Paranormalcy by Kiersten White

At eight years of age, Evie discovers that she has a special gift... she sees through the glamours of paranormals.  With no family of her own, Evie is taken in by the International Paranormal Containment Agency (IPCA), a group charged with tracking and containing paranormal beings.  Eight years later, Evie has become somewhat bored with the usual "bag and tag" at work, but while she knows her gift is indispensable to the IPCA, she longs for a normal teenage life.  When Evie's superior, Raquel, is attacked by a shape-shifting -- and extremely cute -- teenage boy named Lend, Evie finds herself strangely drawn to him.  Lend is drawn to Evie, too, and wonders if she may be the person at the center of a dark faerie prophecy.  As Lend and Evie form a friendship, paranormals begin dying and Reth, a faerie obsessed with Evie, gives odd clues that may lead Evie to discover who she really is.

Prior to reading Paranormalcy, I'd read nothing but glowing reviews about the book.  Maybe the high praise is to blame for my less-than-stellar reaction to Evie's story.  Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed it.  I just didn't love it.  Evie is a fun, spunky, likable character (although I never could understand her fascination with lockers, of all things), and Lend is the kind of guy teenage girls dream about.  I think the whole idea behind Paranormalcy and the IPCA is intriguing, and the story held my interest throughout.  I really had no clue where the story was going, but even so, in the end, it took a completely different turn than I had expected and I felt like things weren't quite as fleshed out as they could have been.  And what's up with Reth?  He remains a big mystery to me, even after all the interaction he and Evie had.

While I didn't love it, I still found Paranormalcy to be an entertaining read.  I'll definitely read the second book, Supernaturally.  I'm eager to know Reth better, and to see where life leads Evie and Lend.

My rating: 3.5/5

Crescendo by Becca Fitzpatrick

Just when Nora thought things couldn't get any better, she tells her guardian angel boyfriend, Patch, that she loves him and he runs off without replying.  The next day at school, Nora's archenemy, Marcie Millar, tells Nora that she spotted Patch staring into her window the night before.  Nora confronts Patch, who tells her that his business with Marcie doesn't concern her.  He also tells her that the archangels are keeping a close eye on them, waiting for any excuse to get rid of Patch.  Patch knows that his relationship with Nora may be cause enough for the archangels to send him to hell.  Nora, thinking she's doing what is best for the both of them, breaks up with Patch and tells him she doesn't want him to be her guardian angel anymore.  Patch runs straight into Marcie Millar's arms.  To numb the hurt, Nora begins spending time with Scott Parnell, a childhood friend who has moved back to town.  But she can't keep her mind off Patch, even though she thinks he's hiding something from her.  If things with Patch and Scott weren't complicated enough, Nora begins seeing her dead father around town.  She becomes obsessed with finding out what really happened to him, to the point of putting her own life in danger.

I loved Hush, Hush, and I was so excited to read Crescendo.  Unfortunately, Crescendo fell a bit short for me.  It wasn't as compelling as HH, and there definitely wasn't enough Patch to satisfy me.  Nora annoyed me to no end, and I couldn't believe she willingly chose to place herself in some of the situations she did.  She seemed so pigheaded, thinking her way was always the right way.  And I could have slapped her for breaking up with Patch, who is, by far, my favorite character in the series.  I wish Nora would have really thought things through, instead of making decisions on the spur-of-the-moment.  If she'd taken a step back, she would have realized that Patch always had her best interests at heart.  I love that he never gave up on her.  (I have such a huuuuge crush on him right now!  Even more so than before.)

Scott landed at both spectrums with me... sometimes I thought he was okay, sometimes I hated him.  And Marcie was as evil and skanky as ever.  I had the "bad guy" figured out, but the ending totally threw me for a loop.  Happily ever after seems to be eluding Patch and Nora yet again.

Overall, I enjoyed Crescendo, and I look forward to reading Tempest.  Wish I didn't have to wait a year, though!

My rating: 3.5/5

The Scorch Trials by James Dashner

Teresa Agnes.  Group A, Subject A1.  The Betrayer.

Minho: Property of WICKED. Group A, Subject A7. The Leader.

Newt: Property of WICKED. Group A, Subject A5. The Glue.

Thomas: Property of WICKED. Group A, Subject A2. To be killed by Group B.

Aris: Property of WICKED. Group B, Subject B1. The Partner.

Thomas and the Gladers thought they were safe after escaping the Maze, but they now find themselves faced with another seemingly impossible trial in this sequel to The Maze Runner.  They awake one morning to find Teresa missing, and mysterious tattoos on their necks.  A rat-faced man appears to tell them they have to cross the Scorch, an area that has been completely burned out due to sun flares.  The obstacles they'll face - the unbearable heat; the wicked lightning storms; the Cranks, people covered in pus-filled wounds who have been infected with a horrible disease called the Flare - will be challenging.  The Gladers are told that they, too, have been infected with the Flare, but that they will receive a cure if they make it to a place called the Safe Haven in two weeks' time.  They are told that everything they've been through is part of the Trials and serves a purpose, and are surprised to discover the existence of a second group who also escaped a maze.  But Thomas has had enough.  He doesn't want to be at the mercy of WICKED anymore, and the one person he thought he could trust the most has turned on him.

