Review - THE ETERNITY CURE by Julie Kagawa

TITLE: The Eternity Cure (Blood of Eden #2)
AUTHOR:  Julie Kagawa
GENRE: dystopian, paranormal
PUBLICATION DATE: May 3rd 2013
SOURCE: ARC via NetGalley

BLURB:

 In Allison Sekemoto's world, there is one rule left: Blood calls to blood 

She has done the unthinkable: died so that she might continue to live. Cast out of Eden and separated from the boy she dared to love, Allie will follow the call of blood to save her creator, Kanin, from the psychotic vampire Sarren. But when the trail leads to Allie's birthplace in New Covington, what Allie finds there will change the world forever-and possibly end human and vampire existence. 

There's a new plague on the rise, a strain of the Red Lung virus that wiped out most of humanity generations ago-and this strain is deadly to humans and vampires alike. The only hope for a cure lies in the secrets Kanin carries, if Allie can get to him in time. 

Allison thought that immortality was forever. But now, with eternity itself hanging in the balance, the lines between human and monster will blur even further, and Allie must face another choice she could never have imagined having to make.

REVIEW: 

I have been anticipating this book ever since I read The Immortal Rules (review here). Do you know that feeling, when you're waiting for something you're about to burst, but at the same time you're scared because what will happen if you're disappointed? That was me. Needless to say, I shouldn't have worried. Julie Kagawa did it again. She wrote an amazing book.

We rejoin our main hero of the story, Allison, a few weeks after the events from The Immortal Rules. She's looking for Sarren, who kidnapped her sire. Along the way she meets an unexpected ally and learns what a blood bond means to a vampire.

Just like in The Immortal Rules, I loved Allie and Zeke (whom we meet again, thankfully). I've never exepected to even begin to like Jackal. Some of you may remember him as the cruel rider king from the first book. I really liked the fact that he couldn't be pigeon-holed into simple black-or-white category. Jackal's often ambiguous behavior left me very satisfied - it made him more three dimensional, and his interactions with Allie, and later Zeke and Kanin, a lot more interesting.

The whole book is action packed despite being 400 pages long. It's hard to put it down and I practically devoured it in my inability to wait to see what happens next.

I'm not saying that The Eternity Cure doesn't have any flaws. There are scenes I found a bit dragged out and some characters that fell flat. But those are seriously minor imperfection that didn't stop me from enjoying the book as a whole.

I sincerely recommend The Eternity Cure to everyone who loved The Immortal Rules. If you love vampires, you should check out this series. If you hate vampires and think they're overrated - you still should check out this series and let it change your mind. Because it most probably will!

Overall rating:
5 out of 5 stars

REVIEW - The Vicious Deep by Zoraida Córdova

 TITLE: The Vicious Deep
AUTHOR: Zoraida Córdova
GENRE: paranormal, paranormal romance

PUBLICATION DATE: May 1st 2012

SOURCE: ARC from the publisher

BLURB:

For Tristan Hart, everything changes with one crashing wave.

He was gone for three days. Sucked out to sea in a tidal wave and spit back ashore at Coney Island with no memory of what happened. Now his dreams are haunted by a terrifying silver mermaid with razor-sharp teeth.

His best friend Layla is convinced something is wrong. But how can he explain he can sense emotion like never before? How can he explain he’s heir to a kingdom he never knew existed? That he’s suddenly a pawn in a battle as ancient as the gods.

Something happened to him in those three days. He was claimed by the sea…and now it wants him back.

REVIEW:

DON'T MISS IT! THE VICIOUS DEEP BLOG TOUR! On May 2nd come back for a fun interview with Zoraida AND a giveaway of the book!

Brilliant. Fun. Exciting. I can only find positive words to describe The Vicious Deep by Zoraida Córdova! With the recent flood of mermaid stories (Of Poseidon, Lies Beneath, Monstrous Beauty to name a few) I was a bit vary. I thought that it may be yet another dull love story with bland characters and lackluster plot.

Obviously, I was wrong. The Vicious Deep is Zoraida Córdova's debut novel and I can already that it's a great success!

What's different about The Vicious Deep is that the main character is not yet another 'strong female protagonist' who turns out to be a boring teenager with non-existent problems. Córdova shows us that male protagonists are cool too. And not only cool, she takes it to the whole next level of awesome. But I will talk about it later.

The title of the book suggest a deep, dark story. Nothing could be further from the truth! Although the story indeed progresses into something darker by the end of the book, it's mainly a fun ride filled with laughter.

