Nissa by Bethany Lopez

Nissa
by Bethany Lopez

Published: April 23rd 2013
Format: Ebook
Pages: 216
Source: Received for
review purposes
Amazon |

At 900 years old, Nissa is finally ready to follow her mother's path and become the best Fairy Godmother she can.
She’s not thrilled when her first assignment turns out to be a teenage human girl with self-esteem issues, but she knows she has to start somewhere.
Her assignment has dealt with bullies since her freshman year and they haven’t let up. If Nissa can’t help her regain her self-confidence her future is bleak.

To complicate matters Nissa experiences all the signs that she's met the being fated for her. This impossibility distracts her from her purpose. After all, fairies and humans aren't meant for each other.
How can her heart believe otherwise? Can Nissa successfully complete her first assignment as a Fairy Godmother?
Will the fates allow Nissa and Levi to be together? And even if they do, will Levi believe Nissa once she reveals the truth?

*MAY CONTAIN SOME SPOILERS*
This book was described as "a contemporary fairy tale", so of course I couldn't wait to dive in. I'm a sucker for that kind of stories, and the gorgeous cover definitely didn't hurt! Seriously, just love it.

And the beginning was quite promising. Nissa decides she wants to be a fairy godmother and her first assignment is a teenage girl named Vicky. Then it got pretty bad.
By bad I mean the story didn't have a soul. Weird thing to say, but it was just empty. I couldn't connect with the story or with the characters.
I'm really having hard time to describe the problem here. It's like someone just tells you "main character named X meets a dude and they look each other. Now they are like feeling the connection and all. They like really fall for each other." Yeah, you can keep telling me that, but that just isn't good enough.
That pretty much describes the love story here. First Nissa meets Levi, drools over him a little, then they're suddenly sleeping together, then they're.. I don't even know what they are. There's absolutely no chemistry between these two characters so how am I suppose to believe they are falling for each other? I have no idea.

There was just this overall emptiness that bothered me so much. I really wanted to give only one cupcake, but I absolutely loved the idea behind this book and the cover, so I had to give two cupcakes.

First Light by Samantha Summers

First Light
by Samantha Summers

Published: May 12th 2012
Format: Paperback
Pages: 367
Series: Project Five Fifteen #1
Source: Received for
review purposes
Amazon |
Book Depository

What do you do when you've always dreamed of a hero; your knight in shining armour, only to find when he arrives he isn't a hero at all? ... He's a killer.

Ronnie Rose is trying to cope with the loss of her father; now it looks like she might lose everything else that's dear to her too. Huge debts threaten to destroy her family, her childhood home and her future.
Only one person cuts through her pain. Kalen Smith has just moved to town. He's trouble and everyone knows it.
He and his mysterious friends keep to themselves and the town likes it that way. But when Kalen mourns at her dad's funeral, Ronnie wants to know why and her investigation plunges her into a dangerous world of murky government secrets, with deadly consequences.
Ronnie knows she should walk away from Kalen before it's too late. Problem is, she's falling for him...

Can we choose who we fall in love with?

*MAY CONTAIN SOME SPOILERS*
My expectations with this: "OMG!, I have to love this book, since the guy is an assassin, for crying out loud! How awesome is that?!" And yeah, at first I liked the story, but then.. I just lost interested.

It's just Ronnie and her sister after their father dies. During his funeral, Ronnie sees Kalen, the notorious assassin boy! Though she doesn't know that, just that he's "trouble".
And of course she's baffled by the fact that Kalen dares to show up to her father's funeral, especially since there shouldn't be any connection between them. Aaaand this is how their story begins.

At first, I really liked Ronnie. She's really nice and sweet and all that, but also quite tough, considering how she's handeling their father's death.
But after time, I had to change my opinion about her. Because what first seemed like being nice and considerate, turns into her being a total pushover. Whether it's her sister or sister's ***k of a boyfriend, she just let's them walk over her. Grow some backbone!
I don't know if it's because of Kalen, but after he comes to the picture, she just losts her ability to take care of herself or to stand up to herself. She's just not that tough anymore. And yeah, it's great if you can be tough yet vulnerable, but if you lose any kind of ability to make decisions for yourself.. BAD!