I thought The Scorch Trials was even better than The Maze Runner, which is high praise coming from me because I thought The Maze Runner was a great book.  I felt like I was on a roller coaster the entire time, there were so many ups and downs and twists and turns.  I tried to imagine myself in Thomas' shoes, but just couldn't do it.  I enjoy seeing the action through his eyes, though, and I respect and like him as a character.  I am dying to know what Thomas' role will be in the next book, and whether WICKED is really good.  And just what the trials will do to save humanity. I don't want to say much else, so you'll just have to read the book to find out what happens.  (I highly recommend reading The Maze Runner first, though.)

I loved this book, and I am left wanting more.  Can't wait to read The Death Cure.

My rating: 4.5/5

The Van Alen Legacy by Melissa de la Cruz

A year has passed since the Silver Blood attack in Rio, and Schuyler Van Alen and her best friend/human conduit, Oliver Hazard-Perry, have been on the run.  They're hiding from the Conclave; the Blue Blood leaders think Schuyler is responsible for her grandfather's death.  Schuyler made her choice in the last book, forsaking Jack Force and running away with Oliver.  But an unexpected obstacle in Paris throws Schuyler and Jack together, leaving Schuyler aching to be in Jack's arms, and wondering if she made the right choice.  Meanwhile, Mimi Force has joined Kingsley Martin and the other Venators in the search for the Watcher, and Bliss has spent the last year of her life possessed by the Visitor.  As the Silver Bloods gain power, Schuyler learns that it's her legacy to defeat them.

I have been pleasantly surprised by this series, and each book leaves me wanting more.  This fourth installment was full of action and yearning, and I loved it.  The chapters alternate between three narrators - Schuyler, Bliss, and Mimi - and I really enjoyed seeing events through their eyes.  I'll admit that the Bliss chapters were slow at first, but they picked up around the middle of the book, when Bliss became more like her old self.  After centuries spent believing she is destined to be with Jack, Mimi - who has matured over the last year - begins having feelings for Kingsley.  The Mimi and Kingsley flirtation was fun to read about, and the longing between Schuyler and Jack was palpable.

The Van Alen Legacy was an exciting and entertaining read.  I can't wait to get my hands on the fifth book, Misguided Angel, when it comes in at the library!

My rating: 4/5

Torment by Lauren Kate

In this second book of the Fallen series, Luce finds herself uprooted from Sword & Cross, only to be dumped at Shoreline, a school in California for Nephilim, the offspring of fallen angels and humans.  Daniel thinks Shoreline will be a good place for Luce to hide out, while he, Cam, and the other angels and demons hunt down the Outcasts - immortals who are after Luce.

Luce resents Daniel's interference in her life.  She loves him deeply - how can she not, when he's all she's ever known, throughout every life she's ever lived? - but wonders if maybe her life wouldn't be so screwed up if she'd fallen in love with someone else.  Maybe someone dependable, like Miles, who is so charming... and normal.  As Luce learns what the shadows are and how to manipulate them, she realizes that Daniel hasn't been very forthcoming; he's hiding something, and she's losing her faith in him.

So many people have said that they've liked Torment more than Fallen, but I found my enjoyment of them about the same:  slow to start out, too drawn-out in the middle, with a really good ending that leaves me hanging and wanting more.  I was so bored as I was reading Torment that I almost gave up a couple of times.  I just wanted something to happen.  As with Fallen, I felt that there was too much buildup.  But once I got to the last 70 pages, I couldn't stop reading.  And, once again, I'm hooked.  I want more, and I have to wait until next summer for Passion to be released.  I hope it's not as drawn-out as Fallen and Torment were, but I have a feeling it will be.

My rating: 3.5/5

Shadowland by Alyson Noël

In this third installment of The Immortals series, Ever and Damen search for an antidote to the antidote (yeah, you read that right) Damen was given in Blue Moon.  Roman tricked Ever when she was saving Damen's life, and now Ever and Damen are forbidden from ever touching.

I waited a long time for something to happen in this book, but not much did until the last 100 pages.  Damen took in the twins, Romy and Rayne.  He and Ever became pseudo-parents to them, putting a bit of strain on their relationship.  Damen told Ever about the Shadowland, where immortal souls go if an Immortal dies.  Ever got a job at Mystics and Moonbeams, the shop she'd gone to for her needs in the last book.  She met the owner's grandson, Jude, and began having feelings for him that she couldn't explain.  Damen "showed" Ever that she'd had relationships with Jude in her past lives.  In the end, Ever was forced to choose between getting the antidote for Damen or saving her best friend, Haven, who fell under Roman's spell and was on the brink of death.

