Waiting on Wednesday: Reached

Author: Ally Condie
Publisher: Dutton Childrens Books
Release Date: November 13, 2012
Synopsis:
Cassia faces the ultimate choices in the long-anticipated conclusion to the New York Times bestselling Matched Trilogy

After leaving Society and desperately searching for the Rising—and each other—Cassia and Ky have found what they were looking for, but at the cost of losing each other yet again: Cassia has been assigned to work for the Rising from within Society, while Ky has been stationed outside its borders. But nothing is as predicted, and all too soon the veil lifts and things shift once again.

In this gripping conclusion to the #1 New York Times bestselling Matched Trilogy, Cassia will reconcile the difficulties of challenging a life too confining, seeking a freedom she never dreamed possible, and honoring a love she cannot live without.

** I have really fallen for this series and the characters throughout my journey reading this book. I am highly anticipating the release of Reached. Sadly i have only reviewed Matched and not Crossed (even though I've read both). So check out my review! :)

**Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event is hosted by Breaking the Spine to share upcomming releases we are eagerly waiting for :)

Deja Vu Thursday #6

Deja Vu Thursday is a weekly post that I am starting on my blog. It focuses on similar book covers, may it be design, cover model, etc. It's like seeing doubles! And, let's face it, midweek, everyone feels like they are loosing their mind anyway.

image link

The first picture is the actual book cover of "Chosen" the third book in the HoN series. The one to the right is what's called a stock photo. Cover artists buy the photo's and their rights to it from either individual photographers or companies like ShutterStock. When they have the photo's they usually use software like PhotoShop to manipulate the photo in a way they (the cover artist) sees suitable for the cover and the image they have in mind. In this particular cover, they replaced the cross for the half-moon symbol of Nix that creates the necklace of the Dark Daughters in the book.

Chosen by P.C. and Kristin Cast

Dark forces are at work at the House of Night and fledgling vampyre Zoey Redbird’s adventures at the school take a mysterious turn. Those who appear to be friends are turning out to be enemies. And oddly enough, sworn enemies are also turning into friends. So begins the gripping third installment of this “highly addictive series” (Romantic Times), in which Zoey’s mettle will be tested like never before. Her best friend, Stevie Rae, is undead and struggling to maintain a grip on her humanity. Zoey doesn’t have a clue how to help her, but she does know that anything she and Stevie Rae discover must be kept secret from everyone else at the House of Night, where trust has become a rare commodity. Speaking of rare: Zoey finds herself in the very unexpected and rare position of having three boyfriends. Mix a little bloodlust into the equation and the situation has the potential to spell social disaster. Just when it seems things couldn’t get any tougher, vampyres start turning up dead. Really dead. It looks like the People of Faith, and Zoey’s horrid step-father in particular, are tired of living side-by-side with vampyres. But, as Zoey and her friends so often find out, how things appear rarely reflects the truth…

Waiting on Wednesday: Enshadowed

Author: Kelly Creagh
Publisher: Atheneum
Release Date: August 28, 2012
Synopsis:

Varen Nethers is trapped in a perilous dream world -- a treacherous and desolate realm where the terrifying stories of Edgar Allan Poe come to life. Isobel Lanley, plagued by strange visions and haunted by the nightmares of Varen's creation, is the only one who can save him.
Isobel knows that her only hope lies within a Baltimore cemetery. There, in the early morning hours of Edgar Allan Poe's birthday, a mysterious stranger known as the "Poe Toaster" will make his annual homage at the legendary poet's grave.
Only the Poe Toaster holds the key to the way between worlds. But even greater dangers lie ahead for Isobel. An ancient evil, draped in veils of white, is watching, challenging her for Varen's affections. When Isobel finally finds Varen, he is no longer the quiet and brooding boy who once captivated her, but a dark force, powerful and malevolent

**I read and reviewed the first book to this series, Nevermore. You can find it here.

**Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event is hosted by Breaking the Spine to share upcomming releases we are eagerly waiting for :)

Wings of the Wicked by Courtney Allison Moulton

Title: Wings of the Wicked (Angelfire #2)
Author: Courtney Allison Moulton (her website)
Release Date: February 1, 2012
Synopsis:

Life as the Preliator is harder than Ellie ever imagined.
Balancing real life with the responsibility of being Heaven’s warrior is a challenge for Ellie. Her relationship with Will has become all business, though they both long for each other. And now that the secret of who she really is has come out, so have Hell’s strongest reapers. Grown bold and more vicious, the demonic threaten her in the light of day and stalk her in the night.
She’s been warned.
Cadan, a demonic reaper, comes to her with information about Bastian’s new plan to destroy Ellie’s soul and use an ancient relic to wake all the souls of the damned and unleash them upon humanity. As she fights to stay ahead of Bastian’s schemes , the revelations about those closest to her awaken a dark power within Ellie that threatens to destroy everything—including herself.
She’ll be betrayed.
Treachery comes even from those whom she loves, and Ellie is broken by the deaths of those who stood beside her in this Heavenly war. Still, she must find a way to save the world, herself, and her love for Will. If she fails, there will be hell to pay.

