Beyond the Standline by Linda L. Zern

**I was given ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.**

Publication Date: August 5, 2015
Publisher: LinWood House Publishing
Pages: 324

Seventeen-year-old Tessla and her teenage sisters, Ally and ZeeZee, live by one rule: don’t venture beyond the perimeter of the family ranch. Years ago, solar flares burned the power grid to ashes, plunging the country into mayhem and instability, but as long as the girls stay behind the line of their grandfather’s property, they remain protected from savagery. 

But when the call of the unknown proves too alluring for rebellious Ally to resist, Tessla must enlist mysterious Richmond Parrish to help rescue Ally from the trouble she’s walked into. 

The Florida coast is overrun with warring tribes and pirates, and orphaned children-turned-soldiers roam the land. 

The quest to find Ally leads Tess and Richmond into the epicenter of this barbaric new world, but even if they find her, now that they’ve left the safety of life at the S-Line Ranch, will they really be able to go back?

Beyond the Strandline is a thrilling story about the struggle to stay human in an inhumane world, the importance of emergency preparedness, the illusion of safety, and the power of love to redeem even the most desperate.

My Thoughts:
When it comes to indie authors I am VERY selective in whom I choose to read from. Simply because in my experience they are generally poorly written and full of content I am uncomfortable with. HOWEVER, with that said, I read another book by this author called Mooncalf that was amazing. So when I was contacted to read this book I hopped to the chance.

This book is unlike her other work that I read, you could see the progression in her writing. It's a YA story with everything you could possibly want in a book. Swoon worthy romance, action that is non-stop and keeps you at the edge of your seat, as well built post apocalyptic world that is relatable, plus it gets a person to think and put one-self in these situations and you find yourself questioning ,"would I do that if I were in this situation?" seriously!

This books grabs you from the get-go, you're immediately hook and leaves you wanting more. DANG IT it's going to be a trilogy which mean I'm going to have to wait for book 2! grrrr.

Tess was a great character- relatable in every way, she is a typical
teenage girl with spunk that was at times annoying but hey she's had a hard life and lives in this time so, can you blame her?

I really like Parrish- I LOVE male characters that are kinda dark and brooding, I liked his audacity and his character that leaves a bit of mystery as to why he is the way he is.

I REALLY liked the romance, because for the love of all that is holy it is NOT insta-love! WHOOT! I like the chemistry between Tess and Parrish which totally kept me interested in the rest of the story. TEAM PARRISH!

I absolutely loved the whole idea of this story and the fact that it's completely believable. As in, the fact that this could actually happen. There were no sci-fi/dystopian aspects to this, no machines that could read people, no fantastic guns that shoot lasers. No, this was complete and utter survival that is realistic which is refreshing, yet the story itself was fascinating.

Overall: I would recommend this story to anyone of all ages who is in need of a good story which great romance that leaves you wanting more.

Sexual Content: mild (talk of rape-not graphic, mild kissing)
Violence: moderate (disturbing scenes of death-not too graphic)
Language: mild
Drugs/Alcohol: mild/none

The Storyspinner by Becky Wallace

Drama and danger abound in this fantasy realm where dukes play a game for the throne, magical warriors race to find the missing heir, and romance blossoms where it is least expected.

In a world where dukes plot their way to the throne, a Performer’s life can get tricky. And in Johanna Von Arlo’s case, it can be fatal. Expelled from her troupe after her father’s death, Johanna is forced to work for the handsome Lord Rafael DeSilva. Too bad they don’t get along. But while Johanna’s father’s death was deemed an accident, the Keepers aren’t so sure.

The Keepers, a race of people with magical abilities, are on a quest to find the princess—the same princess who is supposed to be dead and whose throne the dukes are fighting over. But they aren’t the only ones looking for her. And in the wake of their search, murdered girls keep turning up—girls who look exactly like the princess, and exactly like Johanna.

With dukes, Keepers, and a killer all after the princess, Johanna finds herself caught up in political machinations for the throne, threats on her life, and an unexpected romance that could change everything.

My Thoughts:
I liked this a lot more than I thought I would. I'm not generally a huge fantasy person and the cover was a big deterrent. So I went into this with pretty low expectations. Which is usually the best way to go into anything. So maybe stop reading this review and go read the book before I get your expectations up too high.

If you're still going to read this review despite the warning, here's what I liked:

Johanna's character. She never whines, never has a tell-all dramatic monologue and is generally just who she is without complaint. She accepts her circumstances and deals with it. Loved that about her. Actually, most of the characters were just likeable. I really liked how Rafi's whole life revolved around honor. He was like a chivalrous knight. It was pleasant. And then there was Pira. I could totally relate to Pira's hard shell and her hiding her feelings and trying to be tough all the time. And the Leao storyline was just yummy. Mmmmhm. So, yeah. Characters.

