The Sequel Edition

I have not blogged much recently, but I have read 15 books since I last posted a review.

I'm out of control.

Truth is, I'm actually expecting a new little reader to join my family this fall and I have been sick, sick, sick. The only thing I've had the energy to do is lay on the couch with a book. Books aren't the perfect morning sickness cure, but they make a good distraction from constant nausea. Thankfully, my first trimester is over and I can feel my energy s l o w l y returning. And now I have some catching up to do! First up, the big sequels (spoilers inevitable for their predecessors):

From Goodreads:
June and Day arrive in Vegas just as the unthinkable happens: the Elector Primo dies, and his son Anden takes his place. With the Republic edging closer to chaos, the two join a group of Patriot rebels eager to help Day rescue his brother and offer passage to the Colonies. They have only one request—June and Day must assassinate the new Elector.

It’s their chance to change the nation, to give voice to a people silenced for too long.

But as June realizes this Elector is nothing like his father, she’s haunted by the choice ahead. What if Anden is a new beginning? What if revolution must be more than loss and vengeance, anger and blood—what if the Patriots are wrong?

In this highly-anticipated sequel, Lu delivers a breathtaking thriller with high stakes and cinematic action.

My Rating: 4 / 5 stars

Legend was right up there with my favorite books of last year as a totally epic dystopian. I loved its energy and Prodigy somehow manages to pick up the pace even more! Both of these books read like highly entertaining movies. Marie Lu's writing is very visual and energetic and I was completely swept up in the story. There are some new twists and turns and surprises and I loved it all.

Sequel Romance trap? Yeah, there's a little bit of that going on. I always hate it when a couple fights so hard to be together in a first book, and then right away in the sequel they begin to doubt each other and secondary love interests are introduced. Prodigy has all of that, but the focus of this book is more on story and action than romance anyway, so it didn't feel like too much of the book was spent on sappy love complications. June and Day have ZERO time for sap in their lives.

A couple of complaints: there's so much action, that at times I felt like I wanted more character development. There wasn't enough time to get as deep into their emotions as I usually like in a story. And my biggest complaint is the ending. Won't say much, but I was really irritated at what felt like, to me, a pretty unnecessary way to keep the tension going for a third book. I was going to read it anyway. She didn't have to go there.

Overall, though, I love this series for its intensity and its sheer awesomeness. Can't wait to see what happens to June and Day in the final book.

Content: A steamy kiss, a little swearing, and plenty of action scenes, some kind of violent but not much blood and gore.

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 From Goodreads:
DARKSOULS
Ana has always been the only one. Asunder. Apart. But after Templedark, when many residents of Heart were lost forever, some hold Ana responsible for the darksouls–and the newsouls who may be born in their place.

SHADOWS
Many are afraid of Ana’s presence, a constant reminder of unstoppable changes and the unknown. When sylph begin behaving differently toward her and people turn violent, Ana must learn to stand up not only for herself but for those who cannot stand up for themselves.

LOVE
Ana was told that nosouls can’t love. But newsouls? More than anything, she wants to live and love as an equal among the citizens of Heart, but even when Sam professes his deepest feelings, it seems impossible to overcome a lifetime of rejection.

In this second book in the Newsoul trilogy, Ana discovers the truth about reincarnation and will have to find a way to embrace love and make her young life meaningful. Once again, Jodi Meadows explores the extraordinary beauty and shadowed depths of the soul in a story equal parts epic romance and captivating fantasy.

My Rating: 3 / 5 stars

Incarnate was totally weird, but in a super fascinating way and I was really looking forward to figuring out some of the answers behind all the mysteries with Asunder. Good news! Asunder provides major answers and they are pretty mind-blowing. Sometimes a series will make me wait until the third book to figure things out, but Asunder was a very kind second book. Of course, that doesn't mean things are going to be easier for Ana in book 3, but now I'm getting ahead of myself.

So despite Ana's heroic actions at the end of book 1, people are still terrified of her as a newsoul, still freaked out that they will all be replaced, and still mourning for all those souls lost who will never be reincarnated again. Ana is seriously bullied and at times violently terrorized and it was interesting to see how she handled that and nice to see the way Sam stood by her. And sequel romance? There are some concerns to keep them from openly declaring they love each other and some doubts and arguments along the way, but it all felt really natural. But I have to say that the romantic atmosphere in this series is weird, mostly because these are people who have been reincarnated for thousands of years, falling in love with different people and being different genders at times and in general its all a mess. There is a major character introduced who was once in love with Sam, but it doesn't affect Sam and Ana's feelings for each other in a bad way.

My favorite part was the answers. What are sylphs? Why is this particular group of people able to reincarnate? How? Where did Ana come from and why aren't there other newsouls? It all makes sense now, but Ana has to go through some pretty harrowing experiences (dealing with a certain uber-creepy temple) to find everything out. I'm going to be reading the conclusion and I'm looking forward to seeing how it all wraps up.

Content: No sex scenes, but plenty of hints that it's moving that direction for Ana and Sam. Can't remember if there's swearing. Nothing truly vulgar and memorable at least, since I can't remember :D. A little violent at times and there are a couple of stomach-turning descriptions (things Ana sees in the temple).

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 From Goodreads:
When Philip Walker appears as a new student in Michele Windsor's high school class, she is floored. He is the love she thought she lost forever when they said goodbye during her time travels last century. Overjoyed that they can resume the relationship they had a lifetime ago, Michele eagerly approaches him and discovers the unthinkable: he doesn't remember her. In fact, he doesn't seem to remember anything about the Philip Walker of 1910.

