Take a photo of a barcode or cover
874 reviews by:
ambeesbookishpages
The full review + more can be found at The Book Bratz
I am almost a year and a half late for this party but: Oh.My.God. This book was amazing! Jessica had given me an ARC of this book which she had won in a giveaway a little after its release date. Of course being me I left it on my bookcase until several days ago. Why do I do this to myself? I have no idea. But I did end up reading this and I LOVED it!
Scarlett will do anything to ensure the safety of her sister Tella. Younger and more naive Scarlett believed that Caraval would be their way out of their small island home and escaping from their cruel father. As the girls grow older Scarlett realizes that Caraval won't be the thing that can save them. In attempt to make a better life, Scarlett finds herself in an arranged marriage to a man she never met in hopes that he can help Scarlett and Tella escape their lives. That is until Scarlett receives tickets to this years Caraval. A story about sisterhood and love having no bounds, not everything is what it seems. Especially Legend, the Caraval Master himself.
Scarlett went through hell to find and save her sister. She endured years of abuse from their father and even agreed to an arranged marriage to make sure Tella would remain safe. If this doesn't scream of the devotion Scarlett has to her sister, I am not sure what would. Having a sister of my own, I know I would go to the ends of the Earth to keep her safe and well. It wasn't hard for me to understand why Scarlett did what she did at all.
The world building in this book was magical (pun intended.) From the island the girls come from, to the characters, Legend's island, the game of Caraval it was all beautifully crafted. I flew through this book, these pages came alive for me. Towards the end of the novel everything begins to fall into place, things that I didn't understand prior finally made sense. As well as the actions for certain events that had happened. Just know this: Legend is a very very twisted man.
I half convinced myself that Julian wasn't going to be the love interest and Scarlett was going to find Legend and he would become the love interest. (I also Dante was going to be too, I was really confused for a while.) I was wrong. Though, I ended up falling in love with Julian. My only complaint is that Scarlett and Julian only know each other for a week by the conclusion of the novel. That's quite fast to develop a relationship. Though it didn't feel like a case of insta-love it could considered to be one.
Overall I loved this book and I can't wait to read the next book! I am even more excited because it is also in Tella's POV and hopefully the few lingering questions I have will be answered.
I am almost a year and a half late for this party but: Oh.My.God. This book was amazing! Jessica had given me an ARC of this book which she had won in a giveaway a little after its release date. Of course being me I left it on my bookcase until several days ago. Why do I do this to myself? I have no idea. But I did end up reading this and I LOVED it!
Scarlett will do anything to ensure the safety of her sister Tella. Younger and more naive Scarlett believed that Caraval would be their way out of their small island home and escaping from their cruel father. As the girls grow older Scarlett realizes that Caraval won't be the thing that can save them. In attempt to make a better life, Scarlett finds herself in an arranged marriage to a man she never met in hopes that he can help Scarlett and Tella escape their lives. That is until Scarlett receives tickets to this years Caraval. A story about sisterhood and love having no bounds, not everything is what it seems. Especially Legend, the Caraval Master himself.
Scarlett went through hell to find and save her sister. She endured years of abuse from their father and even agreed to an arranged marriage to make sure Tella would remain safe. If this doesn't scream of the devotion Scarlett has to her sister, I am not sure what would. Having a sister of my own, I know I would go to the ends of the Earth to keep her safe and well. It wasn't hard for me to understand why Scarlett did what she did at all.
The world building in this book was magical (pun intended.) From the island the girls come from, to the characters, Legend's island, the game of Caraval it was all beautifully crafted. I flew through this book, these pages came alive for me. Towards the end of the novel everything begins to fall into place, things that I didn't understand prior finally made sense. As well as the actions for certain events that had happened. Just know this: Legend is a very very twisted man.
I half convinced myself that Julian wasn't going to be the love interest and Scarlett was going to find Legend and he would become the love interest. (I also Dante was going to be too, I was really confused for a while.) I was wrong. Though, I ended up falling in love with Julian. My only complaint is that Scarlett and Julian only know each other for a week by the conclusion of the novel. That's quite fast to develop a relationship. Though it didn't feel like a case of insta-love it could considered to be one.