Let me say this: I absolutely, totally and wholeheartedly adore Tristan Hart. He's one of the most likable male protagonists ever! A little selfish, a little too much in love with himself, witty but at the same time not the sharpest tool in the shed - that's our Tristan, whose heart is made of gold.

What is more, Tristan not only has parents, but he's on quite a friendly terms with them! I was absolutely delighted to learn that his parents are present AND participating in his life. I've grown tired of YA books getting rid of parents because it's easier to tell a story without them. See? You can write an amazing book without doing that.

There are many laugh-out-loud moments. I can't even count the number of times I burst out laughing when Tristan was reassuring himself how manly he is. Despite being a mermaid. Pardon. A merman.
He's good-looking and he knows it, and it makes it even more hilarious to see his pride hurt so much when somebody isn't attracted to him.

Other characters - especially Kurt, Thalia and Marty - make a team which the reader will find hard to forget. They are colorful, witty and very distinctive compared to other YA books I've read recently. Each one of them has their own voice, thoughts and traits.

As for the 'darker part' of the book... I didn't expect one of the characters to die, to be honest. Not telling you who did, but I must admit it made me really sad and that means that Zoraida Córdova  did a great job portraying the character. She made me care about all the characters, a little more that I would expect, actually.

When there's no action, The Vicious Deep is a light and fun ride, filled with great dialogues that make you giggle every other page and characters you fall in love with. Definitely recommended to everyone!

Overall rating:

5 out of 5 stars!

To prove that The Vicious Deep is filled from cover to cover with hilarious quotes, let me give you some! (warning: quotes are from ARC, the final version may vary)

"Wait. Is there a mermaid hell?"
"Yes." she says, "I call it humanity."

~**~

"Is there a way you can fix that? Make yourselves look different so you don't attract so much attention?"
"We do look different. We are glamoured," Kurt says indignantly. "It's a light spell to tone down our natural colors. We are no longer achingly beautiful. Now we're just exceptionally beautiful."

~**~

(a father-son conversation)
"Oh come on, son, your merbaby zygote didn't make itself."
Orange juice comes out of my nose.

~**~

There's something familiar about her, only I can sift through my mind fast enough. She bows lightly at me. Kurt looks up at her, wearing the same expression I am.
"Have we met?" he goes, Mr. Smooth Criminal.

REVIEW - IMMORTAL RULES by Julie Kagawa

TITLE: The Immortal Rules
AUTHOR:  Julie Kagawa
GENRE: dystopian, paranormal
PUBLICATION DATE: April 24th 2012
SOURCE: ARC

BLURB:

 In a future world, Vampires reign. Humans are blood cattle. And one girl will search for the key to save humanity.

Allison Sekemoto survives in the Fringe, the outermost circle of a vampire city. By day, she and her crew scavenge for food. By night, any one of them could be eaten.

Some days, all that drives Allie is her hatred of them. The vampires who keep humans as blood cattle. Until the night Allie herself is attacked—and given the ultimate choice. Die… or become one of the monsters.

Faced with her own mortality, Allie becomes what she despises most. To survive, she must learn the rules of being immortal, including the most important: go long enough without human blood, and you will go mad.

Then Allie is forced to flee into the unknown, outside her city walls. There she joins a ragged band of humans who are seeking a legend—a possible cure to the disease that killed off most of humankind and created the rabids, the mindless creatures who threaten humans and vampires alike.

But it isn't easy to pass for human. Especially not around Zeke, who might see past the monster inside her. And Allie soon must decide what—and who—is worth dying for.

REVIEW: 

Let me begin this review with a simple truth about The Immortal Rules: I LOVED THIS BOOK.

I cannot hide the fact that I dislike the current trend of vampire books. They lack fresh ideas, as they're put safely into the same boxes which will ensure that the book sells. I was not convinced when I first saw the cover of The Immortal Rules, dark and oozing of gloomy story that in fact is as deep as a puddle on the pavement.

But I was so wrong. So wrong!

Julie Kagawa painted everything with such vivid colors I caught myself dreaming of a movie based on the book. I think it would be utterly fabulous and I really hope my little dream will come true one day! I will mention one thing on top of my head - the Old Chicago, a huge, crumbling city under water. How epic would that be to see on a big screen?

