Divergent & Insurgent by Veronica Roth Joint Review

 Divergent Summary

In Beatrice Prior’s Dystopian Chicago, society is divided into five factions, each dedicated to the cultivation of a particular virtue—Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent). ON an appointed day of every year, all sixteen-year-olds must select the faction to which they will devote the rest of their lives. For Beatrice, the Decision is between staying with her family and being who she really is—she can’t have both. So she makes a choice that surprises everyone, including herself.

During the highly competitive initiation that follows, Beatrice renames herself Tris and struggles to determine who her friends really are—and where, exactly, a romance with a sometimes fascinating, sometimes infuriating boy fits into the life she’s chosen. But Tris also has a secret, one she’s kept hidden from everyone because she’s been warned it can mean death. And as she discovers a growing conflict that threatens to unravel her seemingly perfect society, she also learns that her secret might help her save those she loves . . . or it might destroy her.

• Number of pages: 487

Insurgent Summary

One choice can transform you—or it can destroy you. But every choice has consequences, and as unrest surges in the factions all around her, Tris Prior must continue trying to save those she loves—and herself—while grappling with haunting questions of grief and forgiveness, identity, and loyalty, politics and love.

Tris’s initiation day should have been marked by celebration and victory with her chosen faction; instead, the day ended with unspeakable horrors. War now looms as conflict between the factions and their ideologies grows. And in times of war, sides must be chosen, secrets will emerge, and choices will become even more irrevocable—and even more powerful. Transformed by her own decisions but also by haunting grief and guild, radical new discoveries, and shifting relationships, Tris must fully embrace her Divergence, even if she does not know what she may lose by doing so.

• Number of pages: 525

Joint Review

Completely different from what you would expect from a dystopian series about to be made into a movie with enough buzz to almost catch up to the Hunger Game Movies. Completely different in a good way, that is. I read Divergent and became instantly entranced in this new societal world where the best virtues are separated into different societies within a society, and how each virtue standing alone could corrupt the very system they were trying to protect. The way this system of factions was set up was absolutely incredible with the amount of detail and surprisingly believability. The characters only served to cement that world into reality with the profoundness of the characters, their depth.

Before I get carried away with the admiration of the characters and their stories, I was to distinguish the assets of this series as a whole because this is a joint review after all. I am writing a joint review because I loved the first book so much that I barely left enough time to drive to Barnes & Noble to get book 2, Insurgent, and start reading. By the time I finished I slowed down enough to realize that the best parts of both books became mashed together in my mind and I ended up seeing it as one really big book. Probably not my best idea for blogging purposes, but it had its perks. In conclusion, this series captured me enough to feel it was absolutely necessary to read it continuously. That’s got to be saying something, right?

Tris is a rock star. I am not even exaggerating that. She was everything a protagonist should be: BELIEVABLE. I think that’s why I liked this book so much. Although completely improbable and we all know that this will never happen in real life, there was reality interwoven between all aspects of it. A huge part of that were Tris and the other characters. They were not too strong, nor were they too weak but miraculously reached their goals or whatever. That kind of stuff happens too often in Young Adult fiction, unfortunately. Tri, for instance, was strong willed but not untouchable. And she was not the weepy-damsel-in-distress-heroine, yet real enough to show emotions, tears, fears, and etc. Very admirable, yet very relatable.

Personally, if I had to say which book was my favorite so far, I would have to say Insurgent (book 2). Which I think is great, my reason being that many times in series like this one sequel sometimes do not live up to the original installment and can leave fans unsatisfied. Insurgent totally satisfies and does much more. Both books alone were great and had great aspects, but Insurgent just seemed to have more depth.  Book one, to me, was very much a set up of everything to come. This world is so complex that I think it needed a whole book to break out the characters and situation, which is clearly does with the amount of information on the initiation and different ways of the factions. Book two really seemed to break the shell set up in the first book and bring the true conflict. There was more variety in scenes and situation, and I was always left on the edge of my seat. Yeah, it was one of those. Amazing.

As I looked up the summary for Divergent for my post, I came across the information for the Divergent movie premiering March of next year. I can definitely say I got chills from the trailers. If those are any indication then I believe that this will fortunately be one of those book adaption movies that stay true to the book’s plot. I CAN’T WAIT. This series was honestly great, and comes highly recommended from me. From 1-10 as a whole? Divergent series (Divergent and Insurgent) gets a 9. 

Guardians: The Girl by Lola St. Vil

Summary 

Emmy Baxter, a fifteen-year-old, is attacked by demons who threaten to kill she her if she doesn't reveal her dark secret; a secret buried so deeply, Emmy doesn't realize she knows it. Emmy - a bookish, witty student - is rescued by six teenaged angels with powers, called Guardians. They've been sent to elicit the secret from her before the demons can. Emmy later learns that her name is the only clue to locating a sought-after bridge that for centuries, Evil has plotted to destroy; this would in turn bring about the end of humanity.

