Fearless by Francine Pascal

Summary

Gaia Moore is brilliant and beautiful. She’s trained in three kinds of martial arts, has a reflex speed that’s off the charts, and can break codes in four languages.

She’s also missing the fear gene.

All Gaia wants is to be like everyone else. Instead, she’s left wondering about her past, her missing family . . . and the unavailable boy she’s falling for. But everything changes when she learns that someone is hunting her down for her special skills, and they’ll do anything to get her to.

But Gaia isn’t worried.

She is FEARLESS.

• Number of pages: 856

Review

Definitely not your average girl, that’s for sure. Gaia, pronounced “guy-uh”, is a rational, badass character that really knows how to fight  . . . mostly for good. She’s cranky, judgmental, and a bit of an outsider. She’s badass. I said that already, but I’m just trying to make sure you understand how badass she is. She kicks butt and is too cool to take names, if that makes any sense. While she may have only one friend and no family that she can call her own AND is constantly a target of some kind.

This was definitely not your average book. The story was a complicated and complex story that rotated from many, many different points of view. Off the top of my head I would say there were at least 8 different characters’ points of view that you jump into, but guaranteed there are a few more that I forgot to mention. I have to say it was pretty cool sensing the whole story from basically everyone’s point of view, but there were time that it was tricky to handle, namely when it jumped from one seen to the scene before but with a different character. Make any sense? Of course after a while you see the connection, but there were some frustrating times where I was just like “Whaaaaaat?” You definitely just have to try to keep up, and not let yourself get lost.

Now you are probably wondering how this whole “no fear gene” works. I wont give up any details because you will probably want to read about it yourself, but I will say that you see her feel every emotion except fear. The lack of fear doesn’t mean there is a lack of emotion in this book. In fact, there were times where the lack of fear constituted a stronger set of emotions. It was interesting to see how the author wrote about it like that. The plot was interesting as well. There were many different conflicts, but the main conflict didn’t come up until the second half of the book, way way off near the end. Through the first half, though it was entertaining, I sometimes felt like I was waiting for the real to take place, you know? It was just a restless feeling I had when something was prolonged a bit. The way it was written was highly entertaining as well. There were some very funny LOL moments for me  . . . actual laughing out loud.

Something I feel like I should definitely warn you about is how this book can get a little graphic. Everything was on overdrive and there was some talk that I felt was unnecessary and a little inappropriate. Some fighting scenes as well were a bit graphic and sometimes were disturbing. It kind of made me a bit uncomfortable.

This is a very big book, but it also turns out to be the first book in a series! So if you do decide to read this book, do not be surprised when you see that it did not end completely. Expect another book accompanying it! From 1 to 10? I give FEARLESS a 6.

The Name of the Star by Maureen Johnson

Summary 

The day Louisiana teenager Rory Deveauz arrives in London marks a memorable occasion. For Rory, it’s the start of a new life at a London Boarding school. But for many, this will be remembered as the day a series of brutal murders broke out across the city—gruesome crimes mimicking the horrific work of Jack the Ripper in the autumn of 1888.

Soon “Rippermania” takes hold of modern-day London, and the police are left with few leads and no witnesses. Except one. Rory spotted the man police believe to be the prime suspect. But she is the only on who saw. Even her roommate, who was with her at the time, didn’t notice the mysterious man. So why can only Rory see him? And more urgently, what is he planning to do about her?

Number of pages: 372

Review 

I’m not exactly sure how I feel about sleeping in my very dark, spacious room tonight. Not after reading this book.

And I’ll let you know why. This book is all about a series of murders that resemble the murders taken place in 1888. And let me tell you, none of them were pretty. The victims were mutilated in a series of ways that is pretty gory. I wouldn’t say the book is completely graphic, but when it came down to it some parts were pretty nasty to read about. But don’t let that freak you out! No, what is freakier than that is the invisible killer doing all of these murders. Yea . . . invisible killer.

This book was a good read. I had some issues with it at the beginning. I’d have to say that the book didn’t really pick up speed until 150 pages or so into the book, I thought. It went by meticulously slow at the set up of the store while Rory settled into her new school and you were caught up to speed on Jack the Ripper’s murders. It got more enjoyable near the second half of the book. That was where the more suspenseful side of the story kicked in. The plot was a good one. Definitely one that was planned out in all of it’s complexity. The main character was all right. I found her kind of tedious to follow sometimes, but she did well when push came to shove. Now the ending of the book was great. That really was a good ending for it over all. Now, it kind of leaves the reader with a new revelation. I’m not sure if that is supposed to signify the start of a new book, or just a way to close the curtains with a bang. I gets we will just have to wait and see. From 1-10? I’d give The Name of the Star a good solid 5.

Cover Close Up: The cover is really quite beautiful and interesting, but it has nothing to do with the story. At all. I hate when that happens . . .

(This is irrelevant, but when my room door is slightly ajar it sometimes closes by itself . . .  and it just closed for no reas

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.

Ramblings of the Bookish Sort

I don't usually write down my feelings for a book on my blog before the actual review, but I am making a huge exception in this instance. Currently it is 5 till 2 a.m. over here as I start this post where I have just spent the last, oh, 7 minutes or so screaming into a pillow out of frustration. You might be wondering as to why I am spending my time screaming and punching a pillow in the middle of the night. Two words: Clockwork Prince. Yes, the newest book by Cassandra Clare of The Infernal Devices series has finally driven me mad. Before you go thinking that I am completely weird, let me assure you that, this has happened before with a couple of other books . . . but maybe that makes me seem weirder, but I don't care. This book put me to a point that I had to vent my feelings out on my own blog because apparently everyone is asleep at 2 in the morning (which I think is kind of annoying, being a night person myself). I'm not going to go into detail as to way this book specifically drove me crazy, I'm putting all that down in my review! But until then I am just going to let my mind wander, and muse over the concept of how a book can make me feel breathless and a little crazy, even if I will end up talking about something completely different . . . that is why they call it rambling.

