Two awesome YA fantasy series you should read

Long time no see, eh? TBH, I haven’t really felt like reviewing anything I’ve read recently (though if you’re interested in the things I’ve been reading but not reviewing here, come find me on Goodreads). But I’m breaking my silence to talk about my two favorite YA fantasy series. I’ve been thinking about them a lot recently, partly because I’ve been getting a hankering to re-read them, and partly because I’ve been reading a new series and I can’t help thinking about how it stacks up to my favorites. So here we go:

The Lumatere Chronicles, by Melina Marchetta (1. Finnikin of the Rock, 2. Froi of the Exiles, 2.5 Ferragost, 3. Quintana of Charyn)

Oh, the characters in this series. I love them all so dang much. Marchetta knows how to make her characters seem real and how to get you to see their flaws but care about them anyway. For pete’s sake, she manages to take one of the least likable characters from the first book and make him into the hero of the second two. That’s some skill, right there. And it’s not just the main characters that pull you in. The secondary characters make you care about them just as much, especially in the second two books. Seriously, the relationship dynamics between various family and friends and lovers in those last two books are outstanding. Marchetta also does a fantastic job exploring the gray areas and difficult topics. Nothing is ever easy for her characters, but the strength they gain from their experiences makes you love them all the more.

The Daughter of Smoke and Bone series, by Laini Taylor (1. Daughter of Smoke and Bone, 2. Days of Blood and Starlight, 3. Dreams of Gods and Monsters)

After finishing the first book in this series, I would never have guessed that these books would become some of my favorites. The first book, while it has its strong points, pales in comparison to the second two. It’s actually a bit hard for me to believe that the first book is even in the same series, because that book is all angels! monsters! insta-love! But the story and characters really come into their own in books 2 and 3. It was quite an amazing save, I thought. And this series is pretty epic in scope. I mean, we’re talking about things like the genocide of races and the destruction of worlds, and there are A LOT of plot lines to follow. But Laini Taylor always manages to stay in control of the story—admittedly, sometimes she only manages it by the skin of her teeth, but she always does somehow manage it. Like the Lumatere Chronicles, this series has fantastic characters that worm their way into your heart, but the thing that always stands out to me is the humor. Laini Taylor is just so skilled at working wit and humor into scenes that are otherwise pretty depressing.

Ak. These books. I can’t even. I just love them so much. If you haven’t read them yet, I obviously highly recommend them.

Review: Love and Other Foreign Words

“Love and Other Foreign Words,” by Erin McCahan. The Goodreads summary:

Sixteen-year-old Josie lives her life in translation. She speaks High School, College, Friends, Boyfriends, Break-ups, and even the language of Beautiful Girls. But none of these is her native tongue -- the only people who speak that are her best friend Stu and her sister Kate. So when Kate gets engaged to an epically insufferable guy, how can Josie see it as anything but the mistake of a lifetime? Kate is determined to bend Josie to her will for the wedding; Josie is determined to break Kate and her fiancé up. As battles are waged over secrets and semantics, Josie is forced to examine her feelings for the boyfriend who says he loves her, the sister she loves but doesn't always like, and the best friend who hasn't said a word -- at least not in a language Josie understands.

I grinned my way through this book. There’s no other way to describe it. Josie just cracks me up. From the summary, I thought I was going to find her annoying (the whole trying to break up her sister’s wedding thing seemed like it was going to be a bit much), but she didn’t annoy me at all. Probably because when you’re inside Josie’s head, you can totally see why she hates her sister’s fiancé.

The story was pretty predictable, but I was too distracted by how amusing it was to really care all that much. I really liked that Josie was close to her family. Even when she’s fighting with her sister, you can still tell that they love each other. And her parents were the greatest. And hilarious. I just really enjoyed the generally un-angsty family dynamic.

But as light and fun as this book is, it also made me think. Josie has this whole theory about how everyone speaks their own “language,” and how different groups speak different “languages,” and you have to learn to speak those languages to be able to communicate with them. (It makes way more sense in the book than how I just explained it, probably). And reading about it made me really grateful for the people in my life who speak my language. The people who speak fluent Karen. Like Josie, I feel like I’ve learned to translate other people’s languages pretty well, but it’s always such a relief when I find those people who I can talk to without the translation step because, like Josie says, “it is impossible to be fully yourself in a foreign language.”

Anyway, since this review has descended into rambling, I’ll wrap it up.

Overall, a thoroughly entertaining book with a main character that I wouldn’t mind being friends with in real life.