Things get worse when Emmy falls madly in love with Marcus, the well-intentioned but obstinate leader of the Guardians. He eventually confesses that he is in love with her as well. Unfortunately, Marcus has been warned by his clairvoyant and omniscient guide that should he and Emmy get together, the mission will fail and humanity will perish.    

• Number of pages: 342

REVIEW

Amazing. I have chills. These chills can only come about by one thing: a really good book.

And that is exactly what it was. I was asked about a month back to read a book by an author. The book seemed interesting enough from the summary, but lately I’ve been drowning in a sea of previous school obligations. It’s safe to say that I have not picked up a book in a long, long time. And I am sorry that it took so long because this book was simply amazing. I loved it from start to finish. Not a single moment happened when I wasn’t thoroughly entertained. It was a very good book. I thought that the beginning was flawless. There was complete control as to how much thrilling suspense, sarcastic humor, and heroic action were put into it all. This is a book series for one thing, so the ending was like “ . . . are you kidding me? WHAT HAPPENS?!!?” I was left screaming into my pillow at 2:30 in the morning.

To start off I just want to say that what really struck me about this book was mostly the originality. Something about this story seems to strike unique from the beginning. You can’t really say that about YA books lately. We can all say that we like those books well enough, but when a book comes out that defies the usual you can’t help but thoroughly enjoy it and crave more of it. This is an angel story. Seems played out, but not really, not the way Lola wrote it. Let’s start off with the heroin. Emmy is a nerdy teenager who happens to be the key to saving the entire world. Seems logical enough, right? Well it’s not, nor is the fact that the head angel leader is the perfect definition of a story’s heroic male lead character. A cool thing about the way this book was written was how the first couple of chapters is is all in the point of view of Emmy, then the next few chapters start all over again from the beginning of the book with the exception that it is all through the eyes of Marcus (the really amazing angel guy that is perfect), and then once both parts catch up to each other it goes back to Emmy. That isn’t something you see that often in books. Admittedly there were some parts in Marcus’ section that really bugged me, and I felt really slowed down the story. That was a big part of just explaining everything about the world of the angels and the demons, and there was a lot to explain.

And it had some very cool fighting scenes. When the story decided to get scary, it got scary. When it decided to get sad, it got really sad. And when it decided to get funny, I laughed out loud. There are six angels in total and I loved each and every single one of them.  All their personalities were great, some were funny, some were thoughtful and considerate, some were sweet, it was a great combo all together.   Well, maybe except one, but you’ll see once you read this book. And you will. Read this book, I mean. Because if you don’t you will be missing out. From 1-10? I give Guardians book confident 9

The Infernal Devices Series by Cassandra Clare

INFERNAL DEVICES BOOK 1: CLOCKWORK ANGEL SUMMARY

Magic is dangerous—but love is more dangerous still.

When sixteen-year-old Tessa Gray crosses the ocean to find her brother, her destination is England, the time is the reign of Queen Victoria, and something terrifying is waiting for her in London’s Downworld, where vampires, warlocks, and other supernatural folk stalk the gaslit streets. Only the Shadowhunters, warriors dedicated to ridding the world of demons, keep order amidst the chaos.

Kidnapped by the Dark Sisters, who are members of a secret organization called the Pandemonium Club, Tessa soon learns that she herself is a Downlorlder with a rare ability: the power to transform, at will, into another person. What’s more, the Magister, the shadowy figure who runs the club, will stop at nothing to claim Tessa’s power for his own.

Friendless and hunted, Tessa takes refuge with the Shadowhunters of the London Institute, who swear to find her brother if she will use her power to help them. She soon finds herself fascinated by—and torn between—two best friends: James, whose fragile beauty hides a deadly secret, and blue-eyed Will, whose caustic wit and bvolatile moods keep everyone in his life at arm’s length . . . everyone, that is, but Tessa. As their search draws them deep into the heart of an arcane plot that threatens to destroy the Shadowhunters, Tessa realizes that she may need to choose between saving her brother and helping her new friends save the world . . . and that love may be the most dangerous magic of all.

INFERNAL DEVICES BOOK 2: CLOCKWORK PRINCE SUMMARY

In the magical underworld of Victorian London, Tessa Gray has at last found safety with the Shadowhunters. But that safety proves fleeting when rogue forces in the Clave plot to see her protector, Charlotte, replaced as head of the Institute. If Charlotte loses her position, Tessa will be out on the street—and easy prey for the mysterious Magister, who wants to use Tessa’s powers for his own dark ends.

With the help of handsome, self-destructive Will and fiercely devoted Jem, Tessa discovers that the Magister’s war on the Shadowhunters is deeply personal. He blames them for a long-ago tragedy that shattered his life. To unravel the secrets of the past, the trio journeys from mist-shrouded Yorkshire to a manor house that holds untold horrors, from the slums of London to an enchanted ballroom where Tessa discovers that the truth of her parentage is more sinister that she had imagined. When they encounter a clockwork demon bearing a warning for Will, they realize that the Magister knows their every move—and that one of their own has betrayed them.

