Review ~ Icons (Icons #1) - Margaret Stohl

Paperback received from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

Release Date: 7th May 2013

Publisher: Harper Voyager

Description:
Your heart beats only with their permission.

Everything changed on The Day. The day the windows shattered. The day the power stopped. The day Dol′s family dropped dead. The day Earth lost a war it didn′t know it was fighting.

Since then, Dol has lived a simple life in the countryside - safe from the shadow of the Icon and its terrifying power. Hiding from the one truth she can′t avoid.

She′s different. She survived. Why?

When Dol and her best friend, Ro, are captured and taken to the Embassy, off the coast of the sprawling metropolis once known as the City of Angels, they find only more questions. While Ro and fellow hostage Tima rage against their captors, Dol finds herself drawn to Lucas, the Ambassador′s privileged son. But the four teens are more alike than they might think, and the timing of their meeting isn′t a coincidence. It′s a conspiracy.

Within the Icon′s reach, Dol, Ro, Tima, and Lucas discover that their uncontrollable emotions - which they′ve always thought to be their greatest weaknesses - may actually be their greatest strengths.

Bestselling author Margaret Stohl delivers the first book in a heart-pounding series set in a haunting new world where four teens must piece together the mysteries of their pasts - in order to save the future.

My Opinion

I was really excited to read this book and was so happy when it came in the post. I must say though, Icons has really split my opinion in terms of what I think of it. I just cant decide how I feel. On one hand it was an enjoyable read that had good moments and on the other hand there were things that I just didn't get.

OK, so the good points and things I liked. First I liked the concept and idea of the Icon Children. I thought it differed the novel from other dystopian where by the population is just repressed and it's up to normal humans to stop it. It reminded me a bit of Partials by Dan Wells because of this and the fact people were created to be a sort of 'cure'. I also liked how the author integrated messages, transmissions and extracts from embassy prohibited books at the end of every chapter. They created a nice mystery as they were brief and weren't explained right until the end which I liked.

One thing I found when reading Icons is that is was pretty slow and I couldn't get through more than 50 pages at a time - which is why it has taken me nearly a week to read. The ending was definitely better and the action did pick up slightly but personally it was too late as the book ended as it start to get good in my opinion. I wished the rest of the book had been like the ending as the last 70 pages really hooked me.

The thing that I really didn't like with with book - and I think it may explain the slowness - is that there are a lot of unanswered questions, with a lot of the alien/paranormal stuff lacking detail. I'm still not sure what/who the GAP Miyazawa,  the Lords or the Icons are and I've finished the book! I was reading and was about half way through when names/initialisms started appearing and I got really confused. I thought it must be my memory so I skimmed back to try and find an explanation to who they were but just couldn't. Because of this I felt it very hard to picture anything or engage with the story as I didn't really know what was what.

As well as this I couldn't really engage with the character. Towards the end I did start to engage with Ro more but like with the action I felt it came too late and wished the rest of the book had been like it. Personally I question whether the first two thirds of the book needed to be so long as I don't feel they explained much and parts were slightly boring. I just wish the action started earlier as it could have been really enthralling.

Overall, although it took me a while to read I did enjoy Icons - I just had to read small sections at a time. I do wish there were more explanations but maybe things will be clearer in the sequel? It's an interesting read that presents some new ideas so you may want to check it out.

Thanks to Harper for the copy!

                                  

Review ~ Scent of Magic (Healer #2) - Maria V. Snyder

ARC received via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review

Publisher: Mira
Released: 4th Jan 2013
ISBN: 1472009886

Description

Hunted, Killed—Survived?

As the last Healer in the Fifteen Realms, Avry of Kazan is in a unique position: in the minds of her friends and foes alike, she no longer exists. Despite her need to prevent the megalomanical King Tohon from winning control of the Realms, Avry is also determined to find her sister and repair their estrangement. And she must do it alone, as Kerrick, her partner and sole confident, returns to Alga to summon his country into battle.

Though she should be in hiding, Avry will do whatever she can to support Tohon’s opponents. Including infiltrating a holy army, evading magic sniffers, teaching forest skills to soldiers and figuring out how to stop Tohon’s most horrible creations yet; an army of the walking dead—human and animal alike and nearly impossible to defeat.

War is coming and Avry is alone. Unless she figures out how to do the impossible ... again.

My Opinion
I'm sad to say I did not finish this book. I gave it a good go and tried to stick with it but after I had forced myself to get to 54% I just couldn't read anymore so this is by no means a review of the book, just my thoughts on why I could not continue it.

