ARC Book Review: Salt

Posted in Books by wingedcreature

Book: Salt by Danielle Ellison

Expected Publication Date is January 7, 2014 by Entangled Teen|Expected Number Of Pages: 266

Where I Got It: I received a digital copy from the publisher, which hasn’t influenced my review in any way. Promise!

Series: Salt #1

Genre: YA Paranormal

You can find Salt on goodreads & Danielle Ellison on Twitter and her website

Goodreads Summary: Penelope is a witch, part of a secret society protecting humans from demon attacks. But when she was a child, a demon killed her parents—and stole her magic. Since then, she’s been pretending to be something she’s not, using her sister’s magic to hide her own loss, to prevent being sent away.

When she’s finally given the chance to join the elite demon-hunting force, Penelope thinks that will finally change. With her sister’s help, she can squeeze through the tests and get access to the information she needs to find “her” demon. To take back what was stolen.

Then she meets Carter. He’s cute, smart, and she can borrow his magic, too. He knows her secret—but he also has one of his own.

Suddenly, Penelope’s impossible quest becomes far more complicated. Because Carter’s not telling her everything, and it’s starting to seem like the demons have their own agenda…and they’re far too interested in her.

Initially, when I started reading Salt, I wasn’t sure about it. But as I kept reading, I got wrapped up in the story! It’s really different than a lot of paranormal/witch-y books I’ve read, because Penelope can draw her magic from her family. It’s really different, mainly because she’s lost her own magic due to a demon stealing it…and the reason why she can draw power from her family, and from Carter, her Enforcer partner, is very plausible in this world.

Speaking of the world…I really like it! It’s definitely intriguing, and I wish we got to learn more about it, because a world where there’s a society of witches that co-exists with our world is a pretty cool idea. And Carter and Penelope working together was entertaining at times, but also something I liked seeing, because of everything going on in the book! Still, I’m hoping we learn more about the world Penelope lives in, because I felt like I didn’t get a good feel for this world.

I really liked how everything came together, and I can’t wait to see what’s in store for Penelope and Carter. Especially because of Penelope’s secret and Carter’s connections…I’m curious as to whether those two things will collide, because I feel like Penelope’s secret is going to come out at some point.

There’s quite the assortment of characters, and I really like Penelope! I don’t blame her for wanting her magic back, and for doing everything she can to do so. I really do like that she can draw magic from her family and from Carter, and I like that her grandma’s so protective and worried about what could happen to Penelope. I’m not sure how I feel about Penelope’s sister or her best friend, so I’m looking forward to seeing more of them. I also think Carter is sort of intriguing, but I’m not sure how I feel about Carter and Penelope as a couple.

Final Thoughts:

I really liked Salt! It’s definitely different (in a good way) than a lot of other paranormal books I’ve read, and I can’t wait to read the next book. Salt gets 4 stars.

26Dec2013

Book Review: Between Shades Of Gray

Posted in Books by wingedcreature

Book: Between Shades Of Gray by Ruta Sepetys

Published March 2011 by Penguin|368 pages

Where I Got It: Nook Store

Series: None

Genre: YA Historical Fiction

You can find Between Shades Of Gray on goodreads & Ruta Sepetys on Twitter, Facebook and her website

Goodreads Summary: Lina is just like any other fifteen-year-old Lithuanian girl in 1941. She paints, she draws, she gets crushes on boys. Until one night when Soviet officers barge into her home, tearing her family from the comfortable life they’ve known. Separated from her father, forced onto a crowded and dirty train car, Lina, her mother, and her young brother slowly make their way north, crossing the Arctic Circle, to a work camp in the coldest reaches of Siberia. Here they are forced, under Stalin’s orders, to dig for beets and fight for their lives under the cruelest of conditions.

