Jennifer Estep - Touch of Frost

Another Goodreads recommendation, following me reading the final instalment of the Starcrossed series, Goddess.  This has similar mythic themes but the concept is a bit like P.C. and Kristin Cast's House of Night series where it takes place in a specialist school.

Touch of Frost is the first book in the Mythos Academy series by Jennifer Estep.  This series revolves around Gwendolyn "Gwen" Frost, a young Gypsy girl, who started a new school two months prior the beginning of this book.  She is established as the outcast in this young adult book while everyone around her is accepted in their own clique.  She has no friends, though she doesn't care about this, and dresses differently from all of the other students (who wear designer gear and nothing else); she also feels different to everyone else because she isn't a warrior like them and she only has a bit of magic.

Rating: 8

Recommended To: Those that liked the House of Night series and Starcrossed series

Favourite Characters: Logan Quinn - mysterious and aloof; Daphne - appears to be more than a pretty girl which is great; Vic - sarcastic and bloodthirsty

Favourite Part: Arm in arm, we left her room, the beginnings of a real relationship shimmering in the air between us, just like the bright pink sparks fluttering up from the Valkyrie's fingertips. - Page 236

Good Points: The concept; love interest is present but not a focal point; Gwen's determination; the powers and the weapons

Bad Points: School life is not fully explored; myths are vaguely mentioned

Carolee Dean - Take Me There

I thought this book was going to be so easy to introduce because the initial thoughts I had on it from the cover were it was going to be the same as Amy & Roger's Epic Detour; this is because Goodreads recommended this book to me when I had finished Amy & Roger.  However, it was completely different which was amazing from my point of view.

Take Me There is a young adult book by Carolee Dean about Dylan Dawson, a young man with an established background as a bad boy, combined with a criminal record, a jailbird father, and an alcoholic mother who is trying to forget her own past through the bottle.

Rating: 10

Recommended To: Anyone - some violence and gore but not horrific

Favourite Characters: Dylan - he's amazing; DJ Dawson - helps Dylan come to terms with his past

Favourite Part: I hear my father's voice faintly, over the telephone, answering for me in a soft drawl.  "He's my son."  He reaches out his hand, pressing it against the glass, as if trying to touch me.  He smiles, and I see a tear making its way down his cheek.
[...]

I press my hand up against my father's and I'm suddenly close enough to the glass to see my reflection, blurred by the tears now filling my eyes.  I wipe them away with my fist and take a good look at my father. - Page 167-168

Good Points: The opening; the poetry; DJ's writing; male perspective

Bad Points: Wade's sudden turn around

Tom Fletcher & Dougie Poynter - The Dinosaur That Pooped Christmas

It's going to be a bit of time until my next review and I thought I'd really mix it up yet again with a kids' book written by two members of McFly; I know it's random but I used to love McFly when I was a teenager and thought it was amazing that two of them wrote a kids' book. My friends thought it was childish but I didn't care, everyone needs to let out that inner child and give in to reading kids' books; they are simple, easy to read and for the most part funny if the reader can indulge themselves in the words.

This is going to be a short review with it being such a short story and even though it's not as long, I thoroughly enjoyed this book.

Rating: 9

Recommended To: Good for kids and anyone else who can handle the content

Favourite Characters: Santy C - who doesn't love jolly old Saint Nick

Favourite Part: So big Santy C said, "I'll leave a present, but this year his present might just be unpleasant". - Page 4

Good Points: The illustrations; the writing style and story; the lesson

Bad Points: Slightly gross

Sarah Strohmeyer - How Zoe Made Her Dreams (Mostly) Come True

From books of the dystopic/post-apocalyptic persuasion to the paranormal, I sometimes like to mix it up with something more normal from time to time.

