trilogy Archives - On Starships and Dragonwings

5 Stars: Through the Ever Night by Veronica Rossi

May 17, 2013 by Anya 1 Comment

Veronica Rossi’s Through the Ever Night is the second in the Under the Never Sky trilogy and I have to say I think I liked the second book better :D. There will be spoilers for Under the Never Sky, so check out my review of it instead. Under the Never Sky was actually one of the first books I got from the library based on book blogger suggestions, so this trilogy has a special place in my heart ;-). I had some issues with the first book being too romance focused, but Through the Ever Night has completely fixed that problem! Through the Ever Night has strong friendships, heart-breaking adventure, just enough romance to make me smile, but a story beyond just how Aria and Perry feel about each other, haha. I haven’t read the novella about Roar and Liv, and I kind of recommend reading that before Through the Ever Night since I think it would have just upped the feels all the more. But now I get to go read it and get more of these awesome characters :D.
Goodreads | Amazon | LibraryThing

Title: Through the Ever Night
Author: Veronica Rossi
Length: 352 pages
Genre-ish: Dystopia YA
Rating: ★★★★★- amazing sequel, can’t wait for more!

It’s been months since Aria last saw Perry. Months since Perry was named Blood Lord of the Tides, and Aria was charged with an impossible mission. Now, finally, they are about to be reunited. But their reunion is far from perfect. The Tides don’t take kindly to Aria, a former Dweller. And with the worsening Aether storms threatening the tribe’s precarious existence, Aria begins to fear that leaving Perry behind might be the only way to save them both. Threatened by false friends, hidden enemies, and powerful temptations, Aria and Perry wonder,Can their love survive through the ever night? – Goodreads

Strengths:

Based on most of the YA books I’ve read, I’ve been convinced that boys and girls can’t be friends without falling in love. Through the Ever Night fixed this, yey! I was relieved and excited to see a strong friendship between Aria and Roar that didn’t have love triangle overtones (well, except for that one amusing moment with Perry >.>).
The action just keeps heating up in Through the Ever Night. The Aether is getting worse and not even Aria’s former home in the pod is safe. Everyone wants to find safe haven and I was biting my nails waiting to see how far they’d go to find it.
I know I said the romance wasn’t the major focus, and it isn’t, but I actually really like books where the main characters’ relationship is established and a comfy background to stressful plot developments. It’s like what real relationships are ya know?
If you’ve read Under the Never Sky, you already know this, but the writing of Through the Ever Night was fluid and compelling. The world-building is awesome (hope this doesn’t happen to our planet for reals D:). The characters develop and interact and grow together as real people. Also can I be best friends with all of them? I just need to hug Cinder and Willow :D.

Weaknesses:

I had a bit of vertigo when I started Through the Ever Night. I don’t re-read previous books before jumping into a sequel and I’ve never found it to be a problem. However, I felt like I had missed something when I started Through the Ever Night and actually went to make sure the novella wasn’t 1.5 and required to read 2. It’s not, you’ll get it figured out, just keep reading.
Ummm… when is the third book released please? (That’s all I got, I loved Through the Ever Night, sorry!)

Summary:

I like this pattern I’m seeing in second books where the romance becomes a secondary element and we get to really bite into the plot. Everything is being ratcheted up in Through the Ever Night and the friendships and relationships developed in the previous book are necessary for everyone to stay sane from the stress! If you were a little disappointed with the ending of Under the Never Sky, keep going! It’s totally worth it and you will (hopefully) not be disappointed. I wasn’t at least ;-).

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- A

Through the Ever Night by Veronica Rossi

Filed Under: What A Story - Book Reviews Tagged With: dystopia, five stars, heroine, rossi, sci-fi, through the ever night, trilogy

4 Stars: Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins Audiobook

April 30, 2013 by Anya 15 Comments

I’m thrilled to say that I’ve finally caught up and finished Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins! I was able to find a copy of the audiobook on my library Overdrive, woot! It was also excellent timing since it let me start Mockingjay right after finishing Catching Fire, definitely necessary ;-). Mockingjay is a spectacular conclusion to this already spectacular trilogy and a book I’m tempted to listen to again if I find myself low on audiobooks >.>. The narration is amazing for Mockingjay and Catching Fire (probably Hunger Games, too, but I only listened to the last two!). If you haven’t finished this trilogy yet, or want to reread it, I definitely recommend the audiobook! There will also be spoilers for the first two books!

