review to come

Damn cliffhangers....

So I've sat on this review for a few days so that I could really think about what I want to say. As a whole, this book was only ok for me and I don't know that I will continue the series. With that said, there were some good parts and some parts that I thought took away from the story.

First, I thought the story itself was interesting. The book focuses on Zoe and Dani who are in the midst of a plague. Friends and family are dying and although they both get sick, they both end up being a part of those that survive. One of the things that occurs to these survivors though is that they come back with an "ability". It varies for each person and can be just about anything.

Beyond this I wasn't too impressed. Mainly because I have to be invested in at least one of the characters to enjoy the story. Unfortunately I didn't get this here. The main reason was that although Zoe and Dani were supposed to be 26 years old, they felt much younger. I'm not sure why they weren't written younger - it probably would have come off much differently for me if they had been. The second piece that detracted from the story for me were the emails. These are part of the reason why I didn't get the ages - the tone and conversation between the two friends just felt off. Also, they both felt very flat to me.

I will say I am very interested in Gabe's story and power. We definitely didn't get enough and that cliffhanger definitely served it's purpose. If for that reason alone, I would perhaps consider reading the next book of the series.

3.5 stars for The Ward. This is an action packed novel which had me turning the pages to find out just who was on whose side. I get the impression that, although this looks like it is a standalone novel, there will be more to come for these characters.

The Ward takes place in a post Wash Out New York City. The city is under water and a good portion of the population is suffering from the HBNC virus. The majority of those suffering live in the Ward and the “better off” people live in the West Isle. Frankel does a good job building the world and describing the setting. Although there wasn't much explanation of the Wash Out, the way she described the current state was good - Imagine the Statue of Liberty submerged under water and suspension bridges or boardwalks being used to navigate around the city. The city itself is run by Governor Voss and his legacy is taking a hit due to the virus and lack of freshwater. He also has an underlying agenda to finding the “fresh” as his wife is suffering from HBNC and he believes the freshwater has healing properties. He will do whatever it takes to find the spring and save his wife.

At the heart of this story is the main character, Ren. She is 16 now but three years ago, she swore she would never be involved with the DI (The Blues). The DI is the security and military arm of the government and through a mishap, Ren was caught by them and is now working for them to help find the fresh. When she accidentally comes across a secret spring, Ren finds herself at the center of a fight that has gone on for longer than she has been alive.

Having grown up in an orphanage, Ren determined it was easier if she didn't get attached to people. Despite her thoughts around this, there is an exception; Aven – another orphan. Once she returns from her DI training, she finds out that Aven is suffering from the HBNC virus so she hunts her down and it is up to her to take care of them both. This is where her mobile racing comes in – Ren hasn’t lost a race in three years.

Keep in mind, Ren is only 16 years old and at times she really feels like she can’t handle the pressure. I liked Ren – initially she has cut herself off from others but we find that over the last few years she has let a few people into her life. First, there is Aven who she views as a sister. Most everything Ren does is a reflection of what she wants to do to help Aven or what Aven would do if she were in Ren’s shoes. Other important characters revolve around Ren’s mobile racing.

Kent and Jones are the guys that give her a hard time for racing – they don’t like her and the fact that she is a girl and beats them every time only makes them angrier with her. Another person I will add here is Chief Dunn. He is one of those characters that help move the story along but it was never explained as to why he dislikes Ren so much. Other than the fact that he is just doing what the Governor says, he seems to hate Ren an extreme amount.

Benny is Ren’s mech and he has been with her since her first race. He is somewhat of a father figure for Ren and it is clear he cares about her. They have known each other since she was 13 and has been her right hand person during her races. She relies on him for more than just mechanical work and they truly care for each other – almost like family.

Derek is Ren’s bookie but there is more. Secretly (or not so secretly) Ren has had a crush on Derek and although she sometimes feels like he cares for her, there are times where she has the same doubts any teenager would. She doesn't think she is pretty and often asks herself why she thinks someone like Derek would even care about someone like her. Turns out, Derek is hiding more than his feelings for Ren. I won’t give anything away here but know that I was questioning whose side he was really on and what he was doing. I loved that Ren basically called him out and told him to earn her love. I believe that is what made him make a decision on what he needed to do.

