COLD BURN OF MAGIC by Jennifer Estep

B+
Release Date: 4/28/15
Synopsis:
It's not as great as you'd think, living in a tourist town that's known as "the most magical place in America." Same boring high school, just twice as many monsters under the bridges and rival Families killing each other for power. 

I try to keep out of it. I've got my mom's bloodiron sword and my slightly illegal home in the basement of the municipal library. And a couple of Talents I try to keep quiet, including very light fingers and a way with a lock pick. 

But then some nasty characters bring their Family feud into my friend's pawn shop, and I have to make a call--get involved, or watch a cute guy die because I didn't. I guess I made the wrong choice, because now I'm stuck putting everything on the line for Devon Sinclair. My mom was murdered because of the Families, and it looks like I'm going to end up just like her. 

My thoughts on the book:
As most of you know, I'm a huge fan of anything Jennifer Estep writes. I love her world-building, descriptions, and kick ass heroines. Cold Burn of Magic did not disappoint me. While this is very different from the Mythos Academy novels, it is an engrossing and thrilling series debut. Estep has created another terrific world and filled it with interesting and complex characters. I can't wait to see what happens next. 

Lila is so different from Gwen that it was impossible to compare the two, which is good. I hate when authors write the same characters all the time. Lila resembles Gin from Estep's Elemental Assassin series much more than she does Gwen. Lila isn't quite as cold, but she is pretty hardcore. I enjoyed reading from her perspective, and she was one of those types who you trust because she just doesn't care enough to lie. I respected that. She was emotionally closed off, which I understood, yet somehow she was likeable and easy to relate to. Devon was a fantastic love interest, and he seems like a genuinely good guy. I really enjoyed getting to know him and look forward to learning more about him in the next book. Felix and Mo were entertaining secondary characters, though they had similar personalities. Mo was a bit more used car salesman than Felix, though. 

The world-building was fantastic for this novel. I love how Estep creates her own towns and cities in the US. In this particular book, she mentioned the other worlds she's created, too, which served to broaden the world as a whole. I now feel that Lila and Gin could run into each other because they live in the same world, even though they're in different cities. The plot itself was intriguing and full of suspense and action. I had the bad guy figured out pretty quickly, but I usually am pretty good at figuring out who can't be trusted in books and TV shows. The powers introduced in this series are very different from the ones that Estep has worked with in the past, and I really liked learning about these new forms of magic. The ending tied things up nicely and left room for a sequel.

Overall, I really loved this book and can't wait to see what happens to Lila and company next. I'd recommend this for anyone who's looking for a kick-ass YA heroine to read about. 

Pre-order Cold Burn of Magic

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THE FEARLESS by Emma Pass

Rating: D
Release Date: 4/24/15
Synopsis:
The Fearless. An army, powered by an incredible new serum that makes each soldier stronger, sharper, faster than their enemies. Intended as a force for good, the serum has a terrible side-effect - anyone who takes it is stripped of all humanity, empathy, love. And as the Fearless sweep through the country, forcing the serum on anyone in their path, society becomes a living nightmare.

Cass remembers the night they passed through her village. Her father was Altered. Her mother died soon after. All Cass has left is her little brother - and when Jory is snatched by the Fearless and taken to their hellish lair, Cass must risk everything to get him back.

My thoughts on the book:

This book had a lot of potential to be good, but it was just depressing. I couldn't connect to any of the characters, and I really didn't care what happened to any of them. The storyline itself wasn't as interesting as it could have been, and I had all of the "mysteries" figured out well before the "reveal" because the author basically told me what was happening instead of dropping hints. Because of all of these things, I had trouble working my way through this one, but I finally did manage to finish it. 

Cass had a rough life, and she was just existing instead of living. All she cared about was Jory, and when she lost him, she risked her own survival to save him. That was admirable, but her adventure was so boring. She just wasn't someone I could emotionally relate to at all. And the dull guy whose name I can't even remember who took her onto the mainland was also unrelatable. Furthermore, there was no chemistry between them. And her psychopath friend who supposedly loved her wasn't any better. 

