The S-Word by Chelsea Pitcher

The S-Word by Chelsea Pitcher is not the best or worst book of all time.  It had a great premise and potential; however, the execution was not amazing.  First, I would like to take a second to thank the author for putting herself out there and also trying to accomplish a good book.  This book is not going to go into the cannon of literature, but it still is a good book.  Angie our protagonist is out to figure out who to blame for her best friend’s suicide; the problem is that Angie is one of the many students who gave a hand (even if it was through inaction) in the bullying of Lizzie Hart.  Lizzie was caught in a compromising situation with Angie’s boyfriend on prom night, after that the word “Slut” is scribbled on her locker and soon the snow ball effect is initiated until Lizzie takes her own life. 

So you figure, this is a regular old book about suicide and the effects of bullying, right? NO! This is not true, at least not completely.  What Pitcher tried and was pretty successful for the most part was to create a detective story out of this.  We follow Angie as she is questioning the cheer captain, the thespians, the weird creepy neighbor boy and finally Drake (the cheating ex).  All this time there are pieces of Lizzie’s diary being shoved into lockers with specific dates for specific people.  There is this picture of what occurred between prom and Lizzie’s suicide in the readers mind and every now and then, BAM! something happens to change that picture just a little bit.  These changes are so subtle that it’s almost unnoticeable; however, the picture at the beginning of the novel is completely different than that at the end. 

What I liked:  Lizzie is never present, present.  Whenever Lizzie interacts with characters in the story it is through memories; however, she was a full blown active character.  Nothing was meant to be supernatural in this story but the diary entries, the reactions of students and also Angie’s behavior make Lizzie an almost tangible presence that can sometimes be stifling for the characters. That part of the book was cool; kudos Pitcher for creating a creepy “Rebecca” persona but with a heart (everyone who doesn’t know what I am referring to please look up Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier). 

What needs more work: the writing was not amazing; however, with above mentioned techniques this writer has the potential to eventually write great books.  It takes practice people, and I find that if I can read what you wrote and understand the message(s), motifs, themes, language, and everything else that comes with literature then you are close to getting better.  Sometimes I wish that some negative reviewers would try and sit in front of a computer and be creative.  I don’t mean talk about your opinion, I mean disguise your opinion so much that it is completely embedded in a story to the point of being hidden.  It is not easy and I will not pretend it is.  Again, I stress.  For her debut novel I think she did great and if I were 10 years younger I probably wouldn’t have cared if her writing was terrible as long as the story wasn’t. 

Thanks NetGalley!

3/5 stars

Loki's Woloves by K.L. Armstrong & M.A. Marr

Ragnork is coming.  The myths have described this apocalypse and only the gods can stop it.  These Norse gods are dead.  Enter our main characters Matt Thorsen and Fen and Laurie Brekke.  Matt has grown up with the knowledge of these myths, because Matt is a descendent of Thor.  That’s right!  He also knows the identity of the Brekke cousins; however, he is under the impression that desendents of Loki do not know their lineage.

Told in all 3 perspectives, this book immediately captivates you.  For a moment I thought I was reading a really good mature YA novel, but then I realized it was middle school.  This book being a middle school book was not even an issue, because the characters are so smart (they are also not dealing with the crazy hormones that create love triangles… yet, it’s always a possibility in the next book) and the writers did a wonderful job weaving the legend into the story without being confusing.  The only other author I enjoy reading Norse Mythologies or anything close to it is Maggie Stiefvater.

Matt is the hero, Fen is a wolf (one of the shape shifting attributes of the trickster god Loki) and Laurie is completely unaware of her lineage, but not for long.  Having these three degrees of separation was really enjoyable reading.  The reader is able to know important things but not completely overwhelmed.  I think the most enjoyable part of this book is the fact that all the descendents that are found along the way in the journey to save the world, do not want to emulate their descendent.  This is especially true with Fen, who has to deal with being the bad apple from the rotten apple tree.  All he thinks he can be is bad because that is what others see; however, Laurie tries to show him that he isn’t bad at all.  Fen happens to start believing this which sets a whole new course for our characters, one of teamwork and overall kicking butt.  The characters are well balanced out and at the end I was really dreading things dissolving, but do not fret readers!  If you read this book and are discourage by some actions that take place at the end, know this: that cliff hanger is one the nicest (I don’t want to yell at the author) cliffhangers ever!

4/5 stars.

Thanks Edelweiss!