Callum is a new person in Ren’s world and we are introduced to him fairly early on in the story. I didn't get a sense of him being a love interest for Ren so hopefully it stays that way – although I am sure there are those out there that will hope for something to happen with them. Their friendship actually starts and is based a lot on what they can do for each other. He initially approaches her to find the spring and when she does, she relies on him to produce a cure that she can give to Aven. Once Ren saves him, Callum realizes why she did what she did but he didn't hold it against her and really, how could he?

Overall I liked this book and if you like post-apocalyptic stories that have interesting characters as well as a solid story, you will most likely enjoy this too. I thought that Frankel did a great job of introducing new elements to a story that has been told before – by including the virus, the Tetai, and the Wash Out, it felt fresh and I stayed engaged throughout the entire story. Some people will say they thought this book ended on a cliffhanger and if there isn't a second book I will wholeheartedly agree. The exception would be if there is a book two as this was the logical breaking point (in my mind) to conclude the book. With that said, I sincerely hope there is a book two as I am curious to see what happens next with Ren and the rest of her group.

Review to come.

The Program is one of those stories that I just couldn't put down. It is paced well and the story moves fairly quickly. I’m not sure if I can review this without ruining anything about it so I am going to spoiler tag this and you can decide if you want to read it or not.

Suicide is now an international epidemic and teenagers are now constantly monitored to prevent infection. Any sort of reaction or outburst that could be tied to suicide can land someone in The Program. The Program essentially wipes out a person’s memories and they come back as a new person. Depending on who you are in this equation, this could be good or bad. From the very first page we are introduced to the life these teens lead. It grabbed my attention and honestly didn't let go until I finished the last page. The book is broken into sections – you get the before The Program (Uncomfortably Numb), during The Program (logically enough – The Program), and after Sloane’s release from The Program (Wish You Weren't Here).

The story revolves around Sloane and James with some other pivotal secondary characters.

Spoiler

Through the introduction it is revealed that Sloane’s brother Brady (also James’ best friend) committed suicide while James and Sloane were there in front of him. Because of this and the fact that their friend Lacey was taken into The Program 6 weeks prior, they are on edge. They know they can’t grieve openly so they find a way to cope together. In the beginning of the book their relationship did seem a bit co-dependent. They clearly love each other but at times I was wondering if all of this tragedy hadn't happened around them would they really still be together? They seemed to lean on each other a lot just to get through the day and they both seem to be hanging on to “normal” by a thread. When something happens with another one of their close friends, things seem to take a turn for the worse. James seems to give up (despite his promises to stay strong for Sloane) and when he is taken into The Program Sloane realizes he won’t remember her. Even though she realizes it early in his treatment, it doesn't really click until she sees him after he is out and he truly doesn't know who she is and what she meant to him.

With that reality facing her, Sloane starts displaying some “questionable” behavior and her mom does something that I consider unforgivable. She calls the handlers to come take her into The Program. Now, I get it…she was trying to protect her child from harming herself and didn't want to lose another one to suicide but the way she did it and her response to Sloane’s fears about The Program just made me angry.

While in The Program herself, Sloane meets a number of people. The main person who she seems to latch onto (not by accident) is Realm. While she is definitely making progress with The Program, whether she wants to or not, he is the person she leans on to protect her as well as get her through the challenges. Now here is where people may disagree with me – I liked Realm. He definitely had an agenda and purpose but it was clear that as time went by, he started to realize he had feelings for Sloane.

Spoiler

The unforgivable piece that will definitely come back to bite him is the fact that he made her forget who he is and what he did.

He is absolutely looking out for himself and making sure she doesn't ruin things for him but if/when she realizes what he did she most likely won’t forgive him….ever. During the time Sloane is in treatment, we learn more about what happens there and how it all works. We get background on how it actually works (medication and discussion) which I thought was interesting. There is a pivotal part early on in this section where Sloane interacts with Roger, one of the handlers. He essentially offers her a pill that will help her keep a memory. Desperate for anything, she agrees to the trade – I did find this to be one of those hard to read sections as he is blackmailing her for something she shouldn't have to fight for. Regardless, she takes the pill and when she talks to Realm about it, he is clearly upset – not just about the trade but also the fact that it could have killed her and/or will have an effect on her once she is home.

