Nichole
Not much to say about this cover, it is pretty bleh for me. But as for the story, it was great. I loved the characters, the world, and the setting. I don't know how Garcia and Stohl split up the writing, but I personally couldn't tell a difference in style.
Having a YA book where the boy is the main character is a rarity, especially in the YA romance area. So I was pleasantly surprised when I realized that we would get to learn all about Casters and Gatlin from Ethan's point of view. I loved that the book was about him finding his way in his messed up town with Lena. It wasn't the typical damsel in distress that is seen in a lot of YA novels.
But as for the actually story, the entire novel counts down to Lena's 16th birthday when her claiming will happen. This will basically decide whether she will be Dark or Light. But there is a curse on her family that doesn't allow the children to choose. The countdown is a major theme in the book. And along the way we learn more about Casters and their histories.
This book contains a lot of mystery and twists that the reader is just thrown into and has to decipher as they come about. I really loved learning about all the different connections between Lena's family and Ethan's “family”. They basically all band together to be different from the rest of Gatlin.
Speaking of Gatlin, I love this town. Not in a way where I would ever want to live there, but in the way that it is freaking awesome how ridiculous there are. At the same time though, it is oddly realistic of small towns. Everyone is in everyone's business and there are those that are outcasts in the town. Small towns don't let you stick out and be different like the Ravenwoods and Wates tend to be. I loved how ridiculous some of the parents were with respect to Lena and her uncle. Some of the lengths they went to, to get her to leave town were absurd.
Overall, I really enjoyed this book and it definitely lived up to the hype surrounding it. Now it isn't amazing, but it is decent novel that takes a different approach then the paranormal YA novels and I have to appreciate that.
And I will be reading the rest of the series, because I have heard they get better.
I was given this book by BloggingForBooks in exchange for an honest review.
So first let me say gorgeous cover. As I'm sure you know by now, I'm a huge fan of awesome covers, they always lead me towards reading a book. This one is awesome with the city below the Divinity.
As for the book, we start off right away in the middle of a trial in a court room. I love how it started like this and introduced many of the characters through the court rather than other traditional ways. And then right away the purpose of the book is shown, a murder and the Divinities.
This is one of those books that I would never be able to talk about it out loud for fear of mispronouncing everything. The story itself takes place in Bulikov with characters like Mulaghesh and Jindash, Pangyui, etc. But regardless, the characters are still charming and intriguing. The story is a twist on the typical murder mystery genre since it also takes place in a fantasy world. The book is more than just a murder mystery, it involves many secret histories, a dystopian like aspect, plus magic (or miracles as they are called in the book).
There is a lot of world explaining and building that has to happen in this book since it is a fantasy setting, but Bennett does a good job of slowing explaining the setting and how everything came to be the way it is in Bulikov, especially the snippets at the beginning of every chapter. The world building in and of itself is a massive undertaking. There is the overarching government of Saypur and then the government within the cities like Bulikov. There is also the presence and then disappearance and killing of the Divinities. Plus the War that lead to the world being the way it is. There was a lot to build in this book, but it is done in a fantastic way that is not boring.
The ending of this book definitely leaves it open for future books, but at the same time closes this chapter in Bulikov's history.
And while I have said this book is a fantasy, it is so much more than that. This book encompasses many different genres and is a great read. The imagery within the book is amazing, just the way everything is described is perfect. I would definitely recommend it to people looking for a unique take on a fantasy novel or people who enjoy mysteries since this has aspects of that as well.
Matt has a terrible life by anyone's standards. He has parents who were only together because of an accidental pregnancy who are constantly fighting and drinking excessively, a recently deceased brother, a relationship that is falling apart, depression, anxiety, etc. Reading this book was hard for me because of how horrible Matt was treated by those around him. Plus, for the most part he just dealt with it which was just sadder to me.
Throughout the book you learn that Matt's brother was gay and committed suicide. This action basally leads Matt to lose his faith and no longer believe in a God. He writes this essay all about why God is not real that you get snippets of within the story. I really enjoyed those snippets because it gave the reader a better understanding of Matt and what was going on with him.
