead for the past hundred and fifty years, Susannah,’ Jesse said, ‘but that doesn’t mean I don’t know how people say good night. And generally, when people say goodnight, they keep their tongues to themselves.’ – The Ninth Key

POLL: What’s The Best Vampire Series?

Posted on by Zakiya N. Jamal in Blog

Vamps

Remember when everyone was obsessed with vampires? Okay, maybe it’s still happening but it was definitely much more popular a few years back. Everyone has their own opinions about Twilight, good and bad, but there were so many vamp series out there. Which one was your favorite? Choose yours in the poll below. Don’t see your fave? Sound off in the comments and let me know which ones I missed.

 

Woman Crush Wednesday: Susannah “Suze” Simon

Posted on by Zakiya N. Jamal in Blog

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I haven’t read the Mediator series in quite sometime but I still love Suze Simon. I have read and reread this series at least twice (but quite possibly more than that). Besides having the super cool and also interesting ability to see, speak to, and touch ghosts, Suze is an all around cool person.

Her abilities to interact with ghosts makes her a mediator whose job it is to make sure ghosts move on to … well, wherever it is they’re supposed to go. Although Suze isn’t always thrilled about the job she still does it, which is something I admire about her.

Besides this, Suze also has awesome fashion sense and a bit of a tough girl attitude. She feels like she can take care of herself and doesn’t need anyone’s help, which isn’t always true. When she has to she’s willing to swallow her pride and accept help, although she usually does it begrudgingly.

Overall, Suze is compassionate and really does try her best to help the ghosts she meets. She’s also really close to her mom since it’s been just the two of them for a while after her Dad died. Even though her mom has remarried and Suze has a new step family filled with three step brothers, Suze still feels protective over her mom and eventually becomes protective of her new family as well.

Suze has a big heart even though she tries to hide it sometimes and I kind of like that about her. A girl with a tough exterior but a heart of gold.

If you haven’t read the Mediator series yet I would definitely recommend it, especially because there’s apparently a new adult book in the series coming out next year. I can’t wait!

‘I’ll tell you what kind of girl I’m not,’ I said crankily. ‘I am not the kind of girl who’s looking to share her room with a member of the opposite sex. Understand me? So either you move out, or I force you out. It’s entirely up to you. I’ll give you some time to think about it. But when I get back here, Jesse, I want you gone.’ – Shadowland

Book Review: All Fall Down

Posted on by Zakiya N. Jamal in Book Reviews

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*This book is part of my POPSUGAR 2015 Reading Challenge*

Synopsis from Amazon:

Grace Blakely is absolutely certain of three things:

1. She is not crazy.
2. Her mother was murdered.
3. Someday she is going to find the killer and make him pay.

As certain as Grace is about these facts, nobody else believes her — so there’s no one she can completely trust. Not her grandfather, a powerful ambassador. Not her new friends, who all live on Embassy Row. Not Alexei, the Russian boy next door, who is keeping his eye on Grace for reasons she neither likes nor understands.

Everybody wants Grace to put on a pretty dress and a pretty smile, blocking out all her unpretty thoughts. But they can’t control Grace — no more than Grace can control what she knows or what she needs to do. Her past has come back to hunt her . . . and if she doesn’t stop it, Grace isn’t the only one who will get hurt. Because on Embassy Row, the countries of the world stand like dominoes, and one wrong move can make them all fall down.

The title of this book should’ve been, “I’m not crazy.” The narrator, Grace, said this so many times I lost count. I understood why she was saying it. No one believes her when she says her mother’s death wasn’t an accident but instead murder. And she’s been saying this for three years; I can see how that could drive someone, well, crazy.

I don’t want to spoil the book so I will neither confirm nor deny if Grace is in fact crazy or not. What I will say is I’m not a fan of her family and how they handle her. I understand why they don’t believe Grace but to lock her up in a hospital and make her take meds just seems a bit much to me.

This book frustrated me mostly because I was frustrated for Grace. I believed her from the beginning and couldn’t understand how no one else could. Granted there were some moments when I wasn’t sure if Grace was in fact a reliable narrator, but I still trusted her. I wanted someone to listen to her like I was listening to her. Of course, that’s easier said than done.

