Review: Queen of Atlantis by Sarah Rees Brennan

Queen of Atlantis (2011 Subterranean YA Anthology)

By Sarah Rees Brennan

Publisher: Subterranean Press

Sort of Beauty and the Beast- and sort of high fantasy- and a sort of zombie boyfriend. --Sarah Rees Brennan

Read it here.

3. 5 Stars

Review

Honestly, there is not much to say about a short story in an anthology. I mean, the story is probably only 4-5 pages total. Still, I wanted to put this story in the spotlight because it is a beautiful retelling of Beauty and the Beast. In some ways, I preferred this retelling of Beauty and the Beast over Alex Flinn's Beastly, Robin McKinley's Beauty and Donna Jo Napoli's Beast. The fantasy world, characters and writing style all together forming a retelling of a tale that exceeds the original by a long shot.

I know the description of the short story is not very clear nor very specific, but really. Ten minutes of your life will not be stolen from you if you try this incredibly short read. Seriously, is anyone going to sue me for recommending this novella to them? The only reason why I tried this short story is because I've read and enjoyed several of Sarah Rees Brennan's novels. Thankfully, the time was totally worth it.

Queen of Atlantis is one of those fantasies that entrances the reader far longer than on can expect from such a short tale. As soon as I read the first sentence, I knew that this would not have me regret for a minute when I clicked the link. Sarah Rees Brennan sucks the reader in for a few moments to travel to the world of two opposite countries connected by a sinister curse.

I wish that Queen of Atlantis was a novel, or at least a novella, instead of a story of an extremely short story. Sometimes, there is a story that as a reader, you would want to savor more, to make more of a meal out of it. The characters and setting were pretty rounded out for a few pages, but I still wanted to know them better. I wanted learn more about the curse, the rituals, the zombie country, everything! Why must such a dazzling retelling be subjugated this cruelty and torture?

At this point, I am ranting about how this short story receives recognition, which is totally true. Really, though, I totally recommend everyone to take a stab at this incredibly short fairytale. It is a tad bit rushed, considering its length, and ends on an odd note, but otherwise, I found it to be incredibly well-written and imagined.

Cover Reveal: Options by Abbi Glines

Ta-da! I know you guys are just dying to see this.

 

Options by Abbi Glines

Expected Publication: February 5, 2013

Summary

Two paths.

Two completely different roads.

Each one standing before me.

Each one holding a different destiny.

In life you're just supposed to choose one path.  

In life you're not given the chance at choosing one specific future.

Until now.

Until me. 

Why am I different? I don't know. But I'm going to see those roads and walk down each one. When it's over I'll know which one to choose because I'll know my - options. -- Goodreads

 

If any of you guys know, Abbi Glines is the author of some amazing indie books such as; 

 

The Vincent Boys

Breathe

Existence  

Review: Obsidian by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Obsidian (Lux #1) 

By Jennifer L. Armentrout 

Published: May 8, 2012 

Publisher: Entangled Teen 

Paperback, 335 Pages 

Starting over sucks.

When we moved to West Virginia right before my senior year, I'd pretty much resigned myself to thick accents, dodgy internet access, and a whole lot of boring.... until I spotted my hot neighbor, with his looming height and eerie green eyes. Things were looking up.

And then he opened his mouth.

Daemon is infuriating. Arrogant. Stab-worthy. We do not get along. At all. But when a stranger attacks me and Daemon literally freezes time with a wave of his hand, well, something...unexpected happens. 

The hot alien living next door marks me.

You heard me. Alien. Turns out Daemon and his sister have a galaxy of enemies wanting to steal their abilities, and Daemon's touch has me lit up like the Vegas Strip. The only way I'm getting out of this alive is by sticking close to Daemon until my alien mojo fades. 

