Review: Firelight - Sophie Jordan

Title: Firelight
Author: Sophie Jordan
Released: September 7th 2010
Published by: Harper Teen
Pages: 336

Where to purchase:
US: IndieBound    B&N   Borders   Books A Million
Canada: Chapters
International: Book Depository

Trailer:



Review:
I loved this book. Jacinda’s story is told so well I pictured everything as if I was her. I became so involved that there were scenes where I was holding my breath, as if it would help Jacinda. There was none of the instant love between her & Will as many books have now. I kept trying to guess where the story was going.

The story opens as Jacinda & her best friend Azure have snuck out to go flying during the day. This quickly leads to trouble. There are those that hunt the Draki, the decendants of dragons, for their skin & blood. Jacinda hides in a cave and holds her breath, I did too, hoping the hunters wouldn’t find her there. I kept reading to see what was going to happen. Will, a hunter, does find her, but he leaves without telling the other he found her. Finally, I could breathe. Jacinda isn’t out of the woods yet though, she’s in big trouble. Her Mom knows what’s coming and takes her and her sister somewhere she thinks will be safe.

I felt Jacinda’s despair as they arrived in a town in a desert. I could only imagine how empty I’d feel if I knew that part of me was going to wither away like Jacinda’s Draki would living in the desert. There is a bright spot. Will makes Jacinda’s Draki feel alive. They have a push & pull kind of relationship, which is nice to see amidst so many books where they characters instantly fall for each other & don’t stop to question anything. Will has his own secrets and problems so he’s reluctant to have any kind of relationship with Jacinda. Jacinda not only has her secret & family to protect, but she knows Will is a hunter, so she wants to stay away from him.

I love guessing where a book is headed, even if I’m totally wrong. I kept trying to guess why Jacinda was so drawn to Will and every guess was nowhere near the reason. I love that this wasn’t a predictable book. Fair warning: the ending is a killer & makes you want the next book.

Review: White Cat - Holly Black

Title: White Cat
Author: Holly Black
Released: May 4th 2010
Published by: Margaret K. McElderry Books
Pages: 310 pages

Where to purchase:
US: IndieBound    B&N    Borders    Books A Million
Canada: Chapters
International: Book Depository

Trailer:




Review:

This was a fabulously written story. The characters all had realistic, individual personalities complete with their own set of flaws. It held my attention from the beginning clear until the end. I was invested in what had happened & what was going as Cassel was trying to piece things together.

The story opens with Cassel on a steep & slightly slippery roof with no way down. This leads to the school suspending him until he can prove he’s not a liability & something like that won’t happen again. Being suspended means he has to go home & help his Granddad clean up Cassel’s family home before his Mom gets released from jail. Granddad is a bit tough, but a likeable & pretty funny guy. He’s a death worker & our 1st real look at blow back. Every time a worker curses, they have to deal with blowback from the curse. Granddad is a death worker, this is why he has several stubby fingers. Throughout the book, pieces of information are given a little bit a time, giving us a better idea of the world Cassel lives in.
Cassel is the only non-worker in a family full of workers. He’s the baby of the family. He might not be a worker, but his Mom taught him all about being a con artist. I loved that he was always thinking about the various advice on how to pull a con & when he wasn’t he was trying to remember what exactly happened to Lila. He remembers the body, the blood & the knife, but doesn’t remember what led up to it. His brothers covered it up because Lila was the Daughter of the crime boss their family worked for. I found myself wondering what could have led up to him killing her. I felt kind of bad for Cassel, he went to the school he was at because he wanted to be a regular person, since he wasn’t a work, but he never quite fits in. I loved watching him piece things together & pull off a con here & there. He grows a lot by the time the book ends.

The way Holly leaves clues reminded me a bit of following a trail of breadcrumbs. There were just enough hints left that I could sometimes guess some of the things that were coming, but not all of them. I liked how even when everything seemed like it might fall apart at any second, Cassel never gave up. I can’t wait to read the sequel, Red Glove when it comes out.

Review: Scarlett Fever - Maureen Johnson

Title: Scarlett Fever (Book 2)
Author: Maureen Johnson
Released: February 1st 2010
Published by: Point
Pages: 336

Where to purchase:
US: IndieBound   B&N   Borders   Books A Million
Canada: Chapters
International: Book Depository

Summary from Maureen’s site: (Warning: Since this is book 2, there may be spoilers.)

Faced with her family’s financial woes, Scarlett has taken on the job of assistant/indentured servant to a newly minted theatrical agent, professional eccentric Mrs. Amy Amberson. Scarlett ends up at the beck and call of a Broadway star (her own age!), dealing with territorial doormen, and walking a small dog with insecurity issues – all while starting her sophomore year at one of New York’s most rigorous high schools.

Meanwhile, her older brother Spencer has become New York City’s most controversial TV villain, her ever-reliable older sister Lola is sliding off the rails, and her younger sister Marlene, most worryingly, has suddenly become… nice. But somehow Scarlett will prevail… right?

