Review: The Nightmare Affair

The Nightmare Affair 

(The Arkwell Academy #1)
by Mindee Arnett

Published March 5th 2013 

by Tor Teen
ARC from Netgalley

Summary from Goodreads:

Sixteen-year-old Dusty Everhart breaks into houses late at night, but not because she’s a criminal. No, she’s a Nightmare.

Literally.

Being the only Nightmare at Arkwell Academy, a boarding school for magickind, and living in the shadow of her mother’s infamy, is hard enough. But when Dusty sneaks into Eli Booker’s house, things get a whole lot more complicated. He’s hot, which means sitting on his chest and invading his dreams couldn’t get much more embarrassing. But it does. Eli is dreaming of a murder.

Then Eli’s dream comes true.

Now Dusty has to follow the clues—both within Eli’s dreams and out of them—to stop the killer before more people turn up dead. And before the killer learns what she’s up to and marks her as the next target.

Thoughts:
In The Nightmare Affair, Nightmare is a mythic creature who fed on fictus which is stuff on which dreams are made of. As the only Nightmare in a school for magickind called Arkwell Academy, Dusty is feared and shunned upon. It also did not help that she's the daughter of a notorious troublemaker who used to burn the school. In Dusty's world, magickind are divided into three main kinds which depends on how they get their magic. There's witchkind, naturekind and darkkind; whose power came from other living creature.

Dusty unwittingly stumbled upon a murder involving one of the popular girl in her school when she was feeding on a dream from a normal boy called Eli and both of them decided to partner up to solve the mystery.

Nightmare as mythical creature is indeed an interesting concept that I believe has never been done before. Unfortunately, the clues pointing to the culprit is easy to spot and I found the sleuthing a tad too predictable. I was wondering where was the Magical Senate who was supposed to be in charge of the magickind doing the whole time? There were werewolves as magickind local law enforcement in the beginning of the book but their parts are very limited. It seemed that Dusty and her friends are very much left in their own devices.

However, I found Dusty to be truly likeable. Her siren friend; Selene is also a colourful character which brings some sparkle to the story. It is also obvious that Dusty and Eli are attracted to each other but refused to acknowledged it and instead went out with other people for most part of the book while grudgingly working together. In the end, I enjoyed the book more because of its witty characters rather than for the less than obvious murder mystery plotline.

Verdict: 4 stars.
In my Debut Author, Fantasy & Books in a Series Reading Challenge 
Available on: Amazon

Waiting on Wednesday #16: The Chaos of the Stars

Waiting on Wednesday is a wonderful meme created by Jill from Breaking the Spine where we highlighted an upcoming release that we're eagerly anticipating.


The Chaos of Stars
by Kiersten White
Expected publication: September 10th 2013
by HarperTeen

Summary from Goodreads:

Isadora’s family is seriously screwed up.
Of course, as the human daughter of Egyptian gods, that pretty much comes with the territory. She’s also stuck with parents who barely notice her, and a house full of relatives who can’t be bothered to remember her name. After all, they are going to be around forever—and she’s a mere mortal.

Isadora’s sick of living a life where she’s only worthy of a passing glance, and when she has the chance to move to San Diego with her brother, she jumps on it. But Isadora’s quickly finding that a “normal” life comes with plenty of its own epic complications—and that there’s no such thing as a clean break when it comes to family. Much as she wants to leave her past behind, she can’t shake the ominous dreams that foretell destruction for her entire family. 

When it turns out there may be truth in her nightmares, Isadora has to decide whether she can abandon her divine heritage after all.

Babble:
What? Another Kiersten White's book for this year? I can't believe it! How did she come out with not one but two new series in a year? But, I'm not complaining though. I'm a big fan of hers since the debut of Paranormalcy. Egyptian mythology? My..my. What's next for Ms. White? A dystopian, perhaps?

Review: Scarlet

Scarlet (Lunar Chronicles #2)
by Marissa Meyer
Hardcover, 452 pages
Published February 5th 2013
by Feiwel and Friends

Summary from Goodreads:

Cinder returns in the second thrilling installment of the New York Times-bestselling Lunar Chronicles. She’s trying to break out of prison—even though if she succeeds, she’ll be the Commonwealth’s most wanted fugitive.