Lina finds solace in her art, meticulously–and at great risk–documenting events by drawing, hoping these messages will make their way to her father’s prison camp to let him know they are still alive. It is a long and harrowing journey, spanning years and covering 6,500 miles, but it is through incredible strength, love, and hope that Lina ultimately survives. Between Shades of Gray is a novel that will steal your breath and capture your heart.

I finally got around to reading Between Shades Of Gray, and I am totally kicking myself for not reading it earlier! I just loved Between Shades Of Gray, and it’s a book I recommend to anyone who hasn’t read it!

What I really loved about Between Shades Of Gray is that it follows Lina, who was sent to a work camp in Siberia. I don’t know why, but it’s different than what I was expecting for a novel that has WWII as a back-drop. There was a lot going on in World War II, and it was nice reading about a part of it that I vaguely knew about. Because it seems like a lot of the focus on WWII is on the Nazi’s and the Holocaust, and maybe D-Day and Pearl Harbor, which is understandable, but it’s also…other things happened to, and yet, they don’t seem to be talked about, so I was really intrigued with Between Shades Of Gray. At any rate, what was going on in Siberia and Russia seems so horrible, and I can’t even begin to imagine what that must have been like.

I also like that Sepetys didn’t sugar-coat anything. It’s grim, and I was surprised that she didn’t hold back on some of the horrors that happened. Things aren’t horribly graphic or anything, but there are just enough details to show how horrible things really were. There is hope that things will get better, and you see flashbacks of what life was like for Lina before being sent to Siberia. I thought the flashbacks were interesting, and I liked seeing what Lina’s life was like before, but for some reason, I felt like Sepetys could have transitioned to them better. They really added to the book, though.

And the characters were so special! There is an assortment of characters, and they were all so different, but they also made the story really come to life. I mean, they all had to endure something so completely horrible, and yet you saw a will to survive and get through it.

Between Shades Of Gray is such a special book, and I’m really feeling like I cannot do it justice! It’s a great look at a side of WWII that I’m not familiar with at all.

To Sum Up…

I still can’t believe it took me so long to read this book! What Lina and her family went through was so horrible, and I can’t even begin to imagine what that was like, and it’s definitely an eye-opener for me. Between Shades Of Gray gets 5 stars.

25Dec2013

Audio Book Review: Heartless

Posted in Audiobooks, Books by wingedcreature

Book: Heartless by Gail Carriger, Narrated by Emily Gray

Published July 2011 by Hachette Audio|Run Time: 11 hours, 19 minutes

Where I Got It: audible.com

Series: Parasol Protectorate #4

Genre: Adult Paranormal Steampunk

You can find Heartless on goodreads and Gail Carriger on Twitter, Facebook and her website

Goodreads Summary: Lady Alexia Maccon, soulless, is at it again, only this time the trouble is not her fault. When a mad ghost threatens the queen, Alexia is on the case, following a trail that leads her deep into her husband’s past. Top that off with a sister who has joined the suffragette movement (shocking!), Madame Lefoux’s latest mechanical invention, and a plague of zombie porcupines and Alexia barely has time to remember she happens to be eight months pregnant.

Will Alexia manage to determine who is trying to kill Queen Victoria before it is too late? Is it the vampires again or is there a traitor lurking about in wolf’s clothing? And what, exactly, has taken up residence in Lord Akeldama’s second best closet?

The Parasol Protectorate series has been such a fun series to listen to, and Heartless is no exception!

There’s a lot going on, and nothing is keeping Alexia from figuring out who is behind a plot that is threatening the queen. Lord Akeldama has graciously agreed to adopt Alexia’s child, who is finally born! With a very interesting complication at the very end of the book, which will prove interesting for whatever happens in Timeless.

We learn all sorts of thing about Lord Maccon, and that is something I wasn’t expecting! We learn the full details of why he left his old pack in Scotland and became the alpha of the Wolsey pack. And we also learn more about Alexia’s father, which was nice. I mean, we’ve heard him mentioned in previous books, and I like that we learn a few interesting things about him in each book.