I had to fight boredom at times, but in the end I'm glad I finished the book.  I wasn't sure I'd want to read the fourth book, but I most likely will now so I can see where the story goes from here.  Will Damen and Ever really end up together, or is Ever destined to be with Jude?  Seeing that there are three more books in the series is a bit depressing, though!  (I wish there were more standalone books and not so many series written these days.)

My rating: 3/5

Firelight by Sophie Jordan

Firelight revolves around 16-year-old draki, Jacinda; Cassian, the draki prince who wants Jacinda for his princess; and 18-year-old Will, a draki hunter who feels an intense connection to Jacinda.  The draki have descended from dragons, and can blend into the real world by taking human form...something no one but the drakis knows.  Jacinda is the only fire-breathing draki, and has been marked as special.  Out for a forbidden flight one morning, Jacinda is almost captured.  It's Will that saves her, and from that moment she feels drawn to him, and he to her.  Jacinda and her family - her mother and twin sister, Tamra - flee their pride in the dead of night to escape the consequences, and end up in a desert town where the elements take their toll on Jacinda - she begins to lose her inner draki.  If her draki dies, Jacinda will be forced to stay human forever.  She'll do whatever it takes to prevent that, even if it means getting closer to her enemy.  Will makes her feel alive.

The mythology behind the draki is unique.  I like that, even though Firelight is incredibly similar to Twilight (some scenes in the book seemed almost identical to Twilight, only with draki and hunters instead of vampires and a human girl), it has it's own feel; the draki mythology is just not something I've read about before.  The way the author described the draki world made me feel as though I was a part of it, though I admit that I still can't really picture what an actual draki looks like.

I think it's great that Jacinda was willing to do whatever it took to maintain her sense of self, even though her mother and sister wanted her to give up the draki.  Being a draki was all she'd ever known, and for her mother to ask her to give that up didn't sit right with me.  I know that her mother was trying to protect her from the life the draki king had chosen for her, but she was also asking Jacinda to stop being herself.

I loved Will.  By the end, a small part of me liked Cassian, too.  I fully support Jacinda ending up with Will, though, and I'm eager to see how everything plays out when the second book is released next year.

My rating: 4/5

Mini Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella

Becky Brandon (née Bloomwood)'s life has been anything but ordinary.  The shopaholic wooed the debonair Luke Brandon, Finance PR Extraordinaire, while devising a way to throw a certain bank manager named Derek Smeath off her track.  Then she moved to Manhattan, became host of a financial segment on a popular TV show (even though she can't handle her own finances), and shopped some more.  Then there was the fiasco of the two-weddings-on-the-same-day, one in NYC and one in England.  And of course, more shopping.  After a fairy-tale honeymoon, Becky arrived home to discover that she has a half-sister she never knew about, a sister who hates to shop!  Let's see... what else?  Becky got pregnant, scored a celebrity OB, and then hired a P.I. to follow said celebrity OB and her own husband, Luke, because she swore they were having an affair.  (All links are to my reviews of the other Shopaholic books.)

Now Becky and Luke are parents!  Mini Shopaholic takes place two years after Shopaholic and Baby left off.  'Mini Shopaholic' herself, Minnie Brandon, is now a rambunctious two-year-old, and Luke and Becky are at wits' end; they don't know what to do with little Minnie, who wreaks havoc wherever she goes.  Becky's mum is willing to help with Minnie--she's been doing it for the two years Becky and Luke have been living in her house anyway--but Becky and Luke decide to hire an "Ultimate Nanny" instead.  (After all, it'd be great if Minnie could learn Mandarin!)  Becky is less than forthcoming about Minnie's behavior, though, and said Ultimate Nanny begs off after a few hours in Minnie's presence.  Can anything go right?  Not only has their fifth try at buying a home fallen through, but there's a huge financial crisis in England because one of the major banks failed.  Luke is putting in so much extra time at work that Becky decides to throw him a surprise party for his birthday.  Of course, she has trouble staying on budget, so she accepts help from an unlikely source...Luke's birth mother, Elinor, whom Luke isn't speaking to at the moment.  As with any book featuring Becky Brandon, chaos ensues, lies are told, and shopping is done.

I was super excited to get my hands on this book.  I really enjoyed the first five Shopaholic books.  Becky makes me laugh.  She gets into so much trouble, and of course her scrapes are all a bit unbelievable and outrageous, but she's just such an amusing character to spend time with (even when I want to pull my hair out and shout at her that she better not buy that dress/purse/scarf/pair of shoes, no matter the sale price.)  Unfortunately, I didn't enjoy this latest book as much as I'd hoped to.  Sure, I still liked it and Becky still made me laugh (though not as much as in the other books), but I'm left feeling slightly disappointed.