Tessa finds her heart drawn more and more to Jem, though her longing for Will, despite his dark moods, continues to unsettle her. But something is changing Will—the wall he has built around himself is crumbling. Could finding the magister free Will from his secrets and give Tessa the answers about who she is and what she was born to do?

As their dangerous search for the Magister and the truth leads the friends into peril, Tessa learns that when love and lies are mixed, they can corrupt even the purest heart.

INFERNAL DEVICES REVIEW

Cassandra Clare has created a completely new masterpiece. I don’t know if you have read my review on her other series The Mortal Instruments, but if you haven’t then let me just say that I adored her other books and I adore this author. When I found out that she had a whole NEW series coming out, I almost had a heart attack. I am going to do a summary of both the first and the second book as one, and when the third book comes out I will review it on a whole different post, so stay tuned!

There are so many changes from book 1 to book 2, but all around both books are amazing. The characters are perfectly created, and I couldn’t imagine any better way to live through the Downworld during the Victorian Era other than through the eyes of these characters. That’s the great thing about Cassandra Clare, she has a great gift for creating life into her characters, characters that you can relate to, hate, love, and trustingly follow as they maneuver the reader through this intricate plot. I always say that the best thing about a good book is the characters, and The Infernal Devices has plenty of that. All the characters are all so different, Will is hilariously witty, Jem is a sweet heart I could just hug and hug and hug and never let go, Henry is the mad and lovable professor/genius/screw up, and Tessa is a strong version of a young lady in a time where they are suppose to be seen, not heard.

Now, I don’t want anyone thinking that this book is going to be like The Mortal Instruments series. Yes, it has all the good qualities that the other series had, but it is a completely different story line and they really don’t have much to do with each other, so I don’t want anyone who has read The Mortal Instruments series freaking out that these books should have been read before or anything like that connecting the two. These books are like the prequels of that series. The cool thing about this series is that it does have small connections into The Mortal Instruments series, things like characters that pop up from the other books and names that any Mortal Instruments fan would recognize. I’m not going to go into detail of what the book is about because the book flap summary really just about covers all the real important stuff, and writing any more will definitely give it away.

If you read my previous ramblings post, you’ll see that something about the second book stressed me out to no end. Don’t worry! I’m not going to tell you what it was, I am just warning you that you will feel the need to chuck the book across the room, grunt in frustration, and then run to pick it up and continue where you left off as if your air supply depended on it. I must have sounded crazy in that post, but no one can judge. All you have to do is go get the books, read them, and then you guys can see for yourself what happened to my sanity after reading it. Trust me, my reaction was not so out there. So all in all go get the books and you’ll see that from 1-10? I’m not crazy to give these books a 9.

The Iron Fey Series Review by Julie Kagawa

 This review will consist of a big series overview with mini reviews of each individual book with as little spoilers as possible.

The Iron Fey Series blew me away! See, for me, the characters are everything in a good book. They are the fabric of the story, the foundation of it all. This series had the characters down pat. They were realistic but magical, funny and determined, brave and vulnerable . . . there were just so many combinations that went into creating these complex characters that I really can’t name them all. My favorite had to be Puck who is one of the funniest/sarcastic characters I have ever encountered. The point is that they were all fantastic leaders through the NeverNever.

When I say that I haven’t been this excited over a book series in a long time, that is saying something. It’s not that I haven’t enjoyed a good book in a while. There have been many interesting books stacked under my night table, but I haven’t been THIS excited about a book in months. You know the kind of excitement I’m talking about. The kind of excitement where I laughed hysterically a Puck’s pranks, teared up considerably at Ash’s coldness, and the kind where there was absolutely-positively-no-chance-in-hell that I was going to put those books down. They were the kinds of books that I chose over sleep. Thank goodness it’s Winter Break, or I would be considerably sleep deprived! The point is that, these books brought that reading excitement back to me. There were times over the beginning of this school year where reading would be put off for homework and such, and I started to lose the feel of staying up until 5 a.m. with a book under my nose. These books brought them back.

Well, enough sentimentality on my part. I’ll get down to the who’s, what’s, when’s, and why’s of these books. The first three books in this series are completely from the point of view of Meghan Chase. She is a regular girl with the annoying reputation of a hillbilly or pig girl if you will. She is an outcast in her school and a little bit at home. She lives with her mother, her stepfather, and her little four-year-old brother. The day she turns 16 is the day everything in her boring yet normal life shatters. From that moment on she is pulled and pushed into the world of Faery, a magical yet cynical place to be filled with rulers and gremlins and who knows what else. And only she has the powers to save the NeverNevers. From 1-10 for the overall series? I believe the Iron Fey deserves a 9!!

PS: here's a little tidbit I just discovered . . . Julie Kagawa wrote 2 mini ebooks that take place between parts of the series! The parts that were never mentioned like Ash and Meghan's travels to the Winter court in "Winter's Passage" and a mini adventure of Ash and Puck completely told in Puck's funny and eccentric perspective. I just read them, and although way to short to satisfy my thirst for all things Fey, they are certainly not to be missed!