As for the current threat against the queen…while it was interesting to see Alexia try to sort it out…in the end, I wasn’t surprised by it. Understandable, of course, but not a surprise. And it led to an interesting change of scenery for the Wolsey pack and the Westminster Hive.

Lord Akeldama is one definitely one of my favorite characters, and I’m glad he had more of a role in this book! While his nicknames for Alexia were adorable, they did start to get less amusing by the end of the book. Actually, I loved the characters a lot, and they’re entertaining, as always.

As much as I love the series, and as much as I really liked Heartless, something felt missing, and I’m not sure what it is. It was amusing, but not as amusing as the other books in the series. Hopefully, everything will get back to normal in Timeless.

As always, Emily Gray did a great job narrating, and I can’t imagine anyone else narrating the series!

To Sum Up…

I really liked Heartless, and it’s a good addition to the series. While I wasn’t as entertained listening to it, I was still pretty amused. Heartless gets 4 stars.

23Dec2013

Gilmore Girls 3×11: I Solemnly Swear…

Posted in Season Three, The Gilmore Girls Project by wingedcreature

I Solemnly Swear…originally aired January 21, 2003. This episode was written by John Stephens and was directed by Carla McCloskey.

This episode opens with a Friday night dinner, where we learn that Emily is being sued by a former maid for wrongful termination. Lorelei isn’t surprised until she learns that it’s the first time that Emily is being sued by a former maid, which leads to Lorelei finally being surprised. Lorelei is trying to figure out if the maid was a good maid, other than being someone who clomps around the house, but Emily is very focused on the clomping.

From there…all sorts of things happen!

Sookie and Lorelei attend a course at the Learning Center about how to open an inn, and not surprisingly, the course has no new information for them. However, Sookie runs into a guy she used to work with one summer, and they catch up while Lorelei talks to his business partner. Sookie and Joe make plans to go to a restaraunt owned by someone they also used to work with. It turns out that Joe was always into Sookie, and this was his second chance. However, Sookie isn’t sure what to tell him at first, because she didn’t realize it was a date at first. And can’t believe she accidentally flirted with someone. Jackson doesn’t take it well when Sookie makes all of his favorite things. Lorelei also gets asked out on a date, and she is going coffee-tasting with Alex. Which is right up her alley, as she loves coffee.

At Chilton, Francie pretends that she wants to be friends with Rory, only to tell Paris that she has a lot of respect for her, and that Rory thinks Paris is too wrapped up in her boyfriend and is totally acting like the supplemental student council meeting was Rory’s idea. Which Paris doesn’t take very well, since she’s feeling pretty betrayed by Rory. To the point that she can’t believe she considered Rory her best friend. Rory tries explaining, but Paris doesn’t believe her.

And Emily being sued by a former maid comes up later in the episode, when Lorelei has to go to a deposition…and also doesn’t want to lie for Emily, who wants Lorelei to tell the lawyers that she treats her maids well.

The episode ends with Lorelei talking on the phone to Alex.

Thoughts:

I’m not surprised that Emily is being sued by a former maid, considering her high standards. It is a running joke that she can’t keep a maid for long, and it’s always amusing when it comes up. It is very much like Emily to fire someone for making noise when they walk, but I have to say that I am surprised that this is the first time wrongful termination has come up. Then again, the show isn’t about Emily. Still, I think Emily does have a point when she says she pays her staff to do things a certain way. I mean, with Emily, it can go a little too far, but at the same time, she is paying them…

Still, Emily reading pieces of the deposition at a Friday night dinner…Lorelei’s responses were her, but I think she could have taken it a little more seriously. Because I can see Lorelei not taking it seriously. Then again, maybe that was something that wasn’t shown on-screen.

