artsy musings of a bibliophile

young adult

Review: The Rules by Stacey Kade

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ABOUT THE BOOK
The Rules by Stacey Kade
young adult science fiction published by Disney-Hyperion on 23 April 2013
first book in the Project Paper Doll series

1. Never trust anyone.

2. Remember they are always searching.
3. Don’t get involved.
4. Keep your head down.
5. Don’t fall in love.
Five simple rules. Ariane Tucker has followed them since the night she escaped from the genetics lab where she was created, the result of combining human and extraterrestrial DNA. Ariane’s survival—and that of her adoptive father—depends on her ability to blend in among the full-blooded humans in a small Wisconsin town, to hide in plain sight at her high school from those who seek to recover their lost (and expensive) “project.”
But when a cruel prank at school goes awry, it puts her in the path of Zane Bradshaw, the police chief’s son and someone who sees too much. Someone who really sees her. After years of trying to be invisible, Ariane finds the attention frightening—and utterly intoxicating. Suddenly, nothing is simple anymore, especially not the rules…

THE RATING


THE REVIEW
Lately, the sci-fi genre has made a habit of leaving me underwhelmed so I went into The Rules thinking it’d be same old, same old. Only it wasn’t. I fell in love with Ariane and Zane. The book is so much more than just sci-fi; there are elements of contemporary, high school drama and mystery woven into the story making it out to be a wonderful read.
The book opens with Ariane Tucker who is the result of combination of human and alien gene pool. Created with a sinister intent, it was a lucky day when she escaped from the GTX lab to lead a (mostly) normal life. Living right under the noses of GenTex lab, Ariane has to follow the five rules to avoid being noticed and captured.
Life is going as well as it should with a breakfast schedule to follow and a father for whom she’ll never come close to being the real Ariane. The one who died. But then her best friend Jenna sets her sights on being a part of the popular group by being too friendly with Rachel Jacobs. Rache, the granddaughter of Arthur Jacobs, infamous CEO of GTX labs. It naturally strikes a chord with Ariane who cannot help but blow up in the face of all her unfairness. More like, blow up bulbs.
The thing with Ariane is that being forced to use her telekinetic abilities for the worse by the evil Dr. Jacobs, a wall now blocks her abilities from manifesting. The abilities that surface whenever she witnesses Rachel bullying others for her amusement. Luckily for her, Zane Bradshaw is tired of all the crap Rachel pulls day in and out. In a flash of brilliance and intrigue on the part of Ariane, he takes up the task of humiliating her.
Zane decides to doublecross Rachel in one of her many schemes to take down Ariane because she had the nerve to defend her best friend. The scheme pulls Ariane and Zane together. Being a loner because of the rules, it is very hard for Ariane to let Zane in and she’s pretty much a bundle of hesitation and awkwardness at the beginning. Ariane is a very conflicted character and she really has to learn to shed off her resistance and bring her right foot forward. I honestly cannot decide which character I love more.

Being able to read from Zane’s point of view really helped me see him as he is. It is never justified why one would want to be a part of the popular group in high school anyway. So reading about all the reasons Zane had to do it and why he was tired of all that is a definite plus point. I really came to admire Zane because of the way he handled his father and the tensions at home. It really seemed like he’d spontaneously combust with all the rage boiling up inside him!

The oncoming major plot twist took me by hell of a surprise and I was left gawking like an idiot. The action in the book really kicked it up a notch towards the end. Also, the way Ariane’s identity is finally revealed to Zane is very thrilling and not at all clichéd. I pretty much had no idea how it’d all end and let me just say that Stacey Kade has won me over and left me breathless. I’d highly recommend The Rules to YA sci-fi readers. 
Now just where can I find book 2?
THE QUOTES

“The trouble with rules, though, is that you’ll always be tempted to break one- for the right reasons, due to unavoidable circumstances, because it feels as if there’s no other choice. And once you break one, the rest seem like so much broken glass. The damage is already done.”

“It might have been my human side clamoring for blood, or my alien side looking for a chance to exercise strategic dominance over a lesser life form. Either way, I was going to win.” 

Thanks to Disney and NetGalley for providing me an eARC of The Rules for review.