          

•      Book 1: The Iron King

Number of pages:363

Book 1 is where all the discoveries of the NeverNever and Faeries come in. Here is where everything unravels for Meghan Chase. Her little brother is replaced by a demon Faery thing and she goes off with her best friend Robbie, who turns out to be a notorious faery, into the heart of the NeverNever in search for her little brother. Here she discovers everything about her past, along with the perils that come with that knowledge. In this book, I have to say I was Team Puck all the way. He was just so funny and lovable! So loyal, I couldn’t imagine the story without him. 

•           Book 2: The Iron Daughter

Number of pages: 359

Book 2 was a strong follow up of book 1. One thing that I sometimes expect is that the sequel to the original book will somehow come out to be disappointing in some way, or just not good enough in general. Mainly that is because sequels continue the story of the first one. The thing about The Iron Daughter is that although technically, yes, it is a continuation of Meghan’s adventures, it somehow comes out to be a different story. I don’t know if that makes sense, but what I am trying to say is that this book has its ties into the first, but cannot be compared to it because it is unique in and of itself. What happened in this book is that Meghan has kept her promise to Ash and is waiting to be rescued by the Summer Court. When she finally breaks free from the promise, and Ash’s cold ways toward her, she embarks on a journey to find the Scepter of the Seasons, stolen by the Iron Fey. She discovers powers she didn’t imagine she could possess, and love she didn’t know she had. 

• Book 3: The Iron Queen

Number of pages: 358

This is the end for Meghan Chase. Actually just the end of her adventures, not her end end. Book 3 is the tying of all the strings, so to speak. It is the grand finale, the curtain call of Meghan Chase. This was a bittersweet book. What you need to understand about the ending is that it does cover all the loose ends, but it will leave you heartbroken and enlightened at the same time. All I can say is thank God Julie Kagawa thought to make a 4^th book! Meghan Chase has been banished, bullied, and attacked way to many times! Once she finally feels like she has a break from Feary, she is once again pulled back into the world of magic along with her best friend Puck and Ash . . . this time with the Courts permission. Here you get a whole new side to the characters. Puck is now more raw, much more cynical, and still just as funny. You also get a more thawed side to Ash, a more caring side. By this point I don’t know what team I was on: Team Ash or Team Puck? Too hard to choose! Something that I found was really cool was that this is also where Meghan starts to fend for herself a bit. It’s understandable that in the beginning books she needed to be protected. Now she starts to kick butt on her own terms, and gets my respect.

•     Book 4: The Iron Knight

Number of pages: 361

The Iron Knight takes a whole new twist to the stories that by now you have become accustomed to. Here we see Ash take control as we follow him on his own journey to find a soul and finally be reunited with the one he loves . . . Meghan. His goals are simple. Find the Cait Sith, get to the end of the world, win a soul, and return to the Iron Realm all without completely murdering his travel companion, Puck. But as the journey progresses, some discoveries come to light that could completely change his resolve to become human. Some things happen that just leave you in a WOW state. And then there were some parts that I found a wee bit tedious during this particular adventure. I just wanted to see how everything turned out to be, but some things were drawn out a bit. Not that I wanted it to end, not by any means. I just couldn’t wait to see what happened to our lovely hero and his funny companion. I admit it, I did cry at one point. But even after all the curve balls thrown in this book and surprises in every chapter, rest assured that there is a happy ending for this book. And this book does come with a little extra something in the end. There is a NeverNever survival guide, and an author’s questionnaire with some special guest that I completely enjoyed hearing from!

Hourglass by Myra McEntire

Summary

One hour to rewrite the past . . . For seventeen-year-old Emerson Cole, life is about seeing what isn’t there: swooning Southern Belles; soldiers long forgotten; a haunting jazz trio that vanishes in an instant. Plagued by phantoms since her parents’ death, she just wants the apparitions to stop so she can be normal. She’s tried everything, but the visions keep coming back. So when her well-meaning brother brings in a consultant from a secretive organization called the Hourglass, Emerson is willing to try one last cure. But meeting Michael Weaver may not only change her future, it may change her past. Who is this dark, mysterious, sympathetic guy, barely older than Emerson herself, who seems to believe every crazy word she says? Why does an electric charge seem to run through the room whenever he’s around? And why is he so insistent that he needs her help to prevent a death that never should have happened?

• Number of pages: 400

Review

The intricacy of the ins and outs of this book was spectacular. My preferences to sci-fi are usually slim, but Hourglass totally blew me away. It was riveting, complicated, and full out entertainment. It took all I had to keep myself from laughing hysterically while reading during my car trip. My parents already looked at me like I was crazy when the occasional chuckle escaped me. That’s how funny this book was. I love when there is so much drama with humor interlaced the entire plot. Okay, so, Emerson Cole thinks she’s crazy . . . and with good reason! She sees people who no longer exist. Not ghost exactly, more like visions of people from the passed called Rips. She learns all this from the most “delicious” guy, Michael, who happens to be just like her . . . sorta. I can’t really explain all this so the only way to get all the details is to pick up a copy and read it for yourself. But keep a sharp mind out because sometimes things would get a little complicated and twisted around. Just a heads up.

