(ARC TOUR) Book Review: INGENUE

PREVIOUS TITLES IN SERIES: VIXEN

Power . . . love . . . scandal . . .

There’s never enough to go around.

In the city that never sleeps, Lorraine Dyer is wide awake. Ever since she exposed Clara Knowles for the tramp she was—and lost her closest confidante in the process—Lorraine has spent every second scheming to make her selfish, lovesick ex–best friend pay for what she did. No one crosses Lorraine. Not even Gloria.

True love conquers everything—or so Gloria Carmody crazily believed. She and Jerome Johnson can barely scrape together cash for their rent, let alone have a moment to whisper sweet nothings in the dark. And if they thought escaping Chicago meant they’d get away with murder . . . they were dead wrong.

Clara was sure that once handsome, charming Marcus Eastman discovered her shameful secret, he’d drop her like a bad habit. Instead, he swept her off her feet and whisked her away to New York. Being with Marcus is a breath of fresh air—and a chance for Clara to leave her wild flapper ways firmly in the past. Except the dazzling parties and bright lights won’t stop whispering her name. . . .

INGENUE is the second novel in the sexy, dangerous, and ridiculously romantic Flappers series set in the Roaring Twenties . . . where revenge is a dish best served cold.

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INGENUE description and cover art courtesy of GOODREADS

I received an ARC of INGENUE from AROUND THE WORLD ARC TOURS

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THE TWEET
Parties, Prohibition, Power. In INGENUE, the young women from VIXEN are back in this sequel where love may not be able to conquer all.

WHAT WORKED
INGENUE continues the story set out in VIXEN of three young women living, loving and partying during The Roaring Twenties. The setting has changed from Chicago to New York City and Vera, Jerome's sister, who was briefly introduced in VIXEN, becomes a more developed character.

What I liked the best about INGENUE (and VIXEN as well) was the different characters and perspectives the author presents. Readers are able to experience historical New York City from the eyes of four very different girls. We get to see how Gloria and Jerome's relationship has progressed now that they are dependent on each other for everything. We see the difficulties Clara has with fully renouncing her past ways and how this affects her relationship with Marcus. We see Vera finding friendship and possible love while looking desperately for her brother, Jerome. And finally Loraine, working for the very man Jerome and Gloria are running from, hoping to get revenge against Gloria. All these wonderfully developed characters and interwoven relationships made for a great story amid the backdrop of the Roaring Twenties.

WHAT DIDN'T WORKED
I would have liked to see the girls reunited earlier into the story. Each chapter, I kept thinking, this must be when Vera finds Jerome, or when Gloria sees Loraine, or even that one of the girls sees Clara's picture in the paper, but no such luck. The girls' reunion is kept until the very end of the book and while I understood the impact Larkin was going for with the scene, it just seemed a little too unrealistic that one of the girls wouldn't run into another. I've traveled halfway across the country and run into someone who lives minutes away from me.

OVERALL
Author Jillian Larkin has written a good followup to VIXEN. She expands on her characters' relationships, their ambitions, their feelings. Although fictional, Larkin has created an engaging and intriguing story about the era of Prohibition, the Roaring Twenties, and historical New York City.

MEMORABLE PASSAGES / QUOTES / SCENES:
When life gives you lemons, sometimes you need to stash them in the icebox and make a martini with olives instead. p. 286

"Well, between you and me, I'm not sure the cheese is still firmly on Spark's cracker." p. 308

"Come on Lorraine. I already told you - this is work for me. Besides, look at yourself. You've got no moral center, babe. You're just a dizzy opportunist." p. 322


MY RATING IS:

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Find INGENUE at your local indie bookstore.