Overall, I'd say skip this book, or check it out from the library before buying. I know some people liked it, but it really fell flat for me. 

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Sorry for the lack of reviews

Hey everyone!

As those of you who follow my GoodReads account know, I've been reading a lot lately. However, I haven't been taking the time to review because I've been gathering my thoughts about each book. Anyway, expect a lot of reviews to come your way this week. Have a great weekend!

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Book Memory Challenge

(From Reading in Winter)

I haven't wanted to do a post in a while, just a mood I guess, but this looked so fun over on Kristilyn's page that I thought I'd try it.

The rules: answer the questions without searching the Internet or looking at your bookshelves and tag five bloggers.
*If you want to try this yourself, do it before reading my answers:)*


1. Gone by Michael Grant
2. Eragon (I think that's the name of it?)
3. Does a Curious George book count? I'm counting it.
4. The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer E. Smith.
5. Graffiti Moon by Cath Crawley.
6. Saving June by Hannah Harrington
7. Um, a knife...I'm guessing one of Jennifer L. Armentrout's books has to count, but let me try to go more specific...nope, drawing a blank.
8. One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
9. Epony-what?
10. Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

Now...checking my answers...
After cheating with the internet:

2. Yes!!! Eragon is by Christopher Paolini. I feel like he's the same guy who wrote that children's book about the pasta that flowed over the whole town, but as I look it up on Goodreads, I get nothing. Maybe it's because he has an Italian last name.
5. Yep, except the author's name is Cath Crowley. A cute love story.
7. The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness. I have a version with a different cover, so thanks for your help, Google.
8.  Embarrassed to say that I didn't know the author was Ken Kesey. I wonder if this answer is a popular one?
9. Does anyone not have to look this word up? I believe it means giving of one's name to something, so I'll go with Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley.

I'm breaking the rules by not tagging five bloggers, but definitely try this! I appreciated the break. Plus, you'll never know when you'll be on Family Feud. I could imagine some of these questions being asked to 100 people...

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Jackaby

 Jackaby by William Ritter

“Miss Rook, I am not an occultist,” Jackaby said. “I have a gift that allows me to see truth where others see the illusion--and there are many illusions. All the world’s a stage, as they say, and I seem to have the only seat in the house with a view behind the curtain.”

Newly arrived in New Fiddleham, New England, 1892, and in need of a job, Abigail Rook meets R. F. Jackaby, an investigator of the unexplained with a keen eye for the extraordinary--including the ability to see supernatural beings. Abigail has a gift for noticing ordinary but important details, which makes her perfect for the position of Jackaby’s assistant. On her first day, Abigail finds herself in the midst of a thrilling case: A serial killer is on the loose. The police are convinced it’s an ordinary villain, but Jackaby is certain it’s a nonhuman creature, whose existence the police--with the exception of a handsome young detective named Charlie Cane--deny. 

Doctor Who meets Sherlock in William Ritter’s debut novel, which features a detective of the paranormal as seen through the eyes of his adventurous and intelligent assistant in a tale brimming with cheeky humor and a dose of the macabre. -Plot summary borrowed from Goodreads

After DNFing Girl from the Well, plodding through Storm Front (the first entry in the very popular Dresden Files series), and being underwhelmed by Fiendish, I was dying for a good supernatural read. I've had my eye on Jackaby for months- here's what I typed frantically into Goodreads when I first heard about it:

I didn't even get past “Miss Rook, I am not an occultist,” before thinking "oh my god YES." Then I skimmed the rest of the intro and saw the bit about it being "Doctor Who meets Sherlock in William Ritter’s debut novel, which features a detective of the paranormal as seen through the eyes of his adventurous and intelligent assistant in a tale brimming with cheeky humor and a dose of the macabre."

