Book Review: Annihilation

TITLE: Annihilation
Book 1 in the Southern Beach Trilogy
AUTHOR: Jeff Vandermeer
PUBLISHED: 2014
CATEGORY: Adult
GENRE: Science Fiction
PREMISE: A group of scientists get sent on a mission to a mysterious wilderness that society is still trying to explain...
MY REVIEW: This was...an interesting book. I'm not sure how good it is (opinion on that seems to be wide and varied). But it is definitely interesting. If you're into battles and whatnot, then this is not going to be your book. It's a  very slow moving and more psychological and atmospheric sort of sci-fi book.
I personally kind of liked it. I think it ended very abruptly. So you basically have to have the second one right away. It does read very quickly. My favorite part of it was how atmospheric it was. There's this building sense of dread throughout it that is used very well. So it's kind of like a sci-fi A Quiet Place.
This is one of those things that I suspect is not for everyone. You either like this sort of book, or you just get bored with it. I have not seen the movie at all, but from what I understand they kind of butchered it. So I probably never will see it. But I will be picking up the next two books in the future sometime.
WHO SHOULD READ: fans of Bird Box, fans of A Quiet Place, those who like more psychological sci-fi
MY RATING: Four out of Five wtf plants

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: A Thousand Pieces of You

TITLE: A Thousand Pieces of You
Book 1 in the Firebird series
AUTHOR: Claudia Gray
PUBLISHED: November 4rth, 2014
CATEGORY: YA
GENRE: Science-Fiction, Romance
PREMISE: A girl jumps realities to find her father's killer.
MY REVIEW: There are some authors out there who maybe aren't the hugest well known authors in the world, but who are constantly churning out satisfying reads every year. Claudia Gray is one of those authors. I am always up for a Gray book because I know what I'll get with her. Even if some her ideas don't totally work out, she manages to entertain me along the way to keep reading.
This series opener is no exception. There are some shaky things in it. I also am not wild about the romance in it that kind of took over the far more interesting parallel world jumping plot. I also raise my eyebrow at the complete lack of female friends that the main character has. I mean, there were a few other female characters there, but the main character barely spent any time with them so I don't think they count as friends.
But on the whole, the book was a harmless entertaining romp and exactly what I expected it to be. So I'm not complaining TOO loudly. It's just not Gray's best work, that's all.
WHO SHOULD READ: Claudia Gray fans, parallel universe fans
MY RATING: Three and a half out of Five parallel lives

Book Review: The Name of the Blade

TITLE: The Name of the Blade
Book 1 in a new series
AUTHOR: Zoe Marriott
PUBLISHED: November 11th, 2014
CATEGORY: YA
GENRE: Urban Fantasy
PREMISE: A girl borrows her family's ancient heirloom and finds that it actually is apart of a ancient power struggle between mythological creatures.
MY REVIEW: I've never read Zoe Marriott before. I've been meaning to for AGES now. I've heard really good things. But stuff always came up. I figured her newest book was a good place to start though.
Turns out, I should have picked her stuff up sooner, her books are exactly my taste. At least if this book is anything to go by. It was just plain FUN. I will say the premise reminded me a bit of a old (really underrated) anime called Jubei-Chan, which was about a girl who picks up an eye-patch that houses the soul of an ancient warrior. This however, takes that idea in a much different direction then that series went. But again, it is just as fun. There's so much snark and the main character is likable, as are her friends.
In short, this book is a good time, especially if you're an anime fan because there are various nods to anime throughout it.
WHO SHOULD READ: Zoe Marriott fans, urban fantasy fans, anime fans
MY RATING: Four out of Five katanas

Book Review: The Young Elites

TITLE: The Young Elites
Book 1 in a new Trilogy
AUTHOR: Marie Lu
PUBLISHED: October 7th, 2014
CATEGORY: YA
GENRE: Fantasy
PREMISE: In a world that despises her kind, a young girl with powers gets taken in by a rebel group.
MY REVIEW: I admit, it took me awhile to fall hard for Legend. I actually didn't really get into it until the second book when it became clear that Lu was not going to be following the typical YA dystopian formula. It became more then Hunger Games version 2. million. This trilogy however, I love right off the bat.
The setting is great. There's lots of world building, complicated characters, and nothing is black and white. The main character herself is not easy to like and I personally love that. I'm of the firm opinion that a character does not have to be likable to be a good character (this is especially true for female characters who seem to get disliked no matter how likable they are). Adelina is a damn good character. Honestly, all of the characters are. I do wish some of the side characters in the Young Elites group got a little more development (the guy who seemed to hate her for no particular reason right off the bat for instance) but that's a minor issue I have with an otherwise very well done and plot twist, page-turning book.
It's not often a YA book series manages to surprise me with where it goes, and this one surprised me. Pleasantly so. I can't wait to see what happens next.
WHO SHOULD READ: Legend trilogy fans, Tamora Pierce fans, X-Men fans
MY RATING: Four and a half out of Five shady politicians