Review:

This series has rapidly made it's way to one of my top favorites (even though I have a bazillion other "top favorites", but aside from that I'm serious). Wings of the Wicked was an extraordinary, action-packed sequel to Anglefire which , as you may know from my review of the book, was superb. But, honestly, I think I've grown to like the sequel more than the original.
To me, Wings of the Wicked had more room to grow then Angelfire. In the sequel, the reader didn't have to wait till the end of the book to discover that Ellie was an angel in human form because we've already discovered that in the first book. The author was able to build the book in that different way that most sequels seem to obtain. This book introduced more reapers, good or bad, you can find out. There was probably twice as much action, and a million times more Will (okay, maybe not a million time more, he just dominated every page he was on.)
Speaking of characters.
Ellie is as kicka## as usuall (excuse my hash tags ;). There isn't much more to say about Ellie than what I've already covered in my  Angelfire review and I also don't want to reveal too much. I will say, though, that she has some seriously strong and slightly scary (depending on which one) powers that start to show themselves. Oh, also, Ellie's character has grown a lot in this books. She has a firmer grasp on herself (even if that hold is still kind of loose), who she is, and what she has to do to keep the world safe. Her only issue is the fact that she till wants the semblance of a normal life.
Will....*insert enamored smile*... does anyone else notice that a lot of the amazing demon hunters are nameds Will? (Will Herondale, this Will, and I'm positive that there is another that I forgot...). Anyway, Will isn't as tense with Ellie now that she remembers who she is, but he's still just as protective and amazing (translate: hot) as he has always been. Oh! I just remembered another Will... Will from Firelight by Sophie Jordan (he's a dragon hunter). Anyway, Ellie's Will hasn't changed too much from the last book but he has become acustomed to hiding particular parts of his past from Ellie (and her name is Ava).
It took me a while to actually like Ava, she seemed so I-art-better-than-thou or however you wanna say it. But I have to admit that her claws are pretty cool when they enlongate...you know, I bet she started the record for longest nails... Back on topic, she has her flaws and her stone face (pun intended) she uses to hide her feelings. And honestly, she grows on me throughout the book and she seems like the kind of person you don't want on the other team, she's better on your side.
For some reason, I see Marcus as the best friend/ big brother of Ellie. They clash at points and bicker but a lot of times they seem to be fine. Also, of what Ellie remembers and briefed the reader about, they seemed to have a lot of fun in her past lives. Marcus can be cocky at times and seemingly reckless and like the I-do-what-I-want kind of person (reaper?) but that's what makes Marcus himself. And despite all of the traits from the list I just named, he is also very loyal and a good asset to have when fighting.
After his betrayal of Bastian in Angelfire, Cadan seemed to really turn around for the better. He defies Will's claim that the demonic reapers can turn good. Cadan is also very confusing at times, especially where Ellie is concerned. anyway, like Ava, he has grown on me.
Speaking of demonic reapers, there is a whole bunch of new ones introduced and they are far worse than the ones who appeared in Angelfire. Most are nightmare worthy and I can honestly say no one in their right minds would want to go face to face with any of them.
In my review of Angelfire, I claimed that the defeat of the Enshi was a little "too easy" and the answer was "too obvious" and I still sort of think that because, how hard is it, really, to  drag something out of the ocean? Give someone (a demonic reaper) the motivation (the urge to destroy the Prelator) to get it back, they will find the means to do so. And who's to say there aren't any fish-like reapers out there? It's thoughts like that that make me a wary to go to the pacific again...
Anyway, while we are on the topic or endings... this book had a horrible ending. And that's not the  "this book was horribly written so i hate it" kind of horrible. Nope, it's the "Oh my gosh! What the heck! (and a whole bunch of other IM letters) That's horrible for that character because they are so awesome and don't deserve that" horrible. So basically, it's the cliff hanger that has you throwing the book in the air and getting glared at in the middle of class for not doing your math homework because your reading instead...
Luckily for me I was in my room and not in class.
Anyway, I'm going to be honest with all of you and admit that I teared up, cried, and almost-cried at so many parts in this book, it's ridiculous. I've fallen in love with these characters though out the course of the series so it's horrible to see (read) all of this bad stuff happening to them.
To end this review, I'll say that Wings of the Wicked could not have been a better addition to Angelfire and for that alone it get's an A from this reviewer. The justification of my rating is endless so i'll start by saying, it's in the book and my review and, despite the emotional roller coaster the book throws us dedicated readers onto, this book was nothing less than magnificent. Severely recommended for anyone who read the first book, to paranormal lovers, anyone who's read a book with a demon slayer named Will, and for YA fiction/fantasy lovers of all ages.

