Review: The Iron Knight (Iron Fey #4)

Title: The Iron Knight (Iron Fey #4)
Author: Julie Kagawa
Publisher: Harlequin
Pages: 386
Challenge: YA Series
Source: Netgalley


My Rating:

My name—my True Name—is Ashallayn'darkmyr Tallyn.I am the last remaining son of Mab, Queen of the Unseelie Court. And I am dead to her. My fall began, as many stories do, with a girl… -goodreads.com

The Iron Fey series is easily one of my favorite series of ALL-TIME! I love everything about it; the characters, the action, the romance…. LOVE IT <3 So you can imagine how excited I was when I heard that Ms. Kagawa would be publishing a 4^th novel; The Iron Knight…. I was SUPER stoked! Even more so when I heard it was going to be written from Ash’s point-of-view. Don’t get me wrong,  I was definitely a bit hesitant because I was so attached to Meghan, but I couldn't wait to get a look inside Ash's head. After having finished it a couple hours ago, I can safely say that TIK did not disappoint!

I'll start with an honest confession; while reading TIK, I fell in love with Ash even more. Even though he was raised to be a ruthless warrior and trained to keep his emotions in check, he truly does have a heart of gold. It was nice to see Ash's and Puck's so called "hatred" towards one another turn back into the friendship/comradeship they once had. I'll admit that the story did start off a bit slow, but it quickly picked up the pace. Plus, Puck's sense of humor was just wonderful, it made the story fun to read.

Overall, TIK is pretty much the perfect ending to the series. There was so much action and adventure... and not to mention that unexpected character re-introduction.... I seriously think my jaw dropped! At first I was a bit frightened, I wasn't sure how things were going to turn out. But all in all, everything that happens to Ash in this novel helps him grow overall as a person (So hang in there! Ash endures a lot, but its all for the better good.). Although I am so sad this series is over, I a very much contempt with the way things ended.

Review: Tiger's Curse (The Tiger Saga #1)

Title: Tiger's Curse (Tiger Saga #1)
Author: Colleen Houck
Publisher: Splinter
Pages: 416
Source: Own
Challenge: None


My Rating:

Passion. Fate. Loyalty.
Would you risk it all to change your destiny?
The last thing Kelsey Hayes thought she'd be doing this summer was trying to break a 300-year old Indian curse. With a mysterious white tiger named Ren. Halfway around the world.
But that's exactly what happened. Face-to-face with dark forces, spellbinding magic, and mystical worlds where nothing is what it seems, Kelsey risks everything to piece together an ancient prophecy that could break the curse forever. -Summary from goodreads.com

Hey guys,
As I mention in the video, this is my first attempt at a video review, so be kind :) This vlog will also count as my entry to Ms. Houck's ARC contest, wish me luck! This book ROCKED! Wanna know why? Watch the video and find out.

PS. If you have any suggestions on what I should and shouldn't do or mention in a video review, please let me know. Constructive criticism is appreciated :)

Waiting on Wednesday (3)

"Waiting On Wednesday" is a weekly event, hosted by Jill over at Breaking the Spine. This meme spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

My pre-publication "can't-wait-to-read" selection this week is:

CINDER

(Lunar Chronicles #1) 

Marissa Meyer

Feiwel & Friends

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

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

Look at that cover! I love it :) and the book summary is just perfect. Not too much info, but enough to make me want it, now! I cannot wait. :)

A classic fairy tale, cyborgs and a dystopian setting?.... Yes, please! It needs to be January 2012, NOW! Want to read some early praise for CINDER? Check our Kry's fab review over at her blog, Bibliopunkk.

Review : Burned (House of Night #7)

Title: Burned (House of Night #7)
Author: PC & Kristen Cast
Publisher: St Martin's Griffin
Pages: 364
Challenge: YA Series
Source: Personal Copy


My Rating:

Zoey Redbird is the youngest High Priestess in House of Night history and is the only person – vamp or fledgling – that can stop the evil Neferet from raising all kinds of immortal trouble. And she might just have a chance if she wasn’t so busy being dead. Well, dead is too strong a word. Stevie Rae knows she can bring her BFF back from her unscheduled va-cay in the Otherworld. But it’s going to take a lot more than hoping to bring Zoey back. Stevie Rae will have to give up a few secrets of her own . . .summary from goodreads.com

After reading this latest installment, I can safely say I am done with the House of Night series for good. The only reason I finished BURNED was out of loyalty. This was one of the series that got me back into reading. I loved the whole idea of boarding school for vampires with special powers (it was as if Twilight met Harry Potter). I loved Zoey and the nerd heard and loved reading about all the adventures they had, but lately, these past couple of books have not been living up to their predecessors.

One of the things that really bugged me in this book was the switching POV. I don't understand how a chapter in Zoey's POV would be in first person, but then the next chapter (or any chapter that wasn’t Zoey’s POV) would be in the third person. Does that make sense? It confused the heck out of me. If you’re going to use multiple POV’s at least make them work.