Once Sloane is out, she is taken back to her parent’s home. She doesn't remember anything but is oddly enough drawn to the same people that were in her life before the program. She quickly becomes friends (again) with Lacey and starts to interact with James. James is at first very closed off and can’t understand why he even cares about what happens to Sloane but he does. Once Sloane’s parents hear she is hanging out with James again, things start to unravel. Sloane can’t understand what the problem is and once again, her mom is creating a bad situation. I loved how in the beginning the thought was that if they were meant to be, they would find their way back to each other and when they do, certain people want to stop it.

Surprisingly when I look at the characters I am more interested in James, Realm and Lacey than I am Sloane. I think it may be because we get so much of her throughout the story and I really want to know more about them. They have so many different layers and secrets that I am very interested in getting into their stories more…hopefully that comes in the next book.

I am definitely looking forward to the next book in this series. It was a good place to create a break in the story but I honestly wanted a little bit more of the Anna/Realm piece as there were a number of unanswered questions for me based on the ending.

**Thank you to Simon Pulse for the ARC!!

So....overall star rating would be a 3.5. This book is probably a 3 for me. I won’t give any spoilers in this review and apologize in advance for the somewhat vague review but I’m trying not to ruin anything for those who haven’t read this book/series.

Clockwork Princess picks up where Clockwork Prince left off. Tessa is set to marry Jem and the angst is there. Will has tried his best to not do anything regarding his feelings toward Tessa but he is with her and Jem all the time. Also, he knows Jem is dying and internally he has decided that he could never be with her even if Jem is gone.

“If Jem dies, I cannot be with Tessa,” said Will. “Because it will be as if I were waiting for him to die, or took some joy in his death, if it let me have her. And I will not be that person. I will not profit from his death. So he must live.”

“And yet when you walk that aisle to meet him and join yourselves forever you will walk an invisible path of the shards of my heart, Tessa.”

I mean if those aren't angsty, I don’t know what is. Aside from that, it shows just how much Will is trying to hold it together. I just want to get this out of the way…I’m a Will fan, I prefer him to Jem and if you find that upsetting you will probably want to stop reading this right now.

With that warning over – I never thought that Tessa should have agreed to marry Jem. It was clear she had feelings for both Jem and Will but to there it is. I see what Clare was trying to do – this is in no way your typical love triangle. It has repeatedly been said that Jem and Will are essentially 2 halves of a whole because of their Parabatai relationship. It (kind of) makes sense for Tessa to love them both.

I found that the underlying story of The Infernal Devices and Mortmain to be good…when it was there. Honestly I got the sense that what was supposed to be the main storyline was sucked under the Jem/Will/Tessa relationship story and became less important. Don’t get me wrong – it is there, it just isn’t the main focus. There is a definite showdown between the Shadowhunters and Mortmain but it felt somewhat rushed. On top of that, once it was wrapped up there were still another 100 or so pages left of the story…which then focused back on the relationship piece.

As always, Magnus is a great secondary character. He adds the right amount of levity and color when needed and steers other characters in the right direction. Gideon and Gabriel, Cecily, Sophie, Charlotte and Harry all helped to move the story along as well as provide additional layers to the story – whether that was back story about the main characters or helping provide progression in the fight against Mortmain.

Reading this review one might think I didn't like it…that would be wrong. I just found that the story of the infernal devices seemed to take a back seat to everything else at times. One of the pieces to this book I did enjoy was the epilogue – I will admit to tearing up a bit while reading it.

If you like The Mortal Instruments you will definitely enjoy this series. I have a sense that we won’t be seeing the last of these characters with the conclusion of this series.

Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with a copy for review.

I requested Pretty Dark nothing because at first glance, the story sounded interesting and the cover was really pretty and I’m a sucker for lovely covers. Here is what the blurb states:

It’s been twenty three days since Quinn has slept for more than minutes at a time. Demons have invaded her dreams, stalking her, and whispering of her death. The lack of sleep and crippling fear are ruining her life. Energy drinks and caffeine pills don’t make a dent. When Quinn dozes off in the school hallway, Aaron, an amnesiac with a psychic ability, accidentally enters her nightmare. The demons are determined to keep them apart, and Aaron from discovering the secret locked away in his memory. Together, they could banish the darkness back to the underworld for good. That is, unless the demons kill them first.