Michele then finds her father's journals, which tell stories of his time-traveling past. As she digs deeper, she learns about his entanglement with a mysterious and powerful organization called the Time Society and his dealings with a vengeful Windsor ancestor. Michele soon finds herself at the center of a rift over 120 years in the making, one whose resolution will have life-or-death consequences.

Alexandra Monir's Timekeeper combines breathtaking romance with a tale of complex magic in a sequel that will have every reader believing in the transcendent power of love.

My Rating: 2 / 5 stars

This one isn't as big a sequel as the others, but I was looking forward to reading it anyway. There aren't enough good time travel books in YA lit and I enjoyed Alexandra Monir's take with Timeless. She did a great job with a lot of fun New York history and a cool magic/time traveling system. My biggest problem was the romance. Too cheesy. The sequel, I'm sorry to say (and you can probably tell just by looking at the cover) is even more cheesy. It's just so "our love is so epic but we are kept apart by time and it's so tragic so feel bad for us!" without the actual epicness to back it up.

There's plenty more cool time traveling and some fun back stories are added. The world is fleshed out even more with info on Michele's dad and his time traveling story. There's more awesome history too. The plot introduces a great villain, but the way said villain is disposed of at the end was so easy, so convenient, I'm wishing she hadn't been introduced at all.

And like I said, the romance is the worst. Philip somehow appears in modern times with no memory whatsoever of Michele. She pines for him and he dates the most popular girl in school in front of Michele, making her crazy depressed and jealous (it was kind of irritating and more than a little cliche). Later, when it's explained how he's able to be in modern times (and when he all of a sudden remembers that he so, so, so loves her) it was beyond annoying because the solution is just too implausible. Blech. I wasn't impressed.

Once more, like in Timeless, music plays a big part in the story, something I normally love (since I am a musician). But when Michele and Philip write songs together I can't help but find them underwhelming, especially when the book compares their songs to true greats like Gershwin's "You Can't Take That Away" and Billy Joel's "And So It Goes".

I hate to rag so much on this and go on and on, but when I dislike something I really do try and back it up with proof why. Sorry Alexandra Monir! I find your story a bit unimaginative despite a very promising set-up. We'll see if I decide to read the third book. Right now I'm not convinced I want to commit any more time to this series.

Content: A little swearing, but nothing else.

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From Goodreads:
It's been months since Aria last saw Perry. Months since Perry was named Blood Lord of the Tides, and Aria was charged with an impossible mission. Now, finally, they are about to be reunited. But their reunion is far from perfect. The Tides don't take kindly to Aria, a former Dweller. And with the worsening Aether storms threatening the tribe's precarious existence, Aria begins to fear that leaving Perry behind might be the only way to save them both.

Threatened by false friends, hidden enemies, and powerful temptations, Aria and Perry wonder, Can their love survive through the ever night?

In this second book in her spellbinding Under the Never Sky trilogy, Veronica Rossi combines fantasy and dystopian elements to create a captivating love story as perilous as it is unforgettable.

My Rating: 4 / 5 stars

I really liked this and immediately felt like I was able to get right back into Aria and Perry's world. Sometimes it takes me forever to get back into a sequel, but it was easy to remember what had happened in Under the Never Sky as soon as I was a handful of pages in. I think that's a testament to Veronica Rossi's great writing and truly memorable and fascinating world and story.

I loved exploring more of this world through Aria's travels with Roar. She's not the clueless girl she was at the beginning of book one and I love the fierce and capable woman she's become. Roar is also a favorite character of mine just because he's so fun to be around. This book needs the way he lightens things up because it's intense and dark. Things are not going well for anyone, especially Perry, who's trying his best to handle responsibility as Blood Lord and not being very successful. The aether is ramping up its destructive power and while I still don't have answers to what and why and how it works, I'm hoping those are coming in book three. I can be patient. Maybe.

This book is a rescue mission. Aria's trying to rescue Perry's sister, Perry is trying to rescue his tribe, and there's another big rescue mission at the end that I won't detail for spoilers' sake. There's plenty of danger and it's thrillingly fast-paced. Loved it.

How does the romance fare? Typical sequel. Aria and Perry doubt each other and secondary love interests show up. This is the aspect that knocked my review down a star. It was very cliche and I wanted it to be so much more. Disappointing, especially because it's obvious Aria and Perry will end up happily ever after (somehow someday) and these things are obviously just a distraction and a stretching device.

Still, I'm dying to check out Into the Still Blue.

Content: Minimal swearing, hinted at sexual content (nothing on page), and a fair bit of violence - blood, death, and burning. Nothing that made me feel extra nauseous (though it's hard to tell when that's how I feel anyway :D)

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That's all I've gotten to so far of this year's big sequels. I'm still waiting for Marissa Meyer's Scarlet, which I'm dying to read. I held out because I was too poor to buy it before, but it's now on its way to me in the mail. Hooray!!! I actually reread Cinder to get ready for it and fell in love with it all over again. If you haven't read Cinder, go do it right now. The BEST, most creative cinderella retelling in existence.

Read any good sequels lately? Especially without sequel phase romance?

Mini Reviews: 3 - 8 - 13

 Wow, have I read a lot of great books lately! And sometimes when I speed-read through a batch, it's easier to do a quick, whirlwind review of a few while they're still fresh on my mind. :D

From Goodreads:
Imagine a place where the dead rest on shelves like books.

