Book Thoughts: Starcrossed

Title: Starcrossed
Author: Josephine Angelini
Series: Starcrossed #1

I adore Greek mythology, so I really wanted to love this one. For the first couple of chapters, I thought I wasn't going to; aforementioned first couple of chapters were a bit jumpy, way heavy on the exposition, and Helen seemed way too unruffled by the unnaturalness of... well, herself.

I told myself I would give it to page fifty to see if it got better. Well before that, I was hooked. I ended up staying up until 12:30 (despite having to get up for an 8am class this morning) to finish it. And I need the second one.

STARCROSSED is about Helen Hamilton and destiny. Helen is a Scion, a descendent of one of the Greek gods. Yes, those Greek gods -- they're real, and the Fates are not about to make life easy for their children. As Helen learns the truth about who she is and what she can do, she also learns a much more upsetting truth: it may well be her destiny to rekindle the Trojan War.

The first couple chapters, like I said, were a little choppy and hard to get into, but once I was into it, I could NOT put it down. Like I said, I love Greek mythology, so seeing the way those stories were incorporated into Angelini's Nantucket was super cool. And I really appreciate that there is a completely rational explanation for why Helen doesn't know what she is at first. And, okay, I am in love with the entire Delos family. And Claire. And Jerry. I love Helen and Jerry's father-daughter relationship, I love the way the relationship develops between Helen and Lucas, I love Helen and Claire's friendship...

Promise yourself you'll give it the first three chapters. By the time you finish that, you'll be stuck. Fans of mythology and/or romance will definitely love this one.

Book Thoughts: Everneath

Title: Everneath
Author: Brodi Ashton
Series: Everneath #1
*Imported from tumblr*

I did not think that I was going to enjoy this one, but I could not have been more wrong.

Nikki Beckett, back on earth after a hundred years — or a few months, depending on whose perspective you’re looking at — in the Everneath, has six months to say goodbye to her family before being sucked back to the underworld forever. Whatever emotions she has left will be used to power the immortals who live in the Everneath and feed off of willing mortals. When she left, Nikki didn’t want her life anymore, but now that she’s back and has six months to say goodbye forever, she’ll do anything to stay aboveground — and to win back the love of the boy whose memory saved her in the Everneath.

I don’t feel like I’ve done the book any sort of justice with that summary. Yes, it’s got your obligatory YA-romance-love-triangle - two smokin’ hot guys fighting over the girl. But Everneath is far from the stereotype. In fact, one of my favorite things about the novel was the way Nikki’s relationships with Cole and Jack were developed. And Brodi Ashton’s twist on immortality and the underworld? LOVE. Also, I’m a total mythology geek, so the parallels to Orpheus and Eurydice and also to Hades and Persephone were super cool. My only complaint was that some of the narrative time-jumps were a little weird at first.

It’s definitely a romance novel, but there’s a lot more to it than just that, and I for one can’t wait to get my hands on the sequel.

Book Thoughts: Shiver

Title: Shiver
Author: Maggie Stiefvater
Series: Wolves of Mercy Falls #1

My first thought when I finished this book was, "Wow." It was absolutely phenomenal. The romance (because that's what this is - a romance) was very well-done; I know I, for one, have totally fallen for Sam Roth. Both of the lead characters - and the side characters as well - fell completely real. Stiefvater's writing is beautiful. Even if the plot were terrible - which it most certainly isn't - it would be worth reading just for the way the author tells the story. She even manages to make both first-person narrators feel like separate, real characters; their personalities are not the same and their voices are inherently different. It's not one person telling both stories as someone else - it's two different characters telling their own stories.

The romance between Sam and Grace is developed thoroughly and beautifully; all I have to say is: candy shop scene, and bookstore scene. It just makes you feel all warm and fuzzy inside. And the twist on the werewolf mythology is excellent. None of that about full moons and silver bullets; it's about temperature. And there's just enough mystery and non-romance-based plot that it doesn't feel obnoxiously sappy. Yes, there are sappy parts. It is a romance novel. There are supposed to be sappy parts. But there's so much more than that. It was so amazing. Personally, I also really enjoyed the importance of literature and musicality to the story. There is so much good stuff in this book. Everyone should read it. Yes, everyone.

I also have to mention the cover. I adore the cover of this book. It's beautiful. The blue-and-white gives it that wintery sort of feel that's so important, and the wolf - just watching - so subtle you might miss it. And then the one splash of red...it's perfect.

Definitely, definitely read Shiver if you get the chance.