This time, I have chosen How Zoe Made Her Dreams (Mostly) Come True by 

Sarah Strohmeyer, a book aimed at young adults that revolves around Fairyland Kingdom, a fairy tale theme park.  This story revolves around Zoe, an upcoming high school senior who has landed a summer internship at Fairyland along with her cousin, Jess, and thirty-something other teenagers the same age to work as cast members in the various fairy tales that have been brought to life in this theme park.  While the internship is unpaid, but their living expenses are covered for the summer, all of the interns have the chance to win the Dream & Do grant for the two most exceptional interns, one boy and one girl, who have shown "exceptional Wow™ spirit" and with this, they get to join the Fairyland Executive Training Program.

Rating: 9

Recommended To: Teenage girls and girls in their early twenties

Favourite Characters: Ian - funny and many other reasons; Zoe - relatable despite what she's been through

Favourite Part: He bowed deeply before me and slipped to one knee, taking my hand in his and gazing with the perfect Fairyland combination of princely adoration and chaste love.  Andy actually applauded, and even my own heart skipped a head - which Ian must have felt because he squeezed my fingers gently.
"Am I forgiven, dearest?" he asked again, batting his eyelashes.
I mouthed, In your dreams! - Page 178-9

Good Points: The story; the queen; easy to read; the concept of the Dream & Do grant

Bad Points: The backstabbing teens; the message takes a while to come about

Veronica Rossi - Through the Ever Night

Now back again to a series that I have already started and I adore so I wanted to share my opinion with others.

Through the Ever Night is the second book in the Under the Never Sky series by Veronica Rossi; this series alternates between the perspectives (though in third person narrative) of Aria and Peregrine "Perry".  These two live in separate worlds; Aria is defined as a Dweller, she lives in Reverie, a pod where the chosen live to carry on the human race, living in a virtual reality through eyepieces, weeding out the illnesses and ailments that destroy us, while Perry is defined as an Outsider, he lives in the wilderness with his tribe where they fend for themselves, surviving on whatever they can hunt, scavenge or trade for.  Aria's world is turned upside down when she is thrown out of Reverie and stranded until Perry finds her and helps her survive while taking her to her mother who is in one of the other Pods in this world.  Along the way, she discovers she is in fact half-Outsider, from the father she's never known, and possesses the senses of an Audible (being able to hear sounds way beyond normal means).  Meanwhile, Perry is determined to have Aria find his nephew who has been sold by his own father and return to him to the tribe, the Tides, and while he seems primitive to Aria, she falls for him as he for her.

Rating: 10

Recommended To: Those that like The Hunger Games

Favourite Characters: Perry - he has a lot of weight on his shoulders for such a young man; Cinder - mysterious and intriguing

Favourite Part: He lay down, gathering her close.  Aria slumped against him, turning her ear to his chest.  She listened to his heartbeat - a good, solid sound - as the warmth of his body melted into her.  She'd been in a fog earlier.  Hallucinating and searching for what was real.  She found it in him.  He was real. - Page 121 

Good Points: Aria and Perry when they're together; the story; Roar and Liv

Bad Points: The end comes very quickly; the slightest hint of unnecessary love triangles

Kiera Cass - The Elite

More dystopia/post-apocalyptic fiction off my bookshelf now and it's back to a series I've already started but not reviewed before; Kiera Cass's The Selection series.

The Elite is the second book in Kiera Cass's The Selection series with the first being The Selection which follows America Singer, a underprivileged young woman who works as a musician to earn money along with her family while they live in a society ruled by the royal family of Illéa.  America is chosen, along with another thirty five girls to be part of the Selection: this society's way of allowing the prince to choose his bride while the public watch.  While America signed up for this, she is reluctant to continue because she is still reeling from her break up with Aspen, her former neighbour and boyfriend, who left her to join the Army.  She insults the prince on the first night but she starts to come around and eventually falls for him (he has already fallen in love with her) and their relationship grows over the course of the first book and America makes the final seven of the Selection.  However, the book then ends when Aspen reappears in America's life as a member of the Palace Guard.