Book Review: Talon

TITLE: Talon
Book 1 in the Talon series
AUTHOR: Julie Kagawa
PUBLISHED: October 28th, 2014
CATEGORY: YA
GENRE: Urban Fantasy, Shifters, Dragons
PREMISE: A young dragon experiences freedom for the first time all while not knowing she's falling for a dragon hunter...
MY REVIEW: Kagawa never fails to disappoint. Somehow she manages to take tired cliches (sorry, but the shifter dragon thing has been done several times, it's not new) and put fresh spins on them.
Are there some tropes here? Yes. Do the tropes hinder the story in any way? Nope, not really. Yet again, Kagawa manages to weave an entertaining but also kind of thoughtful yarn. This is not an easy thing to do and I get impressed every time I read a new book of hers about how she manages this feat. Kagawa, what's your secret? All aspiring writers want to know.
Basically, if you're a Kagawa fan, this book is for you. It's got her imagination running through it (no, seriously, I love her imagination) and is entertaining throughout. If you're in the mood for dragons, this is your new series to check out while waiting for the new Seraphina book (four months and counting!).
WHO SHOULD READ: Firelight series fans, Julie Kagawa fans, dragons fans
MY RATING: Four out of Five claws

Book Review: Maplecroft

TITLE: Maplecroft
Book 1 in the Borden Dispatches
AUTHOR: Cherie Priest
PUBLISHED: September 2nd, 2014
CATEGORY: Adult
GENRE: Historical Fantasy
PREMISE: The story of Lizzie Borden is not what we think it was: her parents were murdered because they were possessed by an evil.
MY REVIEW: I admit, I mostly picked this up because the idea sounded clever. It was. It was a twist on a familiar tale and I always like it when authors take events in history and go "well what-if".
That said...I could have done without all the POVs. Probably could have left it in the sister's POV and be done with it. We didn't need all these doctor men chiming in. Especially because that really slowed down the pace. I found myself skimming their chapters to be honest, because I didn't feel they added anything I really needed to know.
So, other then too many POVs and slow pace, this was an interesting take on Lizzie Borden.
WHO SHOULD READ: horror fans, Cherie Priest fans
MY RATING: Four out of Five axes

Book Review: Firebug

TITLE: Firebug
Book 1 in the Firebug series
AUTHOR: Lish McBride
PUBLISHED: September 23rd, 2014
CATEGORY: YA
GENRE: Urban Fantasy
PREMISE: A girl who can start fires with her mind tries to pull out of the mafia that she's tied too.
MY REVIEW: I have never read Lish McBride's work before this. Therefore, going into this I had no expectations because I had no experience with this author's work before. So, that said....I'm not particularly impressed.
The book is not horrible. I love the set-up of the world. The plot is fun. It just...reminds so much of many YA urban fantasy books that I've read before. The magical mafia thing, for instance, reminded me of the Curse Workers (and the Curse Workers was better thought out). The fire starter idea is not really anything new, it's been done in several series. What helped was the characters, except even the characters were problematic for me, because of the holy slut shaming Batman. Yes, that's right, the author did the whole "girly girls are the enemies folks" and I cannot go on enough about how over that trope I am. The main character was cool to me, up until she took one look at the blonde girl she was double-dating with and decided then and there she must be a slut. How did she decide this? Because she's blonde and had the nerve to wear make up and nice clothes to a date. All of this, without having ONE full conversation with her, or knowing anything about her background. STOP THIS AUTHORS. PLEASE. It's shitty. Girls get torn down enough as it is, do you have to encourage girls to tear each other down too? No, the girl being super girly and liking boys does not make it okay.
So...this one was a bit of a mixed bag for me. I liked the set up, and dialogue, and plot. But it just wasn't really that original and I wanted to scream at all the slut shaming. So...mixed feelings about this one.
WHO SHOULD READ: Lish McBride fans, urban fantasy fans, Curse Workers fans
MY RATING: Three and a half out of Five mafias

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: Trial by Fire

TITLE: Trial by Fire
Book 1 in the World Walking Trilogy
AUTHOR: Josephine Angelini
PUBLISHED: September 2nd, 2014
CATEGORY: YA
GENRE: Urban Fantasy
PREMISE: A girl gets pulled into a parallel universe where magic is every day and her other self rules supreme.
MY REVIEW: Angelini's books are ultimate guilty pleasures for me. I concede that they aren't that challenging or even that original in places. I also concede that the world building can sometimes leave a lot to be desired.
But damn it, she knows how to spin a good yarn. All the little issues tend to go by the wayside because you get engrossed in the fast paced plot and next thing you know, you've already finished the book a day later. I will warn that the first fifty pages are a bit of a struggle because that's the bulk of the teen melodrama. Once you get past that to when she gets into the parallel world is when it starts to get good.
In short, this was a fast and entertaining read, much like the trilogy she did before. If you liked her Starcrossed Trilogy the you'll probably like this. If you didn't for whatever reason, then this probably is not going to be for you.
WHO SHOULD READ: Starcrossed Trilogy fans, parallel universe book fans
MY RATING: Four out of Five rulers being shady

