Scarlet by A.C. Gaughen

Title: Scarlet
Author: A.C. Gaughen

Hardcover: 304 pages
Publisher: Walker Childrens (February 14, 2012)
ISBN-10: 0802723462
ISBN-13: 978-0802723468

Many readers know the tale of Robin Hood, but they will be swept away by this new version full of action, secrets, and romance.

Posing as one of Robin Hood’s thieves to avoid the wrath of the evil Thief Taker Lord Gisbourne, Scarlet has kept her identity secret from all of Nottinghamshire. Only the Hood and his band know the truth: the agile thief posing as a whip of a boy is actually a fearless young woman with a secret past.

Helping the people of Nottingham outwit the corrupt Sheriff of Nottingham could cost Scarlet her life as Gisbourne closes in. It’s only her fierce loyalty to Robin—whose quick smiles and sharp temper have the rare power to unsettle her—that keeps Scarlet going and makes this fight worth dying for.

Review:

Even if you don't know anything about the Robin Hood legend, Scarlet will introduce you to a point in history where a revered King--King Richard I--wasn't always in his homeland and his jealous brother Prince John essentially ruled and taxed the lands. It's the taxing that sets off a specific detail in the "Robin Hood" lore that remains constant in all variations of the story. He takes from the wealthy and gives to the poor. This interpretation of Robin Hood was so well though-out and had such heart-wrenching characters that it was difficult to hold myself back from learning everything I possibly could about Robin Hood and his men--in this case specifically, his "boys." This creative portrayal of his story was told through the eyes of "mysterious and moody" Will Scarlet, Robin's closest friend. Scarlet particularly focused on the teenage years of Hood's life and incorporated original back stories for some of the legendary "boys" known to be in Hood's circle.

As the protagonist for this book, Scarlet was truly an interesting and decidedly stubborn character to read about. Right off the bat I could understand what Scarlet was going through at different intervals of the book and I liked that her background remained a mystery until she was prepared to reveal herself to her band mates. Her difficulty to hide who she was from most of the people she helped was a constant I enjoyed reading about. It made more of empathetic character to think that she did all these things, gave all this hope to an overly-taxed town and still remained but a visually fleeting glimpse in the people's memory. The only problem I had with Scarlet was that I wished she'd defend who she was and how she felt more clearly to her "brothers" because I would have liked to have seen their reciprocating reactions. Also her diction was something I had to get used but had trouble looking over because for every incorrect use of "were" instead of "was", I always had to backtrack and waste time trying to understand clearly what the heck she meant.

However, in spite of this, I appreciated the easy-flowing plot and wide cast of characters, not only the boys but the people of Nottingham and the surrounding towns at the time. The villains in this re-telling had a front-stage presence in the book because they were never too far from anyone's mind and consistently inspired fear. As characters, the Sheriff of Nottingham and the thief-taker he hires, Guy of Gisbourne, were both well depicted and gruesomely terrifying. The love triangle between Robin, John and Scarlet starts somewhat instantaneously and I could see from the start that it was a bit of a domino-effect; one loved the other who loved the other. The internal conflicts were more interesting as tension was built, decisions were made, and uncertainties arose.  The climax and brilliant ending will serve their purpose to incite pathos in the reader and establish a credible ground for any of Gaughen future works.

Grade: B+

e-galley Source: Netgalley

LiLi

Teen Book Scene: Unraveling Isobel by Eileen Cook

Hardcover: 304 pages

Publisher: Simon Pulse (January 3, 2012)

ISBN-10: 1442413271

ISBN-13: 978-1442413276

Isobel’s life is falling apart. Her mom just married some guy she met on the internet only three months before, and is moving them to his sprawling, gothic mansion off the coast of nowhere. Goodbye, best friend. Goodbye, social life. Hello, icky new stepfather, crunchy granola town, and unbelievably good-looking, officially off-limits stepbrother.

But on her first night in her new home, Isobel starts to fear that it isn’t only her life that’s unraveling—her sanity might be giving way too. Because either Isobel is losing her mind, just like her artist father did before her, or she’s seeing ghosts. Either way, Isobel’s fast on her way to being the talk of the town for all the wrong reasons.

Review:

There's always been something about being "crazy" that scares me. I freely admit that but somehow the theme--or moral--I got from Unraveling Isobel is that I shouldn't ashamed of that fear. Isobel is not my favorite character mainly because during the first half of the book she was so contradictive, she made me dizzy. I did like the aura of creepiness all of the characters had, it was like they couldn't always explain their actions but that's also what built their self-image. Nicole, Nate, Isobel's mom, they all had an edge that if you crossed them, you better damn well be prepared to grovel to get on their good side. Even if that doesn't sound like a good quality characters should have, I honestly thought they made the plot all that more thrilling and enticing.

There were three main elements this book was working, all in their own rights. First was the creep factor. I did in no way expect the ultimate thriller murder-mystery this book turned out to be. The synopsis did not prepare me at all*. I would have liked the murder mystery element to have portrayed a bigger role in the first half of the book, but I did understand that Cook was setting up the creepiness and wanted to add that suspense element too.

Second was the humor. I didn't understand when none of the other characters--except maybe a ghost or two--really got Isobel's sense of humor. The girl was flippin' hilarious. They were few and far between but her one-liners' cracked me up.

Finally, the "romance". I don't know what's up with the brother and sister relationship in YA these days but, I couldn't deny that it wasn't necessarily illegal for Isobel and Nathaniel to be together. That was when I finally got a grip on how Unraveling Isobel was a unique case when it came to comparing it to other Paranormal YA novels. Not only was the construction of the plot more intense than in anything I've read before** but there were also some intense make-out sessions.

I also have to admit that it would have been so inexplicably easy to stop reading the book after the first half because from where I could determine the plot going on from there on in was absolutely unappealing. I really hated it for a moment but finally decided to keep going mostly because of the "scary" characters. Heck, the whole island where Isobel was stranded on, Nairne Island, was scary but it's the people that inhabit it that'll really do you in. Eileen Cook tells a mean ghost story.

*Not to mention the cover was pretty misleading. This book was too creepy to just have purple and black swirls on its cover.

**I don't think anything that I've read in the YA genre is freakier than The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer, but I consider it more a Dark Contemporary than Paranormal.