Not only the writing is beautiful and alive, but the plot is captivating and racing forward so fast it's hard to put the book down. The events rush forward, but the author took her time to describe the world to us; and the world building is mesmerizing. It's repulsive and sickening, but at the same time it's fascinating. We get to know both sides of the coin. We see humans struggling for survival and vampires doing... exactly the same, even if their ways of doing so are different. And we learn with Allison that the choice of what she's to become is up to her.

Allie is truly a kick-butting, absolutely no-nonsense kind of main character. I am always a bit wary of the blurbs flaunting that the character is a 'strong female character'. They usually turn out to be bleak, weeping damsels in distress, in need of constant rescuing by some manly men.
Allison Sekemoto is not the case. 

She really IS strong. She thinks of herself first, but deep down cares about those to whom she got attached to (like she did with Stick). In many ways, she reminded me of Katniss (The Hunger Games), but with better sense of humor. I loved her almost instantly - she could take care of herself and I admired how she handled even the most difficult situations. All by herself.

It took me a relatively long while to get to like Kanin and even then I wasn't entirely convinced that I liked him all that much. I think it was Allie's influence that I ended up liking him (I might have snorted when she called him "Mister Broody Vampire"), and I even gasped a little "no!" when our little main heroine had to part ways with him.

And Zeke... Zeke, Zeke, Zeke. In that brutal, dark world that Kagawa has presented to us Zeke seems out of place, too good to be true. And that's what Allison thinks too, but oddly enough it's his kindness and morality that keep him alive. On top of that, he's not stupid. I loved all the conversations he had with Allison, especially about his own naivety. I love how different he is, how much stronger than Allison thought he is. What Allison thought to be his weaknesses were actually his strengths.

Even the others, the more 'secondary' characters felt very real. Especially Jeb was one to make a deep impression. I was also fascinated by Rabids - they felt more like zombies than anything else, while the Jackal's Riders felt like werewolves despite not being supernatural beings at all. It was a very graceful mix that shouldn't have worked, but it did - and that's what is the most amazing about The Immortal Rules.

This book has everything - delightful plot, characters that feel alive (well, figuratively speaking, since a huge part of them is dead, including our main character), fast pacing and some deeper issues to think about.

If you haven't thought of reading this book yet, you should definitely pick it up! My absolutely favorite dystopian read this year, and maybe favorite read overall!
 

(And just because I loved it so much, I have a quote for you - it's by Zeke, he said it to Allison who tried to put up her tent:

'You will get used to it. No one really worries about keeping things erect around here, and... Wow. That sounded bad.'

 Haha.)

Overall rating:
5 out of 5 stars

REVIEW #15 - Cat Girl's Day Off by Kimberly Pauley

TITLE: Cat Girl's Day Off

AUTHOR: Kimberly Pauley

GENRE: paranormal, comedy

PUBLICATION DATE: April 1st 2012
SOURCE: Lee & Low Books via NetGalley

SYNOPSIS:

Natalie Ng’s little sister is a super-genius with a chameleon-like ability to disappear. Her older sister has three Class A Talents, including being a human lie detector. Her mom has laser vision and has one of the highest IQs ever. Her dad’s Talent is so complex even the Bureau of Extra-Sensory Regulation and Management (BERM) hardly knows what to classify him as.
And Nat? She can talk to cats.
The whole talking-to-cats thing is something she tries very hard to hide, except with her best friends Oscar (a celebrity-addicted gossip hound) and Melly (a wannabe actress). When Oscar shows her a viral Internet video featuring a famous blogger being attacked by her own cat, Nat realizes what’s really going on…and it’s not funny.
(okay, yeah, a frou-frou blogger being taken down by a really angry cat named Tiddlywinks, who also happens to be dyed pink? Pretty hilarious.)
Nat and her friends are catapulted right into the middle of a celebrity kidnapping mystery that takes them through Ferris Bueller’s Chicago and on and off movie sets. Can she keep her reputation intact? Can she keep Oscar and Melly focused long enough to save the day? And, most importantly, can she keep from embarrassing herself in front of Ian?
Find out what happens when the kitty litter hits the fan.

REVIEW:

First thoughts
If you follow me on Twitter you know how happy this book made me!

Cover

This cover reveals exactly what this book is: fun, fast, full of color! It's what made me request the book and I'm grateful it did, because it doesn't disappoint.
And on a side note, I'm glad it features an Asian girl. I heard about racism when it comes to covers (sic!) and I'm happy it's not the case.

Plot

I don't see how anyone could DISLIKE this book! It's fresh, it's fun, it's such an amazing ride! Come on, which blogger wouldn't love a book about... a blogger? And superpowers. And talking cats. And breaking the stereotypes about Asians and gays. AWESOMESAUCE.