3.5/5

Mini Shopaholic is #6 in the Shopaholic series.

Revelations by Melissa de la Cruz

It's difficult to review this series without giving anything away!  This is what the synopsis from the front cover of the book says:

Schuyler Van Alen's blood legacy has just been called into question - is the young vampire in fact a Blue Blood, or is it the sinister Silver Blood that runs through her veins? As controversy swirls, Schuyler is left stranded in the Force household, trapped under the same roof as her cunning nemesis, Mimi Force, and her forbidden crush, Jack Force.

When one of the Gates of Hell is breached by Silver Bloods in Rio de Janeiro, however, the Blue Bloods will need Schuyler on their side. The stakes are high; the battle is bloody; and through it all, Schuyler is torn between duty and passion, love and freedom. In the end, one vampire's secret identity will be exposed in a revelation that shocks everyone.

The title of this book really fits.  (In fact, I think Ms. de la Cruz has done an excellent job in choosing titles for the other books in the series, as well.)  The 'revelations' in this third book were totally unexpected.  I thought I had some things figured out, but I was completely wrong.  After a slow start with this book, things really picked up.  The twists and turns make reading this series a lot of fun.  They're not the greatest books ever written, but I enjoy reading them.  Revelations has definitely left me wanting more, and I can't wait to see what happens with Bliss, Schuyler, Jack, Mimi, and Oliver in the next book!

My rating: 4/5

Revelations is #3 in the Blue Bloods series.

Coming soon

A review for Revelations.  Don't have time for it now, as I need to make dinner.  (Hopefully I can remember what the book was even about by the time I get to the review.)  Then I'm off to a FREE screening of Life As We Know It, starring Josh Duhamel and Katherine Heigl.

I'm currently reading Mini Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella.  I'm excited to actually have some time to read so that I can get into it!  (Five hours spent Skyping with your mother and sisters all over the country--and Scotland--doesn't leave much time for other things!)

UPDATE:
The movie last night was really cute.  I laughed a lot and enjoyed it more than I thought I would.  Even better, it won't be officially 'released' until Friday, so I was able to see it early and for free!  Can't beat that.

Masquerade by Melissa de la Cruz

Schuyler Van Alen has discovered her Blue Blood legacy and must now come to terms with her powers.  Hoping to unearth the identity of the Silver Blood who is killing young Blue Bloods, Schuyler and her best friend, Oliver, travel to Venice in search of Schuyler's long-lost grandfather.  Back in NYC, preparations are underway for the Four Hundred Ball.  At the ball, a mysterious new Blue Blood appears.  He's hot and sexy and flirts with Mimi, Bliss, and Schuyler.  Does he have ulterior motives?  And what does his appearance mean for Schuyler...and Jack?

I had a great time reading Masquerade.  I loved every minute, and didn't want it to end.  My questions about Mimi and Jack's bond were answered, and I liked that Schuyler finally had her eyes opened to Oliver's true feelings for her.  Nothing wrong with a love triangle, right?  I'm rooting for Jack, but I like Oliver so much.  (And how crazy is it that even though I loathe Mimi and really want Jack and Schuyler to be together, there's a part of me that feels sorry for Mimi because she loves Jack so much.  And he loves Mimi just as fully, but he can't fight his connection with Schuyler.  The whole thing is completely messed up, yet it works.)  The New Guy, Kingsley, is mysterious and creepy.  And that ending...did NOT see that coming!

I am SO looking forward to the next book.  Good thing I have it waiting right here!

My rating: 4/5

Masquerade is #2 in the Blue Bloods series.

Top 10 Literary Crushes, Vol. 3

So my sister, Beth, and I were talking last week and she said I should update my literary crush list again.  The last time I updated my list was almost exactly one year ago, when it looked like this:

1. Edward Cullen, the Twilight saga
2. Peeta Mellark, The Hunger Games series by Suzanne Collins (Have I already mentioned that I adore him? I have?)
3. Prince Po, Graceling by Kristin Cashore (just thinking about his gold and silver eyes makes me melt!)
4. Max Pesaro, The Gardella Vampire Chronicles by Colleen Gleason
5. Miach of Neroche, The Nine Kingdoms series by Lynn Kurland
6. Fitzwilliam Darcy, Pride and Prejudice
7. Rhys de Piaget and Robin de Piaget (or any de Piaget male for that matter!), Lynn Kurland books
8. Gilbert Blythe, Anne of Green Gables
9. Joshua Steed, The Work and the Glory series by Gerald N. Lund
10. Luke Brandon, Shopaholic series by Sophie Kinsella

Not a bad list, but I definitely have some different names to add this year.  I'm always thrilled when an author can make me fall for one of his/her characters!
 
