Requiem - Review

It's the final book in the Delirium trilogy.

In the final installment of the enticing and adventurous, dystopian Delirium trilogy, the finale comes to a soft, yet complex end. I enjoyed the book, but was saddened there was no definitive ending, something I could grasp. There were so many loose ends, untold, and unseen stories, but overall, author Lauren Oliver delivered. 

While there are less dramatic metaphors and other captivating, poetic literary elements in the last book as compared to the previous two, we get to see the evolution of Hana, the strengthening of neglected people in a society of bland rules and regulation, and the final love story everyone has been itching to read! 

Avid fans of the Delirium trilogy will be sad to see the story go, but the disastrous yet beautiful Deliria of LOVE will always prevail. 

x3.5!

new ARCs January 2013

I can't wait to dig into Requiem!!!! The FINAL installment in the Delirium Trilogy by Lauren Oliver! It's going to extremely epic, I can FEEL it. *Spoilers* > Especially since the hugely enticing love triangle going on between the three major characters, Julian, Lena, and Alex! :)

 I have no idea what this book is about, but I am READY for it. It's THICK and take a good, long look at that cover! :) Brilliance. Pure brilliance.

January Book Haul

Beta by Rachel Cohn - Review

Elysia is a teen Beta - an experiment made out of a girl's clone...that died in order for Elysia to exist. One island developed out of perfection for the wealthy and elite.

One mission: for Elysia to serve in a household.

And she's NOT supposed to feel emotion. At all.

But what happens when this isolated world of utopia breeds secrets and underlinings of a life so rebellious, the society of the island will do ANYTHING to sweep it under the rug?

Beta was a brilliant idea! I really enjoyed getting such vibrant imagery from the gorgeous settings on the island, titled Demesne (Deh-MEZ-nay). Sounds like paradise, huh?

Well......

Rachel Cohn tugged at my heart with her unpredictable and often tear-worthy plot twists. Elysia is supposed to be the one without human-like feelings, but it turns out, she might be the ONLY one with unbreakable determination and a will to live. The last pages really built up and was soaked with vengeance and the thrills a possible sequel! At times, Elysia's skewed interpretation of the modern teenage lingo made her irritable and seem a lot slower than she actually was. Overall, I really enjoyed such a distinctive plot that is MADE for readers to drool for more.

Did I fail to mention there's a gorgeous hazel-eyed, lean and muscular, coffee-skin-colored surfer in this?

Yeah. :)

 x3.5!

September Book Haul - 2012

The books keep rolling in! It's time to prepare for the Austin Teen Book Fesitval!! :)

Anyone diving into these reads already? Anyone praying for one of these ARCs?

Mini August Book Haul - 2012

The time has come...and I know I haven't finished all of July's Must Haves but hey, I working on it. It's a hassle when you're mixing reading with writing.. (Shh! Don't tell anyone!)

Alrighty. So August has come as the most sizzling month of the year--100+ degrees here in dry-as-hell (literally) Austin, Texas. But with the crazy weather comes crazy good YA books! That's right! Here is my brand new list of my epically small haul that'll make you jolt with excitement!

Four savage-like and orphaned boys compete for the part of impersonating a runaway prince. Who will win? Who will fall back into a life filled with stealing and conning to survive?

A smart boy is asked to join a military academy to be used as the government's weapon. Sounds like a futuristic adventure to me!

Anyone already have these books? How have you enjoyed them? Anything in particular to look forward to? I can't wait to dive into these reads! August, here we come!

The Forsaken - Review

Orphan Alenna Shawcross thinks she will pass the Government Personality test in futuristic North America now called the United Northern Alliance, but she doesn't. In flashing moments, she's found herself banished and in the most dreaded and unlikely place on the planet: the Wheel, an island made to dump children who've failed the personality test, cut off from society to writhe and decay because of crimes they are likely to commit in the future if they mingled amongst the "normal" people long enough. So she is thrust into this world where there are two warring tribes and deadly decisions she has to make on a daily basis to keep herself alive! In a world of roaring allies, beastly enemies, and flying spears, there is bound to be questions in how all of this came to exist. Alenna slowly realizes she doesn't want to be another puny, terrified girl in the background. Instead, she's hoping to become the warrior that her village needs to conquer the rigged system, crack the codes, and team up with hot and rustic Liam to find a way off of the island. But how far will she go to claim freedom and who is she willing to lose in the process?

In an ultimate struggle of friendship, betrayal, enemies, and lies being spewed at her face, Alenna embarks on a never-before-read journey through the unknown, doing whatever it takes to seek freedom and uncover the mysteries of the UNA. Everything she's ever known about her parents will shift and everything she thought about the teenagers on the Wheel will forever be transformed.