(For more info, click here.)

Review:
Scarlett Fever gives us an even more in depth look at the relationships of the Martin siblings. My favorite of characters are back as engaging as before, not to mention a few new characters who add to the insanity that is Scarlett’s life. Scarlett might be telling the story, but Spencer, yet again, steals the show.
There isn't a lot of down time, keeping it pretty fast paced. As things keep piling up on Scarlett, I kept wondering what else could go wrong that would leave a mess that Scarlett would have to clean up.
I am always impressed with how Scarlett handles no matter what life throws at her.

Oh, and be sure to watch out for that pesky cliff hanger.

Review: The Body Finder - Kimberly Derting

 Title: The Body Finder
Author: Kimberly Derting
Released: March 16th 2010 
Published by: Harper Teen
Pages: 336

Summary from Goodreads:

"A serial killer on the loose. A girl with a morbid ability. And the boy who would never let anything happen to her.

Violet Ambrose can find the dead. Or at least, those who have been murdered. She can sense the echoes they leave behind... and the imprints they leave on their killers. As if that weren't enough to deal with during junior year, she also has a sudden, inexplicable, and consuming crush on her best friend since childhood, Jay Heaton.

Now a serial killer has begun terrorizing Violet's small town... and she realizes she might be the only person who can stop him."

----

Violet Ambrose is grappling with two major issues: Jay Heaton and her morbid secret ability. While the sixteen-year-old is confused by her new feelings for her best friend since childhood, she is more disturbed by her “power” to sense dead bodies—or at least those that have been murdered. Since she was a little girl, she has felt the echoes the dead leave behind in the world . . . and the imprints that attach to their killers.
Violet has never considered her strange talent to be a gift; it mostly just led her to find dead birds her cat had tired of playing with. But now that a serial killer has begun terrorizing her small town, and the echoes of the local girls he’s claimed haunt her daily, she realizes she might be the only person who can stop him.

Despite his fierce protectiveness over her, Jay reluctantly agrees to help Violet on her quest to find the murderer—and Violet is unnerved to find herself hoping that Jay’s intentions are much more than friendly. But even as she’s falling intensely in love, Violet is getting closer and closer to discovering a killer . . . and becoming his prey herself.

My Thoughts:
I loved the characters. All of them were people I could picture. They all had their own distinct personalities. The whole book was refreshing, from the characters, to the ability, to the lack of cliches.


One surprise that I rather liked was the alternate POV. The serial killer's POV was creepy & made me feel like screaming to the victims like you do in a horror movie. Sometimes I'd finish his chapter & realize I'd been holding my breath.

Violet was a fabulous character. Other than her ability, she was a normal teenager. She didn't seem weak & whiny, nor was she too tough to want anyone around. Her ability was a major part of the story, but it wasn't something that was written to death, it was low key, which was a nice change. This made her very easy to relate to. She had her faults like every teenager does. She'd get an idea & then act on it & not think it through entirely. It would seem like a good idea, but then other characters, (usually Jay) would point out to her how stupid the idea really was. She had great parents. It was nice to have a book where the parents are still married & active participants in their childs life & weren't characters I wanted to smack around.

While some books seem to play up cliches, which are often misplaced & detract from the the story, this one did not. This was a fabulous book from start to finish. I didn't want to put it down until I was finished.

If you want to preorder it, pick the store of your choice:
US: IndieBound    B&N    Borders    Books A Million   
Canada: Chapters  
International: Book Depository
Places to find the fabulous author: Twitter   Website

Review: Strange Angels - Lili St. Crow

 

Title: Strange Angels
Author: Lili St. Crow
Released: May 14th 2009
Published by: Razorbill
Pages: 293

Summary from Goodreads:

Dru Anderson has what her grandmother called “the touch.” (Comes in handy when you’re traveling from town to town with your dad, hunting ghosts, suckers, wulfen, and the occasional zombie.)

Then her dad turns up dead—but still walking—and Dru knows she’s next. Even worse, she’s got two guys hungry for her affections, and they’re not about to let the fiercely independent Dru go it alone. Will Dru discover just how special she really is before coming face-to-fang with whatever—or whoever— is hunting her?

I picked this book up randomly. I had no idea what to really expect. Sadly, it was not one of my favorites. I couldn't relate to Dru at all. I also had a hard time getting through the book because it was very slow moving. There was so much of the dialogue that just didn't seem like characters of that age would speak like that. The climax of the book was anticlimactic. It took almost the entire book to actually have something happening & then it just ended. Nothing was really resolved.

I did love Dru's Dad. I loved their relationship. I loved how she always heard things he's said in her head as clearly as if he was standing next to her saying it. I also really liked Graves. He was a character who seemed to do & say things I would expect from someone like him.

I am going to read the next book in the series. Hopefully I'll like it a little better.