So, without further ado, I introduce to you my "Ten Literary Characters I Would Totally Make Out With If I Were Single and They Were Real But I'm Not, Single I Mean; I Am Real -- But I'm Also Happily Married and Want To Stay That Way, So Maybe We Should Forget This..."  (volume 3)

1. Edward Cullen...always and forever
2. Peeta Mellark...let me clarify and say I prefer the Peeta from The Hunger Games and Catching Fire. He was so different in Mockingjay.  That said, I still adore him.
3. Max Pesaro...I will always love you, Max!
4. Dimitri Belikov, the Vampire Academy series by Richelle Mead...mmm, mmm good!  Can't wait for Last Sacrifice!
5. Valek, the Study series by Maria V. Snyder...love him!
6. Prince Po...gold and silver eyes.  Need I say more?
7. Prince Brigan, Fire by Kristin Cashore...both Po and Brigan are to-die-for.  Or to-sigh-for ;)
8. Miach of Neroche or any de Piaget male...such gentlemen, but so brave and studly at the same time.
9. Fitzwilliam Darcy...of course he's still on the list
10. Patch Cipriano, Hush Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick...bad boy fallen angel=hot!
 
Wow, it was much more difficult to narrow it down to 10 than I thought it would be!  Poor Mr. Darcy just keeps falling further and further down the list.  Sorry, Darcy.  I still love you.
 
Your turn, Beth. ;)
 
If you want to review my list from 2007, click here.

Blue Bloods by Melissa de la Cruz

When the Mayflower set sail in 1620, it carried on board the men and women who would shape America: Miles Standish; John Alden; Constance Hopkins. But some among the Pilgrims were not pure of heart; they were not escaping religious persecution. Indeed, they were not even human. They were vampires.The vampires assimilated quickly into the New World. Rising to levels of enormous power, wealth, and influence, they were the celebrated blue bloods of American society.

The Blue Bloods vowed that their immortal status would remain a closely guarded secret. And they kept that secret for centuries. But now, in New York City, the secret is seeping out. Schuyler Van Alen is a sophomore at a prestigious private school. She prefers baggy, vintage clothes instead of the Prada and pearls worn by her classmates, and she lives with her reclusive grandmother in a dilapidated mansion. Schuyler is a loner...and happy that way. Suddenly, when she turns fifteen, there is a visible mosaic of blue veins on her arm. She starts to crave raw food and she is having flashbacks to ancient times. Then a popular girl from her school is found dead... drained of all her blood. Schuyler doesn't know what to think, but she wants to find out the secrets the Blue Bloods are keeping. But is she herself in danger?

Since reading Twilight, I've come to love YA vampire stories.  While some are definitely better than others, I found myself really enjoying Blue Bloods.  While I didn't enjoy it as much as Twilight, it was still an entertaining read.  Besides all the fashion designer name-dropping, I think what most bothered me about this book was the way Schuyler and Jack Force went from I-barely-know-you to I-love-you-and-can't-live-without-you in a nanosecond.  (The same thing bothered me with Bella and Edward in the Twilight movie.  Ugh.)  Still, I find Jack captivating.  Mimi, on the other hand, drove me nuts (in a good way!), and I think there is something ominous about her.  Her relationship with Jack, her twin brother, is very strange, and I hope the next book delves further into the Force family history and expounds on the twins' relationship more fully.

I think it's interesting that the Blue Bloods are reincarnated over and over throughout eternity, and I found it fascinating that Jack thought Schuyler was the woman from his "dreams" when really it was her mother.  Can't wait to see how that all plays out!  I'm eager to read Masquerade and continue the story.  Just as soon as I read The Joy Luck Club for my family book club.
 
My rating: 3.5/5
 
Blue Bloods is #1 in the Blue Bloods series.

Blue Moon by Alyson Noël

Just as Ever is learning everything she can about her new abilities as an Immortal, initiated into the dark, seductive world by her beloved Damen, something terrible is happening to him. As Ever’s powers are increasing, Damen’s are fading—stricken by a mysterious illness that threatens his memory, his identity, his life.

Desperate to save him, Ever travels to the mystical dimension of Summerland, uncovering not only the secrets of Damen’s past—the brutal, tortured history he hoped to keep hidden—but also an ancient text revealing the workings of time. With the approaching blue moon heralding her only window for travel, Ever is forced to decide between turning back the clock and saving her family from the accident that claimed them—or staying in the present and saving Damen, who grows weaker each day...

While Evermore introduced the characters and outlined Ever and Damen's story to a certain extent, Blue Moon filled in the missing blanks.  I more fully understood just what Summerland is, what the mysterious red elixir is that Damen is always drinking, and how the Immortals and "rogue" Immortals came to be, as well as other questions that I felt weren't answered in the first book.  Usually, I hate getting bogged down in details, but I thought the details made this second installment so much more interesting than the first.  I admit to rolling my eyes when Ever was able to get her hands on all those crazy minerals and ingredients, though: A quartz crystal bowl that's been turned to the seventh chakra; a red silk pouch embroidered by Tibetan monks; herbs planted during the new moon and tended by blind nuns in India... Come on.  All that aside, the story was better, the characters were more entertaining, and, surprisingly enough, I'm actually looking forward to continuing with this series.  (I still can't get over Ever's name, though.  Ever Bloom.  Good grief.)

