REVIEW: The Last Star by Rick Yancey - Valeria

Rate:

Goodreads Description:

The enemy is Other. The enemy is us.

They’re down here, they’re up there, they’re nowhere. They want the Earth, they want us to have it. They came to wipe us out, they came to save us.

But beneath these riddles lies one truth: Cassie has been betrayed. So has Ringer. Zombie. Nugget. And all 7.5 billion people who used to live on our planet. Betrayed first by the Others, and now by ourselves.

In these last days, Earth’s remaining survivors will need to decide what’s more important: saving themselves…or saving what makes us human.

Oh boy, I write this on May 27, 2016, and I just finished this book, got it yesterday

And WHYYYYYYYY RICK ! WHYYYYY

I mean I know why but I refuse to accept it and wish it wasnt like that

But I get that it has to be that way u.u

I feel like if I dont seriously think out this review I will continue to say over and over that it was the way it was meant to be and that there was just no other way around the ending in hopes that I will convince myself of that

It was fairly intense and you think that things are about to be FUBAR but in the end.. well.... The end

I enjoyed the end, trying to pull themselves together and specially that thing with Ringer and honoring Cassie.

I trully was shocked by Ringers news and I was like wait, makes no sense, but just this second, I understood xD 

It was a trully bittersweet ending, that is all I can say without actually spoiling much, because there is just a LOT that could be spoiled, since this is a book in which people live and people die, I cant actually talk about many of the characters and their endings without spoiling it so I will just leave it to you guys to enjoy and find out how it all ends.

Recommend it?

Yeah

REVIEW: Truly Devious by Maureen Johnson - 5 stars

Title: Truly, Devious

Genre: YA Mystery

Author: Maureen Johnson

Publisher: Katherine Tegen

Publication: January 16th 2018

Cover Rating: 4/5

Reading format: Owned Hardback

Goodreads | Amazon

I love mysteries. I love everything about them. I can usually figure out the answer really quickly and sometimes that makes me feel good and sometimes that makes me a little annoyed because then all the fun/suspense of the book is ruined. I picked up Truly Devious because it sounded like something I would love. I was afraid I would figure everything out within the first few pages but luckily that never happened and I was very pleased with this book.

Our main character is Stevie. She got accepted and is currently attending the prestigious Ellingham Academy. A free school set up by a very rich man in 1936. This school is a  character all in itself so we will get to that in a bit. But Stevie loves crimes. She loves trying to solve them and studying them. She gets accepted to this school because she want to try and solve the massive crime that happened there. 

So, about this school. In 1936 Albert Ellingham bought a piece of land, built his house on it and then made a school around it. He made this school so he could offer free education to kids who were struggling to be challenged by normal school work. So he opened up this school and all was going well until a murder/mystery happens that uproots his entire life. The book centers around this murder/mystery and the school.

Stevie goes to Ellingham to try and solve the mystery but she ends up solving something a whole lot bigger when one of her classmates ends up missing. I really loved the plot of the book. The romance was a bit annoying, especially at the end when Stevie found out she was being lied to, badly. It also kind of pissed me off that David reacted the way he did to something Stevie did when he was hiding something THIS big from her.

Aside from the funky romance, the friendships and other characters we get to meet in this book are very unique and interesting in their own ways. I think my favorite relationship is the one Stevie forms with Larry, the security guard/ex police detective. He understood her and it was just a nice relationship.

In the end, I really enjoyed the entire story, aside from David and his lies, and I have never been so happy to know that a book will be getting a sequel! The ending was SO cliffy. I NEED TO KNOW!!!

Overall, I gave the book 5/5 stars.

Author Spotlight: Say You'll Remember Me by Katie McGarry + Interview & Other Works

KATIE MCGARRY was a teenager during the age of grunge and boy bands and remembers those years as the best and worst of her life. She is a lover of music, happy endings, and reality television, and is a secret University of Kentucky basketball fan.

Katie would love to hear from her readers. Contact her via her website, katielmcgarry.com, follow her on Twitter @KatieMcGarry, or become a fan on Facebook and Goodreads.