Halfway around the world, Scarlet Benoit’s grandmother is missing. It turns out there are many things Scarlet doesn’t know about her grandmother and the grave danger she has lived in her whole life. When Scarlet encounters Wolf, a street fighter who may have information as to her grandmother’s whereabouts, she has no choice but to trust him, though he clearly has a few dark secrets of his own.

As Scarlet and Wolf work to unravel one mystery, they find another when they cross paths with Cinder. Together, they must stay one step ahead of the vicious Lunar Queen who will do anything to make Prince Kai her husband, her king, her prisoner.

Thoughts:
This is certainly a hard review to write. Usually when I did not enjoy a particular book, the rants are quite long. And when a book is so amazing, I tend to gush all the positive elements of it. But Scarlet left me feeling conflicted.

Cinder was in my top two of favourite books for last year. So understandably  my expectations and anticipations are quite high. Although I'd enjoyed the book considerably, I really think Cinder is much better. Maybe the main reason for me not being totally wowed by the book is because I love Cinder the main character so much. And to have her sharing the limelight and pages with several new characters that did not seemed at all interesting kind of annoys me.

Scarlet is indeed a much more aggressive and stronger character compared to Cinder. She's the epitome of the kick ass chicks that I love so much. If only Scarlet and Cinder meet quite earlier, then I'm sure they would make an awesome pair. Instead, we get Scarlet attracting the affection of a mysterious fighter/soldier of fortune called Wolf. In truth, I ended up skipping most of the parts where Scarlet and Wolf are involved. Their budding romance just seemed inappropriate in such circumstances. Fortunately, the quest for freedom and the mission to unravel the truth behind Cinder's past makes the story gripping enough for me. And the charming and impossibly chatty Captain Thorne is a big plus point in the story. I love his witty and funny interactions with Cinder and was hoping that they ended up together. Please feature more Thorne. He's such a charming rake!

In my Books in a Series Reading Challenge
Verdict: 4 stars.
Available on: Amazon 

Review: Prodigy

Prodigy (Legend #2)
by Marie Lu
Published January 29th 2013 by Putnam Juvenile

Summary from Goodreads:

June and Day arrive in Vegas just as the unthinkable happens: the Elector Primo dies, and his son Anden takes his place. With the Republic edging closer to chaos, the two join a group of Patriot rebels eager to help Day rescue his brother and offer passage to the Colonies. They have only one request—June and Day must assassinate the new Elector.

It’s their chance to change the nation, to give voice to a people silenced for too long. 

But as June realizes this Elector is nothing like his father, she’s haunted by the choice ahead. What if Anden is a new beginning? What if revolution must be more than loss and vengeance, anger and blood—what if the Patriots are wrong?

Thoughts:
Plotwise, Prodigy is certainly a much better book compared to Legend. And since it started right after the events of the first book, we get a lot of character developments from both June and Day. Although the action feels a bit rushed out, I'm really enjoying the pace and tone of the second book much more compared to the first one.

Maybe it has something to do with the fact that for most of the book, June and Day are apart and we finally get to see how strong their relationships are when they are tested like that. It is interesting to see how the two of them cope with all the pressures and expectations of two opposing factions. Trust issues are at the forefront when it seemed as if June has returned to her Republic roots while Day is still struggling to decide where his loyalties are.

The introduction of several new characters adds an intriguing element to the book and I found myself liking the bad-ass rebel pilot Kaede much more than June in some point. The appearance of Anden who is immediately smitten by June and Day's long lost friend; Tess also added more conflict to the relationship between those two. We also get a glimpse of the Colonies which consists of states outside the Republic and get a deeper understanding of what's actually going on. However, I really wished that June would be a little less perfect sometimes. She sounds too good to be true. Too strong, too smart and sounds more like a robotic soldier in some situations. It would be nicer if she would lighten up a little and show a more feminine or soft side.

In my Books in a Series Reading Challenge
Verdict: 5 stars.
Available on: Amazon 

Saturday Series #2

Saturday Series is a feature where I'll be talking about a series that captured my attention and I want others to read it too!

