Review: Bound by Flames by Jeaniene Frost

Bound by Flames by Jeaniene Frost (Bought) - WARNING! I cannot review this book without spoiling the others in the series. Read no further if you're planning on reading this series and don't want it spoilt for you.

Play with fire, pay the price.

Leila’s years on the carnie circuit were certainly an education. What she didn’t learn: how to be a vampire, or how to be married to the most famous vampire of them all. Adjusting to both has Leila teetering on a knife edge between passion and peril, and now the real danger is about to begin…

Vlad must battle with a centuries-old enemy whose reach stretches across continents and whose strength equals his own. It isn’t like Vlad to feel fear, but he does…for Leila, because his enemy knows she is Vlad’s greatest weakness. As friend and foe alike align against him—and his overprotectiveness drives Leila away—Vlad’s love for his new bride could be the very thing that dooms them both… From Goodreads.

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Review: Hunt by Rachel Vincent

Hunt by Rachel Vincent - WARNING! I cannot review this book without spoiling the others in the series. Read no further if you're planning on reading this series and don't want it spoilt for you.

It’s been more than four years since Abby Wade survived capture and torture by a quartet of rogue shifters. Back then she was a scared kid, just trying to survive.

Now Abby is all grown up, and if she’s learned anything from training with Faythe Sanders, the world’s first female Alpha, it’s that she can take care of herself—and anyone else who comes along. So when her college roommate is abducted from a campsite deep in the Appalachian woods, Abby knows exactly how to get her back…

The rules of the hunt are simple. Kill or be killed.

Abby Wade is not ready to die. From Goodreads.

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Review: Origin by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Origin by Jennifer L. Armentrout - WARNING! I cannot review this book without spoiling the others in the series. Read no further if you're planning on reading this series and don't want it spoilt for you.

Daemon will do anything to get Katy back.

After the successful but disastrous raid on Mount Weather, he’s facing the impossible. Katy is gone. Taken. Everything becomes about finding her. Taking out anyone who stands in his way? Done. Burning down the whole world to save her? Gladly. Exposing his alien race to the world? With pleasure.

All Katy can do is survive.

Surrounded by enemies, the only way she can come out of this is to adapt. After all, there are sides of Daedalus that don’t seem entirely crazy, but the group’s goals are frightening and the truths they speak even more disturbing. Who are the real bad guys? Daedalus? Mankind? Or the Luxen?

Together, they can face anything.

But the most dangerous foe has been there all along, and when the truths are exposed and the lies come crumbling down, which side will Daemon and Katy be standing on?

And will they even be together? From Goodreads

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Review: Secret by Brigid Kemmerer

Secret by Brigid Kemmerer (eProof) - WARNING! I cannot review this book without spoiling the others in the series. Read no further if you're planning on reading this series and don't want it spoilt for you.

Nick Merrick is stretched to breaking point. He's trying to keep his grades sky-high or he won't get in to college. He's trying to keep his brother's business afloat or the Merricks will be out on the street. He's trying to keep the secret of where he's going in the evenings from his twin brother Gabriel - or he fears he'll lose his family. And he's trying to keep his mind off the hot, self-assured dancer who is his 'girlfriend's' partner.

And then Quinn takes to hanging around his sworn enemy, and an Elemental Guide is counting the hours until he can try again to kill the Merrick brothers. Storms are brewing. On all sides.

SECRETS IN THE WIND. DANGER IN THE AIR. From Goodreads

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Review: Opal by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Opal by Jennifer L. Armentrout - WARNING! I cannot review this book without spoiling the others in the series. Read no further if you're planning on reading this series and don't want it spoilt for you.

No one is like Daemon Black.

When he set out to prove his feelings for me, he wasn’t fooling around. Doubting him isn’t something I’ll do again, and now that we’ve made it through the rough patches, well... There’s a lot of spontaneous combustion going on.

But even he can’t protect his family from the danger of trying to free those they love.

After everything, I’m no longer the same Katy. I’m different... And I’m not sure what that will mean in the end. When each step we take in discovering the truth puts us in the path of the secret organization responsible for torturing and testing hybrids, the more I realize there is no end to what I’m capable of. The death of someone close still lingers, help comes from the most unlikely source, and friends will become the deadliest of enemies, but we won’t turn back. Even if the outcome will shatter our worlds forever.

Together we’re stronger... and they know it. From Goodreads

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Review: Spirit by Brigid Kemmerer

Spirit by Brigid Kemmerer - WARNING! I cannot review this book without spoiling the others in the series. Read no further if you're planning on reading this series and don't want it spoilt for you.