The world. So this was fantasy in some strange new world with weird geography and Lords and Masters and a Kingdom and whatnot. I usually get lost in all of that but this was pretty easy to follow. I enjoyed all the political intrigue talk and learning about this world's customs.

No love triangle. Hallelujah! There were two completely separate romancey storylines. And they were both yummy. In completely different ways. Johanna's love story had the strangest beginning of any romance I've ever read and I was skeptical of whether or not it would work out. But it did. And, to reiterate, Leao was yummy. Need more Leao.

Wallace wasn't afraid to be brutal. There was a lot of mild grinning going on in this book but not so much laughing out loud. Which is fine, I guess, but I really appreciate humor in novels. And along with all the pleasant stuff going on there were some really dark themes floating around as well. Lots of murder and fighting and even, near the very beginning of the book, a scene in which a girl is found after she had been brutalized and murdered. Wallace handled these situations extremely well, especially since this is supposed to be a YA novel. Events were mentioned and properly handled without being graphic or gross or going for shock factor. So, yes, bad things happen but this novel didn't dwell on them or cause me to have nightmares about all the evil in the world.

There was a lot to like. But, you know, some of the story was a bit cliche; Nothing I hadn't heard before. Some things happened exactly as I'd expected them to. Some events, like the finding of the assassin, felt a bit too easy or forced or just too coincidental to feel real. Many secondary characters felt stereotypical or flat, but, then many beloved characters didn't make it to the end of the book. I don't know which is worse.

Also there's the worst cliffhanger! Ever! Wallace literally leaves some characters hanging. And there are so many unanswered questions. Jacare's dark history is hinted at throughout the entire book but we learn nothing about his past. Or Tex's past, for that matter. I am definitely going to read the next book in the series and probably whatever comes after that, but I am annoyed that I have to wait for it.

So, overall, it's a good, fun, clean read with a few dark elements. But the darkness gives it good roundness.

Sexual Content: Moderate
Language: None
Violence: Moderate
Drugs/Alcohol: None

The Almost Girl by Amalie Howard

Seventeen-year-old Riven is as tough as they come. Coming from a world ravaged by a devastating android war, she has to be. There’s no room for softness, no room for emotion, no room for mistakes. A Legion General, she is the right hand of the young Prince of Neospes, a parallel universe to Earth. In Neospes, she has everything: rank, responsibility and respect. But when Prince Cale sends her away to find his long-lost brother, Caden, who has been spirited back to modern day Earth, Riven finds herself in uncharted territory.

Thrown out of her comfort zone but with the mindset of a soldier, Riven has to learn how to be a girl in a realm that is the opposite of what she knows. Riven isn’t prepared for the beauty of a world that is unlike her own in so many ways. Nor is she prepared to feel something more than indifference for the very target she seeks. Caden is nothing like Cale, but he makes something in her come alive, igniting a spark deep down that goes against every cell in her body. For the first time in her life, Riven isn’t sure about her purpose, about her calling. Torn between duty and desire, she must decide whether Caden is simply a target or whether he is something more.

My Thoughts:
Didn't finish.

I started the book because my 14-year-old niece said it was really good. "My new favorite book," she said. So I was excited. And it was going well in the beginning. I was curious about what was going to happen, about the world, about the characters. But then I got about half way through... and couldn't read anymore. Here's why:

Howard tells us how brave and smart and talented and competent Riven is all the time. I mean, she's a frickin' general in her home world, right? She can beat up anyone and is the strongest, most feared, strategic fighter ever to come out of Neospes. Neospes, mind you, where everyone is trained to fight starting at the age of 2 (has Howard ever met a 2-year-old, btw?) and they learn warfare and combat and all manners of ways to kill people. So when she passes out in the first chapter and, like, five times afterward, and gets beat up and crashes her motorcycle and gets seriously injured and is rescued by the untrained love-interest at least ten times throughout the course of the half of the book that I read, I don't actually believe that Riven is smart or talented or competent or brave or any of that. It makes me think she's actually really bad at her job and only became general because her father is such a prominent figure in Neospes. And why would anyone appoint a 14-year-old general of an army? Ever? At all?

Ok, so we've established that while Howard tells us Riven is a uniquely amazing character, we actually find out that Riven sucks. Then there are the other characters. Most of whom die before we get halfway through the book, so they're probably not worth mentioning. The love interest, Caden, who is also Riven's target for reasons that still hadn't been revealed halfway through the book (which was annoying) but were generally made to sound bad for Caden, has a girlfriend when he meets Riven. And totally disses his own girlfriend and cheats on her with Riven. But we're not supposed to care about the questionable way in which this relationship began because Caden's girlfriend was your classic high school mean girl. So she's not worth caring about.