And I’m not surprised that Sookie and Lorelei didn’t find the course helpful. They do have a pretty good handle on things at the Inn. As for Sookie and her old friend, I didn’t get the vibe that it was a date, but it’s still very Sookie to not know what to do. And to make things up to Jackson, who reacted like I would expect him to. And it’s nice to see Lorelei agree to go on a date with someone!

As for the Chilton drama, Francie is one evil girl. Rory did accidentally mention that Paris had a boyfriend to Francie in the last episode, which turned out to be a dumb move, because Francie totally saw a chance to use that piece of information. It’s not surprising she’d lie about Rory’s motives to Paris, and that Paris would believe it. Still, I’m surprised that Paris considered Rory her best friend, because while they are friend-ish, they don’t seem like they’re best friends. At least, not on Rory’s end.

Favorite Lines:

I don’t have any for this episode.

Pop Culture:

Ben Hur, Brutus betraying Julius Cesar, The Great Gatsby

Episode Rating:

This episode was okay, and it’s not one of the more memorable moments. It does keep the evil Francie arc going for a bit, but this episode is just there. This episode gets 2 mugs of coffee.

22Dec2013

Book Review: Struck

Posted in Books by wingedcreature

Book: Struck by Jennifer Bosworth

Published May 2012 by Farrar, Straus and Giroux|352 pages

Where I Got It: Nook Store

Series: Struck #1

Genre: YA Post-Apocalyptic

You can find Struck on goodreads & you can find Jennifer Bosworth on Twitter and her website

Goodreads Summary: Mia Price is a lightning addict. She’s survived countless strikes, but her craving to connect to the energy in storms endangers her life and the lives of those around her.

Los Angeles, where lightning rarely strikes, is one of the few places Mia feels safe from her addiction. But when an earthquake devastates the city, her haven is transformed into a minefield of chaos and danger. The beaches become massive tent cities. Downtown is a crumbling wasteland, where a traveling party moves to a different empty building each night, the revelers drawn to the destruction by a force they cannot deny. Two warring cults rise to power, and both see Mia as the key to their opposing doomsday prophecies. They believe she has a connection to the freak electrical storm that caused the quake, and to the far more devastating storm that is yet to come.

Mia wants to trust the enigmatic and alluring Jeremy when he promises to protect her, but she fears he isn’t who he claims to be. In the end, the passion and power that brought them together could be their downfall. When the final disaster strikes, Mia must risk unleashing the full horror of her strength to save the people she loves, or lose everything.

I’ve been wanting to read Struck for ages, and now I’ve finally finished it! I love the idea of a lightning addict, since I’ve never seen it before! So it’s pretty unique.

And post-apocalyptic L.A. by way of a horrible, horrible earthquake is also pretty believable! It’s also slightly terrifying, but given I’ve lived my entire life in Southern California, where earthquakes are pretty normal…well, it’s something I can see happening. Add in two warring cults, and you have a crazy, slightly terrifying world.

Group one is a religuous group predicting that it’s the end of days, and that the 6th seal in the book of Revelations is happening in three days. And group two is a group of people like Mia, who also have special abilities. I’m not surprised by the appearance of both groups or that there’s a prophecy involving Mia, who is wanted by both sides. I’m pretty intrigued by both sides, and I like that Mia sees both groups before finally doing her own thing.

Given how the book started- with a strong focus on Mia’s lightning addiction- I thought it would take center stage. And it didn’t, which is slightly disappointing, because it’s really unique and different and kind of cool. And while there were some paranormal-ish aspects, I also felt like that could have been explored a lot more. I wanted to know a little more about both groups, especially the religious group, because they seemed infinitely more interesting than the Seekers.

Still, I really liked the two opposing groups, and how it’s a (slightly paranormal) post-apocalyptic world. It’s one of the more unique paranormal/post-apocalyptic books I’ve read in a while, since you don’t see the two combined. Generally speaking, of course. And lightning striking a fault line makes it even more different, but in a good way.