Goodreads | Amazon | LibraryThing

Title: Mockingjay
Author: Suzanne Collins
Length: 9 discs
Genre-ish: Dystopia YA
Rating: ★★★★☆- awesome plot, weird ending

Against all odds, Katniss Everdeen has survived the Hunger Games twice. But now that she’s made it out of the bloody arena alive, she’s still not safe. The Capitol is angry. The Capitol wants revenge. Who do they think should pay for the unrest? Katniss. And what’s worse, President Snow has made it clear that no one else is safe either. Not Katniss’s family, not her friends, not the people of District 12. Powerful and haunting, this thrilling final installment of Suzanne Collins’s groundbreaking The Hunger Games trilogy promises to be one of the most talked about books of the year. – Goodreads

Strengths:

I loved that Mockingjay departed from the “games” plot line that has been in the last two books. Obviously there aren’t any Hunger Games to participate in now >.>.
We finally get to see much more of the real Panem and the Capitol in Mockingjay, beyond what we peeked at in Catching Fire.
The character developments in Mockingjay were heart-wrenching and compelling. We got to know Gale much better since he’s finally able to be around some, and there is just a lot to find out about all the characters that didn’t play major roles in the first two books.
The plot twists! The last third of the book confused me greatly at times for other reasons, but the plot twists made it all better :D.

Weaknesses:

Without going into too much detail, I really didn’t like parts of the ending. The commentary they made on all the preceding events (and deaths) was just horrible. I’ll discuss more at the end ;-).
Some of the character deaths seemed arbitrary and unnecessary. Yes, they pulled at my heartstrings, but was that the only point??
Love triangle drama… :(

Summary:

I had a couple of reservations about the ending of Mockingjay, however I am very glad that I finally finished The Hunger Games trilogy. It was an epic and wild ride. I am now even more excited for the movies to come out so that I can relieve the adventure all over again :D. Anyone who loves epic adventure, compelling writing, and a great dystopian world should definitely finish this trilogy. While you’re at it, try to find a copy of the audio version and let your ears smile, hehe!

SPOILERY DISCUSSION!!!

All right, I just had to briefly discuss that ending. It’s now been about a month unfortunately (I’m getting better at reviewing right away!), so forgive me and gently correct any messed up details. When Coin and the group start going on about having a Hunger Games with the Capitol children, my chin dropped. I seriously got so many icky feelings about what that conversation said about history repeating itself. Then the whole assassination was crazy, and probably for the best given the conversation previously, but also a bit confusing. Anyone have any insight they can lend to make me feel less confused/icky about the rebel leaders? Or do you think that was the whole point?

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- A

Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins

Filed Under: What A Story - Book Reviews Tagged With: collins, discussion, dystopia, four stars, heroine, mockingjay, trilogy, ya

4 Stars: Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare Audiobook

April 26, 2013 by Anya 12 Comments

Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare is part of the prequel series Infernal Devices (prequel to The Mortal Instruments). I actually haven’t had a chance to read all of The Mortal Instruments yet, so this audiobook was a great introduction to the magic of the Shadowhunters :D. I also can report that you don’t need to have read The Mortal Instruments to mightily enjoy Clockwork Angel! Finally, thank you so much to Simon and Schuster Audio for giving me the chance to review Clockwork Angel.

I received Clockwork Angel from the publisher for an honest review.
Goodreads |Amazon | LibraryThing

Title: Clockwork Angel
Author: Cassandra Clare
Length: 13 discs
Genre-ish: Steampunk fantasy YA
Rating: ★★★★☆- awesome magic and narrator

Magic is dangerous—but love is more dangerous still.