Each body has a story to tell, a life seen in pictures that only Librarians can read. The dead are called Histories, and the vast realm in which they rest is the Archive.

Da first brought Mackenzie Bishop here four years ago, when she was twelve years old, frightened but determined to prove herself. Now Da is dead, and Mac has grown into what he once was, a ruthless Keeper, tasked with stopping often—violent Histories from waking up and getting out. Because of her job, she lies to the people she loves, and she knows fear for what it is: a useful tool for staying alive.

Being a Keeper isn’t just dangerous—it’s a constant reminder of those Mac has lost. Da’s death was hard enough, but now her little brother is gone too. Mac starts to wonder about the boundary between living and dying, sleeping and waking. In the Archive, the dead must never be disturbed. And yet, someone is deliberately altering Histories, erasing essential chapters. Unless Mac can piece together what remains, the Archive itself might crumble and fall.

In this haunting, richly imagined novel, Victoria Schwab reveals the thin lines between past and present, love and pain, trust and deceit, unbearable loss and hard-won redemption.

My Rating: 4.5 / 5 stars

Wow, The Archived blew me away. First, I absolutely love a good, original, after-life kind of story and in The Archived, I found an immensely creative and awesome after-life mythology. I thought the whole concept of the Archive and of MacKenzie's job as a keeper patrolling the Narrows for escaped, ghost-like Histories was so cool. She was a great and very real character, full of layers and conflicting relationships - but packed with talent and fighting skills. But my favorite part was that most of this story is a very spooky and very well-done murder mystery, all taking place in the best place for such a thing - an old hotel turned apartment complex that Mac's family has just moved into. As if the Archive itself wasn't a cool enough setting. Mac can literally read the layers of history in the building by touching objects and floors and I was just so engrossed by that part of the story.

The story progresses slowly at first and I had a harder time with the beginning when it just felt like so much information to process, but by the middle it flew. I was completely into the story and desperate to see each new development. Read the second half in one sitting it was that hard to put down. I knocked down a half star from my rating only because I was able to predict very early on exactly who Mac should definitely not have been trusting. And a slight deduction was necessary because the love interest is described as a eyeliner-wearing, black-painted nails, goth kind of guy. Yuck. Not my idea of attractive. But as a character he was fascinating and in fact, all the characters were fully-developed and well-described. The librarians (especially Roland) were my favorite. :D

In short, this is a totally original, kind of spooky, and incredibly entertaining read. There will be a sequel, but thankfully this reads as a stand-alone without any mean cliffhangers. Highly recommended!

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 From Goodreads:
The greatest warrior in all of the Seven Kingdoms... is a girl with yellow eyes.

Kira’s the only female in the king’s army, and the prince’s bodyguard. She’s a demon slayer and an outcast, hated by nearly everyone in her home city of Hansong. And, she’s their only hope...

Murdered kings and discovered traitors point to a demon invasion, sending Kira on the run with the young prince. He may be the savior predicted in the Dragon King Prophecy, but the missing treasure of myth may be the true key. With only the guidance of the cryptic prophecy, Kira must battle demon soldiers, evil shaman, and the Demon Lord himself to find what was once lost and raise a prince into a king.

Intrigue and mystery, ancient lore and action-packed fantasy come together in this heart-stopping first book in a trilogy.

My Rating: 4 / 5 stars

I wasn't sure what to expect from Prophecy. The concept looked awesome to me, but I read a lot of negative reviews so I was worried that it would fall short. And it was not love at first page. I felt a little bit like I was forcing myself to keep going when I started it. I loved the Korean influence and the concept was still interesting and magical, but the characters were hard to like. Character development really suffered and I hardly felt like I knew anyone or how Kira related to others and why she liked certain people but not some, etc... I was about to put it down when somewhere around the halfway point the magic happened. And all of a sudden the book just started to rock. All these incredibly magical things happened and there were cool objects and prophecies fulfilled and dragons and a quest and water spirits and Kira was totally in her warrior, demon-fighting groove and I got completely swept up in it. At the end I closed the book and thought, "I loved that! 5 stars!!!" And then I had to say, "Cool your jets. Remember how we didn't like the beginning?" And so the result is 4 stars for Prophecy and I am for sure checking out the sequel whenever it comes out.

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 From Goodreads:
After defying the ruthless Enclave, surviving the wasteland, and upending the rigid matriarchy of Sylum, Gaia Stone now faces her biggest challenge ever. She must lead the people of Sylum back to the Enclave and persuade the Protectorat to grant them refuge from the wasteland. In Gaia's absence, the Enclave has grown more cruel, more desperate to experiment on mothers from outside the wall, and now the stakes of cooperating or rebelling have never been higher. Is Gaia ready, as a leader, to sacrifice what--or whom--she loves most?

My Rating: 3 /5 stars

Promised is book 3 in the Birthmarked trilogy, so if you want to avoid spoilers for books 1 and 2, skip this review.

