Monday, May 3, 2010
Long Time Since Posting
It has been a long time since I posted a review. This blog is not defunct, I have just gotten really busy in the last year. I took a summer class after the last post and then spent a week on vacation without internet access. And almost immediately after returning I was hoping right into my fall semester at college. It was quite possibly the most hectic semester of my life. I took the month between semesters to collect myself due to having been going to school for a year straight and then dove right back into school in January. It is now May 3, 2010, eighteen days from being a whole year since the last update. I will be wrapping up my spring semester in three weeks and I will then have more time to read and thereby review books. Please bear with me a little bit longer and I will be back very soon.
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Bliss by Lauren Myracle
Title: Bliss
Author: Lauren Myracle
Number of Pages: 444
Age Level: Young Adult
Genre(s): supernatural, magic, high school
Synopsis: Bliss in the Morning Dew is the new girl at Crestview Academy in Atlanta Georgia. Fresh off a hippie commune in 1969, Bliss has much to learn about the society her parents ran away from, including how to make friends and understand girls her own age. If only she had been better prepared for the world of hair, make-up, and voices that sounded like gurgling blood.
Review: I picked this up at the library on a whim, the flap sounded interesting but ttyl hadn't left me a good impression on the author. But actually this book was quite good. Bliss is such an intriguing character and a great mix of naive and knowledgeable with a core of inner strength that you can see growing within her throughout the book.
There were a lot of "duh how could you not see that?" moments throughout and a little predictable, but I liked how Lauren Myracle was actually telling three stories at once. It made up for predictability. And while it was predictable it was a different take on the typical new girl at school story. And the fact that the story is set in 1969 puts just enough of a historical twist to keep the pages turning with an almost frenzy. Its actually quite the thriller, if you've ever been dubious about Lauren Myracle I suggest giving this book a try.
Author: Lauren Myracle
Number of Pages: 444
Age Level: Young Adult
Genre(s): supernatural, magic, high school
Synopsis: Bliss in the Morning Dew is the new girl at Crestview Academy in Atlanta Georgia. Fresh off a hippie commune in 1969, Bliss has much to learn about the society her parents ran away from, including how to make friends and understand girls her own age. If only she had been better prepared for the world of hair, make-up, and voices that sounded like gurgling blood.
Review: I picked this up at the library on a whim, the flap sounded interesting but ttyl hadn't left me a good impression on the author. But actually this book was quite good. Bliss is such an intriguing character and a great mix of naive and knowledgeable with a core of inner strength that you can see growing within her throughout the book.
There were a lot of "duh how could you not see that?" moments throughout and a little predictable, but I liked how Lauren Myracle was actually telling three stories at once. It made up for predictability. And while it was predictable it was a different take on the typical new girl at school story. And the fact that the story is set in 1969 puts just enough of a historical twist to keep the pages turning with an almost frenzy. Its actually quite the thriller, if you've ever been dubious about Lauren Myracle I suggest giving this book a try.
Friday, May 15, 2009
Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead
Title: Vampire Academy (Vampire Academy 1)
Author: Richelle Mead
Number of Pages: 336
Age Level: Young Adult
Genre(s): Urban fantasy, supernatural, vampires, magic
Synopsis: Rose Hathaway and Lissa Dragomir have been on the run from St. Vladimir's Academy for the last two years. Only the school's finally caught up to them and they're once more in the place that had once been the biggest threat for Lissa of all. At first everything seems like it might be ok, but the longer they stay the more evident if becomes that Lissa is once again in danger by being there.
Review: This was actually a book I kept seeing everywhere and my curiosity got the better of me making me want to read it. It was a little slow in getting started after Rose and Lissa were brought forceably back to St. Vladimir's, but once Rose starts getting searching for what a previous teacher called her, and her training with Dimitri all hell seems to begin to break loose.
