Rebels

Rebels by Sarah Noffke
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Oh man so much to say.... most of my reasons for a 3 star rating are spoilers....

Defects was so amazing, and it's not so much that Rebels wasn't amazing as that Em didn't seem as strong and independent as she was in Defects. Em as a character felt younger and more naive' to me. I find the title very fitting and this book was a lot like LOTR II where there is a massively long movie gearing up for war, but it just is a LOT longer than it needed to be.

Rebels felt as if it was trying to fill space for me without really much foreground action. I can appreciate what will come and I am honestly very excited to see the culmination of all that has happened come to fruition in Book 3-Warriors.

Overall the biggest issue I had while reading this was the slower pace and the logistics. I didn't feel as though there was a lot of care being taken with the planning and moving around with just Vider's senses they would have been detected and thwarted long ago. Also why has Em never leached Zack? Why is Em so naive when she admits things and then goes on like she didn't. All the screaming and no one does anything about it. Not very convincing. We have more Ren though at least, so it would be interesting to see what he has been up to this whole time.

Overall I have to leave this book with a 3.5 stars... Given the ending... which I am not happy about Sarah.... you know why... it was just so wrong to pull that one on us, especially after you even sent me those photos to feed my obsession. I can't wait to move on to Book 3 and see where all this planning led. PS. Why is there a horse on the cover ;) It's beautiful, but why?

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Girl, Interrupted

Girl, Interrupted by Susanna Kaysen
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Having first seen the movie, I have been interested in checking this book out for years. I was very excited to randomly come across it as one of my library's staff picks.

I didn't realize that Susanna had written this book about herself prior to reading it It definitely adds a new dimension to the story, that is an added benefit.

Overall it is well written and an enjoyable read. I enjoyed the way that Susanna was able to assess herself and the world around her, making her intelligence apparent even through the pages.

The most complicated part of reading the story was the timeline shifts between chapters. Sometimes she would mention an event (such as a death) and then a couple of chapters later that person would be talked about in a present tense.

Definitely worth the read. 4.5 stars for me.

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Fangirl

Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I must say that I went into this book expecting it to be maybe a 3 star read. I would have never picked this book up on my own, but my group voted on it for this month's read and I am very happy that they did.

I love how REAL the characters were in this book. Cather (Cath) and Wren are identical twins who have just entered into their Freshman year of college and Wren wants to break away from having to do everything together. She wants to meet new friends and be more independent. Cath is an introverted girl with a bit of social anxiety disorder. The twins have a lot of opposition between their personalities.

Although this story is written about twins, I could see a lot of the difference in personalities between my sister and myself. There were so many relateable parts of Cath's personality to me. There were time in the book where I laugh and even a time when I had tears run down my face for Cather.

Many realistic issues are faced in this book to include familiar upset, and disorders throughout each family member. The whole book revolves around Cath's fanfic writing for another created story that is interwoven within the book. You get to know the characters within this story and within the canon and Fanfic of Simon Snow's world.

I left this book wanting more of a wrap up ending, but hoping instead that it means we will see more of these beautifully written characters. Superb job, I definitely connected with this book. 5 Stars for me.

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Shadow and Bone

Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Well I actually picked this up because when I went to begin Six of Crows, I felt like I needed the back story. Life got very busy and I actually had to check it out twice from the library before I can fit it in. I finally allowed myself to take a short break from my many obligations in life and sit down and at least get started on it. So I did... And then I read the entire thing.

I just couldn't seem to stop reading it. I was completely wrapped up in the story and the characters and it grabbed me. It was a welcome relief from real life and I couldn't believe it was over so quickly. Now I need to pick up book two.

In the first half I was kind of apprehensive because it was starting to feel like a multitude of other books, but then BAM! Leigh Bardugo said "I tell my OWN story." And then the end came far too soon. I must say that I am now a new fan of hers and can't wait to read more. I hope she upholds this high standard int he rest of her novels.

********************SPOILER ALERT************************

Thank goodness this wasn't another stupid love triangle that made "forgetting" about someone when you are away from them okay blach! Thank you for letting Alina find her confidence and truth of her heart quickly before too much damage was done. Also I feel personally betrayed by Genya. I REALLY want her to NOT be a "bad guy"! 

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Intercrossed

Intercrossed by Milly Ly
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

There were a lot of elements to enjoy about this book. I loved the characters and Milly has definitely mastered a lot in terms of dialogue. She was able to convey a lot with the dialogue.
Unfortunately this led to my main complaint about the book. Other than the dialogue, there are quick snippets to let the reader know the timing of events and that things have happened. There were a lot of unanswered questions for me.

This book feels like it is a really amazing start to something, that is just not quite finished yet. I love this creation of the world and that characters are great, but I want more depth to the world, more background information, more descriptions of locations and a better grasp of the timeline of events, because the dialogue of the story had it feeling very unrealistic in the romance of the book. I'd love to have this added in, and to have the ending action not feel quite so rushed, and have a bit more development as it was the start of a good action scene. I do enjoy the world that has been created and would like to continue along with the characters.

Overall I have to leave it with a 3 star in it's current state.

**I received a copy of this book from  For Love of a Book

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The Cannibal's Daughter

 The Cannibal's Daughter by Mitchell Nelson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The Cannibal's Daughter was an unexpected delight. I mean that in the sense that it excelled at it's B rate horror/thriller category and witty side bar thoughts in Caroline's head.

