Book Review: Jackaby

TITLE: Jackaby
Book 1 in the Jackaby series
AUTHOR: William Ritter
PUBLISHED: September 2014
CATEGORY: YA
GENRE: Historical Fantasy
PREMISE: A girl arrives in New England and finds a job working for a mysterious man who deals with things like faeries.
MY REVIEW: If you've heard about this book (which is probably not many, for some reason it wasn't one of the huge buzz books last year), you've likely heard the Sherlock meets Doctor Who comparisons. While I do think the Sherlock (canon Sherlock Holmes anyway, not the Moffat version) is apt, I think it's more comparable to Dresden Files then to Doctor Who.
Luckily I like all three of these things so I dug this book quite a bit. Also luckily, it treats its female characters much better then all of those things. I love Sherlock but some of the things they do with the female characters makes me want to bang my head against the wall. It's one of the many reasons I actually prefer Elementary. But that's another rant for another day. Back to the book. It's just fun. It pretty much is a rehash of familiar territory. Main character getting a job for a mysterious employer and discovering magic world is a much loved trope, but it's well done nonetheless. This is a good intro to the world, there's a fast brisk pace to it, and it's just all around entertaining.
If you're looking for fun historical fantasy mystery this book definitely fits the bill. I can't wait for the next one.
WHO SHOULD READ: Sherlock Holmes fans, Dresden Files fans, historical fantasy fans
MY RATING: Four out of Five murders to solve

Book Review: Bird Box

TITLE: Bird Box
AUTHOR: Josh Malerman
CATEGORY: Adult
GENRE: Dystopian
PUBLISHED: May 13th, 2014
PREMISE: A woman tries to survive in a world where you can't look up because if you do, there are monsters who will make you violent.
MY REVIEW: I think it's now safe to say that dystopians have caught on to the adult fiction section. So, maybe now we can stop accusing YA of only being dystopians? Sorry, that's just a thing that keeps being said lately that drives me bananas.
This book is your typical set up for a dystopian world where everyone is in danger. In fact, it reminds me an AWFUL lot of The Walking Dead. It's not a knock off though. Instead of zombies, there are beings who cause mass violence. No one actually sees these beings, they just know that if you look up and see them that you'll go homicidal and then kill yourself. The result is a very creepy survival type story.
This one was mostly good for the creep factor. Malerman is excellent at building suspense because it is a major page-turner. Story wise itself....average for dystopian thrillers. But a very well done average at least. This author is one to keep an eye on in the future. King, watch your back.
WHO SHOULD READ: Stephan King fans, Walking Dead fans, dystopian fans
MY RATING: Four out of Five evil birds

Book Review: Salt and Storm

TITLE: Salt and Storm
AUTHOR: Kendall Kulper
PUBLISHED: September 23rd, 2014
CATEGORY: YA
GENRE: Historical Fantasy
PREMISE: A young witch tries to embrace her destiny against her mother's wishes.
MY REVIEW: This was such a good debut. In fact, I think it's among my top ten of the year. It helped that the author did historical fantasy. My favorite sub-genre, because there's so much you can do with it.
It also did not follow all the typical YA rules. There's no love triangle, the main character goes through actual development, it doesn't make everything black and white and there's a dark twist at the end that I think took some guts to do, but the author stuck to it and that impressed me. Since it's not the typical YA, I imagine this won't be everyone's favorite and that's why there are such mixed reviews on Goodreads.
But personally, I thought this was a pretty solid and very creative debut. Kulper is one to keep an eye on in the future, if this her debut, I can't wait to see what she comes up with next.
WHO SHOULD READ: historical fantasy fans, Gemma Doyle Trilogy fans
MY RATING: Four and a half out of Five ships gone to sea

Note to readers: There will be quite a few reviews over the next few days as I'm playing review catch-up till the end of the year. Along with that, I'll be doing my favorites of the year lists from Christmas on until New Years Eve, where I'll finish off with my book goals for 2015. Then it's on to a new book year! Always exciting. I already have a few Galleys waiting to be read on my Kindle.