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(ARC) Book Review: BORN AT MIDNIGHT

TITLE: BORN AT MIDNIGHT (SHADOW FALLS #1)
AUTHOR: C. C. Hunter
IMPRINT: St. Martin's Griffin
PUBLICATION DATE: 29 March 2011
PREVIOUS TITLES IN SERIES: None

Don’t miss this spectacular new series that will steal your heart and haunt your dreams, Welcome to Shadow Falls camp, nestled deep in the woods of a town called Fallen…

One night Kylie Galen finds herself at the wrong party, with the wrong people, and it changes her life forever. Her mother ships her off to Shadow Falls—a camp for troubled teens, and within hours of arriving, it becomes painfully clear that her fellow campers aren’t just “troubled.” Here at Shadow Falls, vampires, werewolves, shapshifters, witches and fairies train side by side—learning to harness their powers, control their magic and live in the normal world.

Kylie’s never felt normal, but surely she doesn’t belong here with a bunch of paranormal freaks either. Or does she? They insist Kylie is one of them, and that she was brought here for a reason. As if life wasn’t complicated enough, enter Derek and Lucas. Derek’s a half-fae who’s determined to be her boyfriend, and Lucas is a smokin’ hot werewolf with whom Kylie shares a secret past. Both Derek and Lucas couldn’t be more different, but they both have a powerful hold on her heart.

Even though Kylie feels deeply uncertain about everything, one thing is becoming painfully clear—Shadow Falls is exactly where she belongs…

BORN AT MIDNIGHT (SHADOW FALLS #1) description and cover art courtesy of Goodreads.

I received an ARC of BORN AT MIDNIGHT from Different Area Codes Book Tour.

THE TWEET
BORN AT MIDNIGHT is a character rich story of a teen girl, struggling to find her true self and on the way develops unforgettable friends.

WHAT WORKED
As I mentioned above, what stands out the most when reading BORN AT MIDNIGHT are the incredible relationships that Kylie develops at Shadow Falls camp. I loved how C.C. Hunter developed the friendship between Kylie, Della and Miranda. And despite my dislike of romantic triangles, I really liked how Hunter created the relationships between Kylie and Derek and Kylie and Lucas. I especially liked the past relationship Kylie had with Lucas. It made the romantic angle between them have a deeper emotional feel, especially considering that their past encounters were not romance based. I felt Kylie had to overcome more to create an attachment with Lucas, so that when she did, I was able to see the development of both their characters and how their feelings changed from the start of the book.

WHAT DIDN'T WORK
The one part of the book I didn't like was the pregnancy scare with Sara, one of Kylie's friends from her hometown. It seemed like an unnecessary subplot that was thrown in to have Kylie retain some tie to her former life.

OVERALL
BORN AT MIDNIGHT is a great start to the SHADOW FALLS series. I look forward to reading more about Kylie and the other characters introduced in BORN AT MIDNIGHT.

MY RATING IS

Click here to purchase BORN AT MIDNIGHT (SHADOW FALLS #1) from The Book Depository.




 

(ARC) Book Review: Cryer's Cross

Cryer's Cross by Lisa McMann

Description and cover art courtesy of Goodreads.

Publication Date: 8 February 2011.

I received an electronic galley of Cryer's Cross from Simon and Schuster Galley Grab.


Description
The community of Cryer’s Cross, Montana (population 212) is distraught when high school freshman Tiffany disappears without a trace. Already off-balance due to her OCD, 16-year-old Kendall is freaked out seeing Tiffany’s empty desk in the one-room school house, but somehow life goes on... until Kendall's boyfriend Nico also disappears, and also without a trace. Now the town is in a panic. Alone in her depression and with her OCD at an all-time high, Kendall notices something that connects Nico and Tiffany: they both sat at the same desk. She knows it's crazy, but Kendall finds herself drawn to the desk, dreaming of Nico and wondering if maybe she, too, will disappear...and whether that would be so bad. Then she begins receiving graffiti messages on the desk from someone who can only be Nico. Can he possibly be alive somewhere? Where is he? And how can Kendall help him? The only person who believes her is Jacian, the new guy she finds irritating...and attractive. As Kendall and Jacian grow closer, Kendall digs deeper into Nico's mysterious disappearance only to stumble upon some ugly—and deadly—local history. Kendall is about to find out just how far the townspeople will go to keep their secrets buried.


