Review: The Conspiration of The Universe by Kenneth Olanday

Hello readers! Long time no post? :) Anyway, yes this blog is still alive and today is my stop for The Conspiration of The Universe blog tour.

Title: The Conspiration of the Universe by Kenneth Olanday
Release Date: October 2017
Published by: Popfiction
Source: From the publisher (Thanks Ishi and Jesselle!)

Summary:
Luke believes in a quote by his favorite author -- that is you want something so bad, the universe will conspire to help you get it.

Luke must have wanted to find love so much that Eureka, the heroine of his favorite book, comes to life and falls in love with him.

There is just one catch: once Eureka reaches the end of her book's storylike in the real world, then her story with Luke will end, too.

Will the universe conspire to help the star-crossed lovers find true happiness with each other?

One thing is for sure, Luke will do everything he can to keep Eureka forever.

Now, I will be completely honest. There are things in the book that worked for me and unfortunately a lot that didn't. I'll do my best to explain why, but again keep in mind that every reading experience is different, so read this review with your own preferences in mind.

When I first read the summary, I was immediately hooked. I'm a sucker for stories like this, and when I saw the cover, I was more eager to read the book and find out for myself if it's really good. A girl who came to life from a book you love? Her life following the book's story line? Very, very interesting indeed.

This is technically my 3rd Pop Fiction book, and I really loved the one I've read before this, which was Better Than Fiction. (My rave review for that will be posted soon, for those who haven't seen my tweeting spree a few days ago.) It might have set my expectations higher, and I have hoped that reading The Conspiration of The Universe will sustain those feelings but the reading experience is a bit different with this one.

It was very hard for me to connect with Luke. He was not the best protagonist I've read about, and having a love-hate relationship with the person whose POV I'm reading the book from tends to lessen my enjoyment of a story. While I can understand how he can be a pessimist at times, but can he at least have a better attitude towards his mother? Is it teenage angst? I didn't like his thoughts at all when he broke up with Sydney, and I didn't like Sydney any better too, so no love lost there. Do you really invite your ex out for lunch in the aftermath of a break up and get angry because they said NO? Come on.

On the other hand, I feel like Luke's love for books made me connect with him even just a little. I understand that feeling, where you love a book so much you wish the characters were real. In that sense, I was so amused when Eureka showed up. She's like a breath of fresh air in the story. She's quirky, dorky and cheerful. Though her cluelessness sometimes confuse me because 3 years seems like a short amount of time to not have an idea that the internet does exist and yes there are DVD players, she's still an interesting character. I was rooting for her. I want to see her carve her own path and do what she loves and break out of that box of expectations her parents had set for her life. She wanted to be a videographer and I admire her reason for aspiring to be one.

Slow burn is my jam, but that was not the case here. The story started out very shaky for me, what with having a book whose pages suddenly became blank and eventually have an e-book where you can read everything is a bit weird. I felt like the chemistry between Eureka and Luke were at a level of strong, platonic friendship at best and falling in love, really, was out of the question. There are also scenes where I felt were unnecessarily added and then having so little time to establish having Luke and Eureka fall in love. Nevertheless, I enjoyed the way they interacted with each other and find myself smiling when Matt teased them about being a nerdy couple.

The ending is to be expected. There were lots of moments that set the story up for the conclusion, so it was sensible that it ends that way, but I still feel like it could have been explained better. Why was there a video at the end from Eureka? Did she just disappear or just left Luke behind for good? Did she return to the book? I was very confused with that part. The author made an effort in giving the story an ending that was open to interpretation, and I feel that it gave the book more depth. The portrayal of Luke's struggle to move on was very emotional, and that eventually gave the book an extra kick in the heart as it ends.

My absolute favorite part of the book is, admittedly, Matt. He's like that friend who tends to fight with you all the time but is always there to set you straight and get you out of the mess you're in when you need them to. He's fun and sarcastic and basically delivers the hard punches and truths and the personified version of a very good smack in the head for Luke. His prequel story was EXTREMELY good, and it was such an uplifting snippet that I wished was longer so I can drown in the feels a little bit more.

The Conspiration of the Universe is not what I expected it to be, but the elements that worked for me gave brief moments that were sweet, enjoyable and entertaining. Insta love and meeting the author of the book you've obsessed over for years kind of plot twists aside, people will find the light-hearted moments between friends (Matt and Luke), lovers (nerdy couple Luke and Eureka) and that extra dose of angst a good combination in a story like this.


Content (plot, story flow, character):

I'm not trying to nitpick, but the typos also bothered me a little bit. Maybe I'm a jaded older reader, but more fluff please. This had so much potential but fell a little short for me.

Okay: Liked, but The Goddess demands more!

Book Cover:
Oh my goodness, I love everything about the cover! The illustration is SO good and it blends well with the typography used. It's stunning and if you have the chance to get your hands on a real copy, the texture of the cover is really nice. Kudos to whoever designed the cover, what an amazing job!

[Blog tour] Review: Cities by Carla de Guzman + Interview & Giveaway!

"What if in another universe, I loved you too?" That tagline just got to me enough to make me curious about this book. I'm glad I was able to read it! Interesting, fascinating, confusing and bittersweet.

Title: Cities by Carla de Guzman
Release Date: November 30th 2014
Published by: Midnight Books
Buy: Amazon | Createspace

Summary:

Celia has dreams.
She dreams of going to Seoul for that scholarship she never took, of leaving everything behind and moving to New York.
In all those dreams, she finds herself attached to Benedict, the boy she has always loved, who didn’t love her back.

Ben believes in parallel worlds.
Worlds where the things you didn’t do come true—worlds where he went to London and fell in love with Celia, where he shows up on the day she needed him most. He believes that dreams are glimpses into that parallel world, and it’s not a coincidence that Celia’s been having them too.

It’s the day of Ben’s wedding, in the middle of a typhoon in Manila. How will these dreams and unmade decisions change their lives? Will they bring them closer together, or just drive them further apart?

A friend of mine had mentioned this book in passing one day while we were waiting in line for a cab, and then a few days after I found myself reading this for a tour. It's destiny.

And speaking of destiny, this book talks about it and a whole lot more. All the possibilities, all the what-ifs. Worlds and cities. Various circumstances that could have led to varying outcomes. Broken hearts. Hope.

Celia is attending a friend's wedding, and she was plagued by dreams. Dreams of what could have been if she had decided to do things she didn't, visited places she could have gone to. After all, it was the wedding of her best friend, Vivian, and Ben, the guy she loved who broke her heart that faithful night back in college.

The idea of multi-verses is a tricky one to handle, and it could lead into a total disaster if not written well. Cities confused me because of the jumps from one dream to another, to a city, to another life, to what could've been but I enjoyed the ride with a few bumps, so to speak. That question, what if?, presents itself over and over in various scenarios and set-ups that a reader like me couldn't help but feel completely different emotions every single time Celia dreams. Her dreams made me feel hopeful, but reality doesn't, and reality is what Celia must face.