And I can't even figure out why Caden likes Riven at all. Not once is she nice to him. Ever. Riven gives him mean stares all the time and tells him how superior she is and that she doesn't want friends and doesn't like anyone. But Caden keeps trying to kiss her anyway. And when he succeeds it's this super-passionate moment when he has her trapped even though she told him flat-out that she wasn't interested and then she tried to beat him up. Unsuccessfully, because, you know, she's such a badass. So... Caden is pretty much the date-rapist type. That's what I got out of that.

I started out really curious about the world of Neospes. There's some vague Terminator-type of mechanical war that turned machines against humans and there was some kind of crazy warfare that causes Neospes to live in a bubble and the air is bad and water is scarce and there are crazy animals that are half-machine and they make themselves that way... but nothing was explained. This far into a book something should have been explained. I was getting tired of waiting for the reveals that should have come a little sooner. And been more interesting than the few reveals I did get to. And the twists felt contrived. The emotions were way too drama-y. And stupid. And I think you should just skip this book altogether.

But maybe you'll be like my 14-year-old niece who loved it. Who knows.

Sexual Content: Moderate
Language: Moderate
Violence: Moderate
Drugs/Alcohol: Mild, if any

The Knife of Never Letting Go (Chaos Walking #1) by Patrick Ness

Prentisstown isn't like other towns. Everyone can hear everyone else's thoughts in an overwhelming, never-ending stream of Noise. Just a month away from the birthday that will make him a man, Todd and his dog, Manchee -- whose thoughts Todd can hear too, whether he wants to or not -- stumble upon an area of complete silence. They find that in a town where privacy is impossible, something terrible has been hidden -- a secret so awful that Todd and Manchee must run for their lives.

But how do you escape when your pursuers can hear your every thought?

My Thoughts:
I was hooked from page one. It was a fast-paced could-not-put-down, urgent, layered, intelligent, easy-to-read-yet-complex story that I would recommend to anyone and everyone. So good. It was kind of all its own but if I had to compare it to anything else it would be the intensity of Hunger Games, the quality of writing of Shatter Me (but not the subsequent books in the series), and the world-building of the Across the Universe series. This book was really nothing like any of those books and, all-around, better than them, but if you want a comparison of some sort, that's a decent place to start.

The world-building started immediately and the way we learned about this strange place, as a reader, was completely natural. There was no info-dumping. No pause in the book for a backstory moment. It all flowed so flawlessly and effortlessly that I felt like I could have just landed in this world myself. And the world was so detailed and well-thought-out. And interesting. I wanted to learn about it. I wanted to learn why everyone was the way they were. I wanted to know the history of this place. It was just so well done.

The characters and the way people spoke were fascinating. Everyone had depth. Everyone had inner conflict and layered backstory and just inherent interest. I was so interested in everyone. Our main character, Todd, and his talking dog, Manchee; They were so likable. Todd was a regular, nice kid asked to do crazy difficult stuff, make insane choices. And he just did the best he could. He was sweet and kind in spite of being raised in a bizarrely mean place. And Manchee was just a good, loyal dog. I loved the portrayal of Manchee and his simple thoughts.

Some of my favorite moments were with the villain characters. Todd's depictions of them (because we were in Todd's POV the whole book) were just perfect. Ness just got inside those characters and portrayed them so well, with so much depth that I couldn't help but be fascinated by the evil people. Seriously, so well done.

The writing itself was amazing. Thoughts felt like real thoughts. Dialogue felt natural. Reactions and events were completely believable in this foreign world. Ness has a way of making you feel on-the-edge-of-your-seat that I've rarely seen in a book. It's incredible. I loved the different dialects people spoke in and the phonetic spelling; It added so much to this world. The twists and turns this plot took were sometimes expected but always worth reading. So much happened to these people in such a short amount of time that I was kind of exhausted after finishing the book but also super amped to read the next one because there is an Insane Cliffhanger! I mean--Worst/Best Cliffhanger Ever! I'm simultaneously annoyed and excited about the ending. But I will definitely read the next one. And probably the whole series. And anything else Patrick Ness writes.

It was just that good.

Sexual Content: Mild
Language: Moderate
Violence: Heavy
Drugs/Alcohol: Mild

End of Days by Susan Ee (Penryn & the End of Days #3)

Published: May 12, 2015
Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton
Pages: 435

After a daring escape from the angels, Penryn and Raffe are on the run. They’re both desperate to find a doctor who can reverse the twisted changes inflicted by the angels on Raffe and Penryn’s sister. As they set off in search of answers, a startling revelation about Raffe’s past unleashes dark forces that threaten them all.

When the angels release an apocalyptic nightmare onto humans, both sides are set on a path toward war. As unlikely alliances form and strategies shift, who will emerge victorious? Forced to pick sides in the fight for control of the earthly realm, Raffe and Penryn must choose: Their own kind, or each other?

