Review: UnEnchanted by Chanda Hahn

Title: UnEnchanted
Series: An Unfortunate Fairy Tale, Book 1
Author: Chanda Hahn
Publisher: Self Published
Length: 216 Pages approx.
Publication Date: December 30, 2011
Available Format: Paperback, Kindle Edition, eBook
Source: Free Download
My Rating: ★★★★☆
Get it @: Amazon | Goodreads

Book Description:

Mina Grime is unlucky, unpopular and uncoordinated, that is until she saves her crush's life on a field trip, changing her High School status from loser to hero overnight. But with her newfound fame brings misfortune as an old family curse come to light. For Mina is descended from the Brothers Grimm and has inherited all of their unfinished fairy tale business. Which includes trying to outwit a powerful Story from making her its next fairytale victim.

To break the fairy tale curse on her family and stop these deadly events, Mina must finish the tales until the very Grimm end.

Picture yourself in high school, those awkward years. Now, not only are you a high school student, you are also a very clumsy one. One, so epically clumsy, that you are the school's outcast. You are such an epic klutz that some pretty weird, explainable things happen to you all the time. And that every single time one of these things happens, your Mom packs up and forces you change zip-codes. Now, imagine what it feels like to one day discover that the reason behind all of your misfortune is because you (and your kid brother) are the last descendants of the Brothers Grimm and as such you have inherited the family curse.

I was surprised as to how much I enjoyed this book. First heard about it when my sister asked me to buy her the second book in the series, then explained to me that she had stumbled into the first one (for free) at Amazon. I was intrigued by the premise so I went and downloaded myself a copy. This book turned out to be a great twist on the fairy tale realm. And much like my sister, now I want to get my hands on the next story.

ARC Review: The Eternity Cure by Julie Kagawa

Title: The Eternity Cure
Series: Blood of Eden, Book 2
Author: Julie Kagawa
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Length: 446 Pages
Publication Date: April 30, 2013
Available Format: Hardcover, Paperback, Kindle Edition, eBook
Source: NetGalley
My Rating: ★★★★★
Get it @: Amazon | Book Depository | Goodreads

Book Description:

She has done the unthinkable: died so that she might continue to live. Cast out of Eden and separated from the boy she dared to love, Allie will follow the call of blood to save her creator, Kanin, from the psychotic vampire Sarren. But when the trail leads to Allie's birthplace in New Covington, what Allie finds there will change the world forever-and possibly end human and vampire existence.

There's a new plague on the rise, a strain of the Red Lung virus that wiped out most of humanity generations ago-and this strain is deadly to humans and vampires alike. The only hope for a cure lies in the secrets Kanin carries, if Allie can get to him in time.

Allison thought that immortality was forever. But now, with eternity itself hanging in the balance, the lines between human and monster will blur even further, and Allie must face another choice she could never have imagined having to make.

The Eternal Cure picks up a few months after the events of The Immortal Rules. Allie has been hunting Sarren, following the pull she feels toward her sire, Kanin. She’s getting close, she can feel it; her objective is to free Kanin from the evil hands of “crazy Psycho Vampire” as she calls Sarren. Unfortunately for her, things do not go quite as she envisions them.

Review: The Giver by Lois Lowry

Title: The Giver
Series: The Giver Quartet, Book 1
Author: Lois Lowry
Publisher: Ember
Length: 192 Pages
Original Publication Date: 1993
Available Format: Hardback, Paperback, Mass Market Paperback, Kindle Edition, eBook, Audiobook.
Source: Bought
My Rating: ★★★★★
Get it @: Amazon | Book Depository | Goodreads

Book Description:

Jonas's world is perfect. Everything is under control. There is no war or fear or pain. There are no choices. Every person is assigned a role in the Community. When Jonas turns twelve, he is singled out to receive special training from The Giver. The Giver alone holds the memories of the true pain and pleasure of life. Now, it is time for Jonas to receive the truth. There is no turning back.

I was surprised how much I enjoyed this story. The book was one of my required reading materials for my Literature for Young Adults course. Out of the four novels assigned (The Giver, The Chocolate War, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, and The Old Man and the Sea) The Giver was my top favorite. In truth I enjoyed all of the novels but The Chocolate War...

The Giver plays heavily on the concept that one person's utopia is another person's dystopia.