I've finally gotten around to finishing this trilogy, and I really think that I've liked each book less and less as it's gone on. By Promised I was heartily sick of the love square and especially sick of Leon. What a constant drain he was on the story! He's so depressing and I wasn't really sure if I trusted him either. But, I kept reading for Gaia, and she's always been the saving grace of this story. Gaia is a great character. I love her background as a midwife and I like that she's been forced into the role of leader not because she wants it, but because she has to do it to help her people. She also makes mistakes and is very human and likeable. I love all the medical ethical questions this series brings up too. Overall, I didn't love the romance, and since most of this book is about the romance it really brought my rating down. Despite that, this is a fascinating dystopian world and the trilogy is worth reading if you absolute need a new dystopian. :D

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From Goodreads:
Jackson Meyer has thrown himself into his role as an agent for Tempest, the shadowy division of the CIA that handles all time-travel-related threats. Despite his heartbreak at losing the love of his life, Jackson has proved himself to be an excellent agent. However, after an accidental run in with Holly—the girl he altered history to save—Jackson is once again reminded of what he's lost. And when Eyewall, an opposing division of the CIA, emerges, Jackson and his fellow agents not only find themselves under attack, but Jackson begins to discover that the world around him has changed and someone knows about his erased relationship with Holly, putting both their lives at risk all over again.
My Rating: 4 / 5 stars

Vortex is book 2 in the Tempest trilogy. SPOILERS

Tempest was exactly the kind of time travel book I love best, all twisty and complicated and mind-bending, and the good news is that Vortex continues the awesomeness (minus the cover, which I don't think qualifies for awesomeness - not my favorite). Plus, Jackson is now training with the CIA and a good portion of the beginning goes through that. I thought it was so interesting and I liked reading about the conflicted lives of CIA agents and how they have to lie to so many people about what they do. There are some great new characters too. Then everything goes crazy again with lots of time travel mix-ups and a certain child named Emily appears again from the future making things very complicated (she's my favorite). And there's plenty of Holly, too, though things are not right since Jackson and Holly's original timeline got all skewed. Anyway, it's all a big mess, but I'm a big fan of time travel messes. :D It ends in kind of a shocking place and I can't wait to see what happens in the final book.

One star off my rating for content - too much swearing for my tastes and a little bit of sexual innuendo. This one is also pretty violent at times.

Classic Double Challenge: Jane Eyre vs. Jane

Okay, I wasn't going to do a double challenge for this one, but after I read Jane, I just had to get some of the original in my system. I watched my favorite movie interpretation (the 2006 miniseries with Ruth Wilson and Toby Stephens which you need to go watch RIGHT NOW if you haven't seen it and are a Jane Eyre/period drama fan) and it still wasn't enough so I reread Jane Eyre. And by the way? It's no contest. Jane Eyre is by far the superior book here. :D

From Goodreads:
Orphaned into the household of her Aunt Reed at Gateshead, subject to the cruel regime at Lowood charity school, Jane Eyre nonetheless emerges unbroken in spirit and integrity.

She takes up the post of governess at Thornfield, falls in love with Mr. Rochester, and discovers the impediment to their lawful marriage in a story that transcends melodrama to portray a woman's passionate search for a wider and richer life than Victorian society traditionally allowed.

With a heroine full of yearning, the dangerous secrets she encounters, and the choices she finally makes, Charlotte Bronte's innovative and enduring romantic novel continues to engage and provoke readers.

My Rating: *****

Quite simply one of my top favorite books of all time. There's so much to say about Jane Eyre but it's all been said. I'll just say that for me, Jane has always been an inspiration. She comes from a quiet, abusive background and with nothing but sheer determination becomes educated and talented. She finds true love and she has the moral courage to leave it behind when it becomes wrong to stay. She cares more about family than money. She learns to be happy even with a broken heart. It's so easy to cheer for Jane when she finally receives everything her heart has ever wanted. I just feel like I've learned so much from her and can always find some new trait she has that I want to emulate every time I read it. And what a story. So sweeping! So gothic. And Mr. Rochester. Yeah. What can I say? I love Jane Eyre and I always will.

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From Goodreads:
Forced to drop out of an esteemed East Coast college after the sudden death of her parents, Jane Moore takes a nanny job at Thornfield Park, the estate of Nico Rathburn, a world-famous rock star on the brink of a huge comeback. Practical and independent, Jane reluctantly becomes entranced by her magnetic and brooding employer and finds herself in the midst of a forbidden romance.

But there's a mystery at Thornfield, and Jane's much-envied relationship with Nico is soon tested by an agonizing secret from his past. Torn between her feelings for Nico and his fateful secret, Jane must decide: Does being true to herself mean giving up on true love?

An irresistible romance interwoven with a darkly engrossing mystery, this contemporary retelling of the beloved classic Jane Eyre promises to enchant a new generation of readers

My Rating: ***

I liked this much less than April Lindner's Catherine, and maybe it's because I like Jane Eyre so much more than Wuthering Heights. It takes a lot to try and retell Jane Eyre and it just wasn't good enough. But still entertaining, nonetheless.

Maybe it just tried too hard to be like the original. In Catherine, April Lindner took a lot of plot liberties (which I liked), but Jane is trying too hard to be the real thing. Almost every scene in Jane was taken from the original - even most of the dialogue was just paraphrased. I liked the rock star twist, but I really had a hard time seeing any chemistry between Nico and Jane. I just didn't see what Nico saw in Jane. There were no sparks, no real reason why he'd fall in love with her. In the real Jane the romance is instant and real and this didn't even come close.

Plus, certain things were different that I had a hard time with. Why, in this modern world, would Nico choose to stay married to his insane wife? And mental institutions are not as bad as they were in Jane Eyre's time so I really don't understand what the hold up is. Except it's almost like Nico's still in love with his crazy wife, which messes everything up. That's just not right. How can I believe he loves Jane, that he's found his soul mate, if he still has feelings for his wife? Plus, what happened to Jane's moral fiber? If she's willing to sleep with Nico so quickly why does she care about being his mistress when the truth is revealed? It just didn't add up for me.