You see, it's all about the characters. I've said it before, and I will say it again: the characters make the book. They are everything. If the book doesn't have at least a few good characters that you can latch onto and use as a method of steering through the plot then it is going to be way more difficult to get through a book. They are the soul, the very essence of a story. As cliché as it might be, they really are like actual friends. First, you get to known them. You get to know your favorite parts about them, their weaknesses, what gives them drive. Then they surprise you with their humor, their tenderness, whatever makes them interesting. You learn to LOVE them. Maybe that sounds bad, but, yes, I do love my characters, they are my friends who I share adventures with.

Now here is where the pillow comes in . . . as soon as things start to finally look up for the characters in the type of conflict they are facing, something HUGE pops up and done. This isn't the case with most individual books, what I am mainly talking about is with book series, such as The Infernal Devices. About 5 HUGE things happened in the last 3 chapters of the book, and then BAM!! it's over. Yes, people, it ended and left me in a state of complete shock and a most unsatisfactory feeling in the pit of my stomach. So naturally, after the pillow screaming and misuse of furniture, I went straight to my laptop and found not even a bit of information on the release date of book 3!!!!!! 

This is the kind of book that made me quite literally laugh out loud, gasp, and despair at the end as if all that was happening happened to people I know. It also had much to do with the love triangle featuring Jem, Will, and Tessa. I know love triangles have been over done lately in most YA fiction, but I have never seen one like this. Usually, you know who you're rooting for, even if you change your mind a little while later and go for the other person. In this story, Cassandra Clare made it infuriatingly hard to choose. I honestly can't make up my mind. At one point I had to stop and breathe because the happiness of one and the despair of the other with both their special circumstances, and vice versa, completely broke my heart. And then it's over, to be continued who knows when! It's safe to say that it will be quite some time before I get a chance to see how this will all come out for the good of the story. I know it's not the author's fault, but why can't the books all be out at the same time?? It's absolutely brutal knowing the story will not continue until who knows how many weeks or months!

Anyway, this ramble certainly helped me clear my head and calm my jitters. It's a good thing I have my blog to vent to, even if I don't know who reads this. I can't imagine how much harder it would have been for me to fall asleep with all these thoughts bouncing about in my mind.

My ramblings have now ceased.

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!

Borrowing Abby Grace Episode 1: The Shadow by Kelly Green

Series Summary:

Smart and sassy Abby Grace is a seventeen-year-old with a talent for getting out of trouble. Sent to repair the lives and loves of teenagers on the edge of disaster, Abby is the perfect girl for the job. She has everything going for her… except one thing: a body

First Installment Summary: Episode 1

When Abby Grace wakes up in the back of a van, she has no idea who she is, how she got there, or why anyone would want to kidnap her. After escaping her masked captors, she hurries home, only to discover that she unknowingly left her younger brother behind in the van. Unable to answer the police’s questions with her memories gone, she retreats to the safety of her bedroom where she tries to reconstruct her life. Just as she is settling into the belief that things will one day return to normal, she looks in the mirror—and sees a stranger’s face.

As Abby learns next, she has become a Shadow, sent to inhabit the lives of strangers in trouble. With nothing to go on except the vague hints of her cute but maddening Guardian, a 19th century ghostly teenager named Will, Abby sets out to rescue the missing brother. But she will need all of her intelligence, fearlessness, and wit, because if she fails to find him in time, she will remain trapped in this unfamiliar body forever.

• Number of pages: kindle version, not sure how long the story is

Review

As it so happens, I got this put straight up on my “must read” list because the author sent a review request about this series. And I am very happy she did. So what can I say about Borrowing Abby Grace? Ultimately it’s one of those easy reads that takes you for an enjoyable ride without making you do any work. Some books are just hard to keep up, and in the end you are doing the work to trying to piece everything together without getting lost. This book was written in a way where the mystery was easy to follow without being obvious. Clearly if the ending were obvious then the book wouldn’t be any fun. It was a cute story, too, that was nice to read and enjoy.

Abby Grace is a girl who didn’t know that she was Abby Grace let alone where she is, why she’s there, and whom she can trust. This is a girl with no identity, and nothing to go on. This is a girl that doesn’t even have a body. Now the details on that are a little fuzzy for me because I didn’t quite understand what she is since she is always summoned into the body and life of another person. She is what is referred to as a “shadow” sent to help fix the lives of the person whose body she is occupying. This episode is kind of like the explainer of things, I guess you could say. She is sent into the body of “Brooke” who has just been kidnapped along with her brother, and escaped while her brother is still captive. Abby Grace’s job is to fix “the problem” before time runs out . . . or she will be stuck in Brooke’s body forever.

Like I said, it was an easy read that I enjoyed from the beginning. But it wasn’t just easy because it was easy to follow; it was also easy because it was such a small book. Now, I didn’t really know how long the story was going to be because it is kindle versions only (for now, I believe) so I cant say how long it was. What I can say is that it felt like I read only about 100 pages or so, and I finished in about 2 hours and a half. That’s pretty fast, even for me. Usually I don’t go for so short a book, but this book was interesting till the end, not making me want to put it down. Still, I feel like the mystery ended to fast and everything was a bit rushed. I guess that if I want to prolong Abby Grace’s story a little bit longer, I am going to have to just read the next episode! From 1-10? I give Borrowing Abby Grace Episode 1: The Shadow a good, strong 7!