First book in the Arclight series, there is a second book to come out this month called Meridian. It could quite possibly already be out by time you read this. I will do my best to get my hands on the second book and review it. This is McQuein's first book, and for it being her first I think she did very well. McQuein does have another book out that does not go along with Arclight called Premeditated.
In this dystopian world three things make up your little world. The Arclight, the Grey, and the Dark. The Arclight means safety and survival, the Grey is between the Arclight and the Dark. The Dark is filled with the Fade. No one goes into the Grey, but a girl was found there. How did she get there? How did she survive? More importantly, is she safe? No one comes back from the Dark or the Grey. No one.
If I thought I devoured Beautiful Creatures, I really inhaled Arclight. Once I began I couldn't stop reading. I had to read the next page, then the next chapter, and then I found myself done. McQuein did an amazing job drawing me in and holding on to my attention. I didn't find wordy parts, which I was so thankful for. I haven't read too many dystopian based books but I really enjoyed Arclight. Marina and Tobin from the start captivated me and I had to know what happened with them. I am in love with the idea of the Fade, what they are and how they came to be. There were a lot of little twists that, if reading too quickly you might pass up and not see coming. There is a bit of romance in the air, but nothing can really happen when the fate of what little humans are left on Earth, are at stake because of the Fade. I laughed in a few spots and I didn't think I would with this being a slightly more serious book. I love the backstory to just about everything, and I can't wait to read the next book.
Arclight was incredibly fast paced, there was almost no time to stop and think over what had just happened to Marina or some of the other characters. This was not something I enjoyed too much because it just didn't seem to work with the story (for me). I would have liked some down time, not too much, but a little. Something that confused me was that I wasn't sure if the Arclight was a simple multi-floored building, or a series of buildings put together. I could have easily skipped where it was defined, because I did read this book really quickly.
Though I did have a few discrepancies with Arclight I overall enjoyed it a lot. I really hope a few of my confusions will be cleared up in the next book. Once again for being a 'teen' book I really think that adults could enjoy Arclight. I recommend it to everyone and I hope to one day have this book on one of my bookshelves. I can honestly see myself rereading this book a number of times because it is that good.
Rating: 5 out of 5.
Page Count: 403 pages (hardcover).
Price: ???
Next Book: Cinder by Marissa Meyer
Thank you for reading!
~Jade
Monday, June 23, 2014
Saturday, June 21, 2014
Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl
This is the first book in the Beautiful Creatures series. I will try my best to do reviews of the other books but my library never has them on the shelf. I will not be comparing the book to the movie in this review, if requested I will in a separate blog post. I hope you enjoy.
Cursed for generations, Lena Duchannes sticks out like a sore thumb in Gatlin. She's trying to conceal her powers, but secrets are hard to keep in this little town. Ethan Wate, cannot wait to get out of Gatlin. He is also haunted by dreams of a beautiful girl, and is slightly disturbed when Lena moves into town, and into the old infamous plantation. He is drawn turn to her and doesn't know why, so he plans on figuring out. One secret could change everything for the little town of Gatlin.
Once again I missed out the whole craze when Beautiful Creatures came around. Boy, am I kicking myself now. I hated to be doing any work because this book drew me in, captivated me, and held on. I loved every page of Beautiful Creatures. I was expecting for the size of it, that I would find wordy parts or parts that held no relevance to the book, but I didn't. It was a really nice change of POV's because the reviews previous to this have been dominated by female POV's. This, however is from Ethan's and he is a exceptional main character. The back story to him and everyone else is amazing and it flows perfectly with the plot. I was left wondering about things but they were questions that got answered in a timely manner. I didn't find myself knowing things before they happened, but understanding why they were going to happen, and it didn't upset me. I think I would have been more upset if I knew what was going to happen and didn't understand why. I laughed a lot which was really great, because the book does get serious in a few places. The supernatural aspect of Beautiful Creatures adds a lot to the story and spices things up.