Carla de Guzman wrote a book wrapped in an interesting premise, a story that many can relate to.  The dynamics of friendship and the strain it is put through when love gets mixed in and the kind of love that you want but couldn't get. Unfulfilled, unreciprocated feelings? Check. Supportive friends? Check. Cool places and pop culture references we all know? Check. Being an Asian Pop fan, I loved the Seoul City story the most!

Cities pinches the reader's heart quite a few times while being immersed in a world within worlds. It's fascinating to see what these "could've been" are, from Celia's perspective to the various transformations her friends made in the places Celia's dreams took her. Definitely an interesting, quick read!

Content (plot, story flow, character):
Very interesting concept, but like I said, if you're not aware of the presence of multi-verses (and you will only get it once Ben mentions it), you will be confused very early by the jumps in every chapter. But you'll get it eventually, don't worry. I didn't like Vivian that much because is she really that kind and perfect? (In every "City", yes) And Henry, how I wish I know you more. I like him a lot! Ben? Not so much...

.5
Okay: Liked, but The Goddess demands more!

Book Cover:
I am so in love with the cover!

THE AUTHOR
Carla de Guzman (ck.deguzman@gmail.com) had horrible handwriting as a kid. That didn't stop her from writing, though. Riddled with too much energy and a vivid imagination, she started writing every midnight. She grew up with her toes in the sand and her bags packed and ready to go on adventures. Her books are chronicles of her journeys, with a little romance mixed in.

When she’s not sitting in a plane or working, Carla writes for her blog, Some Midnights (www.somemidnight.wordpress.com) and for When in Manila.


FOLLOW CARLA:
Blog: http://somemidnight.wordpress.com/
Tumblr: http://www.somemidnights.tumblr.com/
Archive of Our Own: http://archiveofourown.org/users/ckwhales/pseuds/ckwhales
Instagram: @ckwhales

-----

I had a chance to ask the author a few questions and here are answers. How fun would it be to read a book set in Camiguin AND Osaka? I need to read that book now.

1. First up: describe Cities in 3 words
Travel, Love, Multiverses

2. What inspired you to write Cities and why the idea of multiverses?
Cities started out as a short story, the concept of which I got from Throught Catalog. For a sadsack, no boyfriend since birth type like me, it was comforting to know that somewhere out there, there was a version of myself was braver, that could have the ones that got away. As the story grew, the multiverses began to have personalities of their own--meaning certain situations fit only in certain cities, making each city a different universe in itself.

3. Given that Cities is a story where multi-verses exists, do you believe in them? Given the choice, in what alternate universe would you like to be in if you can go to one?
It's an idea that I find incredibly fascinating. I love stories that explore what ifs. But I think totally believing in parallel universes would drive me crazy! If I could live in an alternate universe, it would be the one where I actually pursued musical theatre instead of writing. I'm still very much attached to that world, and I wonder what it would be like if I stayed on that path.

4. Which of the "Cities" is your favorite? Mine had to be the one in Seoul. I love how it's familiar like something out of a KDrama but still managed to have that bite of bittersweet kind of love.
I'm glad you liked the Seoul verse--a lot of it is a reflection of everyhing I know about Korean dramas (and I've seen a lot)! Ben's character espescially was fun because I had a good archetype to work with! But I have to say that the London story is my favorite, only because you really get to see Celia's relationships with the other characters, and how interconnected they are.
Plus I got to reference Doctor Who quite a lot, which is always a bonus!

5. Are you working on a new story other than Cities?
Yes! I'm plotting out a letter-driven story set in Camiguin and Osaka. That's all I have about it so far, because I'm still working out a lot of...kinks in the plot. It was originally going to be set in Bali, but maybe next time.

GIVEAWAY TIME!

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ARC Review: Where the Rock Splits the Sky by Philip Webb

What if the world stopped spinning?

Title: Where the Rock Splits the Sky by Philip Webb
Release Date: March 25th 2014
Published by: Chicken House
Source: Publisher (Thanks Ms. Joyce!)
Buy: Amazon | Book Depository

Summary:

The moon has been split, and the Visitors have Earth in their alien grip. But the captive planet? That's not her problem. Megan just wants to track down her missing dad...

The world stopped turning long before Megan was born. Ever since the Visitors split the moon and stilled the Earth, permanent sunset is all anyone has known. But now, riding her trusty steed Cisco, joined by her posse, Kelly and Luis, Megan is on the run from her Texas hometown, journeying across the vast, dystopic American West to hunt down her father. To find him, she must face the Zone, a notorious landscape where the laws of nature do not apply. The desert can play deadly tricks on the mind, and the quest will push Megan past her limits. But to solve the mystery of not just her missing father but of the paralyzed planet itself, she must survive it--and an alien showdown.

The Earth is in perpetual sunset. It has also stopped spinning. The Moon has been split in half. Only thirteen states remain. All of these happened during the Visitation, and Visitors have come to the planet masquerading as humans. Megan was born in this kind of world, with a dead mother and a father (who might be Earth's hope for salvation) presumed dead, she lives in a place near the Zone, a place where time and space is distorted. But Megan believes her father isn't dead, and to find him, she has to travel to the Zone.

The whole book has this unusual vibe from the first page, so I had a hard time figuring out how to connect with Megan. She's got a stubborn streak, which works in her favor sometimes, plus she's also serious and quiet. Sometimes she has this single minded desire to get through the Zone which clouds her decisions. It takes her a while to trust people and at first, I didn't know how her relationship will work out with Luis and Kelly. Kelly, admittedly, annoyed me. I don't know how friendship eventually formed between the three of them, as Kelly makes bad decisions one after another in the story. For a potential love interest, I forget Luis half of the time as he's barely felt in the story. He had his own struggles and motivations, but they paled in comparison to Megan's.

Sci-fi books tend to introduce concepts and ideas that are new to the readers, often to liven up the story and the plot and ultimately make it more fascinating and interesting, and for Where the Rock Splits the Sky it's the existence of the Zone. But when not done right, it can create confusion than help move the story in an interesting place. For the most part, I had to re-read the concept behind the Visitors, taking over bodies, and being a tracker. They're aliens? Body snatchers? Also, the concept of setting up "perimeters" using your mind? Being pushed to do things and go a certain way by the Zone? How does that work? There are a lot of intangibles in this novel that needed stronger descriptions. What really is the Zone? What is it for? I can't form an idea on what it really is, and most of the story relies on this Zone's existence, so I had a hard time forming a concrete view of the world inside my head.

I do, however, like how this is fast paced from the very start. Megan was in a chase immediately when the story opened and that instantly makes the reader focus on the story. Guns blazing, shooting, running, and that gets the story going most of the time. One thing that I also liked was despite my struggle to build a solid world, there are fascinating and equally frightening places Philip Webb managed to insert into the story that gives the reader an idea on how Earth looked like when it stopped spinning. The people, the dire situations they are facing, and the kind of miserable, hopeless life they have been dealt with by the Visitation was narrated in good detail.

What gets weird for me, was the secret behind Megan's very existence, and the very reason why she was looking for her father. Yes, it was an unexpected twist in the story, but I couldn't fathom how the story came to that conclusion. Again, how?! I felt like it needed more explanation which wasn't really given and it didn't clear much of the questions that arose throughout the story.