Characters

I don't even know where to start! I loved every character right from the start, when we got to know Nat's family of geniuses, then her amazing friends (Oscar being my absolute favorite), cats she could talk to, actors, secret agents... No, I really don't know where to begin.
Nat was a great main character. Strong headed, keeping her feet on the ground, she's the sane point in the lives of her family of geniuses or even her friends who dream big. She doesn't want to be famous, unlike her friends Oscar or Melly - who'd want to be famous for a Talent of Speaking With Cats, anyway? But in the end, it's Nat who saves the day!
Oscar is her gay best friend, half-Asian on top of that. I was really amazed how Kimberly Pauley didn't fall into stereotypes (Oscar was a bit exaggerated at times, but not to the point I'd think "this needs to stop") and managed to pull off Oscar as a comedy character without it being too obvious.
I can't forget about the cats - Meep, Rufus Brutus The Third, Purr Daddy and the others - they all had their own quirks, habits and despite all the talking they were very very... cat. I loved that about them!
What I also loved was the fact that every character - even those who only appeared for a short while, like Garrett - had their own voices and stories and I cared about them.
When a book makes you care about every character - that means the author is doing it right!

Writing

Narration in Cat Girl's Day Off is an awesome mix of adorable and witty. Nat's remarks made me laugh hard every few sentences. I'm not even kidding, every few sentences! The dialogues - especially when the cats were involved - were hilarious and very natural. On top of all that we had blog posts. Actual blog posts written by a blog celebrity. How cool is that?

Overall

I can't stress enough how much I loved this book! It made me laugh a lot, it's got a hilarious, easy to read plot and absolutely adorable character. Definitely one of my favorite reads this year!

Rating

5 stars out of 5. Read it, read it, read it!

REVIEW #13 - The Giver by Lois Lowry

TITLE: The Giver

AUTHOR: Lois Lowry

GENRE: dystopia

PUBLICATION DATE: Jan 24th 2006 (first published in 1993)

SYNOPSIS:

Jonas's world is perfect. Everything is under control. There is no war or fear or pain. There are no choices. Every person is assigned a role in the Community. When Jonas turns twelve, he is singled out to receive special training from The Giver. The Giver alone holds the memories of the true pain and pleasure of life. Now, it is time for Jonas to receive the truth. There is no turning back.

REVIEW:

First thoughts
I borrowed this book from the library - I just knew I wouldn't have read it if I hadn't have it in paperback. As a result I read it in Polish, so I base my review on this version.

Cover

I'm not sure if I like it. It sure tells me it's a "classic" book.

Plot

Like I said, classic. I didn't know much about this book other than it's classical dystopia that influenced all the later dystopias. And I must admit - it's a short book but thanks to that not a word feels redundant, everything has its place.
The story is gripping - I read a lot of dystopias and not half of them made such an impact on me like The Giver did. I saw thing like Jonas did

Characters

More than individual characters, we have this society. It lives in a bliss - it doesn't know pain, love, loss. The only characters who know them are The Giver and Jonas, and they hurt. They hurt so much that sometimes the reader wishes they didn't, wishes it stopped right there.
That's what makes the read turn the pages.
Jonas is a great character and I couldn't help feeling for him as he discovered the truth about the society.

Writing

The writing is simple yet captivating; it even felt raw at times. There were no unnecessary decorations or empty words.

Overall

Every fan of dystopian books should read it to see how A LOT of books is inspired by The Giver. I was particularly surprised to notice that very popular Matched (by Ally Condie) is almost identical with The Giver in a lot of aspects.

Rating

5 stars out of 5.

REVIEW #10 - Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins

TITLE: Anna and the French Kiss

AUTHOR: Stephanie Perkins

GENRE: contemporary, romance

PUBLICATION DATE: Dec 2nd 2010

SYNOPSIS:

Anna is looking forward to her senior year in Atlanta, where she has a great job, a loyal best friend, and a crush on the verge of becoming more. Which is why she is less than thrilled about being shipped off to boarding school in Paris - until she meets Etienne St. Clair: perfect, Parisian (and English and American, which makes for a swoon-worthy accent), and utterly irresistible. The only problem is that he's taken, and Anna might be, too, if anything comes of her almost-relationship back home.
As winter melts into spring, will a year of romantic near - misses end with the French kiss Anna - and readers - have long awaited?

REVIEW:

First thoughts:
I just hope there's my own St. Clair waiting for me somewhere you guys!