MY THOUGHTS

The Tweet
Written in Lisa McMann's unique writing style, Cryer's Cross is an enthralling thriller set in a small town with a literally haunting past.

What Worked (for me)
I loved Cryer's Cross. It was spooky with just the right amount of foreshadowing to keep readers turning pages, wanting to find out how the story would conclude. What I liked best was that McMann had such a flawed main character in Kendall, who suffered from OCD, a rarely written about disease, yet Kendall was still a strong young female who wouldn't stop until she found out what had happened to her missing friend. I also liked how McMann used Kendall's OCD as an integral part of the story in Kendall finding clues that, in the end, led her to the cause behind her friend's disappearance, as well as the town's secret.

What Didn't Work (for me)
The one thing I would have liked is more development of Nico's character. I realize his disappearance is what really sparks off the story and in Kendall investigating the cause. But I would have loved to get to know Nico's character more through himself, rather than just through Kendall's memories of him.

Overall
I was very impressed with Cryer's Cross. Though on the short side for a full novel, it has a well developed storyline and a main character who is easy to relate to and empathize with. Like her previous Wake series, Lisa McMann has written a good story that catches reader's attentions. I'd recommend this book to anyone who loves a good mystery/thriller.

MY RATING IS 4.5 STARS


Cryer's Cross Book Trailer

(ARC) Book Review: Darkest Mercy

Darkest Mercy by Melissa Marr

Description and cover art courtesy of Goodreads.

Publication Date: 22 February 2011.

I received an ARC of Darkest Mercy from Different Area Codes Book Tour.


Description
The Summer King is missing; the Dark Court is bleeding; and a stranger walks the streets of Huntsdale, his presence signifying the deaths of powerful fey.

Aislinn tends to the Summer Court, searching for her absent king and yearning for Seth. Torn between his new queen and his old love, Keenan works from afar to strengthen his court against the coming war. Donia longs for fiery passion even as she coolly readies the Winter Court for battle. And Seth, sworn brother of the Dark King and heir to the High Queen, is about to make a mistake that could cost his life.

Love, despair, and betrayal ignite the Faery Courts, and in the final conflict, some will win . . . and some will lose everything.

The thrilling conclusion to Melissa Marr's New York Times bestselling Wicked Lovely series will leave readers breathless.


MY THOUGHTS

The Tweet
Darkest Mercy is the final book in the Wicked Lovely series. Author Melissa Marr has written a fantastic and fitting end for her characters.

What Worked (for me):
Like the previous books in this series, Darkest Mercy explores the dangerous and seductive world of faerie and its inhabitants, as well as the humans they come into contact with. Marr has brought all of the characters from the previous books together for the perfect conclusion to their stories. I do not want to give anything away, so I'm afraid this review will be a bit vague and brief, but readers of this series will not be disappointed with the ending that Marr has written for her characters.

The most intriguing thing about the Wicked Lovely series is that Marr has written such great and multi-faceted characters. Even the villains are so well written you can't but help feel some compassion towards them. Throughout the series, Marr has explored the deepest parts of her characters' psyches and revealed their darkest desires. Darkest Mercy continues this tradition and then some.

Overall
Darkest Mercy is a edge of your seat, adventurous ride that left me gasping and wishing for more. My only disappointment is that this is the end of the series, but I have so enjoyed the journey to this point. If you haven't read the Wicked Lovely series yet, you are missing out on one of the best young adult series' written.

MY RATING IS 5 STARS.


Darkest Mercy Book Trailer

(ARC) Book Review: Kindred

Kindred by Tammar Stein

Description and cover art courtesy of Goodreads.