Book Review: Snow Like Ashes

TITLE: Snow Like Ashes
Book 1 in the Snow Like Ashes Trilogy
AUTHOR: Sara Raasch
PUBLISHED: October 14th, 2014
CATEGORY: YA
GENRE: Fantasy
PREMISE: In another world, a girl helps a resistance movement and discovers secrets about her past.
MY REVIEW: I have...mixed feelings about this one. There are things I liked about it and things I honestly could have done without. For the most part it was a decent debut...but I could tell it was a debut. It could have stood a lot of editing/world info/less telling instead of showing.
Then there's the ever dreaded love triangle which again: dragged down an otherwise okay book. Seriously authors: if you don't need a love triangle, DON'T PUT ONE IN. There's a damn good reason people are tired of them right now. I liked the imagination of the world, the end had some good twists, and there were some character feels here and there.
The book wasn't a total wash. I just feel like it could have been ten times better with lots of polishing.
WHO SHOULD READ: YA fantasy fans Dragon King Chronicles fans
MY RATING: Three and a half out of Five could have been better sighs

Book Review: Evil Librarian

TITLE: Evil Librarian
AUTHOR: Michelle Knudsen
PUBLISHED: September 9th, 2014
CATEGORY: YA
GENRE: Urban Fantasy, Demons
PREMISE: A girl discovers her librarian is a demon and is slowly taking over the school.
MY REVIEW: I'll be honest, I mostly picked up this book because of the title. Awesome title is awesome and has a great hook. Who wouldn't want to read a book about an evil librarian? Come on. Plus, it describes the book perfectly. It's about a girl who discovers her librarian is evil. Straightforward and to the point title.
The humor of the title also extends to the book and it's pretty much why I enjoyed this book. It's very clearly meant to be a fun urban fantasy romp and fun urban fantasy romp it is. It never asks you to take it seriously (so I don't particularly understand half the reviews I've seen complaining about every little thing) and is just all around FUN.
If you're looking for a urban fantasy that is fun, I definitely recommend this one.
WHO SHOULD READ: Buffy fans, urban fantasy fans looking for a fun time
MY RATING: Four out of Five librarians hiding dark secrets

Book Review: Loop

TITLE: Loop
Book 1 in a new series
AUTHOR: Karen Akins
PUBLISHED: October 21rst, 2014
CATEGORY: YA
GENRE: Sci-fi, Time Travel
PREMISE: A girl who time travels gets into trouble in the past and that in turn, effects her future.
MY REVIEW: Time travel books tend to be hit or miss with me. That especially includes YA time travel books. This one....as always, I didn't take the method of time travel seriously at all (this time travel gene trend needs to END. I blame Time Traveler's Wife). But other then that sigh inducing aspect, the story itself was rather good.
The main character is likable, the romance...okay, but nothing special. But at least the guy wasn't a douche. What was interesting to me mostly was the mystery surrounding the mother and the time loop butterfly effects going on. I like when authors actually use the time travel to make a good story and don't just use it for romance purposes and this author did actually do that.
It's not a debut of epic proportions, but this is a perfectly decent debut. I look forward to the rest of this series.
WHO SHOULD READ: Time Traveler's Wife fans, Tempest Trilogy fans, time travel romance fans
MY RATING: Four out of Five time travelers wreaking havoc

Many thanks to the publishers for the Net Galley of this book.

Book Review: Stitching Snow

TITLE: Stitching Snow
AUTHOR: R. C. Lewis
PUBLISHED: October 14, 2014
CATEGORY: YA
GENRE: Retelling, Science Fiction
PREMISE: A retelling of Snow White set in space.
MY REVIEW: First off, I'm not going to do that thing people have been doing, which is compare this to the Lunar Chronicles. I understand the temptation, but I think we really need to step away from this habit of comparing new books to books that have already gained a following. I love Lunar Chronicles, I do and that's the problem. Because when you love something like that, and you read this new thing and compare the two, of COURSE it's not going to measure up. So, this review is not based on how this is not as good as Lunar Chronicles.
As a story on its own, this is a decent debut. The author twists the familiar story of Snow White a bit in some unexpected ways. It's very readable and Essie is a fun heroine. I wish the world was a bit more developed, but it's developed just enough that you get the gist of it at least.
Is it as good as Lunar Chronicles? No. Does that mean it's a bad book? No. It's a perfectly decent read, especially if you want more sci-fi retellings. Which I do, hint hint publishers.
WHO SHOULD READ: Lunar Chronicles fans (who aren't going to find it lacking just because it's not Lunar Chronicles), retelling fans, Snow White fans
MY RATING: Three and a half out of Five badass princesses

Many thanks to the publishers for the Net Galley of this book.

