Review: Awaken by Meg Cabot

Awaken by Meg Cabot
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Series: Abandon Trilogy #3
Reading Level: Young Adult
Publisher: Point July 2, 2013
Pages: 343

Synopsis:

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Meg Cabot, the dark reimagining of the Persephone myth comes to a thrilling conclusion.

Death has her in his clutches. She doesn’t want him to let go.

Seventeen-year-old Pierce Oliviera knew by accepting the love of John Hayden, she’d be forced to live forever in the one place she’s always dreaded most: the Underworld. The sacrifice seemed worth it, though, because it meant she could be with the boy she loves.

But now her happiness — and safety — are threatened, all because the Furies have discovered that John has broken one of their strictest rules: He revived a human soul.


If the balance between life and death isn’t fixed, both the Underworld and Pierce’s home back on earth will be wiped away. But there’s only one way to restore order. Someone has to die.

My thoughts:

You know what I hate? When a series you like gets to the final book and you've read it and you suddenly realize that it's the LAST one. Then your all like, no! I need more, it just CAN'T end. Then, you realize again that there's nothing you can do about it, it's over. Bye-bye. Good night. The end.

This is how I feel now that I've read Awaken. Granted, I think this should be a good thing because if you don't feel this way about a series then that means you don't like it. But it still hurts. Now on to the book!

Awaken had all the elements of its predecessors, Abandon and Underworld. There was humor, sarcasm, fighting, romance, and all the mythology of the Underworld. To say the least, it was great. I love Pierce as the main character. She's very smart, fierce, and funny. Some of the scenes made me laugh out loud. Of course, I also enjoyed reading about all the other characters that make the Abandon series so great. I think my favorite is Mr. Smith. I also like Henry and Mr. Lui. Wait, now I can't leave out Kayla, Frank, and Alex. Oh, and obviously John. The plot was well done and the ending was cute.

If you enjoyed the first two books, then this is the book for you.

P.S. That cover is AMAZING. I think it's one of my favorite covers of all time. The purple and her dress is really pretty. I have no words I like it so much.


What are your thoughts? Did you like Awaken? What do you think of that cover? I mean, seriously that cover. :)

Review: Gameboard of the Gods by Richelle Mead

Gameboard of the Gods by Richelle Mead
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Series: Age of X #1
Reading Level: Adult
Publisher: Dutton Adult June 4, 2013
Pages: 448

Synopsis:

In a futuristic world nearly destroyed by religious extremists, Justin March lives in exile after failing in his job as an investigator of religious groups and supernatural claims. But Justin is given a second chance when Mae Koskinen comes to bring him back to the Republic of United North America (RUNA). Raised in an aristocratic caste, Mae is now a member of the military’s most elite and terrifying tier, a soldier with enhanced reflexes and skills.

When Justin and Mae are assigned to work together to solve a string of ritualistic murders, they soon realize that their discoveries have exposed them to terrible danger. As their investigation races forward, unknown enemies and powers greater than they can imagine are gathering in the shadows, ready to reclaim the world in which humans are merely game pieces on their board.


Gameboard of the Gods, the first installment of Richelle Mead’s Age of X series, will have all the elements that have made her YA Vampire Academy and Bloodlines series such megasuccesses: sexy, irresistible characters; romantic and mythological intrigue; and relentless action and suspense.

My thoughts:

First off, Gameboard of the Gods is very, very different from Richelle Mead's previous books. It's not like Vampire Academy, Bloodlines, Georgiana Kincaid, or her Dark Swan series. Don't get me wrong, I can see some similarities between her other series but overall the first Age of X novel walked a different tune.

That is not to say that this book was bad. It was actually pretty good (as I gave it a 4 star rating) but I had to warm up to it. I was fluctuating between giving it a 3 or 4 star but I ultimately chose a 4 star because I think it has potential.

Back to the warming up part. It was slow. At first, in the beginning I had to force myself to read it. I think it was slow due to these reasons:

1. The world, the build-up, basically the whole introduction of this new setting. To be honest, it was kind of confusing at first with all the gadget, politics, and religious talk. But, I understand it because, like most first books in series a lot of the stuff has to be explained in order to get the gist of the whole thing for later in the book and the next ones after that.

2. The characters. For some reason, I didn't really get invested in Justin, Mae, or Tessa for that matter. I think this was largely due in part to Mead's use of third person POV. It just felt really impersonal. Still, like I said before it got better in the last half of the book. I actually felt a little for Justin and Mae.

Despite the differences from her previous books and the slow start, Mead debuts a promising new series. I, for one, am going to read the second book in the Age of X series. Hopefully, it'll be good.


