Monday 22 July 2013

Through the Ever Night

***
3 Stars/5


It has been months since Aria and Perry last saw each other, as Aria has been forced by Consul Hess to find the Still Blue and Perry has be busy leading the Tides through a troublesome winter. Now Perry and Aria are back together even though they are pretending to be just acquaintances as the Tides do not trust her as she is half dweller. With Aria still needing to find the Still Blue, and Perry facing doubt in his leadership abilities, he may have to choose between the girl he loves and the tribe he has sworn to protect.

Through the Ever Night is the sequel to Under the Never Sky, and is a good dystopian book. It has an interesting story and I liked that we could see more of the world which Rossi has created. However, while with the first book I felt the romance was a bit rushed, in this I felt that there was a lack of one as Perry and Aria were hardly together in this book.

I liked Aria more in this book as she is stronger and is willing to make her own decisions no matter how hard they are for her. Also Perry has matured since the last book as he is more thoughtful about his tribe and secure about the person he wants to be.


I enjoyed this book and am interested to see how this series concludes in Into the Still Blue. I would recommend Through the Ever Night to people who enjoyed the first book, Under the Never Sky. 

Friday 19 July 2013

Under the Never Sky

***
3 Stars/5


Aria has lived all her life in Reverie as a ‘dweller’ who lives in an enclosed city with virtual environments called The Realms. However, after one disastrous night in which she tries to contact her mother in another similar city, everything changes for her and she is kicked out to die outside. Perry has always been suited to being an ‘outsider’, even though he is an outcast in his own tribe the Tides. However, with Perry’s family falling apart and his nephew kidnaped by the dwellers, he makes an uneasy alliance with Aria. Their journey is challenged by Aether storms, cannibals and their own prejudices and feelings for each other.

Under the Never Sky is an enjoyable YA dystopian book by Veronica Rossi. It has good world building, interesting characters and an entertaining story.

Aria is a quiet likable person who is determined when she wants to but I feel is a bit too trusting. Perry is a silent and brooding type of character but he is also brave and very loyal to those close to his heart. I also liked the secondary characters as they had their own unique personality and did not blur together. However, I felt the romance was a bit rushed as they had only known each other for a week or so and yet they were head over heels for each other.


I enjoyed Under the Never Sky and would recommend it to people who like YA dystopia novels. 

Tuesday 16 July 2013

Asleep

****
4 Stars/5


Thanks to Netgalley and Patchwork Press for giving me this book to review.

During the most important engagement party of the five realms the soon to be groom prince Devaran is kidnapped from his finance castle. Drugged and locked in a tower, Dev relives his history with Jess and sees how their relationship has grown from childhood friends to her being the love of his life. At the same time princess Jessmyn and Dev’s brother Tanvir are hunting for the person who took him and will do anything to rescue her beloved. However, is the person who took Dev using his kidnap to hurt him, Jess and their two kingdoms or as a catalyst to take over the entire five realms.

I really enjoyed Asleep as it is a good YA romantic fantasy and is a very unique interpretation of Sleeping Beauty. I have not read the first book The Eye of the Beholder but I don’t think it matters as I did not feel like I was missing anything.

I liked Jess as she is a strong character who would fight for who she loves, who still being a bit insecure. Dev is strong in a different but equal way and I liked him as he was brave, funny, but this hid his self-doubt about his ability to rule. However, I would have liked to have seen him interact with people apart from mostly in his memories. I enjoyed how the world of the five realms was different from most fantasy book as women could also be warriors and leaders and no-one made an issue of it.


I really enjoyed this book and will want to read the first book The Eye of the Beholder. I would recommend Asleep to fans of Slumber by Samantha Young or Scarlet by A C Gaughen. 

Saturday 13 July 2013

Crown of Midnight

****
4 Stars/5


Thanks to Netgalley and Bloomsbury Publishing PLC (UK & ANZ) for giving me this book to review.

Celaena has won the competition and is now the King’s champion. However, she is not as loyal as even her friend’s think, as she is sparing instead of killing the people the king has ordered. Now her next task is harder than the others as firstly it is in Rifthold right under the king’s nose and second is that the target is an old friend of hers called Archer. On top of this she has to figure out the secrets of the wyrdmarks, Elena’s mysterious riddles and her growing feelings for one of her friends.

Crown of Midnight is the really good second book in the Glass series, which has an increased suspense, romance and storyline.  However, while there was a few interesting plot twists most of the story was a bit predictable, especially the one at the end.