With power comes enemies. Lots of them.

Hunter Garrity just wants to be left alone. He’s learned the hard way that his unusual abilities come at a price. And he can’t seem to afford any allies.

He’s up to his neck in hostiles. His grandfather, spoiling for a fight. The Merrick brothers, who think he ratted them out. Calla, the scheming psycho who wants to use him as bait.

Then there’s Kate Sullivan, the new girl at school. She’s not hostile. She’s bold. Funny. Hot. But she’s got an agenda, too.

With supposedly secret powers rippling to the surface everywhere around him, Hunter knows something ugly is about to go down. But finding out what means he’ll have to find someone he can trust… From Goodreads

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Review: Onyx by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Onyx by Jennifer L. Armentrout - WARNING! I cannot review this book without spoiling the others in the series. Read no further if you're planning on reading this series and don't want it spoilt for you.

Being connected to Daemon Black sucks…

Thanks to his alien mojo, Daemon’s determined to prove what he feels for me is more than a product of our bizarro connection. So I’ve sworn him off, even though he’s running more hot than cold these days. But we’ve got bigger problems.

Something worse than the Arum has come to town…

The Department of Defense are here. If they ever find out what Daemon can do and that we're linked, I’m a goner. So is he. And there's this new boy in school who’s got a secret of his own. He knows what’s happened to me and he can help, but to do so, I have to lie to Daemon and stay away from him. Like that's possible. Against all common sense, I'm falling for Daemon. Hard.

But then everything changes…

I’ve seen someone who shouldn’t be alive. And I have to tell Daemon, even though I know he’s never going to stop searching until he gets the truth. What happened to his brother? Who betrayed him? And what does the DOD want from them—from me?

No one is who they seem. And not everyone will survive the lies… From Goodreads

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Review: Obsidian by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Obsidian by Jennifer L. Armentrout - Starting over sucks.

When we moved to West Virginia right before my senior year, I'd pretty much resigned myself to thick accents, dodgy internet access, and a whole lot of boring.... until I spotted my hot neighbor, with his looming height and eerie green eyes. Things were looking up.

And then he opened his mouth.

Daemon is infuriating. Arrogant. Stab-worthy. We do not get along. At all. But when a stranger attacks me and Daemon literally freezes time with a wave of his hand, well, something...unexpected happens.

The hot alien living next door marks me.

You heard me. Alien. Turns out Daemon and his sister have a galaxy of enemies wanting to steal their abilities, and Daemon's touch has me lit up like the Vegas Strip. The only way I'm getting out of this alive is by sticking close to Daemon until my alien mojo fades.

If I don't kill him first, that is. From Goodreads

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Review: Invisibility by Andrea Cremer and David Levithan

Invisibility by Andrea Cremer and David Levithan (review copy) - Stephen is used to invisibility. He was born that way. Invisible. Cursed.

Elizabeth sometimes wishes for invisibility. When you’re invisible, no one can hurt you. So when her mother decides to move the family to New York City, Elizabeth is thrilled. It’s easy to blend in there.

Then Stephen and Elizabeth meet. To Stephen’s amazement, she can see him. And to Elizabeth’s amazement, she wants him to be able to see her—all of her. But as the two become closer, an invisible world gets in their way—a world of grudges and misfortunes, spells and curses. And once they’re thrust into this world, Elizabeth and Stephen must decide how deep they’re going to go—because the answer could mean the difference between love and death. From Goodreads

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Review: Once Burned by Jeaniene Frost

Once Burned by Jeaniene Frost - WARNING! I cannot review this book without spoiling the others in the series. Read no further if you're planning on reading this series and don't want it spoiled for you.

After a tragic accident scarred her body and destroyed her dreams, Leila never imagined that the worst was still to come: terrifying powers that let her channel electricity and learn a person's darkest secrets through a single touch. Leila is doomed to a life of solitude...until creatures of the night kidnap her, forcing her to reach out with a telepathic distress call to the world's most infamous vampire...

