ARC #Review: THE CITY'S SON by Tom Pollock

THE CITY'S SON

Summary:
Running from her traitorous best friend and her estranged father, graffiti artist Beth Bradley is looking for sanctuary. What she finds is Urchin, the ragged and cocky crown prince of London’s mystical underworld. Urchin opens Beth’s eyes to the city she’s never truly seen-where vast spiders crawl telephone wires seeking voices to steal, railwraiths escape their tethers, and statues conceal an ancient priesthood robed in bronze.

But it all teeters on the brink of destruction. Amid rumors that Urchin’s goddess mother will soon return from her 15-year exile, Reach, a malign god of urban decay, wants the young prince dead. Helping Urchin raise an alleyway army to reclaim his skyscraper throne, Beth soon forgets her old life. But when her best friend is captured, Beth must choose between this wondrous existence and the life she left behind.

Title: THE CITY'S SON

Author: Tom Pollock

Series: The Skyscraper Throne #1

Source: eARC via the Publisher

Publisher: Jo Fletcher Books

Publication Date: April 5, 2016

Rating: 4 stars

Purchase:

Amazon | Chapters | TBD

Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review

"War's coming, Filius. The King of The Cranes and the Lady of the Streets will not share the city"

I was a bit skeptical when I first started this one because not only did it switch perspectives, but it also switched how these perspectives were told, and it was also about electric creature things that I'm still not sure what to call. But I am really glad I picked this one up because it was actually really good and a lot of fun for me to read.

#Review: EXIT, PURSUED BY A BEAR by E.K. Johnston

EXIT, PURSUED BY A BEAR

Summary:
“I love you,” Polly says suddenly when I’m almost to the door.

“I know,” I say.

Hermione Winters has been a flyer. She’s been captain of her cheerleading team. The envied girlfriend and the undisputed queen of her school. Now it’s her last year and those days and those labels are fading fast. In a few months she’ll be a different person. She thinks she’s ready for whatever comes next.

But then someone puts something in her drink at a party, and in an instant she finds herself wearing new labels, ones she never imagined:

Victim. Survivor. That raped girl.

Even though this was never the future she imagined, one essential thing remains unchanged: Hermione can still call herself Polly Olivier’s best friend, and that may be the truest label of all.

Heartbreaking and empowering, Exit, Pursued by a Bear is the story of transcendent friendship in the face of trauma.

“I love you,” I say, because I really, really do.

“I know,” says Polly. 

Title: EXIT, PURSUED BY A BEAR

Author: E.K. Johnston

Source: Purchased from Chapters

Publisher: Dutton Books For Young Reader

Publication Date: March 15, 2016

Rating: 5 stars

Purchase:

Amazon | Chapters | TBD

"Today, everything is ours if we want it."
"Yes," I tell her. "It is."

Warning: This book deals with rape. In a VERY EXCELLENT WAY, but it is still there. So please be careful if you are triggered by this before reading this book and my review.

Series #Review: The Wolves of Mercy Falls by Maggie Stiefvater

SHIVER

Summary:
For years, Grace has watched the wolves in the woods behind her house. One yellow-eyed wolf—her wolf—is a chilling presence she can't seem to live without.

Meanwhile, Sam has lived two lives: In winter, the frozen woods, the protection of the pack, and the silent company of a fearless girl. In summer, a few precious months of being human… until the cold makes him shift back again.

Now, Grace meets a yellow-eyed boy whose familiarity takes her breath away. It's her wolf. It has to be. But as winter nears, Sam must fight to stay human—or risk losing himself, and Grace, forever.

Title: SHIVER

Author: Maggie Stiefvater

Series: The Wolves of Mercy Falls #1
Source: Purchased from Lakeside Books and Art

Publisher: Scholastic

Publication Date: August 1, 2009

Purchase:

Amazon | Chapters | TBD

I really really liked this one. I think I almost liked this one more than The Raven Boys but shhh don't tell it that. I thought this was as magical and wonderful as every other Stiefvater book but the romance was weird and awkward at the beginning and at some points throughout. As well, the secondary characters were meh. But the mythology was so good and, as I've said before, what Stiefvater does best is take what is "common knowledge" and twist it to be her own story.