That blurb sounds interesting to me…but unfortunately this book falls into an all too common mistake of making the focus of the book the boyfriend/girlfriend aspect versus what the blurb actually describes.
Let’s start with what I liked. First, the cover is lovely…it is actually what drew me in to begin with. Second, the story had a lot of potential. This is where things take a turn for me.

Quinn was perfect (she is actually referred to as “Quinn Perfect” in the book) – she was dating the most popular boy, was captain of the cheerleaders, and had good enough grades to be considered for valedictorian. After Jeff, Quinn’s boyfriend, goes away for the summer things start to fall apart. He is distant when he returns and eventually breaks up with her via text. This becomes the catalyst to Quinn falling apart…her grades drop, she is not allowed to participate in cheerleading and her relationships with friends and family become strained. Underlying all of this, she is also unable to sleep because when she does, the shadows/demons taunt her and make her doubt herself.

As the story progresses we only get bits and pieces of the demon aspect and when Aaron is introduced Quinn focuses more on who she should be with than the fact that she should probably figure out why she can’t get away from these shadows. Also questionable here is the fact that she and Aaron never really tried to figure out why they had a connection. Considering the real story behind Aaron’s mysterious gift and Quinn’s issue isn't even really brought up until the final chapter. The rest of the book just reads like a teen romance (?) with questionable dialogue and even more questionable characters.

Quinn was not my favorite – she was too wishy washy and when it came to her ex-boyfriend I found her downright annoying. I think Reese (the best friend) was supposed to be the voice of reason but it felt somewhat fake and I never really felt that they were truly best friends. I liked Aaron but we really didn't get into the heart of his story until late in the story. Don’t get me wrong, we get glimpses into his life along the way but I really wanted more than just his back and forth with Quinn. Also, there felt like there was more to the character Jenna but we got absolutely nothing regarding her and her role in the story.

To say I was disappointed in this would be pretty accurate. I’m not sure if the author plans to continue this book into a series but that ending left some major questions unanswered and it absolutely ended on a cliffhanger…one of those things that typically makes me angry.

So I knew the sadness was coming...still killed me. 4.5 stars

If He Had Been With Me is one of those stories that I approached knowing there was going to be some heartache but it also had a wonderful story about life, first love, family and friends. It was a quick read which is good as I didn't really want to put it down.

Autumn and Phineas have grown up together. They were born a week apart, their moms are best friends, and they live right next door to each other and up until middle school, they were best friends. Autumn was always “weird” and Finny was the popular one. All through the book flashbacks are mixed in to allow us to really get to know these characters and I have to admit, they are now some of my favorites.

The way Autumn is described early on as “pretty” but also quirky and odd. She refuses to eat the bottom left corner of her sandwiches, she believed herself to be a feminist in the third grade, and decides she is going to wear a tiara every day after trying one on once. Finny is good at sports, caring, and was loyal to Autumn. This line says it all:

It was understood by everyone that I belonged to Finny and that we belonged together.

All of a sudden though, Autumn becomes friends with the popular crowd and they aren't in the same classes anymore. As Autumn sees it, they just drifted apart. Finny definitely has a different point of view here – he even calls her out on it and tells her she left him and I can see it. No matter what was going on with Autumn, he was there in the background.

The story follows the characters through high school from their first day all the way through graduation. Autumn and her best friend Sasha are now a part of a group in school that wants to be different and begins to date Jamie. Finny is now a part of the popular crowd, he is in track and soccer as well as begins to date one of the cheerleaders. During the span of the four years, Autumn and Finny are not really friends but they also aren't not friends. They still have family time together with their mothers and every once in a while they cross paths at school. This story isn't just about their high school experiences though. It covers some pretty deep topics – depression, divorce, love, pregnancy just to name a few.

As the reader, of course, we see things that the characters don’t. We see that Autumn is still drawn to Finny and ultimately realizes she loves him. Unfortunately she decides to stay with Jamie and just when she is ready to move their relationship forward, she finds out that Jamie cheated on her with her best friend, Sasha. I have to say here that I thought there was something going on with those two and was thoroughly annoyed with Jamie and Sasha saying it was an “accident” and they didn't mean for it to happen. I was happy to see Autumn tell Jamie off.