The Eternity Cure by Julie Kagawa

The Eternity Cure by Julie Kagawa was such an emotional ride for me.  The first book, The Immortal Rules introduced readers to Allie the MC to this series.  Along with Allie, the reader is introduced to the dystopian world, where vampires are no longer hidden from the public, but rule the masses.  Allie, a normal teen who lived under the vampire rule never wanted anything to do with the bloodsuckers.  Instead she lived off the grid like so many, until one accident led her to be turned by Kanin.  Kanin showed Allie how to be a monster, how to live with herself and in turn Allie found a father figure in Kanin.  After safely escorting her human friends to Eden, Allie leaves Zeke along with everyone else to find Kanin, because he is being held hostage and she can feel his every pain.  What Allie did not count on was her bond to Jackal, which will always lead to Kanin.

In this installment Allie finds herself spending a lot of time with Jackal, which is pretty awesome as a reader to see.  Jackal is the dry psycho that fans love to hate/love.  His relationship with Allie is definitely one of a sibling, an annoying one at that.  Even though she cannot forget Jackal’s past actions towards Zeke and the ones she cares about, Allie can feel a connection to Jackal.  Together they set out to find Kanin, and ultimately a cure to the virus that is turning vampires in to rabid animals.  There is a lot of fighting and blood bath, but not in a terrible unjust way.  That is one of the features I loved most about the first book.  Allie is just bad ass and she continues to be in this book, especially since the only plan is to walk into the inner city of vampires to find Kanin.

Also, do not fret Zeke lovers; we did not see the last of him in the last book.  He returns!  And yes, it is all swoon worthy, except for the moments where Zeke doesn’t trust Allie because of her new… partner, Jackal.  I will say though, watch out for those intense moments between Allie and Zeke.  The ending! Oh my god the ending.  There were too many surprises and connections happening in this book for it to ever be boring, even Stick was back.  One thing is for certain, Allie cannot trust everyone and those that she already distrusts will push beyond their normal betrayal.  Again, I must stress the ending.  It was jaw dropping.  I remember reading the last 10 pages with my mouth completely open in a stupid awestruck way, because there was no way Ms. Kagawa could do this to me, to her fans!  The wait will be unbearable but I am sure it will be worth it!

Thanks Net Galley.

Transparent by Natalie Whipple

In Transparent, Fiona McClean was born with a supernatural power, invisibility.  Not only was she born with a mutation in her DNA (this seems to be normal after a biological warfare preemptive move that affected the population) but Fiona is the daughter of one of the big crime bosses, that happen to sell the drug that created mutation in DNA. Her invisibility is an asset to her father (his mutation is one of a charmer, he charms women to do his bidding) and his way of life.  After 16 years of doing her father’s dirty work, Fiona has had enough and runs away with her mother, who also has a mutation of telekinesis.  The only problem?—her father can’t let her go; she’s too valuable to him-her power is too useful for a life of crime. 

 I really like this book.  The characters were well rounded and I liked seeing Fiona adjusting to normal life.  After being around only her father and his way of life, the reader can see as she breaks down the barriers created to keep her in his lifestyle.  Her relationship with Miles, her brother, is very sweet and protective.  It was refreshing to read this book and not feel like the characters were annoying or displeasing.  I also liked Seth and what is revealed about him is mind blowing because I really didn’t see it coming until the end.  It was nice to be mildly surprised during the story.  The best aspect is learning of everyone’s talent and how that has shaped them into whom they are in the novel.

This novel was definitely worth it and I am happy I did not take it off my TBR list!  It is a must read.

Thanks Edelweiss for the ARC.

Natural Born Angel by Scott Speer

Natural Born Angel by Scott Speer picks up a little after the events of Immortal City.  Maddy is still with Jacks, who is still recovering from the injuries to his wings in the last book.  Uncle Kevin, Mark and Detective Sylvester follow the lovable Maddy and Jacks into this second book.  Including some old favorites, there are also a couple of new characters.  Tom, the super-hot Naval officer/F18 pilot (seriously, the author wrote him in to be super-hot and charming in an authentic way) is one of the good new characters.  He is there to help Maddy learn to fly.  Emily, is the new witch in town, her sole purpose is to ridicule Maddy and try to get Jacks' attention.  Susan is one of the Archangel tutors; she seems key to Maddy, Tom and what unfolds at the end of this novel.

For the sophomore novel, Natural Born Angel wasn’t so bad.  It had its moments when I just couldn’t remember why I loved the first book, but then Tom was introduced.  I don’t want to make it seem like a boy made me love this book, that is not so.  I loved what Tom’s character does for Maddy.  He reminds her of what it means to be human and to stay true to who she really is, even when she cannot see it.  During the first half of the book we deal with Maddy becoming a guardian, everything she never agreed with.  There is also the issue of Jacks losing what makes him a guardian, his wings. We have to deal with his hurting pride and bleak future, which is shadowed by his girlfriend’s new found fame.  Not only do they have problems, but Angels and Humans are dividing more and more.  Maddy is faced with choosing sides and everyone else is facing Armageddon.  (I would just like to point out that Angels were probably never meant to be bff with humans… I mean I have you read some of those early stories, including the one about the angels that fell from grace for consorting with humans?)