Add in a forbidden relationship, and one twisted by circumstances surrounding the parents of Lissa and her boyfriend. The action though really increases though in the last several chapters when Lissa is kidnapped and Rose is the only one who can help the older dhampir's find her.
The plot twist at the end was entirely unforeseeable and it will shock the reader. Altogether Vampire Academy was an amazing read and I'm currently in the middle of reading of Frostbite. This is definitely worth the read.
Author: Richelle Mead
Number of Pages: 336
Age Level: Young Adult
Genre(s): Urban fantasy, supernatural, vampires, magic
Synopsis: Rose Hathaway and Lissa Dragomir have been on the run from St. Vladimir's Academy for the last two years. Only the school's finally caught up to them and they're once more in the place that had once been the biggest threat for Lissa of all. At first everything seems like it might be ok, but the longer they stay the more evident if becomes that Lissa is once again in danger by being there.
Review: This was actually a book I kept seeing everywhere and my curiosity got the better of me making me want to read it. It was a little slow in getting started after Rose and Lissa were brought forceably back to St. Vladimir's, but once Rose starts getting searching for what a previous teacher called her, and her training with Dimitri all hell seems to begin to break loose.
Add in a forbidden relationship, and one twisted by circumstances surrounding the parents of Lissa and her boyfriend. The action though really increases though in the last several chapters when Lissa is kidnapped and Rose is the only one who can help the older dhampir's find her.
The plot twist at the end was entirely unforeseeable and it will shock the reader. Altogether Vampire Academy was an amazing read and I'm currently in the middle of reading of Frostbite. This is definitely worth the read.
Thursday, May 14, 2009
Uglies by Scott Westerfield
Title: Uglies (Uglies Book 1)
Author: Scott Westerfield
Number of Pages: 448
Age Level: Young Adult
Genre(s): fantasy, future, science fiction
Synopsis: All Tally wanted was to turn pretty and move to New Pretty Town and party with her friends, but that all changed the night she went to see Peris and met Shay, another ugly trying to escape after Tally pulled the most daring trick of all. Now she has to find and betray The Smoke or stay ugly forever.
Review: Uglies is the first book I've read by Scott Westerfield. The premise and plot are actually quite interesting and I loved every minute of the read. The world that he builds sucks you in and you can't escape until you've finished the book.
Tally is actually a very amazing character with her desperate desire to become one of the many "Pretties" living in New Pretty Town, so that she can join her childhood friend Peris who left her only a matter of weeks before the book begins. The rather sweet and rather obvious crush she harbors for Peris at the beginning is adorable but as the story progresses it becomes rather obvious that after everything Tally has gone through she has grown greatly from her time in The Smoke.
Needless to say her feelings for Peris have gone from sweetly infatuated to realizing that they were childish dreams when confronted with the sweetness of a first love in David and her fight with Shay over Tally's supposed betrayal by stealing him away.
The last few chapters truly make Tally shine as a character and show that her growth wasn't superficial and she isn't returning to Special Circumstances just so she can become Pretty which by this point has become a foolish desire to her. She's returning out of neccessity so that David's mother has a subject to test her new pill on in order to see if she can reverse the effects that becoming Pretty has on the brain of the person getting the surgery.
They also show the emotional gamut that she goes through in having to leave the boy she cares deeply about and her guilt for the death of his father and betraying the Smoke without realizing it.
Author: Scott Westerfield
Number of Pages: 448
Age Level: Young Adult
Genre(s): fantasy, future, science fiction
Synopsis: All Tally wanted was to turn pretty and move to New Pretty Town and party with her friends, but that all changed the night she went to see Peris and met Shay, another ugly trying to escape after Tally pulled the most daring trick of all. Now she has to find and betray The Smoke or stay ugly forever.
Review: Uglies is the first book I've read by Scott Westerfield. The premise and plot are actually quite interesting and I loved every minute of the read. The world that he builds sucks you in and you can't escape until you've finished the book.