It seems like there might be a sequel in 2016, and I’m looking forward to more news on that book, because I feel like there’s more world-building that can be done with Struck. There’s definitely enough story for a sequel. The characters were okay, but there’s not a lot that’s memorable.

To Sum Up…

I really liked Struck, even though certain aspects could have been explored a little more. It’s definitely different than quite a few books in the genre, and that’s always a plus. Struck gets 4 stars.

20Dec2013

Book Review: Seers Of Light

Posted in Books by wingedcreature

Book: Seers Of Light by Jennifer DeLucy

Published February 2010 by Omnific Publishing|372 pages

Where I Got It: the nook store

Series: Light #1

Genre: New Adult Paranormal

You can find Seers Of Light on goodreads, and you can find Jennifer DeLucy on Twitter, Facebook and her blog

Goodreads Summary: Lillian Hunt has never truly lived. Always sensing more to the world than is easily perceived, she fears that her instincts are stubborn flights of fancy, or worse, mental instability. But some things—disappearing strangers, tangible dreams, and visits from malevolent creatures—cannot be ignored. Before it’s too late, Lillian is ripped from the only existence she’s ever known and thrust into a reality that she always suspected, but could scarcely believe. She must learn the truth about who she is, the powerful beings that wish to destroy her, and the two men who would die to protect her.

Jennifer DeLucy has created a unique, enchanting tale of destiny and the ageless power of love in her debut novel, Seers of Light. DeLucy’s novel charms readers with quirky characters, while sketching a haunting portrait of one woman’s journey on the path of the supernaturally gifted. But be prepared. Once you’ve entered the world of Seers, you will never be the same.

Seers Of Light is a book I have mixed feelings about. I mean, I liked it and there is something really interesting about it, but there’s also something about it that made it a little hard to get into.

I liked Lily and how sarcastic she is. She’s certainly a character, as are the rest of the characters we meet in Seers Of Light. Lily’s age…I have thoughts that are all over the place. Lily is 27 or 28, as mentioned pretty early in the book…but there’s something abou this book that makes me feel like that’s too old for her to be! Part of me feels like Lily should be younger, and there is a certain feel to the book that makes me feel like 27/28 is slightly too old for her to be age-wise.

But as interesting and slightly quirky as they are. there’s just something about them that I didn’t find engaging or memorable. Because I honestly couldn’t tell you anything other than the basics for the characters.

I did like the premise of the book, with Sentients fighting vampires. DeLucy created this really interesting world, and there’s a really interesting structure for the supernaturally gifted. I wish we saw more of that, because that felt pretty minimal. You just get the basics of this world. I get that Lily is very new to this world, and that the book is more about her journey, but still…you’d think she’d do more than get some basic training on how to use her gift.

As for the romance…I wasn’t surprised she ended up with William, but their romance also didn’t do anything for me. I honestly don’t their attraction to each other…

Actually, the story is a pretty simple one, and I like that it’s so simple. There are no crazy plot twists, and the story is just fine in its simplicity. At the same time, though, I wish there was something a little more complex. There were times when the book leaned towards being philosophical, which was an unexpected surprise that I’m still not sure about. I suppose it was interesting, but…I’m not quite sure what to think about it.

To Sum Up…

There are things I like about Seers Of Light, like the world that Lily lived in, and how simple the story is. But I also felt like I didn’t really get a chance to know this world very well. Ultimately, I have mixed feelings, and I’m not sure if I want to continue the series. Seers of Light gets 3 stars.

19Dec2013

Book Review: Golden

Posted in Books by wingedcreature

Book: Golden by Jessi Kirby

Published May 2013 by Simon & Schuster Books For Young Readers|288 pages

Where I Got It: Nook Store

Series: None

Genre: YA Contemporary

You can find Golden on goodreads & you can find Jessi Kirby on Twitter, Facebook and her website

Goodreads Summary: Seventeen-year-old Parker Frost has never taken the road less traveled. Valedictorian and quintessential good girl, she’s about to graduate high school without ever having kissed her crush or broken the rules. So when fate drops a clue in her lap—one that might be the key to unraveling a town mystery—she decides to take a chance.