If I don't kill him first, that is. --Goodreads

5 Stars

Review 

I love the Covenant series, aka Jennifer L Armentrout's awesome Half-Blood series, so I thought to myself "There is no way I'll dislike Obsidian" and I was right I loved Obsidian just like I loved Half-Blood. 

If you haven't noticed, there is a lot of hype about Obsidian and the sequel to it, Onyx. Maybe it's because it's that great of a series or because there was a tour for the series or because the trailer for Onyx just came out, either way there is a lot of hype over this series and after reading it myself I totally understand why. Now I'll start my gushing review of this book... 

Katy is just pure awesomeness! Katy is a book blogger, how awesome is that? That one detail alone should make her an awesome protagonist right? Katy also has a good head on her shoulders. If a guy is attractive, but is a jerk, just because he has good looks doesn't mean you should look the other way of his jerkiness; he is still a jerk. Now Katy know this, which is great because many times in YA books the female protagonist looks the other way on a guy's jerkiness if he's attractive. She also calls him out on his jerkiness, so more points for Katy! I like when a character is funny and sarcastic, lucky for me Katy was both. 

Daemon is...Daemon is Daemon, let's just say. He's extremely rude to Katy in the beginning, but eventually he gets a bit nicer, but he is still a jerk to her, but he sort of has a good reason. He and his sister are aliens and so are their friends, but Daemon is the strongest of all of them, so he must protect them and their secret. In order to protect the secret, they can't get close to humans. This obviously fails because Katy gets into trouble and Daemon used his alien powers to save her from being crushed by a truck. How do you explain away stopping a two/three ton truck, you can't, so that is when Katy finds out that he's an alien. 

I really enjoyed reading about the alien aspect of this book. It's not what one would typically imagine aliens to be like. I honestly loved that they had cool powers, such as shape shifting or stoping time. So what is the problem the characters have to face? The characters have to face the Arums, the evil aliens who do not have the powers Daemon and his alien friends have, so they want to drain them of their powers. The Arums made the book have more action and be more thrilling. If you have ever read Half-Blood by Jennifer L. Armentrout, the Arums are like the evil daimons.

Overall, Obsidian was a great book and I can't wait to read Onyx!

Purchase this book: Amazon / Barnes&Noble / The Book Depository

Review: Ruby Red by Kerstin Gier

 Ruby Red (Edelstein Trilogy #1)

By Kerstin Gier, Translated by Anthea Bell

Release Date: May 10, 2011
Publisher: Square Fish
Paperback, 352 pages

Gwyneth Shepherd's sophisticated, beautiful cousin Charlotte has been prepared her entire life for traveling through time. But unexpectedly, it is Gwyneth, who in the middle of class takes a sudden spin to a different era!

Gwyneth must now unearth the mystery of why her mother would lie about her birth date to ward off suspicion about her ability, brush up on her history, and work with Gideon--the time traveler from a similarly gifted family that passes the gene through its male line, and whose presence becomes, in time, less insufferable and more essential. Together, Gwyneth and Gideon journey through time to discover who, in the 18th century and in contemporary London, they can trust. -- Goodreads

 4.5 stars

Review

Time traveling is always one of those things that is a must in sci-fi novels, movies and TV series, but rarely features girls as the ones time traveling. It's always the guys running around time, getting lost and screwing around with the balance of time. Because of this, I was a little worried when I tried out Ruby Red. I mean, what if it all went completely wrong? Gladly, I discovered that there is a reason why the words "The International Bestseller" were on the cover of Ruby Red.

Ruby Red is one of those underdog stories. You know, the kind that have a person that no one expects anything out of do the unexpected that amazes people unbelievably. Gwyneth is a character who shows growth as she has to face the hardships of trying to meet everyone's expectations and gaining their approval. All of the other characters are there to support Gwyneth as a dynamic character and they do their job perfectly.