Vlad Tepesh inspired the greatest vampire legend of all - but whatever you do, don't call him Dracula. Vlad's ability to control fire makes him one of the most feared vampires in existence, but his enemies have found a new weapon against him - a beautiful mortal with powers to match his own. When Vlad and Leila meet, however, passion ignites between them, threatening to consume them both. It will take everything that they are to stop an enemy intent on bringing them down in flames. From Amazon UK

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Review: Dead Beautiful by Yvonne Woon

Dead Beautiful by Yvonne Woon (review copy) - Desire. Danger. Destiny. Little did I know that this is what I would find at Gottfried Academy. Coming from sunny California, the mist-shrouded Academy was a shock, with its strange customs, ancient curriculum and study of Latin - the language of the dead. Then I discovered that the school has more than one dark secret... I also discovered Dante. Intelligent, elusive and devastatingly gorgeous, most people can't decide whether they love, hate or fear him. All I know is that when we're together, I've never felt more alive - or more afraid. From Amazon UK

When I first heard about Dead Beautiful, I was really intrigued. Urban fantasy, as most of you know, is one of my favourite genres, and Dead Beautiful sounded right up my street. I was eager to read read it. What I didn' t expect was just how brilliant the story would be.

What I loved about this book was the skill at how Yvonne Woon told Renée's story, how the mythology is such an original take, we don't find out - and find it very difficult to work out - what is actually going on until Renée does. Literally, things will happen, new clues will arise, people will behave strangely, but there's nothing to make you think "this is about such and such a creature, hence all the XYZ things that are going on". I had no idea. There were no conventions of the normal urban fantasy/paranormal creatures about to have any hint. I was kept guessing until we find out. And what's brilliant is that we don't find out until several hundred pages in, yet there is still so much story, so much happening, you're gripped and continually turning the pages, despite having no clue where it could possibly be going. It's fantastic!

The only faults were I didn't have a lit-crush on Dante - I liked him, but he just simply didn't do it for me - and the romance didn't blow me away. It was a little luke warm for my tastes. It wasbelievable, but I didn't connect with it on an emotional level to be swept away by it. I was more interested in what was oing on than I was in the swooning, but that's just me personally.

And I'm sorry to say, I honestly cannot say much more. I can't think of what I could say without spoiling anything. I do love the school though, and all the classes, they sound so much fun! I wouldn't have minded going to a school like that. A fantastic book, and I seriously cannot wait to read the sequel!

Thanks to Usborne for sending me a review copy.

Published: 1st May 2011
Publisher: Usborne
Buy on Amazon UK
Buy on Amazon US
Yvonnne Woon's Website
Dead Beautiful Website

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Review: Firelight by Sophie Jordan

Firelight by Sophie Jordan (review copy) - Marked as special at an early age, Jacinda knows her every move is watched. She longs for the freedom to make her own choices, but when she breaks the 'no flying' rule, she nearly pays with her life. Until a beautiful stranger saves her. A stranger who was sent to hunt those like her. For Jacinda is a draki, a descendant of dragons whose greatest defence is her secret ability to shift into human form. And her rare ability to breathe fire makes her desirable, and important, to the survival of the draki. Forced to flee into the mortal world with her family, Jacinda struggles to adapt to her new surroundings. There she meets gorgeous, elusive Will who stirs her inner draki to life. Although she is irresistibly drawn to him, Jacinda knows Will's dark secret: he and his family are hunters. She should avoid him at all costs. But her inner draki is slipping away, and if it dies she will be left as a human forever. She'll do anything to prevent that. Even if it means getting closer to her most dangerous enemy. From Amazon UK

Over the last few months, I have had a growing interesting in weres/shifters - I still love my vamps, but the way authors used or created mythology for different shifters was becoming increasingly more fascinating to me. Seeing Firelight was about Draki, people who can shift - or manifest in this case - into creatures descended from dragons, something so different, as soon as I heard about it, I knew I had to read it. I'm so glad I did!

The mythology of the Draki is just so interesting! The different types, the different abilities they have, how they live, it's just fascinating. Unfortunately, due to Jacinda almost getting herself killed, she leaves her Pride with her mother and sister pretty early on in the story, meaning that we don't get to see a lot of life in the Pride. We only get what we're told by Jacinda, but she's preoccupied with some boy most of the time, so we don't get much of it. We know Jacinda is a firebreather, an almost extinct ability, and because of this her Pride wants to control her. Otherwise, as a group of creatures, we don't find out a whole lot about them.

The romance is pretty awesome though. It does get pretty steamy in some places. Firelight is definitely a paranormal romance. Though some other YA novels may be classed as pararnormal romance, if there are issues besides the romance that have a large impact on the story, I consider them to be urban fantasy. With Firelight, the other issues that are brought up don't really have much page time, the romance being the main focus. I think in this way, Firelight is specifically the first book in a series; it builds the romance so that's solid enough for the audience, and in the next book we'll see more of the issues.