Review: Dirty Little Secret by Jennifer Echols

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ABOUT THE BOOK
Dirty Little Secret by Jennifer Echols
young adult contemporary published by MTV Books on 16 July 2013

Bailey wasn’t always a wild child and the black sheep of her family. She used to play fiddle and tour the music circuit with her sister, Julie, who sang and played guitar. That ended when country music execs swooped in and signed Julie to a solo deal. Never mind that Julie and Bailey were a duet, or that Bailey was their songwriter. The music scouts wanted only Julie, and their parents were content to sit by and let her fulfill her dreams while Bailey’s were hushed away.

Bailey has tried to numb the pain and disappointment over what could have been. And as Julie’s debut album is set to hit the charts, her parents get fed up with Bailey’s antics and ship her off to granddad’s house in Nashville. Playing fiddle in washed-up tribute groups at the mall, Bailey meets Sam, a handsome and oh-so-persuasive guitarist with his own band. He knows Bailey’s fiddle playing is just the thing his band needs to break into the industry. But this life has broken Bailey’s heart once before. She isn’t sure she’s ready to let Sam take her there again…

THE RATING

THE REVIEW
What I’d like to say to Dirty Little Secret is perfectly worded by Avril Lavigne, “Why do you have to go and make things so complicated?” I struggled with rating this book because frankly, where it lacked in depth in the first half, it definitely more than made up for it before the end. And that wasn’t even an issue when I started reading the book. 
The beginning of Dirty Little Secret was… boring. I honestly didn’t care for Bailey dressing up and playing her fiddle in tribute groups. But then she meets Sam at the mall, plays with him and he zones in on her. Now Bailey has to make a difficult decision, would she risk being seen as the loser sister of a rising star at a gig or cast her eyes down and carry on? This is when I saw life in Bailey and I was finally into the story.
Bailey accepts the gig because let’s face it, spending time at home playing the fiddle endlessly with her grandfather hovering, who wants that? She made a perfect rebel with bold fashion sense, asymmetrical hair, red lips and boots-to-die-for, but she couldn’t go on with it. Same gave her the out and she took it.
But the infamously titled Sam Hardiman’s band is trouble from the start. Oh who am I kidding, Charlotte is hate-worthy. Given that the drummer had a thing for Sam and is still okay with being not okay with whoever Sam dates. Because you see, Sam likes Bailey. But does he like her because she gives the oomph factor to the band or because she is talented?
Sam started out as a pretty normal guy and then he became persuasive as hell and who’d have guessed from that that he was pretty messed up from the inside. So while I was out admiring his ability to make everyone do what he wants to do, I was also in the state where I just wanted to quietly strangle him.
But then Sam said, “I like doing things that make me uncomfortable. I try not to have a comfort zone” and everything was perfectly clear. After going through a hard family life and counselling, you have to admire the guy. And Bailey does. Their conversation is beautiful and where Sam is trying to make up for the lack of channeling his emotions, Bailey is trying to get away from them by writing them down into songs.
I understood Bailey because even though she got treated horribly by her family, she didn’t give up on them. And I understood Sam because he wanted to not be like his father and wind up a loser. So they perform gigs together, discover each other, fight and then it all ends (not necessarily in that order). It was a moment of holding-my-breath-reading where you don’t know what’ll happen and how it’ll all go down. It is a difficult feat to achieve but I was going through it so Echols did achieve it.
Dirty Little Secret more than surprised me and made me feel despite the rocky start. People who like to read music-themed YA must read this. You’ll smile, go argh, get shocked and definitely swoon.
THE QUOTES

“And I was bitter. Bitterness and I were old friends by now, but at the moment bitterness was trying to go down my bra in public.” 

“Deana Carter sings about it. Lady Antebellum sings about it. Eric Church. Gosh, not just country artists. Katy Perry. Everybody has a song about it because everybody’s been through it. You find that person at eighteen and you lose yourself. And the tragedy is, it’s the person who’s completely opposed to everything you’ve ever wanted. You bond with that person, and that person breaks your heart. I’m that tragedy for you, and you’re mine.” 

Thanks to MTV Books and Edelweiss for providing me an eARC of Dirty Little Secret for review.