Overall I loved this book and I can't wait to read the next book! I am even more excited because it is also in Tella's POV and hopefully the few lingering questions I have will be answered.
The full review + more can be found at The Book Bratz
After finishing this book, all I can say is: I WANT MORE! Failsafe was different compared to other sci-fi novels I have read. The idea is so unique and different. I have a crazy fascination with A.I. and what would happen if it rebelled and became smarter then its human counter parts. Anela explored this in her novel as well as the message that love has no bounds.
After learning she has epilepsy everything that Sol had hoped for her future is slowly collapsing. Where she was suppose to follow in her father's footsteps, the position is suddenly passed on to Mykel, the boy she been genetically matched with to produce healthy children to keep the human race going. Sol does what she can for her home colony though. She goes out of the compound and scavenges for supplies that the A.I. they live within no longer provides for them. On one of these runs Sol meets Echo, a boy who looks like no one she has ever seen before. There is one thing about this strange boy though: He isn't entirely human. Echo's primary objective is to destroy the Interspace and with the help of Sol, he might just succeed.
There are so many laugh out loud moments in Failsafe. Yes, Echo is human but he has no social skills. He has spent years in silence searching for a way to destroy the Interspace. He never had a moment of human interaction until the moment he meets Sol. Echo learning humanity and what certain things are, the way humans react to certain things is funny. I think the best aspect of Sol teaching Echo about human behavior is her body language as she begins to develop feelings for the mysterious boy. Echo is notices the slightest changes in things, such as: Sol's accelerated heart rate when she is around him. He also doesn't understand all the new feelings he is beginning to experience. It was fun to see a human/robot develop such feelings for Sol and a better understanding for humanity.
Typically, I am one for a slow burn romance where I am basically screaming for the two characters to kiss. This book takes place over a couple of week time span, so though it may seem that Sol's feelings for Echo or abrupt and happen pretty quick, they actually aren't. I enjoyed the moment that Sol acknowledges the fact she has a crush on Echo, and she does that typical girl things where she doesn't want to have feelings but she does and now she is confused. Sol was such an easily relatable character in this book.
The only thing I wasn't sure about is that I am not sure if this book is a stand alone or not. I think there were a lot of things that could have been clarified more or and expanded upon, especially if this is a stand alone. I enjoyed Failsafe and would love to see more of Sol and Echo's journey in the new obstacles they are going to faced based on how the novel ended.
After finishing this book, all I can say is: I WANT MORE! Failsafe was different compared to other sci-fi novels I have read. The idea is so unique and different. I have a crazy fascination with A.I. and what would happen if it rebelled and became smarter then its human counter parts. Anela explored this in her novel as well as the message that love has no bounds.
After learning she has epilepsy everything that Sol had hoped for her future is slowly collapsing. Where she was suppose to follow in her father's footsteps, the position is suddenly passed on to Mykel, the boy she been genetically matched with to produce healthy children to keep the human race going. Sol does what she can for her home colony though. She goes out of the compound and scavenges for supplies that the A.I. they live within no longer provides for them. On one of these runs Sol meets Echo, a boy who looks like no one she has ever seen before. There is one thing about this strange boy though: He isn't entirely human. Echo's primary objective is to destroy the Interspace and with the help of Sol, he might just succeed.
There are so many laugh out loud moments in Failsafe. Yes, Echo is human but he has no social skills. He has spent years in silence searching for a way to destroy the Interspace. He never had a moment of human interaction until the moment he meets Sol. Echo learning humanity and what certain things are, the way humans react to certain things is funny. I think the best aspect of Sol teaching Echo about human behavior is her body language as she begins to develop feelings for the mysterious boy. Echo is notices the slightest changes in things, such as: Sol's accelerated heart rate when she is around him. He also doesn't understand all the new feelings he is beginning to experience. It was fun to see a human/robot develop such feelings for Sol and a better understanding for humanity.