Grade: C+

ARC Source: Teen Book Scene

LiLi

Daughter of the Centaurs (Centauriad #1) by Kate Klimo

Hardcover: 384 pages

Publisher: Random House Books for Young Readers (January 24, 2012)

ISBN-10: 0375869751

ISBN-13: 978-0375869754

Malora knows what she was born to be: a horse wrangler and a hunter, just like her father. But when her people are massacred by batlike monsters called Leatherwings, Malora will need her horse skills just to survive. The last living human, Malora roams the wilderness at the head of a band of magnificent horses, relying only on her own wits, strength, and courage. When she is captured by a group of centaurs and taken to their city, Malora must decide whether the comforts of her new home and family are worth the parts of herself she must sacrifice to keep them.

Kate Klimo has masterfully created a new world, which at first seems to be an ancient one or perhaps another world altogether, but is in fact set on earth sometime far in the future.

Review:

I love when stories--particularly with "selfless" female protagonists/heroines--live by the seat of their pants and know the skills--or slowly learn, in this case--how to survive and be independent. When Malora must leave her People and live alone forevermore with just her horses as company, she saw a restless but fortifying life ahead of her. When she went back to discover the desolation of her people it destroyed something in her. That's when they discovered that the People were not as dead as they thought. A society of human and horse hybrids have been living successfully since the war with the People of Mount Kamaria--known now as Mount Kheiron, habitat of the centaurs--occured. From Daughter of the Mountains, to Daughter of the Plains, to Daughter of the Centaurs, Malora "Ironbound" Thora-Jayke does not fail to capture the reader's heart and symbolize inspiration for a whole other race.

Such vivid descriptions of mountainous and barren landscapes. So easy to hear the hoofs of Malora's "boys and girls" stampeding across the plains. Without the need  to learn to read or write, Malora's voice captures more abstract concepts and appreciated the primal nature of the land she knows by heart. Her love of horses became my love of horses for all their nickering, whinnying, snorts and eye-rolls. When first encountering the Highlanders and their method of living, the frivolity was comforting but seen as a waste through the main characters'. The author's writing ability to depict all the monuments, murals and colorful aspects of a Highlanders' life was dazzling and absolutely awe-inspiring to behold. With the minor addition of its own terminology, Daughter of the Centaurs was originally created and uniquely executed. I did not want to put down this book for longer than six hours, couldn't part with it; not the world or the characters.

It was nice to see Malora grow throughout the time that she left her People and joined the centaurs. Granted she did lose herself from time to time with the centaurs but she never truly forgot her roots. That's what excited me the most. She could never truly be a centaur and she didn't spend useless time thinking she could; she just enjoyed the luxuries they provided that she never knew of. The plot was successful in appealing to the no-nonsense side of me. I can't stand when authors make up unnecessary conflict between two parties just to liven up a certain scene. The book's solitary, soothing tone after the bloody mess and grief Malora went through because of the demise of her people was easy to use as a filter to distinguish traits and personalities of other characters.

It is obvious, reading the ending and knowing all the other unanswered questions, that there will be a second book in the series. No doubt the "Centauriad #1" gave that away. Its the waiting that might do me in if I don't get another horse-y book-related fix in the next six months. 

Grade: A-

Highlight for minor spoilers: However, I want to know specifically Centauriad the series and Brion the Blacksmith and how Malora's training with her Hand goes, and not to mention, the decree the Apex made in the end should make life definitely more interesting for both Flatlanders and Highlanders.

e-Galley Source: Netgalley

LiLi

Touch of Power (Healer, #1) by Maria V. Snyder

Paperback: 394 pages

Publisher: Mira (December 20, 2011)

ISBN-10: 0778313077

ISBN-13: 978-0778313076

Laying hands upon the injured and dying, Avry of Kazan assumes their wounds and diseases into herself. But rather than being honored for her skills, she is hunted. Healers like Avry are accused of spreading the plague that has decimated the Territories, leaving the survivors in a state of chaos.

Stressed and tired from hiding, Avry is abducted by a band of rogues who, shockingly, value her gift above the golden bounty offered for her capture. Their leader, an enigmatic captor-protector with powers of his own, is unequivocal in his demands: Avry must heal a plague-stricken prince—leader of a campaign against her people. As they traverse the daunting Nine Mountains, beset by mercenaries and magical dangers, Avry must decide who is worth healing and what is worth dying for. Because the price of peace may well be her life....

Review:

What a lot of you may not know is that when I won signed copies of Snyder's Study series--how lucky was I?--I devoured them consecutively. Since then, I've been wanting to read another Snyder novel no matter what. When I heard about Touch of Power, I knew I'd have to read it as soon as possible in order to get my fix. What shocked me the most about the first book in her new Healer series was how similar it was to Poison Study, the first in the Study series. Yes, it is a whole new batch of characters, with as intricate and distinct a setting and world as Ixia and all the other nations in the Study series, but it resembled the previous series so much I fell in love all over again. What? Did you honestly expect me to say it was a BAD thing?

Avry has always been proud of the powers she matured into during her teenage years. However, now 20, she has been on the run for three years to escape the hostility and accusations from the people of the Fifteen Realms. Her one weakness when it came to staying hidden and surviving manifested itself into the form of a sick child whose piercing cries cut through any hesitance Avry had of using her power. Being a healer in a world where they're executed, it's easy enough to figure out what not to do in order to avoid capture. However, what comes with being a healer is an innate will to heal all that are ill. When Avry's caught and sentenced to her execution, she is surprised by the mysterious band of men that break her out for the sole purpose that they need her magical help. Soon she learns that surviving and living are two very different approaches to life, but when she finds out who and what she will face at the end of the long journey, she may not be willing to stay with the men after all...

Plot: While there was rising and falling action, I can't officially say that Touch of Power had just one climax. One of the many things I like about Snyder's writing is that you can pick one of numerous peaks to be the most surprising, enticing, daring, shocking. The core of this book can be captured in two words: the plague. I know I didn't mention this above, but it's because of the outbreak of this pandemic plague that the healer's have been hunted down. When Avry joins Kerrick's rogue men on their journey to save the man that can potentially lead the Fifteen Realms to prosperity, she finds out she may be the last healer alive. I'd hoped to find out more about the Fifteen Realms and the survivors of the plague but Touch of  Power essentially focused on the constant movement through the forest and woods and the actual journey for the majority of the book. Another aspect of Snyder's writing that makes me keep flipping the pages is that by the time you get to the halfway point, you feel like you've grown to know the characters so well, there's no possible way the writer can pack in anything thing else.