Unfortunately at times, certain characters did their job perfectly in forcing the changes onto Gwyneth, but their actions are too extreme. For example, when Gwyneth reveals to everyone that she, not Charlotte, inherited the time traveling gene, Charlotte's mother, goes on a rampage. She literally starts cussing out her sister, Gwyneth's mother, for lying and goes on by insulting Gwyneth repeatedly. I can understand that as a mother with high expectations,  she would be angry and upset. Still, the extremely cruel words that were spoken were too extreme.

The world-building in Ruby Red is amazing. Many of the time traveling elements in Ruby Red were rather creepy, but otherwise, the time traveling was a fun experience to read about. Kerstin Gier made an overused concept unique in her own way. In addition, the historical aspects of Ruby Red were true to their time and fascinated me. Things that usually bore me, such as fashion, were portrayed in such a fascinating manner. I still cannot believe that the author managed to have me engaged when describing clothes.

Overall, Ruby Red is an extremely satisfying novel. Gwyneth's narration is one that is perfect for such a mysterious tale of time travel. She was able to make situations teeming with tension become amusing to read. Full of humor, adventure and twists, Ruby Red exceeded my expectations and has left me dying for the sequel, Sapphire Blue.  

Purchase this book: Amazon/ Barnes&Nobles/ The Book Depository

 

Review: Lock and Key by Sarah Dessen

Lock and Key

By Sarah Dessen

Published: May 14, 2009

Publisher: Speak

Paperback, 422 Pages

"Ruby, where is your mother?" 

Ruby knows that the game is up. For the past few months, she's been on her own in the yellow house, managing somehow, knowing that her mother will probably never return.

That's how she comes to live with Cora, the sister she hasn't seen in ten years, and Cora's husband Jamie, whose down-to-earth demeanor makes it hard for Ruby to believe he founded the most popular networking Web site around. A luxurious house, fancy private school, a new wardrobe, the promise of college and a future—it's a dream come true. So why is Ruby such a reluctant Cinderella, wary and defensive? And why is Nate, the genial boy next door with some secrets of his own, unable to accept the help that Ruby is just learning to give? 

Best-selling author Sarah Dessen explores the heart of a gutsy, complex girl dealing with unforeseen circumstances and learning to trust again.--Goodreads 

5 Stars

Review 

I am a HUGE Sarah Dessen fan. I can not tell you how much I enjoy reading her books, but I can try. Lock and Key was actually the first Sarah Dessen novel I had ever read. I received a box set of three Sarah Dessen novels for my birthday two years ago, since then I have been hooked on Sarah Dessen books.

Ruby is a really independent person and everything she wanted, she got it herself without any help. Ever since her older sister, Cora, left Ruby with her alcoholic mother to go to college, Ruby has done everything for herself. But then Ruby has to go live with her sister after the landlords find out that Ruby's mom left her. On the first night at Cora's Ruby tries to run away, but the neighbor Nate sees her and convinces her to stick around for awhile. The hard feelings were still there between Ruby and Cora and that just made their whole relationship awkward, but Jamie was always there trying to help them. 

Nate, the love interest of Ruby's, helps Ruby with her problems and is an overall good friend to Ruby. What I really like about Sarah Dessen novels is that the guy/love interest helps our protagonist with her issues, but our protagonist is the one that actually sorts out her issues.

Nate also had problems of his own, he lives with an abusive father. When Ruby found out about this, she tried to help Nate, which is really awesome because that just strengthen their bond and it shows that it doesn't always have to be the guy helping the girl, the girl can help the guy as well!

Nate and his dad have a business together in whih they do things for other people that they-the customers- don't have time to do, such as buying groceries or taking out the trash. Ruby sometimes helps Nate with work and this leds Ruby to meeting a woman who owns a jewelry shop at the mall and Ruby getting her own job helping her with her work. The jewelry business was slow, but when a person asks if they sell Ruby's key necklace, Ruby ends up bringing in a lot of business with her key necklace idea and thus helping her boss. The key Ruby always wears is her old house's key, the house that her and her mom lived in last; the key symbolizes her past.