Rating: 3.5 / 5

Review: The Impossible Knife of Memory

“The Impossible Knife of Memory,” by Laurie Halse Anderson. The Goodreads summary:

For the past five years, Hayley Kincain and her father, Andy, have been on the road, never staying long in one place as he struggles to escape the demons that have tortured him since his return from Iraq. Now they are back in the town where he grew up so Hayley can attend school. Perhaps, for the first time, Hayley can have a normal life, put aside her own painful memories, even have a relationship with Finn, the hot guy who obviously likes her but is hiding secrets of his own.

Will being back home help Andy’s PTSD, or will his terrible memories drag him to the edge of hell, and drugs push him over? The Impossible Knife of Memory is Laurie Halse Anderson at her finest: compelling, surprising, and impossible to put down.

I really like Laurie Halse Anderson’s books, at least those that I’ve read so far. I like how she doesn’t shy away from difficult topics. I mean, I enjoy light and fluffy as much as the next person, but sometimes I need a book that feels a little more honest. And Anderson’s books are definitely brutally honest.

I’m actually not sure how to really go about writing a review for this book. So much of the story revolves around Hayley’s dad’s PTSD and how it affects pretty much every aspect of their lives. It was just so intense and painful to read about that I don’t know how to review that aspect of it. So that only really leaves me with Hayley’s other relationships to talk about.

Her best friend, Gracie, was one of those types of friends that crop up in YA, where I’m just like, “Why are you even friends with this person?” I can sympathize with Gracie for having her own screwed up home life, but she and Hayley never really seemed to have any actual friend chemistry.

Hayley’s relationship with Finn was pretty adorable, though. I was just so glad that Hayley found someone in her pretty crappy life that made her happy. Finn was just so . . . buoyant. Whenever Hayley tried to push him down or keep him away he just bounced right back up. I did feel like the author tried a little too hard to give Finn complicated family drama; it just always felt a little forced and not like a real part of the story.

Hayley’s relationship with Trish was one that I wish we could’ve spent more time on. It just had so much potential. As Hayley’s dad’s stateside girlfriend, Trish was never supposed to be Hayley’s mother figure, but then she was . . . until she just walked away, for which Hayley understandably has never forgiven her. And though I feel like Anderson did a good job with their relationship in the time allotted to it as a secondary part of the plot, I wish more time could’ve been spent there because the dynamics fascinated me.

Hayley herself was so strong, if a little rough around the edges and abrasive. Her situation seems impossible, but she deals with it in the best way she knows how. It was hard to watch her constantly push people away and keep them out, but it just made those times she does let people in all the more satisfying for the reader.

Overall, like Anderson’s other books I’ve read, this one was intense but worth the read.

Rating: 3.5 / 5

Review: Mortal Heart

“Mortal Heart” (His Fair Assassins #3), by Robin LaFevers. The Goodreads summary:

Annith has watched her gifted sisters at the convent come and go, carrying out their dark dealings in the name of St. Mortain, patiently awaiting her own turn to serve Death. But her worst fears are realized when she discovers she is being groomed by the abbess as a Seeress, to be forever sequestered in the rock and stone womb of the convent. Feeling sorely betrayed, Annith decides to strike out on her own.

She has spent her whole life training to be an assassin. Just because the convent has changed its mind doesn't mean she has...

I’d heard from multiple people that this third book wasn’t as good as the first two, so I went into it with fairly low expectations. But, well, I liked it. Okay, so yes, I didn’t like it as much as the second book, because “Dark Triumph” is sheer awesomeness, but all things considered, I enjoyed the third book quite a bit.

Annith was admittedly a little difficult for me to connect to. But then again, I didn’t really connect to Ismae from the first book either. That’s one thing about this series: usually, in books if I can’t relate to the main character, the odds of me liking the book are pretty much shot. But in this series, not connecting to the main characters doesn’t really seem to hold me back. Probably because there’s so much plot going on and I’m too concerned about the fate of the kingdom and whatnot to get hung up on Annith being a bit whiney or whatever.

You know what this book has going for it? Aside from the fact that it wraps up the series and finally gives some closure? Balthazar. I just really loved Balthazar. I do wish we could’ve spent more time with him and his Hellequin, though, because obviously the Hellequin are pure awesome, and you get the feeling there are some good stories there. Like Misere (I’m pretty sure I just misspelled that, but oh well)—he was a promising character if I’ve ever seen one, but we don’t get to spend much time with him. But still. Balthazar. He makes up for a lot.

As for how things all wrap up? I’m going to be vague here to avoid spoilers, but though I was happy everything worked out, I thought the ultimate solution to the kingdom’s problem ended up being kinda anticlimactic. I felt a bit like, “Really? After all the political scheming and battles, THAT’S going to be what saves everyone?” I still got the resolution I needed; it just wasn’t quite as dramatic as I was expecting.

Overall, while the book isn’t perfect, I still enjoyed it and thought it was a pretty decent ending to the series.