Rating: 10

Recommended To: Those that liked The Hunger Games

Favourite Characters: America - she is a symbol of hope in a suppressive society; Marlee - she's stronger in this book

Favourite Part: I was overwhelmed. He understood me so well, how nervous I was about making this commitment, how frightening it was for me to become a princess. He was going to give me every last second he could and, in the meantime, lavish me with everything possible. I had another one of those moments when I couldn’t believe this was all happening.
“That’s not fair, Maxon,” I mumbled. “What in the world am I supposed to be able to give you?”

He smiled. “All I want is your promise to stay with me, to be mine. Sometimes it feels like you can’t possibly be real. Promise me you’ll stay.”

“Of course, I promise.” - Page 81 

Good Points: The concept; the importance of family to America as well as Maxon; America and Maxon's relationship

Bad Points: Love triangles (Maxon/America/Aspen and America/Maxon/Kriss)

JoAnna Carl - The Chocolate Cat Caper

And yet another mystery/crime book taken off the shelf of Stef Streatfield, what a surprise.  Maybe my collection isn't as eclectic as I like to think.  Like my previous full book review, it is a new series that I got from Goodreads so even though it was similar to others I have read, I hoped something would make it stand out against the others.

The Chocolate Cat Caper is the first book in JoAnna Carl's series A Chocoholic Mystery which is told from the point of view of Lee McKinney, who has gone from being a trophy wife to a wealthy Texan to an independent young woman, keeping the books for her aunt's chocolate business.

Rating: 7

Recommended To: Chick lit lovers

Favourite Characters: Lee - interesting protagonist; Joe - intriguing romantic interest

Favourite Part: He went on to the outside door, opened it, and stepped back to let me out.  Or I thought he was going to let me out.  I stepped forward and he stepped sideways, and we bumped into each other again.  Suddenly we were standing in the doorway, nose to nose.  This time neither of us moved.  We stood just there.
The moment would have passed if either one of us had reacted normally.  Or maybe we did react normally.

It was a heck of a kiss. - Page 160

Good Points: The idea and background; the story; the random facts

Bad Points: Lee and Joe's relationship; really quick 

Joanne Fluke - Chocolate Chip Cookie Murder: Candy for Christmas

In my edition of Chocolate Chip Cookie Murder, there was an additional story within it called Candy for Christmas.  This short story follows the events of Chocolate Chip Cookie Murder but before the rest of the other books; there is a letter prior to this short story in the book where Hannah writes to Joanne Fluke where she requests her biographer (Fluke) to write about something other than the murder investigations Hannah becomes involved in.

This is just going to be a short review of the story as it isn't a full book so I'm not going to rate or recommend it to anyone as it's a story found in a reprint of the first book.

Favourite Characters: Candy

Favourite Part: Candy loved to shop and she couldn't seem to shop smiling.  They'd gone out the front door of The Cookie Jar and into the next building over.  There were party dresses on the mannequins in the windows, and Hannah has said they were going to buy something for her to wear to the party tomorrow night. 

Good Points: The letter; the story

Bad Points: Too short

Joanne Fluke - Chocolate Chip Cookie Murder

So now for another chick lit crime book but this time it is a new series that I haven't read before now. This came from the recommendations on Goodreads which suggested series such as Jack Daniels Mysteries and Chocoholic Mysteries series as well as this series, Hannah Swensen Mysteries.

Chocolate Chip Cookie Murder is the very first book of the Hannah Swensen Mystery series from Joanne Fluke; all of the books in this series have recipes in them which makes it different and allows the reader to make some of the original creations that Hannah also makes in the books. Chocolate Chip Cookie Murder was originally written in 2000 but was rereleased in 2011 with even more recipes and other stories included.  