And Kalen is the complete opposite, meaning he's "being the man". Someone mouths off to your woman? You beat him up! Just "I'm a man. Me hunt meat for my woman. Me caveman. GRRRR."
And do I remember wrong, or was there some part where the villagers were going to hunt Kalen down with torches and pitchforks, or was there just some moment that made me think of that scene??

Oh well. I didn't completely hate it. I liked the beginning, and I quite liked the ending, but wasn't a fan of the middle part. Which was basically most of the book..
Will I read the next book? I was convinced it would be another assassin's story (you know, the other guys hanging out with Kalen), so my answer was absolutety not. But after realising I was wrong, I may have to consider reading the second book too.

Ties to the Blood Moon by Robin P. Waldrop

Ties to the Blood Moon
by Robin P. Waldrop

Published: November 1st 2011
Format: Ebook
Pages: 152
Source: From author for review
Amazon |
Book Depository

Genevieve is a teenage girl who moves in with her aunt in Alaska after the death of her mother.

Soon after her arrival she learns the things she was raised to believe only existed in fairytales are in fact a big part of her history.

When it gets to be too much she seeks refuge in the arms of her new boyfriend, William, only to find out he's not who she thought he was either.

*MAY CONTAIN SOME SPOILERS*
Genevieve's mother has just passed away, so she's forced to move in with her aunt, who lives in Alaska. There she's surrounded with eskimos. Plus one guy he instantly falls in love with. His name is William, and before you can say a cat, they're kind of dating or something. And of course there's this eskimo guy, who is a werewolf guy, and so on.

Sorry for the not-so-great introduction, but I just couldn't do it. There was so much similarities with Twilight, I just couldn't take it. Yeah, Twilight rocks, and other authors seem to know it too, since there's so, so, so many books trying to be the new Twilight. Sometimes that works, sometimes not. And you guess correct, this time it didn't work for me.

Usually great main character saves a lot, but in this case, I had huge problems with Genevieve. I actually made notes and there's few "Why is she being such a brat?!" and "Why is she whining nonstop??", because she was just so irritating! And she had absolutely no manners! Your aunt takes you to live with her, and you just complain and whine, and not really about your mothers death, but your aunt being too overprotective and suffocating you? Seriously.
She's also really aggressive, and yeah, I know there's some changes going on with her (more than just normal puberty), but it's still pretty rude to shove people around. Don't like.

“Who? Those creeps right there?”
I nodded toward the three approaching boys. “Let’s just say I hope everyone isn’t as unwelcoming as they are.”

My eyes followed them as they walked by. When they glanced my way, I narrowed my eyes at the one who’d been so rude.
He halfway smiled, and then out of nowhere wrapped his forearm around Luna’s head and gave her a noogie.

“Leave her alone, you cretin,” I yelled, and shoved him backward so hard he slammed into the wall on the other side of the hall.

If there was one thing I had no patience for, it was a bully.

Now who's a bully? I really had high expactations, but unfortunately I wasn't able to enjoy this all that much.

The Forsaken by Lisa M. Stasse

The Forsaken
by Lisa M. Stasse

Published: July 10th 2012
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books For Young Readers
Format: Ebook
Pages: 384
Source: Through Pulse It
Amazon |
Book Depository

A thought-provoking and exciting start to a riveting new dystopian trilogy for fans of The Hunger Games.

As an obedient orphan of the U.N.A. (the super-country that was once Mexico, the U.S., and Canada), Alenna learned at an early age to blend in and be quiet — having your parents taken by the police will do that to a girl.
But Alenna can’t help but stand out when she fails a test that all sixteen-year-olds have to take: The test says she has a high capacity for brutal violence, and so she is sent to The Wheel, an island where all would-be criminals end up.

The life expectancy of prisoners on The Wheel is just two years, but with dirty, violent, and chaotic conditions, the time seems a lot longer as Alenna is forced to deal with civil wars for land ownership and machines that snatch kids out of their makeshift homes.
Desperate, she and the other prisoners concoct a potentially fatal plan to flee the island. Survival may seem impossible, but Alenna is determined to achieve it anyway.