The book is basically a huge mystery. Is Grace crazy? Did the guy with the scar really kill her mom? If so, why? Who is he working for? Is he trying to kill again? If so, who?

For me, this was too many questions. I just found myself frustrated the whole novel. I understand that Ally Carter was setting us up for a new series and I’m sure we’ll get more answers in the following books but I just became annoyed with this novel. Moreover, I wanted more romance. Or more friendship. Grace is constantly lonely, and I, in turn, felt that loneliness. I found this book both frustrating and a little depressing.

And we’re not exactly given a happy ending either. I won’t go into detail but the book definitely ends on a cliff hanger. A very unsatisfying one I might add.

Overall, the book wasn’t terrible. It was well written and there was definitely a twist I wasn’t expecting. Carter did well in catching me by surprise and I’ll probably read the next book to know what happens text, so it that regard she was successful. However, compared to her other series, the Gallagher Girls and Heist Society, I wasn’t impressed. I expected something better. Something more exciting. Hopefully the next book is better. For now, I’m not a fan.

Favorite Line:

I have to smile. He’s such a dork. But I’m starting to realize the one good thing that’s happened: he’s my dork.

Stars: 3 out 5. I didn’t hate it but I didn’t love it either.

Borrow or Buy: Borrow.

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Man Crush Monday: Charles Carrington “Chubs” Meriwether IV

Posted on by Zakiya N. Jamal in Blog
Photo Courtesy Of imgbuddy.com
Photo Courtesy of imgbuddy.com

Oh Chubs. I feel for Chubs. He’s given so many nicknames in The Darkest Minds trilogy I won’t dare try to list them all.

There’s so many reasons to love Chubs. First of all, he’s a cute nerd with his glasses and random knowledge. He knows how to sew because his father, a doctor, taught him just in case Chubs or someone he knew got wounded on the road. Besides that, Chubs just knows a lot of medical stuff in general, which makes him a very useful friend to have when you’re on the run, which is almost all the time for kids in this dystopian trilogy.

Additionally, Chubs is sassy and overprotective. When newcomer, Ruby, joins his tight knit group, Chub’s is the opposite of welcoming. He doesn’t want anything to do with her and would prefer their group leader, Liam, toss her back on the road where she came from. Unfortunately, or luckily depending on how you look at it, Chubs is ignored and Ruby becomes part of the group.

Chubs sass is unparalleled, however. He let’s his opinions be known throughout the novels and rarely sugarcoats things. If Liam is an optimist, Chubs is a realist. He knows his dystopian world is jacked up and he fully acknowledges that. All the same, Chubs provides comic relief throughout the books dropping the best one liners I’ve ever read.

Lastly, Chubs is my MCM this week because not only can he make people laugh, he’s also the glue that holds his group together. Chubs doesn’t have time for the drama, all he cares about is the survival of his newly constructed family. Chubs is brave when he needs to be and speaks up when he knows one (or two) of his friends are in the wrong. Although he’s often not seen as the leader of the group, I don’t think their group would’ve survived if they didn’t have Chubs.

To see Chubs sass in all it’s glory read, The Darkest Minds trilogy ASAP.

‘That is physically impossible,’ Chubs groused. ‘He’d be–‘
‘Actually,’ Liam began, ‘Cole once did try to–What?’
‘Oh, I’m sorry,’ Chubs said, ‘apparently the middle of my sentence interrupted the beginning of yours. Do continue.’ – Never Fade

POLL: Who’s The Best Dystopian Heroine?

Posted on by Zakiya N. Jamal in Blog

Dystopian Heroine

Dystopian’s are widely popular right now. Between The Hunger Games and Divergent, dystopias have left book form and moved to the big screen. Of course, a lot of these dystopians start to run together and some could even argue they’re all the same. Even so, that doesn’t stop people from having their favorite characters. So are you more a Katniss or Tris? Choose you’re favorite dystopian heroine and see if yours comes out on top. (Note: This poll only includes the main heroines of these novels. It’d be too big of a list if I included every heroine from every dystopian novel but that’ll be another poll, don’t worry.)