The relationship between Avry and Kerrick grows to be more tumultous than I could have ever predicted but was amusing to read about nonetheless. The tension between those two, I tell ya....Kerrick has a temper like no other and knows what he wants and how to go about getting it. It comes as no surprise that he is the leader of men five years older than him.

As for the relations between the other men in Kerrick's crew, they were all I wanted them to be and more. 'Course two of my favorites had to be Poppa Bear Belen and over-energetic Flea.

The only thing I'm iffy about when it comes to the Fifteen Realms and all their glory are the Lilies. The Peace and Death Lilies could have been better portrayed as the significant figures they're made out to be in the book.

Characters: I honestly can't focus on each character that played a significant role because there were quite a few and I have tons of thoughts about each of them. Some can kiss my beautiful behind and others I'd like to train from, morally and physically. As the heroine protagonist, Avry of Kazan had a nonchalant attitude that was surprising because of it's effective to cause reactions in the people around her. She looked at her problems logically and matter-of-factly while still keeping an aura of nurturing that completed who she was. Kerrick could be aggravating at the best of times and downright cruel at the worst. He hides his heart well and only shows any sign of caring for others through his actions for his men.

Writing: It is not so much the descriptive prose or witty banter between characters that captures the essence of Touch of Power. It is more the syntax and ability to culminate that truly ensnares the reader to not be able to put the book down. At least, that's what happened with me. And I couldn't get enough of it in just the first sitting, I had to keep going. The originality was put into question when the tone resembled the Study series but it was not an issue with me, and ended up being one of the many things I loved about Touch of Power and the start of the Healer series.

Grade: A

e-galley Source: Netgalley

LiLi

There You'll Find Me by Jenny B. Jones

Paperback: 320 pages

Publisher: Thomas Nelson (October 4, 2011)

ISBN-10: 1595545409

ISBN-13: 978-1595545404

In a small cottage house in rural Ireland, Finley discovers she can no longer outrun the past. When Finley travels to Ireland as a foreign exchange student, she hopes to create a new identity and get some answers from the God who took her brother away and seems to have left her high and dry.

But from the moment she boards the plane and sits by Beckett Rush, teen star of the hottest vampire flicks, nothing goes according to Finley's plan. When she gets too close to Beckett, a classmate goes on a mission to make sure Finley packs her bags, departs Ireland-and leaves Beckett alone.

Finley feels the pressure all around. As things start to fall apart, she begins to rely on a not-so-healthy method of taking control of her life. Finley tries to balance it all-disasters on the set of Beckett's new movie, the demands of school, and her growing romance with one actor who is not what he seems. Yet Finley is also not who she portrays to Beckett and her friends.

For the first time in her life, Finley must get honest with herself to get right with God.

Review:

Finley Sinclair is trying to outrun her not-so-distant reputation of being the party girl with a grief-stricken persona in disguise. When she follow's in her brother's footsteps and goes to Abbeyglen, Ireland for a student exchange program, she hopes to find a relaxing and invigorating town that has the essence of God--and her brother--that's she's been desperately looking for. Off to a rocky start right from the get-go, Finley encounters teen celebrity Beckett Rush not just on the plane but in the B and B her host family runs in Abbeyglen. Add to that a power-crazed, actress-wannabe, Catholic school girl and a project in a nursing home with a crabby old lady already destined to die, and Finley's stress level goes through the roof. Her search for her God gets cloudy and skewed when she is not ready to admit to imperfections that have been staring right in the face the entire time.

I have to say, right off the bat, I'm not one that likes to dote on Christian Fiction that often; if ever. Even when I started There You'll Find Me, I didn't know it had any elements of Christianity in it. Honestly, I was raised on this stuff since I was small but it still gets a kick out of shocking me every so often. I must break this review down into sections in order to explain cohesively how much this book affected me.

Characters: First off, we have Finley. Down-to-earth, heart-broken perfectionist Finley Sinclair. I felt so defensive whenever someone said one bad thing about this girl but she did an unhealthy amount of self-loathing that I just wanted to smack. In a way, this built her up to be the strong but vulnerable person she grew to be throughout There You'll Find Me. Beckett had his own flaws too, and at times I almost believed they were too flawed for each other. Beckett Rush was a conundrum waiting to confuse the heck out of me whenever he was in a scene. I loved his Irish accent and reassurances of his love for Finley, but I hated his corny lines and double life.

Plot: I have to begin with the romance. It truly starts from the very beginning and lasts till the very end. Like I mentioned before, both Finley and Beckett had so many unresolved issues that I almost believed it impossible for them to be together. But then the author inserts something the two have in common and that can no doubt help mend any rough patch they encounter, and that would be God in his almighty power. The other side plots that the author added to make this a whole story and not just a romantic tale, served their purpose in relying on the reader's sense of empathy and compassion. Mrs. Sweeney was a story on her own but I would have also liked to have seen more of a balance between that and Finley's passion for the violin.

Writing: I had no problems with the evenly-paced writing and the melodic tones instilled in the book. Honestly, if I had to guess, I'd say the book followed the flow Finley's composition for Will, her deceased brother. The short and sweet quotes in the beginning of each chapter really added to the book's appeal. Overall, it was the scenery described during Finley's stay in Ireland that took my breath away. I wanted nothing more than to see the beauty of Abbeyglen and its majestic ruins.

How unsuspecting this novel starts out to be...only to transform any opinion or expectation I had going into the book. I've never really experienced any other novel on such a soul-deep level before and it definitely captured my heart till the very last sentence.

Grade: A

e-galley Source: Netgalley

LiLi

The Pledge by Kimberly Derting Review and Swag Giveaway

Hardcover: 336 pages

Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books (November 15, 2011)

ISBN-10: 1442422017

ISBN-13: 978-1442422018

In the violent country of Ludania, the classes are strictly divided by the language they speak. The smallest transgression, like looking a member of a higher class in the eye while they are speaking their native tongue, results in immediate execution. Seventeen-year-old Charlaina has always been able to understand the languages of all classes, and she's spent her life trying to hide her secret. The only place she can really be free is the drug-fueled underground clubs where people go to shake off the oppressive rules of the world they live in. It's there that she meets a beautiful and mysterious boy named Max who speaks a language she's never heard before . . . and her secret is almost exposed.