Review: Divergent by Veronica Roth

Title: Divergent
Series: The Divergent Trilogy, Book 1
Author: Veronica Roth
Publisher: HarperCollins
Length: 487 Pages
Publication Date: May 3, 2011
Available Formats: Hardcover, Paperback, Kindle Edition, eBook, Audiobook
Source: Bought
My Rating: ★★★★★
Get it @: Amazon | Book Depository

Description:

In Beatrice Prior's dystopian Chicago, society is divided into five factions, each dedicated to the cultivation of a particular virtue—Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent). On an appointed day of every year, all sixteen-year-olds must select the faction to which they will devote the rest of their lives. For Beatrice, the decision is between staying with her family and being who she really is—she can't have both. So she makes a choice that surprises everyone, including herself.

During the highly competitive initiation that follows, Beatrice renames herself Tris and struggles to determine who her friends really are—and where, exactly, a romance with a sometimes fascinating, sometimes infuriating boy fits into the life she's chosen. But Tris also has a secret, one she's kept hidden from everyone because she's been warned it can mean death. And as she discovers a growing conflict that threatens to unravel her seemingly perfect society, she also learns that her secret might help her save those she loves… or it might destroy her.

Debut author Veronica Roth bursts onto the literary scene with the first book in the Divergent series—dystopian thrillers filled with electrifying decisions, heartbreaking betrayals, stunning consequences, and unexpected romance.

The story takes place in a futuristic version of Chicago. One where instead of flying cars and holographic phone calls we get a glimpse of a more realistic destroyed future. In said future, what I assume is the remains of humanity after WW3 (at least in the area of Chicago), the inhabitants have separated into five different factions: Abnegation (known for their selflessness), Amity (the ones who chose to live in peace), Erudite (those who sought knowledge without bounds), Candor (the ones who preferred the truth above all else) and Dauntless (famous for their daredevil attitudes). All the children from these factions study together and once they reach the age of sixteen they go through a choosing ceremony in which they must pick between staying with their family in the faction they were born or leave their faction for a more suitable one where they might fit in better. Once the teenagers choose the faction that will be their new home they are to live with the others from said faction and be initiated into their new lives. The initiation rituals vary between each faction seeing as they have different views on what is right and what is wrong and on what is necessary to preserve the peace and avoid wars.

Blog Tour: Wisteria by Bisi Leyton

Hey Everyone! How have you all been?

Did you read yesterday’s review? Where you intrigued to know more? Well then, I have a treat for you today, Bisi Leyton –author of Wisteria (the first novel in her YA PNR Series– has joined forces with Innovative Online Book Tours and us Bloggers to bring you a taste of the story. And today is your chance to read Wisteria’s Prologue and the complete first chapter.

But before we get to the reading I bet you are wondering who Bisy Leyton is? Well…

Bisi Leyton was born in East London in 1978. She grew up in London, Nigeria and the States, listening to the stories life and love from aunts, cousins and big sisters.

She lives in London, but has worked around Europe including France, Germany, Ireland, Belgium and the Czech Republic. She has a fondness for reading graphic novels.

You can find her @:

• Facebook, 
• Twitter (@bisileyton), 
• Goodreads, 
• Current Blog, and/or 
• Old Blog

Now, unto what you want to read ^.^ Enjoy…

Review: Wisteria by Bisi Leyton

Title: Wisteria
Series: Wisteria, Book 1
Author: Bisi Leyton
Publisher: Self-Published
Length: Aprox. 275 Pages, 484 KB
Publication Date: August 15, 2012
Available Formats: Kindle Edition, eBook
Source: IO Book Tours
My Rating: ★★★★☆
Get it @: Amazon | Smashwords | Goodreads

Book Description:

Sixteen year old Wisteria Kuti has two options—track the infected around the Isle of Smythe or leave the only known safe haven and face a world infested with flesh eating biters. But even with well-armed trackers, things go wrong and Wisteria ends up alone facing certain death, until she is rescued by the mysterious Bach. Uninfected, Bach is able to survive among the hordes of living dead.

Eighteen year old Bach, from a race known as The Family, has no interest in human affairs. He was sent here to complete his Great Walk and return home as a man—as a Sen Son. The Family regard humans as Dirt People, but Bach is drawn to this Terran girl, whom he has never seen before, but somehow knows.

Hunted by flesh eaters, cannibals, and the mysterious blood thirsty group called Red Phoenix, Wisteria and Bach make their way back to the Isle of Smythe, a community built on secrets and lies.