Book Review: Sekret

TITLE: Sekret
Book 1 in the new Sekret series
AUTHOR: Lindsay Smith
PUBLISHED: April 1rst, 2014
GENRE: Historical Fiction/Paranormal
PREMISE: A girl with paranormal gifts in 1960s Russia gets caught and dragged into politics...
MY REVIEW: Ever kick yourself for not finding a book sooner? That is me and this book. Somehow I totally forgot about this hidden gem that I made note of early in 2014 but forgot by the time April came around. I blame all the fabulous spring reads that were out during that time. Luckily I've started going back over my 2014 book list and found this one.
Sekret is a good paranormal book that reminds me a lot of The Summoning by Kelley Armstrong. That is not a bad thing, I loved that book. Basically it's teens in Russia who have telepathic gifts and the KGB uses those gifts to help with the Cold War. It's nice seeing a book NOT set in the USA or Europe for once. It's also nice seeing a book go into the history that no one really likes to talk about. Probably because we did just as much shady stuff during the Cold War as Russia did. I can't help but notice whenever there's an even that makes the US look less then stellar, we don't talk about it much (see WWI, where we took forever to get to the war, Vietnam/Korea)
While the romance angle was a bit whatever and seemed thrown in there just because it's YA, the rest of the book is fun and interesting and a great ride. I can't wait to read the next book.
WHO SHOULD READ: Darkest Powers Trilogy fans, Russian history fans
MY RATING: Four out of Five spy organizations

Book Review: Midnight Thief

TITLE: Midnight Thief
Book 1 in a new series
AUTHOR: Livia Blackburne
PUBLISHED: July 8th, 2014
CATEGORY: YA
GENRE: Fantasy
PREMISE: A thief gets more then she bargained for when she joins an assassins guild.
MY REVIEW: The YA fantasy scene has been pretty awesome this summer. This is yet another highly entertaining and enjoyable fantasy that was just a delight to read.
I will say though, that the summary the publishers give...isn't really what's going on here. Because they try to make it sound like Kyra joins the guild because sexy guy in charge and oh...love triangle shenanigans. Now, I get why they would try to go with that angle. For all that YA readers whine and moan about love triangles, that is what sells. Whenever a book comes along that DOESN'T focus on romance...it's usually pretty much ignored unless book critics get a hold of it. So...I see why they would try to hint at a love triangle that's not really there. But I personally feel that does the book a disservice. Because this is a pretty awesome enough story that you don't need to focus on the romance factor in order to sell it (there is a romance factor...a teeny weeny one that doesn't come into play until the last couple of chapters).
So please, don't judge this book by its poor summary. It's much better then it sounds. The ending was a bit rushed, but overall, this was a very solid and entertaining debut. I can't wait to read the next one.
WHO SHOULD READ: Tamora Pierce fans, fantasy fans
MY RATING: Four out of Five thieves in the night

Book Review: Gates of Thread and Stone

TITLE: Gates of Thread and Stone
Book 1 in the Gates of Thread and Stone series
AUTHOR: Lori M. Lee
PUBLISHED: April 5th, 2014
CATEGORY: YA
GENRE: Fantasy
PREMISE: A girl with the ability to bend time goes on an adventure when her brother disappears.
MY REVIEW: Has there been a lot of new YA fantasy books this year or is that just me? I am in no way complaining. Fantasy is my first love always. I'm all for some new blood in fantasy. Especially if it's books like this.
This one was just full of all sorts of things I love. Interesting world-building (some of it was a little wacky, but it never got out of control wacky, so we're good), complicated heroine, no forced love triangle, and plot twists at the end. I wanted a fun adventure when I picked it up, and it delivered.
This was a all around solid debut. True, the romance was a little blah as it usually is in these things, but it's tolerable at least. What makes this book is the plot twists, the enjoyable spunky main character, and the interesting world.
WHO SHOULD READ: Fantasy fans, Tamora Pierce fans,
MY RATING: Four out of Five time loops

