Review: Fever

Author: Lauren DeStefano
Series: The Chemical Garden Trilogy #2
Pages: 341
Format: Hardcover
Rating: 5/5

Summery:
Rhine and Gabriel have escaped the mansion, but danger is never far behind. 

Running away brings Rhine and Gabriel right into a trap, in the form of a twisted carnival whose ringmistress keeps watch over a menagerie of girls. Just as Rhine uncovers what plans await her, her fortune turns again. With Gabriel at her side, Rhine travels through an environment as grim as the one she left a year ago - surroundings that mirror her own feelings of fear and hopelessness. 

The two are determined to get to Manhattan, to relative safety with Rhine’s twin brother, Rowan. But the road there is long and perilous - and in a world where young women only live to age twenty and young men die at twenty-five, time is precious. Worse still, they can’t seem to elude Rhine’s father-in-law, Vaughn, who is determined to bring Rhine back to the mansion...by any means necessary.


Review:

I must admit, I didn't come into this book thinking I would like it.  I read Wither a while ago and it was okay for me, but this book...this book is something special.

I loved it.  Loved loved loved it.  The writing, the story line, the characters, everything, it was all perfect.  Although it was boring at some times, I still really loved the series of events that lead to the climax, which is what should happen in any book.  The adventure was great, and the writing topped everything off and really made this book wonderful.

In the first book I wasn't really a big fan of Gabriel.  Well, I am now.  Love love love love him.  He's so sweet and caring and sexy and just PERFECT!  Why oh why can't he be real!?
I also really really liked Rhine.  She was such a strong character, one of the strongest I've ever read about.  She was smart, kick-ass, and strong.
And, of course, I have to mention the little cute baby in this book, Maddie.  I really liked her.  Although she couldn't speak she had personality, and I think DeStefano did a great job developing her.

Before I sign off I have to say one more thing.  I hate this cover.  It looks like she drugged out.  After the amazing cover that was Wither this one really disappoints.  But, that isn't a big enough thing to make me hate this amazing book! :p

Review: Shatter Me

Author: Tahereh Mafi
Series: Shatter Me #1
Pages: 338
Format: Hardcover
Rating: 5/5

Summery:
Juliette hasn't touched anyone in exactly 264 days.

The last time she did, it was an accident, but The Reestablishment locked her up for murder. No one knows why Juliette's touch is fatal. As long as she doesn't hurt anyone else, no one really cares. The world is too busy crumbling to pieces to pay attention to a 17-year-old girl. Diseases are destroying the population, food is hard to find, birds don't fly anymore, and the clouds are the wrong color.

The Reestablishment said their way was the only way to fix things, so they threw Juliette in a cell. Now so many people are dead that the survivors are whispering war-- and The Reestablishment has changed its mind. Maybe Juliette is more than a tortured soul stuffed into a poisonous body. Maybe she's exactly what they need right now.

Juliette has to make a choice: Be a weapon. Or be a warrior.

Review:
Oh my God.  Oh my God.  I love this book.  When I started it I didn't think I would like it because Tahereh Mafi had this weird way of writing that I wasn't used to, but wow.  I loved it.  This review is going to be really short because this book is so good.

The story line was amazing.  The writing was amazing.  The idea was amazing.  I mean, how did Mafi even think of this?  It's amazing.  And by half-way finished I had finally gotten used to Mafi's writing and actually really enjoyed it because it got the point across better.  I really don't know how to explain it, but it just really, really worked.  I loved the action, I loved the humor, I loved everything.

I LOVE ADAM.  And I'm serious.  I TOTALLY AM IN LOVE WITH ADAM.  He sounds so cute and caring and just the most perfect guy you could think of.  Why, oh why, can't he be real?
I also really liked Juliette.  She was strong, kick-ass, and really got on Warner's nerves, which I loved.
Speaking of Warner, I HATE HIM.  HATE, HATE, HATE HIM.  He is the most evil person I have read about in a long time and I really, really wish Juliette had killed him.
One of the most funny characters I've read in a while is Kenji.  Gosh, this dude is just so funny.  He's so full of himself and gosh, just the comments he makes, they crack me up.

All in all, hands down the best book I've read this year, and probably the best I'll read all year.  Mafi is amazing.

Review: Destiny's Fire

Author: Trisha Wolfe

Source: Trisha Wolfe (thanks a million!!)

Rating: 4/5

Summery:
It’s the year 2040, and sixteen-year-old Dez Harkly is one of the last of her kind—part of a nearly extinct race of shape-shifters descended from guardians to the Egyptian pharaohs. Her home and her secret are threatened when the Council lowers the barrier, allowing the enemy race to enter the Shythe haven.

As the Narcolym airships approach, Dez and her friends rebel against their Council and secretly train for battle. Not only is Dez wary of war and her growing affection for her best friend Jace, but she fears the change her birthday will bring. When Dez’s newfound power rockets out of control, it’s a Narcolym who could change her fate… if she can trust him.

Dez’s guarded world crumbles when she discovers why the Narcos have really come to Haven Falls, and she's forced to choose between the race who raised her and the enemy she's feared her whole life.

Review:
I usually don't like books with love triangles in them because it lowers my opinion of the main girl character, but in this book it really worked.