*MAY CONTAIN SOME SPOILERS*
Little Hunger Games, some Divergent, a touch of Across the Universe, and voilà, we have The Forsaken! It wasn't bad, but it wasn't really anything special.
I was pretty excited in the beginning, but after that it was sort of a roller coaster (and not the good kind of emotional roller coaster).
My thoughts were something like "Okay, this seems interesting - Aaand now we have some Divergent here - Now this is something different! - oh, wait, that's Hunger Games - I'm not sure how to feel about this now - Can this book just end already?! - Where did I read something similar.. oh, Across the Universe! - what, it's still going on..."

The basic idea is the same with every dystopian book. But the great dystopian books have some unique elements that usually make them a hit. In this case, there's the government who wants to eliminate individuals and control everyone, the same old story.
Teens are injected with some serume to diagnose something.. (now I have to cheat from someone) "to diagnose subversive tendencies". Yeah, couldn't remember that one.
Those, who fail get sent to The Wheel - an island where all the unanchored souls are sent. And that's what happens to our main character. At first she's convinced there has to be a mistake, since she's not a lunatic or a criminal! But soon she realizes that that's just how the government rolls.

Many times, I avoid books that are referred as "the new Hunger Games!" or to fans of this and that. Because many times it means there's too many shared elements between those books, and the new book ends up just repeating the old one.
I usually roll my eyes, thinking "Couldn't come up with something new". And I'm not saying this is the case every time, but sometimes. Like in this case. I ended up rolling my eyes so much I was actually afraid I might hurt myself. Not in the beginning so much, but towards the end. It felt as if the author was just dragging out the ending. In the last part of the book, characters' actions didn't make any sense to me. It was just so transparent! You could clearly see how author wanted to things go, but like I said, it didn't make any sense and ended up forced.

I expected the book to end 100 pages before it did, because those last 100 pages were just.. not so interesting. I also felt this should've been a standalone, since I know how the two other books are going to be, and the whole "let's-fight-the-government"- thing could've been on those 100 last pages.
So I probably won't be rest of the trilogy. This was quite entertaining, but the ending ruined it for me.


Thanks to Simon & Schuster for providing a review copy!

Lies Beneath by Anne Greenwood Brown

Lies Beneath
by Anne Greenwood Brown

Published: June 12th 2012
Publisher: Delacorte Books for Young Readers
Format: Ebook
Pages: 288
Series: Lies Beneath #1
Source: Through NetGalley for review
Amazon |
Book Depository

Calder White lives in the cold, clear waters of Lake Superior, the only brother in a family of murderous mermaids.
To survive, Calder and his sisters prey on humans and absorb their positive energy. Usually, they select their victims at random, but this time around, the underwater clan chooses its target for a reason: revenge.
They want to kill Jason Hancock, the man they blame for their mother's death.

It's going to take a concerted effort to lure the aquaphobic Hancock onto the water. Calder's job is to gain Hancock's trust by getting close to his family. Relying on his irresistible good looks and charm, Calder sets out to seduce Hancock's daughter Lily. Easy enough, but Calder screws everything up by falling in love--just as Lily starts to suspect there's more to the monster-in-the-lake legends than she ever imagined, and just as the mermaids threaten to take matters into their own hands, forcing Calder to choose between them and the girl he loves.

One thing's for sure: whatever Calder decides, the outcome won't be pretty.

*MAY CONTAIN SOME SPOILERS*
I really don't know what to say about this. This wasn't bad. But there really isn't anything remarkable about this either. I had high expactations, since this was the first mermaid story with evil mermaids. I wanted to hate and love these creatures, but instead I ended up just blah. Blah = I didn't hate or love anything. I actually can't even remember most of the story! And I had some hard times reading this, since I ended up bored so many times.
It wasn't badly written, but there was just something missing. I didn't feel the rush and didn't have the urge to finish the book right away. That ended up being a total reading-blah, meaning I didn't get to read anything since I decided I should finish this first.

No surprise, I don't have much to say about the characters. I did like Calder, mostly because there was something humane in him. Though the stalking creeped even me out! Usually I don't mind a little stalking, but this was totally over the top. It was creepy.
Other characters.. I have hard time even remembering them.

The plot was very predictable, and that's probably the main reason why I ended up being bored. And usually I'm a fan of clichés! I don't get it either.
So this wasn't the best read of all times. It was occasionally entertaining, but I doubt I'll be reading the second book. Though I did hear it's from Lily's POV, so maybe I'll give it a shot after all. That might just add more personality to the story and make it more interesting.


