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Showing posts from July, 2015

Eon by Allison Goodman (Review #107)

"For years, Eon's life has been focused on magical study and sword-work, with one goal: that he be chosen as a Dragoneye, an apprentice to one of the twelve energy dragons of good fortune. But Eon has a dangerous secret. He is actually Eona, a sixteen-year-old girl who has been masquerading as a twelve-year-old boy. Females are forbidden to use Dragon Magic; the penalty is death.  When Eona's secret threatens to light, she and her allies are plunged into grave danger and a struggle and inner power to battle those who want to take her magic... and her life." Review: I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It was action packed and held a lot of deception and mystery and I loved Eona/Eon's journey of self discovery. It took me to new places and the story took a lot of unexpected directions I really appreciated. I definitely think everyone should take a peek at this book, and I cannot wait to read the sequel!

I'll Be There by Holly Goldberg Sloan (Review #106)

" Emily Bell believes in destiny. To her, being forced to sing a solo in the church choir - despite her average voice - is fate: because it's while she's singing that she first sees Sam. At first sight, they are connected. Sam Border wishes he could escape, but there's nowhere for him to run. He and his little brother, Riddle, have spent their entire lives constantly uprooted by their unstable father. That is, until Sam sees Emily. That's when everything changes. As Sam and Riddle are welcomed into the Bells' lives, they witness the warmth and protection of a family for the first time. But when tragedy strikes, they're left fighting for survival in the desolate wilderness, and wondering if they'll ever find a place where they can belong." Review: This was certainly an emotional book. I expected a love story, to be honest, and that's not at all what I got. But that's not a bad thing. Actually, this book was far better than I thought ...

Seraphina by Rachel Hartman (Review #105)

"Four decades of peace have done little to ease the mistrust between humans and dragons in the kingdom of Goredd. Folding themselves into human shape, dragons attend the court as ambassadors and lend their rational, mathematical minds to universities as scholars and teachers. As the treaty's anniversary draws near, however, tensions are high. Seraphina Dombegh has reason to fear both sides. As an unusually gifted musician, she joins the court just as a member of the royal family is murdered in suspiciously draconian fashion. Seraphina is drawn into the investigation, partnering with the captain of the Queen's Guard, the dangerously perceptive Prince Lucien Kiggs. While they begin to uncover hints of a sinister plot to destroy the peace, Seraphina struggles to protect her own secret, the secret behind her musical gift - one so terrible that its discovery could mean her very life." Review: This is an awesome twist on dragons! It starts off very formal and pol...

The Program by Suzanne Young (Review #104)

"Sloane knows better than to cry in front of anyone. With suicide now an international epidemic, one outburst could land her in The Program, the only proven course of treatment. Sloane's parents have already lost one child; Sloane knows they'll do anything to keep her alive. She also knows that everyone who's been through The Program returns as a blank slate. Because their depression is gone - but so are their memories. Under constant surveillance at home and at school, Sloane puts on a brave face and keeps her feelings buried as deep as she can. The only person Sloane can be herself with is James. He's promised to keep them both safe and out of treatment, and Sloane knows their love is strong enough to withstand anything. But despite the promises they've made to each other, it's getting harder to hide the truth. They are both growing weaker. Depression is setting in. And The Program is coming for them." Review: Stay away from all sharp objects wh...

Uninvited by Sophie Jordan (Review #103)

"You can't change your DNA... Even when it says you're a murderer. When Davy tests positive for Homicidal Tendency Syndrome, aka "the kill gene," she loses everything. Once the perfect high school senior, she is uninvited from her prep school and abandoned by her friends and boyfriend. Even her parents are  now afraid of her - although she's never hurt a fly. Davy doesn't feel any different, but genes don't lie. One day, she will kill someone. Without any say in the matter, Davy is thrown into a special class for HTS carriers. She has no doubt the predictions are right about them, especially Sean, who already bears the "H" tattoo as proof of his violence. Yet when the world turns on the carriers, Sean is the only one she can trust. Maybe he's not as dangerous as he seems. Or maybe Davy is just as deadly."  Review: This particular book was a good first stepping stone in a much larger story. We are introduced to a ...

Project Cain by Geoffrey Girard (Review #102)

"Sixteen-year-old Jeff Jacobson had never heard of Jeffrey Dahmer, the infamous serial killer who brutally murdered seventeen people more than twenty years ago. But then Jeff discovers he was constructed in a laboratory only eight years ago, part of a top-secret government cloning experiment called Project CAIN. And scientists created him entirely from Jeffrey Dahmer's DNA. Jeff isn't the only teenage serial-killer clone. Others have been genetically engineered using the DNA of the Son of Sam, the Boston Strangler, and Ted Bundy. Some clones were raised, like Jeff, in caring family environments; others within homes that mimicked the horrific early lives of the serial killers they were created from. When the most dangerous boys are set free, the summer of killing begins. Worse, they hold a secret weapon even more deadly than the terrible evil they carry within. Can Jeff help catch the "monsters" before becoming one himself?" Review: Honestly, this bo...