Publication Date: 11 February 2011

I received an ARC of Kindred from Star Book Tours.


Description
The first time I meet an angel, it is Raphael and I am eighteen.

Miriam is an unassuming college freshman stuck on campus after her spring break plans fall through. She's not a religious girl--when pressed she admits reluctantly to believing in a higher power. Truth be told, she's about as comfortable speaking about her faith as she is about her love life, which is to say, not at all. And then the archangel Raphael pays Miriam a visit, and she finds herself on a desperate mission to save two of her contemporaries. To top it all off, her twin brother, Mo, has also had a visitation, but from the opposite end of the good-evil spectrum, which leaves Miriam to wonder--has she been blessed and her brother cursed or vice versa? And what is the real purpose behind her mission?


My Thoughts

What Worked (for me)
Kindred is an interesting take on the "angel" novel. Instead of a girl being caught in between two angels (doubling as love interests), Miriam believes that she has been visited by the angel Gabriel. She embarks upon a quest to save those that she believes Gabriel has marked for her. But throughout the novel, it is made clear that Miriam has experienced her own crisis of faith. At the start of the novel, it is made clear that though Miriam may believe in something, she is not very religious. As the novel progresses, readers can see that though Miriam believes that Gabriel (and perhaps, God) has a plan for her, she has trouble unravelling her own deeper feelings on God.

I really liked Tammer Stein's style of prose. Her writing could be considered a little sparse, but it resonated with me. Even with the subject matter, Kindred does not come off as preachy, or even as overly religious. The placement of Miriam's fraternal twin brother, Mo, as her adversary was genius. It is easy to see that Mo is the wilder, more free and extroverted of the pair. And, when it seems as if he might be working on the opposite side of the good-evil divide as Miriam, Stein exposes Miriam's inner confusion over how to help her brother with great alacrity.

A small note on some of the more mundane details of the book: Miriam experiences some illness, which she attributes to her position. Perhaps God is punishing her, or perhaps she must endure this pain for a greater purpose. Understandably, this is a part of the plot that is important to the novel, but the details of her illness are rather detailed. Once Miriam sees a doctor, it is revealed that she probably suffers from Crohn's Disease. For readers who might be sensitive to this sort of thing, know that there is a fair amount of discussion about Miriam's intestinal and "lower" issues. While it didn't put me off the book, I can see how it could take away from the greater plot that Kindred is about, if it is a personally disturbing subject.

Overall
At it's heart, Kindred describes a struggle; a turning point or "growing pain". The inner struggle that Miriam has, the struggle that exists between good and evil, is a struggle that, with the religious aspect removed, could describe almost any hard situation that a person (especially a teen) might find themselves having to overcome.

MY RATING IS 3.5 STARS

(ARC) Book Review: Unearthly

Unearthly by Cynthia Hand
Description and cover art courtesy of Goodreads.

Publication Date: 1 January 2011.

I received an ARC of this book from International Book Tours.


Description
In the beginning, there's a boy standing in the trees . . . .

Clara Gardner has recently learned that she's part angel. Having angel blood run through her veins not only makes her smarter, stronger, and faster than humans (a word, she realizes, that no longer applies to her), but it means she has a purpose, something she was put on this earth to do. Figuring out what that is, though, isn't easy.

Her visions of a raging forest fire and an alluring stranger lead her to a new school in a new town. When she meets Christian, who turns out to be the boy of her dreams (literally), everything seems to fall into place—and out of place at the same time. Because there's another guy, Tucker, who appeals to Clara's less angelic side.

As Clara tries to find her way in a world she no longer understands, she encounters unseen dangers and choices she never thought she'd have to make—between honesty and deceit, love and duty, good and evil. When the fire from her vision finally ignites, will Clara be ready to face her destiny?


My Thoughts

The Tweet
Unearthly is a story about angels, romance and the sacrifices one must sometimes make for a greater good.