I really don't have anything to complain about. I didn't find any wordy parts or unnecessary parts, like I stated before. I was very happy with the book over all and loved it. It was a great change of view and I loved that the romance in it was very sweet and innocent. I would love to own this book, and I really hope that the other books continue to be as good. I really recommend this book to others, the size may push you away but it is really worth it. For being a 'teen' book, I think adults could enjoy the book as well. I know this was a little different from previous reviews but I didn't have anything I didn't like about Beautiful Creatures.
Rating: 5 out of 5.
Page Count: 563 pages (hardcover)
Price: $17.99
Next Book: Arclight by Josin L. McQuein
Thank you for reading!
~Jade
Cursed for generations, Lena Duchannes sticks out like a sore thumb in Gatlin. She's trying to conceal her powers, but secrets are hard to keep in this little town. Ethan Wate, cannot wait to get out of Gatlin. He is also haunted by dreams of a beautiful girl, and is slightly disturbed when Lena moves into town, and into the old infamous plantation. He is drawn turn to her and doesn't know why, so he plans on figuring out. One secret could change everything for the little town of Gatlin.
Once again I missed out the whole craze when Beautiful Creatures came around. Boy, am I kicking myself now. I hated to be doing any work because this book drew me in, captivated me, and held on. I loved every page of Beautiful Creatures. I was expecting for the size of it, that I would find wordy parts or parts that held no relevance to the book, but I didn't. It was a really nice change of POV's because the reviews previous to this have been dominated by female POV's. This, however is from Ethan's and he is a exceptional main character. The back story to him and everyone else is amazing and it flows perfectly with the plot. I was left wondering about things but they were questions that got answered in a timely manner. I didn't find myself knowing things before they happened, but understanding why they were going to happen, and it didn't upset me. I think I would have been more upset if I knew what was going to happen and didn't understand why. I laughed a lot which was really great, because the book does get serious in a few places. The supernatural aspect of Beautiful Creatures adds a lot to the story and spices things up.
I really don't have anything to complain about. I didn't find any wordy parts or unnecessary parts, like I stated before. I was very happy with the book over all and loved it. It was a great change of view and I loved that the romance in it was very sweet and innocent. I would love to own this book, and I really hope that the other books continue to be as good. I really recommend this book to others, the size may push you away but it is really worth it. For being a 'teen' book, I think adults could enjoy the book as well. I know this was a little different from previous reviews but I didn't have anything I didn't like about Beautiful Creatures.
Rating: 5 out of 5.
Page Count: 563 pages (hardcover)
Price: $17.99
Next Book: Arclight by Josin L. McQuein
Thank you for reading!
~Jade
Wednesday, June 11, 2014
Hell's Horizon by Darren Shan
Hell's Horizon is the second book in The City trilogy. I have a review up for the first book Procession of the Dead. I do have plans on reading the third book, I just don't know when because every time I go to my library and check, it is not on the shelf. With that being said I hope you enjoy!
Al Jeery is a member of The Cardinal's personal guard. The Cardinal rules over the City, and the City is nothing but corruption. Al starts to question his loyalty to The Cardinal when he is taken to Party Central to investigate a murder. Al discovers something at the crime scene and other things just don't add up. A series of corpses and a horrifying mystery is the path that Al trails down almost unwillingly. While he's there he learns of a few disturbing facts that have been held from him. The Incan forefathers, the crazy Cardinal, and Paucar Wami all have their play with Al. Wami is a deadly man who kills without remorse. Al thinks he and Wami are two different people, but he is about to find out that there is more to Wami than meets the eye.