Review: Unremembered by Jessica Brody

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ABOUT THE BOOK

young adult science fiction fantasy published by Farrar, Straus and Giroux on 5 March 2013
first book in the Unremembered trilogy

With no memories and no identity, the sixteen-year-old girl who was found floating among the wreckage of a devastating plane crash knows only one thing for certain: nothing is what it seems. Crippled by a world she doesn’t know, plagued by abilities she doesn’t understand, and haunted by a looming threat she can’t remember, Seraphina struggles to piece together her forgotten past and discover who she really is. But with every clue comes more questions. And she is running out of time to answer them. Her only hope is a strangely alluring boy who claims to know her from before the crash. Who claims they were in love. But can she really trust him? And will he be able to protect her from the people who have been making her forget?

THE RATING

THE REVIEW
I had been crazy excited for Unremembered ever since I discovered its existence. What really attracted to me about Unremembered was the main character being the lone survivor in a plane wreckage with a definite memory loss. I thought it didn’t get any better than that. Only it got worse. I wanted to like Unremembered, I really did. But I just couldn’t connect with it. Despite being just over 300 pages long, it took the book more than 250 pages to finally pick up its pace.
Not only that, I felt there was a lot of repetition. It’s one thing for Zen to find her but it took more than a few meetings for him to finally say something substantial to her. I know people are lying to her and what not but I wanted to scream at her to believe the guy already. More so when she almost trusts the wrong guy.
I also had a lot of issues with Cody. He’s supposed to be this 13-year-old foster brother but he acts like he’s Seraphina’s age fellow. He drives cars and can apparently leave and come home whenever he pleases. And it doesn’t help that he has a bit of an attitude despite his claims that pretty girls tend to look through him. Naturally, there is a lot of talk about the supermodel beauty of Seraphina which I got tired of really fast.
Seraphina is a pretty decent character; she doesn’t have a sense of belonging and only a meager amount of clues. She talks in foreign languages without even realizing it and she is this super smart math geek with an urge to count everything around her. However, she lacks depth which could’ve not been the case. Her thought process is predictable and she isn’t memorable at all.
Zen is the love interest and though we only get glimpses of how they fell in love, it is clearly not enough. He doesn’t have much of a back story so you really don’t get to know him. There’s the Sonnet that they just keep repeating throughout the book and the warm feeling Sera gets in between her eyebrows. Their romance is just really unbelievable somehow.
Just when I was about to give up on Unremembered, it decided to get better. The whole mystery was unveiled and while a lot of questions were answered, some are left unanswered. I was quickly awed by the whole mystery of how Sera ends up in the wreckage and who she’s running away from.
Honestly, if the whole book could have had more depth, I’d have definitely loved it. I loved how it ended, I finally felt the ohmigodyes feeling right there. And that was the Seraphina I was hoping to read about. So while I’m not giving up on the series, I just hope Unforgotten is way better than Unremembered.
THE QUOTES
“Forgetting who you are is so much more complicated than simply forgetting your name. It’s also forgetting your dreams. Your aspirations. What makes you happy. What you pray you’ll never have to live without. It’s meeting yourself for the first time, and not being sure of your first impression.”
“Death is not a memory you can fake.”
Thanks to MacKidsBooks for sending me an ARC of Unremembered. 

Review: Pivot Point by Kasie West

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ABOUT THE BOOK
Pivot Point by Kasie West
young adult paranormal fantasy published by HarperTeen on 12 February 2013
first book in the Pivot Point duology

Knowing the outcome doesn’t always make a choice easier . . .
Addison Coleman’s life is one big “What if?” As a Searcher, whenever Addie is faced with a choice, she can look into the future and see both outcomes. It’s the ultimate insurance plan against disaster. Or so she thought. When Addie’s parents ambush her with the news of their divorce, she has to pick who she wants to live with—her father, who is leaving the paranormal compound to live among the “Norms,” or her mother, who is staying in the life Addie has always known. Addie loves her life just as it is, so her answer should be easy. One Search six weeks into the future proves it’s not.
In one potential future, Addie is adjusting to life outside the Compound as the new girl in a Norm high school where she meets Trevor, a cute, sensitive artist who understands her. In the other path, Addie is being pursued by the hottest guy in school—but she never wanted to be a quarterback’s girlfriend. When Addie’s father is asked to consult on a murder in the Compound, she’s unwittingly drawn into a dangerous game that threatens everything she holds dear. With love and loss in both lives, it all comes down to which reality she’s willing to live through . . . and who she can’t live without.

