Book: Dance Of Shadows by Yelena Black

Published June 2014 by Bloomsbury Children USA|369 pages

Where I Got It: I own the paperback

Series: Dance Of Shadows #1

Genre: YA Contemporary/Thriller with a hint of Urban Fantasy

What It’s About:

Vanessa has just enrolled in the world-renowned New York Ballet Academy—the same school from which her sister, Margaret, mysteriously disappeared.

Three years later, Vanessa follows in Margaret’s footsteps to find out what happened to her. But when Vanessa lands the role most girls at NYBA would kill for, she ends up trapped in a sinister spiral of secrets that go beyond the dance world. Because someone—or something—wants to use Vanessa for more than her talent. Is she doomed to relive her sister’s strange fate?

Riveting and sexy, Dance of Shadows is a psychological thriller you won’t be able to resist.

What I Thought:

I’m not sure what to think about Dance Of Shadows.  I was definitely intrigued by a girl going to the same school her older sister Margaret disappeared from, but it wasn’t as much as a thriller as I thought it would be.

I know going to NYBA sets in motion the entire book, but I’m still surprised her parents would let her go after her sister left the school mysteriously.  Her dad seems fine with it, while her mom doesn’t, but…I’m sorry, if I were a parent (which I’m not, to be clear), I don’t think I’d let my 2nd daughter go to that school.  I know we know why Margaret disappeared, and the parents don’t, and that Margaret and Vanessa are 2 different people, and that just because Margaret left doesn’t mean Vanessa will, but I’d still be really hesitant to let my daughter go to that school.

The mystery is unexpected, and I liked it, and how Vanessa and her friends try to figure it out.  While I liked the mystery, it didn’t really have the suspense I was hoping for, nor was it as creepy as I was expecting, considering how it ended.

I didn’t like her relationship with Zep at all- it felt really forced, and while I sort of (but not really) understand why, it felt really fake. And while she needs to ignore Justin’s warnings for things to happen, it was still irritating!  You’d think she’d be more cautious after what happened with Margaret, but apparently not.  The characters didn’t really stand out to me, and even though I finished it a couple of days ago,  I couldn’t even tell you their names, or anything about them (other than their love of ballet, but that’s to be expected).

I did like how the one dance was described, and it was described so well that it makes me wonder if Black was ever a ballerina. It really made me want to see that particular dance, because it stands out so much.

My Rating: 

2 stars.  Dance Of Shadows was okay, and I do think it would work well as a stand-alone.  I liked the paranormal elements, but it wasn’t as creepy as I was expecting.

Book: Hungry by H.A. Swain

Published April 2014 by Feiwel & Friends|372 pages

Where I Got It: I own the hardcover!

Series: None

Genre: YA Dystopic/Sci-Fi

What It’s About:

In the future, food is no longer necessary—until Thalia begins to feel something unfamiliar and uncomfortable. She’s hungry.

In Thalia’s world, there is no need for food—everyone takes medication (or “inocs”) to ward off hunger. It should mean there is no more famine, no more obesity, no more food-related illnesses, and no more war. At least that’s what her parents, who work for the company that developed the inocs, say. But when Thalia meets a boy who is part of an underground movement to bring food back, she realizes that most people live a life much different from hers. Worse, Thalia is starting to feel hunger, and so is he—the inocs aren’t working. Together they set out to find the only thing that will quell their hunger: real food.

What I Thought:

When I saw what Hungry was about, I was immediately intrigued.  It’s a world where people have synthetic food that gives you all the nutrients you need, and it’s a really interesting world.  It’s never said outright why or how the world got to the point where everyone had medication that warded off hunger, but based on conversations throughout the book, it was implied that the world was overpopulated, and it led to food shortages, which then led to Thalia’s parents creating the inocs.

It was definitely created with good intentions, but it causes a mutation that causes people to feel hunger- and that’s definitely seen as a bad thing, since there are rehab centers all over the place for it, and Thalia’s really resistant to the idea of being treated for it.

There is something very hi-tech about this world, and while I had a little trouble picturing things at first, I did start picturing things really well.  And while it’s not full-on dystopic, it’s dystopic enough that I would have no problem whatsoever categorizing it there. And that brings me to how everything ended.  It was a pretty slow build-up, and towards the end, it seemed like things started happening really fast, because ending a little bit abruptly.  It appears that this book is a stand-alone, since I can’t find anything about a possible sequel, and yet with how the book ended, it seems like a sequel is very possible.

I don’t how I feel about the possibility of a sequel- it will be interesting to see where things would go if a sequel were to happen, but if it’s a stand-alone, it is pretty open-ended, so if that’s not your thing, keep that in mind if you’re considering this book.