What Worked (for me)
The character development and relationships described in Unearthly. As you may be able to to tell from other reviews I have done, I am huge on character development. I like being able to read about characters that are well thought out and described personality wise (not necessarily physically). I want to be able to emphasize with and know where characters are coming from, without it being heavy handed and competing with the actual storyline. Cynthia Hand has done just this with her characters in Unearthly.

I especially liked reading about the relationship between Clara and her mother. In most young adult novels, there is very little character development, or even mention, of parental figures, beyond them being a source of money or strife (or both). I loved that Hand was able to create a loving, though not without disagreements, mother-daughter relationship. Hand also developed the character of Clara's mother well, without taking the focus off of Clara and the young adult aspect of the story.

I also loved the scenic descriptions in Unearthly. Hand makes the town of Jackson Hole, Wyoming come alive with her fantastic descriptions of the town and surrounding environs. I especially liked her descriptions of nature and the mountains that she included when Clara and Tucker are hiking.

Cynthia Hand also had great descriptions of the angel-bloods themselves - how the Black Wing looked and the feelings he invoked in those around him, what Clara and her mom looked like when achieving Grace, and the way Clara's hair looked when they first arrived in Jackson Hole.

What Didn't Work (for me)
The romantic triangle. When Tucker was first introduced in the story, despite Clara and him not liking each other, I could see where it was leading. I thought to myself, 'Oh boy, not another triangle where the girl is stuck between two boys and has to decide who to be with. Who WILL she choose?' Despite not liking this aspect of the storyline, I have to admit that Hand really made the device work, and not seem trite and overused, by making Christian part of Clara's Purpose and not just another boy she had feelings for. In the end this did not take away from my total enjoyment of Unearthly.

My Rating is 4 stars


Unearthly Book Trailer

(ARC) Book Review: The Other Side of Dark

The Other Side of Dark by Sarah Smith

Publication Date: 2 November 2010

I received an ARC of this book from Star Book Tours.


Description
Since losing both of her parents, fifteen-year-old Katie can see and talk to ghosts, which makes her a loner until fellow student Law sees her drawing of a historic house and together they seek a treasure rumored to be hidden there by illegal slave-traders.

Law Walker knew Katie Mullens before she was crazy. Before her mother died. Law knows Katie’s crazy now, but she’s always been talented. And she keeps filling sketch pads even though her drawings have gone a little crazy as well—dark, bloody. What Law doesn’t know is that these drawings are real. Or were real. Katie draws what she sees—and Katie sees dead people. People who have died—recently, and not so recently—in accidents, from suicide, even a boy who was trapped in a house that burned down more than 100 years ago. And it’s this boy who makes Law want to get to know Katie all over again. So what if his dad doesn’t want him dating a white girl? So what if people think Katie is dangerous? The ghost boy is hiding a secret that Law needs to know—and it’s much bigger, much more shocking than anyone ever expected.


My Review
The Other Side of Dark is a ghost story that incorporates romance and history to create an intriguing novel.

Loved: The conclusion of The Other Side of Dark was a stunner and I loved how Smith brought this about. The book started off slow and some of the language was hard to understand. I resisted the urge to put the book down halfway through and I'm glad I did. The ending was totally worth it!

Liked: The historical aspect of the story. As an African American myself, it is nice to read a book that isn't afraid to "go there" in recounting the horrifying acts committed against slaves. Even though this book is fiction, I felt it gave a realistic view of the slave experience and portrayed to readers the terrible conditions that slaves had to endure.

Disliked: Katie's father. His character came off as too supercilious and sanctimonious to me. I found it interesting that he married a white woman and then proceeded to completely oppose her viewpoints and ideals. He was all about black and white (literally) and couldn't see any gray area. I think his character could have been dialed back (just a little) and still have been interesting and made the same contribution to the story.

Overall: I think Sarah Smith has written a good story, however it is dark and some parts are very disturbing. I would recommend this book to older, more mature teens. I loved the blend of history and the present, as well as the supernatural ghost story.