This week, I'll be featuring the Winter Trilogy by Ruth Warburton.

What is it about?

It's about a girl named Anna who discovered that she is actually a witch when strange things started happening to her after she moved to a small town called Winter. After a love spell goes awry, Anna must learn to control her powers and accept the shocking truth about her family. 

You can check out my review of the first book here and the second book here for more details.

Why should I read it?

If you're a big fan of witches or British authors then this is definitely for you! Although it might be a tad cliché at times, I found myself  liking Anna a lot. And Seth the romantic interest is way hot!

 

Review: Shadowlands

Shadowlands (Shadowlands #1)
by Kate Brian

Published January 8th 2013 

by Hyperion

Summary from Goodreads:

Rory Miller had one chance to fight back and she took it. Rory survived… and the serial killer who attacked her escaped. Now that the infamous Steven Nell is on the loose, Rory must enter the witness protection with her father and sister, Darcy, leaving their friends and family without so much as a goodbye. 

Starting over in a new town with only each other is unimaginable for Rory and Darcy. They were inseparable as children, but now they can barely stand each other. As the sisters settle in to Juniper Landing, a picturesque vacation island, it seems like their new home may be just the fresh start they need. They fall in with a group of beautiful, carefree teens and spend their days surfing, partying on the beach, and hiking into endless sunsets. But just as they’re starting to feel safe again, one of their new friends goes missing. Is it a coincidence? Or is the nightmare beginning all over again?

Thoughts:
Shadowlands is such a chilling thriller which I needed after reading so many dystopians and mind numbing paranormal romances. It exceeds and astounds my every expectations and I'm left wondering what the story is really about with each twists and turns it took.

From the start, we get an inside look of a demented killer stalking his prey and what comes after is a whirlwind of action as Rory and her small family make a quick getaway to escape the psycho who is hell bent on finishing his job. I'm glad that the introduction of the secondary characters are done rather fast so readers won't be sidetracked about the mystery.

What can I say is that every little details truly count in figuring this story out and by the end of the book, I was truly blown out of my mind! What an ending! After finishing it, I had to read it all over again just to find all those missing clues. Goodness! This might be an excellent M. Night Shyamalan's movie.

In my Books in a Series Reading Challenge
Verdict: 4 stars.
Available on: Amazon 

YA Paranormal Hop

Welcome to my stop of the YA Paranormal Giveaway Hop hosted by Kathy from I Am A Reader, Not A Writer and YA Between the Lines.

Rules:

1. One winner will get a $10 worth of book from The Book Depository. The book must have paranormals elements in it.

2. Open to everyone where The Book Depository ships to. 

3. Fill in the rafflecopter and that's it.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Waiting on Wednesday #15: After Eden

Waiting on Wednesday is a wonderful meme created by Jill from Breaking the Spine where we highlighted an upcoming release that we're eagerly anticipating.


After Eden (After Eden #1)
by Helen Douglas
Expected publication: July 4th 2013 

by Bloomsbury Childrens Books

Summary from Goodreads:

Eden Anfield loves puzzles, so when mysterious new boy Ryan Westland shows up at her school she's hooked. On the face of it, he's a typical American teenager. So why doesn't he recognise pizza? And how come he hasn't heard of Hitler? What puzzles Eden the most, however, is the interest he's taking in her. 
As Eden starts to fall in love with Ryan, she begins to unravel his secret. Her breakthrough comes one rainy afternoon when she stumbles across a book in Ryan's bedroom - a biography of her best friend - written over fifty years in the future. Confronting Ryan, she discovers that he is there with one unbelievably important purpose ... and she might just have destroyed his only chance of success.

Babble:
I'm really hoping that this will be a heart warming love story that transcends time and space. Haven't read a good contemporary love story for a really long time. Hopefully this will be just the book to entice me to read more romantic books.

Review: Paper Valentine

Paper Valentine
by Brenna Yovanoff
Published January 8th 2013 

by Razorbill

Summary from Goodreads:

The city of Ludlow is gripped by the hottest July on record. The asphalt is melting, the birds are dying, petty crime is on the rise, and someone in Hannah Wagnor’s peaceful suburban community is killing girls.

For Hannah, the summer is a complicated one. Her best friend Lillian died six months ago, and Hannah just wants her life to go back to normal. But how can things be normal when Lillian’s ghost is haunting her bedroom, pushing her to investigate the mysterious string of murders? Hannah’s just trying to understand why her friend self-destructed, and where she fits now that Lillian isn’t there to save her a place among the social elite. And she must stop thinking about Finny Boone, the big, enigmatic delinquent whose main hobbies seem to include petty larceny and surprising acts of kindness.

With the entire city in a panic, Hannah soon finds herself drawn into a world of ghost girls and horrifying secrets. She realizes that only by confronting the Valentine Killer will she be able move on with her life—and it’s up to her to put together the pieces before he strikes again.

Thoughts:
I started reading Paper Valentine for the intriguing mystery but ended up liking it for the strange and quirky friendship between Hannah and her dead friend Lillian. Having a ghost friend hanging around you certainly bothers Hannah but her loyalty to her friend is quite interesting to read. Hannah is a pretty straight forward character but her sister Ariel amuses me since she acted very mature for her age. In my opinion, she is in fact the most memorable character in the whole book.

The mystery as to who might be killing the girls in the city of Ludlow is not that hard to figure out. At first, I had my suspicion on Finny since he is the quintessential mysterious bad boy with a dark past. But that quickly dissipated and my next hunch finally hits the mark. It is frightening and creepy to read about a killer committing murders just for the fun of it. And I had a hard time imagining all those poor girls who had become victims to this crazy person.

Verdict: 3 stars.

Available on: Amazon 

Waiting on Wednesday #14: The Oathbreaker's Shadow

Waiting on Wednesday is a wonderful meme created by Jill from Breaking the Spine where we highlighted an upcoming release that we're eagerly anticipating.

The Oathbreaker's Shadow (The Knots Sequence #1)
by Amy McCulloch
Expected publication: June 6th 2013
by Random House Children's Publishers

Summary from Goodreads:

Fifteen-year-old Raim lives in a world where you tie a knot for every promise that you make. Break that promise and you are scarred for life, and cast out into the desert.

Raim has worn a simple knot around his wrist for as long as he can remember. No one knows where it came from, and which promise of his it symbolises, but he barely thinks about it at all—not since becoming the most promising young fighter ever to train for the elite Yun guard. But on the most important day of his life, when he binds his life to his best friend (and future king) Khareh, the string bursts into flames and sears a dark mark into his skin.

Scarred now as an oath-breaker, Raim has two options: run, or be killed. 

Babble:
I'm always on the hunt for new and exciting YA epic fantasy book and this one seemed to fit the bill. It's so refreshing to read a story from the point of view of a male protagonist and I've said it so many times that we really need more books for guys.

Review: Mind Games

Mind Games (Mind Games #1)
by Kiersten White
Published February 19th 2013
by HarperTeen
ARC from Edelweiss

Summary from Goodreads:

Fia was born with flawless instincts. Her first impulse, her gut feeling, is always exactly right. Her sister, Annie, is blind to the world around her—except when her mind is gripped by strange visions of the future. 

Trapped in a school that uses girls with extraordinary powers as tools for corporate espionage, Annie and Fia are forced to choose over and over between using their abilities in twisted, unthinkable ways… or risking each other’s lives by refusing to obey.

Thoughts:
I just love Kiersten's previous Paranormalcy series because of Evie; the funny and quirky heroine with a pink taser which she uses to tag and bag several paranormals before becoming their ultimate saviour. So when I found out that she's coming out with a new series this year, I was super super excited!

Mind Games is certainly not Paranormalcy. There is a big difference in the tone and the theme of both books. While the main protagonist in Paranormalcy; Evie is always upbeat and cheerful even when facing danger, Sofia is dark, dark, dark all the way. I know of some readers who were quite turned off by Sofia or Fia, but I can't help but root for her impulsive and sometimes maniacal actions. Her devotion to her blind sister; Annie is certainly heartbreaking to read. And her decision to keep Annie safe will ultimately hurt her physically and mentally and almost drove her insane.

I hated Annie at first for being so helpless and naive and putting through her sister through hell without knowing the truth behind the school's real motive. The conflicts and betrayals certainly makes this story unique and I can't wait to read more about both sisters since the ending definitely left me hanging.

In my Fantasy & Books in a Series Reading Challenge
Verdict: 5 stars.
Available on: Amazon 

Waiting on Wednesday #13: In The After

Waiting on Wednesday is a wonderful meme created by Jill from Breaking the Spine where we highlighted an upcoming release that we're eagerly anticipating.

In the After
by Demitria Lunetta
Expected publication: June 25th 2013
by Harper Teen

Summary from Goodreads: 

They hear the most silent of footsteps.

They are faster than anything you've ever seen.

And They won't stop chasing you...until you are dead.

Amy is watching TV when it happens, when the world is attacked by Them. These vile creatures are rapidly devouring mankind. Most of the population is overtaken, but Amy manages to escape—and even rescue “Baby,” a toddler left behind in the chaos. Marooned in Amy’s house, the girls do everything they can to survive—and avoid Them at all costs.

After years of hiding, they are miraculously rescued and taken to New Hope, a colony of survivors living in a former government research compound. While at first the colony seems like a dream with plenty of food, safety, and shelter, New Hope slowly reveals that it is far from ideal. And Amy soon realizes that unless things change, she’ll lose Baby—and much more.

Babble:
So many scary dystopians are coming out this year! Instead of kids killing each other we have aliens intent on destroying each and every human being on earth. This might be a cross between Starship Troopers and Aliens.

Review: Level 2

Level 2 (The Memory Chronicles #1)
by Lenore Appelhans
Published January 15th 2013
by Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers

Summary from Goodreads:

Three levels. Two loves. One choice. Debut novelist, Lenore Appelhans has written a thrilling otherworldly young adult novel about a place that exists between our world (Level 1) and what comes after life (Level 2).

'I pause to look around the hive - all the podlike chambers are lit up as the drones shoot up on memories ... I've wanted to get out of here before, but now the tight quarters start to choke me. There has to be more to death than this.'

Felicia Ward is dead. Trapped in a stark white afterlife limbo, she spends endless days replaying memories, of her family, friends, boyfriend ... and of the guy who broke her heart. The guy who has just broken into Level 2 to find her.

Felicia learns that a rebellion is brewing, and it seems she is the key. Suspended between heaven and earth, she must make a choice. Between two worlds, two lives and two loves. 

Thoughts:
I was excited when I found out that a fellow blogger wrote this. I mean what are the odds for someone like me nabbing a book deal by a major publisher and getting her book out there for everyone to read? Plus, it has an interesting cover and a unique concept where the world between life and death is known as Level 2.

Interesting? Yes, at first. Exciting? No. I'm sorry to say that although I was intrigued when I started reading it, my interest quickly dissipate by the first five chapters. It is so disheartening to read a book that feels like a long winding maze where you really couldn't make heads or tails of it.

One moment we have Felicia cruising through her life memories with her two best friends in the afterlife and then a strange boy actually appeared out of nowhere. And the change of POV from past flashbacks to the sterile and creepy Level 2 just add to the confusion. I did finish the book but I'm just not sure whether I'll be recommending this to anyone. I don't really understand the story and how best to describe it. I'm just thinking that the author should really decide what she wants it to be. A motivational book where you re-assess your life? Or a YA dystopian? Combining these two elements just seemed overwhelming.

In my Debut Author, Fantasy & Books in a Series Reading Challenge
Verdict: 1 star.
Available on: Amazon 

Book of the Month: January

Book of the Month is a monthly event, hosted by Book Whales. This is done to highlight one of the books we have read in the previous month.

So my book of the month is (cue drum roll please..)

Shades of Earth

by Beth Revis

My review

The Across the Universe series goes off with a bang! I practically hated the first book and didn't even read the second. But the third just take my breath away!This is how sci-fi supposed to be.