Blogger Note:

Katie McGarry is one of my favorite authors of all time. Her hard-hitting YA books are one of the first ones I picked up when I transitioned from Adult Horror books to YA books 5-6 years ago. I started out with Noah and Echo in her amazing Pushing the Limits series and I have since continued to read her books all the way up to her current release, Say You'll Remember Me, with Drix and Elle. Each of Katie McGarry's books are based around a couple and the trials and tribulations they go through as a couple and separately before and after being a couple. Each couple usually has some huge transgression that has happened and the couple must defy the odds and survive everything to be together. The main reason I love Katie's books is because they are REAL. Most YA Contemporaries are fluffy and unrealistic whereas Katie's books touch on some pretty tough topics. With all of that being said, Katie agreed to be on my Author Spotlighting series and I was COMPLETELY thrilled. Hearing that might make you guys think I will give her a 5 stars no matter what but I wanted to say that I hold Katie's book above all and I judge her books very highly because I expect them to be fabulous. So being on of my favorite authors doesn't give her any help in the judging department. She is actually judged more harshly. So trust that if I say this is a great book, then this is a great book. Thank you for reading this and I hope you will look into Katie McGarry and her amazing books.

Title: Say You'll Remember Me

Genre: YA Contemporary

Author: Katie McGarry

Publisher: Harlequin Teen

Publication: January 30th 2018

Cover Rating: 5/5

Reading format: Owned ARC & Hardcover

Goodreads | Amazon

Say You'll Remember Me by Katie McGarry is the story of Drix and Elle. Drix just got out of juvie and Elle is the puppet for her parents political campaign. This story was one of Katie McGarry's best yet, in my honest opinion. Nothing will ever compare to Noah and Echo, the main characters from her first book, but you can definitely see how her stories have evolved over the years. I feel like with each book I become more emotionally invested. It definitely helps that this book was VERY full of emotions and at certain points I definitely teared up and cried at one point.

Character wise, I really liked both of our main characters, Elle and Drix. Drix was the "bad boy" and Elle was the "good girl" but we all know it goes a lot deeper than that. Drix just got out of jail and some program that the Governor created to help give teens a second chance so maybe they wont end up in the adult jail system. Drix is an excellent example of 'Bad Things Happen to Good People'. Drix wasn't perfect before he went to jail but he definitely didn't deserve what happened to him. I do kind of wish we could have seen a little bit more of how he was before jail. Then we have Elle, the Governors daughter. She is supposed to be this prim and proper teenage girl who has her head on straight and knows exactly what she wants from life. Problem is, none of that is who is she truly is and she is trapped in her parents lifestyle. Her and Drix meet and that starts them both down on hell of a rocky road.

So let's talk about the parental figures in this book. I likes Axel. He might have been too young and had loose morals when it came to women but I feel like he was a good parent with the resources he had. Now Elle's parents... They were horrible people. I feel like they thought they loved Elle and what they were doing was the best for her but if a kid can't learn things on their own and see how hard the world truly is then are you really helping them? I feel like her parents were just trying to get ahead politically by having their daughter involved and appearing like the perfect family and that just disgusted me. Especially because both parents always sat Elle down and tried to make it seem like they truly wanted the best for her because they both had horrible childhoods. UGH!

The program that this book centers around is such a brilliant idea. I know I said I disliked Elle's parents but if it wasn't for her dad, Drix, and many others, probably would have ended up a lot worse off. The program in this book is basically a second chance program for teens in jail. It is meant to help steer at-risk teens away from the adult prison system by giving them opportunities that might now have had otherwise. But only if the program is actually set up to help kids and not just be used as a publicity stunt to help further your political career. 

In the end, this was probably one of the most difficult Katie McGarry books for me to read. Both characters  felt trapped and that made me feel trapped. Everything they felt, I felt. That isn't a bad thing. I love when a book can make you feel THIS involved. But I just found myself so volatile while reading this book. I didn't want to be interrupted and I wanted everything to end a certain way. Everything did end up turning out to be okay so I think that is the only reason I didn't end up screaming when the book ended. If you want something to make you feel angry, sad, trapped, alone and raw then you should really pick this book up.