When sixteen-year-old Tessa Gray crosses the ocean to find her brother, her destination is England, the time is the reign of Queen Victoria, and something terrifying is waiting for her in London’s Downworld, where vampires, warlocks and other supernatural folk stalk the gaslit streets. Only the Shadowhunters, warriors dedicated to ridding the world of demons, keep order amidst the chaos.

Kidnapped by the mysterious Dark Sisters, members of a secret organization called The Pandemonium Club, Tessa soon learns that she herself is a Downworlder with a rare ability: the power to transform, at will, into another person. What’s more, the Magister, the shadowy figure who runs the Club, will stop at nothing to claim Tessa’s power for his own.

Friendless and hunted, Tessa takes refuge with the Shadowhunters of the London Institute, who swear to find her brother if she will use her power to help them. She soon finds herself fascinated by—and torn between—two best friends: James, whose fragile beauty hides a deadly secret, and blue-eyed Will, whose caustic wit and volatile moods keep everyone in his life at arm’s length . . . everyone, that is, but Tessa. As their search draws them deep into the heart of an arcane plot that threatens to destroy the Shadowhunters, Tessa realizes that she may need to choose between saving her brother and helping her new friends save the world. . . . and that love may be the most dangerous magic of all. – Goodreads

Strengths:

The Shadowhunters have sweet powers based on runes drawn on their body. They also can make their weapons glow (and I assume hurt demons better >.>) with the names of angels :D. I love me a cool magic system!
The narrator of Clockwork Angel was amazing. She did the American accents believably and the English accents equally awesomely. Each character had their own voice, and I could even tell the male character voices apart (impressive for a female narrator in my experience).
There were some great plot twists in Clockwork Angel that I didn’t see coming :D.
Charlotte is one of the Shadowhunters and the main character Tessa had an amusing reaction when she realized that Charlotte dressed as a man when she fought, how shocking!
A lot of the characters that Tessa comes to know are orphans, including Tessa herself. There were lots of wonderful sentiments about making your own family out of the people you love instead of just who is related by blood. It was quite heart-warming.

Weaknesses:

One of the love interests is a complete jerkbutt. I really don’t appreciate a male character being cruel and cold towards the female main character and the female main character continuing to swoon over him. Yes, I realize that you can’t control who you fall in love with, but when guys have been a-holes to me, I haven’t been much inclined to hang around them no matter how pretty.
As the description implies, there is a love triangle brewing which I don’t consider a strength. But past that, Team Jem!
Clockwork Angel ends with a lot of questions unanswered. I would have liked the book to reveal a bit more on its own, or at least give some hints about the magical questions :(. Guess I’ll just have to listen to the next one ;-).

Summary:

While I’m all grumpy about the YA romance element, I otherwise loved Clockwork Angel. The audiobook is fantastic and highly recommended. This is actually the first steampunk type novel that I’ve read/listened to and it was an excellent introduction to the genre; I want more :D. I’m looking forward to finding out more about the magic of the Shadowhunters and Tessa in the rest of the trilogy. I also am eyeing my copy of City of Bones excitedly, haha.

- A

Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare

Filed Under: What A Story - Book Reviews Tagged With: clare, clockwork angel, fantasy, four stars, infernal devices, steampunk, trilogy, ya

4 Stars: Divergent by Veronica Roth Audiobook

April 15, 2013 by Anya 16 Comments

I’m a bit behind the times when it comes to reading Divergent by Veronica Roth. However, I’m finally starting to get caught up with all these awesome 2012 books! It’s funny that I finally got around to Divergent when I saw it on audio from the library. I hadn’t been able to find time to read the physical book I bought a year ago (one of my first book blogger inspired purchases :D), but I have been so short on audiobooks that it worked out perfectly in the form! In any case, I know that some of my opinions on this one are likely to be disagreeable with many fans, but that’s why they are opinions right, hehe.

Goodreads | Amazon | LibraryThing

Title: Divergent
Author: Veronica Roth
Length: 11 hours 11 minutes
Genre-ish: Dystopia YA
Rating: ★★★★☆- invigorating plot, quite sad

In Beatrice Prior’s dystopian Chicago, society is divided into five factions, each dedicated to the cultivation of a particular virtue—Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent). On an appointed day of every year, all sixteen-year-olds must select the faction to which they will devote the rest of their lives. For Beatrice, the decision is between staying with her family and being who she really is—she can’t have both. So she makes a choice that surprises everyone, including herself.