Julianna Farnetti and Shane Cruz are remembered as the golden couple of Summit Lakes High—perfect in every way, meant to be together forever. But Julianna’s journal tells a different story—one of doubts about Shane and a forbidden romance with an older, artistic guy. These are the secrets that were swept away with her the night that Shane’s jeep plunged into an icy river, leaving behind a grieving town and no bodies to bury.

Reading Julianna’s journal gives Parker the courage to start to really live—and it also gives her reasons to question what really happened the night of the accident. Armed with clues from the past, Parker enlists the help of her best friend, Kat, and Trevor, her longtime crush, to track down some leads. The mystery ends up taking Parker places that she never could have imagined. And she soon finds that taking the road less traveled makes all the difference.

I absolutely love Jessi Kirby! I did after reading In Honor, and reading Golden has cemented that!

So, I was expecting something a little bit different with Golden…like the town mystery being something that happened in the last year or two, not something that happened ten years earlier. Still, I liked how Parker came across Julianna’s journal and the senior project of writing in a journal mailed 10 years later. Actually, that’s such a cool project, and it would be really interesting to see what 17-year-old me wrote…well, interesting but also a little scary and weird.

I really liked Parker as a character and I can definitely relate to not taking the road less traveled. It really is easier for her to do things that make her mom happy instead of what will make her happy, but that’s something she discovers in her quest to uncover the mystery of ten years earlier. What happened to Julianna and Shane is really something she latched onto, but discovering what really happened…she learned a lot about herself.

And naturally, I couldn’t help but cry at the end, because Parker’s story…I just loved it. I don’t know what it is about reading book where the main character goes on a journey of self-discovery but they are very near and dear to my heart. And Golden is no exception, because I liked that she finally told her mom how she felt about the expectations placed on her. I also liked Julianna’s story, and how well it matched Parker’s story. We see her journal entries, which were really nice to see. I do wish they were their own chapters, instead of mid-chapter, because I felt like they stood on their own really well. Other than that…I loved how their stories intersected.

To Sum Up…

I just totally loved Golden, and Jessi Kirby is definitely one of my favorite authors! While I wasn’t expecting the town mystery to be a decade earlier, I still liked the parallels between Parker’s story and Julianna’s story, and how Parker did something completely unexpected. Golden gets 5 stars!

16Dec2013

Gilmore Girls 3×10: That’ll Do Pig

Posted in Season Three, The Gilmore Girls Project by wingedcreature

That’ll Do, Pig originally aired January 14, 2003. This episode was written by Shelia R. Lawrence and was directed by Jamie Babbit.

We open up with episode with the town getting ready for the winter carnival. Lane’s band can now practice in Lorelei’s garage, so the rehearsal space problem is now solved!

There’s all sorts of things happening at Chilton! Paris is seen not paying attention in math, and since there’s a light agenda for the supplemental student council meeting, Paris decides to cancel it. Which means Francie decides that it’s a good time to have the meeting anyway, because she has a “time-sensitive” issue. Francie was so surprised that Paris canceled the meeting that she didn’t mention it, and “couldn’t find” Paris later, when Francie did want to bring it up. Francie wants to use the funds for the class gift (a telescope) to have Prom or homecoming or something at some mansion, since it’s suddenly free. It gets passed, but Rory is done trying to be the go-between for France and Paris.

Richard’s mother, Trix, stops by for Richard’s birthday unexpectedly, and she wants to see where Lorelei lives and works. Emily goes to Lorelei’s house to make it look presentable, since it’ll be Emily’s fault that it looks like it normally does. Rory is excused for this dinner because she’s young and should have fun at the Winter Carnival.