Lock and Key is one of my all-time favorite Sarah Dessen book, I've read it at least three or four times now and I hope you will like it too! Oh and in all of the Sarah Dessen novels, a lot of the things and people in the books will be mentioned in the other novels, which I think is super cool. I love to read a book and then think hey wasn't that the same blank from blank? Well maybe it's just me, but yeah you should read this book if you love contemporary novels.

Purchase this book: Amazon / Barnes&Noble / The Book Depository

My Apologies

Angie here. This is going to be a blab post for my past several days to explain my absence, if anyone had noticed. Hopefully, someone will actually read this and enjoy it. 

Here it goes;

Friday: I give my room a (somewhat) decent makeover

 

Saturday: I visit museums with people I dislike.

If they looked like this, maybe I could like them. The museums, that is.

 

Sunday: I have a pink eye and a party.

If only my eye really looked like this when it was pink... Sigh....

Sunday-Tuesday: Mom bans me from reading and computer... *sob*...

My life for the past 3 days...

Pretty eventful, right? Enough to excuse me from posting on the blog for 4 days... I hope.....

Review: Shade by Jeri Smith-Ready

Shade (Shade Trilogy #1)

By Jeri Smith- Ready

Released Date: May 4, 2010

Publisher: Simon Pulse

Paperback, 309 Pages

Best. Birthday. Ever. At least, it was supposed to be. With Logan's band playing a critical gig and Aura's plans for an intimate after-party, Aura knows it will be the most memorable night of her boyfriend's life. She never thought it would be his last.

Logan's sudden death leaves Aura devastated. He's gone.

Well, sort of.

Like everyone born after the Shift, Aura can see and hear ghosts. This mysterious ability has always been annoying, and Aura had wanted nothing more than to figure out why the Shift happened so she can undo it. But not with Logan's violet-hued spirit still hanging around. Because dead Logan is almost as real as ever. Almost.

It doesn't help that Aura's new friend Zachary is so understanding--and so very alive. His support means more to Aura than she cares to admit.

As Aura's relationships with the dead and the living grow ever complicated, so do her feelings for Logan and Zachary. Each holds a piece of Aura's heart...and clues to the secret of the Shift.-Goodreads

5 Stars

Review

Aura and everyone else that is younger than her can see ghosts, but Aura is the First, which means she was the first person born that is able to see ghosts. Aura is a super kick-butt female protagonist, her choices actually made sense! A lot of times when reading, the protagonist has a few choices to make and when you read what they (finally) decided to do you think/scream What?! You idiot! But Aura's decisions did not make me think that, her decisions were carefully thought out and smart, well most of them anyway, but she is still an awesome protagonist.  

This book has a love triangle between Aura, Zach, and Logan, but it works! I generally do not like love triangles, but they usually don't get on my nerves, but lately tons of YA novels have love triangles and it's so overdone lately. Since the love triangles are so overdone lately, they are really a hit or miss in a book, but I am so glad that it was a hit in Shade!

ZACH: Aura's new friend, who is also the Last, so he was the last person born pre-Shift, and together they are trying to figure out the Shift. Zach is Scottish! Let's talk about Zach's awesomeness shall we, ok he has tons of patience, he is the kindest person ever, he is just every awesome adjective you can think of! He stood up for Aura when people spread lies about her.

The friends(s) of the protagonist: Aura's best friend is Megan and she is just an all-round amazing friend. Megan stood up for Aura(Aura wasn't around) when a group of kids where talking trash about her and Logan. She even took a punch from the mean girl who was talking trash about Aura. After the death of Logan, everyone at school avoided Aura except for Zach and Megan. Those two were the people that stood by her side when the going got tough and that is what true friends do; they have your back no matter what.

The ending, ugh what will happen now?! Must. Read. Sequel, Shift, NOW!

