{Review} Under the Never Sky by Veronica Rossi

Title: Under the Never Sky
Author: Veronica Rossi
Format: Hardcover
Publisher: HarperTeen
Release date: January 3, 2012
Date Read: April 5, 2013
Rating: ✭✭✭✭✭

Exiled from her home, the enclosed city of Reverie, Aria knows her chances of surviving in the outer wasteland—known as The Death Shop—are slim. If the cannibals don't get her, the violent energy storms will. Then Aria meets an Outsider named Perry. He's wild—a savage—and her only hope of staying alive.

A hunter for his tribe in a merciless landscape, Perry views Aria as sheltered and fragile—everything he would expect from a Dweller. But he needs Aria's help too; she alone holds the key to his redemption. Opposites in nearly every way, Aria and Perry must come together to survive. Their unlikely alliance forges a bond that will determine the fate of all who live under the never sky.

I owe this book so much.

For several months, I’d been a horrendous reading slump - the kind where you have a pile of books to choose from and read, but you actively avoid them all and spend your free time stuffing your face with junk food and watching Netflix.

I’d received a lot of advise for the slump: read novellas, read comedy books, and watch more television (which was a really bad idea, because then I watched all eight seasons of SUPERNATURAL in a row).

But I decided to pick up UNDER THE NEVER SKY because it just seemed like something that would interest me.

And oh, gods, did it.

This book bitch-slapped me out of my slump and set me on a ridiculous path to read as many books as I’d missed out while on my little... vacation.

UNDER THE NEVER SKY takes place in a world where the city dwellers live in a community known as the Reverie, completely excluded from the dangerous outer wasteland, where cannibals feast and the land is swamped with Aether storms. Our protagonist, Aria, gets into a bit of a fight with some very important bastards and gets thrown out of the Reverie, left to fend for herself.

However, she’s not alone for long. ‘Savage’ Perry is on a quest to find someone, and Aria goes along with him to seek out answers and look for her missing mother.

I’m going to be perfectly honest: the beginning of UNDER THE NEVER SKY was no picnic. It was confusing and I had no idea what was going on. I didn’t understand what Aria meant by Pods and the Reverie and Smarteyes and Aether. Hell, I still didn’t even know what the words meant by page one hundred! I would’ve preferred info-dumping to the lack of information in the first half.

But slowly, you began to unravel the meaning behind the words, and that’s when the world building got awesome. It was like someone had wiped and cleaned my finger-print ridden classes soon as I figured it all out.



I KNEW WHAT WAS GOING ON AND IT WAS EPIC

The world Rossi had created for her characters was richly imaginative. The science fiction was so engrossing, but the outskirts, outside the enclosed city, was even better. I couldn’t put the book down. 

I literally considered skipping math class to hide out in the bathroom and continue reading.

but the bathroom is full of weave and dirty toilet paper and weird moth bugs so I was just like FORGET IT I'LL RUIN THE BOOK'S COVER

The characters all had these realistic backstories and personalities. I didn't like Aria at all for the first half of the book, but as soon as she got her shit together, I really started to appreciate her. Perry I loved as soon as I met him - he was kind of a badass awkward penguin that I couldn't help but adore.

And Roar.

ROAR, YOU GUYS.


okay, so a gif of my baby Castiel exploding probably wasn't my best move ever, but still

There was no insta-love in Perry and Aria's romance, though there was a bit of romantic tension after they became friends. Their relationship was so adorable and realistic, and equal. Perry snapped at Aria when she was being a bitch, Aria called out Perry when he was being a unknowing jerk, and it was all well and good. There were also hysterical moments in their relationship, like when Aria thinks she's dying because she got her period, and Perry is the one who tells her that she's menstruating.

I was crying from laughing so hard. 

Roar's relationship with Aria was fantastic, too, because even though he was a flirt, they were just friends, and they both knew it. Roar was in love with someone else, and I'm thankful Rossi didn't pull the dreaded love-triangle card on us.

I loved Rossi's writing. It was pretty and easy to read, going along with the intense world-building perfectly. UNDER THE NEVER SKY is indeed written in third-person with both Aria and Perry's points of view - but their voices were so varying and unique I never had to worry about mixing them up.

Veronica Rossi got me out of a damn slump with this amazing read, and I have her to thank for many months to come.

Also, I blame her for tearing my throats to shreds.

I honest-to-goodness screamed and snorted and squealed my way through this lovely work, and while my throat didn't enjoy the ride, I sure did.


DAMMIT MORIARTY WHAT ARE YOU DOING BACK IN MY REVIEWS

Oceana is a French-blooded teenager who enjoys stalking British boys and asking them to marry her. She was diagnosed with severe fangirl disorder in 2011. Able to curse like a sailor with an angelic voice.

{Review} The Eternity Cure by Julie Kagawa

Title: The Eternity Cure
Author: Julie Kagawa
Format: NetGalley ebook ARC
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Release date: April 23, 2013
Date Read: February 27, 2013 - March 3, 2013
Rating: ✭✭✭✭

Allison Sekemoto has vowed to rescue her creator, Kanin, who is being held hostage and tortured by the psychotic vampire Sarren. The call of blood leads her back to the beginning—New Covington and the Fringe, and a vampire prince who wants her dead yet may become her wary ally.

Even as Allie faces shocking revelations and heartbreak like she’s never known, a new strain of the Red Lung virus that decimated humanity is rising to threaten human and vampire alike.

ARC supplied by NetGalley and Harlequin Teen in exchange for an honest review.

Someone help me pick up my jaw, please.

*points at jaw on floor* Yup, right there. Thanks.

Julie sure knows how to write a soul-crushing cliffhanger, doesn't she?

THE ETERNITY CURE was a book that I was excitedly looking forward to. I'm unashamed to say that I'm a Julie Kagawa fangirl, and though THE IMMORTAL RULES was a four-star read for me, I loved THE ETERNITY CURE even more.

It follows vampire Allison Sekemoto as she searches for her soulmate, PLEASE mentor, Kanin, who is being tortured by the bat-shit crazy vampire Sarren. Along for the ride are Jackal, a former vampire Prince who has a lot more in common with Allie than she originally thought, and her romantic interest Zeke, a human. But saving Kanin isn't the only problem on their mind: a new strain of The Red Lung has appeared, a plague that can kill humans and vampires alike.


But apparently Allie and her friends do.

THE IMMORTAL RULES moved at a very slow pace for me, but THE ETERNITY CURE was snapping its fingers in my face and not slowing down. It was very rapid, with a lot of action that I couldn't help but adore. It was split into three parts, just like its predecessor, but all the sections were intense - so intense, in fact, that I couldn't put THE ETERNITY CURE down until I forced myself to...

... at three in the morning.



Julie's writing is superb. If I'm going to be perfectly honest, her style hasn't changed one bit - but I'm glad that it didn't. First person, present-tense, with lots of detailing that Julie managed to rein in so it didn't get too purple and flowery. 

The characters in THE ETERNITY CURE were unbelievably fascinating, especially Sarren, the psychotic vampire even though I wanted to rip his head off for hurting Kanin. Fleshed-out and detailed, they had a personality to speak of and a story to tell. 

It's true that I didn't love Allison in this book as much as I did in THE IMMORTAL RULES. When it came to killing, most of the time, she was the same Allison I had fallen in love with. The merciless bad-ass Asian chick who accepted what she was and didn't argue with it. However, when she was with Zeke in THE ETERNITY CURE, she became a sappy girl that constantly whined about not being able to be with him because she was a vampire.

And it got annoying, really fast.

Zeke also got on my nerves, because his mind was constantly changing about Allie. One moment he'd push her away and tell her that they'd never be together, but in the next he'd try to convince her to run away with him. I didn't care much about him - at all, actually - though that might be because I'm kind of a Kallison shipper.



Eek, let me explain. 

Yes, I adore Allison and Kanin together, but only if they're not technically daughter-and-father. Allison, at times, referred to Kanin as her father, but she also mentioned that they weren't actually family. So, Allison, make up your damn mind.

Kanin and Jackal were my favorite characters in THE ETERNITY CURE. Kanin ripped my heart out and handed it back to me in pieces while I sobbed uncontrollably. His sweet, shy, and quiet demeanor made me fall in love with him, hard. Kanin is one of the most emotionally depressed and broken characters I've ever encountered, and all I wanted to do was scoop him into my arms and stroke his hair.

Because that's not creepy AT ALL.

Jackal was like the eviler, meaner, murdering, PMS-ing version of Grimalkin from Julie's other book, THE IRON KING. I couldn't love him after everything he did in the previous book, but he did make me laugh out loud a couple of times. Jackal was a very dynamic character, and seeing him change throughout the book - though he maintained his violent, cold personality - was amazing.

And can we talk about Chapter 13, please? Oh my gods, my heart was racing while I read it. The chapter gave me the middle finger and stomped all over me, screaming, OCEANA, PLEASE WATCH THE LOVE OF YOUR LIFE SHATTER 

I adored THE ETERNITY CURE and I think a lot of people will love it as well.

Oceana is a French-blooded teenager who enjoys stalking British boys and asking them to marry her. She was diagnosed with severe fangirl disorder in 2011. Able to curse like a sailor with an angelic voice.

{Review} Shades of Earth by Beth Revis

Title: Shades of Earth
Author: Beth Revis
Format: Library Hardcover
Publisher: Razorbill
Release date: January 15th, 2013
Date Read: February 25th, 2013
Rating: ✭✭✭✭

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

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

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

FUELED BY LIES.
RULED BY CHAOS.
ALMOST HOME.

Actual Rating: 3.5 rounded up to four.

Wow. I am really speechless. I didn't like the first two books so I was hesitant to pick this one up (read: I waited till it was overdue to read it). But, holy shit, when I did? I am now a strong believer in insta-book-love.

All my earlier problems are still here (Elder, idiocy, Elder, more idiocy) but it got better! One of the reasons that this book is 100% awesome than the previous two books is probably because well, they finally landed on Centauri-Earth. 

This may not excite everyone but personally, I couldn't tear myself away from SHADES OF EARTH. It was just too fascinating. I mean, they're on another planet!

Other than my character-centered problems, I have one huge problem that isn't that easily overlooked. Idiocy and inconsistencies. I'll be going through my notes here (yeah, got all fancy with notes and stuff).

If you remember, in SHADES OF EARTH, the people of Godspeed finally decided to land on Centauri-Earth which means melting the frozen people to get them out of cryosleep.

When they do, predictably, they are quite confused over why these people of the Godspeed have leaders and aren't the Sol-Earthians slaves. It's all quite amusing, the little power struggles but when they semi-figure things out, everything is really crazy. 

After some terrible happenstances, Amy becomes "acting commander of the Godspeed mission". 
Amy. 

AMY THE SIXTEEN YEAR OLD IS IN CHARGE.

Why? I'm pretty sure in military doesn't work like that. The whole bleeping concept of "military" is chain of command. A sixteen year old, no matter why, would become acting commander unless the strict militariness of the military has devolved into a primitive war group.

My next problem with idiocy is these supposed "intelligent scientists types". So, this one scientists is excitedly telling Amy:

"It should be impossible. I talked to Frank, the geologist. He says there are minerals in the soil he's never seen before. We're talking about whole new elements to the periodic table!"- page 190.

Um, no. Sorry but if you're on another planet, why would you add the elements of this planet to the periodic table of Earth, another planet. What? No, that's not how it works. I would think that you would make a new periodic table, not add onto a Earth periodic table, full with elements that may not even be on this planet.

But, hey, what do I know? I'm not a scientist.

Inconsistency one: Amy seems to love Centauri-Earth in one chapter and detest it in another. I don't think your emotions can zip around like that every few minutes/hours. Weeks? I suppose but minutes? Nope, sorry.

The rest of my notes are centered on character problems.

Characters

Let's start with Elder and why I want him to go jump off a space ship. If you've read the previous two books, which I'm going to assume you have for the rest of the review, you'll know that Elder unhooked Amy from the cryochamber or whatever they're called in this. The unhooking almost killed her and after she recovers, he pretends he doesn't know how she woke up early. His reasons for unhooking her? He was horny.

No, I'm not kidding. The reason Elder unhooked Amy from her cryochamber was because he was horny and wanted to make out with her but was thankfully nice enough not to rape her while she was sleeping. In this case, I'm using "nice" lightly.

He’d also possessive, jealous, and assuming. Amy goes out with a guy and immediately Elder thinks that Amy is cheating on him and that they’re going out to make out. He then sneaks up on them right when this guy forces himself onto Amy and Elder’s like “OMG she’s kissing him and cheating on meh!” 

He only accepted the fact that she wouldn’t cheat on him after she pushes him off of her. 
W-WHAT 

Elder somehow couldn’t see the fact that Amy was completely devoted to him. Why? I'm sorry but that doesn't work for me. Elder, dude, she loves you so much that she followed you to a strange alien world. She's not going anywhere.

Amy is fairly mediocre as a character. Though she’s not extremely stupid, she’s not exactly bright. She’s not witty or loveable. She’s just sort of there, for better or worse.

In terms of intelligence, everything is weird. She’s not the stupidest heroine I’ve ever read about but then again, she’s pretty irresponsible and seems to have something against thinking situations out. 

Though this example is stupid on both Elder’s and Amy’s part, it’s a fine example of how much Amy thinks. Elder brings her a bunch of flowers, native to this new and exotic planet. What does Amy do? She sticks her nose in it and passes out because of some neurotoxins.

I suppose this is a case of plot needed stupidity but I’m sure Revis could have found another way to introduce the plants, as they are important to the storyline. Instead of thinking about how to introduce them, she just slaps them in, making her intelligent character unbelievably dumb.

Another prominent character who I find that I need to go over specifically is Chris, the seemingly mild mannered friend of Amy. For the first ¾, it seems like his only purpose in life is to make Elder and Amy’s relationship strain. That’s seriously how he’s treated.

He obviously lusts over Amy and is very close to her. Somehow, she doesn’t see his blatant flirting. Elder immediately sees his flirting and turns into Even-More-Possessive-and-Jealous-Elder. 

I absolutely detest characters whose only reason for being in the story (well, that’s not exactly true for Chris but it’s very near that) is to cause trouble in the main character’s romance. It’s a cheap way out.


The many of the other characters were sadly what I predicted them to be. In ACROSS THE UNIVERSE, you can immediately tell that, by Amy’s extreme love, her father would be a complete asshole - which he was. By her lack of thought towards her mother, it was obvious she would be a minor character without any real definition - which she was. 

Not many of the side characters were especially memorable but I don't think they were bad. It's just that the book was mostly focused on Elder, Amy, Amy's Dad, and Chris.

Plot and Writing

Plot

As I said, I love the concept. Other planets in one topic we are severely lacking in YA lit. Novels set on other planets are more common but the whole “humans traveling to another planet” idea is much more rare. Lately, a lot of aliens on Earth YA books have been popping up but I honestly prefer the we-are-the-aliens books.

I have laugh at SHADES OF EARTH for being entirely hilarious with the presentation of the aliens. Apparently, they're the bad guys, not the people who are taking over their goddamn planet. It's so stereotypical really. Practically every alien book and movie in existence follows this humans-are-always-the-good-ones storyline.

The story isn't bad, if extremely predictable. After they started finding the "things" I could tell the plot. I mean, ohmygod, was it predictable? Everything came true.

However, even though it doesn't sound like it at all, I loved the story. I didn't really care that I knew what was going to happen. I really ate SHADES OF EARTH up. I wish that the previous books were this amazing, but I guess you can't have it all.

Writing

While it's not elegant, or anything near elegant, Beth Revis's writing is most certainly exciting and addicting. I decided to read the first chapter before returning it but in what seemed like a few minutes, I had read a quarter of the book and didn't want to stop.

Likes and Dislikes

Liked:
- setting
- writing
- plot

Disliked:

- all the problems with stupid phrases and plot points
- plot
- Elder
- lame characters

Conclusion

Though Revis needs to work out the inconsistencies with the plot and characters (not to mention, do her homework on how periodic tables work), I just adore this book. I don't think it's perfect, but it's pretty awesome still. I recommend SHADES OF EARTH, and the whole Across the Universe series, as a good no-brainer read.

Lisbeth is an American teenager who enjoys blowing shit up in videogames and discussing decapitation in great detail. She's also obsessed with Oceana, but you're not supposed to know that.

{Review} Cinder by Marissa Meyer

Title: Cinder
Author: Marissa Meyer
Format: Hardcover
Publisher: Feiwel and Friends
Release date: January 3, 2012
Date Read: February 6, 2013 - February 8, 2013
Rating: ✭✭✭✭✭

Humans and androids crowd the raucous streets of New Beijing. A deadly plague ravages the population. From space, a ruthless lunar people watch, waiting to make their move. No one knows that Earth’s fate hinges on one girl...

Cinder, a gifted mechanic, is a cyborg. She’s a second-class citizen with a mysterious past, reviled by her stepmother and blamed for her stepsister’s illness. But when her life becomes intertwined with the handsome Prince Kai’s, she suddenly finds herself at the center of an intergalactic struggle, and a forbidden attraction. Caught between duty and freedom, loyalty and betrayal, she must uncover secrets about her past in order to protect her world’s future.

This book is badass.


I mean, come on. Robots, Cinderella, China, Sailor Moon, creatures on the moon. How awesome does that sound? okay, a lot of things could go wrong, but still.

One of my best friends had apparently read this book (I say 'apparently' because I have yet to see her read, but she claims to have read almost every book I've ever mentioned) and told me that it was really 'weird', but not exactly horrible. She said I probably wouldn't like it and should just check it out at the library.

DON'T TRUST YOUR FRIENDS, BITCHES.

Okay, I'm going to admit that the only reason I purchased a paper copy of CINDER and read it in less than three days was because I was meeting Marissa Meyer, the author that week.

STUPID. I should have read it months before! Or actually, maybe it was good that I didn't, so I didn't have to wait forever for SCARLET to come out.

Anyway, CINDER was absolutely mind-blowing, and let me tell you, I have a huge author crush on Meyer.



CINDER is the story of sixteen year-old mechanic cyborg Cinder, living in New Beijing during a deadly plague. Thrown into a world of politics, royalty, romance, and lies, Cinder must do all she can to save her world from the psychotic Lunar Queen, Levana. 

Oh, also, she has to fend off the sexy Prince Kai. WHO THE HELL WOULD REJECT HIM, FOR REAL.

Meyer manages to spin this plot into an engrossing, interesting story, even though she's particularly weak when it comes to keeping the mystery... well, hidden. I found out the 'secret' by page seventy and when it was revealed, I wasn't surprised at all. But CINDER was so awesome anyway, I just didn't give a damn. 

The worldbuilding was amazing, but I wished there was more focus on Luna. However, CINDER wasn't meant to be centered around it, so I'm not knocking stars off. However, I believe one of the sequels will feature Luna! 



The writing is simply gorgeous. Oftentimes with third-person, I'm so bogged down by all the details that I don't pay attention to the story. But in first-person, the writing tends to be amateur and simple. Marissa can keep the focus on the story with an absorbing writing style that doesn't bore you to death or distract you the whole time.

There is absolutely no insta-love in CINDER, and surprisingly enough, when it's Kai's turn to tell the story, Cinder isn't mentioned often. It starts off as a tentative friendship, and doesn't really get that much farther than that in CINDER. Usually this would annoy me when the blurb claims there is romance, but there's definitely romantic undertones in CINDER.

The characters all had backstories and personalities and weren't just there for the show. They were all good characters, and you hated the ones you were supposed to hate with a passion. Cinder's stepmother and her stepsister were complete - GAHH, I HAVE NO WORDS. But Peony, the other stepsister, was simply too cute to describe.

Cinder has to be one of my favorite heroines ever, because she was realistic. She fucked up and did stupid things, but in the end she was kickass, funny, and loving. And loyal. Like a Doberman. I really felt for her as well.

Kai. Oh, Kai, my lovely, sensitive, sweet, sexy little Asian Prince. I love you so much. Kai needed some more characterization, but he was just so kind that I couldn't not adore him.



Levana is a fantastic villain and I really, really want to know more about her. She scared the crap out of me and she was far from a piece of dull plank wood. She's frightening and completely nuts. I mean, the whole time I wanted to ask her:


The cliffhanger was killer, and I was left clutching the book in anticipation at the Palace scene - if you've read CINDER, you know what I mean. If you haven't, then what the hell are you doing here? You should be reading this little bundle of fun.

Oceana is a French-blooded teenager who enjoys stalking British boys and asking them to marry her. She was diagnosed with severe fangirl disorder in 2011. Able to curse like a sailor with an angelic voice.

{Review} Pivot Point by Kasie West

Title: Pivot Point
Author: Kasie West
Format: Edelwiess e-book
Publisher: HarperTeen

Release date: February 12, 2013

Date Read: January 22nd - January 23rd 2013
Rating: ✭✭✭✭

Knowing the outcome doesn’t always make a choice easier...

Addison Coleman’s life is one big “What if?” As a Searcher, whenever Addie is faced with a choice, she can look into the future and see both outcomes. It’s the ultimate insurance plan against disaster. Or so she thought. When Addie’s parents ambush her with the news of their divorce, she has to pick who she wants to live with—her father, who is leaving the paranormal compound to live among the “Norms,” or her mother, who is staying in the life Addie has always known. Addie loves her life just as it is, so her answer should be easy. One Search six weeks into the future proves it’s not.

In one potential future, Addie is adjusting to life outside the Compound as the new girl in a Norm high school where she meets Trevor, a cute, sensitive artist who understands her. In the other path, Addie is being pursued by the hottest guy in school—but she never wanted to be a quarterback’s girlfriend. When Addie’s father is asked to consult on a murder in the Compound, she’s unwittingly drawn into a dangerous game that threatens everything she holds dear. With love and loss in both lives, it all comes down to which reality she’s willing to live through . . . and who she can’t live without.

PREREVIEW STORY TIIIMMME

If you read any of my earlier status updates for PIVOT POINT, you are probably a very surprised person as it looks like I really hated this book. But, if you look at the book I read just before this, I think you'd understand better.

The last book I read was FROM ASHES and if you just do a quick look over my review, it's pretty obvious that I hated it with all my heart.