My Thoughts:
Holy cow what happened Susan Ee.... What I LOVED about the first two books, failed for me in this last one that I have waited 2 YEARS for! GAH!

The ending was typical and cliché I knew that is what would happen. Which wasn't completely disappointing but I'm satisfied enough with that ending.

The story itself was fabulous and totally Susan Ee and maintained the awesomeness from the first two books.

Penryn continued to kick butt and all the awesome, freakishly weird, creepy, cool characters from the other books are brought back, and it all ended with a bang.

What disappointed me? THE ROMANCE! What I loved about the first two books was that it didn't overwhelm the story! Penryn wasn't some hormonal, horney girl who didn't lose focus of what was really going on in hopes of rolling in the hay with Raffe! what the heck! what happened?! I seriously felt like it became a romance book instead of a cool post apolozclyptal story.

Granted, the action was great, and I kinda hoping that Susan Ee will do something with this world now that it has been utterly destroyed. I'd like to see if she could carry on with a story of rebuilding or something maybe not with Raffe and Penryn but you know.

Anyway overall the actual story line was great the action-spot on. The romance...sadly didn't fit with the other two books. Oh well, I am not giving up on you Susan Ee!

Sexual Content: heavy (kissing, petting, panting, tension)
Language: mild/moderate (I can't remember)
Violence: heavy (murders, killing, battle scenes)
Drugs/Alcohol: mild/none

*Due to content in THIS book I would stamp this Obtain for those sensitive to that type of content*

The Cage by Megan Shepherd (To be released May 26th!)

When Cora Mason wakes in a desert, she doesn't know where she is or who put her there. As she explores, she finds an impossible mix of environments—tundra next to desert, farm next to jungle, and a strangely empty town cobbled together from different cultures—all watched over by eerie black windows. And she isn't alone.

Four other teenagers have also been taken: a beautiful model, a tattooed smuggler, a secretive genius, and an army brat who seems to know too much about Cora's past. None of them have a clue as to what happened, and all of them have secrets. As the unlikely group struggles for leadership, they slowly start to trust each other. But when their mysterious jailer—a handsome young guard called Cassian—appears, they realize that their captivity is more terrifying than they could ever imagine: Their captors aren't from Earth. And they have taken the five teenagers for an otherworldly zoo—where the exhibits are humans.

As a forbidden attraction develops between Cora and Cassian, she realizes that her best chance of escape might be in the arms of her own jailer—though that would mean leaving the others behind. Can Cora manage to save herself and her companions? And if so . . . what world lies beyond the walls of their cage?

My Thoughts:
**An ARC of this book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.**

Megan Shepherd has diverse taste: This is straight-up Slaughterhouse Five (the alien zoo parts) meets Lord of the Flies plus any recent YA love-triangle novel. Any at all. There are thousands, take your pick.

So major props for coming up with a somewhat unique idea. Or at least, you know, borrowing ideas from less borrowed-from stories. Meaning the Slaughterhouse Five one, not the Lord of the Flies one. Lord of the Flies has been borrowed-from I don't know how many times. Honestly, I almost feel burnt-out on books about kids turning against one another and going crazy and being violent. Interesting and thought-provoking (or at least it was the first few times I read it) and entertaining, yes. But a little overdone. Kurt Vonnegut is a worthy author to borrow ideas from but after seeing the Slaughterhouse Five connection to this book I can't help but compare the authors. No offense, Megan Shepherd, but you're no Kurt Vonnegut. That is all I will say about that.

I actually liked the way this began. Six human teenagers are abducted by aliens and relocated to a fabricated alien world made to look human. They are given 3 rules: Eat, sleep, procreate. They are even told with whom they should procreate. They're also given puzzles to solve, entertainment and whatever they need to live. Aside from all that craziness, there's weird things going on all around them, visual tricks being played on their heads, and just weird mind games in general. You see that everyone is going to slip into madness; It's going to happen, right? You see it coming. But I felt like it happened so suddenly. One day they're all working together to solve puzzles and figure out their environment, the next nearly everyone is ganging up on Cora (our protagonist) and blaming her for everything going wrong. The only person whose fall from sanity felt legit was Leon's because a) he was already a little unstable when he arrived, b) he isolated himself early on and c) he had a lot of guilt to spike his crazy meter. Seeing inside everyone's heads and how they thought and processed--especially after slipping out of sanity a bit--was interesting. But it could have been done more convincingly.