Purchase this book: Amazon / Barnes&Noble / The Book Depository

Review: That Boy by Jillian Dodd

That Boy (That Boy #1)

By Jillian Dodd

Release Date: May 2, 2011

Ebook, 359 Pages

That Boy is a contemporary romance about falling in love with the boys next door.

You know, being friends with two cute boys does have its benefits.

There's Danny. Danny is a golden boy in every way. He has dreamy blue eyes and blonde hair that always looks perfect, even when it’s windblown or been stuck under a football helmet. He’s the boy every girl crushes on. The boy I get into trouble with, the boy I fight with, the hot quarterback no girl can resist, not even me. Being with Danny is like being on an adventure. He has a bright, contagious smile and abs to die for. He’s pretty much irresistible.

Equally crush worthy is Phillip. Adorable, sweet Phillip, who I have known since birth.  Phillip has dark hair, a perfect smile, brown eyes, and the sexiest voice I have ever heard. He’s the boy I talk to every night before I go to sleep. The boy who rescues me, the boy who can read my mind, the boy who is always there for me, the boy who tries to keep me out of trouble, the boy who irritatingly keeps getting hotter, and whose strong arms always seem to find their way around me.  And when he gives me that grin, I can never say no.

One boy will give me my very first kiss.
One boy will teach me to make out.
One boy will take me to prom.
And finally, one boy will ask me to marry him.
They will both be my best friends.
But only one of them will be the boy I fall in love with.
Only one of them is That Boy. -- Goodreads

4 Stars

I find it hilarious that I actually read this. No offense to contemporaries, but I seriously find you incredibly clichéd and dull. Of course there are exceptions, such as Anna and the French Kiss, Lola and the Boy Next Door and Thirteen Reasons Why. Regardless, all of the other contemporaries I've ever tried have me lose hope for them, *cough, cough* Sarah Dessen books *cough, cough*.  Because of my usual distaste of YA contemporaries, I tend to avoid reading them. Unfortunately, I randomly picked up That Boy and enjoyed it.

The wonderful thing about That Boy is how romance does not overwhelm the whole plot. Instead, the romance is subtle as Jayden grows and matures from a little innocent girl to a strong, independent woman. Honestly, the romance seems so to be a secondary plot device compared to to the journey Jayden is forced to go through. The beginning and the ending are only scenes that are truly have their attention focused entirely on the love triangle between Jayden, Phillip and Danny.

Love triangles are usually overrated by long shots. Look at Twilight for an instance; everyone knew that Jacob had no chance compared to Edward. Don't even get started on The Mortal Instruments' love triangle between Clary, Jace and Simon. Simon was already a lost cause eons ago. That Boy has a love triangle that is subtle, but incredibly deep, similar to The Infernal Devices' love triangle between Tessa, Will and Jem. Each of the bonds between the characters is incredible. I cannot tell anyone how the relationships between all of the characters made me feel the joy and pain they went through.

The only complaint I can really think of that I have against That Boy is its tendency to skip around Jayden's childhood. I do not mean that the events are not in chronological order; seriously, they are. I was a little annoyed with That Boy's tendency to jump from event to event without listing the time between each event listed in the book. It does not seriously affect the reader's take on the book, but it would be nice to see what age Jayden was for the events, instead of just hearing the landmarks of "elementary school," "middle school, "high school," and "university." I just find it incredibly irritating if we cannot determine Jayden's age at different points of time, especially since That Boy covers a whole chunk of Jayden's childhood.

That Boy is the wonderful ride Jayden is forced to take her to love, sorrow and happily ever after. Jayden is a wonderful narrator, when the book starts out, she is just a little girl and her narration suits her age; maturing after each hardship in Jayden's life. Even a contemporary hater, like me, enjoyed That Boy immensely and plan to read the sequel, That Wedding, soon.