Anyway, it was kind of fun to read as a Jane fan, but also incredibly frustrating. I liked the modern setting, but this retelling fell short for me in every other way.

The Nightmare Affair

From Goodreads:
Sixteen-year-old Dusty Everhart breaks into houses late at night, but not because she’s a criminal. No, she’s a Nightmare.

Literally.

Being the only Nightmare at Arkwell Academy, a boarding school for magickind, and living in the shadow of her mother’s infamy, is hard enough. But when Dusty sneaks into Eli Booker’s house, things get a whole lot more complicated. He’s hot, which means sitting on his chest and invading his dreams couldn’t get much more embarrassing. But it does. Eli is dreaming of a murder.

Then Eli’s dream comes true.

Now Dusty has to follow the clues—both within Eli’s dreams and out of them—to stop the killer before more people turn up dead. And before the killer learns what she’s up to and marks her as the next target.

My Rating: ***

Copy for review provided by NetGalley. Thank you!

I liked The Nightmare Affair well enough, but as far as paranormal boarding school books go it did not "wow" me. I was hoping for Hex Hall level humor and awesome powers, but everything here was pretty bland. Dusty was trying really hard to be one of those witty, kick-butt, powerful heroines, but I wasn't impressed. First off, I was expecting the Nightmare thing to be more interesting. She doesn't give people nightmares - she essentially enters others' dreams and quietly observes them, gaining magical power from them. Kind of boring. Of course, with Eli it's a little different as she starts to see things in his dreams that foretell awful events in the future.

But the whole mystery thing? So predictable. I wanted to scream at Eli and Dusty because they were being so blind. Duh! You do not suspect the most obvious person!!! You do not fall for red herrings! You do not walk right into the real murderer's OBVIOUS trap! It was a little disappointing.

But it was a quick read and some of the powers people had at school were interesting and fresh. I'll probably check out the sequel, but I won't be rushing out, desperate to read it.

The Nightmare Affair is available tomorrow.

The Runaway King

Goodreads:
A kingdom teetering on the brink of destruction. A king gone missing. Who will survive? Find out in the highly anticipated sequel to Jennifer A. Nielsen's blockbuster THE FALSE PRINCE!

Just weeks after Jaron has taken the throne, an assassination attempt forces him into a deadly situation. Rumors of a coming war are winding their way between the castle walls, and Jaron feels the pressure quietly mounting within Carthya. Soon, it becomes clear that deserting the kingdom may be his only hope of saving it. But the further Jaron is forced to run from his identity, the more he wonders if it is possible to go too far. Will he ever be able to return home again? Or will he have to sacrifice his own life in order to save his kingdom?

The stunning second installment of The Ascendance Trilogy takes readers on a roller-coaster ride of treason and murder, thrills and peril, as they journey with the Runaway King!

My Rating: *****

Warning! If you haven't read The False Prince yet, read no further!!! Spoilers are inevitable.

Copy provided for review by NetGalley. Thank you!

Ok. Woah. This sequel blew me away. I was really excited to read it and really worried that it couldn't live up to my love for The False Prince, which was awesome partly because of Sage's big reveal about his real identity. That out of the way, how could The Runaway King live up? But it does.

It's successful because the adventure is so much bigger. The False Prince's action was contained in one setting, but in The Runaway King we actually get to see more of Jaron's kingdom, and what's going on is not pretty. There's all sorts of courtly intrigue ramping up the action and there's no way to know who to trust (a feature I always love in a book :D).

And Jaron has not changed (or at least not for the worst). He's still impulsive and ridiculously clever and Sherlock-ian observant and sometimes foolish, but any time he does something I consider stupid, it's revealed later that he knew exactly what he was doing and I have to declare him a genius. And his awesome thief skills are on full display in this book. Plus! PIRATES!!! As if this book needed any more coolness.

The final resolution is a little bit deus ex machina and I'm not sure I totally trust a certain character's almost complete turn around, but we'll see. And something's got to happen with the romance. There's NO WAY it can end up the way it just did. Can't wait to read the final book in this trilogy!

Recommended for: Fans of courtly intrigue, action/adventure, awesome thieves (reminds me often of Megan Whalen Turner's Queen's Thief series), and a very entertaining story.

The Runaway King is out tomorrow!

Just One Day

From Goodreads:
A breathtaking journey toward self-discovery and true love, from the author of If I Stay

When sheltered American good girl Allyson "LuLu" Healey first meets laid-back Dutch actor Willem De Ruiter at an underground performance of Twelfth Night in England, there’s an undeniable spark. After just one day together, that spark bursts into a flame, or so it seems to Allyson, until the following morning, when she wakes up after a whirlwind day in Paris to discover that Willem has left. Over the next year, Allyson embarks on a journey to come to terms with the narrow confines of her life, and through Shakespeare, travel, and a quest for her almost-true-love, to break free of those confines.

Just One Day is the first in a sweepingly romantic duet of novels. Willem’s story—Just One Year—is coming soon!

My Rating: ****

Contemporary YA is not my go-to genre, but reviews here and there have led me to pick one up now and again - leading me to discover that I trust two authors of contemporary YA to always deliver a gorgeously written story with real heart: Stephanie Perkins and Gayle Forman. Gayle Forman's If I Stay and Where She Went were so beautiful and heartbreaking, so I was kind of excited to try out Just One Day. Once again, she's given readers a very real, very entertaining, and very moving story.