Waiting on Wednesday: City of Lost Souls

Author: Cassandra Clare
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry
Release date: May 8, 2012
Synopsis:

The demon Lilith has been destroyed and Jace has been freed from her captivity. But when the Shadowhunters arrive to rescue him, they find only blood and broken glass. Not only is the boy Clary loves missing–but so is the boy she hates, Sebastian, the son of her father Valentine: a son determined to succeed where their father failed, and bring the Shadowhunters to their knees.

No magic the Clave can summon can locate either boy, but Jace cannot stay away—not from Clary. When they meet again Clary discovers the horror Lilith’s dying magic has wrought—Jace is no longer the boy she loved. He and Sebastian are now bound to each other, and Jace has become what he most feared: a true servant of Valentine’s evil. The Clave is determined to destroy Sebastian, but there is no way to harm one boy without destroying the other. Will the Shadowhunters hesitate to kill one of their own?

Only a small band of Clary and Jace’s friends and family believe that Jace can still be saved — and that the fate of the Shadowhunters’ future may hinge on that salvation. They must defy the Clave and strike out on their own. Alec, Magnus, Simon and Isabelle must work together to save Jace: bargaining with the sinister Faerie Queen, contemplating deals with demons, and turning at last to the Iron Sisters, the reclusive and merciless weapons makers for the Shadowhunters, who tell them that no weapon on this earth can sever the bond between Sebastian and Jace. Their only chance of cutting Jace free is to challenge Heaven and Hell — a risk that could claim any, or all, of their lives.

And they must do it without Clary. For Clary has gone into the heart of darkness, to play a dangerous game utterly alone. The price of losing the game is not just her own life, but Jace’s soul. She’s willing to do anything for Jace, but can she even still trust him? Or is he truly lost? What price is too high to pay, even for love?

** I've read this entire series multiple times and I've been waiting for this one :) ever since i finished City of Fallen Angels... If you haven't read the series yet, what are you waiting for?! This author is pure genius and creativity personified! 

**Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event is hosted by Breaking the Spine to share upcomming releases we are eagerly waiting for :)

Scarlet by A.C. Gaughen

Title: Scarlet
Author: A.C. Gaughen (her website)
Release Date: February 14, 2012
Synopsis:

Many readers know the tale of Robin Hood, but they will be swept away by this new version full of action, secrets, and romance.

Posing as one of Robin Hood’s thieves to avoid the wrath of the evil Thief Taker Lord Gisbourne, Scarlet has kept her identity secret from all of Nottinghamshire. Only the Hood and his band know the truth: the agile thief posing as a whip of a boy is actually a fearless young woman with a secret past. Helping the people of Nottingham outwit the corrupt Sheriff of Nottingham could cost Scarlet her life as Gisbourne closes in.

It’s only her fierce loyalty to Robin—whose quick smiles and sharp temper have the rare power to unsettle her—that keeps Scarlet going and makes this fight worth dying for.





Review:

I'll start by saying how much I LOVE the story of Robin Hood. He's a hero if I've ever read of one, not even Spiderman can succeed him. Now that that is settled....
This story is amazing! It's a seriously awesome retelling of the Robin Hood story in Will Scarlet's POV. What's so amazing about that? You may ask? Well, first off knife throwers are deadly and seem to have a liking for the mysterious rolls in books and/or movies, and secondly, Will is a she. Don't worry, you read me correctly, Will Scarlet is a girl dressed in a disguise that even fooled Robin at first. Girls can kick butt, too :) But, before I get into detail about Scarlet, I have a few things to say.
The setting of this book is in the times of the Crusades for the holly lands in Europe (thank you world history) and King Richard I. Now, I'm going to give you guys a few details i learned from the "Authors Note" in the back of the book. In this time Prince John really did tax the people of the kingdom horribly to pay for the Kings ransom when he was captured in the Crusades. The whole thing, apparently happened in England, and, in this story, it's mainly focused around Nottinghamshire. Also, historians believe that Robin Hood really was an outlaw in the 12th century.
Something I really like about this book is the fact that Scarlet's past isn't immediately put out for the reader to see. The author gives then a little bit at a time and some clues that leave you guessing and wondering what made her the way she is.
Now, I'll move on to the characters.
Will Scarlet is your regular, moody, knife throwing thieve...or, at least, that's what she wants you to think. Scarlet dresses as a boy for multiple reasons that are relieved throughout the book. I like to think that the main reason has to do with the fact that it would be nearly impossible to run, kick and fight in a dress. Scar is very good at hiding her emotions so it would be easy to think that she is fearless. But that's far from true. She is just is better at hiding it more than most people. Or just hiding from fear in general. Throughout the book, I've come to admire Scar as a character because of all the traits she possesses, the good and bad. She can be almost exactly like Robin (see below) but also very different. She, like him, have gone through losses in her past that left her with scars that aren't as visible with the one on her face. Scar is truly one of the strongest characters in this book and there's so much about her that is revealed in the book and not in my blog.
Robin Hood is a born leader. He knows responsibility and sacrifice and loss and that's what makes him a strong leader. I've had a crush on Robin Hood my entire life because of what he does for the his people and just because he's, well, him. So this book has a huge appeal ;) Anyway, Rob's characteristics are very...mixed. He has his moments were he can be very deep or blunt. He can be the nicest, most calm guy in the world or he can be angry. He can be fierce or concerned. And above all, hero-complex prone. Bottom line is that Rob has many sides that are revealed in the book. True, he's moodier that most retellings but he's also only 21 and in a teen book and he has to deal with Scarlet... so he has the right.
John Little is a big guy. Muscles wise and in height. He throws punches that make you cringe just thinking about how horrid it would be on the receiving side. He is, as Scarlet puts it, a charmer. You know, the kind of guy that like to toy with girls but not to be mean, just for some fun. Actually, he's a very nice guy, always being the protective big brother and using his muscle and heart to look after others. In my opinion, that's what makes him such a great addition to the band.
Much has had a hard life, like most of the band, his hardship started with his family in need of food and ending with his hand being cut off from stealing. I see Much as shy and sometimes not very confident of himself. He  has a habit of taking hard comments and critisism hard. Even then, he has a way of charming people in an entirely different way than John. Some people just feel bad about his hand and other just like him because he's a nice kid. Either way, Much is a loyal addition to the group dispite his handicap.
The Sheriff is a bad man from afar and crueler up close. Through the book you don't see to much of him, he's just like a presence that you know is in the book...at least, until the end. He like to think that the he cares for the people of the villages he oversees when the truth is that all he cares for is the money that they are forced to give him. Typical, money hungry villain... and not the only bad guy in this book.
But I won't say much about the other "bad guy" so moving on.
I like how in this book, the author incorporated the narrator's (Scarlet's) way of speaking. She has horrible grammar (Ex: I were fearless)  but it matches her as a character and the way she speaks. I will admit though, the first time I read this book (I'm on the third now since I got it last Friday) I felt like cringing a bit. Luckily, so many other things (Characters, plot, action, awesomeness, etc.) superseded that. Actually, I've been so enraptured by this book that I've had to catch myself and try not to speak like Scar. Her expressions are pretty catchy and so is the accent I imagine her having with her words.
Now, on to the ending...
I honestly love-hate the ending.Love because of obvious romantic reasons that nearly had me saying "Awwwww!" every second. Hate because of the fate of a certain character that is not very liked (by "not very liked" I mean "extremely detested"). But you all can read the book and find out more that certain someone's fate.
I'm highly anticipating a sequel and I'm crossing my fingers hoping that it will happen because I think that the book has so much to grow off of. It has so many things that seem to end with loose ties that i want to see tied up and not hanging...so basically I really want to see a sequel. Okay, maybe i just really want more Robin but that's not a crime...it just have to dodge Scar's knives.
I realized, about two days ago, that this book has to be one of my new top favorites. I've been telling anyone who will listen about the things that go on in the book until they are only pretending to listen. I even gave the book to one of my friends to read and she came back with it smiling and saying she really liked it and how much some parts shocked her. We had a ten minuet discussion on the middle of English class.
I could co on for days so I'll stop myself by saying that this books broke my rating scale with it's incredibleness (it's a word now) so i'll have to go with the closets rating on my scale... an A+ for everything I wrote in this blog and all the little things I didn't reveal in my blog due to spoilers or lack of room. I highly recommend this book for any and all Robin Hood fans, fans of books where the girl is a bad A** who isn't always running and hiding and being saved, books that just plain rule and basically if you enjoy YA.