Charlie is intensely attracted to Max, even though she can't be sure where his real loyalties lie. As the emergency drills give way to real crisis and the violence escalates, it becomes clear that Charlie is the key to something much bigger: her country's only chance for freedom from the terrible power of a deadly regime.

Review:

Everyone knows a smile is universal. When you can understand all the languages known to man, how is it that you incorporate smiling in your vocabulary? Kimberly Derting's The Pledge follows a working school girl with a unique talent living in a dystopian class system that's on the verge of its own societal apocalypse. The four sectors of Ludania's class system: Counsel, Vendor, Serving, Outcast, is all Charlie has ever known. She pledges everyday to a disembodied queen, a loyalty she blindly believes in to keep her safe. Thoughts and murmurs of the resistance and revolutionaries have been trickling down the grapevine. It's not until Charlie and Brook--Charlie's best friend--revisit a night club that is bound to close shop soon--for the night clubs can never stay long, not without being caught--that Charlie encounters her brief glimpse into the underground's underbelly. Even then she never quite suspected that all the secrets that's she's all her life would manifest into something completely unthinkable.

I'd have to give Derting points right off the bat for her originality and the whole premise of The Pledge. Creating this unique dystopian world took some imaginative doing and she definitely flexed that muscle. With only brief glimpses into the world as it used to be ordinarily, the things kept from "back then" is names of long-lost cities; Brooklyn, Charlie's friend's name. The writing and descriptive prose accentuated the novels rural and industrial cities and towns. It vividly painted the picture of all the places Charlie encounters and segments of other locations when the book was broken up by brief chapters with other narrators.

The main character's interactions with other friends could have been more profound but it did not fail to reveal some of Charlie's naivete and self-consciousness. The interactions enhanced her character and helped develop her to see the constructive views other had on what Ludania's downfall will be and process them to make her own opinion. The sparking romance between Max and Charlie was sweet to watch grow, reading about how they both tested each in their own subtle ways. Their connection was built upon their reactions toward one another, reactions that the other couldn't always visibly see.

The plot that carried the story line to its climax and unwinding was evenly paced and smoothly executed. The Pledge vowed to be about a dictator-ruled country divided by the languages they speak and how that determines their values as human beings. It delivered that way of thinking into a constituted reality reinforced by visible executions and constant security checks if anything were to attempt discord to the pledge.

Grade: B

ARC Source: S&S Galley Grab + Publicist

Giveaway:

In order to enter to win some "Pledge" swag, just leave a comment below with your email address.

LiLi

Teen Book Scene: Amplified by Tara Kelly

Hardcover: 304 pages
Publisher: Henry Holt and Co. (BYR); First Edition (October 25, 2011)
ISBN-10: 080509296X
ISBN-13: 978-0805092967

When privileged 17-year-old Jasmine gets kicked out of her house, she takes what is left of her savings and flees to Santa Cruz to pursue her dream of becoming a musician. Jasmine finds the ideal room in an oceanfront house, but she needs to convince the three guys living there that she's the perfect roommate and lead guitarist for their band, C-Side. Too bad she has major stage fright and the cute bassist doesn't think a spoiled girl from over the hill can hack it...

In this fresh new novel by critically acclaimed author Tara Kelly, Jasmine finds out what happens when her life gets Amplified.

Review:

Thrown into such life-challenging situations, the reader can witness for themselves how irrevocably engaging Kelly's writing soon comes to be. She takes being an ordinary girl with an extraordinary talent to a whole new level. That's how I came to love Jasmine's realistic view of the obstacles taking over her life and debating which path she should--and wants--to take. She ultimately had the perseverance to work out the inner demons stopping her from going full-out on her dream of being a rock star. Not once did I hate any of the characters in Amplified, at most I was just mildly annoyed with a few. As a supporting role, Veta was eccentric and sometimes dramatic but totally trusting, and as a love interest, Sean had the baggage and barbell but unexpectedly dependable when he wanted to be.

It was easy to see how Kelly's writing portrayed Jasmine as such a captivating character because of her obvious vulnerability, from the history with her father to being left to her own devices in an unfamiliar situation. Jasmine encounters grueling life decisions at the brink of adulthood when most of the population would still categorize her as a child. Shining a light on her weaknesses, Kelly was easily able to pinpoint them as attributes that eventually manifest themselves to progress the story. The music and her love of playing the guitar gave support to all her choices and mistakes, coinciding to become the basis of her life. Dealing with a whole new scene, this contemporary read rocked hard.

Grade: A-

LiLi

DNF Review and Giveaway: The Faerie Ring by Kiki Hamilton

Hardcover: 352 pages

Publisher: Tor Teen; First Edition (September 27, 2011)

ISBN-10: 0765327228

ISBN-13: 978-0765327222

Debut novelist Kiki Hamilton takes readers from the gritty slums and glittering ballrooms of Victorian London to the beguiling but menacing Otherworld of the Fey in this spellbinding tale of romance, suspense, and danger.

The year is 1871, and Tiki has been making a home for herself and her family of orphans in a deserted hideaway adjoining Charing Cross Station in central London. Their only means of survival is by picking pockets. One December night, Tiki steals a ring, and sets off a chain of events that could lead to all-out war with the Fey. For the ring belongs to Queen Victoria, and it binds the rulers of England and the realm of Faerie to peace. With the ring missing, a rebel group of faeries hopes to break the treaty with dark magic and blood—Tiki’s blood.

Unbeknownst to Tiki, she is being watched—and protected—by Rieker, a fellow thief who suspects she is involved in the disappearance of the ring. Rieker has secrets of his own, and Tiki is not all that she appears to be. Her very existence haunts Prince Leopold, the Queen’s son, who is driven to know more about the mysterious mark that encircles her wrist.
Prince, pauper, and thief—all must work together to secure the treaty…

Did-Not-Finish Review:

Pick-pocketing the streets of Victorian London, Tiki knows who to go after in order to feed the stomachs of her orphan brothers and sisters. Caring for her family in Charing Cross has become her life since the death of her parents and running away from her perverted uncle. In order to keep her family healthy enough she--and Shamus and Fiona--must risk thieving in the flagrant pubs and teeming shops around their home. As her nose leads her astray in a kitchen where a feast is being concocted, Tiki soon finds her in a library of Buckingham Palace, where she proceeds to steal the most invaluable treasure in all of London; the truce that holds the threads of their home together, the Faerie Ring.