Anyway, this book had its good points, and someone more into sci-fi might enjoy this better than I did, so if you ever get to read this book, let me know what your thoughts are!

Content (plot, story flow, character):
Interesting concept for a book, but a bit lacking in execution. It's a bit disappointing for me as it fell short on the criteria that could've made this one heck of a read. I wish I could connect more with the characters. I wish they were more likable. I wish those places Megan, Kelly and Luis visited added more intrigue to the story instead of making it weirder and more confusing by each turn of the page. I wish there was more explanation on why it had to be Megan. Overall, this needed more of impact and more emotion.

Okay: Liked, but The Goddess demands more!

Book Cover:
Really awesome cover though!

ARC Review: Don't Call Me Baby by Gwendolyn Heasley

This book tackles that question: how much of your life can you share online? And what does privacy mean for a blogger who blogs about not just her life as a mom, but of her daughter's?

Title: Don't Call Me Baby by Gwendolyn Heasley
Release Date: April 22nd 2014
Published by: HarperTeen
Source: Publisher (Thanks Megan!)
Buy: Amazon | Book Depository
Buy from local bookstores: National Bookstore | Fully Booked

Summary:

All her life, Imogene has been known as the girl on THAT blog.

Imogene's mother has been writing an incredibly embarrassing, and incredibly popular, blog about her since before she was born. Hundreds of thousands of perfect strangers knew when Imogene had her first period. Imogene's crush saw her "before and after" orthodontia photos. But Imogene is fifteen now, and her mother is still blogging about her, in gruesome detail, against her will.

When a mandatory school project compels Imogene to start her own blog, Imogene is reluctant to expose even more of her life online...until she realizes that the project is the opportunity she's been waiting for to tell the truth about her life under the virtual microscope and to define herself for the first time.

There are a few words I can use to summarize this book. Communication, understanding and letting go. Imogene had to put in more effort to connect with her mother and make her listen and listen well to what she has to say. In the book, Imogene used her blog to get back at her mother. In a sense, I can't blame her for what she did, because that's the only way she knew of to get her mother's attention and look at Imogene long and hard and think of how the blog is affecting her. Understanding, and this should come from both sides since Imogene's mom refused to listen to her, and Imogene refused to listen what her mom had to say. They had to understand what blogging means for the both of them, understand what they can and cannot share online and understand what the effects of using social media brings to their family. They had to understand that it's not just "mommylicious" and "babylicious". They had to learn to compromise, see what to let go and when it's time to let go, when it's time to change and try to live in the real world without having social networking invade what's supposed to be private. Because why wait for something online to affect you in real life? And it's not just Imogene, but her whole family as well.

This book reminds me of that trademark Gwendolyn Heasley way of making me hate her characters at the onset and gradually changing my mind as the story progresses. Though this book essentially is about blogging, I could not easily connect with Imogene or her mother at first. They both had their faults and committed mistakes that can't easily be forgiven. I am not a mother, and I couldn't bring myself to sympathize or put myself in Imogene's shoes, but I did feel for her at times. Why would you want to have a whole blog dedicated to you? Have strangers recognize you? Know things about you that people normally wouldn't know? I understand Imogene's desire to break free of the "babylicious" persona and be her own unique self apart from it, though sometimes I think she and her friend Sage, who has a vegan blogger for a mom, takes their "rebellion" too far to the point that they just sound petty, immature and juvenile. But they learned. Oh they did learn their lesson, along with their moms.

What I did like in the story though is amidst all the disaster and chaos both Imogene and Sage's rebellion has created, things happened that made them learn and discover things about themselves on their own. Sure there are misunderstandings and fights, but Imogene discovered what she and her family can do even if her mom doesn't blog, the reasons why her mother was blogging and why she couldn't just let go, that she can just be Imogene and not be babylicious, that she can have crushes too. Sage too, forged her own path. And though it was a little bit sad that they had to find out about these things separately, they both grew to be a little more understanding and kinder.

Dylan is so cute! It's hard to believe that an understanding and kind guy like him exists, but he was (sometimes) the voice of reason for Imogene. Sure there were a lot of awkward moments and their opinions differ from each most of the time, but their moments together, though simple and fleeting, were fun to read of! Imogene's grandmother was so cool, and I liked her father as well, levelheaded and calm even when things start to get ugly.

You don't have a story about blogging and not get blog posts as parts of the book! Don't Call Me Baby was peppered with blog posts that helped shed light and gave more insight to Imogene, her mom, and Sage's feelings, no matter how unpleasant they are. It helped give the characters more depth as well and what ultimately helped to make me like the book just a little bit more. Though I didn't get how the fallout of Sage and Imogene's relationship started and why it seemed to happen out of nowhere, the conflict moved the story forward, though it was abrupt.

Don't Call Me Baby is that kind of heartfelt read that felt a little ordinary and too typical at first that ends up giving you an "awww" moment and making you feel a little bit warm inside. It makes you think of moms and daughters, their relationships, the hit or miss, conflicts which are all part of growing up and being in a family. Gwendolyn Heasley attempts to explain what it's like to blog, how it can affect real life and how social networking can influence relationships in this lighthearted, quick, enjoyable story.

Content (plot, story flow, character):
Days after I finished reading this book, I still can't put my finger on what exactly it is that this book needs more to leave a stronger impression on a reader. I did enjoy the reading experience, but I feel like it needed to have more impact reading wise especially with the theme it tackles. Still a fun, steady read though.

.5
Okay: Liked, but The Goddess demands more!

Shining: Worthy of a Goddess' Love!

Book Cover:
Love the cover!

ARC Review: Fire & Flood by Victoria Scott

I wish I liked this book much more than I did.

Title: Fire & Flood (Fire & Flood #1) by Victoria Scott
Release Date: February 25th 2014
Published by: Scholastic Press
Source: Publisher (Thanks Scholastic!)
Buy: Amazon | Book Depository

Summary:

Time is slipping away....

Tella Holloway is losing it. Her brother is sick, and when a dozen doctors can't determine what's wrong, her parents decide to move to Montana for the fresh air. She's lost her friends, her parents are driving her crazy, her brother is dying—and she's helpless to change anything.

Until she receives mysterious instructions on how to become a Contender in the Brimstone Bleed. It's an epic race across jungle, desert, ocean, and mountain that could win her the prize she desperately desires: the Cure for her brother's illness. But all the Contenders are after the Cure for people they love, and there's no guarantee that Tella (or any of them) will survive the race.

The jungle is terrifying, the clock is ticking, and Tella knows she can't trust the allies she makes. And one big question emerges: Why have so many fallen sick in the first place?

Tella's older brother Cody is dying. They said there's no cure, and now she finds herself living in the middle of nowhere with her family, bored out of her wits with nothing to do. That is, until that mysterious blue box appears on her bed, until she gets instructions from a mysterious voice. It says she's a participant in the Brimstone Bleed, where if she wins she can get the ultimate price: a Cure for any kind of sickness. Now Tella's braving the jungle, making alliances and trying to stay alive long enough to win. But the longer Tella stays in the game, the more Brimstone Bleed seems to be more than just a game.