#Review: BOOKS OF FAERIES SERIES by Maggie Stiefvater

LAMENT

Summary:

Sixteen-year-old Deirdre Monaghan is a painfully shy but prodigiously gifted musician. She's about to find out she's also a cloverhand—one who can see faeries. Deirdre finds herself infatuated with a mysterious boy who enters her ordinary suburban life, seemingly out of thin air. Trouble is, the enigmatic and gorgeous Luke turns out to be a gallowglass—a soulless faerie assassin. An equally hunky—and equally dangerous—dark faerie soldier named Aodhan is also stalking Deirdre. Sworn enemies, Luke and Aodhan each have a deadly assignment from the Faerie Queen. Namely, kill Deirdre before her music captures the attention of the Fae and threatens the Queen's sovereignty. Caught in the crossfire with Deirdre is James, her wisecracking but loyal best friend. Deirdre had been wishing her life weren't so dull, but getting trapped in the middle of a centuries-old faerie war isn't exactly what she had in mind . . .

Lament is a dark faerie fantasy that features authentic Celtic faerie lore, plus cover art and interior illustrations by acclaimed faerie artist Julia Jeffrey.

Title: LAMENT

Author: Maggie Stiefvater

Series: Books of Faeries #1

Source: Purchased from TBD

Publisher: Flux

Publication Date: October 8, 2008

Rating: 4 stars

Purchase:

Amazon | Chapters | TBD

I am both enthralled with this book and extremely confused with this book. I feel like there was something I was missing while reading it but I also couldn't put it down. This wasn't Stiefvater's best book, but it was still really interesting and definitely a new and invigorating take on fae mythology.

ARC REVIEW: ALICE AND THE FLY by James Rice

ALICE AND THE FLY

Summary:

Greg is cripplingly shy, afraid of spiders, and obsessed with Breakfast at Tiffany's. He's not exactly the most popular kid at his high school. In fact, he pretty much goes out of his way to avoid talking to anybody he doesn't have to. And it doesn't help that he has a severe lisp.

But Greg's English teacher, Miss Hayes, can see that there's something different about him. He's insightful and sensitive beyond his years, and maybe--just maybe--he'll use these strengths to break out of his shell someday. Miss Hayes urges Greg to keep a journal. "This isn't an assignment," she tells him, "just write down your thoughts."

Greg begins to write about everything from his mother's ill-conceived interior decorating ideas to his job at the local butcher's shop. When Greg begins to take an interest in a girl at his school named Alice, he realizes that he will have to face his most paralyzing anxieties if he wants to befriend Alice and help her escape from her violent family life.

Title: ALICE AND THE FLY

Author: James Rice

Source: eARC via the Publisher

Publisher: Quercus

Publication Date: May 3, 2016

Rating: 4/5 stars

Purchase:

Amazon | Chapters | TBD

Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

"It's amazing how much damage we did just by leaving, just by not being there."

I really enjoyed this one. I liked that we got to see schizophrenia in this manner because it felt so real. I also really liked the inclusion of the police transcripts in between. I thought they added clarity to the narrative. I liked that we got it from Greg's point of view rather than from the outside. I think it would have been difficult to connect with Greg if we hadn't been so deep inside his head. The hardest part for me to get through were the "Date Unknown" sections because of the way they were written. I mean, it was necessary for the book and to understand Greg's mind, but those bits took me double the amount of time to read. 

#BookReview: WOLF BY WOLF by Ryan Graudin

WOLF BY WOLF

Summary:
The year is 1956, and the Axis powers of the Third Reich and Imperial Japan rule the world. To commemorate their Great Victory over Britain and Russia, Hitler and Emperor Hirohito host the Axis Tour: an annual motorcycle race across their conjoined continents. The victor is awarded an audience with the highly reclusive Adolf Hitler at the Victor's ball.

Yael, who escaped from a death camp, has one goal: Win the race and kill Hitler. A survivor of painful human experimentation, Yael has the power to skinshift and must complete her mission by impersonating last year's only female victor, Adele Wolfe. This deception becomes more difficult when Felix, Adele twin's brother, and Luka, her former love interest, enter the race and watch Yael's every move. But as Yael begins to get closer to the other competitors, can she bring herself to be as ruthless as she needs to be to avoid discovery and complete her mission?

Title: WOLF BY WOLF

Author: Ryan Graudin

Series: Wolf by Wolf #1

Source: In my OwlCrate!

Publisher: Little, Brown Books For Young Readers

Publication Date: October 20, 2015

Rating: 2.5/5 stars 

Purchase:

Amazon | Chapters | TBD

It's Good but not Great or Excellent. Just in the middle. I found it really difficult to believe that this could happen. Not so much that Hitler could have won WW2, but the actual motorcycle race thing was not plausible to me. It seemed out of place in this world and seemed more like a reason to get from Point A to Point B. It was kinda hokey in my opinion. And was so glossed over in the actual story that it felt like a moot point.