Overall, I gave the book 4.5/5 stars.

1) Do you feel like your books and their subject matter are important for todays teens to read?

Yes. Say You'll Remember Me was born out of real life situations facing my teens' schools. 

The school-to-prison pipeline, an issue I address in Say You'll Remember Me, is real. Teens who are arrested and placed in juvenile detention are more than likely to end up in juvenile detention again and again until they turn eighteen and then end up in the adult prison system. A good majority of these teens don't have the resources to hire good attorneys, aren't given adequate legal counsel and often make plea deals that land them in juvenile detention.  

This is what has happened to my main character, Drix. He's seventeen, was convicted of a crime he didn't commit and, terrified of being prosecuted as an adult, he accepted a plea deal that landed him in juvenile detention. We meet Drix at the beginning of the novel when he accepts being a part of the Govenor's Second Chance program, and we see how tough it is for teens to overcome a system that isn't set up to help them. 

2) If you were given ANY 3 wishes, what would they be and why?

I would wish for the health and happiness of my three children. A mother is only as happy as her saddest child. Their joy is my joy. Their sadness is my sadness. They own my heart, and I love seeing them happy. 

3) From your first book to your current book, who is your favorite character?

Oh, this is so hard! It's like having to choose between my children!

Drix and Elle from Say You'll Remember Me have a special place in my heart as there is a scene in Say You'll Remember Me that makes me cry each and every single time I read it. There is a special connection between them that made that scene so emotional!

I have a huge crush on Isaiah from the Pushing the Limits series. I loved him so much that I wrote him into the Thunder Road series, plus I wrote what he is like as an adult in First Loves and And They All Lived Happily Ever After (a novella I'm giving away for free with a preorder of Say You'll Remember Me). 

4) Are any of the characters in your books based off of people you have met in real life?

I do have characters who are combinations of people I know. I also put a piece of my husband into every of my lead male characters. 

5) Are you currently working on any new books?

Yes! Stay tuned as I'll be announcing more on my next projects soon!

Katie McGarry has a huge repertoire of YA novels. If you go to her Goodreads page you can see a lot of novella's along with bonus content for her series. 

Her first series is Pushing the Limits and contains 4 main books and a bunch of other side stories.

Her other series is Thunder Road and contains 3 main books.

REVIEW: A Semi-Definitive List of Worst Nightmares by Krystal Sutherland - Erin

A Semi-Definitive List of Worst Nightmares

by Krystal Sutherland

Hardcover, 368 pages

Published September 5th 2017 by G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers

ISBN: 9780399546594

Checked Out From Library

About:

Ever since Esther Solar’s grandfather met Death, her entire family has been doomed to suffer one great fear in their lifetime—a fear that will eventually lead each and every one of them to their graves. Take Esther’s father, for instance: He’s an agoraphobe who hasn’t left the basement in six years. Then there’s her twin brother, Eugene, whose fear of the dark goes far beyond the things that go bump in the night. And her mother, Rosemary, is absolutely terrified of bad luck.

As for Esther, she’s managed to escape the curse…so far. She doesn’t yet have a great fear because she avoids pretty much everything. Elevators, small spaces, crowds—anything that might trigger a phobia is off-limits and is meticulously recorded in her semi-definitive list of worst nightmares.

Esther thinks she has it all figured out, until she’s reunited with an old elementary school classmate—and first crush—Jonah Smallwood. The encounter leaves her stranded at a bus stop and swindled out of her phone, all her cash, a Fruit Roll-Up she’d been saving, and her list—not to mention her dignity. But the theft is also the beginning of an unexpected friendship between the two, one that sends the pair on a journey of self-discovery as they try to break the curse that’s consumed Esther’s family. Together they face their greatest fears, one debilitating phobia at a time, only to discover the one fear they hadn’t counted on: love. (Goodreads)

Rating: 

An interesting take on mental health and abuse. I wish that there was more to the story. “Dear author, please write a second book!!” lol . I really enjoyed reading about Esther overcoming her fears. It kind of makes me want to overcome mine too. A great mix of reality and fantasy. Great atmosphere! Great characters! Just great overall read! Due to drinking, sexual references, and swearing, probably not for the Jr. High (or at least younger Jr. High) school kids. Though it still might be something many of them would like.