Thrust into the world of cobblestones and horse-drawn carriages it is immediately evident the atmosphere of a thief in 1871 London will be carried through in every word, phrase and description of this book. It's when the characters are introduced and when the faeries are thrown in the mix that things got a little "out of wack." I wanted to sympathize with these orphans that take care of each other while living under terrible circumstances. The only time I felt that really happened was whenever little Clara was being taken care by Tiki wholeheartedly. Usually each of the characters all have a little background shown in the beginning of the book so as the story progresses the reader gets a growing sense of who they are as a person. However, in The Faerie Ring all the characters were immediately introduced without so much as a physical depiction of their appearance, except for Rieker who Tiki feels an unquestionable attraction to. I'm getting tired of all these romances that have no basis to explain the connection and develop the relationship between two prominent characters.

When the faeries come in the picture and the truce is actualized, I couldn't help but just put the book down and inwardly complain about the elusiveness of such creatures. I have NOTHING against faeries as a whole, one of my favorite series ever has faeries as the forefront characters, but the author failed to pronounce the importance of these creatures in the plot line. I got up to page 172 before I finally gave up and said, "I don't care what happens with the ring, the faeries or Tiki and Reiker." Honestly, it just didn't matter to me what was going to happen next. Out of the half of the book that I was able to swallow, I only appreciated the setting and the fleeting chapters where Prince Leo and Prince Arthur were talking. That's it, and that is sad. Obviously it wasn't the author's writing style or originality that lacked something, just the plot and characters weren't enough to carry on this tale of "gritty slums and glittering ballrooms" and the Otherworld that held the creatures seeking the reclamation of their city. The suspense and dangerous tone came through loud and clear, but the romance was white noise at best.

Source: Publisher

Giveaway:

In order for you to make up your own opinion of The Faerie Ring I'm giving away a finished copy to one lucky person. Just fill out this FORM and you'll have to be a US resident and wait till October 30th to find out who the winner is...

LiLi

Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi

Reading level: Young Adult

Hardcover: 352 pages

Publisher: HarperCollins (November 15, 2011)

ISBN-10: 0062085484

ISBN-13: 978-0062085481

Juliette hasn't touched anyone in exactly 264 days. The last time she did, it was an accident, but The Reestablishment locked her up for murder. No one knows why Juliette's touch is fatal. As long as she doesn't hurt anyone else, no one really cares. The world is too busy crumbling to pieces to pay attention to a 17-year-old girl. Diseases are destroying the population, food is hard to find, birds don't fly anymore, and the clouds are the wrong color.

The Reestablishment said their way was the only way to fix things, so they threw Juliette in a cell. Now so many people are dead that the survivors are whispering war- and The Reestablishment has changed its mind. Maybe Juliette is more than a tortured soul stuffed into a poisonous body. Maybe she's exactly what they need right now.

Juliette has to make a choice: Be a weapon. Or be a warrior.

In this electrifying debut, Tahereh Mafi presents a world as riveting as The Hunger Games and a superhero story as thrilling as The X-Men. Full of pulse-pounding romance, intoxicating villainy, and high-stakes choices, Shatter Me is a fresh and original dystopian novel—with a paranormal twist—that will leave readers anxiously awaiting its sequel.

Review:

Pros: 

Adam. I loved Adam, he was almost too perfect for Juliette but ultimately fit her character so well. They had the element of history that's subtle but slowly crescendos as you get sucked into their connection. Adam's character in general ameliorated some of the intense-ness of the book, he relieved Shatter Me just by being a reassurance toward Juliette and electrified the pages as their passion grew.

Originality. The pre-meditated dystopian world feel of Shatter Me lent an attractable quality that made the book a nonstop page-turner. I read the book in two whole sittings, I was more than half way done the first time I picked it up to start reading it.

The ending. It was one of those endings that tries to turn the whole book around by giving the reader a whole new perspective of the main character's dilemma in just the last 50 pages, but it did pull it off nicely. It definitely set the tone for the next possible book in the series and permeated an assurance of how the rest of Juliette's story will progress.

Cons:

Warner. Being that he's the son of the leader of The Reestablishment, he's pretty much Adam's polar opposite. Where Adam's sweet, gentle and unfathomably understanding, Warner's psychotically sick, cruel and in denial.

The writing style. I understood how some of the crossed out sentences and repetition in the writing represented and emphasized the main character's "voice," but for the love of me, I couldn't get used to the constant, extreme transitions between scenes. One moment it's action-packed and the MC is flustered, frustrated, trying to fight back....the next second she's calm, and everything's going to be fine. This did drive me a smidge up the wall, but thankfully the other characters were able to pull me back.

The plot. Overall, I did love the relationship between Adam and Juliette, I could appreciate the significance of Warner's villain-ness, but Shatter Me was only specifically centralized around Juliette's one, dominating flaw and The Reestablishment. The Reestablishment isn't fully explained and that's why I'm pretty certain this is going to turn into a series. The constant reminder of destruction of the earth and how The Reestablishment is taking over soon became redundant, especially since I felt like the author was just rephrasing the same background information on how their world came to be that way.

Grade: B-

ARC Source: Borrowed

LiLi

Every Other Day by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

Reading level: Young Adult

Hardcover: 352 pages

Publisher: EgmontUSA (December 27, 2011)

ISBN-10: 1606841696

ISBN-13: 978-1606841693

Every other day, Kali D'Angelo is a normal sixteen-year-old girl. She goes to public high school. She attends pep rallies. She's human.

And then every day in between . . .She's something else entirely.

Though she still looks like herself, every twenty-four hours predatory instincts take over and Kali becomes a feared demon-hunter with the undeniable urge to hunt, trap, and kill zombies, hellhounds, and other supernatural creatures. Kali has no idea why she is the way she is, but she gives in to instinct anyway. Even though the government considers it environmental terrorism.