REVIEW: THE GIRL FROM EVERYWHERE by Heidi Heilig

THE GIRL FROM EVERYWHERE by Heidi Heilig

Summary:
Nix has spent her entire life aboard her father’s ship, sailing across the centuries, across the world, across myth and imagination.

As long as her father has a map for it, he can sail to any time, any place, real or imagined: nineteenth-century China, the land from One Thousand and One Nights, a mythic version of Africa. Along the way they have found crewmates and friends, and even a disarming thief who could come to mean much more to Nix.

But the end to it all looms closer every day.

Her father is obsessed with obtaining the one map, 1868 Honolulu, that could take him back to his lost love, Nix’s mother. Even though getting it—and going there—could erase Nix’s very existence.

For the first time, Nix is entering unknown waters.

She could find herself, find her family, find her own fantastical ability, her own epic love.

Or she could disappear.

Title: THE GIRL FROM EVERYWHERE

Author: Heidi Heilig

Series: The Girl From Everywhere #1

Source: Purchased from Amazon

Publisher: Greenwillow

Publication Date: February 16, 2016

Rating: 3.5*

Purchase:

Amazon | Chapters | TBD

I had a really hard time getting into this one to start. It took me about 25% to be hooked, but then I was and it got better as it went along. I had two main problems with it, but I generally liked it and will for sure be reading the sequel! I think Heilig has a good grasp on her niche genre and the characters are ones I really liked!

REVIEW: CINDER Marissa Meyer

Summary: Humans and androids crowd the raucous streets of New Beijing. A deadly plague ravages the population. From space, a ruthless lunar people watch, waiting to make their move. No one knows that Earth’s fate hinges on one girl.

Cinder, a gifted mechanic, is a cyborg. She’s a second-class citizen with a mysterious past, reviled by her stepmother and blamed for her stepsister’s illness. But when her life becomes intertwined with the handsome Prince Kai’s, she suddenly finds herself at the center of an intergalactic struggle, and a forbidden attraction. Caught between duty and freedom, loyalty and betrayal, she must uncover secrets about her past in order to protect her world’s future.

Title: Cinder (The Lunar Chronicles #1)

Author: Marissa Meyer

Publisher: Puffin 

Published: January 1st 2012

Rating: 4.5 stars

REVIEW: SHADOWHUNTERS episode 1

SHADOWHUNTERS episode 1 review

There WILL be some spoilers!

It's no big secret that I am a huge, huge fan of The Mortal Instruments. I have been a die-hard fan since 2009, met Cassie more than once, have a TMI inspired tattoo and own over 40 books (paperbacks, hardbacks and special editions; I even own a certain ARC) in the Shadowhunter series and used to be quite the collector when I had money to burn. These days I am not so obsessed, but still I remain a huge fan. 2013 and the release of the failure that was the City of Bones movie was definitely the point that killed off many Shadowhunters. I very narrowly escaped, but can't deny that it did affect my interest in the series. So naturally, I was not excited about Shadowhunters. The movie had been incredibly traumatising and I was frightened that this would be the icing on the top and cause me to hate the series forever. 

But... today I watched it. And coming up next is how I feel about it. The good and the bad. 

It was craptastic as a faithful adaptation. 

That is the truth of it. It followed the basic structure of the book, but the episode was littered with bits that simply did not make sense to me while I was comparing the book/show, such as:

• The New York Institute uses technology to hunt down demons etc. There are very high-tech gadgets littering the place, which simply isn't the Shadowhunter way. In the books, they are notoriously old-fashioned and know next to nothing about the mundane world. They even dress old-fashioned, which Clary mentions often. Only the youngsters such as Jace seemed to know about technology and TV (Jace watching Project Runway and the gang having mobile phones for examples.) Sebastian even explained that he grew up with an old icebox powered by witchlight because no electricity ran in Idris. In Valentine's pad, however, there was technology. But only because he was separated from the other Shadowhunters. (Forever wondering what DVDs he owned, lololololol.)

• The same New York Institute was BUSY. It seemed like a movie with a secret base full of spies. In the books, only the Lightwoods, Hodge and Jace resided there permanently. Shadowhunters were a dying breed! Crikey, Valentine wanted to make more! People rarely popped by! 

• I think that I even saw a gun in one scene? I may be wrong. As mentioned in the books, guns do NOT work around Shadowhunters. The runes stop the gunpowder from igniting. 

• Luke being a police officer. And a werewolf. Nuff said. 

• Feeling very dotty about Dot. As I mentioned to my friend as we watched, there was a very Elena Gilbert and Bonnie feel going on. Simon actually reminded us of Caroline Forbes with his enthusiasm. 