Thanks to NetGalley and Delacorte Books for Young Readers for providing a review copy!

By the Pale Moonlight by Jennifer Hendren

By the Pale Moonlight
by Jennifer Hendren

Published: November 2nd 2011
( first publ. October 17th 2011 )
Publisher: Barnes and Noble
Format: Ebook
Pages: 310
Series: Moonlight Series
Source: From the author for
review
Amazon

Makenna Wilhelm knows all of her friends have their quirks, but when Ty shows up naked in her yard one morning, she finds it beyond weird. Stranger still are the deep gashes across Ty’s chest and his sudden ability to hear and smell things that no human should.

During a moonlit night, Ty’s secret is revealed. He’s no longer the boy she’s crushed on forever, but rather a werewolf with one serious aversion for all things silver. Makenna is left wondering if he’s to blame for the recent death of one of their classmates, the apparent victim of an animal attack.

With the help of Melanie, the dead girl’s friend, they manage to shed doubt on Ty’s guilt only to discover Makenna was the intended prey. Even worse, she’s still a target.

In a race against the full moon, the trio struggles to find who murdered the young woman. However, without a way to cure Ty, they have no way of knowing who poses the greater threat: Ty or the unknown enemy.

*MAY CONTAIN SOME SPOILERS*
This book really brought up some mixed feelings. I definitely wanted to love this, since I fell in love with both the cover and synopsis. And like in any book, there were lots of pros and cons.
Pros, like I mentioned, awesome cover and synopsis. But cons won the race this time. Because in order for me to enjoy this the book there should be some serious editing done.

First of all, it was really hard to keep up with the story! It felt like the characters were just running around, without any clear goal or even a purpose.
For example: Like mentioned in synopsis, it's believed that Makenna was the intended prey and she's still a target. And in this scene I was pretty much like "R U SERIOUS?". Because they base their assumption on the fact the dead girl was wearing Makenna's coat while being attacked. I mean, seriously? That's all you got? The dead girl stole Makenna's coat and was wearing it when attacked, but that's it! Oh, and both girls' hair was remotely same color. But.. Werewolves have pretty great sense of smelling, right?
So that really wouldn't have been enough evidence for me, sorry.

Then there's running around with dog whistle. You heard me right. Like in the synopsis, you would think they would get some silver to reveal the werewolf. If not silver, maybe something else badass werewolves can't stand. But no, they use a freaking dog whistle. And there wasn't even an explanation why and how and when they came up with the plan to use the dog whistle. It was more like "hey look, it's pretty awesome I happen to have a dog whistle in my pocket, let's hunt werewolves with it!". There was lot of that going around, just coming up to conclusion without any kind of reason, so it really was quite hard to keep up with.

This is the last example, I promise. Makenna found out the werewolf attacking "the dead girl" was actually black. So of course she blames the "bad guy" of the school. Because he's the only guy with black hair in your school or in the town?! And she just decided the werewolf's fur color is based on the person's hair color. You've seen one werewolf, so again, little too little evidence?!
And why would "the bad boy" attack Makenna? Well, two years earlier he asked her out, and she said no. Can you imagine that?! And it's so hard for the bad boys to get girls, so of course he still holds a grudge over her! w00000t..?
Okay now I seriously need to change the subject because my head starts to hurt.

I don't have much to say about the characters over all. They were pretty one-dimensional. They were lots of going with Makenna and Ty and their friends, but nothing was really explained. There was very little background about anyone, so it was pretty hard to feel connected. I really didn't care what happened to them, 'cause I didn't feel close to them.

Makenna was pretty much the only character I occasionally had some feeling for. Though that was mostly me going crazy because I was so annoyed with her.
She really isn't likable main character, believe me. She's really superficial and she hangs out with friends who bully everyone else. She has a boyfriend, who is a douche, sleeps with everyone else and is constantly trying to get to Makenna's pants. Yet Makenna dreams about her best friend, Ty, all the time. And when ever they see, she gribs Ty's shirt and hugs him. If I was dating Makenna, I would probably have a problem with her and Ty's hugging. And the mr. Douche obviously knows there's something going on, because he keeps making comments about Ty. Though the background of this is never revealed, so reader's just have to guess why mr. Douche's so pissed off. Like, okay, I know he's pissed to Ty and to Makenna and that's why keep making these douchy comments about Makenna sleeping with Ty, but what happened?! Why does he do that?? It's really frustarting!!
And even though Ty is probably meant to be the second main character, there really isn't much to say about him. He's just some dude, I really don't care.