 Purchase the ebook: Amazon (Kindle), Barnes&Nobles (Nook),

Review: Starters by Lissa Price

Starters (Starters and Enders #1)

By Lissa Price

Release Date: March 13, 2012

Publisher: Delacorte Books for Young Readers

Hardcover, 352 pages

HER WORLD IS CHANGED FOREVER 

Callie lost her parents when the Spore Wars wiped out everyone between the ages of twenty and sixty. She and her little brother, Tyler, go on the run, living as squatters with their friend Michael and fighting off renegades who would kill them for a cookie. Callie's only hope is Prime Destinations, a disturbing place in Beverly Hills run by a mysterious figure known as the Old Man.

He hires teens to rent their bodies to Enders—seniors who want to be young again. Callie, desperate for the money that will keep her, Tyler, and Michael alive, agrees to be a donor. But the neurochip they place in Callie's head malfunctions and she wakes up in the life of her renter, living in her mansion, driving her cars, and going out with a senator's grandson. It feels almost like a fairy tale, until Callie discovers that her renter intends to do more than party—and that Prime Destinations' plans are more evil than Callie could ever have imagined. . . --Goodreads

5 Stars

Review 

I can not say how much I enjoyed this book. I know that dystopian novels are blowing up in the YA book world, but I can promise you that this book is one of the BEST dystopian novels ever.

Callie was such an awesome protagonist! So while her body is being rented by an Ender, she finds out that that Ender's granddaughter, along with a lot of other kids, were taken by Prime and never seen again, so she wants to stop that. In order to stop Prime, the Renter wants Callie to kill the Old Man, the person running Prime. Since the Ender is using Callie's body to murder someone, Callie is in danger because she will be sentenced to death for killing another person.

Callie had a struggle between helping her sick brother by finishing her rental and bringing home money, therefore able to buy food for everyone to eat or doing the right thing and help the Renter stop Prime and prevent other kids from going "missing." This struggle that Callie had kind of reminds me of the struggle that Katniss from the Hunger Games had, where Katniss had to decide between getting out of the Games alive, so she can have money to support her family, by going against her morals and killing others or doing the right thing. Callie being the smart cookie that she is, eventually figures out a way to stop Prime without killing.

Now what is a YA book without a love interest? So the love interest of this book was Blake. He was so kind to Callie, but Callie knew that she shouldn't get involved because soon she will leave and go back to her old life, where things are not as glamorous. But she does get involved, but finds out that Blake is not an ordinary, rich kid, but the Senator's grandson, the very Senator that is working with Prime and the Old Man!!! 

The thing I love most about Starters was all of the super cool made up technology that they had. It all sounded so cool, even the Spore Wars was a cool concept where it rained these black specs and if the specs touch you you are done for. (side-note: The Spore Wars kind of remind me of the Avatar the Last Airbender where if it starts to "rain" black snow/specs that means the Fire Nation is coming and you and your city are in grave danger.)

There's honestly nothing bad I can really say about this book, therefore it is a five out of five stars! Yay for awesome books!

The ending: The ending was THE BIGGEST CLIFFHANGER in the history of cliffhangers. I had so many questions...what's going to happen between the REAL Blake and Callie? Who is the Old Man? Are we positive that Callie's dad died along with everyone else during the Spores War? Needless to say, I absolutely can not wait until Enders, the sequel to Starters, comes out. Oh, if you have read Starters tell me what your predictions are. Who do you think is the Old Man? I think it's her dad... I know creepy right?? So leave a comment below and tell me what you predict for Enders.

Purchase the book: Amazon / Barnes&Noble / The Book Depository

Review: Switched by Amanda Hocking

Switched (Trylle Trilogy #1)

By Amanda Hocking

Release Date: January 3, 2012

Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin

Paperbck, 336 Pages

When Wendy Everly was six years old, her mother was convinced she was a monster and tried to kill her. Eleven years later, Wendy discovers her mother might have been right. She’s not the person she’s always believed herself to be, and her whole life begins to unravel—all because of Finn Holmes.