Woman Crush Wednesday: Rue

Posted on by Zakiya N. Jamal in Books

Rue

I’ve been feeling like my WCW’s have been lacking color. Therefore this Woman Crush Wednesday I’d like to shout out Rue, from The Hunger Games. Although I’m sure you can still find people who will debate whether or not she’s Black, the truth is she is indeed a POC and everyone just needs to accept that.

If you haven’t read/seen The Hunger Gamesset, I’d advise you do that first before reading this post. There will be spoilers!

Moving on, what makes Rue fantastic isn’t just that she’s a POC. She’s incredibly courageous for a young girl thrown into a battle to the death. Rather than just give up she learns how to hide in trees and protect herself. Additionally, she becomes a great ally to Katniss, helping Katniss get out of a very sticky situation by showing Katniss a nest of tracker jackers to use against the Careers.

Rue is also fiercely loyal. She stands by Katniss’ side to the very bitter end and does everything she can to help keep Katniss alive. I won’t go into how the POC’s in The Hunger Games were really just tools to help promote the survival of the main, white protagonists. That could be another blog post in it of itself.

What I will say is Rue was a cute, young girl, who may not have been fearless but definitely didn’t just cower in the background. When push came to shove Rue was willing to do what it took to strike the Careers back and make them suffer in the games. Rest in paradise, Rue.

But I feel as if I did know Rue, and she’ll always be with me. Everything beautiful brings her to mind. I see her in the yellow flowers that grow in the Meadow by my house. I see her in the Mockingjays that sing in the trees. But most of all, I see her in my sister, Prim. – Catching Fire

Book Review: World After

Posted on by Zakiya N. Jamal in Book Reviews, Books

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Synopsis from Amazon:

In this sequel to the bestselling fantasy thriller, Angelfall, the survivors of the angel apocalypse begin to scrape back together what’s left of the modern world. When a group of people capture Penryn’s sister Paige, thinking she’s a monster, the situation ends in a massacre. Paige disappears. Humans are terrified. Mom is heartbroken.

Penryn drives through the streets of San Francisco looking for Paige. Why are the streets so empty? Where is everybody? Her search leads her into the heart of the angels’ secret plans, where she catches a glimpse of their motivations, and learns the horrifying extent to which the angels are willing to go.

Meanwhile, Raffe hunts for his wings. Without them, he can’t rejoin the angels, can’t take his rightful place as one of their leaders. When faced with recapturing his wings or helping Penryn survive, which will he choose?

*Warning this review will contain spoilers for Angelfall. Read at your own risk*

I finished this book in a day. A legit day. I was hooked. I’m pretty sure I sped read just because I needed to see more of Raffe and Penryn. I was disappointed to find, however, that their first scene together didn’t come until I was at 72% in the book. Even so, I really liked this book.

Not as action packed as Angelfall, World After begins right where we left off with Penryn scaring everyone by “waking from the dead”. The lack of action was made up for with the increase of knowledge. In this novel we learn more about the politics of the angels, what exactly it is Uriel, the Politician, is up to, and why Raffe is so damn afraid to admit his feelings for Penryn.

This novel also delved into Raffe’s past a bit with the help of his handy, dandy sword, Pooky Bear. Although there wasn’t a lot there was still definitely enough action to keep me entertained and glued to this book. Moreover, Susan Ee, refuses to shy away from gruesome and violent scenes, and just goes for it, which I actually liked.

What I also liked about this book was seeing more of Penryn’s mom and Paige. It was nice to see their family dynamic instead of just hearing about how it used to be. Additionally, although Penryn’s mom is still definitely crazy, I came to respect her more in this novel.

Overall, I kept reading for the Raffe and Penryn scenes but I enjoyed the novel for it’s high stake drama and fight scenes. Definitely need to read the next book as soon as possible. I need to know what happens next!

Favorite Line:

I look up to say something but [Raffe] puts his finger to my lips and whispers, ‘Don’t talk. You’ll just spoil my fantasy of rescuing an innocent damsel in distress as soon as you open your mouth.’

Stars: 4 out of 5. I really would’ve preferred more Raffe and Penryn. Otherwise, great book!

Borrow or Buy: Buy!! I’ve already reread some scenes because I’m still not over how good it is.

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