Quickie Review: Fire by Kristin Cashore

  

 Fire by Kristin Cashore

   I enjoyed Graceling, but Fire... Fire was simply fantastic. She was the kind of character we were all supposed to hate. I mean, she's pure perfection, simply gorgeous, amazing hair, everybody wants her, the king and her super handsome best friend are crazy about her, blablahblah... but we just can't hate her. Because she's also beautiful on the inside. (YES, I know how corny it is, I can hear myself inside my head, thanks). The thing is, it's true. She too cool, too funny and too nice to be just another Mary Sue. Oh, and her love interest is a simple guy, plain in appearances, but with a huge heart. Have I mentioned he has a young daughter? So, YUP. So many non-cliche stuff in this book. I was enchanted by this world, very different from the graceling one, even if we have a terribly frightening little psycho with a red eye. (that little creep freaked me out, seriously).

    Oh, and there's a dog, a fiddle, evil fathers who can be good to their daughters, weird and fascinating monsters who know when Fire is menstruating and young people getting pregnant while others get sterile, and the royalty washing their dirty laundry twenty years after the scandals... it's so much amazeballs. And let's not forget: the cover is gorgeous, and actually has a connection to the story..

I could't put it down.

Review: The Gathering Storm by Robin Bridges

The Gathering Storm (Katerina #1)
by Robin Bridges

Published January 10th 2012 by Delacorte Books for Young Readers

St. Petersburg, Russia, 1888. As she attends a whirl of glittering balls, royal debutante Katerina Alexandrovna, Duchess of Oldenburg, tries to hide a dark secret: she can raise the dead. No one knows. Not her family. Not the girls at her finishing school. Not the tsar or anyone in her aristocratic circle. Katerina considers her talent a curse, not a gift. But when she uses her special skill to protect a member of the Imperial Family, she finds herself caught in a web of intrigue.

An evil presence is growing within Europe's royal bloodlines—and those aligned with the darkness threaten to topple the tsar. Suddenly Katerina's strength as a necromancer attracts attention from unwelcome sources . . . including two young men—George Alexandrovich, the tsar's standoffish middle son, who needs Katerina's help to safeguard Russia, even if he's repelled by her secret, and the dashing Prince Danilo, heir to the throne of Montenegro, to whom Katerina feels inexplicably drawn.

The time has come for Katerina to embrace her power, but which side will she choose—and to whom will she give her heart?

Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy

Publication Date: Jan 10th, 2012

Publisher: Delacorte Books

Format: Hardcover, 368 pages 

Series: yes

Source: My own copy

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My Review

Let me start this review by stating that I fail to understand why so many people gave The Gathering Storm such low ratings. I really was able to simply lose myself in this book. I read it in one day, secretly turning pages during college classes and everything. Russia has always been very interesting to me, and this was the first book with a Russian main character I've seen. I liked that the author gave a brief explanation about Russian names and prefixes before the beginning of the book.

It was nice knowing more about the historical setting, about the situation of Russian in the 1880's, especially concerning the women's views and their expected roles. I love to see women trying to be more than what they're expected to be. :)

Katerina, our MC, was a very strong character. She managed to stand her ground and follow her dreams and express her opinions even when most people (her mother included) were trying to crush them, to change her, to fit her into the pretty little mold all the other silly little girls were expected to be molded into. She wanted to be a doctor, one of the very first female doctors, one of the very first females to go to college! And, boy, was I impressed with her courage! 

But now that I've stopped to think about it, I suppose most probably didn't enjoy the story as much because of the fantastical flavor of it. Kat is a necromancer. The main love interest is part-faerie. The villains are witches. There are zombies roaming around. Those things didn't bother me at all. As a matter of fact, they fit very well into the story. However, I can see how some of these characteristics could bother some readers.

The Russian society cracked me up some times. It looked like almost everybody was either a prince/princess or a duchess/duke. Or, at least, somehow related to one of those. There was an overload of 'Your Highnessess' and 'Your Majesties' and the alike. That struck me as particularly funny at certain moments, especially during battles in which people were fighting for their lives, trying not to get blood on their pretty frocks while still managing to NOT drop the royal treatment. LOL. 

Or, I suppose, most didn't like the fact that romance was not the main focus for the plot. There were romantic tidbits, but there was SO much more going on that those were delegated to a second plane. But, come on, it was a slow-developing romance (they were mad at each other/did not trust each other for the greater part of the book) and forbidden, on top of that! (a mere duchess who could care less about marriage and wants nothing more than becoming a doctor and a PRINCE who wanted to kill her and now wants to give her the world?).

Also, there were some things that managed to creep me out, like those weirdoes/mean witches and their rituals... that was fun. ;P

I cannot wait to read the next stallment. I'm sure it'll be great. *-* And there'll be more romance, too, I'm certain.

Review: Everything and the Moon by Julia Quinn

Everything and the Moon
by Julia Quinn

Published March 1st 1997 by Avon Books

Seven years ago she broke his heart...

When Robert Kemble stumbles across Victoria Lyndon in hedgerow maze, he can't believe his eyes. The girl who'd torn him in two, who let him plan on elopement and then left him standing by the side of the road, was suddenly within arm's reach, and even though his fury still knew no bounds, she was impossible to resist...

Seven years ago he left her all but ruined...

Victoria's father had told her an earl would never marry a vicar's daughter, and he was right. Robert had promised her marriage, then danced off to London while she suffered the shame of a foiled elopement. But even though Victoria doesn't particularly enjoy her new life as a governess, when Robert offers her a job of a different sort—his mistress—she refuses, unable to sacrifice her honor, even for him.

But Robert won't take no for an answer, and he vows to make her his, through any means possible. Can these star-crossed lovers learn to trust again? And is love really sweeter the second time around?

Genre: Adult, Historical

Publication Date: March 1st 1997

Publisher: Avon Books

Format: Pocket book, 384 pages 

Series: yes

Source: Bought

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My Review

The minute Robert Kemble, Earl of Macclesfield, set eyes on the raven-haired beaty that was Victoria Lyndon, it was love at first sight.

She was everything he never knew he had always wanted. And she would be his.

As soon as he let her know, that is.

Victoria couldn't be more suprised when the owner of the lands and the pond she was swimming in suddenly accosted her. That is, until he started to shamelessly flirt and kiss her. And promise her everything she could ever want. AND the moon.

Robert proposed and Victoria wants nothing more than to marry this wonderful, charming man she is rapidly falling for... but their fathers think differently on the matter. And thanks to them, a most horrid misunderstanding takes place, pushing the loving couple apart.

Seven years later, they meet again. Now they need to learn to forgive each other, and start accepting the old feelings that are now resurfacing. If only Robert can convince Victoria that this time he will, indeed, give her everything and the moon.

I just love Julia Quinn. It's very rare for me not to like the things she write... but when I read her introductory letter for this book, I somehow knew this would be one of those rare occasions.

How can an author expect us to believe in something she doesn't believe herself?

I've never been one for love-at-first-sight stories, but thinking this one would be like the others Quinn had so perfectly penned, I gave it a try. I don't know. Maybe if I hadn't read her letter saying she was writing about something she didn't believe, I would have enjoyed the story more. Maybe I still wouldn't have enjoyed it.  My point is: I couldn't finish it.

Yup, that's right. I abandoned this book. The beginning was super cute, I'll admit it. And there were some great (and awfully characteristic of Quinn's works) amusing moments... but I just stopped caring for the characters around the middle of the book. I didn't even care enough to jump to the ending. I simply gave it up. They were juvenile. Plain silly. And not believable.

However, I am enjoying the second book in the series immensely. But Brighter Than The Sun is very much in line with my other Quinn's favorites. :P I still love Quinn, we just had a bad moment.

If you do like love-at-first-sight stories in a historical setting, then this will most likely be a hit for you. I hope you enjoy it!

Review: Eve (Eve #1) by Anna Carey

Eve (Eve #1)
by Anna Carey

Published December 1st 2011 by HarperCollins

Where do you go when nowhere is safe?

After a deadly virus wiped out most of Earth's population, the world is a terrifying place.

Eighteen-year-old Eve has never been beyond the heavily guarded perimeter of her school, where she and two hundred other orphaned girls have been promised a bright future in The New America. But the night before graduation, Eve learns the shocking truth about her school's real purpose--and the horrifying fate that awaits her.