A lot of the thought provoking parts had to do with the ensuing separation of Angels and Humans.  There is a war brewing and Maddy must chose in love and life, what side will she choose?

Thanks Net Galley 4/5 stars!

The Sweetest Dark by Shana Abe

The Sweetest Dark by Shana Abe is the first book in this new and thrilling series.  Set in Victorian Age England, The Sweetest Dark is by far a more complex read than I initially thought.  Lora Jones, our main character, is first introduced as a different kind of girl.  She hears music no one else hears, she dreams of smoke and flight and there is a voice inside of her that has her question her true self.  The book opens up with a new opportunity for the orphan, by means of Iverson, an elite boarding school on the coast.  She will be the new charity student there and she will discover things about herself that she only imagined to be myth.

Like I said, at first the book appears to be a story about a girl who has trouble remembering where she comes from and why she is different.  You know as a reader that she is hiding her strange abilities but the abilities themselves don’t really tell the audience what they are dealing with.  Trust me the smoke and flight references could literally be anything, and I definitely did not see the overall conclusion of what Lora is until after it was stated.  Anyway, at Iverson Lora is surrounded by Jesse, the groundskeeper and Armand, the son of the Duke of Iverson.  Jesse feeds into her inner demons, and he has the key to unlocking the mysteries within her.  Armand is important as well, he is the key to her future but also of the same mysteries.  The ending left me with a lot of questions concerning Armand, Jesse, and Lora.

The writing style lent a lot to the mystery of the novel.  The narrative would jump between the three characters, giving you an insight to their feelings during particular scenes.  There were also moments stolen from letters, added to the narrative, giving some insight into the myth behind the story; however, never enough to be truly clear about the Lora and Armand’s purpose and existence.  Hopefully as we continue to go through the series more of these mysteries will be answered.  An overall sweet and brilliant tale set in a virtually innocent time where anything is imaginable but on the brink of World War I this story is more than supernatural, it lends itself to the change of innocence.

 

3.5/5 stars.  Thanks Net Galley!

Moonset by Scott Tracey

   "Moonset, a coven of such promise . . . Until they turned to the darkness.

After the terrorist witch coven known as Moonset was destroyed fifteen years ago—during a secret war against the witch Congress—five children were left behind, saddled with a legacy of darkness. Sixteen-year-old Justin Daggett, son of a powerful Moonset warlock, has been raised alongside the other orphans by the witch Congress, who fear the children will one day continue the destruction their parents started.

A deadly assault by a wraith, claiming to work for Moonset’s most dangerous disciple, Cullen Bridger, forces the five teens to be evacuated to Carrow Mill. But when dark magic wreaks havoc in their new hometown, Justin and his siblings are immediately suspected. Justin sets out to discover if someone is trying to frame the Moonset orphans . . . or if Bridger has finally come out of hiding to reclaim the legacy of Moonset. He learns there are secrets in Carrow Mill connected to Moonset’s origins, and keeping the orphans safe isn’t the only reason the Congress relocated them . . "-Goodreads.com

Moonset by Scott Tracey is the first in the Legacy of Moonset.  In the premise lies the promise of terrorist witch covens, orphans, and a Congress that acts mysteriously.  Everything looked wonderful in that aspect, along with the dystopian world of witches and dark warlocks.  The characters were even great, 5 orphans that have bonded as siblings and as the only children of the terrorist coven Moonset, and the only left of the coven.  Not only is that already a strong connection, but there is a curse that if anyone tries to separate them, terrible things occur.  All of this screams promise and really the characters did have awesome banter at times, but for some reason this book was a bit flat for me.

The action was definitely evident in the book; don’t get me wrong there were some moments of gore.  The mystery of why Congress relocated the orphans to a specific seemingly quite town is very intriguing, but the writing sometimes was confusing.  Mixed into each chapter were clips of the past, concerning Moonset, which gave background information on what occurred with Moonset.  Perhaps it was only confusing because I feel the whole story of what happened in the past is not done being revealed.

The characters do help the story and the dialogue is pretty witty and sharp tongued.  I gave this book a 3 star out of 5 overall, because I did like it.  I just hope to feel less confused in the next book.  I am definitely going to continue this series.

 

Thanks Net Galley!