This book is classified as Young Adult Paranormal Romance, and although it fits the bill, the story itself pulls from a wider set of norms. In fact, the novel has many elements of the horror and the sci-fi genre. To begin with, the story takes place in a post-apocalyptic world where a scientifically created virus has turned most of humanity into flesh –and brain– eating zombies. Sprinkle the mix with a healthy dose of mostly older sexy teenage aliens and inter-dimensional traveling and you have the recipe for great entertainment.

Review: Riser by Becca C. Smith

Title: Riser
Series: The Riser Saga, Book 1
Author: Becca C. Smith
Publisher: Publisher House if available
Length: Number of Pages, Word Count, File Size, etc.
Publication Date: June 5, 2010
Available Format: Paperback, Kindle Edition, eBook
Source: Supplied by the author through IO Book Tours

My Rating: ★★★☆☆
Get it @: Amazon | Book Depository

Book Description:

Black swirling holes churning madly in the center of every corpse. This is how eighteen-year-old Chelsan Derée sees the deceased. Her ability to connect to the black spinning holes allows her to control every dead thing within a four-mile radius.

But that's the least of her problems. It's 2320 and Chelsan Derée has to survive another year of high school, which for her is pure and utter torture, mainly due to the fact that her schoolmate Jill Forester's favorite activity is making Chelsan's life a living hell. If that isn't enough, Chelsan's impossible crush on Ryan Vaughn makes her brain do somersaults on a regular basis, especially since she is positive he doesn't know she exists. And being eighteen Chelsan has to deal with the pressure of whether or not she should take a little pill called Age-pro, which cures aging, making the world eighteen forever and highly over-populated.

When Chelsan's mother, Janet, is brutally killed, along with everyone else in her trailer park, Chelsan finds out that she was the intended target. Chelsan must use her power to raise and control the dead to save herself, protect her friends and take down the man responsible for murdering her mother.

Chelsan is an 18 year old living in L.A. in the year 2320. Although some technology breakthroughs have allowed civilization to have some wicked technology, life pretty much remains the same. Except for one tiny detail… Immortality comes in the shape of a pill. You read it right; the secret for immortality has been breached and encapsulated for public consumption.

Cover Reveal: Determinant by A.M Hargrove

Welcome back my amazing followers and lurkers, I know I've been away from the blog lately, but I'm mostly working on fixing it for better content from behind the scenes, sort to speak. So I'm dropping by today to bring you a Cover Real!

Determinant is the 3rd in The Guardians of Vesturion Series by A.M. Hargrove. A Young Adult Paranormal Romance with some Sci-Fi elements.


Book Description:

ARC Review: The Peculiars by Maureen Doyle McQuerry

Title: The Peculiars
Series: Standalone Book
Author: Maureen Doyle McQuerry
Publisher: Amulet Books
Length: 354 Pages
Publication Date: May 1, 2012
Reviewed Format: eGalley through NetGalley
My Rating: ★★½☆☆☆

Description: 
Lena Mattacascar has lived all her life scared of what she might be; hiding her abnormal hands and feet fearing that someone will recognize her as a Peculiar, not knowing if she truly is one. On her 18th birthday her mother hands her over a letter left by her deadbeat dad which prompts her to pack her bags and travel to Scree, a territory believed to be the home of all Peculiars to try to find her long lost father. Will she ever see him again, or will destiny have another plan for her?

Lena, as the female heroine and main character of the story, was –for me– a bit disappointing; she began as a strong character and somehow was replaced halfway through the story. I like my heroines to be strong. Lena’s insecurities were so deeply rooted on her need to be accepted that she let others dictate her actions instead of taking ownership of her situation. She is constantly just waiting to be rescued and relies on others to be able to do anything. Strangely, that is not the character that we meet at the beginning of the book. From the get go Lena seems to be ready to find out her father and just try to make it on her own. However, as soon as she arrives at the first point on her destination she completely develops the damsel in distress syndrome. Even when she ‘takes matters into her own hands’ she is just ignoring the evidence right in front of her and letting other characters’ decisions and actions determine her moves and her path.