Book Thoughts: Infinite Days

Title: Infinite Days
Author: Rebecca Maizel
Series: Vampire Queen #1

I received an ARC of Infinite Days through LibraryThing Early Reviewers, and while I was excited to read it, I was a little wary of reading yet another vampire novel. I shouldn't have worried. With this one, Rebecca Maizel has completely remade all the rules. It's a completely new take on vampirism and I really, really loved it. It was also great to see vampires portrayed as the "bad guys" for the first time in a long time. I could have enjoyed it just for that. But there was so much more. It was a fantastic book.

Lenah is a wonderful character. Her emotions are so real, and the way she reacts to being in the twenty-first century for the first time is spectacular. It's a lot of fun watching her adjust to the modern world, getting used to the technology and the slang. You can really get inside her head. And the side characters were awesome too. Justin is a popular guy with depth to him, and Lenah's first friend in the human world, Tony, is easy to imagine just stepping off the page and coming to life. I felt like the "Three-Piece," the popular girls who date the most popular guys, could have been developed more than they were, but on the whole, the characters were excellent.

And the plot! Yes, it's a vampire romance novel, but it's so different from anything that's already out there. Lenah's relearning what it means to be human, what it means to have human senses, and that includes falling in love. The developing relationships between Lenah and Tony and Lenah and Justin are beautifully crafted, and the impending danger of the coven is really well-done too. There's a lot of mystery surrounding the ritual used to make Lenah human, and the reader gets really engaged in that.

Most of Lenah's vampire life is revealed through flashbacks, so she's really telling two stories at once: what's happening now, in the present, and how she got to be there. The flashbacks aren't necessarily continuous, which can get a tiny bit confusing, but it tells the story effectively. And almost all of the flashbacks are really well-done. Some of my favorite scenes were in the flashbacks.

So, in short, Infinite Days is a really great novel with an awesome new twist on vampire mythology and characters that you will not want to let go of. Definitely worth reading.

Book Thoughts: The Dark Divine

Title: The Dark Divine
Author: Bree Despain
Series: Dark Divine #1

When I started the book, I really loved the story but I kept getting distracted by the print. The font seemed to be in all bold, which I thought was weird, and honestly, that was the only thing that kept me from getting into this book from the very beginning. But once I got used to that...wow. Awesome book.

Grace is the daughter of a pastor, and her family is almost obnoxiously religious and saintly. On the surface, anyway - but they go out of their way to not talk about anything that creates a real problem. So they don't talk about Daniel Kalbi, Grace's one-time childhood crush and a friend who used to be so close he was like an extra brother to Grace and her older brother Jude. Three years ago, he disappeared, and something happened between him and Jude that Jude still won't talk about. So when Daniel turns up in her AP art class and starts flirting with her, Grace has no one to turn to.

It quickly becomes clear that something is up with Daniel, who is demonstrating abilities bordering on superpowers, and there are almost too many clues lying around (I figured out the secret well before the end of the book). Something's up with Jude, too: he's not acting like himself at all. Grace wants to find out the secret about what happened that night, but it might put her in more danger than she can imagine. And as she works to find out what's going on and how to fix it, her once-perfect family life is falling apart around her.

I really loved The Dark Divine. Grace was such a relatable character, and even though her family was kind of unnaturally nice, I felt like all of those characters could have been real (Jude probably least of all, but even him). And Daniel was the ultimate bad-boy, unlovable-and-yet-totally-lovable character, and I really related to him, too. I also loved the characters of Don Mooney and Grace's father, especially. And the plot had just the right mix of action and romance and mystery...it was great.

Also, Bree Despain did an awesome job with the mythology in this. It was a very interesting new approach to a very familiar paranormal topic (and no, it's not vampires). I'm not going to say anything else about that because I don't want to spoil anything...but, yes, it was awesome.

So, the one-sentence summary of that review: The Dark Divine is an excellent paranormal romance with an interesting twist on the legends that I would absolutely recommend.

Book Thoughts: Extraordinary

Title: Extraordinary
Author: Nancy Werlin

I had pretty high expectations for Extraordinary, because I really enjoyed Impossible when I read it a couple of years ago and I think the cover for Extraordinary is beautiful (yes, I judged it by its cover. It happens). Unfortunately, I wasn't particularly impressed.

The premise is interesting enough, I guess, although I think the mystery would have been a lot better if not for the prologue and frequent inserts labeled "Conversation with the Faerie Queen" (that's not a spoiler - that's the first chapter heading in the book). The whole thing felt very predictable to me - I knew what was really going on the whole time, so I was just waiting for Phoebe to get it together and figure out what was going on.