What are your thoughts on Gameboard of the Gods? Did you like it?

Review: Fall of Night by Rachel Caine

Fall of Night by Rachel Caine
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Series: The Morganville Vampires #14
Reading Level: Young Adult
Publisher: New American Library May 7, 2013
Pages: 352

Synopsis:

Thanks to its unique combination of human and vampire residents, Morganville, Texas, is a small college town with big-time problems. When student Claire Danvers gets the chance to experience life on the outside, she takes it. But Morganville isn’t the only town with vampire trouble...

Claire never thought she’d leave Morganville, but when she gets accepted into the graduate program at MIT, she can’t pass up the opportunity. Saying good-bye to her friends is bittersweet, especially since things are still raw and unsettled between Claire and her boyfriend, Shane. 

Her new life at MIT is scary and exciting, but Morganville is never really far from Claire’s mind. Enrolled in a special advanced study program with Professor Irene Anderson, a former Morganville native, Claire is able to work on her machine, which is designed to cancel the mental abilities of vampires. 


But when she begins testing her machine on live subjects, things quickly spiral out of control, and Claire starts to wonder whether leaving Morganville was the last mistake she’ll ever make...

My thoughts:

Fall of Night, the fourteenth installment in the Morganville Vampires series, was a really good read. It wasn’t as good as its predecessor, Bitter Blood, but it was still engaging. I think one of the reasons why Fall of Night wasn’t as good was because it wasn’t set in Morganville. Yeah, so some of the previous books went outside of Morganville before but that was with the whole gang. This time Claire goes by herself to MIT and to be honest, it was a little slow in the beginning. The reason being is because it was just her and some other new characters. I mean, where was Eve, Michael, Oliver, and Myrnin? Yes, Shane was there but it wasn’t with all of them together. It just wasn’t the same. But, wait, don’t worry! They end up coming in the second half of the book!! That’s when it got kickin’. So, yeah, Fall of Night is definitely a worthwhile read especially if your fans of the Morganville Vampires (like me!).

Aww, now I’m so sad that the next book, Daylighters, is the LAST one. Can you believe it? Ugh, I wanted it to go on forever. I’m going to miss this world so much. (Although I could just reread it but that’s not the same.) Well, at least there might be an online TV series. Wouldn’t that be cool?

Favorite Quote:

“Shane wasn’t asleep after all, because he sat up, put his arm around Claire, and said, “We promise.”
“You’d better, jerkface,” Eve said. “How’s the head?”
“Taped,” he said. “It’s fine. Chicks dig scars. Wait, did you just call me jerkface? Are we back in grade school?”
“I love you,” Eve said.
He closed his mouth, fast because obviously that was not what he’d expected. “I, uh, okay. Love you, too. Can we stop that? It’s uncomfortable.”
“Jerkface.”
“Much better.”

--Shane and Eve

Review: Clockwork Angel (Manga) by Cassandra Clare & HyeKyung Baek

Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare & HyeKyung Baek (Illustrator)
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Series: The Infernal Devices: Manga #1
Reading Level: Young Adult, Manga
Publisher: Yen Press October 30, 2012
Pages: 240

Synopsis:

A manga-adaption to the prequel of Cassandra Clare's Mortal Instruments series, The Infernal Devices is the story of Tessa Gray, a sixteen-year-old American girl traveling alone to Victorian London who runs afoul of the city's sordid supernatural underworld. Rescued by the Shadowhunters of the London Institute, Tessa quickly finds herself caught up in an intrigue that may very well destroy her new friends - including the two enigmatic young men, Jem and Will, who have taken her under their wing...


My thoughts:

My initial reaction to learning that there was a manga adaption to the first book in the Infernal Devices series was:

HECK YES!!!! I’M SO EXCITED!!!

I mean, one of my favorite series coming to life through manga? C’mon, it’s so cool. Anyway, enough of that. How was Clockwork Angel manga style, you ask? Well, it was great! I loved it. The characters were done really well and the dialogue and whole plot of the book was adapted pretty dang good. The illustrator did a beautiful Tessa. And Will. And Jem. And Sophie, Charlotte, Jessamine, and all the other characters. Well, besides Henry. I mean I know he’s a little dorky and stuff but the illustrator could have given him a better face or a more realistic face instead of the more cartoonish face. Magnus looked fine except two things. Where are his cat eyes? and What the heck with the long hair? I was laughing so hard at that. I know it was back then but I have the picture of Magnus in the Mortal Instruments with short, spiky hair. Of course, some things (dialogue) needed to be cut out but most of it was in it. Bottom line: Clockwork Angel in manga was well done and more importantly really fun to read.