Book Review: Vivian Divine is Dead

TITLE: Vivian Divine is Dead
AUTHOR: Lauren Sabel
Book 1 in a series?
PUBLISHED: June 3rd, 2014
CATEGORY: YA
GENRE: Mystery
PREMISE: A starlets life is threatened and she goes on the run.
MY REVIEW: This was...interesting. Now, I don't at all think it's as bad as the reviews on Goodreads are making it out to be. But as I've said before, Goodreads reviews are to be taken with a grain of salt.
The mystery part of this is pretty solid. There are plot holes and slight plausibility issues. But...it's a thriller, most thrillers aren't exactly realistic. The main character is interesting, even if she has the tendency to whine a bit. But in her defense, she has lots of reason to whine. It's not like Bella Swan, her life really does stink at the moment. I can forgive character whining if there's reason. But there's some food for thought in it. For instance, it actually addresses privilege. That was nice to see. Most YA novels with rich main characters tend to ignore that whole issue (I'm looking at you PLL).
So...there are a few issues here. But for a debut, it's not that bad. Certainly not as bad as people are making it out to be. At the very least, it's worth a library check out.
WHO SHOULD READ: Mystery fans, PLL fans
MY RATING: Three and a half out of Five starlets running scared

Book Review: Illusive

TITLE: Illusive
Book 1 in the Illusive series
AUTHOR: Emily Lloyd-Jones
PUBLISHED: July 15th, 2014
CATEGORY: YA
GENRE: Dystopian
PREMISE: In the future, a girl with powers is a thief who gets caught up in a plot that's much larger then she realized...
MY REVIEW: Fair warning: I loved the hell out of this. So...this review is biased on my part. Literally the only thing I can think of to say about it, is that originality wise, it reminds me of a lot of other things. I got Darkest Minds/Oceans Eleven/X-Men/Heist Society vibes through out it. But even with all of that, it still managed to be entertaining as hell and kept me interested.
The writing is nice and simple with great dialogue. There's interesting character dynamics all over the place. Then there's the interesting dystopian world that actually kind of makes sense! Yes, people getting powers from medicine, would probably never happen. But the author roles with it in a way that's rather believable and interesting (and does the smart thing by not trying to use faulty science to explain how it's totally possible).
The result is a fun and entertaining debut with a ending that is satisfying but also makes me want more. This looks like it's going to be a fun series. I'm seriously scratching my head about why more people aren't talking about it. It's perfect for those of us who are missing Gallagher Girls/Heist Society (seriously, Carter MORE BOOKS, where are you?).
WHO SHOULD READ: Heist Society fans, Ocean's Eleven fans, X-Men fans, Darkest Minds fans
MY RATING: Four out of Five Hello Kitty bobble-heads (read it, it'll make sense later)

Book Review: The Fire Wish

TITLE: The Fire Wish
Book 1 in The Jinni Wars
AUTHOR: Amber Lough
PUBLISHED: July 22nd, 2014
CATEGORY: YA
GENRE: Fantasy
PREMISE: A girl captures a jinni and makes a wish which causes her and the jinni to switch places.
MY REVIEW: So far, I've had good luck with some of the new YA fantasies this year. This is just one of the latest. It's creative and just outright entertaining.
I will give, the romance...not the greatest. It's tolerable, but it's also insta-love. But the author is thankfully not emphasizing the romance much. More of its focus is on the politics/world building as it should be. Because that's where the interesting stuff is. I love how creative the author is with this world, but it's never the out of control creative. It actually makes sense.
So ignore the flawed romance, instead focus on the interesting world, the good entertaining plot, and good female characters. I for one, can't wait for the sequel.
WHO SHOULD READ: fans of Aladdin, those looking for diversity in their fantasy, fantasy fans
MY RATING: Four out of Five magic lamps