My main problem with the book was the characters. I thought Phoebe was really annoying throughout most of the novel because she wouldn't stand up for herself. She had the potential to be an excellent, relatable character - her "psychological battle," as Ryland put it, about whether or not she was special, was actually quite well-done - except that she had absolutely no sense of self. She let herself be defined by what other people said. And Ryland, who was supposed to be the love interest, was an utterly detestable character. I hated him and the things he said to Phoebe. Again, because the plot was so predictable I understood why, but I still didn't like him. Mallory was okay, but like Phoebe, she didn't stand up for herself enough. The one character I really did like was Phoebe's Nantucket friend, Benjamin.

What saved Extraordinary in my eyes was the ending. In the last fifty pages or so, the plot took a turn that I had not fully expected, which was really nice; also, the characters finally started to seem real instead of a means to a plot-fulfilling end. If not for the last fifty pages, the book probably would not have merited 3 stars, but once I got to those final chapters, I discovered that I actually did not despise the book and actually did want to find out what happened.

On the whole, Extraordinary was not a favorite of mine and not one that I would glowingly recommend, but it did have its moments and the ending made it mostly worth reading. It's not one that I'd advise you to go out and buy now - but it might be worth checking out from the library sometime. (And I do recommend Nancy Werlin's other novel, Impossible.)

Book Thoughts: Intertwined

Title: Intertwined
Author: Gena Showalter
Series: Intertwined #1

Before you start reading this review and think that I'm trashing this book, I want you to know that I really enjoyed it. It was excellent, and I'm definitely going to have to read Unraveled (the sequel) as soon as I can get my hands on a copy. But...

I'm going to start off with the stuff I didn't like. There were so many things that reminded me of Twilight! Vampires and werewolves involved in forbidden/impossible romances with humans, and a vampire + bodyguard named Victoria and Riley. Really? And I hate what the jacket flap says. It's way too long winded and it doesn't even get to the point about what the story is about.

What I loved, though, was the story itself, and the characters, and the paranormal elements. They even mentioned dragons at one point, although we didn't see them. For a long time, one of my Random Literary Goals has been to find a book that mentions vampires/werewolves and dragons, because I love dragons but they never appear in the same stories as the others, even though vampires and werewolves and dragons are all paranormal. So this book gets major points for that.

But getting back on track: the story was great. A little predictable in places (the whole Eve thing - you'll understand if you have read it or decide to read it, but I don't want to say more because it's spoilery), but one of the most original storylines I've found in a long time. Aden has these four souls living inside of him, and somehow he did something that called all the paranormal creatures to him - including the vampires, led by Vlad the Impaler, and his daughter, whom Elijah (one of Aden's souls) has seen in a vision. And then there's Mary Ann, who feels just as weirdly drawn to Aden as he does to her, and somehow negates Aden's powers. I really want book two to find out what's going on!

And the characters. It's not often that an author can create this many characters and give them all such distinct personalities - especially with two narrators - but not only do Mary Ann and Aden both feel separate and real, Victoria and Riley and the souls (Eve, Elijah, Julian, and Caleb) are also distinctive, particularly Eve.

Other random asides: I love the idea of the je la nune vampire-killer, and I love the name Aden.

Book Thoughts: 13 to Life

Title: 13 to Life
Author: Shannon Delany
Series: 13 to Life #1

I really dislike the summary of this book. (I do, however, love the cover - the way the moon is the center of the eye? It's awesome.) The summary makes the book sound completely cliched and stereotypical, and it doesn't really talk about what the story is about. BUT! The story inside the book is awesome.

Jessie, a reporter for her school paper, has taken an interest in the "Phantom Wolves" that were supposedly haunting the nearby city of Farthington. So when she starts seeing wolves - big wolves - in her small-town home, Junction, she's naturally somewhat freaked out. And if that's not enough to be getting on with, she's been assigned the job of showing new-boy Pietr Rusakova around school. Pietr, Jessie finds, is impossibly annoying, incredibly mysterious, and more appealing than he should be. She's drawn to him, but she can't explain why. Instead, she pushes him towards her friend Sarah, who is clearly interested in him. Big mistake, especially because Sarah is showing hints of turning into the ice queen she was before the accident. The same accident that killed Jessie's mother.

It took me a while to figure out what exactly the relationship between Jessie and Sarah was. I couldn't decide whether they were friends or enemies or what, but once I got it, it made sense. And I loved the relationship between Jessie and Pietr -- they don't immediately hate each other, and it isn't love at first sight. It develops somewhat more normally than that, which was a very pleasant change from a lot of YA. I felt like Jessie was really slow to make the connection to Pietr's secret, but that was probably just dramatic irony at its finest, and I loved the awesome new twist on werewolf mythology. But what really made me love this book were the characters.