During the highly competitive initiation that follows, Beatrice renames herself Tris and struggles to determine who her friends really are—and where, exactly, a romance with a sometimes fascinating, sometimes infuriating boy fits into the life she’s chosen. But Tris also has a secret, one she’s kept hidden from everyone because she’s been warned it can mean death. And as she discovers a growing conflict that threatens to unravel her seemingly perfect society, she also learns that her secret might help her save those she loves . . . or it might destroy her. – Goodreads

Strengths:

I am a huge fan of slow burn romances, those relationships that you start getting an inkling about in the beginning, but the characters certainly don’t realize it. Divergent did this wonderfully from Tris’ perspective since she starts annoyed and put off, but slowly gets to know Four and finds she likes who he is when he freaking relaxes!
The premise of five factions that focus on only one trait is quite interesting. I found myself thinking quickly about which faction I would end up in (Erudite) though it also seems likely I would have been born into it ;-). What faction do you think you’d choose? Do you think you would have been born into it based on your parents’ personalities?
The plot twists of Divergent are delicious :D. I saw this book going in a very different direction, so it was pretty awesome to see how things developed.
I thought the questions that Divergent brings up in terms of who should make up the government were really fun to think about and actually a good thing to consider. In the beginning there seem to be very good arguments for Abnegation, but is it really fair/good to have only one faction control government?
The narrator did an excellent job. I highly recommend you check out the audiobook version if you are interested.

Weaknesses:

There is only so much sadness and innocent death that I can take, and Divergent pushed up against that limit. I really didn’t think all of the bad things should have happened to some of the side characters. I understand some of it was necessary to show how cruel select candidates were, but it just went too far for my emotional health ;-).
I’m not a fan of the “saving the world with love” conclusions and Divergent definitely felt like one.
Just a generally word of caution that Divergent has abuse and assault situations at several occasions that might be more than unpleasant for some people.

Summary:

Divergent definitely brought the grittiness of dystopias to the table in addition to a fascinating premise and strong characters. While I wish it hadn’t been nearly so dark at times, I thoroughly enjoyed the brewing romance and developing character of Tris. Now that all of that has gone down, I’m excited to see what Insurgent has in store! I’ve heard it’s just as depressing, so I’m holding off reading it until I’m filled up on happy fantasy books, but I won’t be able to resist the questions long ;-).

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- A

Divergent by Veronica Roth

Filed Under: What A Story - Book Reviews Tagged With: divergent, dystopia, four stars, heroine, roth, sci-fi, trilogy

4 Stars: Grave Mercy by Robin LaFevers

March 28, 2013 by Anya 8 Comments

I had been seeing mentions of Grave Mercy by Robin LaFevers all over the place late last year, and so you can imagine my excitement when I found a Kindle copy available through my library’s Overdrive! I seriously love that service <3. I was a little nervous about Grave Mercy since it’s mostly historical fiction with a fair bit of mysticism thrown in, but not nearly as fantastical as I’m used to. However, I’ve been saying how I wanted to stretch my reading zone, so it was the perfect opportunity ;-). Also female assassins are pretty much an auto-read for me, haha!
Goodreads | Amazon

Title: Grave Mercy
Author: Robin LaFevers
Length: 549 pages
Genre-ish: Mystical Historical Fiction
Rating: ★★★★☆- awesome premise, got a little slow

Why be the sheep, when you can be the wolf?

Seventeen-year-old Ismae escapes from the brutality of an arranged marriage into the sanctuary of the convent of St. Mortain, where the sisters still serve the gods of old. Here she learns that the god of Death Himself has blessed her with dangerous gifts—and a violent destiny. If she chooses to stay at the convent, she will be trained as an assassin and serve as a handmaiden to Death. To claim her new life, she must destroy the lives of others.