Book Review: Otherbound

TITLE: Otherbound
AUTHOR: Corinne Duyvis
PUBLISHED: June 17th, 2014
CATEGORY: YA
GENRE: Fantasy
PREMISE: A boy gets drawn into another world whenever he closes his eyes...
MY REVIEW: I think this is more then likely one of my top ten books of the year. Please keep in mind, I haven't gotten around to Gods and Monsters or Dangerous Creatures yet (I need to finish Dance of Dragons and many others first, my TBR pile is kind of sad right now...). But it is a good bet that this is going to be ONE of my favorite debuts of the year. I'm hard pressed to find anything I didn't like about it. Like, the only thing I can think of that would be a problem is that it's rather dark, so if that's not your thing, then you probably won't get into it.
It was well written. It has complex characters. It not only has diversity in abundance, but it has characters with disabilities AND LGBT representation. It has a entertaining fast-paced plot that unlike Dangerous, never gets confusing. I was able to follow it and it was creative! Usually in a YA book, I can find something similar to something else but with this one...I couldn't do that. Other then if you love fantasy with diversity then this is so your book.
Frankly, this book was made of awesome. It doesn't LOOK like there's going to be a sequel which makes me sad. But the book is so satisfying in the ending that it honestly doesn't need a sequel. However, if the author decided to do one in the future, I wouldn't complain about it. I hope this author sticks around. If this is her debut, then we're in for some good stuff in the future.
WHO SHOULD READ: fantasy fans, anyone inclined to pick it up, people who don't mind dark fantasy books
MY RATING: Five out of Five book squees

Book Review: The Falconer

TITLE: The Falconer
The Falconer series Book 1
AUTHOR: Elizabeth May
PUBLISHED: May 6th, 2014
CATEGORY: YA
GENRE: Historical Fantasy, Faeries
PREMISE: In the eighteen hundreds in Scotland, a young heiress kills fae as revenge...
MY REVIEW: Anyone who has figured out my taste from this blog probably already suspected I would love this. You were right: I did. While I admit the world building is a wee bit shaky, the storytelling, characters, and idea are all so much fun that it doesn't really matter in the long run.
This is frankly just an entertaining romp and I certainly don't mind the ride. Heck, I didn't even mind the love triangle bit, it was that much fun of a read. I can forgive shaky bits here and there if your book is entertaining and this book was definitely that.
So best book ever? No. But definitely a fun ride if you're into historical fantasy/steampunk bits which as we all know, I am. Also, the faerie sidekick in this was the BEST. Seriously, he stole the whole book.
WHO SHOULD READ: Steampunk fans, MI fans
MY RATING: Four out of Five wise-cracking faeries who are totally laughing at you

Book Review: Half Bad

TITLE: Half Bad
Book 1 in the Half Bad Trilogy
AUTHOR: Sally Green
PUBLISHED: March 4rth, 2014
CATEGORY: YA
GENRE: Urban Fantasy, Witches/Wizards
PREMISE: In hidden magic world, a boy born to a good witch and a bad warlock survives in a society that hates him...
MY REVIEW: I have really mixed feelings about this. The writing is good, I'll give the author that. It also was a interesting idea to explore.
But...I feel like that's all it was: an interesting idea. I'm not sure if it ever really got off the ground because whenever I go to try and think about the actual details of the world....I draw a blank. In a fantasy setting...that's not good. All I can tell you for sure is that everyone hates Nathan the main character. Because that was drilled into our heads. Over. And. Over. And. Over again. It got to honestly kind of ridiculous levels. I get it author, everyone hates Nathan. Can we move on to the plot please?
There is a plot...of sorts. It's just really slow. That, combined with the constant everyone hating Nathan stuff...kind of made this book a chore for me to get through despite loving the hell out of the writing style. So I say check this one out of the library first, because I think if you like it will honestly come down to personal taste.
WHO SHOULD READ: Urban Fantasy fans, dark Urban fantasy fans
MY RATING: Three and a half out of Five warlocks getting a raw deal

Review: The Well's End

TITLE: The Well's End
Book 1 in a new series?
AUTHOR: Seth Fishman
PUBLISHED: February 25th, 2014
CATEGORY: YA
GENRE: Er...Sci-Fi I think..., kind of mystery
PREMISE: A girl's life is turned upside down when her school is put under guard by soldiers when the adults start rapidly aging.
MY REVIEW: This was...an interesting read. It starts off strangely and honestly...ends strangely. I don't really know what to call it either. Is it dystopian, sci-fi, what? I think it could have been more focused sometimes. For instance there are a couple of scenes in the beginning that were totally not necessary. Actually, the romance between the main character and the new guy wasn't even needed because the stuff going on was interesting enough without that.
Character wise...it was okay. The book seemed more focused on the stuff going on then on characters but I will give the author credit because he did try.
There are a few ups and downs that are typical of a first novel. But all in all it was a good book. It doesn't look like a sequel has been announced yet...but with that ending...there kind of needs to be one because it left in a rather awkward place.
WHO SHOULD READ: Um...no idea really, Dystopian fans I guess...
MY RATING: Three and a half out of Five wells