Jessie can be a bit slow at times, but she's a wonderful protagonist. Personally, I would have liked to see more of her best friend, Amy. And Sarah...I'll be interested to see what happens with her in the second book. Weird Wanda, Jessie's dad's girlfriend, makes another interesting addition to the novel, and Pietr's whole family is just wonderful. Max cracked me up so much, and I would love to hang out with Catherine sometime. And then, of course, there's Pietr. Add one more name to the list of "Amazing Fictional Guys." He's sweet, he's protective, he has a sense of humor, he's not a stalker (unlike too many YA guys now), and he's just overwhelmingly real. I love Pietr. And Jessie. And the two of them together.

Parts of the novel were predictable, other parts were a little confusing, but it was absolutely worth reading anyway. J'adore this novel. (Someone check my French? I take Spanish.) It was excellent and wonderful and lots of fun, and I cannot wait to read the sequel, Secrets and Shadows, which I believe comes out in February. 13 to Life was engaging, funny and dark in equal measure and in all the right places, and I just loved it. Well worth your time!

Book Thoughts: Halo

Title: Halo
Author: Alexandra Adornetto
Series: Halo #1

I have to start off with a little bit of cover love. I absolutely adore this cover. I'm not sure what it is about it that makes it so amazing, but it is seriously one of the most gorgeous book covers I can think of. Beautiful.

And of course, it helps that the story inside is also wonderful. I love Bethany as a protagonist. She is so wonderful and relatable and she just feels so genuine, even though she's an angel. Also, if anyone is worried about this book getting "too preachy" since it's about angels...quit worrying. Yes, obviously talk about God is involved, it's about angels, but it's not trying to convince anyone to convert.

Anyway. Back to how Bethany is a fantastic protagonist, and Xavier is an excellent love interest. (He really is, and he's totally human and non-stalkerish, too. I want my own Xavier Woods.) And have I mentioned that Bethany is just a wonderful character? And Gabriel and Ivy are great too, and Molly, and Jake...Alexandra Adornetto does characters well. Very well.

And the plot was also quite awesome. There were some things that I definitely predicted, but other things that had me wondering, and it sucked me in - I needed to keep reading it until I finished. I also think it wrapped up this storyline nicely enough as a stand-alone but also set itself up well for a sequel (which, by the way, I am dying to read). There were moments where I couldn't help drawing some rather unfortunate parallels to my least favorite part of Twilight, but they were few and far between. And Bethany and Xavier are a much better couple than...well, actually, a better couple than a lot of YA couples.

In places, the writing was a little awkward, but those moments too were few and far between. I noticed them, but they didn't detract from my love of the story. And the characters. I swear, I could go on all day about how much I adore Bethany and Xavier (and Gabriel and Ivy), except that you'd all get bored and tell me to shut up.

To sum up: Do not hesitate. Go read Halo now. You won't regret it. :)

Book Thoughts: Firelight

Title: Firelight
Author: Sophie Jordan
Series: Firelight #1

I shall begin by saying that I adore the cover of this book, because it is just gorgeous. But I shall move very quickly from the lovely cover into the equally lovely story within.

Dragons! There are dragons! Well, sort of. Technically they're draki, which are different from dragons. But still. Dragons make me happy. It's basically Forbidden Love, Draki Edition -- which has the potential to be boring and unoriginal, but it totally wasn't. Jacinda especially was such a relatable character. I just loved her. It was so hard watching her struggle to fit in, feeling like the outcast of her family...it was clearly fantasy, of course, but at the same time it was heartbreakingly real.

And then there's Will. I still can't decide quite what I think of him, but I think I like him. He certainly makes a good love interest for Jacinda. And Cassian and Xander are so easy to despise. I wish we had gotten to see more of Jacinda's best friends, Azure and Catherine, because they seem like great characters. We'll have to see what happens with that arc in book two!

Aaand the romance. My goodness. Mmm. Perhaps not the most realistic, but who cares? It was delightful to read about.

Firelight was not a perfect book. There were places where I just wanted Jacinda to shut up about Will and actually do something, and there were places where I was just confused. However, despite all that, I loved it, and I definitely think it's worth reading. Dragons and intrigue and danger and a literally sizzling romance...go read it now!

Book Thoughts: Glimmerglass

Title: Glimmerglass
Author: Jenna Black
Series: Faeriewalker #1

Ahem. Shiny, glittery dots on the cover. Hee hee.

Okay, easily-distracted moment over. I loved the premise of Glimmerglass -- the idea that humans are very aware of faeries and vice versa and that they interact normally, but only in one city because that's the only place their worlds connect and they can't cross realms, is a really cool idea. And I love that being a Faeriewalker is something that can just happen and has a totally rational explanation; the novel avoids that contrived feeling that a lot of fantasy novels have. The whole concept of the fae/human politics is just awesome, too. Kudos to Jenna Black on an original fantasy piece that still very much plays into the traditional faerie mythology. Love love love.