Review: Suite Scarlett - Maureen Johnson

From Maureen's site:

The Hopewell Hotel is small Art Deco “jewelbox” in New York City. The hotel has a grand past, but a somewhat dusty and broken present, with pigeons breaking into the rooms, chandeliers with more cobweb than glass, and constantly exploding toilets. Guests are rare, but it does have one constant set of inhabitants... the Martin family.

Scarlett Marin is the third of the four Martins. Scarlett is fifteen, blonde, and broke. Her friends are gone for the summer. And she’s got this one curl that exists just to stab her in the eye and blind her. Welcome to her life... (For more click here.)

Summary from B&N:

Her new summer job comes with baggage.


Scarlett Martin has grown up in a most unusual way. Her family owns the Hopewell, a small hotel in the heart of New York City, and Scarlett lives there with her four siblings - Spencer, Lola, and Marlene.

When each of the Martins turns fifteen, they are expected to take over the care of a suite in the once elegant, now shabby Art Deco hotel. For Scarlett's fifteenth birthday, she gets both a room called the Empire Suite, and a permanent guest called Mrs. Amberson.

Scarlett doesn't quite know what to make of this C-list starlet, world traveler, and aspiring autobiographer who wants to take over her life. And when she meets Eric, an astonishingly gorgeous actor who has just moved to the city, her summer takes a second unexpected turn.

Before the summer is over, Scarlett will have to survive a whirlwind of thievery, Broadway glamour, romantic missteps, and theatrical deceptions. But in the city where anything can happen, she just might be able to pull it off.

My Thoughts:
I loved this book. From the realistic portrayal of family interaction to the crazy antics of Mrs. Amberson, I was hooked. I kept reading to see what was going to go wrong next, or what Scarlett would be doing for Mrs. Amberson next. I loved Eric, with his southern charm & manners. I'm still mad at him though. You'll have to read the book if you want to find out why. If I were to pick one boy out of this story for me, I'd have to go with Scarlett's brother, Spencer. He's one of those charismatic characters that make you want to be there while he's practicing so you can have a good laugh. He seems like an all round sweet guy. I thought the characters were very well written. This is a story that is very character driven.

The sequel came out Feb 1st & I'm dying to read it!

Review: The Dark Divine - Bree Despain

Summary from Bree Despain's site.

A prodigal son

A dangerous love

A deadly secret . . .

I stood back and watched his movements. Daniel had that way about him that could shut me down in an instant. . . . I kicked the gravel a couple of times and worked up my courage again. “Tell me . . . I mean . . . why did you come back? Why now, after all this time?”

Grace Divine, daughter of the local pastor, always knew something terrible happened the night Daniel Kalbi disappeared—the night she found her brother Jude collapsed on the porch, covered in blood. But she has no idea what a truly monstrous secret that night really held. And when Daniel returns three years later, Grace can no longer deny her attraction to him, despite promising Jude she’ll stay away.

As Grace gets closer to Daniel, her actions stir the ancient evil Daniel unleashed that horrific night. Grace must discover the truth behind Jude and Daniel's dark secret . . . and the cure that can save the ones she loves. But she may have to lay down the ultimate sacrifice to do it—her soul.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

Originally, I was mostly curious about this book because evryone seemed so excited that it was coming out. The gorgeous cover also caught my attention, I love purple. Then I found out that Bree lives here & was having her Book Launch Party at The King's English. This new information bumped The Dark Divine up on my TBR. The Dark Divine was released on Dec 22nd 2009 & I was at The King's English to buy my copy early. Lucky for me, they had just unpacked it. 

I didn't know what to expect from this book. I devoured it. I loved the family dynamics of the Divine family. They kind of remind me of a family I grew up with. I loved how Grace tried to make the choices she thought were best for her family. The Divine family as very proper, I wish more families were like that. The hints placed in the story led you to the ending, but I hadn't quite guessed what was coming. I only disliked 2 of the characters, neither of which were main characters. I thought the old letters added a nice touch of history to the story as well.  Overall I loved the story. Luckily, there is a sequel.  

Review: Shiver - Maggie Stiefvater

Summary: (From Maggie's site)

For years, Grace has watched the wolves in the woods behind her house. One yellow-eyed wolf—her wolf—is a chilling presence she can't seem to live without. Meanwhile, Sam has lived two lives: In winter, the frozen woods, the protection of the pack, and the silent company of a fearless girl. In summer, a few precious months of being human... until the cold makes him shift back again.

Now, Grace meets a yellow-eyed boy whose familiarity takes her breath away. It's her wolf. It has to be. But as winter nears, Sam must fight to stay human—or risk losing himself, and Grace, forever.

I loved that the story is told from both Sam's & Grace's perspective. At first I didn't understand why every chapter had a temperature. Once I figured out why, it became something I really liked. I thought the characters were very well written. I love how none of the characters are perfect, they all have flaws & histories, insecurities. All of the characters actions are motivated by love for someone or something. Some of the characters weren’t given choices, others had difficult decisions to make, and everyone had to give something up. This is one of a few books that has ever made me cry.

I loved it, & can't wait for Linger to be out!