The main things I didn't like about this novel was for one there were no chapter headings. I know I have a ARC copy so it may be lacking in formatting  editing etc but I thought the book would at least be sectioned into chapters. This made it incredibly hard to read as there were no obvious breaks which allowed me to come to a natural pause while reading. It just seemed to drag on and on and I was waiting for a break that never arrived. As well as this the constant switching of character's POV and the person in which the book was written in was irritating. I have read a few books have done this successfully but most signify the change either through titles, breaks or some other form of sign. This book did none of this and instead jumped right from one character to the other leaving me confused which in turn lead me to backtrack to see if I had missed something (may be down to arc copy I don't know). It was made all the more difficult by Kendrick being in a totally different setting as it did not relate well to the main first person section.

In the end it was the jumpy style of writing that switched between person, POV and setting, the lack of headings to form breaks and annoying nicknames (Poppa bear/The Monkeys) which sounded like they belonged in a children's fairy tale rather than YA a fantasy book that lead me to lose interest and not be able to finish this book. I do however love the cover.

Review ~ Fragments (Partials Sequence #2) - Dan Wells

ARC received in exchange for an honest review via Netgalley

Released: March 28th 2013
Publisher: Harper Collins Children's Books

Description

Kira Walker has found the cure for RM, but the battle for the survival of humans and Partials is just beginning. Kira has left East Meadow in a desperate search for clues to who she is. That the Partials themselves hold the cure for RM in their blood cannot be a coincidence—it must be part of a larger plan, a plan that involves Kira, a plan that could save both races. Her companions are Afa Demoux, an unhinged drifter and former employee of ParaGen, and Samm and Heron, the Partials who betrayed her and saved her life, the only ones who know her secret. But can she trust them?

Meanwhile, back on Long Island, what's left of humanity is gearing up for war with the Partials, and Marcus knows his only hope is to delay them until Kira returns. But Kira's journey will take her deep into the overgrown wasteland of postapocalyptic America, and Kira and Marcus both will discover that their greatest enemy may be one they didn't even know existed.

The second installment in the pulse-pounding Partials saga is the story of the eleventh hour of humanity's time on Earth, a journey deep into places unknown to discover the means—and even more important, a reason—for our survival.

My Opinion

I started reading this book as soon as I had finished Partials and I must admit that it took me a lot longer to read than I expected, especially as I was excited after finishing book one. This wasn't because I was busy doing other things but because I found it hard to stick with for more than an hour at a time. I could manage a few chapters but anymore than that in one go and I felt my attention start to wain as parts were just too long.

Despite this though, I felt this book was better than Partials by quite a bit. There was a lot more action involved and it was described brilliantly. I also loved how Kira was developed, she got increasingly stronger and held her own. As well as this there was much more partial involvement which was great as that was one thing I wanted more of when reading Partials. This book was surprisingly unpredictable as well and I didn't see the ending coming.

There were a few things that frustrated me though while reading this book. The first was the way the author left things with Afa, it was so abrupt and there wasn't enough detail to satisfy me at that section. It just seemed like the author didn't know what to do at that point so glossed over it as quickly as possible without much thought. As well as this, Fragments was written from more POV than Partials and this became slightly irritating as it was a bit jumpy. My biggest complaint though was that the author hinted at a romance, however left it until the end to do anything about it and by that point it was too late to do anything which I didn't like.

Overall this was an interesting read that varied in pace, however it was a struggle to read more than a few chapters at a time. I enjoyed the twists and the action was described incredibly so it was easy to visualise however some parts left a lot to be desired for and I would have loved more romance, oh well maybe it will develop in another book as it does leave you on a cliff hanger which has me hooked!

Review ~ Makai Queen - Tara Fairfield

Paperback received from author in exchange for an honest review

ISBN: 193775670X

Description
Off the coast of Lanai, far beyond the sailboats, there is a hidden world beneath the beryl-blue sea, the marvelous kingdom of Moku-ola, a place where man and beast live in harmony. Unknown and forbidden to those living above the surface, it has never been discovered....until now.

Tessa, a curious teenager with a taste for adventure roams the sandy beaches of Lanai. Feeling lost and hurt she longs for meaning and a place in this world. By chance, Tessa encounters a mysterious man who appears to be drowning. The attempted rescue puts her own life in danger as she is abducted and dragged out to sea.

Far beneath the oceans surface, Tessa is brought to the frightening and wondrous land of Moku-ola. As the dangers of this world threaten her very survival, Tessa must overcome the barriers of self-doubt to discover the keys to her royal destiny.