My rating: 4/5

Blue Moon is #2 in The Immortals series.

I Now Pronounce You Someone Else by Erin McCahan

A friend of mine read I Now Pronounce You Someone Else earlier in the week, and it sounded so cute and her review was so good that I asked if I could borrow it.  I'd been in kind of a "blah" reading mood, where nothing I picked up interested me, and a fun fluff read like this seemed just the perfect thing to pull me out of my funk.

Bronwen Oliver, the protagonist of I Now Pronounce You Someone Else, swears she isn't her mother's child.  How can she be, when her hair is brown and she hates ketchup?  She must have been switched at birth.  Yes, that's it.  And now she's determined to find her Real Family.

Jared Sondervan is an old friend of Bronwen's brother, and when they meet again the summer before Bronwen's senior year of high school, it's love at first sight for both of them.  Jared may be starting his final year of college in the fall, but he's everything Bronwen's ever wanted, and his family is everything she hoped her Real Family could be.  When Jared proposes to Bronwen on her 18th birthday, she's thrilled.  Her dream of a perfect family is coming true.  Wedding plans soon overwhelm her, but Bronwen knows what she wants.  At least she thinks she does.  Before Bronwen can determine what she really wants, she needs to determine who she is.

This book was utterly charming and delightful.  I loved the characters (especially Bronwen, Jared, and Bronwen's stepdad, Whitt) and I loved the chemistry between Bronwen and Jared.  I swooned each time Jared told Bronwen to dream of him.  As wonderful and perfect as their relationship seemed, I was pleased that Bronwen took a step back to truly consider her future, even if it meant hurting Jared.  It was important for her to know who she was before committing to such a life-changing event.  I wasn't sure whether the ending of the book would live up to the expectations I had while reading it, but it did...and, boy, was I happy!  A very fun read.

My rating: 4.25/5

Evermore by Alyson Noël

Since a horrible accident claimed the lives of her family, sixteen-year-old Ever can see auras, hear people’s thoughts, and know a person’s life story by touch. Going out of her way to shield herself from human contact to suppress her abilities has branded her as a freak at her new high school—but everything changes when she meets Damen Auguste . . .

Ever sees Damen and feels an instant recognition. He is gorgeous, exotic and wealthy, and he holds many secrets. Damen is able to make things appear and disappear, he always seems to know what she’s thinking—and he’s the only one who can silence the noise and the random energy in her head. She doesn’t know who he really is—or what he is. Damen equal parts light and darkness, and he belongs to an enchanted new world where no one ever dies.

A friend of mine is reading this book, and she says she's having a hard time getting into it, that it seems too much like Twilight.  I had similar thoughts while reading Evermore.  It was very Twilightish, but different enough that the similarities didn't bother me.  What did bother me was Ever's friend Haven.  I couldn't stand her.  I liked both Ever and Damen, and Ever's friend, Miles, and while the story was interesting enough at first to keep me reading, by the end I was ready to be done.  The whole plotline with Ever's sister Riley didn't really pull me in; Drina, Damen's mysterious redheaded lady friend, drove me nuts; "Summerland" made me laugh. I did appreciate that Ever had a big choice to make at the end, and I'm glad she took time to think about it, but now that she's chosen to be with/like Damen, I don't know that I really care to continue with her story.  There are at least 4 more books in this series--I picked the second one, Blue Moon, up from the library today--but if I can't get into the second one, I'm not going to bother reading the rest of them.

3/5

Evermore is #1 in The Immortals series.

Church book group: Ender's Game and Fallen

Last night my church book group met to discuss Ender's Game.  I read it way back in 2006 (see my review here), and while I didn't feel like completely re-reading it  (I had other things to read...like Mockingjay), I did find the time to read some summaries online and go over the last few chapters of the book again to refresh the story in my mind.  We had a great discussion--one of our best yet.  Not everyone loved the book like I did (although a couple of women did), but it got pretty good reviews from the other gals.

Anyway, someone asked what next month's book, Fallen, is about, and since I've read it already, I decided to give a little summary of sorts.  But for the life of me, I couldn't remember a single thing.  A couple of the other women are reading it now, and one other has already read it, so I asked them to tell me the names of the main characters in hopes that I could remember something.  (I've been so anxious for Mockingjay to come out that everything else has leaked from my brain, it seems.)  To make sure that I have at least one resource to look back on next month when book group comes around, I decided that I should write my Fallen review before I completely forget everything about the book.  As it is, I don't remember much, which is quite sad, considering I read it a little over a week ago.