Getting into the book, the first pages were already screaming up at me! My eyes were racing across the pages and I was thrown into this action-packed world. I promise, I was never offered a chance to actually rest while reading this book because something insane and attention-worthy was always happening! This book was stuffed with page-turning secrets and wars that pushed the book further into my "Best Reads of Summer 2012" list! It never failed to bore me and if you love a ton of action with surprising outcomes and an epic adventure through an island not one person can predict, then you'll be up for this book! While at times the drama within the story would be filled with immature dialogue and typical teenage romance issues, I fell in love with most of the characters and will never forget this book that took me on a journey and made me second-guess the kind of mind and heart it really takes to have hope no matter what situation presents itself! I picked up a ton of life lessons from Lisa M. Stasse and will never forget The Forsaken.

x4!

Black City - Review

What if a cult religion was spreading through your city like a wildfire? What about a vampire-like Darkling with fangs and blood-curdling snarls?

In Black City, disrupted and destroyed after horrific wars found it, Natalie Buchanan is the offspring of a ruling government official. Ash Fisher is a dark-haired, half-Darkling who gets to live amongst humans instead of the other side of the wall where his other kind writhe and yearn for the kill. In a city of tension, Natalie and Ash are managing to fall for each other. Just the slightest idea of such a thing would be considered heinous, unacceptable, and would result in instant death--they've seen it happen before. So why are they falling for each other? Especially since Ash is partly made up of the same creature that slaughtered Natalie's father, a man who was once passionate about helping these souls.

Humans want Darklings out and gone. For good.

How will their blooming love survive when war is vamping, religious leader Purian Rose is taking over, and some dark and dangerous creature seems to be haunting Natalie's every footstep?

Although I was initially sold by the beautiful cover of the book and it's inviting synopsis, while diving into the book I was quickly taken aback by how deep and specific the ideas and emotions that had been springing out of the pages like fairy dust were. It tugged at my heart to see people punished as an example for others, simply for something as natural as love, regardless of their opposing races and beliefs. Elizabeth Richards creates a strong story with other likable friends that tag along in the ultimate tale of keen love and treacherous war. Teens will enjoy this book as much as I did because it interlaces peace and conflict together in the most magnetic and alluring way!

x3!

Divergent - Review

Fast forward, people. It's a futuristic Chicago divided into factions everyone is born into based on selflessness (Abnegation), bravery (Dauntless), honesty (Candor), intelligence (Erudite), and kindness (Amity).

Beatrice Prior, a sixteen-year-old Abnegation girl, must choose the faction she will become part of for the rest of her life.
Will she stay with her family or abandon them for her heart's desire?
Shortly after her selection, she is thrown into a foreign world, including an older boy with a mysterious attitude and a jumbled past. As he deals with his own rivalries and she copes with this unpredictable lifestyle she has thrown herself into, the world of factions in which she lives in is gradually conjuring a scent of war in the air.
Every decision she makes will determine the fate of her life and the people surrounding her.

Full of secrets, pain, staggering discoveries, breathtaking imagery, tear-jerking action, and gut-churning revelations, this book turns you upside down and inside out as you're clawing for the sequel after such an incredibly wicked ending. This debut novel by Veronica Roth ensures that there's world-building to be done, more of Beatrice's transformation to be made, and a strong heroine for the book to elevate in such an already riveting and fresh dystopian trilogy.

Four out of five beans for this brand new author that latched on to the hearts of many YA-loving, dystopian-obsessed fans out there. While there lacks a bit of world-building and an understanding of how Chicago came to be the way it is, I'm hoping for explanations in the sequel to this fantastic epic, titled--interestingly--Insurgent.

The Delirium Trilogy - Review

I'm jumping off the walls for this brand new fantastic dystopian trilogy that's flying off the shelves faster than I can type this new post!


Curious to know what this bestseller is about?


Delirium, the first installment in this exhilarating series, is focused on Portland, Maine in the future where the government has declared love "amor deliria nervosa" a disease and all humans must get "treated" for it once they turn eighteen years old.


Delirium seeps into the composed--at first--mind of Lena Halloway and the procedure that's nearing her by the day. During this countdown, we learn about her world, her living with aunts and uncles that cannot love, and this obsession society has with NOT getting this disease. Along this journey, she gets a change of mind and meets a "cured" boy who will alter her life as she knows it and it'll force her to make grave decisions about the future she thought others had total control over! 


Elements of the past with her dead mother and flashes of the her possible future haunt this young teenager as character development is key and apparent! An incredible and long read that will leave your fingers permanently clamped to each page!


But I won't stop here. The second book in the trilogy, titled "Pandemonium" with a fiery cover, continues this epic journey on what it means to fight for love and fight for the freedom! It's tear-jerking and includes tons of page-flipping action that has your stomach churning and fingers turning for more!


I give Delirium five out of five beans and Pandemonium four and a half!


Stay connected because the third and final installment in this defiant series is heading our way! 

x5 & x4.5!