I really liked this book.  There was action from page one, beautiful writing, and, of course, the love triangle.  I usually despise books with love triangles in them, but it totally worked for this book.  However, if it had just been the love triangle and nothing else going on, I don't think I would have liked it half as much as I do, so a tip of the hat to Trisha Wolfe for writing it like that.

In the love triangle there are three people: Jace, Reese, and Dez.  Of the two guys, I honestly can't decide which I like best.
On one hand, Reese is super hot and totally swoon-worthy.  But it was like a sea-saw with him: I loved him, I hated his guts, I loved him.  Maybe that's why I like him so much though.
I also really like Jace.  He is also super hot but not as swoon worthy.  I don't know what it was, maybe the fact that he's like a slobbering guard dog when it comes to Dez, but he came across a little creepy.  I like him less than Reese, but it's still really close.
And, last but not least, I like Dez.   I didn't mind that she had two guys going at one time because she didn't go back and forth, back and forth between the two.  She picked one and stuck to him.  Mostly.  I won't give away too much because you have to read it.:p  I also liked that she was a strong female character and actually did something in the book.
This character isn't huge in this book, but I also like Lana.  She was so cool and supportive, I would totally love her as a BFF.

All in all, I really enjoyed this book and can't wait to see what Trisha Wolfe comes up with next.

Huge thanks to Trisha Wolfe for sending me a copy for review of this book.  It was totally awesome and I really appreciate it.  THANKS!!!

Review: XVI

Author: Julia Karr

Series: XVI #1

Pages: 325
Format: Paperback
Release Date: January 6th, 2011
Rating: 4/5

Summery:
Every girl gets one.
An XVI tattoo on the wrist--sixteen.

Some girls can't wait to be sixteen, to be legal. Nina is not one of them. Even though she has no choice in the matter, she knows that so long as her life continues as normal, everything will be okay.

Then, with one brutal strike, Nina's normal is shattered; and she discovers that nothing that she believed about her life is true. But there's one boy who can help--and he just may hold the key to her past.

But with the line between attraction and danger as thin as a whisper, one thing is for sure...

For Nina, turning sixteen promises to be anything but sweet.

Review:
Wow.  This book is really, really complex.  The plot is so good.  Zarr did such a good job writing this book to make it look like Nina had no way to make all the problems right, but I was really impressed with how she did it.

When I started reading it I thought, Wow, I'm not going to like this book very much, because Zarr came up with all these new abbreviations for everything, like PAVs and feLS, I had no idea what they were.  But as the story progressed and grew I finally figured them out and started to really enjoy it.  The plot is simply amazing.  There were so many elements and things going on, I don't know how Zarr kept track of it all.

When Zarr first introduced Sal I didn't really like him at all, but towards the end he started to show his sensative, caring side and he grew on me.
I love that Nina's mom was a strong, defiant woman that saw through the facade the goverment had put up.
I hate, hate, hate, hate, hate Ed.  That guy is a slime-ball.
I felt so bad for Sandy at the end (not telling what happens).  Although she was completely swept up in being a sex-teen, I kind of liked her and really hoped Nina would make her come to her senses.

All in all, a really good dystopian novel, and I can't wait to read the second one.

What do you think about this book?

Review: The Iron Thorn

Author: Caitlin Kittredge
Series: The Iron Codex #1
Pages: 492
Format: Hardcover
Release Date: February 20, 2011
Rating: 4/5
Cover Rating: 4/5 (a bit raunchy)

Summery:
In the city of Lovecraft, the Proctors rule and a great Engine turns below the streets, grinding any resistance to their order to dust. The necrovirus is blamed for Lovecraft's epidemic of madness, for the strange and eldritch creatures that roam the streets after dark, and for everything that the city leaders deem Heretical—born of the belief in magic and witchcraft. And for Aoife Grayson, her time is growing shorter by the day.
     Aoife Grayson's family is unique, in the worst way—every one of them, including her mother and her elder brother Conrad, has gone mad on their 16th birthday. And now, a ward of the state, and one of the only female students at the School of Engines, she is trying to pretend that her fate can be different.

Review:
To be perfectly honest, I am very disappointed with Caitlin Kittredge's young adult debut.  NOT!!

The story is just amazing, to have the complex plot it has, it's just mind blowing.  The science, the "necrovirus", the monsters, the faeries, the whole shebang, it's amazing how Caitlin Kittredge managed to keep track of it all.
I don't usually like books with romance/adventure, but Caitlin wrote it in such a way that you don't really notice the romance, and when you did it was some huge event in the book.

I love that Aoife is a strong, smart-mouthed character who can take care of herself and is brave and selfless.
In the beginning I hated Cal because he was always calling her crazy and claiming everything she said was a result of the necrovirus.  I liked him more in the end when he saved them (I'm not going to tell you how so you'll have to read the book :p).
And Dean.  OH MY GOD DON'T EVEN GET ME STARTED!!  I love Dean!!  I mean, really love him.  I can't really explain it.  He's really sassy, rebellious, smart-mouthed, and really nice, and as I read more and more I fell more and more in love with him.

All in all, I can't wait for the next book to come out because Caitlin Kittredge left this book on the biggest cliffhanger you could imagine, AND I WANT TO FIND OUT WHAT HAPPENS NEXT!!

What are you thoughts about this book?  Leave comments, I love them. (: