Book Review: Dreamless (Starcrossed #2)

Dreamless (Starcrossed #2) by Josephine Angelini

(May contain spoilers)

Format: Paperback (arc)
Publisher: Macmillan
Published: 5th July 2012
Pages: 503
Main Characters: Helen, Lucas, Orion
Date Started: 24th June 2012
Date Finished: 28th June 2012
Rating Given: ***

Blurb from Goodreads:

Can true love be forgotten?

As the only Scion who can descend into the Underworld, Helen Hamilton has been given a nearly impossible task. By night she wanders through Hades, trying to stop the endless cycle of revenge that has cursed her family. By day she struggles to overcome the fatigue that is rapidly eroding her sanity. Without Lucas by her side, Helen is not sure she has the strength to go on.

Just as Helen is pushed to her breaking point, a mysterious new Scion comes to her rescue. Funny and brave, Orion shields her from the dangers of the Underworld. But time is running out—a ruthless foe plots against them, and the Furies’ cry for blood is growing louder.

As the ancient Greek world collides with the mortal one, Helen’s sheltered life on Nantucket descends into chaos. But the hardest task of all will be forgetting Lucas Delos.

Josephine Angelini’s compelling saga becomes ever more intricate and spellbinding as an unforgettable love triangle emerges and the eternal cycle of revenge intensifies. Eagerly awaited, this sequel to the internationally bestselling STARCROSSED delivers a gritty, action-packed love story that exceeds expectation.

I kind of liked Starcrossed so when I had the chance to review the second one I thought I would give it a try as everyone says that you should give a series a chance and I'm glad that Macmillan (big thank you to Macmillan for sending me a copy) gave me a copy to review as I did like it.

This cover is very similar to the first cover which I loved but I do this cover isn't as good. The reason why is the people on the cover they just don't look right but that is the only fault I see in this cover. I love the colours on this cover as they look very dramatic and very much in keeping with what is going on within the story.

This is only my second book that I have read that was written by Josephine Angelini and I think it's the second book that she has had published too. What I think Angelini does well in her books is the build up of tension as she did that with the first one and this second one. Although I do like the build up I do feel that it was a bit too slow this time around as it took me a long time to actually get into the book. She is also very good at writing a very addicting series as once I got into this book I really couldn't put it down as I wanted to find out what was going to get thrown at the character's next. I do love her take on the Greek Gods, it's not something I have actually read many of but I do think she does a great job.

Like I said the start of this book was very slow and very confusing as I just didn't know what was going on. I think a part of that reason was because I couldn't remember what went on in the first book although there is a bit of a recap which was very much needed. There was a lot of things happening a few things I thought was predictable but then other things that happened just threw me which I like not being able to guess what is going to happen before it actually happens. The ending was so much better this time around as in Starcrossed I felt it was more of an abrupt ending rather than a cliff-hanger but this time there was a bit of a cliff-hanger which I didn't mind as it has left me wanting more from this series but at least it didn't end abruptly. This book did seem a little depressing with the things that was happening with virtually no light relief but I actually didn't mind this as it made it more entertaining in a way that I never expected.

I liked the characters in the first book and I liked them in this one just as much maybe even more. Helen was just the same as before but this time I did feel like she was thinking about everyone else not caring about the effects it was having on herself. Lucas seemed to be a lot more angrier in this one but I do understand where his anger was coming from. I felt so sorry for Helen and Lucas who obviously love one another but can't do anything about it. We was also introduced to a new character called Orion and I really did like him as he seemed sweet but with an edge. I think we will be seeing more from him and the love triangle that has happened between these three characters in the next book.

Overall this book was a bit confusing to start with and it was also very slow but once you get over those tiny bumps in the road it was a very addicting and entertaining book.

Book Review: A Face Like Glass

A Face Like Glass by Frances Hardinge

Format: Paperback (arc)
Publishers: Pan Macmillan
Published: 10th May 2012
Pages: 389
Main Characters: Neverfell
Date Started: 19th April 2012
Date Finished: 27th April 2012
Rating Given: ***

Blurb from Goodreads:

In Caverna, lies are an art - and everyone's an artist . . .
In the underground city of Caverna the world's most skilled craftsmen toil in the darkness to create delicacies beyond compare - wines that can remove memories, cheeses that can make you hallucinate and perfumes that convince you to trust the wearer, even as they slit your throat. The people of Caverna are more ordinary, but for one thing: their faces are as blank as untouched snow. Expressions must be learned, and only the famous Facesmiths can teach a person to show (or fake) joy, despair or fear - at a price.
Into this dark and distrustful world comes Neverfell, a little girl with no memory of her past and a face so terrifying to those around her that she must wear a mask at all times. For Neverfell's emotions are as obvious on her face as those of the most skilled Facesmiths, though entirely genuine. And that makes her very dangerous indeed . . .

I have actually not read or even heard of Frances Hardinge and just happened to stumble across it on Goodreads. It sounded really interesting so I thought I would try and get my hands on a copy. A huge thank you goes out to Pan Macmillan publishers for giving me the opportunity to review this book which by the end I really enjoyed.

When I first started reading this book I really couldn't get into it as it took awhile to get going and it was also very confusing for most of the book. It was very hard to understand what was going on and it wasn't until the last few pages when everything got sorted. The thing that I found the most confusing was the people learn face expressions which at first I couldn't get to grips with as sometimes I was thinking it was masks that they brought but that wasn't the case, they just didn't know how to express their feelings on the face unless someone taught them how to do so. There was also people in the books that sounded a bit crazy but by the end of the book I do get everything that is going on and ended up being very entertaining.

Hardinge may have written a book in the style of crazy but it still works which I think makes her a very talented writer it just isn't for me. She is a very talented author who makes us the reader believe in this world and what is going on in it.

I thought that Neverfell was such a lovely and endearing character that I just couldn't help but want her to succeed. For most of the book she was very naive but I think that has more to do with her being a child and still has that childlike quality about her which is a change for the female lead character as usually they act older than what they actually are. Unlike Neverfell I never knew who was the good person or the bad person but Neverfell just thought everyone was being helpful.

Overall a crazy and confusing book that you can't help but end up really loving the character and the book.

Book Review: Fated (Soul Seekers #1)

Fated (Soul Seekers #1) by Alyson Noel

Format: Paperback (arc)
Publisher: Macmillan Children's Books
Published: 24th May 2012
Pages: 440
Main Characters: Daire, Dace, Cade, Paloma
Date Started: 25th March 2012
Date Finished: 29th March 2012
Rating Given: ***

Goodreads:
Strange things are happening to Daire Santos. Crows mock her, glowing people stalk her, time stops without warning, and a beautiful boy with unearthly blue eyes haunts all her dreams. Fearing for her daughter’s sanity, Daire’s mother sends her to live with the grandmother she’s never met. A woman who recognizes the visions for what they truly are—the call to her destiny as a Soul Seeker—one who can navigate the worlds between the living and dead.

There on the dusty plains of Enchantment, New Mexico, Daire sets out to harness her mystical powers. But it’s when she meets Dace, the boy from her dreams, that her whole world is shaken to its core. Now Daire is forced to discover if Dace is the one guy she's meant to be with...or if he’s allied with the enemy she's destined to destroy.

I loved Alyson Noel's other series The Immortals so when I heard about this series I thought it sounded just as good and definitely worth a read.

It starts out with Daire having an 'episode' where everyone thinks she has gone crazy but when her Grandmother finds out about them she knows that she isn't going crazy but is actually a Soul Seeker giving her powers that she never even knew she had and because of this she is sent to stay with her Grandmother so get ready for the role she was born into.

I found it was slightly confusing at the beginning and I just never really understood what was happening. Throughout the first half of the book I was going through stages of either loving it and thinking it was one of the best books that I have ever read to hating it as it was boring with nothing exciting going on. After hitting the halfway mark I found it settled into a great book with twists and turns that I was expecting which I think is a great thing to happen in books.

I wasn't sure what I really thought of Daire's character as she seemed nice enough at the end but at the beginning she was a bit selfish and very annoying as well as being mean to the people who loved her the most but she did grow throughout the book into a more descent person which I was pleased about I just hope she stays like that in the next book.

Dace was a great sweet and kind boy which I found a great quality in him but I always felt like he was going to change into his evil twin brother. I think that maybe it will happen in the next book but I sure hope that this doesn't happen.

Paloma is Daire's Grandmother who I loved I think she could well have been one of my favourite characters but this could have something to do with her reminding me of my Nanna.

Cade was a strange character as he did seem nice on the surface but he is the bad twin and some of the things he did when he thought no one was looking was awful so it was hard to trust him but also as hard to hate him.

Overall a good start to what I am hoping will be a great series I just wished that it had picked up pace a lot sooner than what it did do. I am looking to where this story is going and I can't wait to see what is going to happen.

Book Review: All These Things I've Done (Birthright #1)

All These Things I've Done (Birthright #1) by Gabrielle Zevin

Format: Paperback (arc)
Publisher: Macmillan
Published: 6th April 2012
Pages: 352
Main Characters: Anya, Win, Natty, Scarlet, Leo
Date Started: 17th March 2012
Date Finished: 21st March 2012
Rating Given: ***

Goodreads:
Sixteen year-old Anya becomes the head of a mafia family after her parents are both murdered by rival gangs. Although Anya is embrolied in the criminal world, she is determined to keep her brother and sister out of the mafia family, but her father's relatives aren't so keen to let them go. When Anya's violent ex-boyfriend is poisoned with contaminated chocolate – chocolate that is produced illegally by Anya's mafia family – she is arrested for attempted murder and sent to the notorious jail on Manhattan Island.

Eventually she is freed by the new D.A. in town, who believes she has been framed. But this D.A. is the father of Win, a boy at school to whom Anya feels irresistibly drawn, and her freedom comes with conditions. Win's father wants to be mayor, and he can't risk having his ambition jeopardised by rumours spreading that his son is seeing a member of a notorious crime family. Anya knows she risks the safety of her family by seeing Win again, but the feeling between them may be too strong to resist...

I had not actually heard of this book until someone wanted to swap it and it was on their list so I read the synopsis and it sounded good and different to what I have read before, I had to give it a try.

This book is something new for me which I did enjoy but not as much as what I thought I was going to. It is set in 2082 and there is a chocolate ban (could you imagine a world without chocolate? I for one can't) as well as other important living things on a need to use basis (I can actually imagine some of these things happening as we are already have a hosepipe ban in the summer). Anya's family is involved in the illegal chocolate business which she gets caught up in.

To start with I found it quite slow and nothing much was really happening and it wasn't until nearly halfway through when things started to get interesting.

What I love about this book is that when it gets going it is a very thrilling book where I have to read just one more chapter before I can put it down. I also like the fact that I never knew what was going to happen next. Also I liked that I thought I had everything figured out, for example, who was to blame and then everything changes again and again at one point I just couldn't keep up. I for one don't know who to trust in this book everyone seems a bit shady.

For her sixteen years Anya has had to deal with a lot of things and not any good things and because of this she is a strong person but I feel that at times she just acts this way so she doesn't seem weak. I like her character and I rout for everything to turn out in her favour which again doesn't always happen.

I love the style of writing that Zevin has used as to me it feels like more of a journal rather than a book which is probably the reason why I ended up getting so wrapped up in this book it just felt real.

There has been a lot of questions left unanswered which really makes me want to read the next one just so I know what happens next.

Overall a slow start but once it gets going it gets very interesting.

Book Review: Forgiven (The Demon Trappers #3)

Forgiven (The Demon Trappers #3) by Jana Oliver

Format: Paperback (arc)
Publisher: Macmillan Children's Books
Published: 1st March 2012
Pages: 408
Main Characters: Riley, Beck
Date Started: 28th February 2012
Date Finished: 2nd March 2012
Rating Given: ****

Goodreads:
Riley Blackthorne. Kicking hell’s ass one demon at a time...

Riley has made a bargain with Heaven, and now they've come to collect.

Lucifer's finest are ruling the streets and it seems that Armageddon might be even closer than Riley imagined. But with her soul and her heart in play it's all she can do to keep herself alive, let alone save the world. Riley's not afraid of kicking some major demon butt, but when it comes to a battle between Heaven and Hell, she might need a little help...

We start off round about where that last book left off which I think was a good move as a lot of things happened that needed to be sorted out.