Rory is now friends with Dean after they run into each in town and go have some coffee at Westin’s. Dean has applied to a 4-year university, and it’s all because of Rory going on about college and Harvard. He has no idea how he’ll deal with her dating Jess, but they do decide they can be friends.

Richard’s mother gets a tour of Lorelei’s house, but says nothing about it, and then they go off to dinner at the Inn while Rory goes to the Carnival. Jess doesn’t want to go, but when they run into Dean and his sister, and Dean’s sister invites Rory to go to the carnival with them, Jess changes his mind. This is when Jess finds out Rory and Dean are friends, and while he’s not mad, he still would have liked for her to tell him.

Dean is waiting for Clara by the bathroom when Jess stops by to tell Dean about how pathetic he is. Dean says he and Rory are just friends, and since that worked out for Jess…well, Dean seems to think it’ll work for him.

Trix says she wants to live in the U.S. again, for a multitude of reasons, which makes Richard happy, and Emily not so happy. So Emily takes her time eating dinner.

The episode ends with Rory and Lorelei talking about their night.

Thoughts:

So. Things are relatively calm in this episode, other than Emily not being happy about Richard’s mom being in town, and possibly coming back on a more permanent basis. I do love Lorelei the first, and there’s something very regal about her.

The only major thing I want to talk about is what Dean is up to! He really is waiting for Jess and Rory to break up, isn’t he? It’s weird, though, because after the whole thing at the dance marathon, you’d think he’d be done with Rory. It’s like he’s expecting Jess to completely mess things up with Rory, so he can be her knight in shining armor, and make sure she’s okay. It kind of makes Dean a bit annoying, because one episode, he’s totally done with Rory and wants nothing to do with her, and now he’s waiting for her and Jess to break up so they can get back together. He really needs to make up his mind!

I kind of agree with Jess about Dean having an ulterior motive for being friends with Rory. At least we now know what was going on with Dean in the last episode, and I had completely forgotten about it!

And I really dislike Francie for deciding to go ahead with the meeting, knowing Paris wasn’t going to be there. Paris does deserve to not be so focused all the time, and Francie has decided to use that to her advantage.

Favorite Line:

Paris, to Rory: “Have you had eggnog?”

Pop Culture:

Korn, Weezer, Victor Hugo, Betty Boop, Stuart Little, Spice Girls

Episode Rating:

I liked this episode, and it’s nice to have something a little fun after the last couple of episodes! It wasn’t completely amazing, but it wasn’t completely horrible. It’s a pretty solid episode, and it gets 3 mugs of coffee.

14Dec2013

Book Review: The Plague Forge

Posted in Books by wingedcreature

Book: The Plague Forge by Jason Hough

Published September 2013 by Del Rey|448 pages

Where I Got It: I got the paperback (signed!) from Mysterious Galaxy

Series: The Dire Earth Cycle #3

Genre: Adult Science Fiction

You can find The Plague Forge on goodreads|You can find Jason on goodreads, facebook, twitter and his website

Goodreads Summary: After discovering the first key in the wreckage of a crashed Builder ship, Skyler Luiken and his crew follow the migrating aura towers in search of the four remaining relics. But time is running out: the team learn that the next Builder event will be the last, and one of the objects has already fallen into dangerous hands…Will the survivors finally reveal the Builders’ plan?

I’d like to start off this review by saying that I know Jason, so my review is probably a little biased…but I’ll try not to be!

I’ve really enjoyed this trilogy, and The Plague Forge was such a good ending for the series! We finally learn what’s going on with the Builders, and we actually see an emissary from the Builders…who explains everything that’s being going on, and I wasn’t expecting it at all! While everything is resolved (well, mostly), there’s also room to think about where things are going and how it will go, because the ending is slightly open-ended. I’m actually curious about what earth is like a few (hundred) years after the end of the trilogy. It’s a really satisfying ending, and there’s a lot of action!