Another pet peeve of mine; what’s up with all the F-bombs? Aside from being totally inappropriate, it was such a distraction. I may not be a teen anymore, but I don’t remember saying fuck in every other sentence. It seemed to be like the Cast’s were trying too hard to get the “teenage voice” down. Also, the storyline was just too slow. I literally had to skip parts in hopes that the story would pick up the pace later on.

The only good thing I can say about BURNED is Stark. I love his character and I very much enjoyed his journey in this book. I respected the fact that he felt forced to go on this “mission” to save his queen (Zoey)…. And that little twist about having to defeat the evil within himself?! Totally surprised me, very clever. Was not expecting that.

Overall, I think it’s safe to say that I will not be continuing with the series. If by any chance I start to hear the series improves, (I mean, they are planning on having 12 books in the series, this is barely book 7), I might pick it back up. But I’ll most likely get it from the library. I’m done spending money on the House of Night novels.

In My Mailbox #8

For more info on IMM or to sign up/post your link, 

visit Kristi @The Story Siren.
(Button made by Missie @The Unread Reader) 

It's a bit longer than my usual IMM posts (I had a lot of books!) hopefully I don't bore you all too bad :) Thanks for watching. Make sure and share your IMM links below.

Books:
1. Divergent
2. The Eternal Ones
3. Gone
4. Clockwork Angel
5. Lola and the Boy Next Door
6. Glow
7. The Ghost and the Goth
8. Original Sin
9. Don't Stop Now

Blog's Mentioned:
Michelle @ Oh! For the Love of Books!

A big thank you to: 
Tara @ Hobbitsies
Camille @ Teen Book Fanatics
Crystal @ My Reading Room

Review: The Unwritten Rule

Title: The Unwritten Rule
Author: Elizabeth Scott
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Pages: 210
Challenge: None
Source: Personal copy

My Rating:

Sarah and Brianna have always been friends, and it's always gone like this: guys talk to Sarah in order to get closer to Brianna. So even though Sarah met Ryan first, she's not surprised that he ends up with Brianna (even though Sarah has a massive crush on him). The three of them hang out, and Sarah and Ryan's friendship grows until one night an innocent exchange between them leads to a moment that makes Sarah realize that Ryan might be interested in her after all. But if there's one unwritten rule, it's this: you don't mess around with a friend's boyfriend. So Sarah tries to resist temptation. But with the three of them thrown together more and more, tension builds between Sarah and Ryan, and when they find themselves alone together at one point, they realize they just can't fight how they feel anymore.... summary from goodreads.com

The Unwritten Rule: Don't like your best friend's boyfriend. This was my first Elizabeth Scott novel and I have exactly 3 words; I loved it!

At first glance, The Unwritten Rule looks like your typical YA high school romance: girl falls for boy, boy is taken by girl's best friend, something happens between the girl and boy, boy falls for girl. I know what you’re thinking- been there, read that! While it may be a worn-out story, Scott somehow manages to work her magic and turn it into a gripping, emotional novel that caught me from the first page and didn't let go until I finished.

The main character Sara is very simplistic. I'm not going to lie, she didn't have a ton of personality, but she was sweet, nice and a good friend. I mostly sympathized with her because of Brianna. I too once had a crappy friend that I’d known forever and I just didn’t know how to let go. While I obviously rooted for Sara, Brianna was not a totally unsympathetic character. She is definitely not very likeable in the beginning as her bad behavior demonstrates what an awful friend she is. Brianna comes across as arrogant, selfish and cruel by putting her friend down at practically every opportunity. But then we get a glimpse into her family life… we then understand why she acts the way she does. I’m not saying this justifies her actions (when she tells Sara, “You’re nothing without me” I seriously said, “Oh, hell no!”) but I will admit that I felt pity towards her after seeing the way she’s treated by her parents. Girls like that are always on the lookout for attention since they don’t get any from their parents back home.

My only complaint about the story is Ryan. Don’t get me wrong, he was absolutely charming and I totally loveable, but I just wish he would have developed a backbone and spoke his true feelings. He seemed more of a “doormat” boyfriend, he did what Brianna said and not what he wanted. It drove me crazy! I don't know how with so few pages Scott manages to make such three-dimensional characters and plot lines that are simple in theory but complex like in real life. It’s brilliant! And although the ending is not a happily ever after, (it would have been unrealistic if it was) I will definitely be re-reading The Unwritten Rule in the near future.

On vacation w the fam

A vacation is having nothing to do and all day to do it in.  

~Robert Orben

 

Hello everyone,

Just wanted to let ya'll know that I'll be missing for about a week. I'm on vacation :) wooo whoo! We came to Hawaii, Wakiki (Honolulu), to be exact :) If you're a follower on twitter, I'll most likely be posting daily pictures, so go check it out! http://www.twitter.com/g a m e z d 5 (all together)
You can all travel with me and my family from the comfort of your armchair :)haha!

For my reading material I brought Amy & Roger's Epic Detour, Ruby Red and Clockwork Angel. I don't expect to read all 3 in a week, but I like to have some selection.