There were a few issues that I had with this book, though. Jacinda dithered too much about Will. You can understand her being cautious, but she chopped and changed her mind so often. "I should stay away from Will because he hunts Draki. I should be near Will because he wakes my Draki. But I have to stay away from him because I can't control my manifest when I'm near him. But I can gain information from him about other Draki..." On and on so that it seems not a huge amount actually happens, as it's mostly her internal conflict, with a few almost somethings. Also, I couldn't count the number of times Will looked at Jacinda intensely and hungrily. It seems he has very few facial expressions. It got a little annoying.

Saying all that, I did enjoy the story. It's not the best I've ever read, no, but I still thought it was pretty good. I'm really looking forward to reading the sequel, and finding out what happens next, because, god, what a cliff hanger! Well worth a read, I really recommend it.

Thank you to OUP for sending me a review copy.



Published: 3rd March 2011
Publisher: OUP
Sophie Jordan's Website

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Review: Angel by L. A. Weatherly

Angel by L. A. Weatherly (review copy) - Willow knows she s different from other girls. And not just because she loves tinkering around with cars. Willow has a gift. She can look into peoples futures, know their dreams, their hopes and their regrets, just by touching them. She has no idea where she gets this power from... But Alex does. Gorgeous, mysterious Alex knows Willows secret and is on a mission to stop her. The dark forces within Willow make her dangerous and irresistible. In spite of himself, Alex finds he is falling in love with his sworn enemy. From Amazon UK

I was so excited to read Angel when I received it to review. I had heard nothing but extremely enthusiastic praise, and it sounded amazing! Plus, on top of that, it involved angels, and I can't get enough of them lately. So I picked it up expecting to be wowed, and thankfully, I was.

Willow, our main character, is psychic and can tell the future. She just thinks she has a gift, but in reality, she's a half angel. And Alex, an Angel Killer assassin, has been sent by the CIA to kill her. Cue a whole lot of trouble coming Willow's way. Why? Because angels aren't exactly the nicest beings around. Yet Willow might be the only person who can save humanity.

Angel mythology in this book is pretty awesome, and it creeped me out when I first started reading. Angels are coming into our world to feed. They feed off of human energy. Which means they appear to humans in their angel form - gloriously beautiful, amazing winged humanoid beings seemingly made of brillliant white light, touch the human and absorb their energy, while the human is... well, completely blissed out and amazed and filled with wonder. They come to adore angels and want to be "blessed" by them, not realising that they're suffering from angel burn, which will lead to serious illness - physical or mental - and eventually death. Vampirism in it's most freaky form, if you ask me. I was actually really disturbed while reading. Seriously unsettling.

The action in the book is pretty great too. Almost throughout, there's a sense of urgency to keep moving, to keep safe, and when the fighting does happen, it's fast, it's violent, it's dangerous, and oddly beautiful, with these angels flying around. And you wouldn't believe how violent angel fanatics can be when they're told there's a threat to their precious angels. he climax to the story is so fast paced and suspenceful, you're sitting on the edge of your seat. It's huge! Seriously, the action and the mythology are enough to keep you turning every page.

If I'm fair though, there was some disappoint me for me. The anticipation of seeing whether or not Willow and Alex will get together was brilliant. The tension, the yearning, the trying to fight it - it was all fantastic, and had me practically begging to just get to it already. But once they did, it all got kind of cheesy, in my opinion. There was too much gazing and touching and repeating the same things. One would ask a question about their feelings, only to be asked it themselves a few paragraphs later. There were several pages of non-stop clichéd swooning. I stopped believing it. It just didn't feel true to the characters who had so much chemistry and tension beforehand. It was just too much for me.

Saying that, I still loved the story. It was addictive, it was different, unique, and the plot was just brilliant! Despite the romance part letting me down, the paranormal part was just genius, and I'm really looking forward to the second book in the series, Angel Fire, which will be released in June 2011. A pretty awesome story, definitely worth a read!

Thank you to Usborne for sending me a review copy.

Published: 1st October 2010
Publisher: Usborne
Buy on Amazon UK
Buy on Amazon US
Angel Fever Website

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Review: Finding Sky by Joss Stirling

Finding Sky by Joss Stirling (review copy) - "You have half our gifts, I have the other..."