What’s your take on Clockwork Angel? What did you think about how the characters looked? Who do you think was done the best in your opinion?

Review: Jessica Rules the Dark Side by Beth Fantaskey

Jessica Rules the Dark Side by Beth Fantaskey
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Series: Jessica #2
Reading Level: Young Adult
Publisher: Harcourt Children's Books January 10, 2012
Pages: 309

Synopsis:

It’s one thing to find out you’re a vampire princess. It’s a whole other thing to actually rule. Newly married Jessica Packwood is having a hard enough time feeling regal with her husband, Lucius, at her side. But when evidence in the murder of a powerful elder points to Lucius, sending him into solitary confinement, Jessica is suddenly on her own. Determined to clear her husband’s name, Jessica launches into a full-scale investigation, but hallucinations and nightmares of betrayal keep getting in her way. Jessica knows that with no blood to drink, Lucius’s time is running out. Can she figure out who the real killer is—and whom she can trust—before it’s too late?

My thoughts:

**Some spoilers**

I really liked Jessica Rules the Dark Side. I remember reading the first book, Jessica's Guide to Dating on the Dark Side and really liking it but I didn’t remember all the details. So, when I started reading the sequel, a lot of what happened in the first book came rushing back to me. I have to say, in the beginning, it was kind of dull because Jess was all whiny and wimpy. I was like just get your head out of your butt and get your act together and be strong. That’s when it became better though when Jess finally did just that. Here is my character overview/review:

Jessica Packwood aka Antanasia Dragomir

Like I said before, in the beginning Jess was kind of bleh. But, then she was alright and found herself. I like when she became all tough and everything (go strong female protagonists!). I liked Jess a lot in the first book and the middle and end of the sequel.

Melinda Stankowicz aka Mindy (or Mindy Sue as Raniero calls her)

I like Mindy. She’s really funny and smart. She knows who the culprit is when Jess or Raniero or anyone else didn’t (well, granted I knew who it was too but whatever). I also liked that she got her happily ever after at the end. Go Mindy!

Raniero Lovatu aka Ronnie (as Mindy calls him)

At first I didn’t know what to think of Raniero. I mean he’s a taco shirt wearing pacifist surfer vampire. But, then we get to know him better as the book goes on and he’s actually a damned vampire who killed lots of people. I like Raniero enough. He was funny at times. I kind of missed Lucius though.

Lucius Vladescu aka Lukey (as Mindy calls him)

Lukey wasn’t in this book a lot ‘cause, you know, he was locked up from being accused of murdering a vampire. But, we did get to see a lot of email/note messages between him and Raniero so that was cool.

Overall, good book. I would definitely read it if you read Jessica's Guide to Dating on the Dark Side.

Favorite Quotes:

“A queen has few friends, my birth mother had tried to warn me in her journal. If she has many, she is almost surely doing something wrong.”

--Jess

“It’s all about perception, I told myself. Mine—and theirs.

--Jess

“You will not address me as if I’m not even here—unless you want to join Lucius in the dungeons. And then we’ll see how long you last without blood, because you are two hundred years older and nowhere near as strong as my husband.”

--Jess

“I might not have transferred to a new school, but it was still like I’d joined the world’s oldest, grayest, least peppy cheerleading squad, and I was sick of being stuck in a castle like a prisoner myself with the whole lousy bunch of them.”

--Jess

“It is never wise to express doubt in front of an armed and dangerous vampire, especially if it causes you to bow your head like a sacrifice—and drop your own weapon.”

--Raniero

“The Buddha himself says, ‘Life is suffering.’ Pain cannot be avoided, only fully faced and accepted. A moment of discomfort is nothing to me.”
I don’t think Buddha would approve of my deliberately stabbing you.”

--Raniero and Jess

“I wish to be Princess Antanasia Dragomir Vladescu, ruler of the world’s most venerable vampire clans.
Without hesitating, Raniero place his hand on the table, and I drove the stake into his flesh with every ounce of strength I possessed.”

--Jess

“I, like, wanted to hurt. And I got what I wanted.”

--Mindy

“If we only have daughters, I will be the happiest vampire alive,” he whispers. “For I have come to learn—from you—that a princess can be as powerful as a prince!”

--Lucius

“Holy crap. I was about knocked over for two reasons. Jess had totally won round one. And there were guys there who’d been alive in 1622?”

--Mindy

“I was gonna raise a little hell in a place that already seemed pretty darn close to there, if you asked me.”

--Mindy