Fleeing the only home she's ever known, Eve sets off on a long, treacherous journey, searching for a place she can survive. Along the way she encounters Caleb, a rough, rebellious boy living in the wild. Caleb slowly wins her trust . . . and her heart. But when soldiers begin hunting them, Eve must choose between true love and her life.

Genre: Young Adult, Dystopia

Publication Date: December 1st 2011

Publisher:  HarperTeen

Format: paperback, 318 pages 

Series: yes

Source: my own copy

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When I first started reading Eve, I had no idea what it was about. I had just reached over to my pile of unread books and it was sitting there, so I grabbed it.

It's not 'Oh, my, this is fantastic, everybody should read this before they die, here's a copy', but it is a good, intense read. A little silly and slow at times, sure, (I mean, this IS YA), but the whole post-apocalyptical situation is so terrifying and aggravating, Eve's world so indignant, and the action scenes so... 'heart-racing', that it becomes well balanced. :)

I'm strange about the books I keep and the ones I trade, but this one... well, this one I'll keep. It's not a 5 stars book on the whole, mind you, but for a few excellent scenes... it gets very close to it. I get the feeling Anna Carey could do so much better, but that maybe she held back sometimes because she wanted it to become a YA book... her violent scenes are so... no-nonsense and clear and disgustingly real, they're blood-curdling in their simplicity. I think she would make an AMAZING Adult writer. Really. Here's hoping, right?

That scene with the pregnant students tied down... yeesh. >.< *shudders* It still resurfaces in my mind randomly. And I've read it over a month ago. O.o I can also still recall the almost-rape scene... the yellowish color of the evil man's teeth... how sweet the the orphan boys were. You see? It's about the little things, the very well-written few parts that suck you in! But there can't be that many of those, because it's supposed to be for young audiences... and, really, JUST 318 pages? I though this kind of books normally could go up to 368 pages, or am I wrong? I am aware this is a series, however, I feel the story could have been slightly improved in those 50 more possible pages... 

The romance was cute and light, not insta-love, which is a certain plus... friendship was also nicely dealt with in Eve, and so was jealousy and betrayal. I can't wait to read Once and Rise. I am really looking forward to learning more about this weird, evil King that forces young girls to study for years straight only to tie them down and get them pregnant until they die of exhaustion and/or childbirth. I mean, seriously? How freaking mean and black-hearted can you possibly be? If you only want them as 'sows' for reproduction, why make them study so hard and hope for the future so bad? Like that'll make better babies! ... Or maybe he does it so they'll have something to occupy their brilliant minds with while they're tied down and knocked-up for the twentieth time, so they won't break so quickly? I don't know.... >.> Like I said, Carey is the boss here. ;P

Have you read Eve? What did you enjoy the most about it? If you haven't read it, do you feel like reading it?

Review: Partials (Partials #1) by Dan Wells

Partials (Partials #1)

by Dan Wells

Published: February 28th 2012 by Balzer + Bray

The human race is all but extinct after a war with Partials—engineered organic beings identical to humans—has decimated the population. Reduced to tens of thousands by RM, a weaponized virus to which only a fraction of humanity is immune, the survivors in North America have huddled together on Long Island while the Partials have mysteriously retreated. The threat of the Partials is still imminent, but worse, no baby has been born immune to RM in more than a decade. Our time is running out.

Kira, a sixteen-year-old medic in training, is on the front lines of this battle, seeing RM ravage the community while mandatory pregnancy laws threaten to launch what’s left of humanity into civil war, and she’s not content to stand by and watch. But as she makes a desperate decision to save the last of her race, she will discover that the survival of humans and Partials alike rests in her attempts to uncover the connections between them—connections that humanity has forgotten, or perhaps never even knew were there.

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My Review

It is the year of 2076. Sixteen-year-old Kira Walker works gathering data from dead human babies in order to help researchers find a cure for the deadly virus RM that killed most of the human race during the Break.

The Senate controls everything and everyone and has approved the Hope Act, which makes it obligatory for every fertile female to start breeding from the age of eighteen. They hope that the more babies are born, the bigger the chances one of them will survive longer than three days, becoming somehow immune to the RM.

When there is talk about the Senate wanting to drop the pregnancy age to sixteen, the Voice of People (a group of terrorists that disagree with the breach of human rights that is the Hope Act and all the intense control the Senate inflicts on people) start to attack the perimeter of the city, burning things and killing innocents

But even an even worse threat than the Voice are the Partials. Machines with human DNA built to be stronger and faster, made to protect the humans and fight for them during war times... until they turned against their makers and released the RM virus on all mankind.

Kira is tired of seeing babies die and mothers suffer from their yearly losses. So she decides to look for a cure herself. There are great amounts of data on how the virus works in the infants it infects, but not much in how the survivors became immune to it. After a lot of researching, she comes to the conclusion that the ones who created the virus should have the cure in their blood. Kira gathers all her most trustworthy friends and asks them for help with capturing a Partial for study. After a lot of debate and hesitation, they have it all planned out, but the Partials are so much more powerful than they could have imagined, and only with much luck do they get one as a prisoner... just so the soldiers of the Senate can have him killed. But the Partial is saved by the bell. The senators decide they want to 'interview'

Kira intervenes and is allowed to study him for five days, on the agreement that afterwards the specimen is to be exterminated. The Partial, Samm, turns out to be brighter, more complex and more human than she was led to believe. He may also carry the secret to cure the virus. A virus he insists his kind did not create. Samm starts to make Kira doubt everything she's ever been taught. He also needs her help. Their only hope, for either of them, is to work together.

Sometimes your enemies aren't as bad as you were led to believe... and your heroes aren't nearly as good as they claim to be.

Partials was just pure action, packed with a whole lot of tension, drama and polemic issues. Teenagers being forced to breed like cattle for the survival of the species, a government controlling every single breath you take, hiding and distorting every piece of information to keep you under their thumbs, machines that are also part human...

You won't regret it. I bet my firstborn on it. Well....maybe. LOL. Seriously, you'll love it. When I first saw that cover, I just knew I had to read it. The synopsis almost blew my head off, it sounded so good. I'm glad it delivered everything it promised and more!! I devoured the whole thing in one afternoon, in one sitting. I just wish I had the next volume in my hands already. Oh, the waiting!!! Dan Wells, will you hurry up, pretty please? *-* (BTW, a love triangle with Samm really wouldn't hurt, now, would it? ;))

If you like creative, fast-paced Young Adult books with science fiction,post Apocalyptic and dystopian themes, GO FOR IT. If you don't, just read it, anyway! Or you'll be missing out on a really awesome new series. ;P

Early Review: The Kingdom by Amanda Stevens

The Kingdom 
(Graveyard Queen #2)

by Amanda Stevens

Expected publication: March 27th 2012 by Mira


Deep in the shadowy foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains lies a dying town...


My name is Amelia Gray. They call me The Graveyard Queen. I’ve been commissioned to restore an old cemetery in Asher Falls, South Carolina, but I’m coming to think I have another purpose here.


Why is there a cemetery at the bottom of Bell Lake? Why am I drawn time and again to a hidden grave I’ve discovered in the woods? Something is eating away at the soul of this town—this withering kingdom—and it will only be restored if I can uncover the truth.

Genre: Adult, Paranormal

Publication Date: March 27th 2012

Publisher: Mira

Format: eARC, 400 pages 

Series: yes

Source: Netgalley

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My Review

I'm so glad I had the chance to review this book in advance! I had just finished The Restorer and was dying to read the next book when I saw it available on Netgalley. It was fate, surely. *-* LOL. Well, The Kingdom picks up right where The Restorer ended, but this time, unfortunately, there's no Devlin in sight. There is, however, a much darker story for Amelia Gray to get caught into.

Amelia needs some time away from Charleston and John Devlin, so it was a very good thing she got a job to restore the Thorngate Cemetery in Asher Falls, a small town located in the lush Blue Ridge foothills of South Carolina. Even if the money to bring her there was donated anonymously and the woman who contacted her, Luna Kemper, turns out to be a very strange woman. Oh, and the city is almost deserted. A real ghost town. Literally.