My Opinion
Recently I have developed an interest for books that are set underwater so I was glad when the author asked if I would be interested in reviewing the book as well as running a spotlight. The book sounded interesting and exactly what I was looking for so obviously I jumped at the chance to read it.

This book took me only a few hours to read due to its short length, however despite the number of pages there is certainly a lot packed into it. Makai Queen was a fast paced and engaging read with a solid story structure. I loved how the book began and the twist that involved the brothers at the start, it really did make me question who was lying to begin with and I couldn't guess where the author was going to take the novel. As well as this I enjoyed the romance element in the book, it was kind of a love at first sight thing but it wasn't packed with cliches and soppy emotions that overpower a story. Fairfield balanced Tessa's decisions and emotions about becoming queen well with the romance so as not to overshadow the main plot wich was original and interesting.

In general I enjoyed this book, it was a fast and easy read however at points I would have loved more detail, especially into the surroundings they were in. Fairfield created this engaging underwater story but I never really built up a clear picture of what the city/houses looked like due to a lack of description. I would have also loved the author to use the senses more to describe things, especially colours in more detail so I could get immersed in the world more. Instead of getting lost in the world I did feel slightly detached from everything. As well as this the only other problem I had was the ending. I'm not sure if there is a sequel but to me it seems a little rushed and didn't satisfy me when I reached it. It didn't really leave on a cliff hanger but for me it didn't really sum everything up and tie all the loose ends up either, especially with the romance and Donnie. It just seemed abrupt and it kind of left the book on a low point

Overall though, besides the many references to God which irritated me slightly (personal preferences to religion though) and the previous issues mentioned, Makai Queen was an engaging, quick and easy read that was good to relax to on a gloomy day. There were a few sad points and a few funny points which balanced the story nicely and if there is a sequel I would definitely want to see where the author takes the story next. I would definitely recommend this to people looking for something new to read.

Book Spotlights by Vicki M Taylor

Catch of the Season - Novella

Description

A Science Fiction/Fantasy read that will have you looking over your shoulder the next time you go scuba diving. Seriously. They had been watching every Cap'n Green for a long time. Many years. Many defeats. This year, they were determined to become the hunter instead of the hunted. You'll never look at lobster season again after reading this spine-tingling story. Viewing a Red Lobster commercial will never be quite the same.

Genre: Science Fiction, Fantasy

Link:Amazon

Enigma Black - Sara Furlong Burr

Description
When she was just seventeen, the course of Celaine Stevens' life was permanently altered with the murders of her father, mother, and brother in one of a series of mysterious and violent explosions occurring across the country. Struggling with picking up the pieces, she's haunted by the memory of that day and her promise of retribution against those responsible for her misery. But just as she seems to be getting her life back on track, an encounter with a mysterious stranger promises her the vengeance she desires, ultimately turning the former target into the assassin.

However, as she soon learns, all choices come with consequences. And the consequence of her choice threatens to destroy the very fabric of her being.

My Opinion

All I can say is wow! This book surpassed all of my expectations and kept me hooked from beginning to end and I'm glad I received the professionally edited copy so I could read it without any trouble. This book is faced paced, action packed and took me on an emotional ride.

I loved Celiane, she had a dry sarcastic sense of humor which I adored and made me laugh on occasions  She was also strong willed and determined but Sara cleverly interwove moments of vulnerability to create an engaging character that I could sympathise with. Also because of this vulnerability it justified her actions, which created a solid and strong story line. As well as this the two guys, Chase and Blake were total opposites. Chase being the sweet, caring, shoulder to cry on and Blake the partner who has had his emotions drilled out of him. These two really played with my emotions through out the book as their relationships with Celiane changed but I loved the difference in personality as it made it all the more interesting to read.

In Enigma Black the action is constructed incredibly well, it is fast paced but filled with loads of detail that leaves everything easy to imagine and visualise. I loved it when Celaine turned into her cold 'super hero' version of herself and the confrontations with The Man in Black were brilliant. The start did confuse me slightly as it is written from multiple POV but that was down to the fact we hadn't been introduced to everyone. After that I had no trouble and towards the end I had the moment of "Oh I get the beginning now" which was great as it linked nicely. 

The only bad thing I have to say about this book is the cliff hanger ending! It definitely leaves you wanting to know more and I don't know if I can wait too long to find out what happens next. Overall this book is an engaging, action packed story that will take you on an emotional ride and keep you hooked all the way to the end. I would highly recommend this to anyone and I am eagerly awaiting the next installment!