*Book photo and/or review are owned by Erin. To see her personal blog click her signature above^*

Author Spotlight: It Should Have Been You by Lynn Slaughter + Interview - 4.5 stars

Lynn Slaughter has a passion for dance and music―from Frank Sinatra to Chopin―and her first book, While I Danced, was a finalist in the 2015 EPIC competition in the Young Readers category.

Title: It Should Have Been You

Genre: YA Murder Mystery

Author: Lynn Slaughter

Publisher: Page Street

Publication: January 30th 2018

Cover Rating: 3/5

Reading format: Physical ARC

Goodreads | Amazon

It Should Have Been You by Lynn Slaughter is the story of twin sisters Moura and Clara. One is dead and one is accused of being the killer. Moura was a piano prodigy and had a huge following and everyone thought Clara resented and was jealous of her sisters fame so Clara was the first person everyone blamed.

Clara and Moura were as different as twins could be. Moura is a piano prodigy that had plans of going to college early and making a life of fame for herself. Clara was more reserved and wanted a normal life as a writer/journalist. The people who fawned over Moura always thought Clara resented her fame when that couldn't have been further from the truth. Even her own mother thought Clara was jealous. So, with her sisters death and with people thinking she killed her, Clara goes out and tries to solve the crime that the cops are having a problem solving. 

This book has two mysteries as opposed to most books only having one real plot. We have the mystery behind who killed Moura and then we have a sub-mystery where someone is cyber-stalking and threatening Clara because they think she killed her sister so they want her to pay for the crime. That made this book very unique. I think I have read maybe 2 or 3 other books that had sub-mysteries involved. I think it is a very good idea if it's done right.

And no mystery novel is complete without some weird romance thrown in at the worst time possible. The romance itself was cute and fairly innocent but also fairly insta-lovey. But it also isn't a mystery book without some big problem with the relationship and the problem in this relationship was HUGE. Even I didn't see that coming.

In the end, I REALLY enjoy this book. The double mystery was so fun! I actually forgot that there was another mystery to be solved and then it was like BAM so that was definitely a nice surprise. I love when mystery books sneak up on you. I DID guess who both of the "bad guys" were, though. But that doesn't say much because I can always guess. It is very rare that I cannot figure out who the bad guy is within the first 100 pages of the book.

Overall, I gave the book 4.5/5 stars.

1) What was the inspiration behind IT SHOULD HAVE BEEN YOU?

The initial idea came from an adult student I’d had many years ago. She shared with me that when she was a teenager, her identical twin had been murdered, and the crime had never been solved. In fact, fearing that she might be the next victim, the FBI kept her under surveillance.

Her story stuck with me, and I began to play the “What If?” game. What if the murdered twin had been the center of attention in her family and a superstar in the community, and the twins hadn’t gotten along? And what if rumors swirled that the surviving twin had killed her sister, and then she started receiving threats?

2) If you could pick one book to reread for the rest of your life what would it be?

I love so many books! But right now, I want to mention WONDER by R.J. Palacio. I love Auggie’s voice and character and really identify with his longing to be accepted for who he is on the inside, a wonderfully “normal” kid.

3) What was your favorite part to write in IT SHOULD HAVE BEEN YOU?

I’m a sucker for romance, so I’d have to say I especially loved writing the scenes between Clara and Ben, her love interest.

4) Tell us five random facts about you:

I was a huge Nancy Drew fan growing up, so when our family’s apartment was broken into, I offered several theories about the crime to the police investigators. They told my mom they thought I must have been the burglar, based on my “suggestions” about how the crime could have beencommitted. Fortunately, she thought this was very funny!

I can still recite all the words to the intro of the old Superman TV show.

My husband and I met in a dance company.

I’ve sung vocals in a rock band.

I’m totally spoiled: My husband loves to cook and does all the cooking.

5) Are you currently working on any new books?

