Runner by Carl Deuker

Blurb:

When a new job falls his way, Chance jumps at the opportunity, becoming a runner who picks up strange packages on a daily route and delivers them to a shady man at the marina. Chase knows how much he will earn—what he doesn’t know is how much he will pay.

Suspenseful, fast-paced, and timely, this novel avoids easy answers as it examines issues of terrorism and patriotism, fear and courage, and lives of privilege and poverty.

My Thoughts:

I bought this book on discount at--what else-- a library sale! 

*winces*

I know. I went into the library intending on paying some late fees but then I saw . . . Don't glare at me! What can I say? I'm addicted to books! You have been forewarned. 

Besides, guess the price?!

Come on, give it a good try!

Good guess, but this is the real price: 25 cents!!

I know, I know! I'm a good shopper thanks to my mother. 

Anyway, back to this book. When I read the blurb, I immediately picked it up because it enticed me and the price was just so wonderful that I couldn't leave it there.

And once I picked it up, I seriously couldn't put it down. I was so drawn in to this book. The main character was real, the setting was awesome (since I want to live in Seattle) and the situation was suspenseful. Some parts I even wanted to munch on some popcorn. 

And a miracle happened: At the end, I cried. I really did. I blame my hormones but in the end, I felt the characters pain and I connected even more to the character. 

Overall, this book is just what I've been looking for to give to the male audience in my class. Not that I have a class yet but I really think males will love this book along with females.

This book is just perfect for reluctant readers who want a quick adventure without the heaviness of fantasy books. 

Anyway, what did I love specifically about it?

Plot: This is his money maker. Omg. I was literally sucked in from the word go and moaned every time a chapter ended. At first, I was like, "Hmm, I think I know this is going." And near the end, I was dead on right. However, for the most part, I was thrown off. When I thought it would go one way he took in me in a new direction and I loved every minute of it. 

Character: Love his main character. He was just so real and had a lot of adult issues he had to deal with. 

I know a lot of the female readers are going, "You identified with a guy character?"

Um, yeah! Remember, I did the same thing for The Replacement. 

Why?

Because I knew that guy was for real. I could tell he was a dude, and I liked that I could actually be in a guys head for once. Actually, she has helped me identify with my males characters more and helped me write from a guys perspective even.

So yeah, when an author writes authentically (key word here) then I can identify with a guy perspective and most of the time, we have the same struggles just seen in a different light. And I like that.

I also loved the girl character. I know it's sad that I don't remember their names, but you'll soon see why at the bottom of this post. But if you've been keeping an eye on my twitter, then you already know. :)

Anyway, anyway . . .

Great array of characters. Perfect foils for each other. I love the rich poor contrast between the two characters. It's almost like the guy character is smarter because of the fact that he's poor and she's "dumb" because of the fact that she's rich. 

Or should I say street smarts versus book smarts?

Oh my, did I trip on a hot topic?! *wiggles eyebrows*

Anywho, as my friend would say, loved the characters and even the bully guy was a great character. 

Dialogue: It was real and there's this one line that I will not put up here that tugged at my heartstrings. Right near the end. You'll know it as soon as you're about to finish it. You'll go, "Omg, that was sooo . . . ah!"

Ah, love. It was just so perfect and the fact that he slipped it out and felt dumb for saying it made it all the better. It's like the fact that it was an accident made it better. It like came from a place deep. But yeah, love the dialogue. It was real and they even had some interesting debates in the classroom. 

So you know I was paying attention. I'm actually hoping to bring some of those topics into my classroom. :)

But overall, the dialogue was good.

Ending: PERFECT! So realistic and just wonderful. Even though I knew what was about to happen, I still loved it all the same. :) It made me cry and there's nothing more I could ask for. I was like, "Dang it! It was so good it made me cry!"

That's pretty rare that that happens. Seriously. It doesn't happen often. The last time I remember crying at the end of a book was for Violet in Reel Life. I didn't want that book to end. And it was her FIRST YA NOVEL!!!!! 

:O

And she decided, after some persuasion on the readers part probably, and decided to write a second book to it!!

Yippee! :)

Anyway, back to the point: So good it made me cry. Nothing more to ask for on that front. 

Would I recommend this book:

ABSOLUTELY!!! I love it and I know alot of readers will.

There was nothing offensive to me in this book. I don't remember any extreme cursing like in Gossip Girl (I stopped reading it because it was so bad compared to the show) so it should be fine for high school age and up since the content is a bit grown up. I think middle schoolers could handle it though. 

Love it. Grab it. Read it. Thank me later!

:)

Now let's see what book I was reading that distracted me . . .

Yes, that's right! I finally got my hands on this book and read it in a day. :)

It was THAT great. Gobbled it right up. And when I reached the end, I was like WHAT!?!?!?!?! NOOOOOOOOO!

I won't tell you why but I seriously cannot WAIT for the next book in this series: Bloodrose.

Perfect title too. Considering how she ended it anyway. 

Now you know why. It's hard to compete with a book as gorgeously written and crafted like Wolfsbane. Pretty much any book will lose. 

But I have to say, I got a lot of great books that I will hopefully review for you guys from the library. I was going to go to Books A Million yesterday (since my teacher wasn't there so I wasn't going to drive all the way over there for nothing so . . .) BUT guess what?

They closed the store!!!

*smacks cheek in shock*

And the nearest one? 30 minutes away! That's a whole lot of gas for some discounted books therefore, I went to the library and went crazy with the books. Apparently the selection has gotten A WHOLE LOT BETTER in the YA section! I couldn't help myself. I grabbed a whole bunch of graphic novels and ya novels. Next time, I will brave the fiction section and grab some Stephen King. Unless it's in a different section. Like mystery. 

I think it might be time to conquer my fears and pick up some Stephen King and Mark Edward Hall books. :) Can't wait for the next adventure into a new genre. Let the exploration begin!