The love triangle. Well. Blah, first of all. I'm sick of them. And secondly, it was just weird. Cora is a beautiful, tough, take-no-crap from nobody type of girl. One love interest is Lucky, the human she is paired with in the enclosure. He is hot, smart, thoughtful and they share a past. Lucky is irrationally in love with Cora, but, honestly, kind of creepily so. He seems sweet and strong at first but about halfway through the book he becomes this love-sick puppy. Did. not. like. Then there's Cassian, the third part of the love triangle. He is the alien who stole all these kids from their homes and now keeps them in the alien enclosure. He's also incredibly beautiful, feels deeply for the human plight and is falling in love with Cora. I just--How does Cora not find it creepy that Cassian watched her for years? YEARS! And Cassian is an alien who can read her mind (more on that later) and do other psychic stuff. And Cassian abducted her from Earth to place her in an alien environment. How old is he? Because she's a teenager. Why did Cora not find this incredibly creepy?!? But, oh, he mostly looks human, only more beautiful, and he seems to care about Cora even though he told her flat-out that he specifically chose her for this habitat. Really?

Ok, and Cora convinces everyone to make plans to break out of the habitat. Which makes sense to me, I would have had the same thought. But there's no real planning. They don't find out much about the enemy at all, the plans mostly revolve around turning toys into makeshift weapons and the aliens can READ THEIR MINDS! That right there would probably put a huge damper on everything since, you know, the aliens would know exactly what they were doing (that said, why didn't they put a stop to more things? Weird). They learn that feeling pain clouds their thoughts so that the Kindred (aliens) can't read their minds, right? So they start pinching themselves whenever they think about certain things or whenever they talk to each other about plans. Only, thing is, the aliens can still hear them talking even if they can't read their minds. So... that could have been handled a whole lot better.

There were some things that I really loved in this book: The actual habitat that the human kids were placed in was fascinating. All the weird perspective stuff and the way it was designed and how the puzzles worked--all of it was fun to read. The actual writing was easy-to-read and addictive. I wanted to know what would happen, I was invested in the story, I even mostly liked the characters until they all went crazy. There were a few cases of annoying reiterated thoughts ("His lips were so close to mine. Did he want to kiss me? Did I want to kiss him? What if it happened again?" that kind of thing) that got annoying. But mostly I was okay with the writing. Not spectacular, but not sub-par, either.

I will definitely read the sequel. I want to know where this goes. But it better be better than this because right now I think I like this series but I need some major convincing.

Sexual Content: Moderate-Heavy
Language: Moderate (I think--don't remember)
Violence: Moderate
Drugs/Alcohol: Moderate

For Such a Time by Kate Breslin

Publication Date: April 1, 2014
Publisher: Bethany House
Pages: 430

In 1944, blonde and blue-eyed Jewess Hadassah Benjamin feels abandoned by God when she is saved from a firing squad only to be handed over to a new enemy. Pressed into service by SS-Kommandant Colonel Aric von Schmidt at the transit camp of Theresienstadt in Czechoslovakia, she is able to hide behind the false identity of Stella Muller. However, in order to survive and maintain her cover as Aric's secretary, she is forced to stand by as her own people are sent to Auschwitz. Suspecting her employer is a man of hidden depths and sympathies, Stella cautiously appeals to him on behalf of those in the camp. Aric's compassion gives her hope, and she finds herself battling a growing attraction for this man she knows she should despise as an enemy. Stella pours herself into her efforts to keep even some of the camp's prisoners safe, but she risks the revelation of her true identity with every attempt. When her bravery brings her to the point of the ultimate sacrifice, she has only her faith to lean upon. Perhaps God has placed her there for such a time as this, but how can she save her people when she is unable to save herself?

My Thoughts:
Thank you to my bookclub friend who picked this book for the month's read. It was fabulous. After being in a reading slump for so long this helped me get back out. It was completely un-put-down-able.
However I am one of those people who love stories such as this, depressing, but there is something beneath it all that fascinates me. The deep brain wash and propaganda of Hitler and how it all transpired, the depth of soul in the lives of people in the camps, the truth behind such a tragic part of history. It's real and tragic.

This story is a retelling of the biblical account of Esther and it follows a woman who was saved at the last second from a firing squad due to some "mistake" on her papers. Under the false name of Stella Muller she is moved from a camp to another camp, this time as a secretary at the transit camp of Theresienstadt (which actually exists). There under the employ of Kommandant Colonel Aric von Schmidt who isn't what he appears to be.

I liked Stella because she was honest, having lived through time in a camp the author did a great job of creating the character and showing the deep fear, mistrust and horror of what she went through, yet the struggling of knowing she should be out there suffering with her fellow jews, yet not wanting to leave the comforts of this mistaken identity. Due to the fact that Stella has suffered so long in a camp she has to wear a wig of red hair to hide the baldness of her head from being shaved, she is impossibly thin and gaunt and the author painted a perfect picture of that aspect. And it was interesting to watch her transformation from starving survivor to a beautiful woman, wanted and adored.