Finn is a mysterious guy who always seems to be watching her. Every encounter leaves her deeply shaken…though it has more to do with her fierce attraction to him than she’d ever admit. But it isn’t long before he reveals the truth: Wendy is a changeling who was switched at birth—and he’s come to take her home.

Now Wendy’s about to journey to a magical world she never knew existed, one that’s both beautiful and frightening. And where she must leave her old life behind to discover who she’s meant to become…

This edition includes the bonus story "The Vittra Attacks". -- Goodreads

3 Stars

Review

As obvious as this is, trolls aren't featured often enough in entertainment. The only trolls known to man are the big, ugly ones that smell like dung and eat horses in Ella Enchanted. The extremely original Amanda Hocking has a created a fantasy world in which the trolls aka. trylle exist in a similar fashion as the court of Louis XVI before the French Revolution. The resemblance between the two is uncanny, creating a unique story, even among the dozens of YA fantasies published in the past decade.

Even though the premise of Switched one of a kind, Switched as a novel fell flat for me. The characters were flat, the plot was dragged out and the whole society of trolls was so messed up. I cannot enjoy a book that portrays trolls as the "good guys," while they steal money and the children of humans and party like it's nobody's business. No sign of remorse, not even Wendy, the main character, doesn't seem to really care too much. She does show signs of believing that the changeling business is wrong, but beyond that, her thoughts are still as self-centered as always.

The characters of Switched were all extremely flat to me. You can only see characters that are defined by one characteristic. No one seems to have any other emotion besides the one that was first introduced. If the characters do not feel genuine, the story will not reach its full potential, which is Switched's problem. Wendy was an unconvincing protagonist who frequently whined about how nothing went her way in the world of Trylle. Most YA novels show some change in the protagonist from the beginning to the end, but Wendy is still the same brat at the end, causing me to dislike her immensely.

I will not say that Switched was a terrible novel. It was simply mediocre in terms of plot, characters and premise. However, it was an enjoyable read that left a lasting impression because of its emphasis on family and loyalty. There were so many characters in Switched who showed powerful familial ties and incredibly loyalty, it's almost too good to be true, yet I still fell for it. Switched may not be the best read, but it is a remarkable tale that will leave you dying for more at the end.

P.S. The short story, "The Vittra Attacks," that was added to Switched was totally misplaced. It prepares the reader for the next installment, Torn, but leaves the reader many questions because of its confusing and unclear purpose, unless the reader has already read Torn, which is impossible if the novella comes directly after Switched.

Purchase Switched: Amazon/ Barnes&Nobles/ The Book Depository

Review: The Vicious Deep by Zoraida Córdova

The Vicious Deep (The Vicious Deep #1)

By Zoraida Córdova

Release Date: May 1, 2012

Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire

Hardcover, 384 pages

For Tristan Hart, everything changes with one crashing wave.

He was gone for three days. Sucked out to sea in a tidal wave and spit back ashore at Coney Island with no memory of what happened. Now his dreams are haunted by a terrifying silver mermaid with razor-sharp teeth.

His best friend Layla is convinced something is wrong. But how can he explain he can sense emotion like never before? How can he explain he’s heir to a kingdom he never knew existed? That he’s suddenly a pawn in a battle as ancient as the gods.

Something happened to him in those three days. He was claimed by the sea…and now it wants him back.--Goodreads

4 Stars

Review 

Can I just say that I LOVE mermaids?! When I was little, while all the other kids wanted to be princesses, I wanted to be a mermaid. To this day mermaids are one of my favorite (mythical) creatures, so when I heard of Vicious Deep I just had to read it. Since the protagonist is a half-mermaid and a male, I thought this book was going to be awesome and hilarious and it was!