And the story is well-executed too. Dana is an incredibly complex character, and her narrative is fun to read (except for the parts where she whines. I feel like almost all female protagonists in YA fantasy now are too whiny), and her emotions are real. As annoying as her obsession with Ethan can get, it's also very realistic and well-done. And Ethan - great character. His sister, Kimber, is also an absolutely wonderful character (j'adore Kimber, she's an excellent Best Friend character), and I really want to find out what's up with the Ethan-Kimber tension. Character development is excellent in Glimmerglass, even if I did get kind of bothered by Dana sometimes. My favorite characters were probably Finn and Keane - I hope we see lots more of them in Shadowspell.

The story is intriguing and fascinating. The fact that I didn't always like Dana very much made it hard to read in places, but on the whole I think Dana is a great character too - some of the stuff I disliked about her, I recognized as being pretty common to most teenage girls. But the worldbuilding is great, and we're not hit over the head with it -- it's just there, and it's lovely.

My recommendation here comes with a warning (can you guess? the narrator irked me sometimes), but I do recommend it. Glimmerglass is another wonderful addition to the growing collection of YA faerie novels with a really cool spin on the faerie world.

Book Thoughts: Paranormalcy

Title: Paranormalcy
Author: Kiersten White
Series: Paranormalcy #1

So much for normal, indeed. Paranormalcy is about as far from your normal paranormal romance as it gets while still being a YA paranormal romance, and I mean that in a good way.

The idea of IPCA, the International Paranormal Containment Agency, is brilliant. Because really...if paranormal creatures existed in large numbers, wouldn't the government know about it and have a department for it? It's such a creative spin on the whole thing. I love it. And the story built around it...wow. It will keep absolutely keep you turning pages wanting to know what happens next.

And the characters! Evie is a wonderful character. Her narration is funny and genuine (although I will admit that her obsessions with pink clothes and boys reeeally got on my nerves at times; that was really my only problem with the book - too much pink!). She is so much fun to read about and her voice is incredibly real. The other characters are great too, although I wish we got to see more of them. I wanted more Lish! I could feel Evie's reactions to Reth, and Lend...well, he's just awesome.

Also, I loved that the romance developed normally. Evie and Lend become friends, based first upon their personalities, and that friendship develops into a romance at a normal (if expected) pace. And there was no sex and no swearing, and Evie sticks to one boyfriend. Hooray for an awesomely written story that actually has some semblance of morals! Not that I have a problem with most paranormal romances (I love the genre), but this one was just such a nice change.

In short, Paranormalcy is a delightfully entertaining, refreshing, and all-around fun read that will leave you wanting the sequel. (*tries very hard to wait calmly for Supernaturally*) Absolutely worth your time.

Book Thoughts: Raised by Wolves

Title: Raised by Wolves
Author: Jennifer Lynn Barnes
Series: Raised by Wolves #1

Werewolves are becoming more and more commonplace in YA, but Raised by Wolves is anything but commonplace. I would have loved to devour it in one sitting (sadly, school foiled that plan). It takes the typical werewolf mythology, puts a new and creative spin on it, and then uses that to tell an incredible story. It wasn't a story about werewolves so much as it was a story told through werewolves. Yes, the main characters are part of a pack of werewolves and that completely drives the plot of the novel, but it wasn't about werewolf-ism. It was about identity and growing up and, to a degree, girl power. I feel like I didn't explain that very well, but I mean it as the highest compliment.

The premise is straightforward and complex at the same time. Bryn is a human girl raised in a pack of werewolves; she belongs with them, almost to them, and they are her family. But when she discovers a caged boy who was not born a werewolf but Changed, everything she thought she knew changes, because she is connected to Chase in a way that should not be possible. The plot is one of the many things I adored about this book - it wasn't predictable, it kept moving all the time, it was gripping and engaging, and it kept me reading almost compulsively. Plus, there was just enough tension so that the romantic element was sort of vaguely present, but it was all about the plot. It's so nice to encounter a paranormal novel that isn't a drippy love story.

I also loved Bryn's voice. She's funny and sarcastic and not afraid to stand up for herself, but she also has moments of dark reflection on the tragedies in her past. I especially loved the flashbacks to her childhood and the communication with the wolves - sentence structure and the use of "Mommy" instead of "Mom" can do wonders. Here again, I don't think I'm explaining very well. What I'm trying to say is, Jennifer Lynn Barnes can write. Wow.