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: 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: Of Metal and Wishes

TITLE: Of Metal and Wishes
Book 1 in a new series
AUTHOR: Sarah Fine
PUBLISHED: August 5th, 2014
CATEGORY: YA
GENRE: Fantasy
PREMISE: Wen makes a wish to the factory ghost after being humiliated and learns that time honored lesson of being careful of what you wish for.
MY REVIEW: This was....interesting. I'm honestly not sure how I feel about it. I did like it. But I also feel like the world wasn't really thought through. But I'm hoping that's because this was set in one place and that next book, we get traveling.
I also can't ignore that a large part of this plot was pretty much Phantom of the Opera, reworked a little. Maybe that was deliberate, I don't know. But it does make me a little less impressed with it then I want to be.
Honestly, this one's kind of a mixed bag. There's some definite good, but I feel like there's a lot that could have been worked on more. I'm just hoping that the potential I see is expanded upon in the next book.
WHO SHOULD READ: Fantasy fans
MY RATING: Three and a half out of Five stalker ghosts

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: Dark Metropolis

TITLE: Dark Metropolis
Dark Metropolis Book 1
AUTHOR: Jaclyn Dolamore
PUBLISHED: June 17th, 2014
CATEGORY: YA
GENRE: Historical Fantasy
PREMISE: In a 1930s full of magic, Thea's friend disappears and she is drawn into a dangerous plot...
MY REVIEW: I'm sure I've mentioned this before, but I really like Dolamore's stuff. This is an author with imagination when it comes to ideas. Romance wise...she's not always the best. But world-building, plot wise? Sign me the hell up. What's even better is all her books are different. Granted, this one did remind me a lot of the first Magic Under Glass book.
But it still developed into something different that I wasn't expecting. I love this 1930s magic world. It's vivid and creative. I could picture everything easily. Like most of her books, Dolamore's characters aren't black and white either. They aren't the best people in the world. In some cases, they're blind to the world around them (like Freddie) and sometimes they're selfish. They're flawed characters and interesting.
I will say, the ending was a bit rushed. But it led up to a satisfying lead in to the next book. I really wish more people would give Dolamore a chance. Oh well. I'll just be over here, fangirling by myself.
WHO SHOULD READ: Dolamore fans, Historical fantasy fans
MY RATING: Four out of Five art deco restaurants

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: Hexed

TITLE: Hexed
Book 1 in the new Hexed series
AUTHOR: Michelle Krys
PUBLISHED: June 10th, 2014
CATEGORY: YA
GENRE: Urban Fantasy, Witches
PREMISE: Indigo learns that she is a witch and that people are hunting her...
MY REVIEW: I'm sure I've mentioned it before, but I love witches. Witches and ghosts are my two top supernatural kind of creatures. But witches especially so I will read pretty much anything that is about witches. Hence why I picked this book up in the first place.
I won't lie, most of it is the usual urban fantasy YA stuff. There's a girl who discovers she's unusual. It's due to family history. Mean popular girl and so on. So, groundbreaking, this is not. But it is pretty darn fun. Mostly due to Paige and Bishop, the two best characters in the whole thing. I warmed up to Indigo after awhile, but I still didn't love her nearly as much as I loved Paige.
In short, this was basically a fun romp with witches. If that's your thing, I wholeheartedly suggest you pick it up.
WHO SHOULD READ: Mortal Instrument fans, Hex Hall fans, witch fans
MY RATING: Four out of Five
A Net Galley was provided for me by the publisher in exchange for a review. I'm sorry it took me awhile to get to this guys, I'm a wee bit behind on books right now.

Book Review: Murder at the Breakers

TITLE: Murder at the Breakers
Book 1 in the Gilded Newport Mystery series
AUTHOR: Alyssa Maxwell
PUBLISHED: March 2014
CATEGORY: Adult
GENRE: Historical Mystery
PREMISE: When her brother is accused of murder, Emma Cross goes on the case to clear his name.
MY REVIEW: This is one of the latest historical mystery series (a genre near and dear to my heart) and it was a fun one.
Sure, it didn't change the genre or anything. But if you're in the mood for a female sleuth who does actual sleuthing and doesn't just dance around with two men while sort of maybe trying to solve a mystery, this book is for you. Not that Emma doesn't have the love interests. She absolutely does. But it's nice in the fact that it doesn't take over the whole book. Much of this is devoted to the mystery as it should be.
This was just a plain good solid mystery. If you're in the mood for a historical leaning mystery, I definitely would recommend this.
WHO SHOULD READ: Historical Mystery fans
MY RATING: Four out of Five women cleaning up after their wayword brothers