The events in Hell's Horizon take place along side Procession of the Dead. So throughout the book Capac is mentioned and the reader is able to see a different side of things from the previous book. Things are no longer one sided. The Cardinal lets a couple of facts be known that makes the reader go "oh, that's why he did that". The beginning of this book captivated me and had me wanting more. The middle disappointed me, and the end swung around and picked itself back up. Al is a interesting character, mixing Wami in with him and all the murder just makes him that more interesting. I kind of knew that there was more to Al then what was being given and sure enough there is. Shan paints a great picture when it comes to details of things happening, but there wasn't too many details about Al's features. You do get a few details though, here and there but it is very quick and if you are not paying attention close enough you may miss them. I loved it when things got interesting which was a fair amount of the time, it wasn't as wordy anymore. For Hell's Horizon when things were good, they were really good. But when they weren't it was upsetting because the first book was so good. Thankfully there isn't any repeating of scenes from Procession of the Dead. Things were mentioned in passing, which helped pin point when events where taking place in comparison with the first book.
I was really disappointed with the middle of the book, once the murders got going and things got interesting, the book almost seemed to halt and become really wordy. Yes, there were little hints dropped along the way but, for myself, I don't think it would have mattered if I would have skipped over them. *SPOILER-ALERT* I basically knew that Bill (Al's cop friend) and Pricilla (a friend of a friend of Al's) where in on the murders, I just didn't know how exactly.*SPOILER-ENDED* I figured a few major things out that pertained to the murders, I am not sure if the reader was supposed to know early on, but if so Shan did a great job.
Being more disappointed with how the content went in the book, I still liked the book more than not. The beginning and the end where terrific, especially the end. I can't wait to read the third book, I honestly have not a clue what Shan has done I haven't read the summary yet. I recommend this book to be read, and I would love to own this book as well. I am a huge fan of Shan's and I hope I am not completely upset with this last book. Even with being marked as a 'adult' book I think teenagers could really get into the trilogy. There is a sexual scene, but it is very PG and could have been extremely worse.
Rating: a lower 4 out of 5.
Page Count: 324 pages (hardcover)
Price: $19.99
Next Book: Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl
Thank so much for reading!
~Jade
Al Jeery is a member of The Cardinal's personal guard. The Cardinal rules over the City, and the City is nothing but corruption. Al starts to question his loyalty to The Cardinal when he is taken to Party Central to investigate a murder. Al discovers something at the crime scene and other things just don't add up. A series of corpses and a horrifying mystery is the path that Al trails down almost unwillingly. While he's there he learns of a few disturbing facts that have been held from him. The Incan forefathers, the crazy Cardinal, and Paucar Wami all have their play with Al. Wami is a deadly man who kills without remorse. Al thinks he and Wami are two different people, but he is about to find out that there is more to Wami than meets the eye.
The events in Hell's Horizon take place along side Procession of the Dead. So throughout the book Capac is mentioned and the reader is able to see a different side of things from the previous book. Things are no longer one sided. The Cardinal lets a couple of facts be known that makes the reader go "oh, that's why he did that". The beginning of this book captivated me and had me wanting more. The middle disappointed me, and the end swung around and picked itself back up. Al is a interesting character, mixing Wami in with him and all the murder just makes him that more interesting. I kind of knew that there was more to Al then what was being given and sure enough there is. Shan paints a great picture when it comes to details of things happening, but there wasn't too many details about Al's features. You do get a few details though, here and there but it is very quick and if you are not paying attention close enough you may miss them. I loved it when things got interesting which was a fair amount of the time, it wasn't as wordy anymore. For Hell's Horizon when things were good, they were really good. But when they weren't it was upsetting because the first book was so good. Thankfully there isn't any repeating of scenes from Procession of the Dead. Things were mentioned in passing, which helped pin point when events where taking place in comparison with the first book.
I was really disappointed with the middle of the book, once the murders got going and things got interesting, the book almost seemed to halt and become really wordy. Yes, there were little hints dropped along the way but, for myself, I don't think it would have mattered if I would have skipped over them. *SPOILER-ALERT* I basically knew that Bill (Al's cop friend) and Pricilla (a friend of a friend of Al's) where in on the murders, I just didn't know how exactly.*SPOILER-ENDED* I figured a few major things out that pertained to the murders, I am not sure if the reader was supposed to know early on, but if so Shan did a great job.