Typically, I am one for a slow burn romance where I am basically screaming for the two characters to kiss. This book takes place over a couple of week time span, so though it may seem that Sol's feelings for Echo or abrupt and happen pretty quick, they actually aren't. I enjoyed the moment that Sol acknowledges the fact she has a crush on Echo, and she does that typical girl things where she doesn't want to have feelings but she does and now she is confused. Sol was such an easily relatable character in this book.
The only thing I wasn't sure about is that I am not sure if this book is a stand alone or not. I think there were a lot of things that could have been clarified more or and expanded upon, especially if this is a stand alone. I enjoyed Failsafe and would love to see more of Sol and Echo's journey in the new obstacles they are going to faced based on how the novel ended.
Holy shit. I wish I could give this more stars. Overall favorite of 2018 so far.
Review to come!!
Review to come!!
The full review + more can be found at The Book Bratz
I love The Darkest Minds series. I love Aliens. Sanctuary pitched for fans of both. Naturally it was love at first sight. I feel like I read so much sci-fi but never of monster like aliens? They are always peaceful and simple. Not dripping with venom going at your throat which is the types of Aliens Sanctuary features.
My feelings for Sanctuary are mixed. On the one hand I loved it and on the other I found some of the story to be bland and not of much interest. It wasn’t until about halfway through where you really see the first of the aliens, so you have to read a bit before you are going to get to any of the good stuff. I liked the setting a lot, I have a natural love for books that take place in space stations (... I’m a sci-fi geek. What do we expect?) but I do wish Earth was talked about a lot more. There is mentions how some states are government run and others are corporate run. It’s pretty simple to understand that difference but it’s such a different idea that I wish it was expanded on a whole lot more then it was.
Kenzie lives on Sanctuary, a juvenile detention center that is run by the corporation Omnistellar. All she knows is rules and procedures and to never break them. Life in a government slum is basically a death sentence. After a security breach that releases anomalies (teenagers with strange abilities) Kenzie learns that almost everything she knew about the corporation that basically raised her is a lie. With aliens aboard their home and death around the corner can Kenzie co-exists with this prisoners she is suppose to be guarding, because after all anomalies are only animals. That is until she meets Cage.
The romance bugged me a little bit. In the sense that the place takes place in only a two day time span and Kenzie and Cage are basically all for each other. The redeeming aspect of the romance was the fact that Kenzie acknowledges the fact that their feelings for each other developed rather quickly, and after the way Sanctuary ended the status of their relationships is questionable.
Which brings me to my next point...
Is this book going to be part of a series? There is so much more that can happen that wasn't addressed! There were so many story lines that weren't concluded and left open ended. I do hope that it will be a series because I actually liked Sanctuary a lot and would love to spend a lot more time in this world.
All in all I really enjoyed Sanctuary expect for the romance and how it is very open ended at the moment. Regardless of those two facts this will be a book that I will be pushing on my friends who love sci-fi.
I love The Darkest Minds series. I love Aliens. Sanctuary pitched for fans of both. Naturally it was love at first sight. I feel like I read so much sci-fi but never of monster like aliens? They are always peaceful and simple. Not dripping with venom going at your throat which is the types of Aliens Sanctuary features.
My feelings for Sanctuary are mixed. On the one hand I loved it and on the other I found some of the story to be bland and not of much interest. It wasn’t until about halfway through where you really see the first of the aliens, so you have to read a bit before you are going to get to any of the good stuff. I liked the setting a lot, I have a natural love for books that take place in space stations (... I’m a sci-fi geek. What do we expect?) but I do wish Earth was talked about a lot more. There is mentions how some states are government run and others are corporate run. It’s pretty simple to understand that difference but it’s such a different idea that I wish it was expanded on a whole lot more then it was.