Oh my hopes. They have been raised exceedingly high.

 So was the wait worth it? Definitely. Ritter knows exactly what he is about in terms of blending these two genre favorites, and if you enjoy the recent BBC adaptation of Sherlock and new run of Doctor Who, I can't imagine you'll read this without smiling. Abigail Rook is an able and progressive protagonist, and what jaded reader can't get behind a girl who ditched her restrictive Victorian future to dig for fossils and, eventually, help solve spooky mysteries? She's as much Charley Pollard as she is Rose Tyler, for all you Whovians, and I love her for it.

Jackaby serves as your Sherlock/Doctor/Howl/Chrestomanci/Eccentric Intellectual stand-in, and while never quite reaching the heights of his forbears, he has his own skillset to offer and is plenty likable. (He may be clueless enough to mistake gunpowder for paprika, but he knows his lore and is a fantastic advocate for the strange and overlooked.) I was really concerned about the seeming likelihood of a romance between our two leads, but that was dismissed almost immediately, and the two instead have the makings of an excellent platonic team. Don't worry though, there is potential for romance for Abigail and Jackaby from amongst the side characters, several of whom are fully-realized and could support books of their own.

While it's not exactly horrifying, there are chills to be had and cases to be cracked. The dialogue occasionally falters a bit in terms of historical accuracy, but if you're anything like me you'll be having to much fun to be really bothered by it. I can't wait for the next installments in a promising new series!

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Review: Daughter of Smoke & Bone

Daughter of Smoke and Bone

"Around the world, black handprints are appearing on doorways, scorched there by winged strangers who have crept through a slit in the sky.

In a dark and dusty shop, a devil’s supply of human teeth grows dangerously low.

And in the tangled lanes of Prague, a young art student is about to be caught up in a brutal other-wordly war.

Meet Karou. She fills her sketchbooks with monsters that may or may not be real, she’s prone to disappearing on mysterious "errands", she speaks many languages - not all of them human - and her bright blue hair actually grows out of her head that color. Who is she? That is the question that haunts her, and she’s about to find out.

When beautiful, haunted Akiva fixes fiery eyes on her in an alley in Marrakesh, the result is blood and starlight, secrets unveiled, and a star-crossed love whose roots drink deep of a violent past. But will Karou live to regret learning the truth about herself?" -Goodreads
Release Date: September 27, 2011
Publisher: Little, Brown and Company
Page Count: 418
Buy Link: Amazon.com
Favorite Quotes:
"She was lonely, and she feared the missingness within her as if if might expand and...cancel her. She craved a presence beside her, solid. Fingertips light at the nape of her neck and a voice meeting hers in the dark. Someone who would wait with an umbrella to walk her home in the rain, and smile like sunshine when he saw her coming. Who would dance with her on her balcony, keep his promises and know her secrets, and make a tiny world wherever he was, with just her and his arms and his whisper and her trust."

"It was like stepping into the pages of a book-- a book alive with color and fragrance, filth and chaos-- and the blue-haired girl moved through it all like a fairy through a story, the light treating her differently than it did others, the air seeming to gather around her like held breath. As if this whole place were a story about her."

"The blade of his long sword gleamed white from the incandescence of the wings-- vast shimmering wings, their reach so great they swept the walls on either side of the alley, each feather like the wind-tugged lick of a candle flame."

"It was a remarkable sight, the sky beginning to flush pale at the roots, all the towers bathed in a soft glow, the streets of the city still shadowed and aglitter with fireflies of lamplight and the weaving, winking beam of headlights."

"The sun climbed above the hills and she watched as its glow herded night into the shadows where it gathered, all the darker for its density-- all of night crowded into the slanting places beyond the reach of dawn."

"Happiness. It was the place where passion, with all its dazzle and drumbeat, met something softer: homecoming and safety and pure sunbeam comfort."

Wow, wow, wow. Liani Taylor, you are my new literary hero.