Whenever I read something that I hate with a burning passion, the next book is almost always a book I don't like. I think that I was still in that "RAWR I HATE YOU BOOK" mindset which makes every tiny little flaw look gargantuan. This of course makes me sound like a huge bitch while reading.


Thankfully, I got out of that mindset around halfway into PIVOT POINT and was able to enjoy it like I would in any other case - which may have caused a huge confusion because part of my statuses are "Grrrrr this sucks" and the other half are "ASDFGHJKL; I LOVES IT". 

TL;DR Version: Don't listen to me. Actually, no, um, please do. My whole reviewing career sorta depends on it.

Annnnnyyyway, here's this whole review thing now. 

Characters

Ok, YA authors, what's with the name Addie? It just seems to be everywhere now. Abbie and Addie. It's weird. I don't get it! Not that I have anything against the name Abbie or Addie, it's just an observation.

Now, on to the actual Addie character. Addie is a character who at first I didn't like - at all. She was whiny, clichéd, and had this woe-is-me attitude. Not good. I really just wanted to strangle her.
Now, I'm not sure if this is "RAWR" attitude speaking or actually what I thought of her because her character personality seemed to do a total 180 on me - which most characters do not do. The first 30% Addie was terrible, the 30 - 50% Addie was bland, and the rest was AWESOME ADDIE.
 
First 30% Addie basically was a girl complaining about how unfair and terrible her life is. It's both annoying and bland. There's hardly any character in there, just that walking cliché really. I really wanted to strangle her during that time. 

30 - 50% Addie was bland. She was funny, sure. She wasn't stupid, but not exactly the best character in the world. I didn't connect with her at all during this time. 

Ok, the next part is really, really hard to explain since PARANORMAL and NORMAL Addie differed so greatly. I really think that they were different characters. PARANORMAL Addie is one of those heroines that I want to kill most of the time while NORMAL Addie is one that I want to cuddle. I'll be discussing NORMAL Addie because I love her and hate PARANORMAL one.

After that middle slump, everything really picks up. Addie grows up a bit and becomes an awesome, squeal worthy heroine worthy of being part of that amazing group I call "My Favorite Heroines". I can't really explain how it's possible for such a monumental change, but it was and it did.

HOORAY FOR MAKING ABSOLUTELY NO SENSE

Now, there's the matter of the two love interests. I'm not sure if it really is a "love triangle" until the very end because both alternate story lines are basically dreams that Addie is having at the same time. I think it'll only make sense if you read the book. Anyway, one is the NORMAL dream, aka the one where she goes to live with her dad, and the other is the PARANORMAL dream, where she lives with her mom.

I'm also very certain that Trevor is the main LI, since after some moments in the book it's obvious that Duke, the other guy, isn't really a contender. 

Trevor = sweet, adorable, geeky, wonderful = YES

Duke = douche, weird, controlling, possessive = NO

The only character I hated, other than the other LI, is Addie's best friend Laila, who I despised. She was occasionally funny but most of the time? Boy crazy (nearing obsessed) and idiotic. I really found no growth for her character nor any little thing that made me say "Well... maybe she ain't so bad" (that may or may not be because I'd never say 'ain't').

Plot and Writing

Plot

The plot of Pivot Point is very low action for the most part. It's basically about a girl who has a power to see possible futures. It's not really a "if I get write this answer on my math test, will it be wrong?" kind of thing but it only works for big problems (I think). 

It's a beautifully developed power, unlike some of the random ones I've seen in YA lit. Usually, they involve some sort of elemental power or immediate future. Annnyway, this girl finds out her parents are getting a divorce and she has to decide whether to stay in the Compound (a super secret place for people with powers) or go into the world with her Dad.

Like a little cheater, she decides to see what the futures hold for her.

But seriously, it's a good idea and was done fabulously by West. The plot is a bit weak in this book at times since this is a very character driven novel - which is a good thing and the right way for this book. It still stands however, the plot can get pretty weak at times.

There's also this pathetic attempt at a murder mystery which I hoped would get bigger as the book moves along but it's mentioned halfway through and dropped until the end where all of sudden it gets VERY LOUD AND VIOLENT.

The ending surprised me a lot. Instead of doing what I was sure Addie would do, she actually did the smart thing! Usually, YA books end with a happy ending but personally, the ending was kind of depressing. Awesome twist there.

Overall, I liked the plot well enough but the murder mystery? Better left out because it didn't feel like it really belonged with the book.

Writing

Kasie West is such an amazing writer. I really loved living in her world for a bit (well for the most part). I would read anything she writes, if only you could skip the pathetic weeping girl whose parents just divorced. 