So what exactly is it about this book that I liked so much? I’d have to say Emerson, all the way. I absolutely LOVED reading from her perspective. She is the most kick ass character—literally. Her sarcasm practically dripped out. There is nothing better than good out sarcasm and a strong will to make a book pop. She was the personification of a strong female lead. And you know what I loved about her? She was always showed as strong, but there were clearly times when she cracked. That was perfect for me because it shows that she was human, you know? Not some super girl with the will of an army, just a girl trying to right wrongs even if it was hard and scary. Still, there was something that put me off about her sometimes. I cant quite put my finger on it, but it doesn’t really matter. Along with Emerson there were so many other characters that I LOVED. And when I say I loved that it’s that I LOOOVED them. The thing about this book is that it was the story line that made this such a good book, it was the characters. They were just so real to me, so raw. Emerson’s sparkiness, Michael’s strong feeling of protectiveness, Dru’s compassion, Kaleb’s openness, even Lily’s sassiness even though she just showed up a hand full of times. They were the ones that captured me, and sometimes that doesn’t happen in a book. So for Myra McEntire’s incredible talent for making characters jump off a page . . . from 1-10? I give Hourglass a 9!

P.S. I'm like 95% sure this is just the beginning of a series, but so far I haven't heard or seen anything about other books. Got any info on this? Let me know! I cant't for the next!!

The Mortal Instruments Series by Cassandra Clare

This review is going to be a little different then the usual. So I’ve thought of how I would do this and decided to review these series as a whole rather than picking it apart one book at a time. That’s because The Mortal Instruments Series isn’t a series where it breaks off or starts new on the next book. It’s all one big mystery where the plot literally extends all the way through books 1-3. Now book 4 is a sort of extension to how the plot ends in the first part and this would be the beginning of part 2. I think that makes sense right? There are two more books to this series that are to come out in the future (and honestly I am dying for them to come out. So I am going to write my review first this time and bellow that will be the summaries for each of the books out to far.

**I would recommend NOT reading the summaries of book 2, 3, or 4 if you haven’t read the previous one because, lets face it, there are tons of spoilers in the summaries themselves**

REVIEW

FirstoffIhavetosaythatthisisSUCHanamazingseries!!! LOL ok now that I got that out of my system I’ll try to write something coherent without letting my excitement get the best of me. So where to start . . . hmmm . . . okidoki well I’ll start with the facts about this book.

FACT: these are big books

FACT: you will fall in love with these characters... just a heads up

FACT: chills will roll up and down your arms through the entire adventure, yes it’s that intense

FACT: funniest damn book series ever, I can’t even count the amount of times my family caught me clutching one of these books while I cracked up without a thought to the fact that people were staring at me.

And FACT: to be honest this series is pretty graphic; I think you need to know this before. There is lots of gore and demons etc

I first read the first couple of books about a year ago if I do recall correctly. That being said, I had to reread the entire series again when I bought the newest installment, City of Fallen Angels. In my excitement to read the fourth book I attacked the first three again with a vengeance. So I have all the books fresh in my mind. The whole first three books I would call “PART 1” of the series and book four and on “PART 2”. Simple enough, right? So PART 1 is all about this up coming war that the insanely evil rogue Shadowhunter Valentine is making to forever destroy all Downworlders (vamps, werewolves, faeires, warlocks) and will kill anyone who stands in his way, even if he has to recreate the Shadowhunters from scratch. The only people remotely close enough to stop him are Clary, Jace, Simon, and the rest of their friends. Having a hard time putting the books down is an understatement. It’s not just that it was an adventure worth holding on to. It’s not just the characters worth learning more about. It’s all of it combined, I think. My favorite part of the entire series had to be to wit and sarcasm the poured out of this book like a waterfall. It was incredible. The fact that no matter how bad the situation got, or how depressed everything was there was ALWAYS some funny remark by Simon or snarky comeback from Jace to lighten the mood. These people would talk like regular people. That sounds weird because they are people, but if you read these books and new them as well as I do, you would see that there is nothing regular about them. The characters had to be my favorite aspect of The Mortal Instruments.

I think the only thing that I can think of to say that I didn’t like about the stories had to be that sometime there were looooong, long moments where demons would come and it seemed kind of gory at times. Lots of blood scenes and gruesome parts. And because of the authors amazing way of putting you in the story, it did seem like I was on the battlefield with them.

Part 2 of The Mortal Instruments series is the aftermath of the Mortal War ending in the first part. That’s what you have to understand about Part 2. It continues, but now with a whole new problem and situation.

This is one of my favorite series, and because I am review this on the entire series I will give a rating as a whole. So, that said as a whole from 1-10? I am happy to give The Mortal Instrument a 9!!!