Being more disappointed with how the content went in the book, I still liked the book more than not. The beginning and the end where terrific, especially the end. I can't wait to read the third book, I honestly have not a clue what Shan has done I haven't read the summary yet. I recommend this book to be read, and I would love to own this book as well. I am a huge fan of Shan's and I hope I am not completely upset with this last book. Even with being marked as a 'adult' book I think teenagers could really get into the trilogy. There is a sexual scene, but it is very PG and could have been extremely worse.
Rating: a lower 4 out of 5.
Page Count: 324 pages (hardcover)
Price: $19.99
Next Book: Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl
Thank so much for reading!
~Jade
Wednesday, June 4, 2014
(Late) May Book Haul
So I thought I would do the whole "these are the books I got this month" blogs. If I get anything for the month, I will make a post such as this one stating what I got, if it is a hardcover or paperback, and things like that. I hope you all enjoy and like it!
As you can see from the picture above I only got 3 books in May. Two are by Sherrilyn Kenyon and the other is by Laini Taylor. All books this time around were hardcover.
Born of Shadows is the fourth book in the League series. I do have a review up for the first book. The other book by Kenyon is Illusion and it is the fifth book in the Chronicles of Nick series. I don't have any reviews up for this particular series but once I get my hands on all of the books currently out I will do that.
Lastly, Days of Blood & Starlight is the second book in the Daughter of Smoke & Bone trilogy. I do have a review up for the first book and this one as well. Of course, I will have a review up for the third and final book once I can.
I hope you all enjoyed this!
~Jade
OCD Love Story by Corey Ann Haydu
OCD Love Story is a stand alone book. Before I get into the review, I am going to get this over with now. Mental illness of any sort is not something to be taken lightly. I know this is a touchy subject for some and I will not hold it against you if you do not want to read my review. I will try not to offend anyone but we all know that isn't always possible. If I at any time offend you, please know I did not intentionally mean to do it. I do not tolerate people making fun of others with mental illnesses, and just in general making fun of others. With that being said, please enjoy.
Bea doesn't look like a girl with problems on the outside. When Beck comes into her life she knows immediately that he is in her boat, more or less. He's strong, sweet, and he understands her like no one else, and he makes her feel almost normal. Maybe falling in love could be possible again because of Beck. Unfortunately Bea can't stop thinking about another guy. He doesn't know she exists, but Bea thinks he walks on water. She knows more than she should about this other guy, she watches him a lot. Bea even has a notebook full of little notes about him, anyone who knows about the journal thinks she's obsessed. Bea thinks she has it all under control, it's her choice, right? No. It's a compulsion, it is getting worse, and Bea is about to burst.
All of my previous reviews have some sort of supernatural part to it. OCD Love Story is 100% humans from the first page to the last and it was refreshing. I love the names for the main characters, especially Bea and Beck. It reminded me of Darren Shan's Demonata book Bec. Both have the two main characters names start with B. I liked that though this subject is taboo for some and Haydu wrote about it anyways. I don't feel as though she played anything up or down, because each individual is different. I like that for Bea one on one and group therapy didn't help until Dr. Pat knew what was going on fully. Bea is a beautiful character and it goes to show that sometimes even the beautiful are "flawed" in a way, but can get better when taking the correct path. I also like that Haydu indirectly shows that everything you do will come back to you in some way or another, be it good or bad. Like for Bea, not opening up in her group sessions prolongs her getting better and makes the compulsions and other things that she does worse. With everything that I did like there was almost an equal amount of things I wasn't too keen on.
Soon after the story starts you know that Bea has a mental illness that was brought on by a really tough time in her life. Being young and going through and seeing the things she did, made her little OCD skyrocket. That being said when she starts seeing Dr. Pat, she knows Bea's past and knows that she has a tendency to stalk. People should have been on the look out for the signs that she might be doing it again. With any illness be it mental, or addiction, people have a chance to relapse. Catching these relapses can save someone. Another thing is that, as much as I enjoyed reading OCD Love Story I found myself easily distracted, which made getting through this book a little longer. Bea's backstory is strewn throughout the book and you get it in snippets, but for me it wasn't enough. I kept getting confused about who was who is Bea's past and what exactly they did to trigger Bea's OCD, and anxiety. Now that isn't because this is a human based story, I have read plenty of human based stories and had no problems. Like people, books are different from one another unless specified. One other thing is that Bea didn't start to get better until the very end.