Rating: 4 / 5

Other books in the series:
Grave Mercy
Dark Triumph

It's already a happy new year!

      

YOU GUYS. One of my favorite romance novels OF ALL TIME is back in print as of today! I've read my second-hand copies to the point where the binding is basically gone, and now I can get not only a fresh print copy, but a copy on my Kindle too. Words can't even.

So which book is it you ask? "With This Ring," by Carla Kelly. Just read it. But ignore the new cover. The story's clean too, if that is an issue for you with romance novels. I'm just, just . . . AHHHH so happy. I basically thought this day would never come.

January is turning out to be a good month for anticipated books. "First Frost," by Sarah Addison Allen, is coming out on the 20th and "The Secrets of Sir Richard Kenworthy," by Julia Quinn, is out the 27th!

My Favorite Books of 2014

Here we go. My top 5 YAs and 5 non-YAs that I read in 2014 (not that they were necessarily published in 2014). They're in no particular order, aside from the fact that “I’ll Give You the Sun” was far and away my favorite book of the year.

YA
-I’ll Give You the Sun, by Jandy Nelson
-Days of Blood and Starlight, by Laini Taylor
-Dreams of Gods and Monsters, by Laini Taylor
-Of Beast and Beauty, by Stacey Jay
-Blue Lily, Lily Blue, by Maggie Stiefvater

Non-YA (aka mostly Romance...)
-The Countess Conspiracy, by Courtney Milan
-The Suffragette Scandal, by Courtney Milan
-No Good Duke Goes Unpunished, by Sarah MacLean
-A Rose in Winter, by Laura Florand
-Night Broken, by Patricia Briggs

True love on a t-shirt

Facebook knows me frighteningly well and put a link to litographs.com on my newsfeed. It's now basically my life's goal to own every single one of these t-shirts. I'm practically salivating over here.

(Wuthering Heights)

BRB

What started off as a desire to re-read one particular book ended up turning into a massive re-read kick. Then I realized I'm 3 books behind on Susan Mallory's Fools Gold series. Hence, YA has been on the back burner. So . . . brb.

(Lazy) Review: Blue Lily, Lily Blue

"Blue Lily, Lily Blue" (Raven Boys #3), by Maggie Stiefvater. The Goodreads summary:

There is danger in dreaming. But there is even more danger in waking up.

Blue Sargent has found things. For the first time in her life, she has friends she can trust, a group to which she can belong. The Raven Boys have taken her in as one of their own. Their problems have become hers, and her problems have become theirs.

The trick with found things though, is how easily they can be lost.

Friends can betray.
Mothers can disappear.
Visions can mislead.
Certainties can unravel.

As you may have discerned from the post title, I’m feeling a bit too lazy to write a full, intelligible review (that seems to be a common malady for me lately). Honestly, I’m feeling lazy enough to skip writing a review altogether, but then I thought that I should write at least something to let you guys know that this book was awesome. I mean, man. This series. It’s nice to have books you can count on, you know? Every single one of the books in this series so far has delivered. Has gone above and beyond delivering, really.

Those raven boys . . . I just love them so much. And it’s not just Gansey, Adam, Ronan, Noah, and Blue I love, it’s the Gray Man, everyone at 300 Fox Way, and even Greenmantle and Piper. That Piper—she grew on me more than she was supposed to probably.

You might thinking by now, “Hey, Karen, what about the plot?” Like, I said, lazy is the name of the game today, so can I just say the plot was good and gripping and well-developed—the whole shebang—and leave it at that? Though I will say that one scene where Blue and a certain raven boy touch fingers in the car made me feel like this: !!!!!!! Because that particular raven boy happens to be my favorite, and I didn’t think anything would actually happen between them—I thought Blue was going to go for a different raven boy altogether.

And while we’re on the subject of raven boys—Adam. I love seeing how his character is slowly developing. I feel like he—and maybe Ronan—is the one doing the most growing, and it’s gratifying to watch it happen. And, and, AND that scene in the courtroom with Adam when Gansey and Ronan show up? I swooned over all of them in that scene.

Overall, read it! If you haven’t started this series yet, get to it! One book to go in the series . . . I’m kinda dying over here.

Rating: 4 / 5

Other books in this series:
-The Raven Boys
-The Dream Theives

B*tches in Bookshops

Sometimes a rap about books just gets me through the day.