Admittedly, what drew me in to this book was the premise: a race with a cure for whatever disease as a prize. But a lot of things in this book didn't go as well for me as I thought it would. One of the reasons is my inability to connect with the main character, Tella. My dislike for her was immediate. She's selfish, shallow and vain at the worst possible time. Consider this: your brother is dying and all you care about is that you live in a secluded house away from civilization, with no internet. And will you even think of bringing a nail polish when you're joining a game where only one person will win? Also, come on girl, you're supposed to be in a race. Do you really have the time to fix yourself and be concerned with how you look? Her character makes you wonder how she can even survive the Brimstone Bleed. Granted, she did exhibit a bit of growth throughout the story, stronger, more sensible and even a little bit smarter, and that added to my drive to enjoy the story a little more.

Fire & Flood however, had a good set of secondary characters that provided much support and injected a lot of interest to the story. They helped move the story forward with their diverse personalities. I liked how I kept guessing who is a friend and who can possibly be a foe, each one of their motivations and reasons for being in the Brimstone Bleed. I also liked the gradual romance build up between Guy and Tella. They weren't even friends to start with, Tella looking so pathetic and desperate while Guy was withdrawn and mysteriously prepared. Their interactions with each other led to a gradual shift in their personalities. I loved how despite of all the secrets they still withhold from each other, there's a somewhat complete, clear picture of themselves. I'm more certain of Tella and Guy's alliances than everyone else's. They're not the star-crossed lovers type as well. They're determined and they fight, which isn't to say that their moments together aren't swoon worthy, because they are.

Fire & Flood had its moments, but the hurdle for me to get over my initial dislike for Tella and the disconnect I had with her personality dramatically lessened my enjoyment of the reading experience. Granted, there was development in her character, but flashes of her old personality comes back at the most inconvenient of times, ruining the moment. But I loved everything else in the story. I loved the Pandoras and their abilities, their relationships with the Contenders and how they're not merely tools to use in order to win the race. I loved how friendships were formed, that despite being contenders in the same race, they can all work together. I even loved how the antagonist showed up because he really is bad, and amidst all that is happening, with all of them trying to survive, there's still one who'd be evil and hateful enough to want to outwit everyone else by doing gruesome things.

I can't say that I'm surprised with the way the first book ended, as certain parts of the story are predictable (Titus' role, the betrayal and deaths of certain characters), but there are certain twists in the story that still managed to catch me off guard (Dink's identity, Guy's tattoo, it's meaning and the real reason why the race exists). Victoria Scott was able to keep back secrets and mysterious well enough to keep the story interesting going into the next book. With steady pace and enough action, Fire & Flood has a potential of being a good trilogy, I'm just sad that it didn't work well with me as much as I wanted it to, and it was because of the main character. I hope I  get to see Tella in a more likable light in the sequel.

Content (plot, story flow, character):

I tried to give Tella a chance, really. But you know how they're in the middle or the aftermath of a particularly intense scene and then she wonders what she looks like? How she keeps in worrying about the little insignificant things like wishing for a mirror while in the middle of a desert? Those times ruin anything she has built up in the story for me. I wish she was more likable, because that dislike seriously is what hindered my appreciation of the story more.

Okay: Liked, but The Goddess demands more!

Book Cover:
Awesome cover.

ARC Review: Defy by Sarah B. Larson

My 2014 started in a good fashion because of this book.

Title: Defy (Defy #1) by Sara B. Larson
Release Date: January 7th 2014
Published by: Scholastic Press
Source: Publisher
Buy: Amazon | Book Depository

Summary:

Alexa Hollen is a fighter. Forced to disguise herself as a boy and serve in the king's army, Alex uses her quick wit and fierce sword-fighting skills to earn a spot on the elite prince's guard. But when a powerful sorcerer sneaks into the palace in the dead of night, even Alex, who is virtually unbeatable, can't prevent him from abducting her, her fellow guard and friend Rylan, and Prince Damian, taking them through the treacherous wilds of the jungle and deep into enemy territory.

The longer Alex is held captive with both Rylan and the prince, the more she realizes that she is not the only one who has been keeping dangerous secrets. And suddenly, after her own secret is revealed, Alex finds herself confronted with two men vying for her heart: the safe and steady Rylan, who has always cared for her, and the dark, intriguing Damian. With hidden foes lurking around every corner, is Alex strong enough to save herself and the kingdom she's sworn to protect?

I can just imagine the first scene happening inside my head as if it was real. Alex and her twin brother Marcel, standing in front of the destruction left by the fire that stole their parents away from them. The horror evident on both child's faces as they realized what awaits them as orphans in the kingdom of Antion. At that moment I decided that I will read this book through the very end.

The summary was deceiving, readers are not shoved head on to battle at once, but into a world of careful re-imagining and building by Sara Larson. We see Alexa years after she had lost her parents as she lived her life as a boy with her twin brother, Marcel. She was the best guard, the captain if only she wasn't so young. With Marcel by her side and friends like Rylan and comrades like Deron, her job becomes bearable, that is if the Prince wasn't being the stubborn, pampered Royal he always was.

I loved Alexa, the way her character was built, through death, destruction, the loss and sacrifice of the ones she loved, and it has made her a strong, tough person. The life she was leading wasn't easy, having to hide her true identity, lie and deceive people, all the while serving a man who has done unspeakable horrors to her fellow citizens. I cannot imagine how it was like to be in her shoes, aside from being forced to masquerade as someone she's never going to be (a male) if she wanted to live, she was given such daunting tasks one after another. Her struggle to hide her identity as a woman intrigued me at first, and that was what kept me going through most parts of this book, always anticipating that moment when she was discovered. That, and her electrifying, tension-filled interactions with Price Damian.

Cliche as it might look, I was caught in the emotions Sara Larson was able to weave in each and every encounter Alexa had with Damian. He comes off as a spoiled Prince who throws tantrums in the most irrational way, but Damian's just as deceiving as Alex was, and his infuriating, smart way of exchanging words and banter with Alex was such a delight to read. He was, in a sense, swoon worthy, especially when more of his character was revealed when he was abducted! I have to say that the secrets he was keeping gave way for a lot of confusion and questions, because while we wait for each secret to be revealed, readers also wait to see what his character as a whole has to offer. Was there more to him than the flowery words and magnetic charm? There was, and I'm glad that his past was revealed because it gave him the needed backbone for his story, a reason for why he was acting the way he was. It was frustrating, however, how he and Alexa always seem to tease each other, but when they get too close, they pull back without warning.

Like Alexa, I seem to have been torn between Damian and Rylan. While Damian's title definitely adds to his charm, Rylan, as a Royal Guard, only has that to compare against Damian. But I did feel like Rylan's character was a lot more stable and consistent than Damian was. Granted, he might be a little to kind and a martyr, having been that guy who decided to give way and wait for a girl who he knew doesn't love him, but Rylan had his own charms. In a perfect setting, he would be better suited for Alexa, and at times I felt just that. I felt bad for him quite often. Maybe good guys do finish last, but his supportive attitude, understanding and acceptance of Alexa should have earned him a little more credit for her. He was suffering there, watching as Alexa's and Damian's story happen right before his eyes and he can't do anything about it. I hope he becomes more assertive in the next book. Fight for what you want, Rylan!