The only thing I would change is that I wanted to see more of Devon and I wanted Chase to be more developed. For someone who is apparently Bryn's best friend, Devon got astonishingly little page time - which is unfortunate, because who doesn't love a clever, show-tunes-singing, werewolf best friend? He's a great character, hopefully we get more of him in book two. And Chase...I want to know more about him.

I'm going to stop talking now before I spoil something by accident. Instead, I will leave you with this: Raised by Wolves is one of the best ones out there. I highly recommend it.

Book Thoughts: Nevermore

Title: Nevermore
Author: Kelly Creagh
Series: Nevermore #1

My thoughts about Nevermore are incredibly mixed. At first, I hated it. I thought Isobel was an idiot and the story was too predictable and stereotypical and there were things that just didn't make sense. By page ten, I was ready to put it down. Isobel was freaking out about how long a ten-page assignment is by comparing it to the Gettysburg Address - a document known for its brevity - and she and her friend were talking about "oh my gosh he wrote on your skin" as if that were something horrible and evil. Maybe it's just the culture of the school I go to, but ten pages in a month isn't something to freak out about and writing a phone number on a hand to get in touch for a project is pretty normal.

I didn't understand how this book had gotten such rave reviews from so many people - it frustrated me. But I decided to give it to page fifty, just to be fair. After a little bit more reading, I glanced down and realized I was on page 128 and not at all ready to stop reading.

The writing sucked me in. Despite the fact that Isobel is someone that in real life I would probably dislike, I had to respect her - she stood up for what she loved (cheerleading and wearing pink and looking nice) even when she was being picked on, and she stood up for what she thought was right (not picking on Varen) even when her friends and boyfriend weren't on her side. She's a strong character in that regard. And I loved Varen. A lot. And then, of course, there's the story.

Some of it took a while to make sense. I felt like the drama with Brad and Varen was kind of way over the top. But in the story world, all of it worked. I loved the Edgar Allan Poe influences, the creepiness, the mystery, the relationships between Isobel and her family and Varen (even if the dynamic between Isobel and Varen did sometimes seem unlikely), I adored the character of Gwen, I just loved reading Kelly Creagh's writing. I was completely sucked into what was going on and, once I finally got into it, I barely put the book down until I finished. Despite my frustrations, there's a lot about this book that I really love.

So, basically - I encourage you to read this book. If the beginning frustrates you, do not despair, it does in fact get much better. I still have my problems with some of it, but I was drawn into it and loved it anyway.

Book Thoughts: Unearthly

Title: Unearthly
Author: Cynthia Hand
Series: Unearthly #1

I don't even know where to start. School and travel made it hard for me to really get started with this one, but once I started, I barely put it down (exceptions: participation-required school events, such as a physics quiz. Stupid school). It was fantastic. Unearthly sucked me in and wouldn't let me go.

The summary seems a little off to me; at the beginning of the novel, Clara already knows she's part angel. In fact, she is receiving her Purpose - the big mission that is basically the point of her life. Her family (Clara, her mom, and her brother Jeffrey) moves to Wyoming so that she can find the boy who she believes she must save from a forest fire, but she doesn't have a clue about the particulars. Christian is everything she imagined the boy of her dreams to be, and then there's Tucker - her best friend's brother, who picks on her incessantly from the moment she arrives and who just might really like her. And while Clara is figuring out her Purpose in life, she's also learning more than she thought there was to know about her angel heritage...

Cynthia Hand has created a world that is absolutely riveting. I love, love, love her idea of angel-bloods and their Purposes, and just everything about the supernatural world she has created. And the characters are really fantastic - not just Clara and Christian and Tucker, but also Wendy and Angela and Jeffrey and Clara's mom (and, and, and...). Any one of them could easily be real; they're multifaceted and flawed, and the relationships between the characters seemed genuine too. Not to mention the story itself, which was simply captivating -- I needed to keep reading, to find out what would happen next, what else the characters would face.

I'm trying hard not to just go into a gushing rant about Unearthly but apparently that isn't working so well. At any rate, I loved this book, and I absolutely recommend it. Go forth and read!

Book Thoughts: Hush, Hush

Title: Hush, Hush
Author: Becca Fitzpatrick
Series: Hush, Hush #1

Oh my gosh. Ohhhh my gosh. So I finished reading HUSH, HUSH today. And I'm kinda speechless. It was absolutely AMAZING.

At first I thought it was going to be just another dark fantasy romance novel. They're good, not amazing, but good. And seriously, I have never been so glad to be wrong. I fell in love with the story from the very first chapter, and it just got better from there.