Okay, but first I have to say straight up that it was hard for me to get past my "Oh my gosh I hope my daughter never ever ever makes the decision Allyson just did!!!!!" constant reaction to almost everything Allyson does from the moment she meets Willem until they part. This book could definitely serve as a "How NOT to Travel Safely in Europe" guide. I'm still shaking my head. What was she thinking????

But the point is that she has never allowed herself to be herself, to be spontaneous, to follow her dreams - and she does. And the chemistry between her and Willem is great and their adventure amazing. Oh so wishing I could go to Paris right now. Craving chocolate and bread and crepes and seriously I've got to stop thinking about it so let's change the subject.

I loved that certain things tied the book together - Shakespeare is a recurring theme, disguises and nobody being who you expect them to be. There's definitely a lot of mystery surrounding Willem and even though I can't say I loved this character, I know Gayle Forman's holding out on me and I can't wait to read Just One Year so I can't find out what's really going on in his head.

This story succeeds because it's much more than some whirlwind day in Paris, lovely though it may have been. Allyson has to return home and adjust to college and face up to her very demanding parents and her struggling best friend and realize that nothing about her life is going the direction she wishes it were. She makes new friends and stands up for her real interests and then, only then, does she finally return to Europe and I will say no more. :D

Recommended for: fans of sweet contemporary YA with real character growth. Also for fans of travel, Europe, and especially Paris.

Content: A pinch of sexual content, not graphic. Some innuendo and swearing scattered throughout. Allyson is not a drinker or a party-er, so there are no crazy college frat scenes.

Everbound

From Goodreads:
Nikki Beckett could only watch as her boyfriend, Jack, sacrificed himself to save her, taking her place in the Tunnels of the Everneath for eternity — a debt that should’ve been hers. She’s living a borrowed life, and she doesn’t know what to do with the guilt. And every night Jack appears in her dreams, lost and confused and wasting away.

Desperate for answers, Nikki turns to Cole, the immortal bad boy who wants to make her his queen — and the one person least likely to help. But his heart has been touched by everything about Nikki, and he agrees to assist her in the only way he can: by taking her to the Everneath himself.

Nikki and Cole descend into the Everneath, only to discover that their journey will be more difficult than they’d anticipated — and more deadly. But Nikki vows to stop at nothing to save Jack — even if it means making an incredible sacrifice of her own.

In this enthralling sequel to Everneath, Brodi Ashton tests the bonds of destiny and explores the lengths we’ll go to for the ones we love.



My Rating: ****

Warning: Spoilers for book 1!

 

Everbound was a big hit with me! I was immediately wrapped back up into Brodi Ashton's very clever, modern take on Greek mythology and I have to say that I liked this sequel even better than the original. Everything was more. There was more at stake for Nikki (she's being pressured from every direction about Jack's disappearance), more at stake for Cole (which I can't expound on without spoilers for book 2), and the absolute most at stake for Jack (Hello? Stranded and dying in the everneath here?).

 

Nikki continues to grow as a character. She started out in book 1 kind of empty (product of having the life sucked out of her for a hundred years of course, but I still thought she could have been less boring) but she has been on a very organic growth spurt ever since and I've really appreciated seeing her develop some guts and courage. And I was hanging on for the entire book, watching Jack fade from her dreams and panicking that she wouldn't make it in time (even though part of me knew there was no chance he would just die there). Then there's Cole who I thought was acting a little out of character at times, but a big reveal at the end... well, I won't say any more. And even though I suspected it, well done Ms. Ashton. Well done.

 

This book also digs deeper into the mythology and I could gush forever about Brodi Ashton's interpretation of the underworld (which we finally get to see and spend time in!). So original, so fresh, but so familiar - which is exactly what I like my mythology retellings to be.

 

There are some weaknesses here, mainly that it's a little predictable and that Nikki's quest through the Everneath is a little formulaic. I also think some of Nikki's relationships in the real world weren't very well done. Her best friend (can't even remember her name it was that bad), her dad, and especially her little brother all seemed kind of superficially drawn.

 

But still, this is an easy 4 stars (more like 4 and a half if I'm being honest with myself) because I really enjoyed the ride. :D Can't wait for book 3!

Classic Double Challenge: Wuthering Heights and Catherine

From Goodreads:
Wuthering Heights is a wild, passionate story of the intense and almost demonic love between Catherine Earnshaw and Heathcliff, a foundling adopted by Catherine's father. After Mr Earnshaw's death, Heathcliff is bullied and humiliated by Catherine's brother Hindley and wrongly believing that his love for Catherine is not reciprocated, leaves Wuthering Heights, only to return years later as a wealthy and polished man. He proceeds to exact a terrible revenge for his former miseries. The action of the story is chaotic and unremittingly violent, but the accomplished handling of a complex structure, the evocative descriptions of the lonely moorland setting and the poetic grandeur of vision combine to make this unique novel a masterpiece of English literature.

My Rating: ****

This is a reread for me and much as my English major half would like to give this five stars, the rest of me can't get past the fact that Wuthering Heights is a miserable book, all about miserable people who are determined to make others miserable too. That said, I can never read this without getting completely engrossed in the story. It is incredibly readable and sucks me in. I don't know why, because there's so much tragedy and so much of it happens because either Catherine or Heathcliff use and abuse each other or everyone around them. Still, I think I keep going for the little bursts of happiness and the few sane people (Nelly, for instance). And it does end on a note of hope and happiness for the next generation of people living at Wuthering Heights and Thrushcross Grange. I also love the wild setting and the gothic bits. Such a fan of the ghostly scenes. :D

Recommended reading (at least once in your life) if you like classics and if you like a study in human nature. Which makes it sound boring, but I promise there's nothing boring about this fiery, passionate, and tragic story.

