The Immortal Rules - Julie Kagawa

The Immortal Rules (Blood of Eden #1)
                                              - Julie Kagawa
Grade: YA
Rating: 4/5 stars

"In a future world, vampires reign. Humans are blood cattle. And one girl will search for the key to save humanity."Allison Sekemoto survives in the Fringe, the outermost circle of a vampire city. By day, she and her crew scavenge for food. By night, any one of them could be eaten.

Some days, all that drives Allie is her hatred of "them." The vampires who keep humans as blood cattle. Until the night Allie herself is attacked--and given the ultimate choice. Die...or become one of the monsters.

Faced with her own mortality, Allie becomes what she despises most. To survive, she must learn the rules of being immortal, including the most important: go long enough without human blood, and you will go mad.

Then Allie is forced to flee into the unknown, outside her city walls. There she joins a ragged band of humans who are seeking a legend--a possible cure to the disease that killed off most of humankind and created the rabids, the mindless creatures who threaten humans and vampires alike.

But it isn't easy to pass for human. Especially not around Zeke, who might see past the monster inside her. And Allie soon must decide what--and who--is worth dying for. (Description from Goodreads)

~ * ~ * ~


I'd been putting off reading 'The Immortal Rules' for a quite some time. While I'd heard amazing things about the book and love YA vampires stories, something was holding me back. When I started the book I was a little disappointed. It seemed my unknown stalling was justified, but the book does pick up and I was really invested in the story by the end. A different type of vampire story than I'm used to.

The book is broken up into 4 sections, each outlining a different time in Allie's life. Allison Sekemoto is introduced to us as a human living on the outskirts of a Vampire City struggling to survive in a lifestyle where you're either the pets (or food source) for vampires or you're an unregistered human who barely makes it through their teen lives. But Allie's life changes when she's turned into a vampire. I'm not giving anything away here - all that information can be found in the blurb. My disappointment came from this same blurb. It was interesting, and exciting and really helped to dragged you in...but I felt like it was too detailed. It told you too much of what was going to happen. I thought the events in the blurb would take up a couple of chapters and then we'd dive into the main storyline, but when it covered over a third of the book I started to get pretty frustrated. There's only so much of the plot you want to know before starting a book and when you spend most of the beginning waiting for new information, it's hard to enjoy. I'll admit, the second section of Allie's life - which detailed the transition from human to vampire, and showed her efforts to fit into her new existence, was a lot more interesting than her human life before. But there didn't seem to be anything new. If you'd read the blurb, you knew what was coming next. Fortunately we hit a point in the story where we were now covering new ground - the third section of the book, when Allie joins a group of humans outside of the vampire city limits. I enjoyed this part of the story so much more because it gave the story a purpose. The action, adventure, danger and excitement is what made the story pick-up for me. That's what kept me reading.

What I really enjoyed about this book was the world it was set it. Vampires are out in the open and they've taken charge of the destroyed world that is the setting for the story. Sometime in the past, the world was struck by a deadly virus. Believing vampires were the cure for this virus experiments were made to help save the human race - the only sustainable food source for the vampire society. But the experiments went wrong and a mutated being was created instead: rabids. A bite from a rabid is deadly. I loved it. It gave the story a dark edge. The vampires were these "all powerful" rulers, evil in their decisions and actions; but at the same time there was a creature out there more dangerous than them. I love the twisted nature of it all. You were never sure when the next rabid would pop up or what damage they were going to cause - Who would fight? Who would survive? Was anyone safe? It all helped to keep you on the edge of your seat and definitely made up for the disappointing beginning.

There is a fair bit of action - the story doesn't lack in excitement once it gets past the first third of the book, what with rabids popping up all over the place, it's hard to avoid. What I love is the main character's approach to it all. After Allie becomes a vampire, she's introduced to my favourite book-action weapon: the Katana and she gets to use it a lot. She may have got extra cool points just by carrying it around on her adventures. I do like a good story that involves sword/katana fights!

And what would any story be without a little romance. I'm sure we can all guess what was going to happen. Allie, the new vampire hiding in a group of humans, becomes pretty close with the good looking human boy, Zeke. Tension builds between the two of them as she struggles with the fact that his blood speaks to her vampire side. And then there's the whole vampire-human relationships...they never work out. It was a cute little side to the story that broke up the danger and disaster nicely.

The ending left me with a few questions, which I'll be waiting patiently to find answers to. I'm hoping book #2 will jump straight into the action. Can't wait.

4/5 stars


Kim
(Originally posted on Goodreads)

Pushing the Limits - Katie McGarry

Pushing the Limits - Katie McGarry
Grade: YA
Rating: 5/5 stars

SO WRONG FOR EACH OTHER...AND YET SO RIGHT.

No one knows what happened the night Echo Emerson went from popular girl with jock boyfriend to gossiped-about outsider with “freaky” scars on her arms. Even Echo can’t remember the whole truth of that horrible night. All she knows is that she wants everything to go back to normal.

But when Noah Hutchins--the smoking hot, girl-using loner in the black leather jacket--explodes into her life with his tough attitude and surprising understanding, Echo’s world shifts in ways she could never have imagined. They should have nothing in common. And with the secrets they both keep, being together is pretty much impossible.