Likes and Dislikes

Likes:

- Addie

- Trevor

- Addie + Trevor togetha foreva

- Characters

- Plot

Dislikes: 

- Addie 

- Duke 

- Laila 

In conclusion

I really enjoyed PIVOT POINT, even though the beginning should have put me off it. I'm overall very happy that I decided to finish it.

Lisbeth is an American teenager who enjoys blowing shit up in videogames and discussing decapitation in great detail. She's also obsessed with Oceana, but you're not supposed to know that.

{Review} Unwind by Neal Shusterman

Title: Unwind
Author: Neal Shusterman
Format: Library Hardcover
Publisher:  Simon & Schuster
Release date: November 6, 2007
Date Read: January 9, 2013 - January 12, 2013
Rating: ✭✭✭✭

Connor, Risa, and Lev are running for their lives.

The Second Civil War was fought over reproductive rights. The chilling resolution: Life is inviolable from the moment of conception until age thirteen. Between the ages of thirteen and eighteen, however, parents can have their child "unwound," whereby all of the child's organs are transplanted into different donors, so life doesn't technically end. Connor is too difficult for his parents to control. Risa, a ward of the state is not enough to be kept alive. And Lev is a tithe, a child conceived and raised to be unwound. Together, they may have a chance to escape and to survive.

This cover reminds me of the HUMAN CENTIPEDE poster, which really isn't the best comparison. Ha. Ha. Ha. Ha.

UNWIND is pretty awesome.

Amidst the horrified comments from my reviewer friends (“HOW HAVE YOU NOT READ THIS ALREADY, OCEANA?”) I finished reading UNWIND with my jaw slack. Unbelievably creative, with interesting main characters and unique writing, UNWIND is also littered with interesting historical
and political facts - not our government and history, but those of the world Connor, Risa, and Lev live in.

Unwinding has been accepted as a common process to get rid of teenagers for a long time now... see, they’re soul isn’t dead, but their body parts are donated to those in need. From the age of
thirteen to seventeen, teenagers are eligible for Unwinding. Rebellious teenagers, useless teenagers, religious teenagers - those are the categories that Connor, Risa, and Lev fall into.

Naturally, wanting your body chopped into tiny pieces isn’t what Connor really wants, deep inside. Escaping his certain death, Connor meets unwanted ward of state Risa, who accompanies him on his quest to NOT GET SPLIT INTO TINY PIECES AND LOOSE YOUR BODY. Lev, a thirteen-year old religious tithe, is also swept up into this mess - but unlike Risa and Connor, he goes on his own journey to make up his mind and discover himself.

So, like I said. Awesome. Awesome plot.

I haven’t encountered characters I liked so much in a while. Granted, I’m not talking about ZOMFG-MARRY-ME characters (Jem Carstairs, anyone?) or GIRL CRUSH ASDJKLLLDFJIHFUE;; (Nastaya Crowe for sure), but just... relatable characters that you didn’t want to grab by the hair and scream at. Characters that make decisions that’d make sense to you, too - even if they turned out to be some of the stupidest ones ever.

I had a slight issue with the writing, because, well, it’s weird. It’s kind of tell rather than show sometimes, but at others it’s fine. UNWIND is written in present tense, omniscient; something I’ve never read before and it works... most of the time.

And this book is INTENSE. I was practically balling my firsts while reading it, because the suspense was killing me. UNWIND was disturbing, though not in a completely gory way... disturbing and
dark, because it makes you think.

And think.
And think.
And think.

The ending literally killed me. I almost wanted to cry inside, because it just shows how dedicated and loyal teenagers people can be.

EXCESSIVE SAD FACE.

UNWIND was really, really great and I totally regret not reading it years ago. 

I’m so stooooooopid.

Oceana is a French-blooded teenager who enjoys stalking British boys and asking them to marry her. She was diagnosed with severe fangirl disorder in 2011. Able to curse like a sailor with an angelic voice.

{Review} Nerve by Jeanne Ryan

Title: Nerve
Author: Jeanne Ryan
Format: Library Hardcover
Publisher: Dial Books (Penguin)
Release date: September 13th 2012
Date Read: January 6th 2013
Rating: ✭✭✭

A high-stakes online game of dares turns deadly.

When Vee is picked to be a player in NERVE, an anonymous game of dares broadcast live online, she discovers that the game knows her. They tempt her with prizes taken from her ThisIsMe page and team her up with the perfect boy, sizzling-hot Ian. At first it's exhilarating--Vee and Ian's fans cheer them on to riskier dares with higher stakes. But the game takes a twisted turn when they're directed to a secret location with five other players for the Grand Prize round. Suddenly they're playing all or nothing, with their lives on the line. Just how far will Vee go before she loses NERVE?