Rating: 7

Recommended To: Chick lit crime buffs; similar to the Stephanie Plum series so those readers might like them

Favourite Characters: Hannah - she's a clever cookie; Andrea - she makes me laugh

Favourite Part: Two dates in one night - not bad at all!  Hannah's frown turned into a grin as she lifted the lid and dropped her very favorite five-year-old pair of Nikes inside. - Page 299

Good Points: The story; the sense of family; the recipes 

Bad Points: Similarities to other chick lit crime books 

Janet Evanovich - Sizzling Sixteen

Now for a book from one of my favourite authors, Janet Evanovich, and series, Stephanie Plum. I've pretty much read everything of Evanovich's that I can get my hands on and I've always loved the Stephanie Plum series and the characters within them. 

Sizzling Sixteen is quite obviously the sixteenth normal book from the Stephanie Plum series that just feature Joe and Ranger, the two men in Stephanie's life who she is constantly flitting between which complicates her life along with her job, and the twentieth book that includes the "Between the Numbers" books that feature another man in Stephanie's life who complicates her life even more. Stephanie Plum is a young woman who at the start of the series is an unemployed ex-lingerie saleswoman who blackmails her cousin, Vinnie Plum, into giving her a job as a bounty hunter; at this point in the story, Stephanie has pretty much bumbled her way through apprehending the many FTAs she's been given by Vinnie, gaining a trusty sidekick in the ex-hooker, Lula, and has been on and off with Joe multiple times and slept with Ranger once.

Rating: 9

Recommended To: Chick lit lovers; crime readers; not really necessary to read the previous books but reading the first one, One For The Money, gives you a background on most of the characters and maybe Hot Six for a bit more of information on Mooner (Moon-Man)

Favourite Characters: Mooner; Morelli; Connie. All these characters make me laugh

Favourite Part: Morelli grinned down at me. "I don't know where he's getting it, but he's got some really good shit in those brownies." - Page 232

Good Points: Completely random in the grand scheme of things but still relevant to the previous books; Stephanie; Morelli

Bad Points: Pick Morelli or Ranger, for God's sake, Steph; Vinnie really grossed me out

Jaye Wells - Green-Eyed Demon

Now for a paranormal book from a series I've started a while ago with Green-Eyed Demon by Jaye Wells.

Green-Eyed Demon is the third book in Jaye Wells's Sabina Kane series which picks up from where the second book left as Sabina searches for her twin sister with Adam and Gighul after her sister was kidnapped by their vampire grandmother because in her opinion, they are contaminating the vampire race with their half-vampire half-mage blood.

Rating: 10

Recommended To: Those that like vampire book, better than Twilight

Favourite Characters: Adam - he's hot and protective of Sabina and his friends and family; Sabina - spunky, strong, independent woman

Favourite Part: I didn't think about what I was doing. Didn't try to rationalize it. Didn't second-guess. I just raised my lips to his and allowed my kiss to tell him what I was feeling. And when his hands gripped my arms and he returned the kiss with a fierceness that should have scared me, I didn't pull away. 
Adam and I had kissed before. Passionate kisses that left both of us wanting more. But this kiss wasn't a lusty tangle of tongues and lips like the others. Instead, it was an unfurling of emotions denied for too long. And for the first time, being in Adam's arms didn't spark the fear that normally made me want to run what he offered. - Page 229

Good Points: Sabina and Adam together; Gighul; the combination of Sabina, Adam, and Gighul; the well thought out story

Bad Points: How long it took for Sabina and Adam to really get together

Stephanie Perkins - Anna and the French Kiss

Now for a more normal book out of my collection with Anna and the French Kiss.  This is more of a young adult book, aimed at older teens but also can appeal to those in their early twenties.

Anna and the French Kiss is Stephanie Perkins's debut in the book world and has subsequently written two companion books for this one, creating a series containing characters that are interlinked but each book focuses on separate couples.  Anna and the French Kiss focuses on Anna Oliphant and her new life in Paris at school and her developing relationship with Étienne St. Clair.