I give Sara Larson a salute for creating an interesting world for Defy. This might be her debut novel, but I loved how she painted such a convincing world for her story. Antion, Osgard, Dansii, the inner workings for each kingdom, the Royalty, its citizens, the state of their lives and how they are all connected gave the book a solid setting that served as a great backdrop for Alex, Rylan and Damian's story to unfold. Though it was largely a story of a girl keeping her true identity a secret, it was also that of a war torn world, the terrors that comes along with it and the struggle to make it a better place for everyone. The motivations behind Damian's actions, the force that drives Alex to keep her secret and protect her people, all of it contributed to a solid, entertaining read.

Not a bad start for 2014, if I may say so.

If there was anything I'd like to ask for in the sequel, it's that I want more of everything. More action,  more breath taking and heart stopping moments and a little more resolution on the very vague relationship going on with Damian, Alex and Rylan.

Content (plot, story flow, character):

.5
Okay: Liked, but The Goddess demands more!

I would have given this a 5 were it not for Alexa's personality shift, which was the biggest issue for me here. I was unconvinced. I understand that she has been pretending as a boy, but it felt like the shift was so sudden. And I kept on thinking, was it all because she was falling for the idea that Damian was a Prince? How about Rylan then? Pretending for so long, was it really that easy to give in and toss aside the male persona she has adopted for years? Also, I felt that everything that happened was so unfair to Rylan, that he was shut down before he was given a chance to do anything. Also, it would have been nicer if the impact the opening scene had left was consistent throughout the book, but it dwindles quite often, only to pick up and go down again.

Shining: Worthy of a Goddess' Love!

Book Cover:
I have a serious crush on this book's cover!

Review: Dangerous Girls by Abigail Haas

How come this book is so perplexing?

Title: Dangerous Girls by Abigail Haas
Release Date: August 1st 2013
Published by: Simon & Schuster UK
Source: Publisher
Buy: Amazon | Book Depository

Summary:

It's Spring Break of senior year. Anna, her boyfriend Tate, her best friend Elise, and a few other close friends are off to a debaucherous trip to Aruba that promises to be the time of their lives. But when Elise is found brutally murdered, Anna finds herself trapped in a country not her own, fighting against vile and contemptuous accusations.

As Anna sets out to find her friend's killer; she discovers hard truths about her friendships, the slippery nature of truth, and the ache of young love.

As she awaits the judge's decree, it becomes clear that everyone around her thinks she is not just guilty, but dangerous. When the truth comes out, it is more shocking than one could ever imagine...

Anna, whose family's business was just taking off, was an outcast in her new school. Aside from being new, she wasn't as rich as everyone was. Until Elise came along, and all of a sudden they're inseparable, bonded together by all the things they did that challenged anyone and everyone, far from the normal house life they both have. But Elise was killed, and now Anna's the prime suspect. As the trial gets underway, Anna finds out who her real friends are and who aren't, trapped and alone in a foreign country, and for the first time, Anna takes a good look at her friendship with Elise, the good, the bad and the ugly side of it. What was true and what wasn't?

I am so torn between love and hate for a lot of characters and happenings in this book. Where I should feel pity or at least a semblance of it for Ana, I was apathetic instead. I understand what she had to go through, new kid from a newly rich family, trying to find her way through a place filled with kids from old money but her overall attitude and the actions she took made it very difficult for me to understand her as a person. I kept on asking myself "why, Ana?" countless of times. Too caught up in a destructive, toxic friendship to be aware of what really happens until it was too late. Was Anna a doormat? Too weak? Too trusting? It felt like she was the receiving end of her so called friends spite, envy and anger, all forms of it and the bad thing was she wasn't very nice herself and it's not like those things weren't warranted.

Elise is the sort of character who I instantly disliked. She's the type to self-destruct yet still be mysterious enough to hold some very terrible secrets of her own. Her beauty comes from the dangerous, intriguing, dark edge in her personality, the type you couldn't resist. Elise had a very twisted idea on what friendship is between her and Anna. Was it even friendship? Was there something more underneath that? They needed each other to get through the tough times of their lives but she still had enough in her to betray the person she claims she needed the most. I wanted to get inside her head, if only to know what drives her to do what she's doing. What a very disturbing character.

What kind of a spineless person is Tate? I kept feeling bad for Anna for falling for a person like him. Didn't she see what he truly looked like? Lamar was the only decent person in her string of so-called friends, one who I felt Anna should have given a chance instead. AK and Mel, I can't even begin to comprehend how much jealousy and envy they must feel to turn against Anna. I kept on feeling that those were not just spur of the moment, but a deep rooted hate for Anna for taking away Elise, for putting the blame on the most convenient person in their circle of friends. You get to see just how ugly everything can be when dark emotions take root in people's hearts.

Lies, betrayal, murder. As Anna goes through every single party, conversation, fights leading to the night of Elise's murder we see the motivation behind each of the characters. It doesn't end with her elite circle of friends, but there are also those in Aruba that might want Elise dead which adds to the complexity and mystery of the murder itself. You get to see what money can do for the rich, how corrupt officials can be and how the justice system can be compromised, and how hope as well as the perseverance to reveal the truth can change everything. Not everyone in Dangerous Girls is unpleasant. Gates and Lee were two of the most admirable characters in this book. They didn't have any obligation to help Anna, but they were there for her in her darkest moments. As if that wasn't enough to complicate the story, the role of the media in sensationalizing things are also felt in this story. I honestly think the way it was portrayed was truthful and spot on, as if Anna was the star of a dark reality show that anyone can just examine and form opinions of the way they want to.

The allure in Dangerous Girls comes from the waiting what fate awaits Anna. Alone in a foreign land, a primary suspect in her bestfriend's murder. While she was fighting to stay sane and re-evaluate her friendship with Elise, she was being typecasted as a psychopath at home, a cold blooded murderer. The emotions Anna felt were palpable and engrossing, it wraps around you, that feeling of despair and helplessness, the what-ifs, the bits and pieces of realization that not everything is as they seem, the injustice. Here is a teenage girl being tried for something she said she has not done, in a foreign country, where everything was done the wrong way from the onset. But then doubt stars to creep in, and you start rethinking and analyzing everything you have read to try and figure out just really what was the truth and what wasn't. My lack of emotion for the dismal behavior of the characters were compensated by how emotionally invested I was in the very story itself. It was a very, very good thriller.

I still insist that you give this book a try, no matter how unpleasant the characters can get. The ending, ultimately messed up my mind but Abigail Haas did a good job in exploring just how deep the ties of friendship between two people can get and how grim court battles can be. I always loved brain teasers and Dangerous Girls provided enough of that, urging readers to re-think their own ideals and perception of people.

