 Reviewed by Ivy
BOOK BASICS Author: Sarah J. Maas Publisher & Pages: Bloomsbury USA Childrens; 1 edition, 2012, 432 pages Audience: Young Adult Blurb: In a land without magic, where the king rules with an iron hand, an assassin is summoned to the castle. She comes not to kill the king, but to win her freedom. If she defeats twenty-three killers, thieves, and warriors in a competition, she is released from prison to serve as the king's champion. Her name is Celaena Sardothien. The Crown Prince will provoke her. The Captain of the Guard will protect her. But something evil dwells in the castle of glass--and it's there to kill. When her competitors start dying one by one, Celaena's fight for freedom becomes a fight for survival, and a desperate quest to root out the evil before it destroys her world. Highlight: Exceptional use of simple language and has a great flow of events. Highlight: The author doesn’t shy away from hard situations, and upsetting events. Highlight: The character attitudes and their development throughout the story is consistent, and changes logically from past incidents.
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 Reviewed by Ivy
BOOK BASICS Author: Cassie Alexander Publisher & Pages: New York : St. Martin's Paperbacks 2012, 341 pages Audience: Adult Blurb: Welcome to the secret wing of County Hospital—where vampires get transfusions, werewolves have silver allergies, and one nurse is in way over her head… Nursing school prepared Edie Spence for a lot of things. Burn victims? No problem. Severed limbs? Piece of cake. Vampires? No way in hell. But as the newest nurse on Y4, the secret ward hidden in the bowels of County Hospital, Edie has her hands full with every paranormal patient you can imagine—from vamps and were-things to zombies and beyond… Edie’s just trying to learn the ropes so she can get through her latest shift unscathed. But when a vampire servant turns to dust under her watch, all hell breaks loose. Now she’s haunted by the man’s dying words--Save Anna—and before she knows it, she’s on a mission to rescue some poor girl from the undead. Which involves crashing a vampire den, falling for a zombie, and fighting for her soul. Grey’s Anatomy was never like this… Highlight: The gruesome wounds of the Supernatural are tended to at a Paranormal Hospital. Caution: If you have a weak stomach, forgo the gory details. Highlight: The world has been brought to life by the casualness and ignorance Edie portrays towards the Paranormal beings. So you learn as she does.  Reviewed by Ashleigh
BOOK BASICS Author: CJ Archer Publisher & Pages: Self-published, 300 pages Audience: General Blurb: India Steele is desperate. Her father is dead, her fiancé took her inheritance, and no one will employ her, despite years working for her watchmaker father. Indeed, the other London watchmakers seem frightened of her. Alone, poor, and at the end of her tether, India takes employment with the only person who’ll accept her – an enigmatic and mysterious man from America. A man who possesses a strange watch that rejuvenates him when he’s ill. Matthew Glass must find a particular watchmaker, but he won’t tell India why any old one won’t do. Nor will he tell her what he does back home, and how he can afford to stay in a house in one of London’s best streets. So when she reads about an American outlaw known as the Dark Rider arriving in England, she suspects Mr. Glass is the fugitive. When danger comes to their door, she’s certain of it. But if she notifies the authorities, she’ll find herself unemployed and homeless again – and she will have betrayed the man who saved her life. With a cast of quirky characters, an intriguing mystery, and a dash of romance, THE WATCHMAKER’S DAUGHTER is the start of a thrilling new historical fantasy series from the author of the bestselling Ministry of Curiosities, Freak House, and Emily Chambers Spirit Medium books. Highlight: The quality of writing is AMAZING! Caution: The ending felt a little abrupt. Highlight: This is such an amazing story with unique characters. Caution: It finished too soon! I want more!  Reviewed by Ashleigh
BOOK BASICS Author: Elle Strauss Publisher & Pages: ESB Publishing, 305 pages Audience: Young Adult Blurb: A teen swim athlete discovers a merfolk world that threatens to keep her out of the ocean forever. Dori Seward can’t wait to get out of Eastcove, a sleepy fishing village on the border of New Brunswick and Maine. She bides her time by hanging out with friends, attending swim club, and holding her biggest competition, Colby–who wants more than just friendship, at arm’s length. Then Tor Riley comes to town and he has everything Dori dreams of in a boyfriend–looks, athleticism and mystery. But Tor also has a tantalizing secret and Dori is determined to find out what it is. The truth is crazier than her wildest imaginations and more dangerous, too. Dori has new fantastical enemies, and they will do anything to get to her. Her life, her dreams and her love for Tor are all weighing in the balance. Will Dori risk it all in order to have it all? Highlight: Mermaids! Highlight: Dori is a totally relatable heroine. Highlight: The whole story is fantastic. I can’t fault it. Highlight: A welcome change from vampires and werewolves.  Reviewed by Ivy
BOOK BASICS Author: Jeffery Cook & Katherine Perkins Publisher & Pages: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, 197 pages Audience: Young Adult Blurb: Lots of girls play Fairy Princess when they're little. Megan O'Reilly had no idea the real thing was like playing chess, guitar, and hockey all at once. Megan had known for a long time that she wasn't an entirely typical girl. But living with ADHD—and her mother's obsessions—was a very different thing from finding out she wasn't entirely human. Somewhere out there, in a completely different world, her father needs help. There's a conflict, revolving around Faerie seasonal rituals, that could have consequences for humanity—and if Megan's getting the terminology straight, it sounds like her family aren't even supposed to be the good guys. As she's further and further swept up in trying to save her father, Megan may be getting too good at not being human. Highlight: Great imagination and use of descriptions for a fantasy world. Caution: Large sections of exposition dialogue that’ll pierce your head and give you amnesia. Highlight: Fast paced action to keep the story and characters moving. Caution: The beginning reads faster than your brain can process.  Reviewed by Ivy