• Jocelyn giving Clary a stele. And revealing her runes to her. Why. Just why. She worked hard to keep Clary blind from the Shadow World! Never would she do that.

But, brace yourself...

I really enjoyed the episode. 

Yes. I just said that. For reals.

Once you stop comparing the show to the book, it does become enjoyable. I highly suggest diving into this show with an open mind and leave yourself open to change. As an episode of a new TV show, I did like it. As a faithful adaptation, I did not. I think that we all knew that exactly the book was never going to happen and accepted that long ago. I'm watching this and feeling that it's an AU fic. And that's fine. 

So let me talk about the things that I did like! It's a long and happy list!

• A vast majority of the characters were cast perfectly. With the movie, I felt no attachment for any of the actors. In my eyes, none of them were the characters that I spent my teen years reading about.

• Dominic is Jace. Kat is Clary. Together, I think that I've at long last found the perfect Clace. Kat perfectly portrayed the batshit uber crazy Clary who was freaking the frick out during the beginning parts of CoB. And Dominic as Jace? He just LOOKS Jace. Feels Jace. 

• Emeraude killed it as Isabelle. Hot damn, girl! You blew away my worries and fears!

• Matthew as Alec.

• Matthew's face.

• Matthew's booty.

• Matthew in general.

• Matthew.

• The little parts from the books they actually included, such as Simon's rotting banana-coloured van.

• The fight scenes! There was more action in the first episode than I was expecting. The choreography was pretty decent and I love the designs for the seraph blades. (Though I wish that in the show, they still had to use the names of the angels to activate them!)

• The pacing was great. Not too much was packed in, or too little. It was just right. 

So, it's a thumbs up from me and my uber critical mind! Shadowhunters was... Cool! A fresh new show that would be fun to watch even if it wasn't based on my all-time favourite book series. I think I will carry on watching and finally allow myself to get excited about the show!

I say: give it a shot!

Now, enjoy these pictures of actual angel Matthew Daddario.

*licks screen*

REVIEW: I'LL GIVE YOU THE SUN by Jandy Nelson

 Summary:

A brilliant, luminous story of first love, family, loss, and betrayal for fans of John Green, David Levithan, and Rainbow Rowell

Jude and her twin brother, Noah, are incredibly close. At thirteen, isolated Noah draws constantly and is falling in love with the charismatic boy next door, while daredevil Jude cliff-dives and wears red-red lipstick and does the talking for both of them. But three years later, Jude and Noah are barely speaking. Something has happened to wreck the twins in different and dramatic ways . . . until Jude meets a cocky, broken, beautiful boy, as well as someone else—an even more unpredictable new force in her life. The early years are Noah's story to tell. The later years are Jude's. What the twins don't realize is that they each have only half the story, and if they could just find their way back to one another, they’d have a chance to remake their world.

This radiant novel from the acclaimed, award-winning author of The Sky Is Everywhere will leave you breathless and teary and laughing—often all at once.

Title: I'LL GIVE YOU THE SUN

Author: Jandy Nelson

Source: Purchased

Publisher: Dial Books

Publication Date: September 16, 2014

Rating: 3/5 stars

Purchase:

Amazon | Chapters | TBD

I have mixed feelings about this one. I liked the plot and thought that plotwise, it was well executed. But I did NOT like the characters or the writing style. Because while I am a fan of "unlikeable" characters -- which typically means they fuck up and do something that makes them feel more real -- I just couldn't connect with Jude or Noah. Maybe it's because I've never experienced their loss or maybe it is because they were SO artsy that I just couldn't get there. Either way I didn't really care about either of their stories on an individual level. 

REVIEW: FALLING KINGDOMS by Morgan Rhodes

Summary:
In the three kingdoms of Mytica, magic has long been forgotten. And while hard-won peace has reigned for centuries, a deadly unrest now simmers below the surface.

As the rulers of each kingdom grapple for power, the lives of their subjects are brutally transformed... and four key players, royals and rebels alike, find their fates forever intertwined. Cleo, Jonas, Lucia, and Magnus are caught in a dizzying world of treacherous betrayals, shocking murders, secret alliances, and even unforeseen love.

The only outcome that's certain is that kingdoms will fall. Who will emerge triumphant when all they know has collapsed?

It's the eve of war.... Choose your side.

Princess: Raised in pampered luxury, Cleo must now embark on a rough and treacherous journey into enemy territory in search of magic long thought extinct.

Rebel: Jonas, enraged at injustice, lashes out against the forces of oppression that have kept his country cruelly impoverished. To his shock, he finds himself the leader of a people's revolution centuries in the making.