Dead Rules by Randy Russell

Title: Dead Rules
Author: Randy Russell
Release Date:
Synopsis:

When high school junior Jana Webster dies suddenly, she finds herself in Dead School, where she faces choices that will determine when she, a Riser, will move on, but she strives to become a Slider instead, for the chance to be with the love of her life--even if it means killing him.

Love wasn't all red paper valentines and candy hearts. Sometimes love was despair. and sometimes love was wrong. Jana loved Michael enough to kill him for it. Jana loved Michael to death.

Review:

Dead Rules has sort of a psychological thriller vibe to it. Yeah, not my usual daily read but not any less entertaining.
When the book first started, I was confused. I didn't realize that Jana was in the Dead School, I honestly didn't think that she would be the one to die either. Sometimes I don't read the back off a book because I want to be surprised when something happens. For this books, though, i did read the back and what I discovered was just a cryptic little paragraph thing. "Love wasn't all red paper valentines and candy hearts. Sometimes love was despair. and sometimes love was wrong. Jana loved Michael enough to kill him for it. Jana loved Michael to death." I thought Jana going to go psychotic and murder her boyfriend. Turns out that I was wrong.
Anyway, throughout the book the author introduces a bunch or characters from the Dead School and with each new character, a story of their death follows. in a way all the deaths seem sort of Final Destination with the spontaneous way they happen. One minuet you're riding a motorcycle, the next, half your face is smeared across fifty feet of asphalt... What really sucks for the people of the dead school is that however they look like when they die is how they look for the rest of their afterlife.
Well...onto slightly less morbid topics...
Jana is the main character of the book. Her death the product of a practical joke gone awry, but that's all the detail that I'll give you about her death. (You guys can find out more if you read it and if you have read it, then you know what I'm talking about.) To me, Jana seems slightly disturbed, mentally speaking. Something about her seems off when the author focuses around her thoughts. She has this insane idea that because she died, her boyfriend can't live on with out her. The very thought has her convinced that she has to kill him so they can live together at the dead school. Yeah...insane with a capitol "i".
Mars isn't your typical bad boy... at least not totally. Most of the students at the dead school see him as incorrigible and all around bad news because he is a Slider. Sliders are people who died while doing something bad and they are closer to earth then the Risers (people who died that aren't Grays, Virgins, or Sliders). Anyway, what some of the other students don't see is that he is more than just another rule-breaking Slider, but I'll let you see what I'm talking about by reading the book... overall, Mars is smart and determined. He has a habit of thinking about others since his death and that had really changed him and made him drawn him and Jana sort of closer... no matter how in denial she can be.
Avra is the kind of person that is 100% by the book. She's very disapproving of the Sliders and Jana's association with them throughout the book. She can sometimes get annoying with her "Better-not" attitude and way of trying to tell Jana what to do but she's just trying to look out for others.
Wyatt is Mars's best friend in his afterlife and it's easy to see why. With only half a face and a bad limp, he can still be funny and occasionally upbeat despite his grotesque looks.
The last character i'll talk about is....wait for it....Michael. He's still alive, don't worry. Anyway, I'm not going to go into a lot of detail because of later events. Michael seemed like a good boyfriend, from Jana's memories. Loving, loyal and all that good stuff. They seemed perfect together and they were widely known around there school and town as Webster and Haynes. It makes Jana's death all the more tragic.
As much as I liked the book, the Dead School didn't make a lot of sense. I mean, I get that it was is was designed to make dead kids to feel "normal" but where do all the dead people go who are to old for the high school scene. Not all of them can be teachers...right?
Moving on from that short rant. The ending for this book was as good as an ending can get. It ended in a way that gives the reader a sense of closure without there needing to be a sequel. But, that doesn't mean a sequel wouldn't be welcome. There's a lot of things that would be great to expand on (Mars and Jana in particular).
Well, on that note, I'll end this review by saying this book deserves the rating of B- because despite the few things I may not have liked about it, there were a lot of good things, too. The whole story was like mystery mixed with a psychological thriller mixed with a horror. Recommended for anyone who thought this book was interesting either because of my review or the synopsis, anyone who likes a good ghost story/ romance and/or someone who, like me, is/was looking for something different to read.