Yes! Thanks for asking. I have two young adult novels I’m actively working on. . 

Gone centers around Leisha, a musically and academically gifted African-American teen on scholarship at an exclusive New England boarding school. When her music teacher and mentor goes missing just before a major vocal competition, Leisha suspects foul play and undertakes her own investigation. Meantime, she tries to rebuff the romantic overtures of Cody, a cellist who’s appointed himself as her sidekick. She’s sure that the grandfather who raised her would disown her if she took up with a white boy, and Cody’s wealthy conservative family wouldn’t be thrilled about her either. 

Whereas Leisha comes from a poor background, Samantha (Sam), the protagonist of Killing Mr. Holloway, is the daughter of a widowed heiress who impulsively announces she’s marrying Adam Holloway, a much younger man. Sam is sure he’s after her mother’s money, and she both distrusts and detests him. When he gets murdered, the evidence points to Sam as the killer, and she must prove her innocence.

REVIEW: The Sea Queen by Jovee Winters - Jenn

SYNOPSIS:

Calypso, Queen of the Seas, is mad. Spitting mad. Ghosts of the dead are fouling her waters. She wants this problem fixed, and she wants it fixed now. Rushing off in search of Hades, Lord of the Underworld, to demand answers, she’s soon shocked to discover him bound and standing trial before a jury of his peers—for nothing less than murder. 

Calypso normally despises the beastly gods, all of them, but there’s something about seeing Hades bound as he is that gives her an evilly clever idea. Tired of being a virgin queen, she wishes to shed that boring image once and for all, and no one seems quite as fit for the task as the gorgeous and brooding Hades. Of course, there is the minor problem of murder to deal with, but Calypso is bound and determined to have her way. 

And when a dark queen gets an idea, nothing and no one can stand in her way… 

I stopped reading 25% into it, and I decided I just couldn't do it. I have deemed it a DNF and I won't be returning to it. This is the only book I have read by this author, and I would be willing to check out another book of hers, but if they are written anything like this one...Dang, I have to say I just don't like this specific author's style of story telling.

I also came into this having read a lot of Sherrilyn Kenyon's books, which is why I even downloaded the ebook for The Sea Queen. Unfortunately, the quality and way of story telling is very different from the expectations I held.

I will give it this: this is meant to be a light quick read, and I did experience that with the 25% of it I did read. It went by fast, and it did have me amused quite a bit several times, but this is not a story for me. 

Happy reading everyone!

You can see all of Jenn's reviews on her Goodreads.

REVIEW: Illuminae by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff - Valeria

Rate:

Goodreads Description:

This morning, Kady thought breaking up with Ezra was the hardest thing she’d have to do.

This afternoon, her planet was invaded.

The year is 2575, and two rival megacorporations are at war over a planet that’s little more than an ice-covered speck at the edge of the universe. Too bad nobody thought to warn the people living on it. With enemy fire raining down on them, Kady and Ezra—who are barely even talking to each other—are forced to fight their way onto an evacuating fleet, with an enemy warship in hot pursuit.

But their problems are just getting started. A deadly plague has broken out and is mutating, with terrifying results; the fleet's AI, which should be protecting them, may actually be their enemy; and nobody in charge will say what’s really going on. As Kady hacks into a tangled web of data to find the truth, it's clear only one person can help her bring it all to light: the ex-boyfriend she swore she'd never speak to again.

Told through a fascinating dossier of hacked documents—including emails, schematics, military files, IMs, medical reports, interviews, and more—Illuminae is the first book in a heart-stopping, high-octane trilogy about lives interrupted, the price of truth, and the courage of everyday heroes.

Okay, while I do LOVE how this book is written, it does get in my nerves at the same time

This book was a rollercoaster for the simple reason that for me it had its up and down moments

It could be because I kept reading it in fragments

But okay, when this book got intense, it got super intense, like SCARY! 

Like you just couldnt believe those things where actually happening

This book is going to be made into a movie and THOSE particular scenes, well

You better get your shit straight Brad Pitt, there were scenes in World War Z that couldve made the movie so epicly classic and thrilling, but they didnt do them, and if they dont do them for Illuminae, ill be pissed

Some of you probably are like dafuq you on?