Patch Cipriano is the ultimate bad boy, and he's also kinda perfect in that dark, flawed way. We meet Patch because he is Nora Grey's lab partner. Nora is not at all happy with this arrangement, because Patch is creepy - and also strangely magnetic. She feels drawn to him in a way she can't explain and doesn't at all like. So when a man in a ski mask starts stalking her, she can't help but suspect Patch, especially when she starts hearing him in her mind. I can't say anything more without giving out any spoilers, which I absolutely refuse to do, but ohmygosh you should read this book.

Book Thoughts: Fallen

Title: Fallen
Author: Lauren Kate
Series: Fallen #1

Fallen is about a girl named Luce who has been seeing shadows that no one else can see since she was very young. Recently, she was with her crush Trevor at a party, and something happened that resulted in Trevor's death. Luce doesn't know any more about it than anyone else, but she was with him, so she has been implicated in the murder.

So now, Luce is at Sword & Cross, a reform school in Savannah, Georgia where she's meeting all sorts of strange people - including Daniel Grigori. Daniel is gorgeous, and Luce is convinced that she knows him from somewhere, but he seems strangely determined to hate her. And then there's Cam, who is sweet and friendly and totally into Luce. She's not sure how to juggle her feelings for Daniel and Cam's feelings for  her, but she is determined to find out why she's so sure she knows Daniel.

I don't think I can say any more than that without giving out spoilers. I wish I'd been able to read the final published copy; I read an ARC that I got back in November, and there are a lot of typos and a couple of sections where there are sentences missing. I kind of felt like that detracted from it, but it was a wonderful story and if you get the chance to read it (the actual published version) you DEFINITELY should. (Assuming you're into paranormal romance, which this definitely is.)

Book Thoughts: Captivate

Title: Captivate
Author: Carrie Jones
Series: Need #2

I finished reading CAPTIVATE this morning, and it was just fantastic. I really want the third book - now! Not sure how much I can say without giving away too much, but in this book, there's a new pixie king in town. His name is Astley, and he wants Zara to be his queen. And there's another new pixie king as well - an evil one, who wants to take over. Zara and all of her friends are in danger, and it's Zara's responsibility to fix it. Especially since Nick might not be able to.

I cannot emphasize enough how much you should read NEED first, but once you do I won't have to tell you that you should read CAPTIVATE. The books are fantastic, the lack of vampires/addition of pixies is quite refreshing, the characters are so intricate, it's just a wonderful series.

Book Thoughts: Shade

Title: Shade
Author: Jeri Smith-Ready
Series: Shade #1

I went on the PulseIt website, saw a book that looked interesting, opened the e-book to read the inside jacket and see what it was about. I swear I never meant to get sucked into it and just keep reading...but I did.

The book about which I am speaking is SHADE by Jeri Smith-Ready. It's an absolutely fantastic book and you will not - repeat, will not - want to put it down. The premise is this: Almost seventeen years ago, on the night of Aura Salvatore's birth, a mysterious event called the Shift occurred. Everyone born after the Shift - "post-Shifters" can see ghosts. Ghosts can only interact with the living, and they contact post-Shifters so that they can accomplish whatever they need to do to be at peace. Most of the post-Shifters are more annoyed and/or frightened by their violet visions than interested in helping. Aura included. Until her boyfriend, Logan, dies.

While Aura is mourning Logan's death and attempting to carry on a relationship with ghost-Logan, exchange student Zachary Moore arrives and is assigned to be Aura's partner on her thesis project (another school that requires senior thesis projects! Yay for relating to the characters!), which is about megaliths. Aura wants to find out more about the Shift. Which means finding out more about Zachary as well. Throughout SHADE, Aura struggles to balance her relationships with the living and the dead, all while searching for clues to the event that has made her and all the other under-seventeens of the world able to see the dead.

I think what I really loved about this book were the characters. While the premise is blatantly fictional - people don't see ghosts, definitely not everyone under seventeen - the characters were hauntingly (haha, bad pun) real. Aura's grief, Logan's frustration, Zachary's frustration, Aura and Megan's friendship - all of it is wonderfully, painfully real. I also love that the readers aren't being hit over the head with the fact that "YES. THIS WORLD IS WEIRD. THERE ARE GHOSTS." The ghosts and the supernatural aspects of it figure in significantly to the major plot - there'd be no book without the Shift and the ghosts - but it's all just there. It's part of the world. There are no lengthy explanations of why this world is so different; it just is, and we understand that.