Tally is actually a very amazing character with her desperate desire to become one of the many "Pretties" living in New Pretty Town, so that she can join her childhood friend Peris who left her only a matter of weeks before the book begins. The rather sweet and rather obvious crush she harbors for Peris at the beginning is adorable but as the story progresses it becomes rather obvious that after everything Tally has gone through she has grown greatly from her time in The Smoke.
Needless to say her feelings for Peris have gone from sweetly infatuated to realizing that they were childish dreams when confronted with the sweetness of a first love in David and her fight with Shay over Tally's supposed betrayal by stealing him away.
The last few chapters truly make Tally shine as a character and show that her growth wasn't superficial and she isn't returning to Special Circumstances just so she can become Pretty which by this point has become a foolish desire to her. She's returning out of neccessity so that David's mother has a subject to test her new pill on in order to see if she can reverse the effects that becoming Pretty has on the brain of the person getting the surgery.
They also show the emotional gamut that she goes through in having to leave the boy she cares deeply about and her guilt for the death of his father and betraying the Smoke without realizing it.
The Summoning by Kelley Armstrong
Title: The Summoning (Darkest Powers Trilogy, Book 1)
Author: Kelley Armstrong
Number of Pages: 390
Age Level: Young Adult
Genre(s): Urban Fantasy, supernatural, thriller, paranormal.
Synopsis: The first book in Mrs. Armstrong's young adult trilogy, 15 year old Chloe Saunders has just gotten her first period and now she's seeing ghosts. What's worse she's had to move into a group home for troubled teens before she can resume her normal life. Small problem...that life doesn't exist anymore for Chloe.
Review: This was the first book I've ready by Mrs. Armstrong and I have to say I enjoyed every minute of it. The character's were so real and 3 dimensional that it was difficult to believe that somewhere in the world there was a Chloe out there going though something similar to what's happening in the book. The dynamics between the characters is perfect from the flat fair-weather friends that Chloe knew at A.R. Gurney, to Raechelle, Derek, Simon, Tori and Liz at Lyle House who would create friends, and worst enemies for Chloe.
Everything about the writing breathes that it has an amazing tale to tell and it doesn't disappoint at all. From the rivalry between Tori and Chloe to the shocking surprise that she is actually a necromancer makes a very convincing and action-packed story. The climax of the story coming at the end of the book with Chloe, Derek, Simon, and Raechelle's daring attempt to escape from the group home to find Derek and Simon's father.
There is a distinct obvious attraction on Simon's part toward Chloe. And a very subtle and possible attraction between Chloe and Derek.
If you're every looking for a good urban fantasy, young adult novel I would recommend that you read The Summoning.
Find my review of The Awakening here.
Author: Kelley Armstrong
Number of Pages: 390
Age Level: Young Adult
Genre(s): Urban Fantasy, supernatural, thriller, paranormal.
Synopsis: The first book in Mrs. Armstrong's young adult trilogy, 15 year old Chloe Saunders has just gotten her first period and now she's seeing ghosts. What's worse she's had to move into a group home for troubled teens before she can resume her normal life. Small problem...that life doesn't exist anymore for Chloe.
Review: This was the first book I've ready by Mrs. Armstrong and I have to say I enjoyed every minute of it. The character's were so real and 3 dimensional that it was difficult to believe that somewhere in the world there was a Chloe out there going though something similar to what's happening in the book. The dynamics between the characters is perfect from the flat fair-weather friends that Chloe knew at A.R. Gurney, to Raechelle, Derek, Simon, Tori and Liz at Lyle House who would create friends, and worst enemies for Chloe.
Everything about the writing breathes that it has an amazing tale to tell and it doesn't disappoint at all. From the rivalry between Tori and Chloe to the shocking surprise that she is actually a necromancer makes a very convincing and action-packed story. The climax of the story coming at the end of the book with Chloe, Derek, Simon, and Raechelle's daring attempt to escape from the group home to find Derek and Simon's father.