When Kali notices a mark on the lower back of a popular girl at school, she knows instantly that the girl is marked for death by one of these creatures. Kali has twenty-four hours to save her and, unfortunately, she'll have to do it as a human. With the help of a few new friends, Kali takes a risk that her human body might not survive. . .and learns the secrets of her mysterious condition in the process.

Review:

I had my expectations when I heard first read about Every Other Day in the back of the Trial by Fire ARC Egmont had sent me. In some ways I was disappointed, mostly because I've come to expect from Barnes's writing, but in others I was pleasantly surprised that she'd tackle this spectrum of the paranormal--preternatural--base. Kali was introduced as a different sort of being, not knowing any one else like her, she considered being alone and not caring was how she was going to spend the rest of her days. Except, after another day of hunting and going back to being "human", she gets approached in a pep rally at school by a psychic, and the rest is history.

Writing: I have an acquired taste for Barnes's brutal, no-nonsense style of writing. It entertains while it informs, and I don't have to worry about any bullshit being thrown at me. At times, the writing felt a bit amateur-ish, like perhaps this was a debut, but I understand the Barnes was dipping her toes into new territory, I just wish she had grown more as writer to max out this book's potential.

Plot: As expected, the plot was pretty fast-paced and didn't leave anything to be desired. It was satisfying, but some interactions with different characters and the preternatural beings themselves didn't have a sense of originality. The insta-romance between Kali and Zev was not overly done so I can't say anything bad about it, it just reminded of Bryn and Chace--from Raised by Wolves--a hell of a lot. Honestly, comparing the two novels, I have to say that Every Other Day was more intense and delved deeper into the goring aspects than Raised by Wolves, but it lacked personal connections that the latter had. Kali's regulated abilities were an interesting twist and added a much-needed originality to an otherwise unoriginal book. Even the scientist that are seriously corrupt helped the book move along, and kept me intrigued enough to finish it till the very last page.

Characters: This has to be what peeved me the most. When others read Every Other Day, they'll probably say that they had an affinity for Skylar's character the most because she was down-to-earth, helpful towards the main character, and obnoxiously cute. The only part of that sentence that I deem true, is the use of obnoxious. I know why she was such in an important--being Kali's one true friend--but I'd pick Bethany over her any day. The quality that made her the most important in the book was what ended up irritating me the most about her. Hell, I liked the brothers better and they were only semi-better characters. I just felt like the characters were very underwhelmed, not greatly developed and didn't support the plot as much as they could have. Zev, as a love interest, was so disappointing because he was just like a voice almost throughout the duration of the novel. You weren't able to see those facial expressions that tell more than words, no background on him whatsoever. Kali, however, was a well-rounded girl, being confused all the time and what not, and she was definitely more personable than any of the others.

Overall: Weighing the pros and cons, I have to say there were a lot of cons that were piling up in my head as I was reading this book, but I can't help myself from recommending it even if you're a virgin to the author's works. It will might not suck readers in immediately, but I would like to believe you'll warm up to it. I do hope this stays as a stand-alone, as I think there are way too many series out there already. However, I can see them turning into a series because of the semi-cliffhanger.

Grade: C+

Source: Netgalley

LiLi

Darkness Becomes Her by Kelly Keaton

Hardcover: 288 pages 

Publisher: Simon Pulse (February 22, 2011) 

ISBN-10: 144240924X 

ISBN-13: 978-1442409248

Ari can’t help feeling lost and alone. With teal eyes and freakish silver hair that can’t be changed or destroyed, Ari has always stood out. And after growing up in foster care, she longs for some understanding of where she came from and who she is. Her search for answers uncovers just one message from her long dead mother: Run. Ari can sense that someone, or something, is getting closer than they should. But it’s impossible to protect herself when she doesn’t know what she’s running from or why she is being pursued. She knows only one thing: she must return to her birthplace of New 2, the lush rebuilt city of New Orleans. Upon arriving, she discovers that New 2 is very…different. Here, Ari is seemingly normal. But every creature she encounters, no matter how deadly or horrifying, is afraid of her. Ari won’t stop until she knows why. But some truths are too haunting, too terrifying, to ever be revealed.

Review:

Ari is a freak among the norms, and when she arrives in New 2, she slowly comes to find that she also might be a freak among supernatural freaks too. From foster home to foster home, Ari has been abused and ridiculed about her looks and not being able to fit in tends to weather a girl down. Stumbling upon the kids in the Garden District veers Ari's journey to find out about her biological father a bit off course. Uncovering the truth about New 2--the independent, yet partially revitalized New Orleans--and all its many facets comes as not too big of a surprise after hearing all sorts of preternatural rumors outside The Rim.

It's only when Ari really starts digging into the curse pass down the female line of her mother's biological family that things start to heat up real fast. There's vampires, witches and demigods aplenty but when there's a real goddess around--one that tends to caress the evil tactics of the gods--there just has to be a god-killer to, right?

It's no secret that Keaton has a gift when it comes to writing. If you've ever read her adult series, you'd be captured in the first chapter. The overtones of that amazingly and concisely descriptive writing definitely shines its light in Darkness Becomes Her. Keaton was not afraid to throw in a heroine with a touch of monster in her blood and an attitude--and "bad" mouth--to suit her. Ari, short for Aristanae, was dark-fully crafted. I was entranced when I was able to view through her eyes the world and misfortunes it has thrown at her. Developed background on her alone would have made for an captivating read. Her foster parents and all the kids and motley of powerful adults introduced were a breath of fresh air to read about; all individuals that contributed to the main plot skillfully. Most did lack some background knowledge that would have been helpful to personalize them and give their uniqueness some flare.

The plot was utterly bewitching, and while the pacing had me second-guessing the two battle scenes' timing because of its unpredictable staggering progression, the events that lead up to that cliffhanger ending just ensnare you enough to keep your heart pounding even after you've read the last word.

Grade: B+/A-

Source: Bought

LiLi

The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin

Hardcover: 450 pages
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing (September 27, 2011)
ISBN-10: 1442421762
ISBN-13: 978-1442421769

Mara Dyer doesn't think life can get any stranger than waking up in a hospital with no memory of how she got there.

It can.

She believes there must be more to the accident she can't remember that killed her friends and left her mysteriously unharmed.

There is.

She doesn't believe that after everything she's been through, she can fall in love.

She's wrong.