I was given this book for review purposes by Macmillan publishers so a big thank you goes out to them as I really enjoyed this book.

There was always something going on which made it so much like a roller coaster ride and one that I didn't want to get off of. It kept me going all the way until the end.

At one point I thought there wasn't going to be any cliff hangers as it seemed to be wrapping itself up nicely but then there was a huge spanner thrown into the mix and I can't wait to find out how this is all going to come to a head.

I loved the fight sequences which there was a lot of, as they was so well written that I could actually imagine what was happening which in some books I can't so I was pleased with that.

In the book before this I was a little unhappy with the way Riley was turning out but in this one it was back to the feisty Riley that we all know and love. There was a softer side to her though which was nice to see as it shows she is not just a fighter. There was a lot of things that was thrown at her but the way she handled it all was such a strong test of character I don't think anybody would still be standing after what she has been through.

Beck I loved I always have and I always will as he is just a brilliant character. He is very similar to Riley in that he is such a strong fighter in every sense of the word but he too has a soft side he just doesn't show it that often but when he does my heart melts and even breaks for him.

There was times when I wanted to bang those two heads together as you can tell how much they love each other it just seemed that they didn't. I just seems like they bring out the best and worst of themselves when they are around each other. There relationship did seem to be going in the right direction but as always they just pull away from each other I so hope that we have them two together by the end of the last one as they are perfect for each other!

Overall another great book from Jana Oliver I can't wait to see what she has in store for us for the last in this series, at least we don't have a long wait as it's out in August.

In My Mailbox #19

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme that is hosted by The Story Siren. This is where we show what we have either bought or was given throughout the week gone by.









Again I have not bought any books this week but I did get some swaps and review books.

Nevermore by Kelly Creagh

I got this book thanks to Goodreads UK Swap Shop group which I am so pleased about as I have been after it for a while and I am very much looking forward to reading it.

All These Things I've Done by Gabrielle Zevin

I received this from readitswapit. It's not a book I heard of until I see it on the list of books they had to swap and it sounded really good so I thought I would give it a try.

Forgiven by Jana Oliver

I was sent this to review by Macmillan Children's Books which I was pleased about as I love this series and I can't wait to get stuck into it.

I received a couple of books via netgalley this week.

Torn by Stephanie Guerra

I also got - I Got My Dream Job and So Can You by Pete Leibman.

So that's what I received this week what arrived in your mailbox?

Book Review: Starcrossed (starcrossed #1)

Starcrossed (Starcrossed #1) by Josephine Angelini

Format: Paperback
Publisher: Macmillan Children's Books
Published: 3rd June 2011
Pages: 514
Main Characters: Helen and Lucas
Date Started: 8th August 2011
Date Finished: 13th August 2011
Rating Given: ***

Goodreads:
Set on the island of Nantucket, STARCROSSED tells the tale of Helen Hamilton, a young woman whose destiny is forever altered when she meets Lucas Delos and tries to kill him in front of her entire high school. Which is terribly inconvenient, not only because Lucas is the most beautiful boy on the island, but also because Helen is so achingly shy she suffers physical pain whenever she is given too much attention.

Making matters worse, Helen is beginning to suspect she’s going crazy. Whenever she’s near Lucas or any member of his family she sees the ghostly apparitions of three women weeping bloody tears, and suffers the burden of an intense and irrational hate. She soon learns that she and Lucas are destined to play the leading roles in a Greek tragedy that the Three Fates insist on repeating over and over again throughout history. Like her namesake, Helen of Troy, she’s destined to start a war by falling in love. But even though Lucas and Helen can see their own star-crossed destiny, they’re still powerfully attracted to each other. Will they give up their personal happiness for the greater good, or risk it all to be together?

