Book Review: Boundless by Cynthia Hand

Boundless by Cynthia Hand
Publisher: HarperTeen
Publication date: January 2013
Pages: 448
Source: Library
For: Fun
Series: Unearthly, Book 3

Summary from goodreads: *Spoilers are inevitable for the first two books*

The past few years have held more surprises than part-angel Clara Gardner could ever have anticipated. Yet from the dizzying highs of first love, to the agonizing low of losing someone close to her, the one thing she can no longer deny is that she was never meant to live a normal life.

Since discovering the special role she plays among the other angel-bloods, Clara has been determined to protect Tucker Avery from the evil that follows her . . . even if it means breaking both their hearts. Leaving town seems like the best option, so she’s headed back to California - and so is Christian Prescott, the irresistible boy from the vision that started her on this journey in the first place.

As Clara makes her way in a world that is frighteningly new, she discovers that the fallen angel who attacked her is watching her every move. And he’s not the only one. . . . With the battle against the Black Wings looming, Clara knows she must finally fulfill her destiny. But it won’t come without sacrifices and betrayal.

Things I Liked:
I enjoyed seeing how the visions and the future turned out for these characters.  I always like seeing an author take something that characters "predict" and then changing them to fit the same scenario, but with unique twists.  I liked Clara, for the most part, because even if she doesn't act like it, she wants to be independent of a boy and not feel compelled to like someone because she's being told to.  Even though she waffles pretty much the entire book, much to my annoyance and the leading on of both guys, she still manages to be strong and interesting.  I also found some of the plot twists exciting, if fairly predictable.  I pretty much skimmed the last 100 pages or so, and found the ending to be a little too convenient, but still mostly satisfying.  Not my favorite series, but probably my favorite angel one.

Things I Didn't Like:
Eh, like I mentioned above, not so thrilled with the romantic back and forth.  It also seemed like Clara was a bit more self-centered throughout this installment.  And some things seemed awfully convenient when they happened at just the right time. 

Read-alikes:
Start with Unearthly by Cynthia Hand
Forbidden by Syrie James and Ryan James
BOOK CONTENT RATINGS:
s-factor: !
maybe one or two

mrg-factor: none

v-factor: ->
a little bit, not too gory

Overall rating: ***

If you buy through my Amazon linkage, I will get a very small percentage

Book Review: Everbound by Brodi Ashton

Everbound by Brodi Ashton
Publisher: Balzer + Bray
Publication date: January 2013
Pages: 368
Source: Library
For: Fun
Series: Everneath, Book 2

Summary from goodreads: *Spoilers are inevitable for the first book*

Nikki Beckett could only watch as her boyfriend, Jack, sacrificed himself to save her, taking her place in the Tunnels of the Everneath for eternity — a debt that should’ve been hers. She’s living a borrowed life, and she doesn’t know what to do with the guilt. And every night Jack appears in her dreams, lost and confused and wasting away.

Desperate for answers, Nikki turns to Cole, the immortal bad boy who wants to make her his queen — and the one person least likely to help. But his heart has been touched by everything about Nikki, and he agrees to assist her in the only way he can: by taking her to the Everneath himself.

Nikki and Cole descend into the Everneath, only to discover that their journey will be more difficult than they’d anticipated — and more deadly. But Nikki vows to stop at nothing to save Jack — even if it means making an incredible sacrifice of her own.

Things I Liked:
I really loved reading about the sweet romance that developed between Jack and Nikki.  This was only shown through memories that Nikki shares part way into the book, but it really was my favorite part.  For most of the book, I thought it was all kind of blah and I couldn't make any sense or pattern to the things that happened or to the levels of the Everneath or really anything.  What kind of made the whole thing more interesting and would have convinced me to read it again if it wasn't already late at the library, was the ending.  It was completely surprising to me and kind of made the rest of it make more sense.  Interesting and entertaining and a unique take on mythology and the underworld.  I'll definitely be back for the next installment.

Things I Didn't Like:
It really felt a bit slow and kind of meandering in places.  Nikki seems to learn not to do something and then go ahead and do it a few times anyway.  Which kind of seems pointless - why learn it in the first place?  Still, it was quite entertaining to read.

Read-alikes:
Maybe a bit like The Goddess Test by Aimee Carter

BOOK CONTENT RATINGS:
s-factor: !
maybe one or two mild ones

mrg-factor:none

v-factor:->
maybe a little bit, nothing gory

Overall rating: ****

If you buy through my Amazon linkage, I will get a very small percentage

Book Review: Through the Ever Night by Veronica Rossi

Through the Ever Night by Veronica Rossi
Publisher: HarperCollins
Publication date: January 2013
Pages: 352
Source: Library
For: Fun
Series: Under the Never Sky, Book 2

Summary from goodreads: *Spoilers are inevitable for the first book*

It's been months since Aria learned of her mother's death.

Months since Perry became Blood Lord of the Tides, and months since Aria last saw him.

Now Aria and Perry are about to be reunited. It's a moment they've been longing for with countless expectations. And it's a moment that lives up to all of them. At least, at first. Then it slips away. The Tides don't take kindly to former Dwellers like Aria. And the tribe is swirling out of Perry's control. With the Aether storms worsening every day, the only remaining hope for peace and safety is the Still Blue. But does this haven truly exist?

Threatened by false friends and powerful temptations, Aria and Perry wonder, Can their love survive through the ever night? In this second book in her spellbinding Under the Never Sky trilogy, Veronica Rossi combines fantasy and sci-fi elements to create a captivating adventure-and a love story as perilous as it is unforgettable.