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Summaries

BOOK ONE: City of Bones

When fifteen-year-old Clary Fray heads out to the Pandemonium Club in New York City, she hardly expects to witness a murder—much less a murder committed by three teenagers covered with strange tattoos and brandishing bizarre weapons. Then the body disappears into thin air. It’s hard to call the police when the murderers are invisible to everyone else and when there is nothing—not even a smear of blood—to show that a boy has died. Or was he a boy? This is Clary’s first meeting with Shadowhunters, warriors dedicated to ridding the earth of demons. It’s also her first encounter with Jace, a Shadowhunter who looks a little like an angel and acts a lot like a jerk. Within twenty-four hours Clary is pulled into Jace’s world with a vengeance, when her mother disappears and Clary herself is attacked by a demon. But why would demons be interested in ordinary mundanes like Clary and her mother? And how did Clary suddenly get the Sight? The Shadowhunters would like to know . . .

Number of pages: 485

Book Two: City of Ashes

Clary Fray just wishes that her life would go back to normal. But what’s normal when you’re a demon-slaying Shadowhunter, your mother is in a magically induced coma, and you can suddenly see Downworlders like werewolves, vampires, and faeries? If Clary left the world of the Shadownhunters behind, it would mean more time with her best friend, Simon, who’s becoming more than a friend. But the Shadowhunting world isn’t ready to let her go—especially her handsome, infuriating, newfound brother, Jace. And Clary’s only chance to help her mother is to track down rogue Shadowhunter, Valentine, who is probably insane, certainly evil—and also her father. To complicate matters, someone in New York City is murdering Downworlder children. Is Valentine behind the killings—and if he is, what is he trying to do? When the second of the Mortal Instruments, the Soul-Sword, is stolen, the terrifying Inquisitor arrives to investigate and zooms right in on Jace. How can Clary stop Valentine if Jace is willing to betray everything he believes in to help their father?

Number of pages: 453

Book Three: City of Glass

To save her mother’s life, Clary must travel to the City of Glass, the ancestral home of Shadowhunters—never mind that entering the city without permission is against the Law, and breaking the Law could mean death. To make things worse, she learns that Jace does not want her there, and Simon has been thrown in prison by the Shadowhuntersmwho are deeply suspicious of a vampire who can withstand sunlight. As Clary uncovers more about her family’s past, she finds an ally in mysterious Shadowhunter Sebastian. With Valentine mustering the full force of his power to destroy all Shadowhunters forever, their only chance to defeat him is to fight alongside their eternal enemies. But can Downworlders and Shadowhunters put aside their hatred to work together? While Jace realizes exactly how much he’s willing to risk for Clary, can she harness her newfound powers to help save the Glass City—whatever the cost?

Number of pages: 541

Book Four: City of Fallen Angels

The Mortal War is over, and Clary Fray is back home in New York, excited about all the possibilities before her. She’s training to become a Shadowhunter and to use her unique power. Her mother is getting married to the love of her life. Downworlders and Shadowhunters are at peace at last. And—most important of all—Clary can finally call Jace her boyfriend. But nothing comes without a price. Someone is murdering the Shadowhunters who used to be in Valentine’s Circle, provoking tensions between Downworlders and Shadowhunters that could lead to a second bloody war. Clary’s best friend, Simon, can’t help her. His mother just found out that he’s a vampire and now he’s homeless. Everywhere he turns, someone wants him on their side—along with the power of the curse that’s wrecking his life. And theyre willing to do anything to get what they want. At the same time he’s dating two beautiful, dangerous girls—neither of whom knows about the other. When Jace begins to pull away from clary without explaining why, she is forced to delve into the heart of a mystery whose solution reveals her worst nightmare: She herself has set in motion a terrible chain of events that could lead to her losing everything she loves. Even Jace.

Number of pages: 424

Angel Burn by L. A. Weatherly

Summary

THEY’RE OUT FOR YOUR SOUL.

AND THEY DON’T HAVE HEAVEN IN MIND . . .

Willow knows she’s different from other girls, and not just because she loves tinkering with cars. Willow has a gift. She can look into the future and know people’s dreams and hopes, their sorrows and regrets, just by touching them. She has no idea where this power comes from. But the assassin, Alex, does. Gorgeous, mysterious Alex knows more about Willow than Willow herself does. He knows that her powers link to dark and dangerous forces and that he’s one of the few humans left who can fight them. When Alex finds himself falling in love with his sworn enemy, he discovers that nothing is as it seems, least of all good and evil.

• Number of pages: 449

Review

W. O. W.

I don’t know how else to get this through to all of you clearly except . . . THIS BOOK WAS SOOOOO GOOOD!! I was completely captured even from the moment that I read the PROLOUGE and that is saying something. If you get the chance to read this book then I seriously wouldn’t hesitate to get a hold of a copy. I don’t even know what exactly it was from the story that really had me mesmerized for the entire time that I read this book . . . which was in a day (a new personal best if I do say so myself). I haven’t been this captivated in a book in quite some time. I can’t say I’m not excited to review this book, but I really don’t want to give anything away.