Brad Pitt will produce Illuminae just as he produced World War Z, no words on the cast yet, but I cant wait!

Okay, so back to the book, the book was thrilling enough for me to get excited to read Gemina (which the book for trade gods blessed me with) which I will probably start this week after I finish my set TBR (first and only time I will set a TBR pile, I get super strict about it and makes me loose my mind)

But anyways, this book is completely one of a kind and even though this book didnt get a stellar review from me

get it

stellar

I still feel like it is a must read, simply because of the way it is made, and the jacket is gorgeous, it is a book you dont want to miss, its a true beauty

Recommend it?

Sure thing

REVIEW: Wintersong by S. Jae-Jones - 4.5 stars

Title: Wintersong

Genre: YA Historical Fantasy Retelling

Author: S. Jae-Jones

Publisher: Thomas Dunne Books

Publication: February 7th 2017

Cover Rating: 5/5

Reading format: Owned Hardback

Goodreads | Amazon

Let me just start off by saying that I know nothing about music unless it has to do with singing. So picking up a book that had piano and violin music as the very heart of it kind of scared me. But this book was so beautiful and musical to the point where anyone could appreciate it.

Wintersong is a romantic retelling of the Goblin King/Lord of Mischief. Liesl and her family are musically inclined except for her sister Kathe. Kathe enjoys the finer things in life and she enjoys the attention of men. This leads her to ending up in the Goblin King's grasp and Liesl has to save her sister from a horrible fate. Can taking her sisters place really be the only answer? And will falling in love with the man who is holding her captive be her undoing? Being captive can't be all bad when Liesl finally has the ability to show her musical talent instead of hiding behind her little brother. But no one will ever hear her talent if she is never allowed to leave her underground home.

I really loved the dynamic between The Goblin King and Liesl, he called her Elizabeth. They work very well together physically and musically. I would have loved to see the type of couple the could have been had they not been a part of the whole nightmare. Liesl does get a little bit annoying at parts, especially when she puts herself down and doesn't think she is good enough for things. 

I think the only think I somewhat disliked about this book was how EVERYONE had like 5 names. I know it was a cultural/time period thing but it was crazy trying to keep track of who was who. So the book can get a bit confusing but it so so so worth the read.

In the end, I am so glad I decided to read this book even after picking it up a few times and putting it back down. The ending broke my heart and I found myself texting my friend at 2am telling her how broken I was and the second book better have a better ending or I will just die. Yes, very dramatic but the feelings were so real at that moment. The music that we hear changes our emotions and sometimes, when it's good enough, it can shake us to the very core.

Overall, I gave the book 4.5/5 stars.

REVIEW: The Cruel Prince by Holly Black - 4.5 stars

Title: The Cruel Prince

Genre: YA Fantasy/Fae

Author: Holly Black

Publisher: Little, Brown

Publication: January 2nd 2018

Cover Rating: 5/5

Reading format: Owned Hardcover

Goodreads | Amazon

The Cruel Prince is a wonderfully morbid and cruel story based around Jude's life as the "daughter" of a fae military leader. We get to see how horribly Jude is treated because she is human but we also know that she is living with the man who murdered her parents so her life can't be easy.

Jude was a wonderful character. She did not take crap from anyone, even if it meant getting herself or her sister bullied, badly. And she does get bullied badly. She goes to school with the youngest Prince of the High Court of Faerie and he is a very nasty person. Well, he isn't THAT bad, but his followers are disturbingly evil and most of that evil is reflected on to Jude.

While he book focuses a lot on how cruelly Jude is treated, there is also some heavy politics going on in the High Court of Faerie. The current king is looking to step down and wants to pass his crown off to one of his worthy sons. The king picks a certain son and the other son isn't so happy about that so a lot of stuff goes down and that is pretty much where the pulp of the story lies. Jude is hired to be a spy for someone and this gig might just land her where she truly wants to be; as a member of the high society. 