Review:

Do you know what's it's like to have your sense of reality questioned? To face such trauma that after a while, you ask yourself, "Am I dreaming or awake right now?" Honestly, that was the feeling I felt as I was reading The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer. It's one of those books that you think is going to be kept hush, hush so everyone in the world can read it and not be spoiled. So everyone in the world can individually have their minds blown without any preparation as to what the contents in this book will do to them. I understand why the synopsis is so brief, they--being publishers--want to draw you in, peak your interest just enough so you could start the book. Then the author takes it from there. Hodkin puts this spell on you as you're reading, just a taste of one to keep you entranced, and as you're sinking deeper into the depth of the pages...you're tested. Your mind is tested and you will ask yourself once you've finished, "Am I dreaming or awake right now?"

First of all, the relationship between Mara and Noah doesn't start as anything unique. Mind you, we have another rich boy, man-whore taking an interest in the new girl and you know they're going to end up together. But my goodness, the scathing remarks these two throw at each other was just wonderful to witness. I felt like I needed to keep a mental scoreboard just to keep up with who was ahead in the insult department.If I wasn't doing this review on an ARC of this book, I'd tell you every single one that stood out for me. They got so entangled into each other, emotionally and mentally, it was a definite thrill to see their connection become stronger and more meaningful as the story went on.  I also had three other favorite characters that I could not get enough of: Daniel, Joseph and Jamie. Out of all three Jamie had to be the most rounded because he had his sense of style, of being that I wasn't able to ignore, an in-your-face personality.

Another element I must mention, is that using my hometown as the setting for this book was absolutely brilliant. I am saying this somewhat subjectively but in the end, I thought it worked best to put a girl who grew up with snow and public schools in the polar opposite of an environment and see how she fared. Hodkin's writing style was what made the book's plot so addicting to read, so spell-binding that I had to lock myself in my room for hours on end till I was finished.

It starts as just another contemporary novel with a tragic twist that ends up turning the protagonist's life upside down. It didn't feel slow-going even though it was only after the first 270 or so pages that I started to get the feeling, no matter how many predictions I made I would never figure this book out until I read it the whole way through. I'd feel like my assumptions were set in stone, like there was no way I wrong about what was going on--because I'm smart like that--and the book would just taunt me with every surprise at every corner. In itself, those first 270 pages could have been the first book of the series and all that followed after it, book 2. Those first pages were well-developed and I would not have hesitated to buy the next book, but you don't know how ecstatic and a little insane I felt reading the last third of the thick book. Overall, The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer made me feel crazy because seriously, what a cliffhanger.

Grade: A-

Source: Publisher

Random Nuggets:

--This is probably the only book I'll ever find where a guy had a valid reason for being a man-whore; and for those who have read already, do you think it was valid, too?

--Two questions for those have and haven't read this miraculous novel...what would you do if you could think someone's death and have it come true? And who would win in a guilt-contest, the one who did it or the one who couldn't stop it?

LiLi

Kitty and The Midnight Hour by Carrie Vaughn (Kitty Norville, Book 1)

Mass Market Paperback: 288 pages

Publisher: Grand Central Publishing (November 1, 2005)

ISBN-10: 0446616419

ISBN-13: 978-0446616416

Kitty Norville is a midnight-shift DJ for a Denver radio station - and a werewolf in the closet. Her new late-night advice show for the supernaturally disadvantaged is a raging success, but it's Kitty who can use some help. With one sexy werewolf-hunter and a few homicidal undead on her tail, Kitty may have bitten off more than she can chew?

Review:

The Midnight Hour was literally created overnight when Kitty was on the night shift at KNOB radio station and one straggler called with a question about the supernatural. Lo and behold, Kitty became the supernatural-advice guru and her "producer" asked her to continue with the episodes as "The Midnight Hour".

Characters: Since the book started off immediately with Kitty doing her thing at the radio station, I thought this added a quality to make her a lovable character. Her submissiveness was not overly exposed but just kind of put out there and accepted as a primal instinct would be. Normally, I like my heroines to be strong and superwoman-like but I reveled in how Vaugn painted Kitty because it suited her to be that type of person. Consequently, Kitty did also have the potential to move up in her pack.

As for the supporting characters, Carl and Meg stood out the most for me. Both made it their mission to protect their pack but as the climax crept closer, I got to see their flaws and true colors. Being the leaders of the local pack of werewolves, one would think it was practically mandatory to stick with the pack but that's the thing with people in power, they can do whatever the hell they want, and not give a flying hoot of what that would do to their underlings.
Another character that stood out for the opposite reasons entirely was Rick, because of his type of relationship with Kitty. He was sort of like a third party member but simultaneously was incorporated into Kitty's life through an off-hand friendship that I grew fond of. When was the last time there was just a companionable relationship between two characters in any genre these days? There always has to be some type of tension between all the characters that drives me nuts.

As for T.J. and Cormac, both were very nice figures in the book and rounded out Kitty's character well. They were polar opposites but both seemed to care about Kitty, though on different levels.

Plot: As time went on and The Midnight Hour was popularized, Kitty was faced with varying levels of complications that helped develop her character. Nothing before had made her as proud as her new radio show, something that she did for herself and was important to her. Obstacles soon arise that want to take her down--the vampires, her pack, an assassin--but none of this really stops her from getting her way. I enjoyed learning how the vampires and werewolves interact in the book, and how the underlings tend to do their business behind the leaders' backs.One thing that sort of had me troubled was the mentioning of the other supernatural beings--besides werewolves and vampires--that don't really show up physically in the book. I believe the book could have revolved around just those two main species without having dealt into the others, at least not in the first book of the series. Finally, I have to talk about how the ending scene where all of the fighting and attempts to kill Kitty come down to a final battle between the alphas and the underlings. I can't stop myself from saying that this scene really killed some of the excitement I had to read the rest of this series. I knew that whatever outcome that scene had was going to set how the rest of the Kitty Norville series would take off. That's why I was so disappointed when it just fell flat and felt somehow restrained from the awesome ending it could have been. Honestly, I wanted to scream at Kitty for not taking her revenge--for the killing-attempts and something else that happened to "finish" the fight. I don't know if that's a spoiler and frankly don't care because seriously readers must be warned of it. It affected me and the way I perceived the book so much so that I drastically changed my opinion of some of the choices Kitty made, and reflected on how the author would continue the series considering she only cleared up one of the main conflicts.
I believe this book was too short to get a real feel of what's to come, and it didn't really set a basis as to where the plot's going to take place, so I feel like saying "it's been shot to hell" for some reason...