THE RATING

THE REVIEW
“I run my finger along the smooth glass, drawing my standard doodle—a line that halfway up splits in two. Then I circle the pivot point. The point right before the path separates. I press my finger into the center. One little choice can make all the difference.”
The split second when the mind is swaying between two things, there is a subtle buzzing. If you ponder too much, you might get paralyzed and ultimately rendered unable to make the right choice. If you don’t ponder at all, you might make a wrong one. What comes to mind in that instance is a wish to be able to see the outcome of each choice, a searing hope. It all happens in a moment that Pivot Point explores.
Addison Coleman is a Divergent so when faced with a choice, she can close her eyes, feel and see the future almost as if it was real. The Compound where Addie lives is full of Paranormals who have a special something in their genes and are much more advanced that the Normals who are unaware of their existence.
Thus, it comes as more than a shock when her parents tell her that they’re divorcing. Even more so when she comes to know that her father has decided to leave the Compound for the Normal world. As easy as it sounds, to make a decision based on the familiarity of the Compound and the unfamiliarity of the Normal world, Addies knows that she has to Search.
The journey between the words ambush and screwed thus ensues. I say this because of the word and its definition at the start of each of the 36 chapters. The events of the next six weeks of the two possible futures occur almost simultaneously in Addie’s mind. Alternating between the Normal and the Paranormal, Addie experiences life like never before.
In the Normal world, she has a hard time adjusting to its ways with electrical switches, locks, and the people. Trevor is the only one who gives her hope that she might just survive okay. While in the Paranormal world, life goes on as it was before with Addie trying to act out and Duke showing interest in her.
One of the things I really loved about Addie was her behavior in each of the worlds. It’s fascinating to see her out of her element in the Norm world and then to really see her make her way into life with the help of Laila, her best friend, in the Paranormal world. I like that she’s a reader, she’s witty and she’s smart. It’s very easy to relate to her and her problems even though she’s a paranorm which makes her so fascinating.
Trevor is a pretty reserved character and as a reader, you really want to get to know what is going on with him. He surprised me with his penchant for graphic novels and the quiet. His capability to put other people at ease is what makes him the perfect choice for Addie to get to know in the Norm world. Duke, on the other hand, is flamboyant, swoon-worthy, humorous and definitely have a way with words.
The abilities in the Paranormal Compound range from being fairly simple to dangerous. There are the ones who have the ability to Persuade and Discern, the ones who can perform Telekinesis, then there are also Memory Erasers, Mood Controllers and of course, Clairvoyants. Essentially, these are mind powers and seeing as how obsessed I’m with anything to do with the brain and its manipulation, I devoured the explosive way they came together to make Pivot Point a thoroughly breathtaking read.
Kasie West style of writing is simple and clever and you really marvel at Pivot Point as it maneuvers its way through tough decisions and laugh-out-loud moments. It is a difficult feat to achieve that balance and still shock the reader at the end of the book. Kasie West made it look easy and for that, I am amazed.
THE QUOTES

“Sometimes I feel like I’m slowly floating away. I’m constantly looking for something to grab on to so I don’t lose myself.”

“And can we just get this out of the way? Your eyelashes make mine want to commit suicide from shame.” 

“I hate obvious boys. Tell me that.” “You hate obvious boys. Because heaven forbid you like something that everyone else does. If you don’t have to hunt for it, and carefully plan its capture, it must not be worth having.”

Review: Fractured Soul by Rachel McClellan Blog Tour + Interview + Giveaway

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Click the banner for the tour schedule.

Title: Fractured Soul (Fractured Light, #2)
Author: Rachel McClellan
Genre: Young Adult, Urban Fantasy
Publisher: Cedar Fort
Release Date: 12 February 2013
Pages:  336 (eARC)


Synopsis
Llona will do whatever it takes to protect her new found friends and home, but the dark plot that is threatening Lucent Academy, a school that’s supposed to be a safe place for Auras, may be too powerful for even Llona to defeat. This fast-paced tale of love, loyalty, and overcoming the darkness will keep you on the edge of your seat until the last page!