I think I have to start with the fact that the plot itself went beyond the norms of today’s usual books. Lately, a lot of novels have been meshing together with the way the plots all seem in at least one way similar. I mean it’s not always bad because each author has their own way of styling their stories, but I think Angel Burn was a whole new take, a new-ish kind of story. There were some of the typical stuff that we teens read about mostly, like the star-crossed love story of the book or the super natural stuff that gets us so addicted. So what this book is about is that after learning about angels Willow becomes the target of some pretty dangerous beings, and Alex is sent to kill her. Of course Alex—being Alex—has enough common sense to know that something isn’t right. Once they discover what is going on they are force to stick together in what seems the most dangerous, and exciting road trip ever. Along the way of course, the attraction between them builds until it is practically palpable through the pages. I think it had to be one of the top 10 romances ever.

The angel aspect of Angel Burn was really interesting. These aren’t the type of angels I would pray to, if you know what I mean. I kind of found it interesting how the angels were evil and created their own religion of sorts; more like a cult. And how every now and then people would be like, “oh Jesus that was intense”. Or something like that. Probably isn’t relevant to anything, but it was something I picked up and thought kind of interesting, the worship of this strange religion with expressions of another. The adventure also was really cool, too. They travel practically cross-country, and there was much to do on those little trips. Honestly I really did enjoy this book, and maybe you will too. It’s worth a shot picking it up, don’t you think? So from 1-10? Angel Burn definitely gets a 9!!

Dark Visions by L.J. Smith

Summary

Kaitlyn Fairchild has always felt like an outsider in her small hometown. Her haunting eyes and prophetic drawings have earned her a reputation as a witch. But Kait’s not a witch: She’s a psychic. Tired of being shunned, Kait accepts an initiation to attend the Zetes Institute, where she can have a fresh start and study with other psychic teens. Learning to hone her abilities with four other gifted students, Kait discovers the intensity of her power—and the joy of having true friends. But those friendships quickly become complicated when Kait finds herself torn between two irresistible guys. Rob is kind and athletic, and heals people with his good energy. Gabriel is aggressive and mysterious, a telepath concealing his true nature as a psychic vampire, feeding off of other’s life energy. Together, Rob and Gabriel’s opposing forces threaten the group’s stability. Then one of the experiments traps the five teens in a psychic link. A link that threatens their sanity and their lives. And Kaitlyn must decide whom to trust . . . and whom to love.

• Number of pages: book one: 1-252

: book two: 253-488

: book three: 489-732

My name is Camila, and I freely admit to being a huge L.J. Smith fan. This woman is an incredible writer! I’ve been reading her series for quite some time now and each one is completely unique and amazing. This is actually the second time I’ve read Dark Visions.

Lately I’ve realized how all paranormal books have been getting very clichéd and similar to one another. Boy meets girl. Girl falls in love. Boy turns out to be something freaky. That’s the usual quota for these books, but L.J. Smith always seems to bring out something unique in her books. I don’t know how she does it, but she does! And its not just in Dark Visions, her Night World Series was one of my favorite series.

So Kait is a psychic who can see into the future whenever she starts drawing something. She is sent to the Institute to meet with other psychics and test her abilities to learn how to control them. There she meets her new friends. I am in love with the entire cast of characters. They were all so different from one another and each one was special to me. Anna is the calm, quiet girl that doesn’t miss a thing. Oh, yeah, she can also communicate with animals. Lewis is the quirky guy with telekinesis power. Then comes Rob and Gabriel. More polar opposites they can’t be. Rob is golden boy from the south with the power to heal. Gabriel is all dark shadows and he is a dangerous telepathic. These two guys hate each other with their entire being. And they are both in love with Kait. Typical, right? Well it’s not. This love triangle was very interesting from the beginning. (I was secretly rooting for Gabriel from the beginning.) All the characters in their own right were witty. Their adventure was exciting but there was a sort of lagging on their trip that kind of slowed down the story. The love stories were cute too. Really there isn’t much else to say because it was so good that there’s nothing that I would really change.

One thing that did really bother me was the cover. I HATED the cover because it has nothing at ALL to do with the book. The girl on the cover is the farthest thing that Kait looks like and the only other girl in the book was Anna and she has black hair and dark skin, and isn’t the main character. The cover is blonde and Kait is red headed. It always bothers me when the cover on the book has a person because it leaves little for the imagination to do. So when they put a person that doesn’t look or have anything to do with the characters or the story, it bothers me a lot. But don’t worry, the cover doesn’t affect the book in any way. So from 1-10? I give Dark Visions a 9.

The Twin's Daughter by Lauren Baratz-Logsted

Summary

Does not a child recognize her own mother?