Things I Liked:
I really enjoy this series.  It feels unique, though it has a lot of elements that are familiar in dystopian books.  The characters make really hard choices and they stick with the consequences of those choices.  I like Aria and how she's developed since the first book.  In some ways, she keeps the dweller attitudes and things she's believed all her life, but in many others she's completely changed.  I loved the story and following Perry and Aria and especially Roar in their travels.  Things just seem to get really crazy near the end and I am excited to know where they will end up next.  A fun, action-packed, and enthralling dystopian story.

Things I Didn't Like:
Not much I can think of.  I think I just enjoyed this one a lot!

Read-alikes:
Reminds me of the Uglies series by Scott Westerfeld
Matched series by Ally Condie

BOOK CONTENT RATINGS:
s-factor: !
a handful

mrg-factor: X 
you know, it's been a while, but I seem to recall a scene or two...

v-factor: ->-> 
there's quite a bit of fighting and gore

Overall rating: *****

If you buy through my Amazon linkage, I will get a very small percentage

Book Review: Jessica Rules the Dark Side by Beth Fantaskey

Jessica Rules the Dark Side by Beth Fantaskey
Publisher: Recorded Books
Publication date: January 2012
Length: 8 hrs 55 min
Source: Audiobook from Library
For: YA Audiobook Challenge
Series: Sequel to Jessica's Guide to Dating on the Dark Side

Summary from goodreads: *Spoilers for the first book are inevitable*

It’s one thing to find out you’re a vampire princess. It’s a whole other thing to actually rule. Newly married Jessica Packwood is having a hard enough time feeling regal with her husband, Lucius, at her side. But when evidence in the murder of a powerful elder points to Lucius, sending him into solitary confinement, Jessica is suddenly on her own. Determined to clear her husband’s name, Jessica launches into a full-scale investigation, but hallucinations and nightmares of betrayal keep getting in her way. Jessica knows that with no blood to drink, Lucius’s time is running out. Can she figure out who the real killer is—and whom she can trust—before it’s too late?

Things I Liked:
I like this series' take on vampires and the vicious world of politics they live in.  I liked Jessica, though I liked Mindy even more.  In fact, the side characters are the ones that shone in this book for me.  Roniero was entertaining.  I thought a lot of the action was very predictable and everyone but Jessica figured out who was behind the murder very early (well, I sure did anyway).  It became painfully obvious after a while too, and she just seemed not to get it.  I was, however, entertained and I really like the audio version with narrators Katherine Kellgren (of course), Jennifer Ikeda, and Jeff Woodman.  They brought the characters to life and had excellent inflections, etc.  Not the most original or clever vampire story, but it was entertaining for the most part.

Things I Didn't Like:
I figured it out way before the end and felt it was very easy to figure out too.  It was also a bit boring in parts, especially when it seemed like people were just sitting around feeling sorry for themselves.

Read-alikes:
Start with Jessica's Guide to Dating on the Dark Side
Not sure of others, maybe Die For Me by Amy Plum

BOOK CONTENT RATINGS:
s-factor:!@
some, not too many

mrg-factor: X
nothing really happens, but it's implied

v-factor:->->
there are some stake-ings that take place :)

Overall rating: ***

If you buy through my Amazon linkage, I will get a very small percentage

Book Review: Shades of Earth by Beth Revis

Shades of Earth by Beth Revis
Publisher: Razorbill
Publication date: January 2013
Pages: 384
Source: Purchased
For: Fun!
Series: Across the Universe, Book 3

*Spoilers are inevitable for the first two books*
Summary from goodreads:

Amy and Elder have finally left the oppressive walls of the spaceship Godspeed behind. They're ready to start life afresh--to build a home--on Centauri-Earth, the planet that Amy has traveled 25 trillion miles across the universe to experience.

But this new Earth isn't the paradise Amy had been hoping for. There are giant pterodactyl-like birds, purple flowers with mind-numbing toxins, and mysterious, unexplained ruins that hold more secrets than their stone walls first let on. The biggest secret of all? Godspeed's former passengers aren't alone on this planet. And if they're going to stay, they'll have to fight.

Amy and Elder must race to discover who--or what--else is out there if they are to have any hope of saving their struggling colony and building a future together. They will have to look inward to the very core of what makes them human on this, their most harrowing journey yet. Because if the colony collapses? Then everything they have sacrificed--friends, family, life on Earth--will have been for nothing.

Things I Liked:
I really enjoy this space sci-fi story.  Despite having some minor issues with science and logistics in the second book, I truly loved this one.  It was such a unique story and Revis has kept the characters and story fresh and moving.  I loved the idea of landing on the new planet and finding things not exactly as they should be.  While I did guess a few things right off, there were a number of surprises that kept me reading.  The world she's populated was interesting and even believable.  Very well done, I say.

Things I Didn't Like:
I had one minor physics moment near the end where I just had to roll my eyes at the sheer convenience that had to take place.  Otherwise, I really just enjoyed it.  It did take me a while to feel fully immersed, but after that initial problem, I was able to enjoy it fully.  A great book in the eyes of this science geek.

Read-alikes:
This one reminded me of Chaos Walking trilogy by Patrick Ness

BOOK CONTENT RATINGS:
s-factor:  !@
a few

mrg-factor: X
mostly kissing and some implied stuff

v-factor: ->->
Quite a bit of violence and gore, but not over the top

Overall rating: *****

If you buy through my Amazon linkage, I will get a very small percentage