The Picture of Dorian Gray - Oscar Wilde - UPDATED REVIEW

The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde  Genre : Classics Blurb (on back of book) : Oscar Wilde’s only novel is the dreamlike story of a young man who sells his soul for eternal youth and beauty. In this celebrated work Wilde forged a devastating portrait of the effects of evil and debauchery on a young aesthete in late-19th-century England. Combining elements of the Gothic horror novel and decadent French fiction, the book centers on a striking premise: As Dorian Gray sinks into a life of crime and gross sensuality, his body retains perfect youth and vigor while his recently painted portrait grows day by day into a hideous record of evil, which he must keep hidden from the world. For over a century, this mesmerizing tale of horror and suspense has enjoyed wide popularity. It ranks as one of Wilde's most important creations and among the classic achievements of its kind. UPDATED REVIEW MY OPINION : ****** I would like to start out this review by stating that this is undoubtedly m...
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They Both Die at the End - Adam Silvera

They Both Die at the End by Adam Silvera
Genre: YA Fiction
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Blurb (on back of book): On September 5, a little after midnight, Death-Cast calls Mateo Torrez and Rufus Emeterio to give them some bad news: They're going to die today. Mateo and Rufus are total strangers, but, for different reasons, they're both looking to make a new friend on their End Day. The good news: There's an app for that. It's called the Last Friend, and through it, Rufus and Mateo are about to meet up for one last great adventure and to live a lifetime in a single day.

 MY OPINION: *****

This just may be my favorite Adam Silvera book so far!

Before we start, I just want to say that I finished my 2017 reading challenge of 115 books with this book and I'm so happy! Next year, I'm going for 125!

This was an amazing last book of the year and I'm so glad that it wasn't something disappointing. I really enjoyed reading this book; let me tell you why now.

The characters for one... they were so real and I thought that these were some of the best personas that Adam Silvera has ever drawn up. Out of the three, these seemed to resonate the most with me. Their personalities were like real people and their actions and dreams and thoughts were just like real people, which I enjoyed.

Mateo was the type of person who is afraid to come out of his shell until someone else gives him a little bit of prodding—in this case, it was Rufus. His perspective was more of explaining how he wanted to live his last day the best that he could, though he may have been a bit reluctant in the beginning. If he successfully said his goodbyes, he would feel satisfied and ready to live. He was so nice.

Rufus was a boy who was living with the "ghosts of his past". His entire family died in an accident that he managed to survive, since it wasn't his End Day yet. I think with that kind of a tragedy in your background, it would be hard for him to try to do things on his End Day, but he succeeded. Of the two, I think I liked Rufus better, only because he was determined and brave even until the last second of his life.

Let me explain the premise of the book. There is a "program", shall we say, called the Death-Cast that lets you know on that day that you are going to die. They give you a call around midnight to 3AM and alerts you to the fact that you're going to die. They don't tell you how or when but at some point, you will kick the bucket.

Honestly, I don't think I would want to know the day that I am going to die. I would live that day in fear instead of living. I would rather just do things that are risky or living everyday instead of on my last day.

Also, what I was concerned about... what if someone doesn't have a phone?

Anyways, this book was heartwarming and sad (obviously). But even with all the serious and deep parts, it was a beautifully written novel that I will always love and possibly reread sometime in the near future.

I did like reading other random people's perspectives and learning how everything tied in together with the other characters and their findings. I thought that was ingenious and "cool", shall we say.

When they died, I actually cried. Mateo, why did you have to get up? And of course he died from something that he thought wouldn't matter. He even told his neighbor not to fix the stove. I love how this book tied in together but I also hated it at the same time.

I would recommend this book to young adult readers who are looking for a deep read filled with romance and adventure.

Main Character: Mateo and Rufus
Sidekick(s): Plutos, Lidia, etc
Villain(s): Death, not living, etc
Fiction Elements: Though many of the elements in this book were real to life, things like the Death-Cast or the Last Friend app are entirely made up... I think.

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