Review: I’ll Give You the Sun

“I’ll Give You the Sun,” by Jandy Nelson. The Goodreads summary:

Jude and her twin brother, Noah, are incredibly close. At thirteen, isolated Noah draws constantly and is falling in love with the charismatic boy next door, while daredevil Jude cliff-dives and wears red-red lipstick and does the talking for both of them. But three years later, Jude and Noah are barely speaking. Something has happened to wreck the twins in different and dramatic ways . . . until Jude meets a cocky, broken, beautiful boy, as well as someone else—an even more unpredictable new force in her life. The early years are Noah's story to tell. The later years are Jude's. What the twins don't realize is that they each have only half the story, and if they could just find their way back to one another, they’d have a chance to remake their world.

I am in love with this book. That’s all there is to it. I mean, I knew going in that the odds were pretty high I’d like “I’ll Give You the Sun” since I totally and completely adore “The Sky Is Everywhere” by this same author. But still . . . there’s always that little bit of fear that you’ll be let down. But “I’ll Give You the Sun” didn’t let me down AT ALL. It was pretty perfect, actually.

I just don’t even have the words, really. Because Jandy Nelson creates two hot messes known as Jude and Noah who explode with passion and fear and shame and love and just generally feel all the feelings I want characters to feel. And, dang, can Jandy Nelson write. I mean, she can really, really write. She knows how to use all the words and emotions and descriptions to create prose that pulls you under and makes you wish you didn’t have to come up for air in the real world.

At its heart, I think “I’ll Give You the Sun” is equal parts a story about romantic love and a story about love for family. But it’s never an easy love. Never a love that can be taken for granted. The characters have to try again and again to get through the walls of hurt and fear that separate them from those they love, and I felt for them every single time they threw themselves at those walls only to crash against them rather than through them. But the thing is, every single time, they get up and try again.

And then there’s the small things, the things that made me smile. Like Jude’s aversion to oranges and affinity for onions and lemons. Like Clark Gable. Like Grandma Sweetwine’s bible. Like Noah’s self-portrait titles and the three words he wants to have with God. Like a certain parrot’s obsession with Ralph. Sometimes it’s the little things, as much as the big ones, that make a book for me, you know?

Overall, in case you couldn’t tell, this is one of my favorite books of the year. I kinda just want to carry it around with me all the time so I don’t have to let it go.

Rating: 5 / 5

Review: Silver Shadows

“Silver Shadows” (Bloodlines #5), by Richelle Mead. The Goodreads summary:

In The Fiery Heart, Sydney risked everything to follow her gut, walking a dangerous line to keep her feelings hidden from the Alchemists.

Now in the aftermath of an event that ripped their world apart, Sydney and Adrian struggle to pick up the pieces and find their way back to each other. But first, they have to survive.

For Sydney, trapped and surrounded by adversaries, life becomes a daily struggle to hold on to her identity and the memories of those she loves. Meanwhile, Adrian clings to hope in the face of those who tell him Sydney is a lost cause, but the battle proves daunting as old demons and new temptations begin to seize hold of him. . . .

Their worst fears now a chilling reality, Sydney and Adrian face their darkest hour in this heart-pounding fifth installment in the New York Times bestselling Bloodlines series, where all bets are off.

So, remember how I really didn’t like number 4 in this series (The Fiery Heart)? Well, I’m happy to report that this one was much better. It was more on the level of the first three books. Which is to say, not quite as good as the Vampire Academy series, but still pretty enjoyable.

I think what saved this book is that Sydney and Adrian were separated for most of it. This thankfully meant that all the cheesy, puerile mushy stuff from the last book was missing from this one. Rather, this book is all about Sydney trying to use her smarts and her skills to survive the re-education center, and Adrian using his smarts and skills to try to track her down and break her out.

Adrian kind of annoyed me for the first half or so of the book because he fell back into his old habits, with all the partying and drinking. I mean, I get it—that’s his fall back when his life feels out of his control, but still . . . I thought he’d grown out of that in the last few books. Though, I did think it was pretty brave of Mead as the author to take a character that seemed to be making progress and set him back a ways. And I guess it kept Adrian from starting to seem too perfect, because Adrian wouldn’t be Adrian if he were anywhere near perfect.

On the other hand, Sydney was her usual put-together self in this book. It would’ve been nice to see her crack a little, actually. You’d think that being physically and mentally tortured for four months would have some effect on her, but nope. She remains unscathed. Maybe things will catch up to her emotionally in the next book?

Overall, I enjoyed this one nearly as much as the first three, though I wish the secondary characters like Jill, Eddie, et al. could’ve been in it more, ‘cause I love those guys. But mostly I just spent the book being happy that it was better than that disaster of a fourth book.

Rating: 3.5 / 5

Review: Of Beast and Beauty

“Of Beast and Beauty,” by Stacey Jay. The Goodreads summary:

In the domed city of Yuan, the blind Princess Isra, a Smooth Skin, is raised to be a human sacrifice whose death will ensure her city’s vitality. In the desert outside Yuan, Gem, a mutant beast, fights to save his people, the Monstrous, from starvation. Neither dreams that together, they could return balance to both their worlds.

Isra wants to help the city’s Banished people, second-class citizens despised for possessing Monstrous traits. But after she enlists the aid of her prisoner, Gem, who has been captured while trying to steal Yuan’s enchanted roses, she begins to care for him, and to question everything she has been brought up to believe.

As secrets are revealed and Isra’s sight, which vanished during her childhood, returned, Isra will have to choose between duty to her people and the beast she has come to love.

So good! It was way better than I was expecting. I was seriously impressed. It’s not like I had particularly low expectations for this book or anything, but I’ve just not been having super great luck with books recently, so I expected this one to follow suit. But I was so happy when it didn’t.

Admittedly, I don’t think any Beauty and the Beast retelling could ever live up to Robin McKinley’s duo, but those are very much classic retellings. “Of Beast and Beauty” takes the basic fairytale and transforms it into something uniquely its own. It’s mostly fantasy but kinda sci-fi too, and the world the author has created, while you don’t get to see all that much of it, is fascinating and complete with its own set of prejudices and social issues. And I loved how the lines were blurred between who was Beauty and who was the Beast. Gem and Isra are both . . . both, and it was just so dang clever of the author to do that.

Gem, I loved the whole time, but I feel like there’s not really all that much else to say about him. Tall, dark, handsome, brooding—what else do you need? Isra was a bit more interesting of a character, because while she’s likeable the whole time, she starts off weak and naïve and powerless. But then as the story progresses, she slowly comes into her own and finds her way. She reminded me a bit of Elisa from the Girl of Fire and Thorns series in that way. Gem and Isra were both characters that had me thinking about them even when I wasn’t reading the book, and when I finished it, they and their story stayed right there with me. (Which, since I finished this book right before bed, made it dang hard to fall asleep, let me tell ya.)

Overall, I enjoyed just about every single thing about this story. Not only was it a fresh take on Beauty and the Beast, but it was a fresh take that was done well. I whole-heartedly approve.

Rating: 4 / 5

Review: Golden

“Golden,” by Jessi Kirby. The Goodreads summary:

Seventeen-year-old Parker Frost has never taken the road less traveled. Valedictorian and quintessential good girl, she’s about to graduate high school without ever having kissed her crush or broken the rules. So when fate drops a clue in her lap—one that might be the key to unraveling a town mystery—she decides to take a chance.

Julianna Farnetti and Shane Cruz are remembered as the golden couple of Summit Lakes High—perfect in every way, meant to be together forever. But Julianna’s journal tells a different story—one of doubts about Shane and a forbidden romance with an older, artistic guy. These are the secrets that were swept away with her the night that Shane’s jeep plunged into an icy river, leaving behind a grieving town and no bodies to bury.

Reading Julianna’s journal gives Parker the courage to start to really live—and it also gives her reasons to question what really happened the night of the accident. Armed with clues from the past, Parker enlists the help of her best friend, Kat, and Trevor, her longtime crush, to track down some leads. The mystery ends up taking Parker places that she never could have imagined. And she soon finds that taking the road less traveled makes all the difference.

I read “Moonglass” by this author ages ago, and while I don’t remember all that much about it, I know I thought it was adequate but not really anything special. And I think that’s how I’d characterize “Golden” too.

To me, nothing about “Golden” felt original or surprising. I mean, sure, I wasn’t 100 percent sure how things with Parker’s quest would turn out, but nothing about Parker herself or her situation felt unique to me. She didn’t stand out from any of the other likeable, over-achieving YA heroines who learn to loosen up. I felt like I’ve read different iterations of this same story a hundred other times. And it’s a story that, while I tolerate it just fine, I’m finally starting to get tired of.

The first half of the book felt pretty slow to me. I found myself starting to skim, and since I almost never skim, the fact that I wanted to with this book was pretty damning. I thought about not finishing the book, but since I knew so many people like it, I decided to press on. And truthfully, the second half was better. The pace picked up, and I started to finally get interested in the 10-year-old mystery Parker’s trying to solve. So that was a saving grace.

The romance in this book . . . I honestly can’t decide if I liked that it didn’t play a major role or if that same fact annoyed me. Because while I appreciate books that have enough other plot that they don’t have to rely entirely on the romance for the story, at the same time the romance is pretty much always my favorite part of the book. So I’m still divided on that issue with this book.

Overall, the book was fine but nothing new. I’ve been in a weird funk with YAs lately, so that may be affecting my feelings about this one, but either way, I wasn’t really impressed.