There really was some huge potential, which why I hate to give a bad review. But when you just can't enjoy the writing, there's not much to do about it.
Though I must admit the huge cliffhanger made me curious. And pissed off. Because it was the only interesting part in the book, so it was too little too late.


My thanks to author for providing a review copy!

Angel Eyes by Shannon Dittemore

Angel Eyes
by Shannon Dittemore

Published: May 29th 2012
Publisher: Thomas Nelson Fiction
Format: Ebook
Pages: 320
Series: Angel Eyes Trilogy #1
Source: From NetGalley for
review
Amazon |
Book Depository

Once you’ve seen, you can’t unsee.
Everything changes when you’ve looked at the world through . . .

ANGEL EYES

Brielle’s a ballerina who went to the city to chase her dreams and found tragedy instead. She’s come home to shabby little Stratus, Oregon, to live with her grief and her guilt . . . and the incredible, numbing cold she can’t seem to shake.

Jake’s the new guy at school. The boy next door with burning hands and an unbelievable gift that targets him for corruption.

Something more than fate has brought them together. An evil bigger than both of them lurks in the shadows nearby, hiding in plain sight.

Two angels stand guard, unsure what’s going to happen. And a beauty brighter than Jake or Brielle has ever seen is calling them to join the battle in a realm where all human choices start.

A realm that only angels and demons — and Brielle — can perceive.

*MAY CONTAIN SOME SPOILERS*
I saw this on NetGalley and since there's angels and demons involved, I just had to read it! Aaaand I was like yay when reading it. Until I was about halfway through and it was just.. nay.

Our main character is Brielle, a ballerina/model who's just lost her best friend and moves back home to live with her dad.
Everything's the same in her hometown, except there's a new guy, Jake. Brielle realizes Jake really isn't like everyone else and soon both's secrets start to unravel.

I'll start with the first half of the book. Brielle comes to her hometown and you're almost immediately pulled inside the story. What is this huge secret Brielle is hiding? We know it's about her best friend, who died, and Brielle blames herself. That's pretty common, but it seems like Brielle really did something and is actually guilty of something.
Then we meet Jake, who seems like a fun guy. He's relaxed and outgoing and you just have to like him. But there's something weird about him, with his hot hands and guardian Canaan.
There's some really funny moments and it's hard to stop reading! All the mysteries just takes a hold of you, and Brielle's and Jake's relationship just sweeps you off your feet.
Jake really makes Brielle open up and even though this is a book about angels and demons, the spotlight is in Brielle and Jake.

Then everything went to h*ll.

I've read many books about angels and demons and they've been great. Angels and demons has been part of the same mythological world as vampires, werewolves, you name it.
And that's what I love! Everything is possible. Especially when author manages to create a whole new storyworld and characters and bring out their original point of view. There might have been a little religion somewhere in the story, especially when angels involved, but those books have been open minded and not preached. There may have been some involment with some gods, but again, without preachy.

I thought this would be one of those books. But then I was proven so, so wrong. I had read first half of the book and was so excited! But then the preaching started and I felt ambushed.
It took me week to finish this book, because I just didn't want to keep reading. As soon as the whole Jesus-preaching started, I wanted to throw the book away and forget about it. I was so convinced I would love this book to the end, so the disappointment was overwhelming. I expected something original and a whole new world, but all I got was the same old things church tells to everyone.
I was also little put off when Jake tells Brielle that one day he'll propose to her. Okay, so now he's promised to marry you some day, so now you can start making out, maybe even get to first or even to second base? Because otherwise it would be so bad to make out with someone. Sure.
I may have been able to keep reading with straight face, but when there was this scene where Jake preaches about his god for like five pages, I just wanted to torch the book. That would have been great opportunity to come up with your own thoughts, but no, author decided it was best to repeat the same old stuff. And if only there had been some logic in it, but no.