Yet the crazy attraction between them refuses to go away. Echo has to ask herself just how far they can push the limits and what she’ll risk for the one guy who might teach her how to love again. (Description from Goodreads)
~ * ~ * ~

I never remember how much I love YA contemporaries until I stumble across a story that touches me in every way. ‘Pushing the Limits’ is one of those stories. After doing a little research into the book, I couldn’t stop thinking about meeting Noah and Echo; I was convinced I had to know them. I’m so happy ‘Pushing the Limits’ lived up to my expectations and more.

No-one would believe Echo Emerson – ex-socialite and hot topic for the school’s rumour mill – and Noah Hutchins – stoner bad-boy and foster care child – would ever consider talking to each other. But that was before their mutual school social worker pushed them together in an attempt to help them through their individual issues. Echo is struggling to remember her the last moments with her mother, the moment that scarred her and changed the direction of her life; while Noah is fighting to escape the foster care system and to find a way to get guardianship of his two younger brothers. I must be slightly evil, because I love when characters come from troubled pasts – there wouldn’t be a story if there was nothing to overcome. But it’s not just the story of how to overcome the past that made me love ‘Pushing the Limits’ so much. It was seeing them get there and the emotion that came with it. And there was a lot of emotion. Katie McGarry grabbed two teens from their life of hell and threw us into the deep end watching them try and pick up their broken pieces. I was torn apart watching Noah get ripped away from his family and I love books that make me feel so deeply for its characters.

Part of what made this emotional journey so powerful was the switching first person POVs. The story bounces between Echo and Noah’s thoughts so we get a full range of their feelings and emotions. I wasn’t expecting this, as the book’s blurb makes the story sound like it’s told entirely from Echo’s perspective. I loved that we got to see inside both characters’ heads. It’s a different experience jumping between male and female perspectives, but McGarry does it so well. You can’t stop being pulling to Noah and Echo’s lives through their individual voices.

There is an inevitable plot-arc for most contemporary novels that you can predict from the start. The Girl and Guy meet under strange circumstances and are drawn together; they fall in love, have problems and break apart, before being pulled back together in the end. It was obvious from the start of ‘Pushing the Limits’ that this book would follow that pattern too, but I like the stability it brought. There’s something relaxing about knowing one direction the story will take. Without knowing the outcome of Echo and Noah’s separate problems, it’s safe to say the future of their relationship will be wrapped up nicely by the last page. But that doesn’t making experiencing their romance any less fun. Noah’s reputation as a bad-boy, who only ever commits to one-night-stands, meant there were new obstacles and territories he was exploring by acting on his growing feelings for Echo. I loved seeing his transformation from the guy who could care less, to the one who would do anything for Echo. I may be focusing on Noah a lot; that’s not just because he was an awesome male character and I want him to get the attention he deserves; but because his romantic struggle touched me more than Echo’s. Echo had done the full-on relationship before; she knew what needed to be done to commit to. That’s not to discount her emotions, but Noah’s comments, touches and endless thoughts of Echo made my heart melt. I adored it all.

I was so sad when I came to the end of the story. I wanted more of Noah and Echo’s journey. But there’s only so much we can see when their stories come to an end. I loved every moment of this book and can’t wait for the companion novel next year.

5/5 stars


Kim
(Originally Posted on Goodreads)

Biting Cold - Chloe Neill

Biting Cold (Chicagoland Vampires #6)
                                                    - Chloe Neill
Grade: Adult - UF
Rating: 5/5 stars

Turned into a vampire against her will, twenty-eight-year-old Merit found her way into the dark circle of Chicago’s vampire underground, where she learned there was more to supernaturals than met the eye—and more supernaturals than the public ever imagined. And not all the secrets she learned were for sharing—among humans or inhumans.

Now Merit is on the hunt, charging across the stark American Midwest, tailing a rogue supernatural intent on stealing an ancient artifact that could unleash catastrophic evil on the world. But Merit is also the prey. An enemy of Chicagoland is hunting her, and he’ll stop at nothing to get the book for himself. No mercy allowed. No rules apply. No lives spared. The race is on. (Description from Goodreads)

~ * ~ * ~

The wait for ‘Biting Cold’ was so hard to deal with. After reading the first five books in a row earlier this year, I’ve been desperate for more – I can only image what long-time fans felt. ‘Drink Deep’ left us with a lot of questions and a lot of unsolved issues. My expectations were high, because there has been a high standard of drama, action and mystery in the previous books; and they were definitely met.

The book begins where we left off in the previous book. Mallory has escaped from the Order’s magical holding and is desperately seeking the Maleficium, the evil book she stole and used to wreak havoc on Chicago. It’s up to Merit and Ethan to try and stop her from unleashing more evil on the world. I was under the impression this book would be very Mallory-focused. She’d gone a little power-crazy and I thought it would take a fair bit of time to get her under control. I definitely thought we’d see more of the Order because of her. But the issues with Mallory are smaller than expected. That’s not to say it wasn’t an important part of the book, but Mallory is pushed to the side when a more powerful evil hits the scene. I did like seeing Merit and Ethan work together to try and contain her, but it caused a few more problems for them that I would have liked.