Book Review: Tsarina

TITLE: Tsarina
AUTHOR: J. Nelle Patrick
PUBLISHED: February 27th, 2014
CATEGORY: YA
GENRE: Historical Fantasy
PREMISE: During the fall of the Romanovs, a girl holds the countries' future in her hands as she discovers the secrets of a magical fabergie egg.
MY REVIEW: I'll be honest, I liked this one mostly because it's got all those things I love: flawed heroine, historical fantasy, lovely historical detail, no douchebag boyfriends. It was just a nice read.
Is it a must read? Maybe not. But if you're a fan of the historical fantasy like me, I would definitely give this vastly underrated book a look. Also, it's kind of fitting since we're hearing so much about Russia right now and there's just so much about Russian history that's really interesting, but hardly anyone ever talks about.
So, this was just a nice pleasant read. There wasn't anything frustrating about it, it was entertaining. I enjoyed it. I don't know if there's going to be a sequel, but the ending kind of gives me hope that there will be.
WHO SHOULD READ: fans of Russian history, historical fantasy fans
MY RATING: Four out of Five magical eggs

Book Review: Alienated

TITLE: Alienated
Book 1 in a new trilogy
AUTHOR: Melissa Landers
PUBLISHED: February 4rth, 2014
CATEGORY: YA
GENRE: Science Fiction, Romance
PREMISE: Cara hosts one of the first alien exchange students and finds her world changed forever...
MY REVIEW: It's not very often a book can pleasantly surprise me, but this book definitely did. Probably because due to the focusing on the starcrossed romance part in the marketing, I honestly wasn't expecting much from it when I went into it. I won't lie to you: there is a romance angle and yes, it's cheesy. But this book actually has a lot more to offer besides the star crossed lovers bit.
The world building is interesting. It takes a good look at what would happen if aliens DID make contact on earth. It talks about it in a interesting way too. Plus, for once, I understand why an author does multiple POVs and for once, I'm not stuck wondering who is who. Because the alien's POV actually does feel and sound like an alien stuck on a planet where he's an outsider. Granted, like all these sci-fi books that use aliens as a metaphor to talk about race, I can't help but wonder why we can't use actual PoC characters to talk about race (it doesn't help that all the aliens in question are apparently white) but that's a personal issue on my part. I do at least appreciate that the author didn't shy away from talking about it, even if whether or not she succeeded in making the point, is highly in question.
So...yes, the book does have a cheesy romance in it. But I can forgive a cheesy romance that has some sort of interesting bits to the story and this book definitely has some interesting bits. Personally, I'm looking forward to the next book which promises to have more of the alien world and I'm really interested in seeing that.
WHO SHOULD READ: Science Fiction fans, starcrossed lover stories fans
MY RATING: Four out of Five culture shocks

Book Review: The Tyrant's Daughter

TITLE: The Tyrant's Daughter

AUTHOR: J.C. Carleson

CATEGORY: YA

GENRE: Realistic Fiction

PREMISE: The daughter of a dictator goes into hiding with her family in the United States...

MY REVIEW: This was an interesting one. I'm honestly not sure how to review it. I don't kid myself into thinking this would ever be a commercial friendly sort of read. I highly doubt it's one of those that many readers will actively go looking for unless that happens to be what they were into/in the mood for. 

If you do however, like politically motivated books that talk about issues like this, I would definitely rec this one. It ends a bit abruptly and sometimes is all over the place with the ideas, but it's nice seeing an author take risks and talk about subjects like these.

I can't tell you how accurate its portrayal is (I'm not Muslim, so I don't know what is accurate). But I do think this one is a good one for getting discussions going, which I think is ultimately what the author was trying to achieve.

WHO SHOULD READ: Realistic Fiction fans

MY RATING: Three and a half out of Five hmms