Lucy Sexton is stunned when a disheveled women appears at the door one day . . . a woman who bears an uncanny resemblance to her own beautiful mother. The two women are identical twins, separated at birth and raised in dramatically different circumstances: one as a member of high society, the other in a workhouse. Lucy’s mother quickly resolves to give her sister the kind of life she has never known, and the transformation in Aunt Helen is remarkable. As time goes by, Lucy herself transforms into a young woman, falling in love with a childhood friend she was once sure she hated. But in what should be a happy household, something is very, very wrong. And as Aunt Helen and Lucy’s mother become more and more indistinguishable, Lucy begins to suspect that her aunt’s new familiar face may mask a chilling agenda.

Number of pages: 390

Review

Oh my God!! I have so much to talk about with this book. Hmm . . . where to start . . .where to start . . . ok! Well first I’ll give a quick recap of the story, though how I am to do this without giving any spoilers away is going to be hard, but I promise to do my best.

The entire story is through the eyes of a Miss Lucy Sexton. Starting out as a young, rich girl in the Victorian era (my favorite era). She is just sitting in her drawing room when out of the blue her mother knocks on the door in beggar’s rags! Oh, but of course that can’t be her mother. It turns out to be her mother’s identical twin. And identical they are. "Does not a child recognize her own mother?" I guess Lucy can’t. As the years go by and Aunt Helen and Lucy’s mother become impossible to differentiate between, and Lucy starts to feel unease at the sudden changes in both twins. Of course, aside from them three, the rest of the characters were a lot of fun to read about. My favorite had to be Kit. Kit is the talked about childhood friend that falls in love with Lucy. Sounds cliché, right? Not the way it’s written here. I really liked how the romance was played out. It didn’t take away from the story and the mystery. Kit is honestly the best. I love him.

There were some creepy parts that made the story sooo interesting. Lucy Sexton is one of the best narrators I ever read. She was the funniest, most sarcastic, opinionated, and outspoken girl in the 1900s. With the sharpest wit ever. Like I said, it is really hard to say what it's about without giving anything away. There were alway times when the little hairs on my arms stood up, and times when I was cheering them on. The Twin's Daughter fully engages the reader.

I've actually always wanted a twin. I don't know why, I just thought it would be fun, but after reading this it kind of scared me a bit! I was so excited about this book that, although I tried to keep some self-control, I completely spilled everything about the book to my friend. If she ever reads it, she will already know what is going to happen.

The jacketflap summary sort of tries to make you believe you know what's going to happen, but this story is anything but predictable. Never, I repeat, never assume anything at anytime when reading this book. You know what they say: don’t assume, it makes an ass out of u and me. You've been warned. So to wrap up this review from 1-10? I am delighted to give The Twin's Daughter a 9!!!

Note: I loved the cover on this book. At first I didn’t see anything unique about it, but if you look closely you see the shape the twins make is a dagger. It's a cool optical illusion. I have to say it came out so good. It basically portrays everything this story is about from the two innocent looking girls to the secret dagger and hidden danger within.

A Cat Royal Adventure: The Diamond of Drury Lane by Julia Golding

Summary

READER,

You are set to embark on an adventure about one hidden treasure, two bare-knuckle boxers, three enemies, and four hundred and thirty-eight rioters. It is told by an ignorant and prejudiced author—me.

She’s Cat Royal, four foot four with long red hair and not a penny to call her own. She lives in the Theatre Royal on Drury Lane, a place filled with dramatic characters, theatrical spectacles, and now, a secret treasure. Follow her into the streets of London, facing danger and adventure, to be the first to discover the diamond!

Number of pages: 419

Review

Julia Golding’s writing is pure gold (<-- hehehe get it? Pun intended!) She is amazing. The Cat Royal Adventure Series is one of my absolute favorites! I mean what’s not to like about them? The characters are beautifully created, the setting is rough and exciting, the inside look into one of the roughest, toughest place in London is thrilling, and it is all directed by one witty and feisty Miss Cat Royal. Cat is one of the best narrators ever! She’s funny, sarcastic, and never says no to a challenge. She is the heart of the story. All the characters are amazing, even that big bad Billy "Boil" Shepherd. The setting is fascinating, you get to weave through backstage and experience the heart of the theatre. It’s crazy in there, let me tell you. Let Cat lead you on a whirlwind adventure that will keep you occupied until you can get your hands on the next Cat Royal book. From 1-10 this book, and series for that matter, deserves a 9!

Mini reviews for the rest of this series books out so far (I'll try to review without any spoilers!):

• Cat Among the Pigeons-book 2 in this series is very dramatic. Out of all of them I think this one has the most suspense, but that doesn't mean Cat's wicked sense of humor is diminished.
• Den of Thieves: I really enjoyed Den of Thieves, book 3 in this series. Cat is getting older, and is branching out on her own. . . maybe even getting a few beaus ;). She has a new assignment. There are disguises, secrets, and spies everywhere, and Cat's got her hands full in this book! I think this is one of my favorites in this series!
• Cat O'Nine Tails: Cat Royal's life has been quiet for a while, but of course that can't last long. She is in a dangerous struggle to save her best friends life. She has to use her wit to free her friends from being held captive on His Majesty's ship, and land on her feet-- without getting too wet. (;