From Goodreads:
A forbidden romance. A modern mystery. Wuthering Heights as you’ve never seen it before.

Catherine is tired of struggling musicians befriending her just so they can get a gig at her Dad’s famous Manhattan club, The Underground. Then she meets mysterious Hence, an unbelievably passionate and talented musician on the brink of success. As their relationship grows, both are swept away in a fiery romance. But when their love is tested by a cruel whim of fate, will pride keep them apart?

Chelsea has always believed that her mom died of a sudden illness, until she finds a letter her dad has kept from her for years—a letter from her mom, Catherine, who didn’t die: She disappeared. Driven by unanswered questions, Chelsea sets out to look for her—starting with the return address on the letter: The Underground.

Told in two voices, twenty years apart, Catherine interweaves a timeless forbidden romance with a compelling modern mystery.

My Rating: ****

I really enjoyed reading this and I think April Lindner did a great job of translating Wuthering Heights to the modern world. I loved watching for all the little nods to the original but I also loved that this story was NOT the original. In fact, I don't think it quite captures the same feeling of the original, which I'm okay with. I find Wuthering Heights a bit depressing and the characters completely unlikeable. Catherine, on the other hand, had much more sympathetic characters. I found myself empathizing a lot more with Catherine and Hence's story than I ever did Catherine and Heathcliff's. Catherine is not the horrible, selfish monster her literary counterpart is and Hence is NOT the devilish psychopath Heathcliff is. He maybe comes off a bit gruff and grumpy at first, but as the story moves along he only ever does one truly despicable thing (and it's pretty bad, but it doesn't ruin him as a character). Still, I couldn't help feeling that Catherine and Hence's love story was more of a lust story.

What really kept me speeding through this book was Chelsea. She's intelligent and determined (a little stubborn) and very brave. Chelsea is a great character and I enjoyed her sleuthing (even if I did see the big mystery and reveal at the end coming from the beginning - seriously there's obviously only one character in the whole book capable of homicide and it's made pretty clear from the start who that is. It drove me crazy that nobody thought to check out Quentin before. Guy hoards guns and is plainly mentally unstable - has a history of violence and death threats - and nobody looks for Catherine there? I'm not buying it.) Anyway, I really liked how the story was told about both generations and, once again, I loved that the story of the second generation is nothing like what it is in Wuthering Heights.

Also, the setting was fun for me, especially because I am a musician and played in bands throughout high school. The rock/punk music history was interesting and of course New York is always a great setting.

Content: There is some sexual content, though nothing explicit. There's also an attempted rape scene, which is also not very detailed. Surprisingly no drug use or drinking, considering all the rock musicians and very little profanity.

Mini Reviews: 2-11-13

 From Goodreads:
In this light magical correspondence, letters fly between Cecilia (author Pat), with Aunt Charlotte in Essex Rushton manor, and her cousin Kate (author Caro), with Aunt Elizabeth in London's Berkeley Square for alluring Georgina's season. Mistaking Kate for "odious marquise" Thomas of Schofield, a mysterious Miranda tries to poison Kate with drink from hot chocolate pot at Royal College of Wizards investiture for their country neighbor Sir Hilary of Bedrick Hall. When their shy friend Dorothea attracts men unwillingly, her step-mama Miranda Griscomb nee Tanistry, reveals evil motives and immense power, with ambitions against innocent brother Oliver.

My Rating: ****

Jane Austen meets Harry Potter. Sound fun? It is. Loads. Two cousins, Cecy and Kate, exchange letters, one in London for the season, the other at a country estate. It's all the romance and comedy of manners fun of a Regency novel, but in an alternate universe where spells are flying and love potions are messing things up and people are vying not just for titles and land, but magical power. I found this really entertaining, even though I occasionally found myself mixing up the two girls and their love interests, not always sure who was talking - surprising considering each girl was written by a different author... they must have similar writing styles. I've heard that there's a sequel, but that it's not as charming or hilarious as this one so I don't think I'll follow it up.

Definitely recommended for fans of historical fiction, magic, and regency romance. 

 

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From Goodreads:
Sparkling white snowdrifts, beautiful presents wrapped in ribbons, and multicolored lights glittering in the night through the falling snow. A Christmas Eve snowstorm transforms one small town into a romantic haven, the kind you see only in movies. Well, kinda. After all, a cold and wet hike from a stranded train through the middle of nowhere would not normally end with a delicious kiss from a charming stranger. And no one would think that a trip to the Waffle House through four feet of snow would lead to love with an old friend. Or that the way back to true love begins with a painfully early morning shift at Starbucks. Thanks to three of today’s bestselling teen authors—John Green, Maureen Johnson, and Lauren Myracle—the magic of the holidays shines on these hilarious and charming interconnected tales of love, romance, and breathtaking kisses.

My Rating: ****

I was in the mood to read this back at the beginning of December when I requested it from the library. Unfortunately, so was everybody else in Boise so it took me this long to get it. I thought about just returning it, but decided to try it out first. I'm so glad I did. I haven't laughed that much at a book in ages. It was truly hilarious. The first story was definitely my favorite, but I loved that all three take place in the same town and interconnect. All the characters were fun, but I especially loved the parents - the kind of parents who cut Harry Potter novel-sized pieces of cake and get arrested in riots caused by ceramic Christmas village pieces - oh  my gosh I really just laughed my whole way through this.