Karou is a normal girl, if you consider normal knocking on doors behind which lie the portal to another world. She has tattooed eyes on her hands, wishes on a magical beads from her necklace, and meets bounty hunters to collect teeth. She was raised by Brimstone, a Wishmonger, and three of his chimaera hybrid friends. She fills her sketchbooks with pictures of her creature companions but feels a void inside. She doesn't know her parents or her past or what Brimstone does with the animal teeth.

Creative and fantastical storyline. The made up mythology blew my mind, especially about the sun and two moons. The connection between characters was electric. Not just between our two main characters who have the hots for each other, but even the friendship between Karou and Zuzana was entirely believable. I absolutely adore Zuzana's patience with Karou. She puts up with her "errands" without explanation, gets really protective when meeting "the new guy," and artistically carries out Karou's semester project idea.

You'll love this book if you like...
- Artists or hobby driven characters (Karou and Zuzana both attend an art school in Prague)
- Exotic locations intrigue you (Did I mention Prague? That's only the tip of the iceberg)
- People leading double lives (Behind door number one is...)
- A good love story that builds in tension
- Creativity
- Mystery (I couldn't guess the twist)
- The non-traditional angel (fiery wings, guys)
- Wishes and/or knives (Be surprised)
-  Writing that sweeps you away

I couldn't put this book down. And even though a ton of the book was flashbacks, they built the world up in such a strong way. I know this has set the second book up to be amazing. I even saw there's a 2.5 volume that goes into Zuzana's love story!

The best thing about discovering a series so late...all the books are already out.  I don't have to wait that agonizing year in between books and forget all the details.

This brings me to my question for you:
What awesome series did you discover after some or all of the books were out?

--BUY DAUGHTER OF SMOKE AND BONE HERE--

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Inland

Inland by Kat Rosenfield

Callie Morgan has long lived choked by the failure of her own lungs, the result of an elusive pulmonary illness that has plagued her since childhood. A childhood marked early by the drowning death of her mother—a death to which Callie was the sole witness. Her father has moved them inland, away from the memories of the California coast her mother loved so much and toward promises of recovery—and the escape of denial—in arid, landlocked air.

But after years of running away, the promise of a life-changing job for her father brings Callie and him back to the coast, to Florida, where Callie’s symptoms miraculously disappear. For once, life seems delightfully normal. But the ocean’s edge offers more than healing air … it holds a magnetic pull, drawing Callie closer and closer to the chilly, watery embrace that claimed her mother. Returned to the ocean, Callie comes of age and comes into a family destiny that holds generations of secrets and very few happy endings. -Plot summary borrowed from Goodreads

 I was completely drawn in to Rosenfield's Amelia Anne Is Dead and Gone, and had high hopes for the creeping horror in this novel, many of which were met. The prose was gorgeous. Callie's family mysteries were intriguing. The romance was mostly sweet and believable while not overwhelming the plot. I loved the ambiguity of Callie's condition- is she really ill, or is she some depth-dwelling horor-beast with gills?? 

Unfortunately, that's exactly where this book lost me. I really can't blame Rosenfield. It's not her fault that I'm so much more likely to believe, and be interested in, a fantasy plotline than a mental illness one. A book can drop all the hints it wants that the narrator is unreliable and likely disturbed- I'll still root for them being a mermaid or visited by fairies.

(One exception to this rule is Caitlin R. Kiernan, but I think that's because she writes about people encountering supernatural occurrences while also battling depression or schizophrenia, all with a deft hand and distressingly evocative language)

So, while there were plenty of things I liked about this book (and gave it 5 stars on Goodreads), I think it's one that will work better for its target teen audience, especially those who haven't binged on similar titles. If you're looking for something more adult on related marine themes, check out Caitlin R. Kiernan's The Drowning Girl or Sarah Monette's Somewhere Beneath Those Waves, and there's always the Mermaid tag on this very blog! 

If you need me, I'll be rereading "The Shadow over Innsmouth."

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