ARC Review: The Immortal Rules

Title: The Immortal Rules
Series: Blood of Eden, Book 1
Author: Julie Kagawa
Publisher: Harlequin TEEN
Length: 504 Pages
Publication Date: April 24, 2012
Reviewed Format: eGalley
My Rating: ★★★½☆☆

Description:
Allison Sekemoto has lived her entire life on the Fringe, one of the last bastions of humanity among a world plagued by the diseased-afflicted rabids. Unfortunately for her, the city is controlled by vampires who exchange protection for a blood quota. As an unregistered, Allie doesn’t have to provide the monthly blood fix as is customary of the registered people. However, that also means that she has no rights, no food rations and no one to turn to should things get ugly. As such, she has lived a good portion of her life as a scavenger; survival is the name of the game. And as if trying to find food and staying alive everyday wasn’t complicated enough, things take a turn for the worse when a series of events force Allie to turn into the one creature she despises the most; a vampire.

This is my first book by Julie Kagawa (author of the Iron Fey Series) and I love to find such a strong female as the lead character. Allie is a tough, no nonsense, 17 year old survivor that begins the story as a badass individual and ends it as a poster child for kickass heroines. Although brave and selfless, Allie is far from perfect, which helps grounds the character as well as helps the reader connect with her. As proven by her headstrong and rash tendencies that, at times, become downright infuriating.

ARC Review: Grave Mercy by Robin LaFevers

Title: Grave Mercy
Series: His Fair Assassin, Book 1
Author(s): Robin LaFevers (R.L. LaFevers)
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Publication Date: April 3, 2012
Source: NetGalley
Reviewed Format: ARC (eGalley)
My Rating: ★★★★★
Get it @: Amazon | Book Depository

I think I found myself a new genre!

Grave Mercy has become a double first timer for me. It is the first historical fiction that I read as well as my very first ARC galley (thank you NetGalley). To be honest, this being my first ARC I had no idea how things would unravel; I am pleased to say the book did not disappointed me at all.

It is a breathtaking story, and although action is not the main feature (even though it has its moments) it is an amazing tale of self-discovery and independence. It takes place in Brittany, circa-late Middle Ages.

Ismae was 14 years old when her abusive farmer father sold her into marriage to an even more abusive man from her home village. But soon after she is whisk away to be taken to a convent that prays to Saint Mortain; pagan god of Death. There she discovers the reality behind her birth and hope springs anew.

Fast forward three years, and in her new life as handmaiden of Death, Ismae has been inducted and instructed in all things assassin. Have any of you ever played either of the Assassin’s Creed games? I’ve tried the first one, and although I never got to finish it I have watch my boyfriend play through the ones that came out for PS3. Why I bring this up? Because there is a similar feeling to both stories. You can feel Ismae’s emotions as she wrestles with what she has been taught at the convent vs. what she witnesses developing right in front of her.

The truth is I that like Ismae. Having a story being told only from the main character’s POV can be daunting. But Ismae is a smart, careful, observant young woman whose inexperience gives her a nice touch of realism. She is a strong character, a survivor.

The Zombie Survival Guide: Complete Protection from the Living Dead by Max Brooks

Title: The Zombie Survival Guide: Complete Protection from the Living Dead
Series: Stand Alone Work
Author(s): Max Brooks
Publisher: Three Rivers Press
Publication Date: September 23, 2011
Reviewed Format: e-Pub Edition
My Rating:  ★★★☆☆

Ok, I first heard about this book while watching Deadliest Warrior’s season finale in Spike. For those who don’t know the series takes two extremely famous (deadly) warriors and matches them up through computer based statistics; example: Alexander the Great vs Attila the Hun. For their latest season finale they decided to takes things to the paranormal level and match up Zombies vs Vampires.

Now, I got interested in the book so I research a bit about it and most of the reviews seem favorable so I went and got it. I wasn’t sure what to expect out of this book but humor wasn’t it and it is certainly extremely funny.

As the book begins you get a rundown of what are zombies, how they are created and how long they’ve been around. From there it moves into a more or less detailed description of which weapons and combat techniques are “proven” to work best on zombies. It shows the reader the various ways to survive a zombie attack ranging from fending oneself against 5 or 6 zombies, all the way to full blown apocalypse. It even gives advice on post-apocalyptic survival. From this point on the book details – in chronological order – numerous attacks through history and their outcomes. As a bonus, the reader gets an Appendix which examples how to keep an outbreak journal so that a zombie attack can be identified.

In all, the book is a funny way to kill some time. I’ll recommend it to anyone who likes zombies or dystopian themed books.