Rating: 3 / 5

Reviews: Isla and the Happily Ever After / Open Road Summer

Seeing as how I’m feeling super lazy and unmotivated, you’re getting two short reviews rather than one full length one. I’m going to forego including the book summaries (like I said, lazy), but the hyperlinked titles below will take you to the Goodreads summaries, if you’re interested.

“Isla and the Happily Ever After,” by Stephanie Perkins:

Here’s the story. I really love “Anna and the French Kiss” and I mostly love “Lola and the Boy Next Door.” But this one . . . it’s not that I didn’t like it. I DID. But it didn’t leave me feeling as giddy at the end as the other two did, which kinda lowered it in my estimation by comparison. But here are the two things I really like about the book: 1) Isla has a totally platonic friendship with a boy. None of that we’ve always been friends, but I’m secretly pining over you biz. 2) I like that Isla and Josh get together fairly early in the book. This gave the book time to develop their relationship in a way YAs don’t often get to. Here, we get to see how their relationship evolves after the “I love yous.”

Rating: 3.5 / 5

“Open Road Summer,” by Emery Lord:

This one was fun. I appreciated that Reagan was tough without being an A-hole. I also liked that she started making changes in her life before Matt comes into the picture; it made me believe that she was doing it for herself rather than for a boy. Another thing in the book’s favor was that although Matt and Reagan’s romance is a big part, a substantial part is also about Reagan and Dee’s friendship. They felt like real best friends rather than the superficial treatment friendship usually gets in YA. Also, I don’t know why, but I totally imagined the characters looking like specific celebrities. This basically never happens to me. But the whole book I imagined Reagan as looking like Lucy Hale, Matt as Scotty McCreery, and Dee as Taylor Swift.

Rating: 4 / 5 

Review: Moonraker’s Bride

“Moonraker’s Bride,” by Madeleine Brent. The Goodreads summary:

Born in a Mission in China, Lucy Waring finds herself with fifteen small children to feed and care for. The way she tackles this task leads to her being thrown into the grim prison of Chengfu, where she meets Nicholas Sabine - a man about to die.

He asks her a cryptic riddle, the mystery of which echoes through all that befalls her in the months that follow...

She is brought to England and tries to make a new life with the Gresham family, but she is constantly in disgrace and is soon involved in the bitter feud between the Greshams and a neighbouring family.

There is danger, romance and heartache for Lucy as strange events build to a point where she begins to doubt her own senses.

How could she see a man, long dead, walking in the misty darkness of the valley? And who carried her, unconscious, into the labyrinth of Chiselhurst Caves and left her to die?

It is not until she returns to China that Lucy finds, amid high adventure, the answer to all that has baffled her.

Here’s the thing: this book was more of an adventure/suspense book with a little romance thrown in, but I kept wanting it to be romance with a little adventure/suspense. Basically, I wanted there to be more kissing. But that wasn’t really the point of the story. So I don’t know if I’m allowed to be a little annoyed at this book or not, since it was my own expectations that left me feeling vaguely unsatisfied, not the book itself.

Which is not to say that I didn’t enjoy the book. I did. In fact, I stayed up way too late reading it. But the thing is, from the moment we’re introduced to Nick in the Chengfu prison, I was a goner. That boy was beyond super appealing. I wouldn’t mind going to jail like Lucy if he was going to be in the cell next to mine. But then, [spoiler] since Lucy thinks he's dead, we don’t get to see him again until the end of the book, which kind of totally ruined my hopes for there being lots of scenes between him and Lucy. And to make matters worse, when he finally does make an appearance again, he’s too busy being a tool to be as appealing as he was in the beginning of the book (he does that dumb “I’m going to be a jerk so you don’t know that I love you” thing). Nick does manage to redeem himself by the end, for the most part, but that doesn’t quite negate the facts that 1) there wasn’t enough kissing, and 2) Nick didn’t quite live up to the swoony potential he showed in the beginning.[end spoiler]

Maybe I should mention Lucy now, seeing as how she’s the main character and everything. While I really loved how capable and smart and strong Lucy is, I couldn’t help but feel like she came off as a little flat as a character. She’s just so stoic and calm and reluctant to rock the boat, that it seemed like the author had to tell you what she was feeling because otherwise you wouldn’t be sure she actually had feelings. But still. You’ve got to admire a girl who can singlehandedly keep an orphanage from starving.

Overall, a book that had its issues but that was still a pretty good read. I think this review came off sounding more negative than I actually feel, so if you come across this book, give it a shot.

Rating: 3.5 / 5

Review: Playing Beatie Bow

Review: “Playing Beatie Bow,” by Ruth Park. The summary:

Abigail Kirk was an ordinary enough fourteen-year-old girl, except that she could not understand the adults around her. Why had her father gone off with someone much younger than her mother? And why, now that he wanted to come back, was her mother agreeable. What did love mean?