Still, I really like that this a world that I can easily imagine- food becoming more and more scarce as the world’s population increases, and synthetic formulas becoming normal.  It felt pretty realistic, as does the technology.  And the marketing groups and how Thalia’s best friend likes the stuff that’s marketed to her, because why wouldn’t she like them- it makes you think a lot, which is pretty awesome.

Thalia was pretty clueless, and she is pretty sheltered, which means she’s really naive at times (but there are times where she seems to be the only person who’s questioning things).  I think  there are people who while be really annoyed with that, and find it frustrating, but it didn’t bother me because I’m pretty sure I’d react the same way if I were in her shoes.

My Rating: 

3 stars.  I liked it, it makes you think, and it’s an interesting concept, but I didn’t love it.

Book: Dear Mr Knightley by Katherine Reay

Published November 2013 by Nelson, Thomas, Inc

Source/Format: own the e-book

Series: None

Genre: Adult Fiction/Chick Lit/Christian/Inspirational

What It’s About: 

Samantha Moore has always hidden behind the words of others namely, her favorite characters in literature. Now, she will learn to write her own story by giving that story to a complete stranger.

Sam is, to say the least, bookish. An English major of the highest order, her diet has always been Austen, Dickens, and Shakespeare. The problem is, both her prose and conversation tend to be more Elizabeth Bennet than Samantha Moore.

But life for the twenty-three-year-old orphan is about to get stranger than fiction. An anonymous, Dickensian benefactor (calling himself Mr. Knightley) offers to put Sam through Northwestern University s prestigious Medill School of Journalism. There is only one catch: Sam must write frequent letters to the mysterious donor, detailing her progress.

As Sam’s dark memory mingles with that of eligible novelist Alex Powell, her letters to Mr. Knightley become increasingly confessional. While Alex draws Sam into a world of warmth and literature that feels like it’s straight out of a book, old secrets are drawn to light. And as Sam learns to love and trust Alex and herself, she learns once again how quickly trust can be broken.

Reminding us all that our own true character is not meant to be hidden, Reay’s debut novel follows one young woman’s journey as she sheds her protective persona and embraces the person she was meant to become.

What I Thought:

If I could use one phrase to describe Dear Mr Knightley, it would be this:

I don’t care.

I really don’t.  I don’t care enough about Sam or Merrill or Alex or the letters to actually care.  And I definitely don’t care enough about what happened to actually dislike the book.

I disliked Sam so much!  I understand why she clung to books but at the same time, I felt like she hid behind them.  As much as I understand why she had so many walls up, it was irritating, because the only thing I feel like I know about her is that she’s judgmental and sees people as a character in one of her books.  She doesn’t seem to care about relating or interacting with anyone around her, and she came across as feeling like she’s better than everyone around her because she quotes Jane Austen all the time.  And I love Jane Austen, but even this was too much.  She really wanted her life to be a Jane Austen novel.

I would say that it falls into the Christian lit/Inspirational category.  I felt like it was there, but Reay was trying too hard to make it not seem like it was.  And I was definitely surprised by it, because it came out of nowhere…but I also feel like I shouldn’t have been surprised because she’s an orphan who has this mysterious benefactor.  I don’t think it would have made a difference in how I feel about the book, but keep that in mind if you decide to pick up this book.

Rating:

2 stars.  I don’t care enough to like Dear Mr Knightley, and I felt like it was really bland with no personality.

Book: The Geography Of You And Me by Jennifer E. Smith

Published April 2014 by Little, Brown Books For Young Readers|235 pages

Source/Format: borrowed the e-book from the library

Series: None

Genre: YA Contemporary

What It’s About:

and this is the wonder that’s keeping the stars apart 

i carry your heart (i carry it in my heart)

Lucy and Owen meet somewhere between the tenth and eleventh floors of a New York City apartment building, on an elevator rendered useless by a citywide blackout.

After they’re rescued, they spend a single night together, wandering the darkened streets and marveling at the rare appearance of stars above Manhattan. But once the power is restored, so is reality. Lucy soon moves to Edinburgh with her parents, while Owen heads out west with his father.

Lucy and Owen’s relationship plays out across the globe as they stay in touch through postcards, occasional e-mails, and – finally – a reunion in the city where they first met.

A carefully charted map of a long-distance relationship, Jennifer E. Smith’s new novel shows that the center of the world isn’t necessarily a place. It can be a person, too.

What I Thought:

I thought Geography was really cute!  Of course, I didn’t love it like Statistical Probability, but I still liked it!