So, you can read this, but I only recommend reading the first half of the book, since that was the only enjoyable part. And I would've given one cupcake, but since the start was great, I was forced to give two.

My thanks to NetGalley and Thomas Nelson Fiction for providing a reviewcopy

Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher

Thirteen Reasons Why
by Jay Asher

Published: October 18th 2007
Publisher: Razorbill
Format: Hardcover
Pages: 288
Series: -
Source: Borrowed from library
Amazon |
Book Depository

Clay Jensen returns home from school to find a mysterious box with his name on it lying on his porch.

Inside he discovers thirteen cassette tapes recorded by Hannah Baker, his classmate and crush who committed suicide two weeks earlier.

On tape, Hannah explains that there are thirteen reasons why she decided to end her life. Clay is one of them.

If he listens, he'll find out how he made the list.

Through Hannah and Clay's dual narratives, debut author Jay Asher weaves an intricate and heartrending story of confusion and desperation that will deeply affect teen readers.

*MAY CONTAIN SOME SPOILERS*
In the beginning we beet Clay. Clay seems like a sweet guy who had a crush on Hannah, a girl who killed herself. But before her suicide she recorded 13 tapes; tapes, that will tell you why she killed herself.

Really love the sound of it, right? I did, so I just couldn't wait to read it! I had just read Hate List and Speak and was expecting something as amazing!

Unfortunately, this book just wasn't worth the hype. I was waiting for something huge, a great book dealing with difficult subject with some suspence. But that really wasn't what I got.

First of all, there's two POVs; Clays, and Hannah reading her tapes. It was really confusing! It seems like a great idea, but these two were mixed so completely it was hard to know who's POV I was reading. So sometimes it took me two pages before I realized I was reading Hannah's POV, not Clays! And had to read it all over again. That was quite annoying. But otherwise the writing was okay.

What can I say about the characters.. Well, Clay really is a sweet boy, who had a crush on Hannah. And that was actually his only mistake. Having a crush on her, I mean.
Because of that, he becomes one of Hannah's victims. You might think that since he's on the tapes, he must have done something horrible to Hannah, right? Well, not exactly. So I just feel bad for the poor boy! But at least Clay's character was believable and likable.

But Hannah.. Oh, Hannah. I was waiting this tortured soul, a depressed teenager who had horrible life and that's why she ended it. But.. Yeah, it just didn't work!
I know, this book was suppose to be about how everyone should think about their actions because they might effect other people. But I didn't learn that kind of lesson from the book. All I learned was that Hannah really is a b*tch!
First she kills herself because she feels like it. But that wasn't enough! She records tapes where she blames other people for her own actions. Well, at least she acts like a stupid teenager! So guess that part is actually believable.
She's one of those weak characters who just likes to blame other people all the time. And now she haunts them from the grave! How wrong is that. Yeah, there was like two people who actually deserved to receive the tapes and who actually did something wrong. All the others were stuff like "omg, he said my ass is the best looking evö, i so wanna die now!". WTH?
Sure, everyone's different, but if that is your biggest problem..
And who is she to blame anyone else, when she did nothing when she should've? Like witnessing a rape and doing nothing. She's just acting all passive bystander, who can do nothing. And that is why I hate her so much. Because I don't like people who act like victim all the time. They complain and then.. do nothing. Hello, ever heard of something like "the police"??

When I read the book, tape by tape, I was waiting for some huge revelation. I mean, since she killed herself, there must be a reason. Something had to be the last straw that finally made her decide "today I'm going to kill myself". If that's something you'd like to read about, don't read this book. Seriously. Because you wait and you wait, but you'll never get the huge revelation.
Also, if you're one of those readers who like to cry because the book is so emotional, again, avoid this book. No matter how much I tried, I couldn't shed a tear. And believe me, I tried!
There was this one scene where Hannah was all devastated and crying and you know it's suppose to be all emotional and you're suppose to be crying, but no matter how much I tried, I couldn't cry. Because it wasn't actually that sad scene, it was just silly girl making a fuss.

So, this really sounded like a great book, but really.. wasn't. I expected something awesome and meaningful, but it really wasn't believable. I did like Clay, so that's why I gave two cupcakes instead of just one.