When Tristan Hart found out that he was a mermaid, he was taking a bath and grew a tail! That can't be normal, can it? So he called his parents in and his parents explained to him that his mother was a mermaid and his dad was human, therefore Tristan is a half-mermaid, actually sorry, half-merman would be the correct term. Then, as if things couldn't get more weird, two teens pop out of literally no where and into his bathroom. They explain that they are there to help Tristan because he is suppose to be the King of the merpeople, but first Tristan must compete for the crown with the other chosen mermen.

That whole scene above was one of the funniest scenes in the book. Can you just imagine just taking a bath then BOOM, you have a tail and then two random people show up in YOUR bathroom, while you are taking a bath? That scene was hilarious as was the Gum scene, which you are going to have to read yourself! (* evil laughter*) Just kidding no evil laugh, but seriously this book has some truly funny scenes. That is one of the things I love most about Vicious Deep; the fact that it was hilarious. Besides the scenes I just mentioned above, there were a lot more funny scenes, but you'll have to read them yourselves. ;)

Our protagonist is a TEENAGE male, more specifically a teenaged popular jock, therefore he will have typical teenage guy thoughts, you have been warned!!! The amount guy-ish thoughts are not too overwhelming, but there are a good number of them. 

Tristan Hart is also super sarcastic, which I love because sarcasm is awesome (no sarcasm intended).  A lot of times in this book I found myself smiling at lines and quite a few times I laughed out loud, thank goodness I was not in public, otherwise I would have gotten some strange looks. 

Now on to the stuff I did not like about this book, there aren't a lot because I really enjoyed reading this book, but there are two things that I did not like. First, Layla is Tristan's friend, in fact she is one of his best friends and he is one of her best friends, but I thought the friendship between Layla and Tristan was kind of hard to believe. I can see that Tristan likes Layla, actually he has a crush on her, which I see more as an obsession, which we will get to later, but when I read this book, Layla was constantly rude to Tristan and it didn't seem like she was kidding. After Tristan got back, she wasn't there for him when he needed someone to be there for him. Layla just doesn't seem like a good friend, but I wish she was a better friend. 

Tristan has a crush/obsession on his friend Layla. It seems like a normal crush because he thinks about her often and he also flirts with her, but Layla thinks he is kidding because he is known as a player, so she ignores him. I get that he has a crush on Layla, but almost every 20 pages or so there is a new thought about Layla. Also when Layla walks by, Tristan turns and takes a (huge) sniff of her...ok that's normal right?? In my opinion the crush on Layla was a bit overdone, to the point where it came off borderline obsessive. 

Those two things were my only problems with this book and that is why Vicious Deep is rated four stars out of five. Aside from that, this book was amazing! If you ever see this in a bookstore or a library, definitely pick it up!

Other thoughts: In Vicious Deep, there is this mermaid, her name is Gwen, and she is super nice to Tristan. At first she comes off cold and mean, but that is just a wall that she built, she is actually really nice. She is also the person who helped Layla win a race with a merman that she offended, a race that if Layla lost, she would be sentenced to die. If Gwen helping Layla win that win-or-die race isn't nice, I don't know what is. But yes, after Tristan got to know Gwen better, she was awesome. Gwen was definitely one of my favorite characters in this book. I think Tristan and Gwen are a much better match than Tristan and Layla. What do you guys think? Team Gwen or Team Layla? If you leave a comment below answering this question, that would be so awesome and I will try to answer each one of your comments!

Purchase the book: Amazon / Barnes&Noble / The Book Depository

New YA Book Hooked by Liz Fichera Trailer

Hey guys! So a few days ago, on Friday, the cover of Hooked by Liz Fichera was released by HarlequinTEEN. (If you can't tell, the cover is to your right!)

Now there is more awesome news to announce today! We would like to show you the trailer to Hooked!!! It's a really short trailer, but it does the job and gets you pumped for the book which will be released January 31st, 2013. 

The trailer is below. We hope you guys enjoy it; We know we did.  :)

Pre-order the book: Amazon / Barnes&Noble / The Book Depository

Enjoy the trailer! :)