For some reason, I never expected much from NERVE. The cover looks amazing and the synopsis is intriguing so I really have no idea why I felt that NERVE was going to be an absolutely horrible book. I've come to realize that every reviewer has these feelings, premonitions about a book.

Usually, they are right thus I have named them "The Reviewer Instincts" (original and catchy, I know). Over the years months, my "reviewer instincts" have become my best friend. Then...


They turn on me. I was so sure that I would hate this book. I thought that NERVE would be my newest rant review book (I haven't had one this year). It wasn't. In fact, I really liked it.
NERVE is probably one of the most surprising books I've read in a while. It was a really different book from most YA books. The beginning wasn't that different. Even the middle of the book was fairly standard. It wasn't extremely unique until the very end. The ending was so amazing and perfect - well, almost. But, we'll get to that later. 

Characters

Personally, I found the main character, Vee, was unlikable but she was unlikable in a good way. I've said that before but right now, I really really mean it. Yes, I know, it doesn't make any sense. But hopefully, it will soon.

Vee was selfish. That was her defining quality. I know a lot of people liked her and as usual, I represent the black sheep. I disliked her. I didn't hate her because she does improve and had a few positive qualities to her throughout. 

I do have to admit that Vee did grow through the book. But I had this feeling that you weren't supposed to love her. Maybe I'm completely wrong but that's what I perceived it as. 

She's thoughtful. By that, I mean, she actually thinks. I do think that she does think about what she does, even though she hardly ever follows what she thinks she should do. Vee isn't some vacant, thoughtless body. 

At first I was sure she'd fall into the Mary-Sue trap that 95% of heroines have fallen into lately. It looked like she would. She's "ugly" and her best friend is vain, jealous and basically the average bitch stereotype. Thankfully, she grows out of it. That doesn't excuse the fact that Ryan added this terrible stereotype into her book.

The other characters were, for the most part, nicely done. However, I really detested Ian, the love interest. The book keeps playing with my mind. Sometimes I thought that you were supposed to hate Ian but other times, it seems you're supposed to swoon and adore him.

I didn't.

At all.

He was just repulsive and manipulating. I don't think he ever liked her, just used her as a means to get to an end (and a kissing dummy). I just GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR. I hate him so much.

Plot and Writing

Plot

This is a pretty odd storyline. The summary makes it sound waay different from what it really is. The summary makes NERVE sound very unimaginative, which it isn't. Sure, it's been done many times but I think that NERVE feels unique at the same time.

The ending is probably - no most definitely - the best part of the book. Even though I found it disappointing to an extent, I think that it was beautifully done. Personally, I found it to be majorly different from what most YA authors do. 

Most authors wouldn't dare to even to hint that the main character is going to snap. I've read very few books that do that and most of them are not as simple as this. 

In the GONE series, Michael Grant seems to love to make his characters go insane. In the THE MARBURY LENS series, every goddamn character the main characters are fucking insane. Oh god, they were INSANE. I've never encountered more wacko characters then here.

But in NERVE, the psychosis is much less out there and subtler. There aren’t any "WOWMYGODSHE'SINSANEAHFJKADHJNDG" moments in this book. In fact, it's so subtle it may not have actually existed.

Yes, you heard me right.

I don't know if it actually existed. There were a few things that made me suspect that Vee was loosing it but sadly, in the end, she didn't. 

It was really disappointing because I was very sure that Vee would crack and kill everyone, which would have been an amazingly refreshing plot twist. Personally, I think around 85% of horror books (I consider this to be horror) could be improved by killing off all the characters and/or making the main character go insane. 

What can I say I'm weird.

Writing

The writing was perfect for the book. Ryan did an absolutely wonderful job with creating tension. There was this one time where Vee was locked in a room. It was terrifying because we only knew what Vee knew, which was very little.

Even by the end of the scene, the reader is still not sure whether it was a panic induced hallucination (because she had experienced something similar to this before) or whether there really was gas being pumped into the room. 

Likes and Dislikes

Likes: 
- Writing
- Vee
- Ending
- Plot

Dislikes:
- Vee
- Ending
- IAN

In Conclusion:

I really liked the book but I still don't think it deserved a four star. It's fabulous book, really, but I feel it lacked that one thing that would have made it four stars. I do not think it could ever have been a five star book but I still loved it and utterly recommend it.

Lisbeth is an American teenager who enjoys blowing shit up in videogames and discussing decapitation in great detail. She's also obsessed with Oceana, but you're not supposed to know that.