This is an Ellen Hopkins book, so it is written in verse. It is really different to read a book in verse, it is not something I have ever done before and it took some time to get used to it. But once I did it was not bad. The only thing that really bothered me was the lack of true dialogue. It was weird reading a book with such short sentences and pages.
Overall, this book dealt with some typically taboo themes and I really appreciated that Hopkins was tackling them. I enjoyed experiencing, through Matt's eyes, how he dealt with all the negativity in his life and how he was able to come to terms with everything.
First, let me just say how amazing this cover is. I love the contrast between Cara's Earth and Aelyx's L'eihr. As for the actual book, it was a fun quirky read that was really enjoyable. There were some flaws in the story, but I appreciated the world development.
Landers clearly spent a lot of time flushing out the L'eihr society and culture and I was fascinated by how they ran their society. Learning about them through Cara learning was enjoyable. I also really enjoyed the exchange program aspect of this book, it was an interesting way to bring the species together.
I also loved Aelyx's reactions to different human things, especially the food. There were so many witty responses and comments that he made. I really appreciated the humor aspect of this novel. I also really liked the various snippets from Cara's blog and really wished there had been more of them.
But I have to say there was the stereotypical, we cannot stand each other, then gasp we're in love. While that was obviously present in this novel, it did not bother me as much as I expected. The romance did seem rushed, but there was a definite friendship before it became love
I felt like the ending was a little rushed as well as the “solution” seeming to easy to achieve, but I'm sure the “solution” will not be as simple as it seems. The ending will definitely make for an interesting sequel that is for sure.
Overall, this was a solid book that I couldn't put down. While it may not be amazing, its quirkiness definitely added to its appeal.
This series just keeps getting better and better. Celaena was broken for a lot of this book, but Rowan is there to ground her. I loved all the background we got on Celaena's childhood. Plus the training sessions with Rowan were awesome!
I loved the alternating perspectives between Celaena and Rowan's story, Dorian and Chaol, and Manon and the witches. It let us know what was going on beyond what Celaena was experiencing. I'm not really sure what the purpose of Manon's story was/is, but I trust that it will become apparent in the next book.
Overall this book was everything I wanted and now I need the next one.
It was a good conclusion to the series. It was as I had come to expect from Paolini. But now I'm sad that I will never get to read this series again for the first time.
As a fan of the series, the ending was okay. While it fit with the series as a whole, there are some things I wish didn't happen or had happened differently. However, I understand why they did end the way they did.
4.5/5 Stars
So Assassin Nuns! What more could you ask for! This book piqued my interest purely because of said nuns. And yes they are nuns devout to Death, but it is a convent nonetheless that trains young girls to be assassins.
There is obvious female power and strength in this book with the convent being full of strong female characters. At the beginning of the book, we learn that Ismae has been treated horribly by both her parents and her husband. However, this does not stop her from escaping with the help of a priest who then takes her to Saint Mortain.
One issue I have with the book is Ismae's immediate acceptance of her fate. She automatically trusts the nuns and believes in their cause after she survives the poisoning. She even convinces another girl to stay on her first night. Another is that after chapter 5 you jump three years ahead. While I understand that this was done to move the book along, it would have been nice to see aspects of her training.
The main chunk of this story is Ismae on her final test before taking her vows to Mortain. This test involves time with Duval. Duval is an interesting character who is clearly hiding things throughout the story but he still treats Ismae with respect and knows what she is capable of.
The interactions between Ismae and Duval throughout the book are fantastic. They are both respect each other and each other's opinions on important matters. I love their various interactions and plotting. Together they are able to solve the mystery and find the traitor.
Overall, I really enjoyed this book. The world of Assassin Nuns is enticing and magical. Cannot wait to read more in the series.
Ember is an interesting character. The world she lives in is so messed up and backwards that it amazes me that she was able to survive for so long before the events of this book transpired.