Through Jude's spy gig we get to see a lot of behind the scenes politics and learn a lot of secrets that shouldn't be known. Once all of the political stuff goes down, Jude concocts a plan to put the crown on someone else's head after she finds out the true parentage or someone close to her. There is so much chaos and political mayhem and backstabbing going on in this book that it was hard to not enjoy it.

In the end, I really loved this book and I can't wait for the next one. If you are like me and you've never read a Holly Black book but are wanting to then I highly suggest starting with this book. I now want to read her other books that I own and see if I like them just as much.

Overall, I gave the book 4.5/5 stars.

REVIEW: There's Someone Inside Your House by Stephanie Perkins - Erin

There's Someone Inside Your House

by Stephanie Perkins

Hardcover, 289 pages

Published September 26th 2017 by Dutton Books for Young Readers

ISBN: 9780525426011

Checked Out From The Library

About:

Love hurts...

Makani Young thought she'd left her dark past behind her in Hawaii, settling in with her grandmother in landlocked Nebraska. She's found new friends and has even started to fall for mysterious outsider Ollie Larsson. But her past isn't far behind.

Then, one by one, the students of Osborne Hugh begin to die in a series f gruesome murders, each with increasingly grotesque flair. As the terror grows closer and her feelings for Ollie intensify, Makani is forced to confront her own dark secrets. (Goodreads)

Rating: 

I will admit, I don’t think I’ve ever read anything by Stephanie Perkins before, so my take on this book is a little different than most. I’ve seen a lot of reviews about how a romance writer had no business writing horror. I had no idea she wrote romance, but while reading this book that side of the author definitely came out…a lot.  I’m not saying that horror can’t have a bit of romance, but with this book there were parts where it almost over shadowed the suspense. Not my favorite, but now knowing what this author usually writes I get it. Perkins had a decent plot. It was your run of the mill slasher story. There was suspense.  I wanted to know who the killer was and why. And this book definitely had me wondering in my real life“Did I leave that drawer open? Or is there someone else here???” .There was some cleverness to the killer. How he messed with the victims before killing them kept me hooked to find out more. The writing was good, no complaints there. The setting was creepy. The romance though…. Ugh! It was an over kill. And by the end of the book I really didn’t care if Makani and Ollie lived or died. I was also disappointed that we never got a real reason for the killings. The bad guys caught and the end. Overall, older teens who enjoy horror might like this book. The slasher like story is a little different than most YA books and might grab readers because of it. There is some mature content in it and it could be possibly a little scary for younger teens. Give to them with caution. 

*Book photo and/or review are owned by Erin. To see her personal blog click her signature above^*

REVIEW: From a Distant Star by Karen McQuestion - Jenn

SYNOPSIS:

When Lucas Walker inexplicably recovers from a terminal illness, everyone is astonished --except for his girlfriend Emma, who never gave up hope. However, as friends and family celebrate the miracle, Emma becomes alarmed: Lucas has changed. He speaks haltingly, can't recall past events, and even his own dog doesn't recognize him. Emma begins to suspect something is terribly wrong. What happened to the Lucas she loved? Does his strange behavior have something to do with the shooting light that fell into Lucas's backyard the night he recovered?

As the two set off on a road trip in search of the truth, the journey takes an unexpected turn. First they're shot at by unknown enemies and then helped by unlikely allies. Before long, Emma and Lucas are plunged into a desperate life or death race against time.

Packed with intrigue and emotion, FROM A DISTANT STAR is a riveting novel about loyalty and the power of love.

This is an incredibly cute and rewarding YA scifi novel. I'm totally smitten. At first I wasn't sure about it, because Emma (the main character) bothered me in the beginning, but that changed pretty quickly. This is a fast story involving aliens, romance, and government conspiracies--I know that sounds like a strange combination of potentially heavy topics, but I promise that they are actually lighter than you anticipate.

I switched between listening to the audiobook and reading, and either way is perfectly good. The audiobook has a pretty good narrator, and I like the inflection she gave throughout the story.

I give it 4 out of 5 bitchin' stars for bringing warmth to me in this cold weather. Oh my goodness!

All of Jenn's reviews can be found on her Goodreads.