BOOK BASICS Author: Rachel Vincent Publisher & Pages: MIRA Books, 463 pages Audience: Adult Blurb: Most can’t touch the power. But Liv Warren is special – a paranormal tracker who follows the scent of blood. Liv makes her own rules, and the most important one is trust no one. But when her friend’s daughter goes missing, Liv has no choice but to find the girl. Thanks to a childhood oath, Liv can’t rest until the child is home safe. But that means trusting Cam Caballero, the former lover forbidden to her. Bound by oath and lost in desire for a man she cannot have, Liv is racing to save the child from a dark criminal underworld where secrets, lies, trauma and danger lurk around every corner... every touch... every kiss. Highlight: It contains a world of various paranormal individuals. What more could you want, besides a more thrilling read? Caution: The beginning is quite lifeless, but hang in there, it picks up after three chapters. Highlight: The characters have potential to shine, but it seems someone forgot to turn on the lamp. Caution: Many of the characters lack solid emotions and desires, which causes the characters to fade from existence.  Reviewed by Ashleigh
BOOK BASICS Author: Jennifer Lynn Barnes Publisher & Pages: Random House, 260 pages Audience: Young Adult Blurb: Four friends. Four tattoos. One ancient evil. Bailey Morgan isn’t the type of girl who shows a lot of skin, but somehow, she ends up in a dressing room at the mall with her friend Delia applying a strange temporary tattoo to the centre of her lower back. Never one to suffer fashion doubt, trendsetter Delia knows exactly where she wants her own tattoo: on her stomach, right where her shirt ends. Annabelle, the quiet friend, chooses the back of her neck, and tomboy Zo plasters hers on the top of her foot. The tattoos will last for three days, and Delia’s sure that with them, the four friends will absolutely kill at the school dance. Unfortunately, killing is just what someone has in mind, and Bailey, Delia, Annabelle and Zo are in for the battle of their lives. Along with her tattoo, each girl receives a gift – a supernatural power to help them in their fight. As Bailey’s increasingly frightening dreams reveal the nature of their enemy, it becomes clear to the girls that it’s up to them to save the world. And if they can get Delia to stop using her newfound power to turn gum wrappers into Prada pumps, they might actually stand a chance. Highlight: Great character development. Caution: The book leaves me with some unanswered questions. Highlight: Love the plot.  Reviewed by Ivy
BOOK BASICS Author: David Baldacci Publisher & Pages: Macmillan Children’s Book, 506 pages Audience: Young Adult Blurb: Why would Quentin Herms flee into the Quag? There was nothing in the Quag except certain death. Vega Jane has never left the village of Wormwood. But this isn’t unusual — nobody has ever left the village of Wormwood. At least not until Quentin Herms vanishes into the unknown. Vega knows Quentin didn’t just leave — he was chased. And he’s left behind a very dangerous trail of clues that only she can decode. The Quag is a dark forest filled with terrifying beasts and bloodthirsty Outliers. But just as deadly are the threats that exist within the walls of Wormwood. It is a place built on lies, where influential people are willing to kill to keep their secrets. Vega is determined to uncover the truth — but the closer she gets, the more she risks her life. ~David Baldacci's website description. Highlight: You get entangled in the webs of mystery. Caution: The mysteries are just as frustrating as it is intriguing. Highlight: The raw dynamics of the village system will sting your vital organs. Caution: You have the option of taking your chances with the beasts in the vast forest.  Reviewed by Ivy
BOOK BASICS Author: Shannon Mayer Publisher & Pages: HiJink Ink, 263 pages Audience: Adult Blurb: My name is Rylee, and I am a Tracker. When children go missing, and the Humans have no leads, I'm the one they call. I am their last hope in bringing home the lost ones. I salvage what they cannot. I'm on the FBI's wanted list. I have a werewolf for a pet, a Witch of a best friend, and I have no need for anyone else in my life. But when a salvage starts to spin out of control, help comes from a most unexpected direction. One that is dangerously dark, brooding, and doesn't know a thing about the supernatural. One whose kisses set me on fire. Highlight: The rapid change of scene mirrors the character being on the run. Caution: Rylee runs around like a headless chicken. Highlight: The action scenes replay for your enjoyment. Caution: Repeated lines of the characters dry up faster than Rylee can run. *Please note that this review is in the old format.*  TITLE: Kiss of Frost (Mythos Academy Novel #2)
AUTHOR: Jennifer Estep PUBLISHER: Kensington Publishing Corp. SYNOPSIS: I’m Gwen Frost, a second-year warrior-in-training at Mythos Academy, and I have no idea how I’m going to survive the rest of the semester. One day, I’m getting schooled in swordplay by the guy who broke my heart--the drop-dead gorgeous Logan, who slays me every time. Then, an invisible archer in the Library of Antiquities decides to use me for target practice. And now, I find out that somebody at the academy is really a Reaper bad guy who wants me dead. I’m afraid if I don’t learn how to live by the sword—with Logan’s help—I just might die by the sword... |
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