Kenzie lives on Sanctuary, a juvenile detention center that is run by the corporation Omnistellar. All she knows is rules and procedures and to never break them. Life in a government slum is basically a death sentence. After a security breach that releases anomalies (teenagers with strange abilities) Kenzie learns that almost everything she knew about the corporation that basically raised her is a lie. With aliens aboard their home and death around the corner can Kenzie co-exists with this prisoners she is suppose to be guarding, because after all anomalies are only animals. That is until she meets Cage.
The romance bugged me a little bit. In the sense that the place takes place in only a two day time span and Kenzie and Cage are basically all for each other. The redeeming aspect of the romance was the fact that Kenzie acknowledges the fact that their feelings for each other developed rather quickly, and after the way Sanctuary ended the status of their relationships is questionable.
Which brings me to my next point...
Is this book going to be part of a series? There is so much more that can happen that wasn't addressed! There were so many story lines that weren't concluded and left open ended. I do hope that it will be a series because I actually liked Sanctuary a lot and would love to spend a lot more time in this world.
All in all I really enjoyed Sanctuary expect for the romance and how it is very open ended at the moment. Regardless of those two facts this will be a book that I will be pushing on my friends who love sci-fi.
The full review + more can be found at The Book Bratz
RATING: 2.5 Stars
I was really excited for The Final Six and I really want to say that I loved it. But sadly I didn't. I liked the idea a lot and the diverse cast of characters but that was about it. The Final Six fell short of the expectations that I had for it.
Character wise I was able to relate to Naomi in the aspect of her young brother being ill and him being the center of her world and her devotion to her family. After that I wasn't the biggest fan of Naomi. Though ISTC hasn't been entirely forthcoming on the Europa mission, it is the only hope for humanity at this point. I found her to be very negative about a lot of things. She does realize through out the book that she has had it a lot easier then a majority of the 24 selected teens, but she continuously only thought about herself. I did how ever like Leo, the book opens up in his POV. You can see nothing but the pain and loneliness he has felt in the time that his parents and sister died that you can't help but to feel for him. He is desperate for a fresh start and Europa is his answer. Where Naomi is finding every possible way to sabotage the mission so the 24 will get to go home to their families, Leo is hoping to be one of the final six that is chosen to go to Europa.
I wasn't a fan of the romance at all. It felt rushed and they barley know anything about each other. One moment they are strangers on separate sides of the world and the next they are in love. I just don't understand. It felt like the romance took over a lot of the plot line of The Final Six in certain parts. There was a scene at the very end of the novel that I didn't find relevant to the story line, but having been seventeen once I do understand that train of thought.
The idea behind Europa and colonizing it was cool, but I am still confused with what exactly was going on. They have to break through ice to get to the land and then get to the ocean? Are microscopic aliens the only life form? There are so many aspects of Europa that remained unanswered and could have been explained a whole lot more then they really were.
I liked the idea behind The Final Six all things considering. Colonizing and terraforming other bodies of mass in the galaxy is a really interesting concept to me, and I am eagerly waiting for this step to be taken in the real world. The natural disasters that take place in The Final Six are scary real. They aren't some far fetched ideas that are impossible. These things are very much possible and are happening everyday.
With how The Final Six ended I am curious what is going to happen next and have still have a ton of questions that I am looking for answers for. I do plan on reading the second book when it comes out all things considered. All in all I am dissapointed that I didn't love this one as much as I anticipated but not everything I read is going to be my cup of tea.
RATING: 2.5 Stars
I was really excited for The Final Six and I really want to say that I loved it. But sadly I didn't. I liked the idea a lot and the diverse cast of characters but that was about it. The Final Six fell short of the expectations that I had for it.
Character wise I was able to relate to Naomi in the aspect of her young brother being ill and him being the center of her world and her devotion to her family. After that I wasn't the biggest fan of Naomi. Though ISTC hasn't been entirely forthcoming on the Europa mission, it is the only hope for humanity at this point. I found her to be very negative about a lot of things. She does realize through out the book that she has had it a lot easier then a majority of the 24 selected teens, but she continuously only thought about herself. I did how ever like Leo, the book opens up in his POV. You can see nothing but the pain and loneliness he has felt in the time that his parents and sister died that you can't help but to feel for him. He is desperate for a fresh start and Europa is his answer. Where Naomi is finding every possible way to sabotage the mission so the 24 will get to go home to their families, Leo is hoping to be one of the final six that is chosen to go to Europa.