Characters! We see a different side of Blackfield, which was actually nice, because he kind of falls into a shade of gray for me. And Grillo…I’m not even sure what to say about Grillo, who is not a cool guy. And Prumble really came through for everyone- as did a few of the other characters. I really liked seeing the different perspectives, because there’s a lot going on, and I finished The Plague Forge feeling like I had a really clear picture of what was going on.

I want to go back to the Builders, because that was one of my favorite parts of the book! There’s so much mystery and you can’t help but wonder what they want and what the ultimate plan is. And everything we learn about them is very well-placed. It’s not disappointing or lame or anything, and it’s actually super-believable for this world. Because I really had no idea what to expect or where things were going, and I’m glad everything led to we learned about them.

The Plague Forge is easily my favorite book in the series. For the reasons I’ve already talked about…and there’s just something about this book in particular, although I could not tell you what that is for the life of me.

To Sum Up…

I am so happy with how everything ended! Things are pretty much resolved, but there is a part of it that also leaves the door open for future books set in this world. The Plague Forge gets 5 stars.

13Dec2013

ARC Book Review: Drawn

Posted in Books by wingedcreature

Book: Drawn by Cecilia Gray

Expected Publication is December 15, 2013 by Gray Life, LLC|Expected Number Of Pages is 151

Where I Got It: from netgalley.com, which hasn’t influenced my review in any way. Promise!

Series: None

Genre: YA Contemporary with a dash of paranormal

You can find Drawn on Goodreads & You can find Cecilia Gray on Twitter, Facebook and her website

Goodreads Summary: Take a journey into the gritty world of political espionage through the eyes – and lies – of one extraordinary girl. A wholly original tale of friendship and betrayal from the author of The Jane Austen Academy series….

Sasha has a secret – that she can make you spill your secret with nothing more than a question. Her strange gift makes her a burden to her foster family and a total freak of nature. Not that Sasha cares. Why should she when no one cares about her?

Then the CIA knocks on her door. They want to give Sasha a new identity and drop her into a foreign country to infiltrate a ring of zealous graffiti terrorists. They want to give Sasha something to care about.

To survive a world where no one is who they seem, Sasha needs to make people trust her. But when that trust blossoms into love, Sasha is forced to decide between duty and friendship, between her mind and her heart, and whether to tell the truth or keep her secrets.

Drawn…what to say about Drawn? I really like the idea of a girl who has a voice that can make you spill your secrets. It’s one interesting ability, and it’s a really interesting take on that ability.

She really is the perfect person to work for the FBI or the CIA. I’ll admit that the FBI Sasha helping out the FBI since she was 12 to be a bit unbelievable…but at the same time, I was totally willing to overlook that, since it’s the set-up for the rest of the book.

I like the graphic novel part of the book and how each chapter was introduced by a panel from a graphic novel. Given that Sasha likes to draw and is into comics, I thought it made Drawn interesting, even though there wasn’t a lot of emphasis on Sasha’s love of drawing.

I was expecting more mystery and espionage, and I was expecting a little more action than what we got in the book. Still, I liked that she did make a friend or two. I was also expecting something longer, and I think more time on her assignment with the CIA would have been nice, because there were times when I felt like the book was just going from one point to the next.

Sasha was an interesting character- mostly because of her ability, but also because her interest in art. I get why she’s not close to anyone, because her voice- understandably- makes people uncomfortable. But for the most part, I felt like I really didn’t get to know who Sasha is. And there were times when I felt like I didn’t really care about Sasha. I think part of that is that Drawn felt like the beginning of her story, and I’d be interested to see if there’s a sequel, just because Sasha’s story seemed unfinished.

Still, I really like that she’s pretty much a human lie detector and travels to Belgium for her assignment with the CIA. Belgium isn’t a country you tend to see in YA, so it was a nice change. And as much as I loved Belgium as a setting, it didn’t leave me with a memorable impression of the country.