Ismae’s most important assignment takes her straight into the high court of Brittany—where she finds herself woefully under prepared—not only for the deadly games of intrigue and treason, but for the impossible choices she must make. For how can she deliver Death’s vengeance upon a target who, against her will, has stolen her heart? – Goodreads

Strengths:

First of all, the ending of Grave Mercy is freaking transcendent. It increases the mysticism level and fixed some of the hang-ups I had been having previously. It is so worth sticking it out to the end of Grave Mercy, even if you find yourself having some trouble in the middle.
I had some feminist issues with the “handmaiden of Death” thing, but they were also resolved by the end. Rest assured, things are not as they appear >.>.
Ismae’s special powers have to do partially with poison, which is freaking awesome. I don’t know why, but I just love poison-related abilities these days :D.

Weaknesses:

The middle of Grave Mercy got quite slow for me. This is where my disinterest in typical historical fiction plots became a problem. There is a lot of court intrigue that just didn’t do it for me.
I had a big problem with Ismae leaving her “master” husband (because she wouldn’t have had any rights married to him) for another master in the form of the convent and their god. She was told outright that she would have to follow her orders no matter how she felt about them, and so she had no freewill in her new life either. This does get resolved somewhat at the end of Grave Mercy, but it was a big annoyance throughout.
I just never fell for the romance fully. I wasn’t all swoon-y, and in fact didn’t really want any romantic development to happen. Perhaps I’ll be more convinced in the next book ;-).

Summary:

On the whole, branching out of my comfort zone a little bit paid off wonderfully with Grave Mercy! I’ve learned that I’m not a big fan of court intrigue based plots, but that was a valuable lesson ;-). Given that I wanted more development of the supernatural powers throughout all of Grave Mercy, I probably should read a fantasy book now, haha. In any case, if you are someone who is more interested in historical fiction than I am, but also loves the idea of female assassins with supernatural powers, then you should definitely check out Grave Mercy. This is especially true, since the sequel Dark Triumph is coming out next week :D.

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- A

Grave Mercy by Robin LaFevers

Filed Under: What A Story - Book Reviews Tagged With: four stars, grave mercy, heroine, his fair assassin, historical fiction, lafevers, mysticism, trilogy

5 Stars: Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins Audiobook

March 14, 2013 by Anya 14 Comments

Wow, I know I’m late on reading the Hunger Games trilogy, but rest assured that I am now fully amazed by Suzanne Collins and her made skills with Catching Fire :D. I was able to snag Catching Fire from the library’s (very scant) YA audiobook section, and I’m actually amazed that I spotted it because the case didn’t even have the cover art on it! I might need to go make a suggestion to my librarian about marketing such a great trilogy…. In any case, much of this has already been said, but the main thing I want to emphasize is that the love triangle element is not that bad! As a person who doesn’t like love triangles, I had delayed finishing the trilogy after reading Hunger Games. However, I am now convinced that everyone should finish the trilogy, don’t be afraid of the romance ;-).

Goodreads | Amazon
Title: Catching Fire
Author: Suzanne Collins
Length: 11 hrs 37 mins
Genre-ish: YA Dystopia
Rating: ★★★★★- amazing sequel, the action just keeps going!

Against all odds, Katniss has won the Hunger Games. She and fellow District 12 tribute Peeta Mellark are miraculously still alive. Katniss should be relieved, happy even. After all, she has returned to her family and longtime friend, Gale. Yet nothing is the way Katniss wishes it to be. Gale holds her at an icy distance. Peeta has turned his back on her completely. And there are whispers of a rebellion against the Capitol – a rebellion that Katniss and Peeta may have helped create.