Content (plot, story flow, character):

Can someone please explain to me what happened when Anna visited Elise's grave? Because I really don't get it. It made me think if she was truly guilty or not. And just to clear things up, if Anna and Elise did have something more than friendship, I just want to be clear that it's perfectly fine. What I didn't like was the psychological and sometimes physical abuse and violence that seem to surround their friendship that Anna might not even be aware she was getting. She didn't even do anything about it.

.5
Okay: Liked, but The Goddess demands more!

Book Cover:
I think this cover fits the imagery of the story better than the US one.

ARC Review: Plague in the Mirror by Deborah Noyes

It's a book about traveling, both in time and to fascinating places with a lot of history in it. It's quite a fascinating book, with a premise that makes the readers curious. Is it good? Bad? Read on.

Title: Plague in the Mirror by Deborah Noyes
Release Date: June 11th 2013
Published by: Candlewick Press
Source: Publisher
Buy: Amazon | Book Depository

Summary:

In a sensual paranormal romance, a teen girl’s doppelgänger from 1348 Florence lures her into the past in hopes of exacting a deadly trade.

It was meant to be a diversion — a summer in Florence with her best friend, Liam, and his travel-writer mom, doing historical research between breaks for gelato. A chance to forget that back in Vermont, May’s parents, and all semblance of safety, were breaking up. But when May wakes one night sensing someone in her room, only to find her ghostly twin staring back at her, normalcy becomes a distant memory. And when later she follows the menacing Cristofana through a portale to fourteenth-century Florence, May never expects to find safety in the eyes of Marco, a soulful painter who awakens in her a burning desire and makes her feel truly seen. The wily Cristofana wants nothing less of May than to inhabit each other’s lives, but with the Black Death ravaging Old Florence, can May’s longing for Marco’s touch be anything but madness? Lush with atmosphere both passionate and eerie, this evocative tale follows a girl on the brink of womanhood as she dares to transcend the familiar — and discovers her sensual power.

May's going through a confusing time of her life. Decisions need to be made and she must deal with the fact that her parents are getting a divorce. Instead, May chose to escape to a trip to Florence with her best friend, Liam and his mother Gwen, to take her mind off things and put off the inevitable. But in Florence, where every corner, every stone has a history, May met Cristofana, a ghost from 14th century Florence, at the time where the Black Plague was expected to hit and kill almost everyone. Cristofana wants to explore May's world, and May wants to know more about the mysterious painter she met, but is that enough reason for them to exist in a world and time that aren't their own?

I was very much curious of May's character. She was in the midst of a family falling apart, needing to choose whether to stay with her mom or dad after they divorce and she needed time to come into terms that her family is going to be broken up. A lost girl who got lost, literally, in another time. May had a chance to escape in another place, another time, but will she take it? It's what got me more curious of her. Despite sharing a face with Cristofana, May is her exact opposite: kind and level headed, and maybe a little bit dense. Her intense attraction to the painter, Marco, was something I wanted to see, though I was a bit disappointed on that part.

One of the reasons why I had a hard time reading this book was my constant dislike of Cristofana. Her spiteful attitude was a big turn off for me. Granted, she had seen and experience a lot of horrible things and terrible hardships in life being a daughter of a pirate and a whore, but I couldn't understand her motivations most of the time. Something in her strange personality further makes my understanding of her character a lot more blurry. She's the unusual kind that comes off sinister.  I wasn't even surprised that she's capable of threatening May. She knows how to use her beauty to survive but it wasn't always necessarily used for good.

Another reason was I had a hard time digesting all of the facts relating to the time travel aspect of the story. The way it was written made the story heavy with explanations and there were fewer conversations, this format presents the readers with a lot that takes time to make sense. The explanations make you want to believe that a mirror image of May exists in another time, maybe another alternate reality, but somewhere along the way one might get confused with how it was stated to convince a reader like it did to me.

The sensual aspect, as mentioned in the blurb, was handled very subtly. How May eventually went through losing her virginity was written in a very good way, there was passion and intense emotions accompanying the experience and on the other hand, the way Cristofana faced the very same issue in a more modern time and setting felt a lot more realistic to me. There was talk about sex briefly in some parts, but that wasn't really enough for this book to be very sensual. The contrast between Cristofana's sexual experience as compared to May was presented in a nice way as well. I was somewhat expecting it to be a little more explicit but I liked that it was written the way it was.

There's something in Florence that makes it such a great backdrop for May's unusual tale. There's something magnetic in the somber, mellow face Florence seems to present, something appealing in the tragedy ravaging the town and the way of life of the people facing such a devastating crisis, at least in this story. It's one aspect that I liked. You can feel every gruesome, tiring emotion the people of Fourteenth century Florence had through Cristofana's eyes. Though a bit confusing, and a little bit under developed, the romance in Cristofana's and May's life was also an interesting piece to read. The slow pace of the story matches the overall feel the book gives but depending on the reader, it might add or decrease the appeal of the book. There are bits and pieces of friendship and family also woven in the story that gave it more life.

Content (plot, story flow, character):

What didn't work for me: the pacing, the long winded explanations and Cristofana's personality, most of which piled up and made some parts of the book confusing. I was expecting more action that will give the book a greater impact but there really wasn't anything like that.

.5
Okay: Liked, but The Goddess demands more!

Book Cover:
The cover gives off the perfect atmosphere you will expect from fourteenth century Florence.

ARC Review: Nantucket Blue by Leila Howland

I only have a few days of summer left, so I thought I'd read a book that matches the weather, and so I dived into Nantucket Blue.

Title: Nantucket Blue by Leila Howland
Release Date: May 7th 2013
Published by: Disney Hyperion
Source: Netgalley
Buy: Amazon | Book Depository

Summary:

For Cricket Thompson, a summer like this one will change everything. A summer spent on Nantucket with her best friend, Jules Clayton, and the indomitable Clayton family. A summer when she’ll make the almost unattainable Jay Logan hers. A summer to surpass all dreams.

Some of this turns out to be true. Some of it doesn’t.

When Jules and her family suffer a devastating tragedy that forces the girls apart, Jules becomes a stranger whom Cricket wonders whether she ever really knew. And instead of lying on the beach working on her caramel-colored tan, Cricket is making beds and cleaning bathrooms to support herself in paradise for the summer.

But it’s the things Cricket hadn’t counted on--most of all, falling hard for someone who should be completely off-limits--that turn her dreams into an exhilarating, bittersweet reality.

A beautiful future is within her grasp, and Cricket must find the grace to embrace it. If she does, her life could be the perfect shade of Nantucket blue.

Cricket Thompson was supposed to spend the summer with her best friend Jules in Nantucket, but everything changed when Jules' mom died. Now Cricket finds herself alone, not knowing how to spend her summer and clueless as to why her bestfriend was staying away from her. With her hardwork she was able to get to Nantucket, but Cricket encountered unexpected things that might make her summer unforgettable after all.

I have to admit, it took a while for Cricket to warm up to me. She was this girl who absolutely had no idea how her actions affect the people around her, who does things without having to carefully think of the consequences it might bring. Sure she was nice, but there's something about her clueless personality that just irked me at first. Her family dynamics weren't good but as you read more about her, you'll see why Cricket is the way she was. I wanted to pity her at first, but Cricket has a way of staying positive and persevering to make things right that makes me like her. It was amusing to see her as a confused and uncertain teenager going through a lot of firsts. She might not be perfect but she's a flawed character that has enough goodness in her. My heart ached for her a couple of times with an estranged friend, a mother who's life seem to have stopped after her divorce, and an absent father. Cricket needed a lot of love and she deserves it.