Sorceress: Lucia, adopted at birth into the royal family, discovers the truth about her past—and the supernatural legacy she is destined to wield.

Heir: Bred for aggression and trained to conquer, firstborn son Magnus begins to realise that the heart can be more lethal than the sword...

Author: Morgan Rhodes

Series: Falling Kingdoms #1

Source: Owned (Won a Signed Copy; Purchased a copy from Kobo)

Publisher: Razorbill

Publication Date: December 11, 2012

Rating: 3.5/5

Purchase:

Amazon | Chapters | TBD

This is ASoIaF for YA and I loved it so much. It had so much intrigue and was clearly well thought out. I was loving every second of it...ish. I liked the pacing, I thought that enough time had passed between point of views that it made sense while still ensuring that the reader knew what was happening. I liked that time passage was done by switching povs because it didn't feel like it was dragging then.

I liked that this didn't feel like a "First Book" where characters get introduced -- and that's it. Things happened, events occurred. The characters started off one way and grew and changed into someone new throughout this book. It didn't take them too long to do so, but it also felt natural. This book is very heavily character driven (which I love) but it still had really good world building and plot development too. I also really loved that there was such high stakes! You get this huge cast of characters in the beginning and I was overwhelmed, but tbh people die. So you can cross those names off all the time.

So onto those lovely characters...

REVIEW: LOVE LETTERS TO THE DEAD by Ava Dellaira

 Summary:
It begins as an assignment for English class: Write a letter to a dead person.

Laurel chooses Kurt Cobain because her sister, May, loved him. And he died young, just like May. Soon, Laurel has a notebook full of letters to the dead—to people like Janis Joplin, Heath Ledger, Amelia Earhart, and Amy Winehouse—though she never gives a single one of them to her teacher. She writes about starting high school, navigating the choppy waters of new friendships, learning to live with her splintering family, falling in love for the first time, and, most important, trying to grieve for May. But how do you mourn for someone you haven't forgiven?

It's not until Laurel has written the truth about what happened to herself that she can finally accept what happened to May. And only when Laurel has begun to see her sister as the person she was—lovely and amazing and deeply flawed—can she truly start to discover her own path.

In a voice that's as lyrical and as true as a favorite song, Ava Dellaira writes about one girl's journey through life's challenges with a haunting and often heartbreaking beauty.

Author: Ava Dellaira

Source: Owned (Purchased from Kobo)

Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux

Publication Date: April 1, 2014

Rating: 4/5 stars

Purchase:
Amazon | Chapters | TBD

TRIGGER WARNING: SUICIDE MENTION

I thoroughly enjoyed this one. I liked that each letter meant that Laurel would be talking about a different character or point in her life. I also liked that you could see Laurel's character development in the way that she addressed the people she was writing letters to. It started out with praise for their lives, work, etc. and then turned into "I get that you were awesome, but did you realize what you left behind?" especially with one of the Kurt Cobain letters at the end of the novel. That one really struck me.

I thought that the depiction of grief was SO GOOD. Like, so good. You could see Laurel going through all the different stages and what that meant. I thought that her character was just extremely well written. I liked her interactions with Sky and that they both realized their relationship was toxic at a certain point because it was not healthy.

The only thing I would have liked was a clear definition of whether or not May committed suicide. I felt as if the author skirted around that and I would have rather known whether or not it was a definite. Otherwise, I really enjoyed this one. And would recommend it for a good contemporary read.

REVIEW: ADRIFT by Paul Griffin

Summary:
Five teenagers. One boat. Who will come back alive?

Matt and his best friend, John, only came out to Montauk for the summer to make a little extra cash and then head back home. A seemingly basic plan for two guys from Queens.

And then Matt meets Driana.

Because it’s always about a girl, right?

The girl leads to a party, the party leads to a boat, which leads to being adrift at sea with three rich kids who have no clue about how to navigate a boat, let alone actually survive.

Matt and John are used to creating stability in unstable situations, but Matt’s busy falling in love at the worst possible time, and John can rub people the wrong way when he’s focused on survival. Driana is trying to keep the peace, but her friends JoJo and Stef aren’t making it easy. The longer they are out there, the lower everyone’s reserves of mental and emotional strength, which is a problem since the biggest mistakes can happen when people are tired and hungry and have no hope.

How far will each of them go to survive?

And what happens when old tensions and past ghosts rise to the surface?

Author: Paul Griffin
Source: Owned (Won a Copy)

Publisher: Scholastic Press

Publication Date: July 28, 2015

Rating: 4/5 stars

Purchase:

Amazon | Chapters | TBD