The book starts out with The Cannibal killer being executed in prison.... only to show up to antagonize his daughter, Caroline in a search for $11 million daughters that have been hid along a treasure hunt of clues.

Caroline is just your average every day person, bored and unfulfilled in her life post high school and working at a coffee shop, so even though her she is scared by this man who is supposed to be dead and a serial killer, she can't help thinking a cut of the money would be worth the trouble.

The book carries you on a wild goose chase and a lot of action with b-movie type gun/shovel battles. There are some unexpected twists and I loved the double thoughts that trailed Caroline and her actions.

Worth the read if you have ever had an affinity for B movies. 4 stars

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The 5th Wave

The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I'm not even sure what to write in a review about this book.... Let me just say that this book IS AMAZING! It deserves, 5, no 10, no ALL the stars.

I loved this book. I loved the characters, it was beautifully written. I love the way the Book was broken up into parts for different experiences and points of view . Cassiopeia is easy to love as a badass dystopian character.

Although the ages of this book make it young adult, if you are into thriller or sci-fi, it has none of the cutesy young adult themes that may make you think twice about it. Do yourself a favor and READ THIS BOOK!

I can't wait to read more in the series, one of the best alien novels I've read EVER. Heck, one of the best novels I've read ALL year!

I had many theories and thoughts, many of which were correct, but some that weren't but it was not predictable. The 5th Waves takes you on a ride and you don't ever want to get off! 5 Stars easily!

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5th Wave:The Movie......

WTF.  Seriously.  Did whoever wrote the script even READ this book?  The movie was akin to a REALLY Long trailer and lost all essence and emotion of the story.  You destroyed this story.  What a waste.  The characters weren't badly cast, but they truncated every scene and changed intricate details, and WHY?  WHY oh Why?  Please do not just this story based on this horrible rendition that was portrayed in the movie.  This book is SO MUCH MORE!   

Dark Matters

Dark Matters by Michael Dow
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Dark Matters is a brilliant start to a new trilogy. In a book that began as a kickstarter project I had a keen interest in it and had heard good things from others, leaving me with high expectations.

I am happy to say that my expectations were certainly met. Dark matters is a spectacular new science-fiction thriller that captures the future of our world from three distinct and vastly different view points. This book hits the ground running and never lets up!

The three main characters that he reader follows are Rudy, Monique and Jonas. Rudy is a newly promoted CEO or the world's first trillion dollar company and become privy to the nefarious existence of a group known as the Consortium. Monique was left with an extremely large inheritance that causes her to want to give back and be charitable in life, and also to have the means to pursue the urging of her ever present visions. Jonas is a scientist who funds his dark matter research efforts with grants from his companies efforts to locate asteroids worth the effort of mining for resources from Earth bound companies. Three vastly different individuals, who cast three vastly different lights to the events going on in around the world.

It was hard to put this book down and not know what was coming next. I can't wait to continue on with this trilogy and hope that subsequent books bring as much action and intensity. An easy 5 stars for me.

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The Amber Project

The Amber Project by J.N. Chaney
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

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The Amber Project opens us up to a futuristic world, about 200 years after the spread of a toxic gas known as the Variant (which spread in 2157). The gas steadily spread across the globe killing all living things it came into contact with and drastically changing the atmosphere. The sky is now purple, the grass is now blue and there are some predators who managed to adapt and change, but little is known about them.

An underground city was established and cordoned off and sealed from the Variant. The population is controlled by 3 main sections, the military/education, scientific and the matron. The three bodies must act together in order for there to be any order in this new world. The matron is in charge of all of the mothers that birth the population. Children are made through contacts and a mother must have the right genetic coding in order to be eligible to be a mother. Women see mothering as a sign of honor and stability and began having children as early as 14.

Once children reach the age of 7 they are taken from their homes (only run and managed by their mother and any possible siblings) and placed into the education system. Mara is one of the mothers with almost perfect genetic coding which causes her to be chosen for a specific scientific program, allowing her to fuse new experiments with her eggs to produce a possible child that can exist on the surface of the Earth with the Variant. This child is named Terry.

If you want to know more, than you must read the book. Suffice to say that the book is loaded with a devastating new world, political intrigue and power struggles as well as the troubles of growing into one self with the added side effects of being a scientific experiment.

The story is told through multiple points of view to give a brilliant all-around look into the world. In addition, there are answered questions through the release of past and current audio files and text to help the reader understand what has happened and is happening in the futuristic Earth.

Chaney has managed to brilliantly fortify a place within a genre rife with half-hearted attempts of literature and created a gripping new series! I can't wait to read on. This was an easy 5 stars and hard to put down.

** I received a copy of this book for free with the For Love of a Book Advanced Reader Opportunity Program

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Unseemly

Unseemly by Jason Parent
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Unseemly is a short story/novella written by Jason Parent featuring a legend about an obscure Scottish Island. Peter is here for a black market payday, and another grave robbing experience. Although his true passion is archeology, he learned long ago that honest money didn't pay his bills.

He has come to the island to meet up with past unsavory partners that have teamed up on other undesirable jobs. This one features an academically researched legend into the sidhe. Against all of his intuition and instincts he continues along with the job.

This was a quick read and very exciting. An enticing fantastical horror story that ended abruptly. Made me feel like I was reading a more in depth "Are You Afraid of the Dark" tale. 4 Stars!

** I received a copy of this book for free with the For Love of a Book Read & Review Opportunity Program

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