I liked Aric, I enjoyed the inner struggle of everything, he wasn't exactly a nazi he was a german completing orders he hated because that is what he was trained to do. Having fought for Germany he was wounded and offered a high position in which he dislikes but will do as commanded. I enjoyed the many levels of depth to this man as he finds his inner struggle to find the peace he hasn't ever had in just about all his lift, I enjoyed that you weren't ever sure as to what he would do and it kept you on your toes especially if you know of the account of Esther in the bible.

The romance was a little too cheesy for me, however, I understand the need for cheese in this story. I enjoyed the inner struggle of both Aric and Stella with their feelings and the hidden truth Stella was afraid to tell which added a but of mystery to the story which I liked.

Overall this retelling was fabulous and I was impressed at the authors telling of the real life aspect of the truth on what went on behind closed doors and not just between these two characters but other key players whose were actual nazi and enjoyed the suffering of others. I firmly believe that even though all the evil that was going on there were still good germans who fought for Germany and not for Hitler. I really enjoyed the showing of that in certain aspects.

Sexual Content: moderate (PG some kissing, innuendos)
Language: mild
Violence: heavy (do I really need to go into detail? it's the holocaust)
Drugs/Alcohol: mild (social drinking)

Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard

The poverty stricken Reds are commoners, living under the rule of the Silvers, elite warriors with god-like powers.

To Mare Barrow, a 17-year-old Red girl from The Stilts, it looks like nothing will ever change.

Mare finds herself working in the Silver Palace, at the centre of

those she hates the most. She quickly discovers that, despite her red blood, she possesses a deadly power of her own. One that threatens to destroy Silver control.

But power is a dangerous game. And in this world divided by blood, who will win?

My Thoughts: (Here there be spoilers)

Where do I begin?  I love love LOVE this book!!!  I read somewhere that it was tagged as Graceling meets The Selection.  Hmmm, I thought of it more as Hunger Games meets X-Men.  Am I alone on this?!  Anyway, I give this one a definite 5! I can’t wait for the next installment!!

So, Mare lives in a crappy little town called Stilts, passing time before conscription by picking pockets and other forms of thievery.  Through a somewhat tragic chain of events, she finds herself with a job in the palace working as a serving girl while Silver families offer up their daughters to marry into the royal family.  These daughters showcase their abilities in an in-ground arena with an electric roof barrier.  During this spectacle, Mare is thrown from her balcony down onto the barrier.  All. Hell. Breaks. Loose.  Mare isn’t hurt by the electricity.  She discovers that she’s a Red with Silver abilities.  She can feel electricity around her and use it as a weapon.

As damage control, (the ridiculously evil) Queen Elara hatches a story that Mare’s real name is Mareena Titanos, a Silver whose parents were killed in the front lines of the war when she was a baby.  Thus begins Mare’s life as a Silver, betraying every instinct she has as a Red.  But she won’t go down without a fight.  She joins the Scarlet Guard (SG) and works with them in secret, all while juggling feelings that she has for Maven and Cal.  Maven even joins the SG because he can’t stand the way the Reds are treated.  No one should be forced to live in such squalor.  She and Maven go to secret meetings and he gives 4 names of Silvers to be killed in order to start the revolution. 

At the ball (can’t remember the exact function), the 4 Silvers are shot by the SG and a bomb is set off.  After things calm down, Mare and Maven discover 4 members of the SG have been captured and are being questioned in the dungeons.  Mare, with some help, breaks out the prisoners and gets shot in the process.  She is healed but her blood is everywhere and there is no time to clean it up.

They find themselves up against a wall, with no viable way out.  Unless, at Maven’s request, if Mare can convince Cal to give up and choose her over his army and over this war.  The SG blows up the bridge between the two sides of the city and Mare, in all the mayhem, confesses to Cal who she really is and what she has been doing.  Cal is shocked and heartbroken, obviously.  He takes Mare and Maven prisoner and has his army attack the SG, who were hiding in the tunnels below ground.  Mare is devastated.  All her work, ruined in an instant.  Cal (with man-who’s-name-I-forget that subdues abilities) takes Mare and Maven to the King and Queen to be dealt with.  During this “meeting” it comes out that Elara and Maven are working together and Maven has played Mare like a violin.

 (Honestly, I kind of saw this coming, but I was floored by the execution)  

Tiberias is just as dumbfounded as Mare and Cal when the truth comes out, but Elara isn’t done yet.  She has all the cameras off and, with her ability, makes Cal kill his own father (this is when I slammed my book closed and called Elara a name or two… or ten.)