Much to her shock, Katniss has fueled an unrest she’s afraid she cannot stop. And what scares her even more is that she’s not entirely convinced she should try. As time draws near for Katniss and Peeta to visit the districts on the Capitol’s cruel Victory Tour, the stakes are higher than ever. If they can’t prove, without a shadow of a doubt, that they are lost in their love for each other, the consequences will be horrifying. – Goodreads

Strengths:

Catching Fire has fast-paced action right from the start! Really, we wouldn’t expect any less ;-).
As I said above, while there are two love interests, it hardly counts when Katniss is forced to have a relationship with one of them by the corrupt government….
All of the characters in Catching Fire just get better. We start learning the depth of President Snow’s villainy, we finally get to know Gale better, and we meet new faces! We don’t know if we can really trust said new faces, but they are funny :D. I’m looking at you Finnick >.> <.<.
I loooooved the narrator, Carolyn McCormick! Even the minor characters had voice changes of their own (all from one narrator’s vocal cords!) and she gave wonderful dimension to already wonderful characters :).
While the first third of Catching Fire seems like it will be similar to Hunger Games, it’s not, don’t worry! And I can’t say more without spoilers ;-).

Weaknesses:

While Katniss keeps thinking she was faking most of her affection for Peeta, there is enough doubt and angst that I still had to roll my eyes at times. Make up your mind, girl!
Warning: there is gore! This is after all still Panem…. If you aren’t up for tragic moments and icky moments, this trilogy probably isn’t for you.

Summary:

Love love love Catching Fire, as most others did as well :D. My biggest regret is waiting so long to finally continue the trilogy, but I made it before the movie ;-). I in fact love Catching Fire more than Hunger Games, I think, because we get to see so much more of Panem and Katniss really starts coming into her own. This of course all sets you up for needing to get Mockingjay (the third book) immediately! If you have been thinking of finding out what all the hype was about, go for it. If you were like me and decided to stop after the first book for fear of angsty romance, have no fear. There is some angst, but the delicious dystopian action is totally worth it! Also check out the audiobooks if you have a chance, they are rocking!

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- A

Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins

Filed Under: What A Story - Book Reviews Tagged With: catching fire, collins, dystopia, heroine, hunger games, sci-fi, trilogy, ya

5 Stars: Entangled by Nikki Jefford

March 11, 2013 by Anya 6 Comments

I was thrilled to receive Entangled by Nikki Jefford from Netgalley a few months ago. Unfortunately, my reading pile was so big that I only just got the chance to read it! However, I proceeded to burn through this one is two days, which is pretty impressive for me ;-). There are a lot of high school urban fantasy series out there right now, but I loved Entangled’s fresh plot twists. Who doesn’t love witches and body swapping?? Also that cover is gorgeous :D.

Goodreads | Amazon (currently free!!)
Title: Entangled
Author: Nikki Jefford
Length: 303 pages
Genre-ish: YA urban fantasy
Rating: ★★★★★- awesome plot, couldn’t put it down!

Two months after dying, seventeen-year-old witch Graylee Perez wakes up in her twin sister Charlene’s body.

Until Gray finds a way back inside her own body, she’s stuck being Charlene every twenty-hour hours. Her sister has left precise instructions on how Gray should dress and behave. Looking like a prep isn’t half as bad as hanging out with Charlene’s snotty friends and gropey boyfriend.

The “normals” of McKinley High might be quick to write her behavior off as post-traumatic stress, but warlock Raj McKenna is the only person who suspects Gray has returned from the dead.

Now Gray has to solve the mystery of her death and resurrection and disentangle herself from Charlene’s body before she disappears for good.. – Goodreads

Strengths:

I looooved the premise of Entangled. Witches are a pretty common theme these days, but witches that mysteriously die and wake up in their twin’s body? Awesome!
While you might worry there is a love triangle, there isn’t. Bonus points!
The plot of Entangled did not go the way I expected, though looking back maybe I should have thought about it harder. In any case, the villains and allies in this one will likely surprise you ;-).
Parents seem to get a bad rap in YA novels, so it was great to find a mom that knew her daughters were witches and was so supportive of them!

Weaknesses:

The romance of Entangled seemed to develop pretty fast. I realize they are teenagers, but yikes!
There were some abrupt switches between characters and scenes. This was made worse by the incomplete formatting of my copy, but I checked out the version on Amazon now and it seems to be fixed :).

Summary:

Entangled by Nikki Jefford was fresh and compelling. If you love witches, YA urban fantasy, and body swapping: read this book! While I have minor quibbles about the main romantic interest, I got over them ;-). I’m super excited to read Duplicity (the sequel), since there are still some things that need to be fixed in Gray’s world, but there wasn’t any horrible cliffhanger :). Also, in case you hadn’t noticed my plug earlier, as of 3/10/13 it is FREE on Amazon, so go go go!