When English girl Sky, catches a glimpse of bad boy Zed in her new American high school, she can't get him out of her head. He talks to her with his thoughts. He reads her mind. He is the boy she will love for ever. Dark shadows stalk her past but a new evil threatens her future. Sky must face the dark even if it means losing her heart. From Amazon UK

This book was just so good! There are quite a lot of YA paranormal romances around these days, a lot of vampires, werewolves and angels. I love them all, but in Finding Sky, we have something new; Savants. People with special abilities. You know that question people sometimes ask - if there's any super power you could have, what would it be? A fair number of responses you could come up with are found in the pages of this book.

There was something strangely unique to this storyline, even though at it's very basic level, it's not completely different from other stories we know. Girl moves to new place, makes friends, and is drawn to this rude guy who isn't all he seems. Boy and girl fall in love, then bad stuff happens. How many books can you think of that that sounds like? The thing is, it works! How many of those same books are huge among their fans? And I think Finding Sky will be the same. But as I said, there's something strangely unique about the story. Could it be the characters, who seem like they've stepped out of a movie and into the pages of a book, they're THAT lifelike? OR the beautiful scenery? Or the whole idea of what the Benedicts do, that leads to the conflict? I have got to say, that is just genius! Superheroes in their own right!

Although I've just said "superheroes", do not think Spiderman, Superman, Batman, or any other "insert here"-man. They have ordinary lives too. Zed is the bad boy at the school; staggeringly gorgeous, never looks twice at any girl in town, and treats everyone like crap - yet there's something else to him. Think Alex Fuentes, but with a special ability. Ok, I know to some, liking Zed to Alex Fuentes is going to cause them to think, "Yeah, right!" But I'm serious. Really.

Then there's Sky. She's short, has a silly name (Sky Bright - she's heard it all before), and has a dark past she's blocked out. She has her quirks; she daydreams and enjoys thinking of things in storyboard/comic form, but she also has a mind of her own. For a good part of the book, she doubts what she is being told. Special powers? Yeah, ok. She's Zed's Soulfinder - the one and only for those with special abilities, mate for life? Oh, come on, life is not a fairy tale. This is all just some clever ploy to make a fool out of her. And I love her for it! This is the first time I've really seen a YA paranormal romance protagonist really fight against believing the impossible, and it's so refreshing!

There are lots of other characters that are awesome, but if I went on about them, it would take too long. I will just say bom-chika-wow-wow about Zed's brothers, Trace, Uriel, Victor, Will, Xavier and Yves! Sally and Simon, Sky's parents, are lovely and wacky. And Sky's friends Tina, Nelson and Zoe are just too cool! Love them all!

I've touched on the plot and the conflict. I really can't go into anymore detail without spoiling the book for you, but it's just brilliant! I can only think of one series of books that comes anywhere close, but that's only by a little bit. Seriously, brilliantly unique, and I really hope there are more books that follow, because there are so many avenues to go down!

Like what else can the Savants do? Why are they called "Savants"? Who else is in the Savant Net? What happened before there was a Savant Net? There are just so many places Stirling could take this, and I want more! Especially more of those Benedict boys!

If I was to give one criticism, there's a little less of what I'm going to call romantic description than I'm used to. A kiss in this book can last one sentence, where a kiss has had it's own paragraph in other books. I can understand the attraction of Zed, but there isn't a huge deal about how awesome it is being with him. Though there are lots of cuddles, which is always good. It's not a big deal, and doesn't ruin the book, just a tiny niggle.

All in all, a fantastic debut novel, a brilliant addition to YA paranomal romance, and a book you should all pick up! I will definitely be keeping an eye out for further books by Joss Stirling - who happens to be one of us Brits! Yes, a brilliant YA paranormal romance by a Brit! Who'd have thought it?

Thank you to OUP for sending me a review copy.

Published: 7th October 2010
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Buy on Amazon UK
Buy on Book Depository
Joss Stirling's Website

Other Reviews of Finding Sky:
Narratively Speaking
Portrait of a Woman
Girls Without a Bookshelf

Continue reading Review: Finding Sky by Joss Stirling

Review: Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater

Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater (review copy) - When a local boy is killed by wolves, Grace's small town becomes a place of fear and suspicion. But Grace can't help being fascinated by the pack, and by one yellow-eyed wolf in particular. There's something about him - something almost human. Then she meets a yellow-eyed boy whose familiarity takes her breath away...

A chilling love story that will have you hooked from the very first page. From Goodreads.

Disclaimer: Since writing my review, I have discovered that Maggie Stiefvater is a problematic author - you can find more info here. Because of this, I can no longer promote her books in good conscience. I'm leaving my review here as it is for the sake of transparency.

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