Rating: 8

Recommended To: A young female audience, late teens/early twenties

Favourite Characters: St. Clair - the way he is with Anna and what he goes through

Favourite Part: St. Clair wanders around, picking up things and examining them like I did in Meredith's room.  He inspects the collection of banana and elephant figurines lined up on my dresser.  He holds up a glass elephant and raises his dark eyebrows in question. - Page 64

Good Points: Anna loves her films; the use of emails

Bad Points: Time goes very quickly; not a good use of the friends Anna makes at school

Moira J. Moore - Resenting the Hero

So now for a book from my fantasy collection with Resenting the Hero by Moira J. Moore that focuses on someone of the same age as me roughly.

Resenting the Hero by Moira J. Moore is the first book in her Hero series which focuses on a world far in the future where the population are protected by a group of talented individuals, defined as Shields and Sources; Resenting the Hero focuses on Dunleavy "Lee" Mallorough, a Shield, and her Source, Lord Shintaro "Taro" Karish.  Sources have control over various forces of nature that threaten the general populace such as wind, water, and other disasters by opening their mind and manipulating them with it while Shields quite literally shield the Source's mind so that they don't die.

Rating: 10

Recommended To: Those that like fantasy books; more female orientated audience in my opinion

Favourite Characters: Lee - strong willed young woman who is discovering the world; Taro - he isn't what I expected

Favourite Part: In time I could move, though my body wasn't thrilled about it.  I moved from the floor to the sofa I had fallen off of, which was all the progress I was going to demand from myself right then.  Karish was much more ambitious, moving from the floor by the table to the sofa.  He sat beside me and without the slightest hesitation or diffidence wrapped his arms around me and pulled me close, and I bonelessly complied.  Pain eased, muscles loosened, and the beating of his heart helped to drive disturbing images from my mind.  For the moment not giving a damn about how it looked or whether it was a bad idea, I curled around him and flattened my palm against his chest so I could feel the blood pulsing around him. - Page 82

Good Points: Lee and Taro together; the concept

Bad Points: Aiden seemed like a pointless character in a way; the cover

Moira Young - Rebel Heart

Here's another dystopia book from a series I've already started reading. This book has a different writing style to the other books that fall in this genre with the words being written down phonetically depending on who is speaking.

Rebel Heart by Moira Young is the second book in her Dust Lands series which is told mainly from the point of view of Saba, an eighteen year old girl. Saba is the twin sister of Lugh and they are complete opposites; he is bright and strong while she is dark and scrawny. They have grown up and lived together with their father and sister until Lugh is kidnapped by the Tonton, a group of dark robed men who work for the deranged ruler of their land. Rebel Heart follows Blood Red Road where Saba has chased after the Tonton to find her brother, meeting Jack, a mysterious young man who Saba saves, and becomes a symbol when she overthrows the tyrant ruler and his family.

Rating: 9

Recommended To: Those who like dystopia fiction, though you need to read the first one so this one makes sense

Favourite Characters: Jack - he's always thinking about Saba and fights for her; Saba - she thinks of everyone else before herself

Favourite Part: The heartstone burns, fierce an true. I bin missin him so deep. It hurts my heart to see him agin. I open my mouth to call his name. I stop myself. His head snaps in my direction. Like he knows I'm here. - Page 282

Good Points: The writing style; the constant separation of Jack and Saba as it's different; the development of Jack and Saba individually as well as together

Bad Points: The way Lugh is with everyone; love fricking square

Marie Lu - Prodigy

So now I'm back to the dystopia fiction again and back to another series I've already started. I know I've already done some dystopia fiction but I really enjoyed this one. Though it falls into the same genre as two of my recent reviews, it differs as it focuses on two prodigal teens that are on the run from the government that have deemed them as criminals.