The reason why I wanted to read this book was the front cover as I find it beautiful. Another reason why was because I had heard a lot of good things about the book. All in all I wasn't that disappointed with reading the book.
The main reason why it only got 3 Stars was because it took a long time to get into it which at one point I really wanted to stop (which I don't do) but I kept going. Eventually mid-way through I really got into it and was looking forward to what was going  to happen on the next page/chapter. However the ending was disappointing as I thought there was another chapter but when I turned over and found it wasn't so I felt let down it just ended abruptly. I know some books have cliffhangers but this didn't feel like a cliffhanger it just felt unfinished.
With the characters I thought they was alright I just didn't think they where developed as much as they could have been. However I think this could be because at the beginning Helen and Grace literally hate other and bring out the worse in each other. So I am looking forward to seeing how they move on in the next book.
I did like the book and I thing it was a good debut book for Josephine Angelini and I am looking forward to seeing what she can offer in the next installment of Starcrossed and any other realm she will create.

Book Review: Forbidden (The Demon Trappers #2)

Forbidden (The Demon Trappers #2) by Jana Oliver

Format: Paperback
Publisher: Macmillan Children's Books
Published: 5th August 2011
Pages: 416
Main Characters: Riley, Beck and Ori
Date Started: 14th August 2011
Date Finished: 19th August 2011
Rating Given: ***

Goodreads:
Riley's beginning to think being a demon trapper isn't all it's cracked up to be. Her dad's been stolen by a necromancer, her boyfriend's gone all weird and she's getting warm and fuzzy feelings for someone who's seriously bad news. It's tempting to give it all up and try to be normal, but that's not an option. Because the demons have plans for Riley. And they're not the only ones.

With loving Forsaken so much I just had to read the second in this series and I was very much looking forward to what was going to happen with Riley next but what I didn't count on was it not being as good.
I can't believe how much the characters had changed from the first one, I know things can change a person but not as much as Simon did. I loved his character (even if I was team Beck) in the first book he was sweet and charming but in this book he changed for the worse. He was awful to Riley to an extent I just couldn't believe I was glad he wasn't in it much as he got on my nerves. Beck I loved even though he did annoy me a bit when he kept telling Riley what to do he isn't her father! I also wanted to slap him upside the head at times as you just know he loves Riley in a romantic way but he just can't admit to it. We found out more about Ori in this book and I was surprised at what and who he really was I just never saw that one coming which was a great twist to the story. With Riley she was annoying but she has been through a lot so you can forgive her character for the things that she does.
There are a lot of things that kept happening that you just don't expect and it did keep you on the edge of your seat which is what I love in the books that I read.
With the ending of this book it did make me excited for the next book Forgiven and a bit nervous as well.

Book Review: Infinite Days (Vampire Queen #1)

Infinite Days (Vampire Queen #1) by Rebecca Maizel

Format: Paperback
Publisher: Macmillan Children's Books
Published: 1st April 2011
Pages: 400
Main Characters: Lenah and Justin
Date Started: 23rd August 2011
Date Finished: 30th August 2011
Rating Given: **

Waterstones:
For 500 years Lenah Beaudonte has been a vampire. 500 years of seduction, blood and destruction. But she is sickened by her dark powers and longs to feel the sun on her skin, grass under her bare feet, and share the breath of a human kiss. She wants to be mortal again. But is she really capable of being human, after her long years of darkness? Waking up as a sixteen-year-old girl brings Lenah many things the life she has missed, taste, touch, love. But a vampire soul is not easily shed. And her coven the four vampires she led in decadence and thrilling destruction want their queen back ...

For Rebecca Maizel this is here debut novel and with nothing to read of hers before Infinite Days I had to go on the front cover which I loved and the description and I saw a lot of people reading it so I thought I would give it a try but I must say I was quite disappointed.
I found this story to be quite different to what is out there usually its a human turning into a vampire not a vampire turning into a human which I liked and it worked.
I did actually love the whole story but what I didn't like was the characters they really pulled this book down for me. I thought the two main characters were shallow, unrelatable, annoying. With Justin he was a bit of a jerk to start with but then by the end of the book he was completely different which I found rather strange as no one change that much if he started of like he did at the end it would have been better. Lenah was the same but with her character going through the changes she goes through you can kind of accept that however she loved that many different characters it just didn't seem real with any of them. I did like one of the side characters Rhode he seemed the most believable and selfless character out of the lot of them but we don't see much of him.
As for the ending I hated it I thought with the way it ended there wasn't going to be another book and that it was a standalone novel but I was mistaken. I won't be reading the second because I just couldn't get into this book and sometimes the second is usually better than the first but I just don't even want to give it another try.