I'll just go ahead and use the synopsis from the back of the book, since I don't feel any summary I write will do the book justice:

There's something achingly familiar about Daniel Grigori.

Mysterious and aloof, he captures Luce Price's attention from the moment she sees him on her first day at the Sword & Cross boarding school in sultry Savannah, Georgia. He's the one bright spot in a place where cell phones are forbidden, the other students are all screw-ups, and security cameras watch every move.

Even though Daniel wants nothing to do with Luce—and goes out of his way to make that very clear—she can't let it go. Drawn to him like a moth to a flame, she has to find out what Daniel is so desperate to keep secret . . . even if it kills her.

Dangerously exciting and darkly romantic, Fallen is a page turning thriller and the ultimate love story.

I found another synopsis online that gives a better feel for the book, but it is definitely spoiler-ish, so highlight it if you'd like to know more about Fallen:

Seventeen-year-old Luce is a new student at Sword & Cross, an unwelcoming boarding/reform school in Savannah, Georgia. Luce's boyfriend died under suspicious circumstances, and now she carries the guilt over his death with her as she navigates the unfriendly halls at Sword & Cross, where every student seems to have an unpleasant, even evil, history.


It's only when she sees Daniel, a gorgeous fellow student, that Luce feels there's a reason to be here though she doesn't know what it is. And Daniel's frosty cold demeanor toward her? It's really a protective device that he's used again . . . and again. For Daniel is a fallen angel, doomed to fall in love with the same girl every 17 years . . . and watch her die. And Luce is a fellow immortal, cursed to be reincarnated again and again as a mortal girl who has no idea of who she really is.

I wanted to like Fallen a whole lot more than I did.  I waited and waited for something to happen, but the story dragged on so slowly.  Fallen has a very interesting premise, but it took far too long for anything to happen.  I know it's the first book in a series, but come on.  The last 100 pages (out of 452), when we find out Daniel and Luce's story, are what made the book enjoyable for me, and it's those last chapters that make me eager to read Torment when it comes out.  I really hope things work out for Luce and Daniel!

3.25/5

Mockingjay!

I was SO EXCITED to get my hands on this book!  My husband brought it home for me bright and early (2:30) yesterday morning, and all I wanted to do was spend the day devouring it.  Unfortunately, life got in the way and I wasn't able to really delve into the story until yesterday evening.  I was sucked in, of course, because I love the characters and couldn't wait to find out what would happen to them.  I stayed up until 1:15 this morning to finish the book.  And...just as with Breaking Dawn, I was left with a feeling of disappointment.  Mockingjay was definitely not the conclusion I had hoped for.  Maybe my expectations were too high.  It's just that The Hunger Games and Catching Fire were both so amazing that I just knew Mockingjay had to be, too.  Only it wasn't.  At least not in my opinion.

Yes, the story was good and very well-written.  I understand that war is not a pretty thing, and Suzanne Collins did a great job describing just how horrific war is.  But I didn't feel that connection with any of the characters that I had in the first two books.  They seemed so different.  I wasn't as emotionally involved as I had previously been.

SPOILERS to follow, so read at your own risk!!  (Highlight to read.)


I actually ended up liking Gale so much more in this book.  I could see why some fans would want he and Katniss to end up together.  I don't think his character was developed much in the first two books, but in Mockingjay we get a real sense of who Gale is, and he really grew on me.  But, he could never take Peeta's place in my heart, or in Katniss' (or so I hoped!).


So, on to Peeta: I didn't like what Collins did to Peeta.  At all.  He wasn't the Peeta I'd fallen in love with.  He was just a shell of himself, and I know that there's good reason he was like that, given what he experienced at the hands of the Capitol people.  But I had a hard time connecting with him in Mockingjay.  There were times that I just wanted to cry for what had been done to him.  I didn't give up hope that he'd return to his normal kind, happy self after being hijacked, but that didn't happen.  Sure, by the end he seemed okay, but I still don't feel that he was the same Peeta.  And I missed that Peeta terribly.


Katniss wasn't herself at the end, either, it seemed.  After all the atrocities of war, of losing her friends and Prim, I understand why she would go a bit crazy.  But she'd been so strong and such a fighter for such a long time that I expected her to always be strong.  Maybe it was naive on my part, but I'd hoped she'd pull through everything and still have that fighting spirit to her.  She seemed so broken at the end, and I absolutely understand why, what with Prim being killed and her mom and Gale abandoning her.  But there was just something about Katniss that didn't sit right with me.  I'm glad that Haymitch, Greasy Sae, and Peeta didn't give up on her, though.


I was really sad when Finnick died!  He was one of my favorite characters.  On the contrary, I have to admit that I didn't mourn Prim's death much.  I'm glad we got to know her better in this book, but I didn't ever really connect with her as I did with other characters--characters I'd "known" for a longer period of time.  But, Finnick... that broke my heart.