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- A

Entangled by Nikki Jefford

Filed Under: What A Story - Book Reviews Tagged With: entangled, heroine, nikki jefford, trilogy, urban fantasy, witches, ya

4.5 Stars: Crash by Lisa McMann Audiobook

February 13, 2013 by Anya 8 Comments

I received Crash by Lisa McMann from Simon & Schuster Audio for review and was excited for a new spin on the paranormal YA book. Crash definitely delivers! I actually had to figure out how to hook up my iPhone to my car speakers (through my cassette player) and ended up borrowing an old converter that my friend had, but it was totally worth it ;-). I also ended up listening to most of Crash while driving in white-out conditions or horrible snowy roads, so maybe that was tempting fate a bit, but I was fine :D. Crash is a great combination of family shenanigans, weird paranormal stuff, and oh high school sighing, and this is coming from someone who doesn’t generally like too much of the swoony romance stuff, haha.
Goodreads | Amazon
Title: Crash
Author: Lisa McMann
Time: 5 hours, 18 minutes
Genre-ish: YA Paranormal
Rating: ★★★★☆- interesting premise, minor annoyances

If what you see is what you get, Jules is in serious trouble. The suspenseful first in a series from the New York Timesbestselling author of the Wake trilogy.Jules lives with her family above their restaurant, which means she smells like pizza most of the time and drives their double-meatball-shaped food truck to school. It’s not a recipe for popularity, but she can handle that.

What she can’t handle is the recurring vision that haunts her. Over and over, Jules sees a careening truck hit a building and explode…and nine body bags in the snow.

The vision is everywhere—on billboards, television screens, windows—and she’s the only one who sees it. And the more she sees it, the more shesees. The vision is giving her clues, and soon Jules knows what she has to do. Because now she can see the face in one of the body bags, and it’s someone she knows. Someone she has been in love with for as long as she can remember. – Goodreads

Strengths:

The premise of Crash is really interesting. I haven’t read any premonitions books lately, so it certainly seemed fresh to me. Jules just keeps seeing the same vision over and over and it is steadily taking over her life. Crash has just the right amount of paranormal to add spice, but not so much that you started to wonder who was sending these visions (at least not yet!).
Jules develops well as a character, and Crash is definitely a coming of age story as well as a mystery/romance/paranormal. Apparently solving a mystery and saving lives really makes a girl grow up fast, who knew?
Sawyer is adorable and a great love interest. I’m rather tired of jerks/stalkers as love interests, so it was nice to finally have a genuinely nice guy!
Love Trey!!!! I’m happy with McMann for having a gay brother and not shying away from that character, but also not making him too over the top. As someone who has gay friends all across the flamboyance spectrum, I was quite comfortable with the way Trey was portrayed and the fact that being gay was not all that he was. He was also a good brother, son, and sometimes student ;-).

Weaknesses:

“Oh my dogs” might be my new least favorite expression. I don’t care that it adds uniqueness or that real teenagers might say it, it’s bloody annoying to hear over and over in an audiobook. Please never use “dog” in place of “God” again.
The narration was a bit awkward at times, especially in the shower scene.. >.> <.<
I won’t go into much detail the ending revelation and romantic developments seemed rushed to me, maybe it was because I thought the crash was the ending and it would be just a brief wrap up after that, but then there was more?

Summary:

Overall, I really liked Crash and am looking forward to the next book, especially after what we found out at the very end! I haven’t been reading a lot of similar books, but the idea seemed fresh and I thought the plot was well developed. However, Crash has been a very polarizing book, and many people haven’t liked the characters and plot development, so I recommend checking out some of the links for both if you aren’t sure. I also would probably recommend against the audiobook if the expression “Oh my dogs” sounds annoying to you, because it’s probably easier to ignore in text….