I was a bit apprehensive at first with Cricket and Zack's relationship. Maybe because it clashes with my own preference and I've read enough YA books where immaturity that comes with a young age causes a lot of conflict in relationships that I doubted it. Zack's younger but there were times where he transforms into this mature person that Cricket can depend on when life gets tough, and that's what I liked about him. Although I didn't like how they want to keep their relationship a secret, it was understandable. He's this guy who tries so hard to be strong on the outside but sometimes, when he needs to grieve for his mom, that vulnerable side of him gives Zack a little bit of depth. Because like Jules he was hurting, and he also did things to make himself forget, but unlike his sister, he didn't self-destruct.

What made this book lose a little bit of its appeal for me was Jules. I understand that grief changes people, it almost always does, but isn't it also the time where you reach out to your friends the most? I couldn't understand why she pushed Cricket away all of a sudden. Jealousy, maybe? Envy? How can you throw years worth of friendship away just like that and treat your own best friend like she's nothing? I didn't like Jules even a bit with her snarky, sarcastic, destructive behavior. She felt fake for me, like she had been deceiving Cricket all this time with her bright, happy personality when all the while those dark emotions for her friend were simmering beneath the surface. I pity her. Her life was spiraling out of control after her mother's death, and it transformed her into an entirely different person. I think Cricket deserves more from her.

Nantucket Blue is quite an enjoyable read. It starts out as this seemingly simple story of a girl who wants to escape to this wonderful summer place just for a little bit to forget the things in her life that aren't perfect. And then when these plans fell apart, with her determination to create a memorable summer, she found new friends, took the time to understand the reality of her family life, learned to let go of some people and discovered what it's like to love, to give yourself to someone, to be in a relationship and experience the complicated things that goes along with it, and revisit the past with the help of one quirky writer in order to understand that the future might not be as bad as it looks like. It's an unforgettable summer of firsts for Cricket.

It's the perfect summer read if you want to just soak in the sun with a YA contemporary book that makes you appreciate the summer more. With plenty of feel good romance, conflicts, angst, a healthy dose of drama all happening in a great setting like Nantucket, Leila's Howland's debut is the kind of read you want to have if you just want to sit back, relax and get into the summer mood.

Content (plot, story flow, character):

A few quirks that made this book lose a little bit of appeal: Jules and the way she treats Cricket, the way the conflict between Zack and Cricket was resolved. It felt lacking for me. Was Zack really that easy to forgive, even if it's just a misunderstanding? How was Cricket so confused in that single moment with Jay when I thought she was head over heels for Zack? I felt like Jules didn't do enough for Cricket after all she did to her. They were once friends, doesn't Cricket deserve more than just "we're not friends anymore and we won't be again.".

.5
Okay: Liked, but The Goddess demands more!

Book Cover:
I love it!

Review: Thin Ice by Mikael Engstrom

I rarely read books translated from another language, but I thought I'd give this one a try.

Title: Thin Ice by Mikael Engstrom, Susan Beard (Translator)
Release Date: 2011
Published by: Little Island
Source: Book Depository Affiliates
Buy: Book Depository

Summary:

Where would you rather live, in a lonely flat with your drunken father, only bearable when your big brother is home? Or in a small, snowy village with a frozen lake, where your aunt burns books to keep warm and a girl called Pi makes your heart beat a bit too fast.

Mik is a boy who has a difficult life, scary and difficult at times. He's a character that I had a hard time connecting with at first because he was not a boy with a desirable personality. He's incorrigible, played pranks on people, throwing insults their way because he thinks they deserve them. The way he behaves is inexcusable, but as I read along, I see Mik's life and how dark and painful it is to live it. When you live with a drunken father, it's hard to become a good kid. But my hate quickly turned into something else. In between the humorous parts, readers will get to take a glimpse on how Mik's life really is, the painful, sad moments that filled it and these scenes made me understand Mik a bit more.

Thin Ice had an ensemble of unusual characters that gives the book a certain charm. Mik's aunt burns books just to keep herself warm. There's this girl who likes to suck on other people's earlobes, which I have to say is not something one ordinarily does. These characters makes Selet an interesting town with the way they interact with each other. It's heartwarming, especially knowing that it's a cold town filled with snow. The combination of the oddness of the people and the humor creates such a fun atmosphere. They're old but the wisdom one can get from them is something that makes Selet a town a good place to be.

The prose can be awkward at times but this is understandable because the book has been translated to English. It can't be helped, but I did appreciate the effort put in the translation because Thin Ice is still a nice read. The story's pace can be very, very slow at certain times, but it's a good story of friendship, filled with hope and a child's determination to create the life that he wants to have, to not be stuck with a drunken father and to get away from all the glumness of his life. From being an annoying brat to a child filled with courage and hope, Mik became a character whose story sends a great message to the readers, as seen to the many adventures he had with his friends.

My rating

Content (plot, story flow, character):

Readers might have a difficulty connecting with some of the characters save for Mik who isn't even likable at first too, and as I mentioned, the story can get a little bit too slow at some points. I only enjoyed reading the latter half of the story, and the saving grace was Mik's development as a character.

Okay: Liked, but The Goddess demands more!

Book Cover:
Great cover!

ARC Review: The End Games by T. Michael Martin

When John Green tweeted about this book, I know I just had to read it. It was sitting on my shelves collecting dust and I wasn't really up for reading a zombie novel again, but then I picked it up, and mayhem ensued.

Title: The End Games by T. Michael Martin
Release Date: May 7th 2013
Published by: HarperCollins
Source: Publisher (Thanks Christine!)
Buy: Amazon | Book Depository

Summary:

It happened on Halloween.

The world ended.

And a dangerous Game brought it back to life.

Seventeen-year-old Michael and his five-year-old brother, Patrick, have been battling monsters in The Game for weeks.

In the rural mountains of West Virginia, armed with only their rifle and their love for each other, the brothers follow Instructions from the mysterious Game Master. They spend their days searching for survivors, their nights fighting endless hordes of “Bellows”—creatures that roam the dark, roaring for flesh. And at this Game, Michael and Patrick are very good.

But The Game is changing.

The Bellows are evolving.

The Game Master is leading Michael and Patrick to other survivors—survivors who don’t play by the rules.

And the brothers will never be the same.

The world ended on Halloween and Michael has been fighting the monsters for weeks. It's The Game, and they follow what the Game Master says, keeping Bellows at bay, and living long enough to reach a Safe Zone in their hopes of finding their mother alive. But it wasn't easy when you have a five year old boy in tow who needs to down Atipax and fight panic attacks. Michael knew he had to reach the Safe Zone and fast because he wouldn't be able to keep up with the fighting for much long, but along the way they stumbled onto people who are as much a threat as the Bellows they're running from. Now Michael had to do everything in his power to stay alive and protect his brother but until when?