When her mother and her are taken and it makes no sense, she is always thinking about her plan to get back to her mother and be free. It is all she thinks about. Chase and her band together to get to safety with a lot of different obstacles along the way. The government, other civilians, and even each other cause problems throughout the story.
I love the flashbacks in the book about Chase and Ember's relationship before everything changed. They really shed some light on what happened between them before he became a solider. But at the same time, these two characters are beyond frustrating. As soon as they start patching things up, one of them has to go and destroy all that progress. They can just be so stupid sometimes.
Overall, this was an action packed book with many twists and turns along the way. I really enjoyed the backwards world that Simmons has created.
This definitely lived up to all the hype for me. I love Rick Yancey's world and storytelling. I enjoyed learning about the aliens and what was going on in the world from both Cassie and Ben's perspectives. There are a lot of intricacies related to the aliens and what they are trying to do.
And while I knew eventually Cassie, Evan, Sammy, and Ben would meet up. I like the way that it actually comes about. I also appreciated how we didn't found out who was human vs. Other until towards the end, and even then, we don't know everything.
That was amazing! I loved all the science stuff plus the time travel. Gwen and Gideon are quite the pair. And Gwen is a hilarious narrator and I love all the different things she does throughout the book.
While there wasn't much plot in this book, since it was all about Gwen finding out about her powers and setting up the main conflict in the series, I still really enjoyed the book.
And that was such a cruel cliffhanger both between Gwen and Gideon and the epilogue with Lucy and Paul's conversation.
This book was awesome. While some aspects of the relationships really made my head hurt, it was still a great sequel. I wouldn't say it was better than the first book, just because Of Poseidon did an amazing job introducing the Syrena world and all its wonders.
The only complaint I have is sadness over the end. It was heart breaking to read and then deal with the characters reactions to what happened. While I think this book ended really well in terms of tying up loose ends, I do plan to read the third book.
This was a really good book. The forbidden romance was a large part of it, but it wasn't all that. And the end, that was crazy. I was really worried about it for a moment before I realized where Richards was going with the story.
I liked the alternating perspectives of Ash and Natalie. It gave the reader more insight into both the world and the story.
This book did not really have much going for it. Other than the interesting Atlantis storyline. It was confusing and the end was rushed.
Ander was creepy. I don't care that it was his job he was basically stalking her. And it really bothered me that Eureka called her mom Diana. I know it was kind of explained, but the reason wasn't sufficient for me.
This book had a good idea behind it, it just was not written in a way I enjoyed.
This book was just okay. There was nothing super special about it. There were parts of the book that seemed forced and different characters' behaviors were not as expected based on characterizations.
I like the idea and the world of this book, I just don't think it was executed well. I may or may not continue the series.
This was a really interesting book. I never thought I would enjoy a book about zombies (or revenants if you want to be specific). Vincent and his “family” were by far the best parts of the book. Each of them had a unique personality that was fun to read.
Plum has such a unique way of writing that really intrigued me. I really enjoyed her prose and dialogue.
Amazing!!! Celaena is such a strong female character. Loved her attitude and strength. Chaol was also an interesting character.
I really enjoyed the different perspectives we go throughout the book. Whether it was Celaena, Chaol, Dorian, Neehemia, or Kaltain's perspective. Cannot wait to read the next book.
First let me just say, that last line was fantastic. It was really powerful. As for the book itself, I struggled at first with the jumping timeline and the different characters. But once I got into the book enough it was not as difficult to keep everything separate.
Now that I have finished the book, I really wish I could visit the Night Circus, it seems like such a magical place. Bailey was by far my favorite character and I loved figuring out how he fit into the circus and the story.
While the challenge between Celia and Marco was confusing at times, it played out nicely and ended in a way I did not expect.
Finally finished this book. While I love the characters (Robin and Strike are a great team), the plot took me forever to get into. I felt like I was constantly forcing myself to read more of the book instead of picking up a different one.
The writing was good, I think the plot was just too slow for my taste. I have the next book and I'll probably read it. I just hope it is easier to read than this one was.