My Rating

* * * *
The Review

Fractures Soul begins with Llona’s first day at Lucent Academy and even though there’s only a slight chance of things getting back to normal, Llona knows her life wouldn’t ever be the same. Her plan is simple: to learn more about the nature and history of Aura, hone her abilities and get out of world the Auras has chosen to live in. However, she is yet unknown to the danger that threatens to wipe out Auras and it seems that trouble has followed Llona inside the protected walls of The Lucent Academy. 
The stakes are higher especially when the ones responsible for the safety of Auras are willing to sacrifice it for personal gains. Llona has her own demons to deal with as darkness calls to her, a hunger lodged deep inside her and the smell of blood everywhere. It is no surprise when Llona plans to sneak out at night unable to get rid of her nightmares.
Llona craves destruction and her need to get rid of the energy buzzing inside of her leads her to Vykens present close to Lucent. Llona fights the blood battles despite warnings from Jackson, a Guardian. Christian also arrives but Sophia is against their relationship and makes it clear so. Despite the dangerous ground she is treading upon with him, Llona knows he means too much to her to lose him. Thus, she eventually takes Liam’s offer to help the light within her come to life again. 
Rebellious as ever, Llona has to overcome the difficulties she is faced with. Fractured Soul fits perfectly to Llona’s state in this book as she tethers on the edge of darkness. Threats are given, secrets revealed and hearts are broken as it becomes clear that something big is going on. With the help of Christian, Liam, Tessa and May, Llona sets out to fight the danger, loving the thrill it offers to a showdown and another life-changing moment in Llona’s life. 
Will she ever find salvation and come to peace with herself? Fractured Soul shows a new side of Llona, but she is consistent with her rebellious streak which is what I love about her. This is one tough nut to break. Fractured Soul is a very satisfying continuation of the series and I’m more than looking forward to how it will end. Three cheers to Rachel McClellan for crafting a yet another brilliant story.

Best Quotes:
“I imagined my skin shimmering, transforming into actual Light, My nails dug into my palms. Change! My body began to vibrate, ratting my insides until I thought I’d break into two.“
“If I could just find him, give him all of my Light to save him.“ 
About the Author
Rachel was born and raised in Idaho, a place secretly known for its supernatural creatures. When she’s not in her writing lair, she’s partying with her husband and four children. Her love for storytelling began as a child when the moon first possessed the night. For when the lights went out, her imagination painted a whole new world. And what a scary world it was…

Rachel McClellan can be found at 
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Buy Fractured Light (Fractured Light, #1)
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Starting 4 February, buy the eBook of Fractured Light for only $2.99 for two weeks only!

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The Interview

What is the one thing writing Fractured Light series has taught you about yourself?
Honestly it taught me to be stronger and to face my problems head on. It was amazing how simply writing about a tough girl made me want to be one. No shrinks for me. I write. 🙂
What five words would you use to define Fractured Soul?
Enduring, power, loyalty, strength, and heart-breaking.
Despite being cautious about her survival it’s clear that Llona’s looking for more than just to survive. How does that shape up in Fractured Soul?
It’s one thing to survive outside forces, but I think it’s a whole other beast to survive inner torment. In Fractured Soul Llona has to do just this. In addition she wants desperately to fit in, but not at the cost of giving up what she believes in. That’s why the title of this book is so perfect for Llona.
Manipulation of light. How did you come up with the idea?
I’ve always been fascinated by light. It contains so much power and always chases away the darkness. This is an eternal truth that can never be changed. Because it is so strong, I wanted to give it to a teenage girl to see what she could do with it. I was pleased with the results.
Did you think making Llona’s hair to be so whitish blonde made her stand out more? Or is it only about being different?
I wanted there to be something in Llona’s life that not only made her stand out, but also was something she couldn’t control. Sometimes that’s how how life is–we are different and there’s nothing we can do about it.
Everyone should know that you are – ?
Really into my TV shows, but I don’t just watch them for enjoyment. I study how they are done: when the main conflict is introduced, how the characters develop, how they keep the dialogue focused on the current problem, etc. I love the shows The Walking Dead, Being Human, Supernatural, The Vampire Diaries, The Following, and Downton Abbey.
Lastly, what question have you always wanted to be asked in an interview and how would you answer that question
Does writing run in your family?
My mother is an excellent poet and has written some short stories. And although she’s the only writer, everyone else in my family is extremely artistic. I, however, can not draw or paint to save my life. Only create stories.
Thank you so much!

The Giveaway

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Thanks to Rachel McClellan and Cedar Fort for providing me a copy of Fractured Soul for review.