Cover

Not really my type, but it's cute enough so it fits the story!

Plot

Thrown a bit out of my safe zone (I am majorly fond of dystopian novels), I plunged into the story. I rarely read contemporary YA and after two awesome reads (this one and The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky) I've come to a decision: I NEED TO READ MORE OF THEM.
Anna and the French Kiss is just what everyone says about it: adorable (but not over the top adorable), full of humor (but not exaggerated one) and it feels as if I were reading about myself and my friends!

Characters

I love what Stephanie Perkins did with her characters - she wrote them SO well, even the cliché ones. First things first - Anna is an absolutely lovely character. She makes mistakes, but they're not infuriating, dumb ones. She's just human. Although I totally screamed "OH NO!" aloud when she did what she did in the later part of the book.
Do I really have to talk about St. Clair? HE WAS SO PERFECT. And I don't use capslock that often, ok. Sure, he had flaws. Annoying ones, sometimes. Painfully, he reminded me of some in real life boy situations. ;) But even so, I loved St. Clair.
What I enjoyed was the fact that every character that appeared in the book seemed very alive, from Anna's friends like Mer, Bridge, Rashmi or Josh to St. Clair's dad.

I found Anna's father hilarious, by the way.

Writing

First person POV, through Anna's eyes. The writing is excellent and familiar in that friendly, comfortable way. It makes you laugh on one page and scream at the character (be it from frustration or glee) on another!

Overall

Loved, loved, loved it! I can't wait to read "Lola and the Boy Next Door", it sounds just as fantastic as Anna. I recommend this book to fans of contemporary books and not only. Even such a dystopian die-hard fan like me could enjoy it so much!

Rating

5 stars out of 5.

(I won the copy of this book at Paperback Treasures blogoversary giveaway. Thank you so much, Hannah!)

REVIEW #7 - Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card

TITLE: Ender's Game

AUTHOR: Orson Scott Card

GENRE: sci-fi, dystopian

PUBLICATION DATE: April 1st 2010 (first published 1985)

SYNOPSIS:

Ender Wiggin is a very bright young boy with a powerful skill. One of a group of children bred to be military geniuses and save Earth from an inevitable attack by aliens, known here as "buggers," Ender becomes unbeatable in war games and seems poised to lead Earth to triumph over the buggers. Meanwhile, his brother and sister plot to wrest power from Ender.

REVIEW:

Cover

It's the newest edition of Ender's Game and by far the prettiest. I'm a  fan of good graphics when it comes to covers (I know some readers dislike them). So it's quite satisfying. And I love Ender's image - his eyes look much older than his actual age, which fits the book perfectly.

Plot

That was crazy. Totally psychotic, mad, good kind of crazy. Ender is six years old and he's supposed to save the world, taking over his brother and sister, who weren't able to do so. He's taken to a military school, where he trains, levels up quicker than anybody and leads a very, very lonely life.
It's a story with an breathtaking plot and gruesome intrigue, it's dark and totally engrossing. More than anything though, it's a story about a boy and how his own fate, chosen for him by other people, destroys him. It's utterly beautiful and terrifying.

Characters

Genius six-year-old kids - I had to take the idea with a pinch of salt, because it takes a lot to believe in a kid that speaks like a 40-year-old university professor. Despite that, the characters felt very alive. I felt real, raw emotions when I was reading about what Ender had to endure - it only happened to me once, and it was during my Chaos Walking trilogy read. Ender wasn't necessary a likable character, because in spite of his deep wisdom he was still a kid - a bit egoistic at times, but a broken, devastated even kid. I think I even shed a tear or two because of him.
Other characters were well written too - Valentine, Alai, Bean, even the "villains".
The most fascinating character was Peter though, Ender's older brother. I'm not spoiling anything about him, so read the book to find out!

Writing

I missed 3rd person point of view so much! It felt refreshing. The story was gripping and well paced, the dialogues flowing nicely. I actually read the book in Polish and I'm so used to reading in English it was a bit awkward. But the translation was quite good, from what I can tell.

Overall

The book has been recommended to me on a few occasions. It's been called a 'classic of the genre' and now I have nothing to add, just merely agree. It's the most amazing book I've read in a while. In fact, I don't think anything wow-ed me this much since I read Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins and Chaos Walking trilogy by Patrick Ness. Absolutely breathtaking. I can't praise it enough, everybody and I mean it, EVERYBODY should read it!

Rating

5 stars out of 5 and I would give more.!