  

Cal and Mare are then sent to fight to their deaths in an arena, against 5 very powerful Silvers:  a Nymph, the Samos siblings, who control metals, and 2 other Silvers.  With Mare’s abilities still subdued, she isn’t much help, until she cleverly has her subduer killed.  With her abilities back, she is able to help Cal and they kill all but one Silver, and that Silver runs for his life.  When the guards come in with weapons drawn, they think all is lost until a familiar face appears below deck.  Farley and the SG are there and they pull Cal and Mare to safety and disappear.

Mare wakes up on the underground train to find that Shade, her brother she was told was dead, is in fact alive and well!  Cal is there, too, but in handcuffs.  They are on their way to safety.

Sexual Content: very mild (kissing)

Language: mild

Violence: moderate

Drugs/Alcohol: mild (only a couple instances, I think)

PS - Film rights for Red Queen have been optioned by Universal!!!

The 5th Wave (The 5th Wave #1) by Rick Yancey

After the 1st wave, only darkness remains. After the 2nd, only the lucky escape. And after the 3rd, only the unlucky survive. After the 4th wave, only one rule applies: trust no one.

Now, it’s the dawn of the 5th wave, and on a lonely stretch of highway, Cassie runs from Them. The beings who only look human, who roam the countryside killing anyone they see. Who have scattered Earth’s last survivors. To stay alone is to stay alive, Cassie believes, until she meets Evan Walker.

Beguiling and mysterious, Evan Walker may be Cassie’s only hope for rescuing her brother—or even saving herself. But Cassie must choose: between trust and despair, between defiance and surrender, between life and death. To give up or to get up.

My Thoughts:
I finished this a few days ago and have been letting it marinate. There's a lot I could say.

For one, this was about an alien apocalypse. Nothing new. Honestly, I kept comparing these aliens to The Host, mixed in with some good ol' War of the Worlds. Throw in some lonely survival plotlines and major army training and we've got ourselves a book with no originality at all. But Yancey made it good. Here's what worked:

Conflict. Yes, the aliens killing everyone was a major problem, but the really interesting conflict was the <i>inner</i> conflict. The book was divided into sections and each section was from the POV of a different character. We got inside a few different characters' heads and in each brain there was major conflict. It was fascinating. There would be whole paragraphs of contrasts: "I can't trust him. I have to trust him. I shouldn't stay with him. I need his help." Stuff like that, it was all over the place. So simple, yet so profound! When you have conflict like that (and everyone has something like this) it's exactly this easy and exactly this difficult. Two completely contrasting thoughts that will drive a person crazy thinking about them.

Twists. Throughout the book you get major hints about what's going down, who's on what side and how things are going to play out... but all the hints contrast. It's really hard to tell which hint will end up being the right one, which plot the book will follow. I mean, near the end it gets easier to figure out but while you're in it it's confusing. Well done. There were a couple things I didn't see coming. Love that.

Desperation. There's a lot of emotion in this book. And with all the crazy stuff going on people do a lot of things out of desperation. Seen from that perspective things like, oh I don't know, weird romances seem believable. As does other stuff, like wanting to be a part of an army. And such.

Sarcasm/Hyperbole. Perfect amount of dark humor. The humor in this book was the exact right type for this serious book; Dark, sarcastic, skeptical. If that doesn't make sense, go read it. There was no goofy foil character, nothing you could count on for reliable comic relief. But the narration had a lot of funny moments, in that sad, sarcastic kind of way.

So, overall, I liked this book and will definitely finish out the series. All that stuff up there equals good book. There were a few things that didn't work: I couldn't tell whose head we were in when the narration switched, with the exception of the little brother. Everyone else sounded the same. And there were a lot of repeated ideas and phrasing. I get that Yancey was trying to show similarities between everyone's plights or whatever but it was a bit much for me. Anyway, that's my only real beef. Go read it. You'll thank me.

Sexual Content: Mild
Language: Mild-Moderate (honestly don't remember so it couldn't have been too bad)
Violence: Heavy
Drugs/Alcohol: Mild

Glass Arrow by Kristen Simmons + GIVEAWAY

Publish Date: February 10, 2015
Publisher: Tor Teen
Pages: 336

The Handmaid’s Tale meets Blood Red Road in Glass Arrow, the story of Aya, who lives with a small group of women on the run from the men who hunt them, men who want to auction off breeding rights to the highest bidder.

In a world where females are scarce and are hunted, then bought and sold at market for their breeding rights, 15-year old Aya has learned how to hide. With a ragtag bunch of other women and girls, she has successfully avoided capture and eked out a nomadic but free existence in the mountains. But when Aya’s luck runs out and she’s caught by a group of businessmen on a hunting expedition, fighting to survive takes on a whole new meaning. 

My Thoughts:
Ok first off, I HATE The Handmaid's Tale. So when I got this book and THAT is what it said? Yikes. However I LOVED Blood Red Road so putting two books that's I've read and have polar opposite thoughts and feelings on...well I was interested!