I don’t know if I’m the biggest fan of Lucy and Owen.  I mean, I liked the part in the elevator, and I really wish they spent more time stuck in the elevator.  I’m not sure what I expected with their relationship, but it felt like a lot of waiting for them to finally see each other after moving, and I felt like there was a lot of regret on their part.  Which I get but I just really wanted to see them see each other again.  It just didn’t seem like their connection was all that strong, and I think that’s why I had trouble rooting for them- I was just as fine with them not being together.  And that’s never good for a cute, fluffy romance.

I thought there was too much filler, and while I don’t mind it (in small doses), it also made the book feel really slow and forced. I wanted the warm, fuzzy feels, and I don’t think it delivered on that because of the fact that the characters didn’t interact a lot after they both moved…and yet, they hated that they weren’t around each other.  It didn’t make a lot of sense to me.  But I liked the idea of e-mails from one person and postcards from the other.  And I liked seeing them travel all over the place- Lucy in Europe and Owen in the U.S.

I did like the fact that the book was open-ended- it makes me wonder how things turned out for the characters (hopefully better than what we saw in the book).

My Rating:

3 stars.  It’s cute and fun, but I didn’t feel the romance at all.

Book: Talon by Julie Kagawa

Published October 2014 by Harlequin Teen|258 pages

Source/Format: borrowed the e-book from the library

Series: Talon #1

Genre: YA Urban Fantasy/Paranormal/Re-telling

What It’s About: 

In Julie Kagawa’s groundbreaking modern fantasy series, dragons walk among us in human form.

Long ago, dragons were hunted to near extinction by the Order of St. George, a legendary society of dragon slayers. Hiding in human form and growing their numbers in secret, the dragons of Talon have become strong and cunning, and they’re positioned to take over the world with humans none the wiser.

Ember and Dante Hill are the only sister and brother known to dragonkind. Trained to infiltrate society, Ember wants to live the teen experience and enjoy a summer of freedom before taking her destined place in Talon. But destiny is a matter of perspective, and a rogue dragon will soon challenge everything Ember has been taught. As Ember struggles to accept her future, she and her brother are hunted by the Order of St. George.

Soldier Garret Xavier Sebastian has a mission to seek and destroy all dragons, and Talon’s newest recruits in particular. But he cannot kill unless he is certain he has found his prey: and nothing is certain about Ember Hill. Faced with Ember’s bravery, confidence and all-too-human desires, Garret begins to question everything that the Order has ingrained in him: and what he might be willing to give up to find the truth about dragons.

What I Thought:

I didn’t like Talon as much as I thought I would!  I love Julie Kagawa, and she’s definitely an auto-buy author for me, so when I saw she was doing a series involving dragons, I couldn’t wait to see her take on them.

So, the very basic plot reminds me of Firelight by Sophie Jordan.  But since it’s been several years since I’ve read it, I couldn’t even begin to tell you if there are any other similarities.

I really love Kagawa’s take on dragons.  She made fairies interesting and unique in the Iron Fey, and I really liked her vampires in the Blood Of Eden series, and I love the dragons and their history in this one.  I loved that there’s an order of St George- even though I know there’s something about St. George and dragons, I have no idea what that history is.  But you still get that Talon and St. George have quite the history, and I’m hoping we learn more about it in the next book.

It didn’t have the same world-building that her other series had, and I really missed that.  Don’t get me wrong, you get glimpses that this is a very interesting world, and it’s really hard to not compare it to her other series, but as I was reading, I found I didn’t really care about what Talon was really up to, or what was going on with Ember and Dante.  Ember was really self-centered and while I understand that her summer in California is freedom to her, she also didn’t seem to care about what would happen if she got caught and sent back to Talon.

Honestly, I was pretty disinterested in Ember’s story, and I think the fact that I love Julie Kagawa is the reason why I kept going.  If it were most anyone else, I probably would have abandoned it.  Still, I did finish it, and I do want to keep reading the series, if only to see how certain things work themselves out.  Mostly because I really like Kagawa, and I’m willing to give this series a chance because she has a way of making you see dragons and fairies and vampires differently.  And I think there’s a lot of potential for it to be interesting. Maybe the rest of the series needs some set-up?

I am curious about Garrett and what will happen to him after the way things turned out.  I really feel like we got much more about Talon than we did about St. George, so I’m hoping we learn more about how they’re organized and what they’re like in the books to come.  Talon is also fairly interesting, but I wasn’t as interested as I would have expected.

Rating:

2 stars.  While I like the overall idea of the book, I also feel like it wasn’t as interesting as her other series.  But I’m a big enough Julie Kagawa fan that I’ll definitely give the rest of the series a chance.