My Rating is 4 stars

Description and picture courtesy of Goodreads.

(ARC) Book Review: The Replacement

The Replacement by Brenna Yovanoff
I received an ARC of this book through Star Book Tours.


Description: Mackie Doyle seems like everyone else in the perfect little town of Gentry, but he is living with a fatal secret - he is a Replacement, left in the crib of a human baby sixteen years ago. Now the creatures under the hill want him back, and Mackie must decide where he really belongs and what he really wants.

A month ago, Mackie might have told them to buzz off. But now, with a budding relationship with tough, wounded, beautiful Tate, Mackie has too much to lose. Will love finally make him worthy of the human world?


My Review: The Replacement is an original and edgy read that introduces readers to a dark and twisted world. Told through the eyes of Mackie Doyle it portrays the uglier side of human nature and unimaginable beings that exist on the fringes of human society.

The two characters that stood out the most for me were Tate and Emma. Tate was a strong, independent female character. When her younger sister's "replacement" dies, Tate is the only one to defy the townspeople's long-held silence regarding missing babies. I liked how her love for her sister was so great that she was willing to speak up for her sister even though the rest of the town, including her family, was following the status quo.

Emma too, was a strong, independent female character who accepted and loved her brother Mackie's replacement, despite knowing he wasn't really her brother. While almost all replacements, sickly to begin with, died young, Mackie grew up to be a teenager because of the love and attention that Emma gave him. She was willing to sacrifice for her brother so that he could survive in the human world.

The one character I would have like to see more development on was Mackie's friend Roswell. I would have loved to learn more about his family and what made them the exception to the rest of the townspeople.

The Replacement was a well written story of dark and dangerous beings. Yovanoff has created a great atmospheric novel that will appeal to older teens and adult readers.


My Rating: 4 stars

Decsription and picture courtesy of Goodreads.

(ARC) Book Review: Slayed

Slayed by Amanda Marrone
I received an ARC of this book through Good Golly Miss Holly (ARC) Tours.


Description: The Van Helsing family has been hunting vampires for over one hundred years, but sixteen-year-old Daphne wishes her parents would take up an occupation that doesn’t involve decapitating vamps for cash. All Daphne wants is to settle down in one place, attend an actual school, and finally find a BFF to go to the mall with. Instead, Daphne has resigned herself to a life of fast food, cheap motels and buying garlic in bulk.

But when the Van Helsings are called to a coastal town in Maine, Daphne’s world is turned upside down. Not only do the Van Helsings find themselves hunting a terrifying new kind of vampire (one without fangs but with a taste for kindergarten cuisine), Daphne meets her first potential BF! The hitch? Her new crush is none other than Tyler Harker, AKA, the son of the rival slayer family.

What's a teen vampire slayer to do?


My Review: Slayed was a quick and easy read that I finished in one sitting. Despite the serious nature of the story hinted at from the jacket copy, it was full of humor and laugh out loud moments. The story was a real page turner that kept me engrossed from beginning to end.

The character of Maybelle "Kiki" Crusher was one of the main reasons why I enjoyed Slayed so much. She was funny and a great complement to Daphne's character. I liked how Kiki was all gung ho vampire slayer one minute and then nervous and unsure of herself the next. But in the end, she was a true friend to Daphne and always come through for her no matter what the situation.

I was a little skeptical about Tyler and Daphne's relationship at first. Their Romeo and Juliet style romance seemed a little too formulaic and unoriginal, but Marrone threw in some twists that kept it from being too much "been there, read that." I really would have liked to have read some of the story from Tyler's point of view, though. His family history was interesting and I think his character could have been developed more if readers could have had a glimpse into his mind.

Overall, Slayed was a great read and I look forward to reading more from Amanda Marrone.


My Rating: 4 stars

Picture and description courtesy of Goodreads.