Other reviews:

Crash from .Xpresso Reads 2 stars

Crash from Heise Reads & Recommends 5 stars

Crash from Appraising Pages 4 stars

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- A

Graceling by Kristin Cashore

Filed Under: What A Story - Book Reviews Tagged With: audiobook, cashore, fantasy, four stars, graceling, heroine, magic system, trilogy, ya

Five Stars: Days of Blood and Starlight by Laini Taylor Audiobook

February 6, 2013 by Anya 8 Comments

Days of Blood and Starlight by Laini Taylor is the second in the Daughter of Smoke and Bone trilogy, so this review will definitely contain spoilers for the first book. Instead of worrying about those, just pop over to my equally glowing review of Daughter of Smoke and Bone :D. I actually had a bit of trouble forming thoughts for this review since my thoughts were mostly “glub blug awesome more glub why must I wait for the next one gah!” But I thought more, gave it a couple of days, and came up with at least semi-coherent reasons why you should continue with Days of Blood and Starlight if you started this trilogy and aren’t sure.

Goodreads | Amazon
Title: Days of Blood and Starlight
Author: Laini Taylor
Time: 12 discs (15 hours)
Genre-ish: Fantasy mixed with our world
Rating: ★★★★★- beautiful, poetic, can’t get enough

Once upon a time, an angel and a devil fell in love and dared to imagine a world free of bloodshed and war.

This is not that world.

Art student and monster’s apprentice Karou finally has the answers she has always sought. She knows who she is—and what she is. But with this knowledge comes another truth she would give anything to undo: She loved the enemy and he betrayed her, and a world suffered for it.

In this stunning sequel to the highly acclaimed Daughter of Smoke & Bone, Karou must decide how far she’ll go to avenge her people. Filled with heartbreak and beauty, secrets and impossible choices, Days of Blood & Starlight finds Karou and Akiva on opposing sides as an age-old war stirs back to life.

While Karou and her allies build a monstrous army in a land of dust and starlight, Akiva wages a different sort of battle: a battle for redemption. For hope.

But can any hope be salvaged from the ashes of their broken dream? – Goodreads

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Filed Under: What A Story - Book Reviews Tagged With: angels, audiobook, days of blood and starlight, fantasy, five stars, heroine, magic system, taylor, trilogy, ya

Four Stars: Graceling by Kristin Cashore Audiobook

February 1, 2013 by Anya 10 Comments

So, I was the odd-duck and listened to Fire by Kristin Cashore first, which is the companion novel to Graceling. I can tell you that it is safe to read them out of publishing order, though I did have to check with my reading buddy on one name that I think would have been an obvious connection to me if I had read them the other way around. In any case, I had been hesitant to grab Graceling on audiobook because it has a different narrator than Fire (and I loved Fire’s narrator), but I just put some time between the two and didn’t have any problem adjusting. Even better, Graceling is a full-cast audio, so each of the characters has their own voice actor :D.

Goodreads | Amazon
Title: Graceling
Author: Kristin Cashore
Time: 11 discs (12 hours and 30 mins)
Genre-ish: Fantasy
Rating: ★★★★☆- fun world, didn’t pull me in

His eyes, Katsa had never seen such eyes. One was silver, and the other, gold. They glowed in his sun-darkened face, uneven, and strange. She was surprised that they hadn’t shone in the darkness of their first meeting. They didn’t seem human….

Then he raised his eyebrows a hair, and his mouth shifted into the hint of a smirk. He nodded at her, just barely, and it released her from her spell.

Cocky, she thought. Cocky and arrogant, this one, and that was all there was to make of him. Whatever game he was playing, if he expected her to join him he would be disappointed.

In a world where people born with an extreme skill – called a Grace – are feared and exploited, Katsa carries the burden of the skill even shedespises: the Grace of killing. She lives under the command of her uncle Randa, King of the Middluns, and is expected to execute his dirty work, punishing and torturing anyone who displeases him.

When she first meets Prince Po, who is Graced with combat skills, Katsa has no hint of how her life is about to change.

She never expects to become Po’s friend.

She never expects to learn a new truth about her own Grace – or about a terrible secret that lies hidden far away…a secret that could destroy all seven kingdoms with words alone. – Goodreads

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