I was confused when the parachute bombs went off toward the end, when all the children were corralled in front of Snow's mansion.  I didn't really understand what was going on, and was even more confused when Katniss woke up and so much time had passed.


I was shocked when both Katniss and Haymitch voted to have another Hunger Games with the Capitol children.  After all they went through, I thought for sure they'd be against it.  I know Katniss was mourning Prim and wanting revenge for her death, but I didn't see she or Haymitch being "for" another Hunger Games.


I'm so, SO happy that Katniss and Peeta ended up together!  Having Katniss and Peeta finally--finally!--be together was one of the better moments in the book.  I wish it had been under different circumstances, though.  I felt like they were both so changed from who they once were.  But I guess that can be seen as a good thing, too, since they ended up together even though they had both experienced such horrific things and been changed in such momentous ways.  Still, I really miss the old Katniss and Peeta.  I missed the romance.


I LOVED the ending, where Peeta says "You love me.  Truth or not truth."  And Katniss answers, "Truth."  Loved it!  Thought it was the perfect ending.  Of course, then came the epilogue... a lot of people are saying that they felt the epilogue was unnecessary and that they didn't like it.  I don't think it was necessary, but I also didn't have a problem with it.  I enjoy knowing that Katniss and Peeta had children.  I think it brings everything to a nice conclusion.  And being Team Peeta since book one, it's nice to see that he and Katniss spent many happy years together!


END SPOILERS


So, while I didn't like Mockingjay anywhere near as much as I adored The Hunger Games and Catching Fire, I still thought it was a good book and I'm still glad I read it.  It wasn't the book I wanted, but I can live with it.  Maybe a re-read will improve my opinion of it, maybe not.  It can never compare to the first two books.  I hate giving it such a low rating, but I can't help it.

3.5/5

The Dark Divine

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 his own blood—but she has no idea what a truly monstrous secret that night held.

The memories her family has tried to bury resurface when Daniel returns, three years later, and enrolls in Grace and Jude's high school. Despite promising Jude she'll stay away, Grace cannot deny her attraction to Daniel's shocking artistic abilities, his way of getting her to look at the world from new angles, and the strange, hungry glint in his eyes.

The closer Grace gets to Daniel, the more she jeopardizes her life, as her actions stir resentment in Jude and drive him to embrace the ancient evil Daniel unleashed that horrific night. Grace must discover the truth behind the boy'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.

 

Isn't the cover gorgeous?  And I love the title of the book, too.  The cover is what initially drew me to this book, so I was somewhat disappointed (though I guess I shouldn't have been so surprised) to discover that the cover has nothing to do with the actual story.  But enough about that.
 
What started out as a slow-moving story actually ended up being fairly entertaining.  The latter half of the book was especially good.  There was just something about Grace and Daniel's relationship that touched me.  No matter what others were telling them, they knew how they felt about each other.  They understood that their relationship was dangerous -- Grace, more so as the book progressed -- but they couldn't stay away from each other, and it was that love that overcame everything in the end.

While some parts of the book were a bit "churchy" -- Grace and Jude's father is a pastor, after all, and they attend a church school -- I liked that Grace wasn't ashamed of who she is.  She wasn't afraid to stand up for her beliefs.
 
There's a sequel coming out in December, and while I initially didn't think I'd care to read it (as I said, The Dark Divine wasn't pulling me in as much as I wanted it to at first), I'm actually excited to see what's next for Grace, Daniel, and Jude.
 
4/5

6. A Tapestry of Spells by Lynn Kurland

Last year, Lynn Kurland became one of my favorite authors. I've read quite a few of her novels now, and the majority of them have been fantastic. I've only come across a couple of Kurland's books I haven't liked as much as the others, and one was a short story. With her newest offering, A Tapestry of Spells, the next in the Nine Kingdoms series that I adore, Kurland proves that she's a master of fantasy romance.

Sarah of Doìre, daughter of the village witch, worries her brother will use his dark magic to destroy the Nine Kingdoms, so she requests the help of the local mage, a man most of the villagers fear. His name, Sarah learns, is Ruith, and he's not the crotchety, centuries-old mage everyone thinks him to be. After a horrible incident at a well when he was ten years old, Ruith buried his magical powers and happily spent the next twenty years in seclusion. When Sarah arrives on his doorstep, begging his assistance in stopping her brother from wreaking havoc on the Kingdoms, Ruith strangely finds himself wanting to aid her on her quest.

I loved this book. I loved the unfolding layers of plot and character, and was fascinated to discover that Ruith and Sarah's story takes place at the same time that Morgan and Miach's story does in Star of the Morning. Kurland isn't just a storyteller, she's a story weaver, and the threads she weaves together create the most breathtaking, enthralling stories. I was hooked from the beginning, and was left craving more Sarah and Ruith at the end. I cannot wait for the next book in the series to come out!

5/5