It was while she was angry and resentful about the whole thing that she began to watch children playing a game called Beatie Bow. She had never seen the game before, nor the odd child who always seemed to be watching but never taking part. When Abigail tried to speak to her, the child ran off into a part of the city called The Rocks. Abigail followed, and suddenly found herself in The Rocks of another time. Only the strange girl remained the same. And she proved to be Beatie Bow, a child of a century earlier.

Abigail was taken in by the Bows, amid whispered comments about "the gift," as though there was something she was supposed to do. She didn't want to stay until she met a marvelous boy named Judah. And then for the first time she began to grasp the meaning of love. But why was she in the past, and would she ever again see her own time?

Abigail's story takes place in modern Sydney, Australia, and the Australia of a hundred years ago. The book was named the best children's book of the year in Australia in 1981.

A friend lent me this book, originally written in 1980, and she might have told me something about it, but if so I don’t remember. So basically I was going into this book with zero expectations. All I knew from the cover summary was that it takes place in Australia and involves time travel.

Two things became clear pretty much immediately. First, that this is a younger YA. Abby, the main character is 14, and the story generally feels geared to younger teens. The second thing that quickly became clear was that Abby was going to annoy me, mostly likely because she reminded me too much of what I was like at that age—snarky and selfish with a bad attitude. But I guess as much as Abby frequently got on my nerves, I appreciated how honest her feelings were and how vividly they were written. There were multiple times when I thought, “Yep, I’ve definitely felt that exact same way before.” So I think if I had read this book in my early teens I would’ve connected a lot more to Abby than I do now with my 10+ years of hindsight about how self-centered I was as a teenager.

As for characters I did like, Beatie totally stole the show for me. She’s actually not in the book all that often, but when she is she’s just so dang spunky and feisty that I didn’t doubt for a second that even though she’s only 10 or 11, she’d eventually manage to pull herself out of poverty.

Plot-wise, I’m not entirely sure what was going on. Or rather, why it was going on. So, yes, Abby travels back in time to Victorian Australia, but it’s never actually clear what purpose her time travel serves. She’s told that it’s so she can make sure “the Gift” (magic powers that are hereditary in Beatie’s family) survives to the next generation, but why the Gift needs to survive is never explained. As far as I could tell, the Gift never actually accomplishes anything useful. It doesn’t save the world or change the course of history or anything remarkable. So why Abby needed to save it, I don’t know. Which made the whole point of the plot pretty vague to me.

Overall, a decent book, but one I think I would’ve connected with way more if I had read it 15 years ago.

Rating: 3 / 5

Review: We Were Liars

“We Were Liars,” by E. Lockhart. The Goodreads summary:

A beautiful and distinguished family.
A private island.
A brilliant, damaged girl; a passionate, political boy.
A group of four friends—the Liars—whose friendship turns destructive.
A revolution. An accident. A secret.
Lies upon lies.
True love.
The truth.

We Were Liars is a modern, sophisticated suspense novel from National Book Award finalist and Printz Award honoree E. Lockhart.

Read it.
And if anyone asks you how it ends, just LIE.

True confession: I almost always read the end of books first, and I almost never regret it. But in this case, I really wish I hadn’t. Because so much of the book hinges on a secret that I wish I hadn’t ruined for myself. So word to the wise, don’t skim ahead in this book, if that’s your penchant. Just don’t.

I feel like I can’t talk too much about this book without risking giving everything away. But here are the two things I feel like I can say. First, that it was well written. I’ve read a few of E. Lockhart’s other books before, so I already knew she was a skilled writer, but I feel like “We Were Liars” is a cut above the rest in terms of writing. The other books I’ve read by this author tended to lean towards the witty (at least as far as I remember), but this book is more . . . artistic, I guess. Or stylized. Either way, the writing was a pleasure to read. And it was gripping. For real. Cady has amnesia at the beginning of the book, and you as the reader only get to discover the truth when she does . . . which subsequently resulted in my devouring this book pretty quickly.

Second, this book ended up being way more emotional than I was expecting. Even having ruined the ending for myself, this book ended up being about nothing that I thought it would be. Like, the story I came away with at the end wasn’t quite like anything I would’ve guessed when I started it. In a good way. Definitely in a good way. Despite the fact that it made me cry, which I hate.

Overall, a book that dealt with surprisingly heavy issues, but one that’s well written and well paced. Just remember: don’t skip to the end!

Rating: 4 / 5

Review: The Fiery Heart

“The Fiery Heart” (Bloodlines #4), by Richelle Mead. The Goodreads summary:

Sydney Sage is an Alchemist, one of a group of humans who dabble in magic and serve to bridge the worlds of humans and vampires. They protect vampire secrets - and human lives.