And then there's the fact that I am now desperate for a sequel, which considering this one just came out is not a good thing. I don't wanna have to wait!!! SHADE does wrap up a complete storyline in and of itself, but it also leaves a lot of unanswered questions about the Shift and Aura's past that could(/should) lead to a sequel. Plus I really don't want to give up Aura and Zach and Logan just yet. So - please, Jeri, can we have another one? :)

Book Thoughts: Die for Me

Title: Die for Me
Author: Amy Plum
Series: Die for Me #1

Okay, bear with me, because this one is going to get long and rambly and a little more literary-analysis than I usually do. Also, if you read beyond the first like two paragraphs it gets a little spoilery, so be warned.

So, I really enjoyed Die for Me. I did. It was well-written and I liked the characters and I loved the story Amy Plum created with the revenants - very cool supernatural creature that isn’t written a whole lot - and the story kept me engaged and reading; I read the whole book this afternoon. 

But.

I couldn’t help but draw some parallels to Twilight. And that’s weird, because I am not one of those people who compares every single paranormal romance to Twilight. I had that fangirl phase, sure, and then I broke up with a boy and he told me that he was going to kill himself if I didn’t get back together with him, and after that I kind of realized that I had some major problems with the plot of Twilight, and then I realized that, upon closer inspection, Edward and Bella have a really unhealthy relationship.

I don’t compare everything to Twilight. But when something is really close to Twilight, that is usually a bad thing. Die for Me forced me to think about Twilight — but I still really enjoyed the book. It’s sort of, I think, what Meyer’s series would be with no vampires, more action, better characters, and a much healthier romantic relationship (with one exception, which I’ll get to).

The parallels I noticed were these: 

-the girl is immediately attracted to a guy and can’t really explain why, and he seems to share the mutual affection (although Kate approached the situation rationally and did not throw herself into an overhasty relationship, and she was adequately freaked out by Vincent’s true nature, unlike Bella, who was like “oh, a vampire? I love you even more even though I’ve known you for two weeks!")

-the girl does not seem to have any friends outside of the mish-mash family of her supernatural boyfriend, but said family loves her because she has been able to capture the heart of the long-single Vincent/Edward (although Kate does maintain a close and healthy relationship with her sister, Georgia, and her grandparents, whereas Bella totally neglects all the other people in her life)

-they temporarily break up for the girl’s safety and both parties mope and regret the decision and eventually get back together (although Kate was the one who did the breaking up, and nobody became suicidal, and they handled getting back together in a much more cautious and sensible way than Bella and Edward)

-stalking. I think the real reason, quite apart from the others I just mentioned, that I compared Die for Me toTwilight was the fact that Vincent, like Edward, seemed to have a penchant for watching his human girlfriend when she didn’t know about it, and when said girlfriend finds out about it, she seems to accept it as normal. CREEPING IS NOT AND WILL NEVER BE OKAY. Taking an interest is a good thing. Standing outside your girlfriend’s window watching her when she doesn’t know you’re there is creepy and bad and very not okay. What saved Die for Me in my opinion was the fact that Kate did seem disturbed at least a little by the stalking, there was very little of it, and Vincent offered an explanation that Kate, acting on her own judgment, deemed reasonable, which was the only reason it was okay at all. Still though. Just…

Why do fictional girls find stalker guys attractive?! Like, okay, really? I love it when my boyfriend texts me without warning during the day to let me know I’m on his mind; I would NOT love it if those texts included things I hadn’t told him about my whereabouts (ie if he had known my address before I told him, that would have been a red flag). I love spending time with him; I would NOT love being unknowingly watched by him (or by anyone else). Even romantic relationships are allowed to have boundaries. Too many fictional relationships don’t seem to recognize that.

I do appreciate that in Die for Me, they make the effort to take their relationship at a slow and healthy pace. InTwilight, the only reason they waited until they were married to have sex was at Edward’s insistence that he behave like a gentleman. In Die for Me, both Kate and Vincent are very respectful of each other’s boundaries; they are both aware that they would be okay with taking things a step further physically, but they know that emotionally they are not prepared for that and they feel they haven’t been together long enough to take that step, so they wait. They talk to each other about what they want out of the relationship, they’re completely open and honest with each other, they don’t start throwing around the word “love" after a couple of weeks, they acknowledge their passion but don’t completely forego rationality for the sake of passion. Aside from the minor stalking fiasco and the fact that I think Kate could really use some other human friends, I think her relationship with Vincent is a fairly healthy one. And that, I think, more than anything, is why I was able to thoroughly enjoy this book despite the fact that it called Twilight so much to mind.

(I really did thoroughly enjoy it, though. I wouldn’t say I’d recommend it to just anyone, but if you are a fan of YA fantasy/paranormal, then I do recommend it to you, absolutely. Although if you’re reading this far and youhaven’t read the book, I just spoiled a fair bit of it…) 

tl;dr: This is paranormal romance done RIGHT.