There are things in this book that worked well for me and there are more that just made me wonder how I got through almost 400 pages without giving up. Michael is a walking irony, a nerd who never fit in, whose only friends were those in his online world, until he had to fend for himself and his little brother the night the world fell apart. He's also seriously screwed up inside. There was a healthy abundance of people with erratic behavior in this novel that I just but gave up trying to cope and understand all of them. Michael, for all the bravery he had showed for lasting for two weeks without any help just had to become stupid at the worst possible time, go crushing on a girl the moment he sees her, and be sentimental in such a bad time. He was a gun totting savior one moment and an insecure nerd who never quite fit in the next.

I'm also a little bit on the fence with Holly. You expect a girl to develop a certain strength considering what has happened to the world but Holly didn't. Not until the very dire of situations. She's your average girl who thinks she's useless, stubborn, and never trusts someone else until it's too late. I barely noticed she was there half the time because she tends to fade out in important situations, oftentimes appearing to argue with Michael. She's not the ideal person to be a love interest but her clashes with Michael provides much of the conflict in the book.

I also had problems with the unexpected things the characters seem to do. A perfect example: will you really spend time kissing when you know time is of the essence to save your brother and you're about to go inside a cave with thousands of zombies inside? Also, if you know a person is deranged and way beyond reason, why are you sticking with him when you know he might kill you anytime you turn your back from him? Why save a person you do not know, who will turn into a zombie because she's bitten, and put the lives of everyone else at risk? Emotions get the best of the characters in unexpected situations that creates more problems for them when they could have avoided it.

The presence of the Captain and The Rapture is what gave this book quite a different feel. The characters have their plate full by battling the Bellows and yet they still face other threats. It makes you feel that the world has gone mad and the people went even madder, insane, twisted. The whole story entered a new dimension of insanity with the addition of the Captain and The Rapture. They lend the story the more scary factor, because you know you can take your chances with the zombies outside, but with these people? There's not enough reasoning to convince them that everything will be fine if they will just fight to live. They will go to great lengths to save themselves, and I mean whatever it takes. Killing other humans? It's fun for them. Sacrificing people? It's what they should do. Worshipping zombies? Yes, they do that. They're the perfect example of what happens to people when they lose hope.

I give kudos to T. Michael Martin for having written a zombie novel that goes deeper than your average zombie filled tale. How closely intricate is the game to Michael's life, the representation of the Game Master, the Betrayer, the invention of The Game itself and its effects on Patrick. It's not something you usually see in a novel where your first expectation is for the survivors to kill everything in sight for it to end. T. Michael Martin was able to blend well the devastation outside to the horrors inside Michael and make one scary nightmare out of it. It's an intense read that made me feel like I will burst because of the thrill and adrenaline rush the story provides. I might not like the characters, they're foolish enough to get themselves killed on the first minute, but the whole story and the way the author spin this frightful tale is something to be admired.

Some people might like a book like this. If you ever get to read it, tell me your thoughts about it and if you liked it better than I did.

My rating

Content (plot, story flow, character):

They sometimes just don't make any sense, they know they do and they don't do anything about it and they also do things they know they shouldn't and keep doing it, which frustrated me to no end a couple of times.

.5
Okay: Liked, but The Goddess demands more!

Book Cover:
Ominous cover, perfect fit for the story.

ARC Review: Surfacing by Nora Raleigh Baskin

Fascination. There was a deep, deep fascination from inside of me that made me want to read this novel. It sounds moving, deep, even sad. But this novel, in the end just left me feeling so conflicted.

Title: Surfacing by Nora Raleigh Baskin
Release Date: March 12th 2013
Published by: Candlewick
Source: Publisher (Thanks Erin!)
Buy: Amazon | Book Depository

Summary:

A lyrical and deeply moving portrait of grief, blame, and forgiveness, and of finding the courage to confront your ghosts — one truth at a time.

As soon as she was under, Maggie heard the quiet, though every sound was amplified in her ears and in her brain . . . Sound, like shame, travels four times faster under the water.

Though only a sophomore, Maggie Paris is a star on the varsity swim team, but she also has an uncanny, almost magical ability to draw out people’s deepest truths, even when they don’t intend to share them. It’s reached a point where most of her classmates, all but her steadfast best friend, now avoid her, and she’s taken to giving herself away every chance she gets to an unavailable — and ungrateful — popular boy from the wrestling team, just to prove she still exists. Even Maggie’s parents, who are busy avoiding each other and the secret deep at the heart of their devastated family, seem wary of her. Is there such a thing as too much truth?

Does Maggie really have this uncanny trait of letting people open up to her without her doing anything? Can it even be considered as something special? If she can make people talk, why couldn't she find it in herself to talk as well? It's a little bit unnerving to be able to hear the things you don't want to and the things you don't usually ask about come out freely, because you feel it, and you think about it once you hear them. At that point, I understand why Maggie is such a recluse. However, I do not feel any sympathy for her especially with the way she handled her romantic relationships. If she was a smart girl, she will believe it when the only friend she has who knows her better than herself, Julie, tells her to stay away from someone. But in her quest to find love, she willingly, stubbornly threw away her chance with that one person who liked her for who she is. Nathan was the one thing that felt right, but then what do you expect in a relationship that started purely because of Maggie's desire to lose her virginity and prepare herself for another guy? Even that sounded so shallow and ridiculous to me.

It's a different story when it comes to seeing how the tragedy that set Maggie towards the path she was taking, unravel before her eyes. Losing her older sister had killed something inside of her, and I am not saying that it's an enough of a reason to explain why Maggie became the person that she was, but the wounds that the five year old Maggie had never had a chance to heal, the secrets she held back then couldn't get out and they're surfacing one by one as she gets older, as she starts thinking of ways to cope with her brush with romance, with complicated friendships, because her older sister was supposed to be by her side to help her through it all and yet she's not. Who will she turn to when her family is crumbling because of the pain and bitterness that built up years after her sister's death? How can Maggie, who blames herself for what happened to her sister, forgive herself? This particular parts of the story is what made me hold on it a little bit more, the sadness, loneliness and that feeling of being lost is something I want to read, what made me connect to Maggie somehow and understand her a little bit more.

Somewhat moving, somehow sad, a little bit deep, Surfacing might be a moving, emotional read depending on how one approaches the issues discussed in this book. It wasn't something that I responded greatly to, given the negative emotions several of Maggie's issues had made me feel, and they were things I do not agree well with, but there were moments and elements in the story that made me think that it had a potential to be a more worthwhile read. It could have been written in a way that presented Maggie in a more positive light instead of being a girl so desperate to receive love from some guy who's only after the sex when there's this one person who loves her willingly and she chose to destroy all of that.

If you ever decide to give this a try, tell me if you liked it or not.

My rating

Content (plot, story flow, character):

It's so hard to empathize with someone whose views on a lot of things clashes a lot with mine, it makes it harder for me to connect with the character most of the time especially when Maggie tackles things like family, sex, friendship.

Okay: Liked, but The Goddess demands more!

Book Cover:
Gorgeous! It's what attracted me to the story.