I wasn't a fan of the romance at all. It felt rushed and they barley know anything about each other. One moment they are strangers on separate sides of the world and the next they are in love. I just don't understand. It felt like the romance took over a lot of the plot line of The Final Six in certain parts. There was a scene at the very end of the novel that I didn't find relevant to the story line, but having been seventeen once I do understand that train of thought.
The idea behind Europa and colonizing it was cool, but I am still confused with what exactly was going on. They have to break through ice to get to the land and then get to the ocean? Are microscopic aliens the only life form? There are so many aspects of Europa that remained unanswered and could have been explained a whole lot more then they really were.
I liked the idea behind The Final Six all things considering. Colonizing and terraforming other bodies of mass in the galaxy is a really interesting concept to me, and I am eagerly waiting for this step to be taken in the real world. The natural disasters that take place in The Final Six are scary real. They aren't some far fetched ideas that are impossible. These things are very much possible and are happening everyday.
With how The Final Six ended I am curious what is going to happen next and have still have a ton of questions that I am looking for answers for. I do plan on reading the second book when it comes out all things considered. All in all I am dissapointed that I didn't love this one as much as I anticipated but not everything I read is going to be my cup of tea.
The full review + more can be found at The Book Bratz
This book was absolutely amazing. Spanning over hundred of years it shows the evolution of humanity with the advances in science that have been made. This book was brilliant and thought provoking as well as terrifying and undeniably real. This book is something that can’t be missed in 2018/2019.
I didn't realize this was an anthology when I had requested it, so I was a little skeptical since I am not the biggest fan of anthologies but Ohmygod. The stories interconnect with a Reverend and his daughter over hundred of years worth of time. Stronger, Faster and More Beautiful was captivating, I couldn't read it fast enough and I was sad when I finished because I really wanted more.
If you think about it, a lot of the things that Dayton talks about in this book are already happening or on their way of happening so her ideas aren't far fetched in the least. My favorite story in this anthology had to have been the last one. It's set far into the future where there is a huge divide between genetically modified humans and "protos" humans that have never been altered. It brings up the question of what species is more superior and if genetically altered people are a whole new species with in themselves.
Stronger, Faster and More Beautiful brings up an array of questions as you read. It makes you think about the future and how things can go horribly wrong. It brings up with question of whether or not any of these things ethical and where the cut off is for ethical and unethical modifications. This book will be one to stand out in my mind for a long time to come and it will with out a doubt stay in everyone else's mind as well.
This book was absolutely amazing. Spanning over hundred of years it shows the evolution of humanity with the advances in science that have been made. This book was brilliant and thought provoking as well as terrifying and undeniably real. This book is something that can’t be missed in 2018/2019.
I didn't realize this was an anthology when I had requested it, so I was a little skeptical since I am not the biggest fan of anthologies but Ohmygod. The stories interconnect with a Reverend and his daughter over hundred of years worth of time. Stronger, Faster and More Beautiful was captivating, I couldn't read it fast enough and I was sad when I finished because I really wanted more.
If you think about it, a lot of the things that Dayton talks about in this book are already happening or on their way of happening so her ideas aren't far fetched in the least. My favorite story in this anthology had to have been the last one. It's set far into the future where there is a huge divide between genetically modified humans and "protos" humans that have never been altered. It brings up the question of what species is more superior and if genetically altered people are a whole new species with in themselves.
Stronger, Faster and More Beautiful brings up an array of questions as you read. It makes you think about the future and how things can go horribly wrong. It brings up with question of whether or not any of these things ethical and where the cut off is for ethical and unethical modifications. This book will be one to stand out in my mind for a long time to come and it will with out a doubt stay in everyone else's mind as well.
Alright, so I have a love hate relationship with this book. My full review will come soon