On her way there, Amelia meets the charming Thane Asher, the 'apparent heir' of the Ashers, the family who has ruled Asher Falls for years. He's the one who tells her about the other Thorngate Cemetery. The one that was submerged in the flood that destroyed part of the town in the past. The one now residing under Bell Lake, which graces the view from the house Luna has chosen for her to stay during the restoration process. A house built on hallowed ground, very secluded and almost hidden by the forest. At night, the place is surrounded by the ghosts of the people buried in the flooded cemetery. But a ghost in special seems to be haunting her. And something more, something bigger, something even more dangerous, haunts the forest close by. And it wants her.

Very soon, Amelia realizes that Asher Falls hides many, many secrets. Hidden grave, murders unsolved, dog fights, dark magic, possessions and Evil unleashed. And most of these secrets have something to do with her. But  the people from Asher Falls want to leave the past in the past, and will do anything to stop her from investigating it.

The Kingdom was so beautifully written! Amanda Stevens doesn't disappoint us at all! She still has such a fantastic way with words and descriptions, she really makes you feel like you're there. The story has a very mysterious setting, a plot that thickens but doesn't tire and some passages are downright creepy! Really, this sequel is even darker than The Restorer, and it completely sucks you into a very complicated web of mystery and the Unknown. You can't put it down. Even if you try. LOL. Oh, Amelia is, no doubt about it, one of my favorite main characters ever.

I loved to meet Angus, a 'bait dog' used in dog fights that was left to starve in the forest, only to be rescued by Amelia. Their relationship was very heart-warming and it was so interesting to see how he reacted to the ghosts and how much he helped her throughout the book. Another fascinating character was Sidra, a young teen who happens to share Amelia's burden. Both of them had been behind 'The Veil', and now walk the paths of the living and the dead. 

Thane, the momentary love interest, was very intense and made for great moments in the book, but he's just wasn't for Amelia. And, oh, dear!!! It was SO very satisfying to finally find out about Amelia's past and origins! I can't say the whole thing wasn't predictable, but how   the murder and hidden grave came to be... WOW. It was very eery. Seriouly, it made my skin crawl. Even after I finished the book, it still took me a while to finally quit thinking about it and actually go to bed. (BTW, you might not want to end this book before bedtime. LOL). The secondary characters were all very bizarre, but so very curious! I really wanted to read more about them and their past actions. I hope to see more of some of them in the future.

The book ends with a huge cliffhanger!!! I can't wait to see what happens in The Prophet! And I can't wait to see more of Devlin!! :) Let's just hope the book comes out in the promised date this time. :P

If you like ghost stories with A LOT of mystery, a great, strong main character and generous touches of horror and creepiness (don't you just love this word?), go and devour this book right now!!! And if you haven't started the series yet, what are you waiting for? You're totally missing out!

*I was very lucky to receive an advanced e-copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.*

This Side of Heaven by Karen Robards - Review

This Side of Heaven by Karen Robards

Defiantly beautiful, Caroline Wetherby stepped ashore in a land so wild and fierce, she trembled. She had come seeking refuge with the last of her family, but her sister was dead. Waiting to greet her were pious Pilgrims, warring Indians, howling wolves, a boisterous household of men and boys...and him, her rugged, unwelcoming brother-in-law, Matt Mathieson. Caroline wanted to hate Matt as she hated all men.

After her father's death, she'd been eager to escape England. But as daughter of a gambler and a gypsy, her flamboyant ways and healing skills tempted disaster in the sanctimonious Connecticut Colony. And putting herself in the hands of a big, handsome stranger tempted something far more dangerous--emotions she couldn't resist, kisses she couldn't forget, and a future that could bring ruin...or a journey to heaven on earth in his arms.
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My Review:

I really, really enjoyed it! The beginning was so funny, with so many rich characters, I was instantly drawn to it.

I caught myself really rooting for the main character, the poor young Caroline!

Matt, our hero, was a very nice man, and though realistic, the... personal private scenes among them were not exactly romance material, right, Ms, Robards? LOL. But he's forgiven.

The children were a bit annoying, but it was understandable, given the situation.

In my opinion, the end could have shown more of the other brothers' future and they could also have done something about the witch hunters, but it was a great and fast read. :)

Great light reading for a weekend.