In The Indigo Spell, Sydney was torn between the Alchemist way of life and what her heart and gut were telling her to do. And in one breathtaking moment that Richelle Mead fans will never forget, she made a decision that shocked even her. . . .

But the struggle isn't over for Sydney. As she navigates the aftermath of her life-changing decision, she still finds herself pulled in too many directions at once. Her sister Zoe has arrived, and while Sydney longs to grow closer to her, there's still so much she must keep secret. Working with Marcus has changed the way she views the Alchemists, and Sydney must tread a careful path as she harnesses her profound magical ability to undermine the way of life she was raised to defend. Consumed by passion and vengeance, Sydney struggles to keep her secret life under wraps as the threat of exposure — and re-education — looms larger than ever.

Pulses will race throughout this smoldering fourth installment in the New York Times bestselling Bloodlines series, where no secret is safe.

This book has been sitting by my bed waiting for me to read it since January. And despite liking the previous books in this series, I was seriously struggling to work up the motivation to read it. I have no idea why it was so hard. But since “Silver Shadows” (book 5) just came out, I finally buckled down and read “The Fiery Heart.” And it was a bit disappointing, I have to admit.

It was just. So. Slow. I feel like absolutely nothing happens until the last third of the book. Well, I take that back. What happens is Sydney and Adrian moon over each other non-stop. And usually, I’m all for the romance, but since there was basically no other major plot to break up the lovey-dovey scenes, it all got a bit tedious. They do work on tattoo and Strigoi stuff a little, but that stuff was totally tangential to all the mushy I-love-you scenes.

Also, this book was from split Adrian and Sydney perspectives, which I have no problem with in theory. But I just didn’t think Adrian’s narrative voice sounded like a guy very much. I mean, he describes himself as “flouncing” to a chair. I mean, really? Flouncing?

The book does pick up in the last 50 pages or so, and the cliffhanger was enough to commit me to reading the next book. I just really, really hope Richelle Mead is back on her game in book 5, and that this one being a bit lame was just an aberration. Though honestly, even if the series doesn’t pick up from here, I’ll probably finish it anyway just because I’m this far in.

Overall, not the strongest book in the series. Fingers crossed for the next book being better.

Rating: 2.5 / 5

Review: Roomies

“Roomies,” by Sara Zarr & Tara Altebrando. The Goodreads summary:

It's time to meet your new roomie.

When East Coast native Elizabeth receives her freshman-year roommate assignment, she shoots off an e-mail to coordinate the basics: television, microwave, mini-fridge. That first note to San Franciscan Lauren sparks a series of e-mails that alters the landscape of each girl's summer -- and raises questions about how two girls who are so different will ever share a dorm room.

As the countdown to college begins, life at home becomes increasingly complex. With family relationships and childhood friendships strained by change, it suddenly seems that the only people Elizabeth and Lauren can rely on are the complicated new boys in their lives . . . and each other. Even though they've never met.

National Book Award finalist Sara Zarr and acclaimed author Tara Altebrando join forces for a novel about growing up, leaving home, and getting that one fateful e-mail that assigns your college roommate.

More than anything, I think this book made me realize how easy I had it when I went off to college. In “Roomies” it’s two girls stressing about everything to do with going to college, but I don’t remember it being that stressful for me. I mean, I was going out of state for college, but it was to a school that my older sister was already attending and my best friend from high school was going to be my roommate. Plus, I was the 5th kid my parents had sent off to college, so they knew the ropes pretty dang well by that point and I felt like I knew what to expect as well. But still, even though I didn’t necessarily relate to every fear and uncertainty that Lauren and Elizabeth had, I could definitely understand where they were coming from.

I think what stood out from the book the most for me was how adorable the two romances were. Both Mark and Keyon are way too good to be true, but I loved them anyway. I think I liked the romance between Lauren and Keyon the best, probably because out of Lauren and Elizabeth, I related to Lauren more, but also because I felt like Keyon came off as slightly less smooth than Mark. Neither of the two romances have all that much depth because they’re too busy being cute, but I guess when you’re trying to fit two romances into a book on top of all the other plot, there’s not a whole lot of page time to develop them.

Like I said, I related to Lauren more out of the two girls, but Elizabeth was plenty likeable as well, even if I felt she was a touch too dramatic about things sometimes. I liked seeing their relationship slowly develop from complete strangers into friends, and I especially liked how they both get to this point where they realize that their online friendship won’t necessarily translate into a real-life friendship unless they make the effort.

Overall, a cute and fluffy book that lives up to the tagline perfectly: “A novel about friendship, first loves, and random room assignments.”

Rating: 3.5 / 5