There is a distinct obvious attraction on Simon's part toward Chloe. And a very subtle and possible attraction between Chloe and Derek.
If you're every looking for a good urban fantasy, young adult novel I would recommend that you read The Summoning.
Find my review of The Awakening here.
The Awakening by Kelley Armstrong
Title: The Awakening (Darkest Powers Trilogy, Book 2)
Author: Kelley Armstrong
Number of Pages: 357 pages
Age Level: Young Adult
Genre(s): Paranormal, fantasy, supernatural, thriller
Synopsis: Picking up right where The Summoning left off Chloe finds herself once more on the run from the infamous Edison Group and dodging bullets as she, Derek, and Simon try to get to the bottom of what was done to them and just survive.
Review: The Awakening was a great follow-up to to The Summoning, it picks up right where The Summoning left off with Chloe locked in her cell at the lab run by the Edison Group. And immediately the reader is faced with action as Chloe tries to find out just what they have on her and her friends and discovers a whole cache of information when Dr. Davidoff leaves her alone for a few minutes.
From there the action never stops as Chloe embarks on a daring attempt to both escape from the Edison Groups captivity and reunite with Derek and Simon. Plot twists are abound as Tori joins the search for Simon and Derek's father and a friend of his.
The writing is fantastic, with an attention to detail that can only be considered as being seen and retold from a film students eye for detail. Which is exactly what it is. The growth for the characters can only continue as we're given a glimpse into Derek that was not given in The Summoning. All the while Chloe is coming to realize that she needs to speak up more and stop trying so hard to not be a problem for everyone else. And the dynamic between Derek and Chloe is only getting more and more intriguing.
There's one line that stands out most to me from The Awakening was spoken by Chloe about halfway into the book and quoted below:
It's a little before this that you can see that the relationship and trust between Derek and Chloe really seems to be getting deeper and hopefully leaning toward eventually becoming something more, or at least I hope we can look forward to this being the case.
If anyone is looking for a good urban fantasy, young adult novel. I would highly recommend that you give Mrs. Armstrong's Darkest Powers Trilogy a read.
Author: Kelley Armstrong
Number of Pages: 357 pages
Age Level: Young Adult
Genre(s): Paranormal, fantasy, supernatural, thriller
Synopsis: Picking up right where The Summoning left off Chloe finds herself once more on the run from the infamous Edison Group and dodging bullets as she, Derek, and Simon try to get to the bottom of what was done to them and just survive.
Review: The Awakening was a great follow-up to to The Summoning, it picks up right where The Summoning left off with Chloe locked in her cell at the lab run by the Edison Group. And immediately the reader is faced with action as Chloe tries to find out just what they have on her and her friends and discovers a whole cache of information when Dr. Davidoff leaves her alone for a few minutes.
From there the action never stops as Chloe embarks on a daring attempt to both escape from the Edison Groups captivity and reunite with Derek and Simon. Plot twists are abound as Tori joins the search for Simon and Derek's father and a friend of his.
The writing is fantastic, with an attention to detail that can only be considered as being seen and retold from a film students eye for detail. Which is exactly what it is. The growth for the characters can only continue as we're given a glimpse into Derek that was not given in The Summoning. All the while Chloe is coming to realize that she needs to speak up more and stop trying so hard to not be a problem for everyone else. And the dynamic between Derek and Chloe is only getting more and more intriguing.
There's one line that stands out most to me from The Awakening was spoken by Chloe about halfway into the book and quoted below:
"You aren't going to turn into some bloodthirsty monster Derek. It'll still be you, just as a wolf."
It's a little before this that you can see that the relationship and trust between Derek and Chloe really seems to be getting deeper and hopefully leaning toward eventually becoming something more, or at least I hope we can look forward to this being the case.
If anyone is looking for a good urban fantasy, young adult novel. I would highly recommend that you give Mrs. Armstrong's Darkest Powers Trilogy a read.
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