Unravel Me by Tahereh Mafi (Review #101)

WARNING: SPOILER ALERT: IF YOU HAVE NOT GOTTEN THIS FAR IN THE SHATTER ME SERIES, STOP NOW. DO NOT READ. THIS IS BOOK 2. FOR THE REVIEW ON BOOK 1, CHECK OUT SHATTER ME . "Juliette has escaped from The Reestablishment. Now she's free from their plan to use her as a weapon, and free to love Adam. But Juliette will never be free from her lethal touch. Or from Warner, who wants Juliette more than she ever thought possible. Haunted by her past and terrified of her future, Juliette knows that she will have to make some life-changing choices. Choices that may involve choosing between her heart - and Adam's life." Review: This second installment DID NOT DISAPPOINT! Juliette is like this unbelievable tortured superhero and I dig it. She is more powerful than she can even comprehend and this book held many challenging feats for her. I'm loving the superhero vibes this story is heading in, but what I didn't love was Adam and Juliette's crumbling relationsh...

Dearly, Departed by Lia Habel (Review #100)

It's my 100th post! Never thought I'd get here but I'm so glad I did.  Books mean a lot to me and I hope I continue venturing into unknown worlds and situations for one hundred more books. Thanks to everyone who has stuck with me and enjoyed/hated books alongside me and have endured my many gushes and rants! NOW LET'S GET INTO IT! "Love conquers all, so they say. But can't Cupid's arrow pierce the hearts of the living and the dead - or rather, the undead ? Can a proper young Victorian lady find true love in the arms of a dashing zombie? The year is 2195. The place is New Victoria - a high-tech nation modeled on the manners, mores, and fashions of an antique era. A teenager in high society, Nora Dearly is far more interested in military history and her country's political unrest than in tea parties and debutante balls. But after her beloved parents die, Nora is left at the mercy of her domineering aunt, a social-climbing spendthrift who has squan...

3:59 by Gretchen McNeil (Review #99)

"Josie Byrne's life is spiraling out of control. Her parents are divorcing, her boyfriend, Nick, has grown distant, and her physics teacher has it in for her. When she's betrayed by the two people she trusts most, Josie thinks things couldn't get worse. Until she starts having dreams about a girl named Jo. Every night at the same time - 3:59 a.m. Jo's life is everything Josie wants: She's popular, her parents are happily married, and Nick adores her. It all seems real, but they're just dreams, right? Josie thinks so, until she wakes one night to a shadowy image of herself in the bedroom mirror - Jo. Josie and Jo are Doppelgangers living in parallel universes that briefly overlap every twelve hours at exactly 3:59. Fascinated by Jo's fabulous life, Josie jumps at the chance to cross through the portal and switch places for a day. But Jo's world is far from perfect. Not only is Nick not Jo's boyfriend, he hates her. Jo's mom is mi...

Find me by Romily Bernard (Review #98)

" Find Me. These are the words written on Tessa Waye's diary. The diary that ends up with Wick Tate. But Tessa's just been found... dead. Wick has the right computer-hacking skills for the job but little interest in this perverse game of hide-and-seek. Until her sister, Lily, is the next target. Then Griff, trailer-park boy next door and fellow hacker, shows up, intent on helping Wick. Is a happy ending possible with the threat of Wick's deadbeat dad returning, the detective hunting him sniffing around Wick instead, and a killer taunting her at every step? Foster child. Daughter of a felon. loner hacker girl. Wick has a bad attitude and sarcasm to spare. But she's going to find this killer no matter what. Because it just got personal." Review: I cannot begin to describe how much I loved this book. I cried, gasped, cheered, stomped my feet; you name it, I was completely captivated. I related to Wick on so many levels, we could pra...

You Have Seven Messages by Stewart Lewis (Review #97)

"It's been a year since Luna's mother, the fashion-model wife of a successful film director, was hit and killed by a taxi in New York's East Village. Luna, her father, and her little brother, Tile, are still struggling with grief. When Luna goes to clean out her mother's old studio, she's stunned to find her mom's cell phone there - charged and holding seven unheard messages. With the help of her dreamy neighbor, Oliver, Luna begins to listen to them and to piece together the events leading up to her mother's death. Now she must face the fact that the tidy tale she's been told may not be the whole truth." Review: The summary of the book really hyped me up for a mystery-thriller. I was intrigued and so ready for a mystery that would truly blind sight me with its twists and turns. Unfortunately, this was not the case. However, the story took a different tone than I thought it would. Really, this story was about three people trying to put t...

Naked Heat by Richard Castle (Review #96)

"When New York's most vicious gossip columnist, Cassidy Towne, is found dead, Heat uncovers a gallery of high-profile suspects, all with compelling motives for killing the most feared muckraker in Manhattan. But Heat's murder investigation is complicated by her surprise reunion with superstar magazine journalist Jameson Rook. In the wake of their recent breakup, Nikki would rather not deal with their raw emotional baggage. But the handsome, wise-cracking writer's personal involvement in the case forces her to team up with Rook anyway. The residue of their unsolved romantic conflict and crackling sexual tension fills the air as Heat and Rook embark on the search for a killer among celebrities and mobsters, singers and hookers, pro athletes and shamed politicians. This new, explosive case brings on the heat in the glittery world of secrets, cover-ups, and scandals." Review: Let me begin by saying this is technically a sequel to the first Nicki Heat book Heat Wave...