Marie Lu's Prodigy picks up just after where Legend left off with June and Day running away from the Republic. In Legend, June was the prodigal child of the Republic while Day was the most wanted criminal in society and highly desired by the Patriots, the rebels in this society. Over the course of the first book, June pursues Day, a young man who she believes killed her brother; however, she discovers along the way who he really is and how the Republic have manipulated his life as well as others in society. When she discovers that Day did not kill her brother, June arranges his escape before his execution. When she saves Day before his execution, losing Day's older brother, John, in Day's place, June and Day escape, wanting to find the rebels, the Patriots.

Rating: 9

Recommended To: Those who like dystopia fiction, though you need to read the first one so this one makes sense

Favourite Characters: Day - he's cheeky, he's adorable; Kaede - she's spunky and cares for Day on about the same level as June

Favourite Part: Day appears again. This time he leans in close enough for his hair to brush, light as silk, against my cheeks. He pulls me towards for a long kiss. The scene vanishes, replaced abruptly by a stormy night and Day struggling through the rain, blood dripping from his leg and leaving a trail behind him. He collapses onto his knees in front of Razor before the whole scene disappears again. - Page 166

Good Points: The plot, if you ignore the love triangle; the twists; June and Day together

Bad Points: WHY THE LOVE TRIANGLE?!!! (Square or something)

Gena Showalter - The Darkest Night

So now I'm on to the more grown up and paranormal side of my book collection and keeping away from the dystopia fiction this time.

The Darkest Night by Gena Showalter is the first in her Lords of the Underworld series, following a group of men who have been cursed by the gods.  Their curse is to be possessed by unique demons that were released from Pandora's Box.  The Darkest Night tells the story of Maddox who shares his body with the demon of violence.  Not only is Maddox cursed with this demon in his body but Zeus cursed him a second time: to be murdered every night at midnight.  So for over a thousand years, Maddox has died at night and taken to hell only to be resurrected again in the morning to relive this horror again and again.

Rating: 10

Recommended To: Those that like paranormal novels, though definitely for an adult audience.

Favourite Character: I have a few. It's a toss-up between Paris, Maddox, Torin and Ashlyn. Paris makes me laugh; Maddox and Torin intrigue me; and I connect with Ashlyn as she's pretty much the only woman in the book.

Favourite Part: Maddox held Ashlyn for several hours as she napped, hopefully reviving body and soul. Time was his enemy, midnight fast sneaking up on him, but he didn't wake her. - Page 186

Good Points: The concept; the characters are engaging

Bad Points: There's a lot of men possessed by demons, hard to keep track of them

Gemma Malley - The Declaration

Though most people I know describe my book collection eclectic with a slight deviation to urban fantasy books, my next review is on The Declaration by Gemma Malley, another dystopia fiction book.

The Declaration is the first of a trilogy set in Bloomsbury, Britain in the 22nd century where no one ages or dies but there is a price, no more children.

Overall Rating: 6

Recommended To: Those that like dystopia fiction, aimed more towards a female audience.

Favourite Character: Peter - forces Anna to see the truth of her situation

Favourite Part: He said that we belonged together because he was born with a flower and I was born with a butterfly and that flowers and butterflies need each other for survival. - Page 136

Good Points: The concept; Peter and Anna as a couple

Bad Points: Became predictable by the end; Anna frustrated me for a while

Lauren Oliver - Pandemonium

The second in the Delirium trilogy by Lauren Oliver, Pandemonium picks up from where Delirium left off with Lena alone in the Wilds having left Alex behind in Portland after they have fallen in love, where they are seen as contracting the disease deliria.

Overall Rating: 9

Recommend To: Anyone who likes the dystopia fiction like The Hunger Games etc.

Favourite Character: I have two. Non spoiler one - Julian as he tugs at my heart strings which has proven to be difficult over the years. Spoiler - Alex as his line makes me smile right at the end.

Favourite Part: When he speaks again, I can tell he's smiling. 'So I guess we saved each other.' - Page 272

Good Points: Engaging, couldn't put it down, new characters in a new world allowing further expansion on the already defined world from the first of the trilogy

Bad Points (or frustrating points really): Cliffhanger, love triangle