I got really annoyed with Celaena in this book as she gets very angry with a certain character for not telling her something but she keeps more secrets than all the other characters which makes her come across as a big hypocrite. However, I do like Dorian, Chaol and Nehemia as their characters really develop and became their own people. I especially like Chaol as we get to see his softer side and how loyal he is. I also like the new character Mort as he is the only one who stands up to Celaena and does not treat her as anything special.


While it seems that I did not like this book, I actually really enjoyed it and can’t wait to see what happens in the next novel. I would recommend this book to people who liked Throne of Glass, the first book.

Wednesday 10 July 2013

Blood and Snow

**
2 Stars/5


Thanks to Netgalley and All Night Reads for giving me this book to review.

Snow White always thought she was a normal, if a bit clumsy, girl with a father and step-mother who are hardly around and seven best friends who are brothers. That is until the Vampire Queen chooses Snow for her next body. After being bitten by her Hunter, Christopher, and turned into a revenant, Snow has to deal with both her thirst for both humans and her hunter’s blood, whilst figuring out who she likes, a person who she has known most of her life or the person who is turning her into a vampire. But will Snow complete her destiny to use the Seal of Gabriel, created by the Vampire Queen’s twin, to restore the balance between all magical creatures.

Blood and Snow is an OK paranormal retelling of Snow White, however, while the idea of the story was enjoyable it was let down by the characters and the pacing. Another reason I struggled to connect with the story was because so many people had unbelievable names such as Snow White, Chace Charming, Mulan and Ariel, and it got annoying.

Snow irritated me as she did not act realistically because, when she found out about vampires, different creatures and her future she just accepted it instead of freaking out or not believing it. Another thing is that she kept on flitting between guys, saying she loved one, then the other, back and forth throughout the book. I would have also liked to get to know more about some of the brothers as apart from Gabe and Dorian, I did not feel like I knew them that well.

Blood and Snow is an OK Paranormal Snow White retelling, however, I feel that Alyxandra Harvey did it better in My Love Lies Bleeding/Hearts at Stake.

Sunday 7 July 2013

Taking Back Forever

***
3 Stars/5


Maryah is not an ordinary 17 year old girl, she is an element, a person who can remember their past lives and has special powers. Even though she cannot remember much from her other lives she is sure that with hard work and the help of her soul mate Nathan she will be able to discover what is missing. While Harmony is happy that Nathan and Maryah have found each other again, she is a bit jealous as she misses her soul mate Gregory, who was kidnaped by The Nefarious almost two decades ago. With Maryah and Nathan rediscovering each other and the Kindrily’s powers increasing, will Maryah be able to learn and use her powers to save Gregory.

Taking Back Forever is the second book in the Kindrily series, which is an enjoyable and quick read. It has a good story, interesting characters and more romance than was in the last book.

I think I like Maryah more in this book than the last as she is a mixture of being strong and confused but she is not as clueless. I also like Nathan as we see him much happier and we get to see his fun and playful side. However, I just could not connect with Harmony, I think because I was more interested in Maryah’s story than hers.


I like this book and will be reading the next book Fighting for Infinity. I would recommend Taking Back Forever to people who enjoyed reading Grasping at Eternity.

Thursday 4 July 2013

Grasping at Eternity

***
3 Stars/5


Thanks to Netgalley and Starry Sky Publishing for giving me this book to review.

Maryah is an elemental, a person who can remember their past lives and has special powers. However, at the end of her last life she Erased, meaning she thinks she is an ordinary girl and cannot remember anything about her other lives and her powers. After tragedy strikes Maryah’s family, she moves to live with her godmother, Louise Luna, and her family in Sedona, not knowing that they have known each other for centuries. Maryah’s loss of memory is especially hard for her soul mate Nathan, as she has no idea who he is and that she should love him, instead of not knowing him and hating him. Will the Luna family be able to get her memory back, before The Nefarious try and target her again?

Grasping at Eternity is a YA paranormal novel which is an enjoyable and quick read. It is told from the point of view of both Maryah and Nathan which makes the story both descriptive and romantic.

I like Maryah as she acts how I would expect a person who has been through such a tragedy would do but tries to be strong. However, I do have to agree with one of the characters Carson, in that Maryah is the most clueless heroines I have read. I also like Nathan as he is so caring and protective yet also very tormented as well. I liked the secondary characters as well as they all had their own unique personalities, however, my favourite has to be Carson, as he says it how it is.


I liked this book and will definitely be reading Taking Back Forever to see what happens next. I would recommend Grasping at Eternity to fans of the Benedicts series by Joss Stirling and the Night World series by L. J. Smith.