Once the breakup happens, Finny is the one who is able to bring her back to her normal self. Slowly they build back their friendship and through the time they spend together (and with Jack – Finn’s other BFF) Autumn finds out that Finny always had feelings for her and the kiss that she views as a catalyst to the change in their relationship was really him showing her he cared about her as more than friends. Things start to click for Autumn and she takes the chance and tells Finny how she has felt for him over the years which leads back to where the book opens. Because of who Finny is, he has to talk to Sylvie (who he is technically dating) in person about his decision to break up and he decides to do it the night she returns from Europe.

Going into this book I knew it was going to make me sad but as Autumn says “Sometimes sad is beautiful.” The book is beautifully written and the characters are complex and imperfect. That is what makes this such a good book in my mind.

Spoiler

The only issue I had around the ending was the fact that Autumn felt Finny would be ok with her ending her life. Just because she felt Romeo & Juliet was a beautiful story it didn't go along with what his character represented. He was protective and loving and in my opinion would have wanted Autumn to continue living and would not have understood as she implied he would. Perhaps that was her way of justifying it and making herself feel ok about attempting to commit suicide but it felt out of place to me.

Review to come.

3.5 stars

I have to admit, I was a bit lost at first as it had been so long since I read Touch. Regardless, I was able to hit up some reviews and get a quick reminder of what I loved about this series.

A lot happens in this book and Accardo dives right back into the action. In Toxic, Dez and Kale are living at the hotel with Ginger, Dez’s mom, and a bunch of other sixes. Although she knew from the events at Sumrun that she was going to have to give something up, she never really thought it would be her ability to touch Kale. Yep, you heard me right…Dez is no longer able to just touch Kale without consequence. Add to that the arrival of Jade – who just happens to be invincible and can touch Kale – and there is some definite angst.
With Jade attempting to get between Dez and Kale we can’t forget about Alex. He is definitely trying to take advantage of the fact that Kale is spending a lot of time with Jade but I loved how at the end of the book he explained his actions at Sumrun and yes, he hates Kale but he still has feelings for Dez.

Denazen is still trying to get Dez and Kale back and Cross has realized that the only leverage he has between the two are Dez and Kale themselves. He makes his move early on in this book and has a pair of sixes named Able and Aubrey track down Dez. Able has the ability to infect people with a poison while Aubrey has the ability to cure it. They get a hold of Dez and Able does in fact infect Dez but she doesn’t really find out about it until she runs into her dad while running an errand. He fills her in on the details and offers up a trade, the cure for the poison if she turns herself over to Denazen. Also, he offers up the cure for the Supremacy issue for Kale’s return.

Of course Dez turns him down but now has a lot to think about. She absolutely wants to protect Kale and knows that if he finds out what is going on with her, he will do whatever he has to in order to get her the cure and that is what she is afraid of. Because of this, Dez doesn’t tell anyone about the poison – with the exception of Daun who she goes to in order to see if she can help...which she can’t.
While all of this is going down, add in the fact that Dez’s ability is getting stronger which isn’t necessarily a good sign.

As for the characters, Dez is still the same which is great. She is tough, sarcastic, and funny and I was happy to see her stay consistent to book one. As for Kale, I still like him and reading that one chapter from his perspective made me less angry at him only in that I got to see what his purpose was and it allowed me to get into his brain for once but it was still uncool. Jade – I have no words as to how annoying I found her. I am still at a loss as to what her deal is and what her “endgame” is but as I crack open Tremble I am hoping that we will find out more. And for the record, I did not like her. She was manipulative and I didn't see any redeeming qualities.

Ginger – Ugh, I don’t get her and her ideas about not messing with the way things are. It blows my mind that she can see how things will turn out and refuses to impact any change. And to make herself feel better about it, she implies that it is fate and things would change if they were supposed to. I honestly don’t know how Dez can be in the same room with that woman after how the book ended.






If you are looking for a fast paced, action packed book then this is the one for you. Although I don’t know that I enjoyed this one as much as I enjoyed Touch, I still liked it. I am definitely going to read the next book and have high hopes that all will be right in Dez and Kale’s worlds by the end of that book.