I didn't really know what I was getting into, however I was hooked from the first few pages. This book was very well written, with some very raw, emotional, and controversial scenes/topics, I felt I am giving it, it's proper rating. Kristen shows a dystopian world where the feminist struggle is eliminated and their worst fears are brought to life. Her writing is very vivid and real with shocking twists and turns, that has the reader holding on to the edge of their seat.

This story is about a girl named Aya who has lived in "the wild" (meaning outside the city) all her life, her mother warned her about what happens in the city and taught Aya how to survive. When Aya is captured by Trackers, her worse fears come to life, she is thrown into the lot of other girls who are ripe and ready to be sold to become baby-makers for the men of the city. Aya is an amazing female character, she is very realistic, she is strong, yet-flawed, she feels, she struggles, yet throughout everything she never gives up, she continues to fight. I love that she isn't the cookie-cutter dystopian heroine that has all the answers that makes all the right choices. She is great because the author shows you that this character has real emotions such a fear and the will to survive.

Along the way Aya befriends a young Driver whom she names Kiran. A Driver is a class of people who tend to the horses and drive the carriages when needed. They don't speak and are considered so low that they are treated with distain as if they are plagued. Kiran was the polar opposite of the harsh and almost diabolical male side of the city. Kiran is kind, thoughtful, empathetic, gentle and yet he is strong and isn't brought down as a male character regardless of the disgusting side the men of the city are painted. I thought the author does a great job of showing both sides of the spectrum. Men aren't all bad and women aren't all clueless.

The world portrayed is captivating with harsh and gritty descriptions that portray both side of good and evil from both male and female characters. The character developments were spot on and the author navigates your feelings with vivid and emotional and shows that women are worth so much and more than what they are brought up to believe.

Sexual Content: moderate (talk of sex, and rape, not graphic)
Violence: moderate (fightings, abuse, females being hit, men getting beaten)
Language: mild/none
Drugs/Alcohol: mild

***A HUGE thank you to Tor Teen & Kristen Simmons for this ARC which I got in exchange for an honest review.***

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Salt & Stone by Victoria Scott + GIVEAWAY

Publication Date: Feb. 24, 2015
Publisher: Scholastic Press
Pages: 320


What would you do to save someone you love?

In Fire & Flood, Tella Holloway faced a dangerous trek through the jungle and across the desert, all to remain a Contender in the Brimstone Bleed for a chance at obtaining the Cure for her brother. She can't quit--she has to win the race, save Cody, and then fight to make sure the race stops before it can claim any more lives. In the next legs of the race, across the ocean and over mountains, Tella will face frostbite, sharks, avalanche, and twisted new rules in the race.

But what if the danger is deeper than that? How do you know who to trust when everyone's keeping secrets? What do you do when the person you'd relied on most suddenly isn't there for support? How do you weigh one life against another?

The race is coming to an end, and Tella is running out of time, resources, and strength. At the start of the race there were one hundred twenty-two Contenders. As Tella and her remaining friends start the final part of the race, just forty-one are left--and only one can win. 

My Thoughts:
Victoria Scott is now on my must read author's list for YA. These two books have blown away ANY expectation I've had in regards to these books. Both times I was floored by her writing and how she navigated my feelings and emotions through this adventure. Honestly, I don't think there is anything about this book that I didn't like or that I would change. It was just, perfect.

We follow Tella and the rest of her contender friends from the first leg of the race in book one as they move forward with their plans and with winning the race. Regardless that all of them have someone to save they are willing to help each other out in surviving the race/game set for them by the Creators.  The last leg of the race is for the contenders to cross water and snow and it's awesome, tragic, edge of your seat kind-of-crazy.

What I loved about this book is that it is so real, raw, heart wrenching, funny, heart warming, frightening and all of the other adjectives that make a book unforgettable.

I loved the romance in this, why? because it's not "insta-love" it's not a "bad" boy who treats a girl terribly, it's about 2 people with struggles in regards to everything happening around them and their desires, they can't deny their feelings for each other but it's a slow process and it's wonderful to read. It was just awesome.

We have brooding Guy continuing to be himself from book one and his character development is slow and subtle and perfect. Tella's character development was so fun to read, the author was able to develop her character without loosing sight of the original Tella character that we all connected with in book one.

With all the harshness of everything going on in this race of life or death the humor was a great relief and so cute it was wonderful.

There isn't too much I want to say in case I spoil it along with those who haven't had a chance to read book one. GO! READ IT!

Overall: This series is a must own. Because it's an adventure you won't be able to put down.

Sexual Content: moderate (PG- some kissing)
Language: moderate (1 F word, and a few other choice words)
Violence: moderate (animals fighting each other, near death experiences)
Drugs/Alcohol: none

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