Bea and Beck are a cute couple and they work together to get better. Don't get me wrong with the things that I complained about, this book was a good book. I don't know if I would necessarily go out and buy it, but if I were to stumble upon it and it was at a cheap price I might grab it up. I would reread this book, just at a much later date. I recommend this book to those who want to read something that is more down to earth, it is a "teen" book, there is a little bit of sexual talk but nothing super serious.
Rating: lower 4 out of 5.
Page Count: 341 pages (hardcover)
Price: $17.99
Next Book: Hell's Horizon by Darren Shan
Stay tuned for my ~late~ May book haul! Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed!
~Jade
Bea doesn't look like a girl with problems on the outside. When Beck comes into her life she knows immediately that he is in her boat, more or less. He's strong, sweet, and he understands her like no one else, and he makes her feel almost normal. Maybe falling in love could be possible again because of Beck. Unfortunately Bea can't stop thinking about another guy. He doesn't know she exists, but Bea thinks he walks on water. She knows more than she should about this other guy, she watches him a lot. Bea even has a notebook full of little notes about him, anyone who knows about the journal thinks she's obsessed. Bea thinks she has it all under control, it's her choice, right? No. It's a compulsion, it is getting worse, and Bea is about to burst.
All of my previous reviews have some sort of supernatural part to it. OCD Love Story is 100% humans from the first page to the last and it was refreshing. I love the names for the main characters, especially Bea and Beck. It reminded me of Darren Shan's Demonata book Bec. Both have the two main characters names start with B. I liked that though this subject is taboo for some and Haydu wrote about it anyways. I don't feel as though she played anything up or down, because each individual is different. I like that for Bea one on one and group therapy didn't help until Dr. Pat knew what was going on fully. Bea is a beautiful character and it goes to show that sometimes even the beautiful are "flawed" in a way, but can get better when taking the correct path. I also like that Haydu indirectly shows that everything you do will come back to you in some way or another, be it good or bad. Like for Bea, not opening up in her group sessions prolongs her getting better and makes the compulsions and other things that she does worse. With everything that I did like there was almost an equal amount of things I wasn't too keen on.
Soon after the story starts you know that Bea has a mental illness that was brought on by a really tough time in her life. Being young and going through and seeing the things she did, made her little OCD skyrocket. That being said when she starts seeing Dr. Pat, she knows Bea's past and knows that she has a tendency to stalk. People should have been on the look out for the signs that she might be doing it again. With any illness be it mental, or addiction, people have a chance to relapse. Catching these relapses can save someone. Another thing is that, as much as I enjoyed reading OCD Love Story I found myself easily distracted, which made getting through this book a little longer. Bea's backstory is strewn throughout the book and you get it in snippets, but for me it wasn't enough. I kept getting confused about who was who is Bea's past and what exactly they did to trigger Bea's OCD, and anxiety. Now that isn't because this is a human based story, I have read plenty of human based stories and had no problems. Like people, books are different from one another unless specified. One other thing is that Bea didn't start to get better until the very end.
Bea and Beck are a cute couple and they work together to get better. Don't get me wrong with the things that I complained about, this book was a good book. I don't know if I would necessarily go out and buy it, but if I were to stumble upon it and it was at a cheap price I might grab it up. I would reread this book, just at a much later date. I recommend this book to those who want to read something that is more down to earth, it is a "teen" book, there is a little bit of sexual talk but nothing super serious.
Rating: lower 4 out of 5.
Page Count: 341 pages (hardcover)
Price: $17.99
Next Book: Hell's Horizon by Darren Shan
Stay tuned for my ~late~ May book haul! Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed!
~Jade
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