Content: John Greene's story had a bit of profanity and there was a bit of sexually-based humor and innuendo.

Recommended for: Read this next Christmas if you love funny contemporary romances.

 

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From Goodreads:
Miss Mariah Aubrey, banished after a scandal, hides herself away in a long-abandoned gatehouse on the far edge of a distant relative's estate. There, she supports herself and her loyal servant the only way she knows how--by writing novels in secret.
 
Captain Matthew Bryant, returning to England successful and wealthy after the Napoleonic wars, leases an impressive estate from a cash-poor nobleman, determined to show the society beauty who once rejected him what a colossal mistake she made. When he discovers an old gatehouse on the property, he is immediately intrigued by its striking young inhabitant and sets out to uncover her identity, and her past. But the more he learns about her, the more he realizes he must distance himself. Falling in love with an outcast would ruin his well-laid plans.

The old gatehouse holds secrets of its own. Can Mariah and Captain Bryant uncover them before the cunning heir to the estate buries them forever?

My Rating: ****

I've liked Julie Klassen novels before, but I was surprised by just how much I really liked this one. I'd honestly call it more of a 4.5 stars. I usually check out a Klassen novel when I'm in the mood for a clean regency romance, but this one more than fit the bill. Her novels tend to feel long and rambly and a bit heavy on the Christian influence for me, but this one had none of those problems.

First off, Mariah is secretly a writer. I LOVED that, because it gave me an in-depth look at what Jante Austen's life might have been like. How she published with the help of her family, the every day life of a secret novelist, how to handle it when the secret becomes known, all the scandal and social pressure against being a novelist - oh man I loved all the details. Plus, if you're a Jane Austen fan, there are subtle nods to both Mansfield Park and Persuasion (my fave!). That, and there are tons of details about the navy and some very fun swashbuckling characters.

So, it's top notch as a historical fiction. Then there are the mysteries within mysteries. I had so much fun guessing things and I was very glad not to have been able to predict everything. The romance is sweet, but not overly gushy and saccharine. There are lots of great characters to get to know and love.

Recommended for: Fans of regency romance. If you've heard of Julie Klassen but weren't sure about the label "Christian Fiction" I'd say don't worry about it. The Christian influences in this one are minimal, but the romance is very clean. I especially recommend this one for Austen fans.

Shades of Earth

From Goodreads: (full of spoilers for books one and two)

Amy and Elder have finally left the oppressive walls of the spaceship Godspeed behind. They're ready to start life afresh--to build a home--on Centauri-Earth, the planet that Amy has traveled 25 trillion miles across the universe to experience.

But this new Earth isn't the paradise Amy had been hoping for. There are giant pterodactyl-like birds, purple flowers with mind-numbing toxins, and mysterious, unexplained ruins that hold more secrets than their stone walls first let on. The biggest secret of all? Godspeed's former passengers aren't alone on this planet. And if they're going to stay, they'll have to fight.

Amy and Elder must race to discover who--or what--else is out there if they are to have any hope of saving their struggling colony and building a future together. They will have to look inward to the very core of what makes them human on this, their most harrowing journey yet. Because if the colony collapses? Then everything they have sacrificed--friends, family, life on Earth--will have been for nothing.

FUELED BY LIES.
RULED BY CHAOS.
ALMOST HOME.

My Rating: *****

I love this series and I love Beth Revis's kind of sci-fi, full of mystery and danger and excitement, but with romance and friendship and family to balance it out. I'm very happy with how things have ended for the whole series and can't wait to see what Beth Revis does next!

SPOILERS (for books 1 and 2)
Have I warned you enough yet?

Amy and Elder have made it off the ship and onto Centauri earth and I think I've been waiting for this moment as long as they have. I tend to be a bit claustrophobic and it was so nice not to be trapped in space anymore. :D Of course, Beth Revis wastes no time and before long, Amy's parents are unfrozen and war is being waged on the hostile planet, which is hostile in every way - from plant life to animal life to... well, there's something else out there and I won't spoil it. As usual, there are plenty of surprises and nothing that you are expecting to happen happens (unless you're expecting everything to go wrong). Also as usual, Beth Revis has no problems blowing important things up and killing off people I like.

Somehow, there are still clues left behind by Orion and don't forget Orion himself has been brought down to Centauri Earth. He may be frozen, but he still causes trouble. I like that he's been a unifying theme through the whole series and that, much as I want to hate him and call him evil and unhinged, he definitely has a point (and he knows things). Another thing I enjoyed about this book was the dynamics between the frozens and the shipborns. The frozens expect to take charge, but it's not that easy and I like that eventually they have to learn respect for each other if they want to survive.

There's so much more going on here than the romance (one of the reasons I like this series), but the romance is still important. Amy and Elder have only had each other, but pretty quickly (once the frozens arrive on the scene), Elder has competition and Amy is a bit bewildered at having a choice. I liked that it didn't feel like a contrived love triangle, but that it really made them think about their relationship, since before there was really no other choice. And the resolution is good. Great, actually.

It ends with a bang and I, for one, loved it. Beth Revis is a master at foreshadowing, so when the surprises come, it's just mind-blowing, because I saw it coming, but I TOTALLY DIDN'T. If that makes sense :D.

Recommended for fans of sci-fi, mystery, romance, and great storytelling.