Grade: C-

Source: Bought

LiLi

The Day Before by Lisa Schroeder

Hardcover: 320 pages

Publisher: Simon Pulse (June 28, 2011)

ISBN-10: 1442417439

ISBN-13: 978-1442417434

Amber’s life is spinning out of control. All she wants is to turn up the volume on her iPod until all of the demands of family and friends fade away. So she sneaks off to the beach to spend a day by herself.

Then Amber meets Cade. Their attraction is instant, and Amber can tell he’s also looking for an escape. Together they decide to share a perfect day: no pasts, no fears, no regrets.

The more time that Amber spends with Cade, the more she’s drawn to him. And the more she’s troubled by his darkness. Because Cade’s not just living in the now—he’s living each moment like it’s his last.

Review:

They both have secrets/promises, one of them more publicized than the other, but both equally painful to keep. For this book, the title really says it all. The Day Before explores the moments in the day before their life changes irrevocably. She's called Jelly because of her Jelly Bean addiction, was it really a surprise that they met as she watched him stare at jellyfish?

Only two things kind of slowed me down while reading this book--and had me a little confused--and I don't think these are spoilers: her best friend, and her little stalking expedition. Those two could have been easily been taken out of the book and made no difference in the end. However, I would have to say it did add to their whole relationship-in-a-day scheme. And overall, it was sweet and made me cry--because I'm sappy like that. I do believe that The Day Before will touch its readers on a more personal level because right from the beginning, I felt like I was right beside Amber the whole way through. Plus, it did have a somewhat more hopeful type of ending, and that really tied into both "impossible" situations the main characters were going through.

I'd like to read The Day Before again on a rainy day or by the beach, when I know I'll be able to appreciate the scenery, metaphors, and depictions the author gives an endless supply of. I do recommend this book, because its quick but heartfelt.

Grade: B

Source: Publisher

LiLi

Chasing Brooklyn by Lisa Schroeder

Hardcover: 412 pages

Publisher: Simon Pulse; 1 edition (January 5, 2010)

ISBN-10: 1416991689

ISBN-13: 978-1416991687

Restless souls and empty hearts

Brooklyn can't sleep. Her boyfriend, Lucca, died only a year ago, and now her friend Gabe has just died of an overdose. Every time she closes her eyes, Gabe's ghost is there waiting for her. She has no idea what he wants or why it isn't Lucca visiting her dreams.

Nico can't stop. He's always running, trying to escape the pain of losing his brother, Lucca. But when Lucca's ghost begins leaving messages, telling Nico to help Brooklyn, emotions come crashing to the surface.

As the nightmares escalate and the messages become relentless, Nico reaches out to Brooklyn. But neither of them can admit that they're being haunted. Until they learn to let each other in, not one soul will be able to rest.

Review:

Chasing Brooklyn takes place about a year and six months after Jackson's death in I Heart You, You Haunt Me. Surprisingly enough, I did not figure this out until the very end of Chasing Brooklyn, when Ava makes a personal appearance, which I very much appreciated because I love knowing how characters are doing after the fact.

Originally, I rated Chasing Brooklyn a grade lower than I Heart You, You Haunt Me the first time I read it. I don't think I'm changing that this second time around because it still feels like the story dragged on more than it should; and its similarity to Schroeder's first novel does not go unnoticed. However, there so many more elements in this story to enjoy and experience than in her first novel. Also, the two deaths that are the center of this book, give it more sustenance than you would expect. What I noticed about the two main characters--Brooklyn and Nico--from the very beginning was their individual voices when it came to grieving family/friend/boyfriend. Something I thought would have been a difficult feat to pull off--and in verse, no less--was the constant alternative perspective when switching view-points from Brooklyn to Nico and vice versa. The smoothness with which Schroeder had the ability to write was incredible, and I'd like to commend her easy way of making the reader understand all of the character's emotions. The absolute vividness of every frustrating nightmare and ghostly appearance was in itself spooky but it definitely added something to the book that made it all the more intriguing.

I can only hope that The Day Before brings some light into these otherwise dark and rejuvenating tales, and I will be reading more of Schroeder's future works as well.

Grade: C

Source: Publisher

LiLi

I Heart You, You Haunt Me by Lisa Schroeder

Paperback: 240 pages

Publisher: Simon Pulse; Original edition (January 8, 2008)

ISBN-10: 9781416955207

ISBN-13: 978-1416955207

Girl meets boy.

Girl loses boy.

Girl gets boy back...

...sort of.

Ava can't see him or touch him, unless she's dreaming. She can't hear his voice, except for the faint whispers in her mind. Most would think she's crazy, but she knows he's here.

Jackson. The boy Ava thought she'd spend the rest of her life with. He's back from the dead, as proof that love truly knows no bounds.

Review:

What's special about Ava Bender? She's hopeful.

Isn't it everyone's grieving wish to be in some sort of contact with the one they've lost? To live on with them hanging around, always there for you, letting you remember the happy memories? What happens when the bond that connect the two doesn't break when it was supposed to? Wouldn't that be a dream come true?

Ava understands the literal meaning of death, however, she's tested on what the words "moving on" mean. To have your boyfriend waiting for you would be your dream, never having to let him go. But when you come to the conclusion that he's holding himself back because he is an incorporeal being, how much are you willing to let him hold you back? For how long?

With such a brief book and so few words, the emotions that placated me throughout the grievance and self-discovery were amazing to feel. I believe that if it were done in any other way not in verse, the same amount and variety of emotions would not have portrayed themselves to the reader as well. I also believe that at times, reading in verse is more like an experience of another person's emotions if nothing else. One thing I liked the most was the pace, because it brought about all the stages that Ava essentially needed to go through for herself and also complemented the assurance of having the people around her trying to bring her back to the world of the living.

Schroeder wrote such an approachable book that would make lost readers find a light. Lyrical yet relatable, I Heart You, You Haunt Me created a visual visage of what Ava went through and all the steps she took to make it there.

Grade: B

Source: Publisher

LiLi