Ethan and Merit’s relationship has always been a little rocky, nothing is easy for them. I thought they’d get a chance at a bit of smooth sailing in ‘Biting Cold’, especially after all the relationship drama they’ve faced in the past; but unfortunately the world doesn’t want to let them be together. This part of the book frustrated me a little. After five books full of panicked sitting-on-the-edge-of-our-seats moments, wondering if Ethan and Merit are together or not, I wanted some sort of guarantee that they were on their way to being official. But it takes a while to get even close to that point. However, the times when they were together were just what I was looking for. They know and understand each other so well, and that’s what I love to see in a book couple. There’s nothing more comforting than seeing a favourite fictional couple find a little happiness with each other.

Part of what I love so much about the Chicagoland Vampires series is Chloe Neill’s exploration of different supernatural beings. We started with Vampires and Sorcerers, moved onto Shifters, and brought in a few Faeries, Nymphs and a Siren, before sitting back and waiting for the next species to pop up. ‘Biting Cold’ was no different, but what I loved was that the new sups were definitely not what I was expecting – I’ll admit I laughed and gave the book strange looks at one of them, but it all fell into place in the end (I’ve deliberately left out what these supernatural beings are because you don’t want to go into it already knowing what to expect – spoils the moment a bit). The big part of this storyline comes with Seth Tate, the former Mayor of Chicago. If you’re a long-time Chicagoland Vampires fan, you’ll know the mystery of Tate’s magical origins has been dragged out for a while, and we finally find out who – or what – he is. It’s definitely worth reading just for that!

There are a lot of problems from previous books that carry over into ‘Biting Cold’ and make up the major troubles for the book. One in particular is the fate of Cadogan House now that Ethan’s back on his feet. It involves a lot of discussions with the vampire governing body, the Greenwich Presidium. I’ve thought it before, but the GP makes me want to strangle someone. Their rules and regulations are in need of a serious rethink, but it does make for a very interesting story. I couldn’t wait to find out the verdict on Cadogan’s existence. It definitely kept me on the edge of my seat.

The book ended too quickly for my liking. I wanted it to go on forever. I can’t wait to see what happens next for Merit and Ethan. I hope it’s just as exciting as ‘Biting Cold’.

5/5 stars


Kim
(Originally Posted on Goodreads)

Hourglass - Myra McEntire

Hourglass (Hourglass #1) - Myra McEntire
Grade: YA
Rating: 5/5 stars

One hour to rewrite the past . . .

For seventeen-year-old Emerson Cole, life is about seeing what isn’t there: swooning Southern Belles; soldiers long forgotten; a haunting jazz trio that vanishes in an instant. Plagued by phantoms since her parents’ death, she just wants the apparitions to stop so she can be normal. She’s tried everything, but the visions keep coming back.

So when her well-meaning brother brings in a consultant from a secretive organization called the Hourglass, Emerson’s willing to try one last cure. But meeting Michael Weaver may not only change her future, it may change her past.
Who is this dark, mysterious, sympathetic guy, barely older than Emerson herself, who seems to believe every crazy word she says? Why does an electric charge seem to run through the room whenever he’s around? And why is he so insistent that he needs her help to prevent a death that never should have happened?

Full of atmosphere, mystery, and romance, Hourglass merges the very best of the paranormal and science-fiction genres in a seductive, remarkable young adult debut. (Description from Goodreads)
~ * ~ * ~


Imagine that you wake up one day and can suddenly see beings from the past – only you can see them and they disappear when you touch them. You’d probably think you were crazy. Now imagine someone tells you that what you’re seeing is real and that you can actually travel to the past. This is what happens to Emerson Cole in ‘Hourglass’.

Convinced she’s going mental, Emerson can’t make sense of the people she’s been seeing since just before her parents’ deaths 4 years ago. The only thing she knows is that they show up at random and only she can see them...until Michael arrives. For someone who thinks she is crazy, Emerson is surprisingly sane; which proves the crazy is all in her head. Apart from her habit to say everything that comes to mind, she holds herself together – despite the troubled past we see unfold. I really enjoyed her voice. I loved that there was more to her than just the crazy and just the time travel gene. She hides her past hurt through sarcasm and misdirection and needs people to earn her trust. I liked seeing both her tough and vulnerable sides. It’s always nice to see a character that has more to them than just the surface images.

I went into ‘Hourglass’ expecting time travel – and it didn’t disappoint. We discover that the beings Emerson has been seeing are actually people from the past that are travelling through time because of her. Emerson has a special gene: a time travel gene, which gives her a link to the past. She meets other time travellers throughout the book who can travel to the future – it all depends on the gene. What I wasn’t expecting was the other powers that popped up: empaths, time manipulators, element control; the list goes on. I love seeing a series focus on more than one area of a world. Myra McEntire could have left out these other gifts and focused completely on the past, but she’s developed her world and brought every little element into the story so well. While time travel is the main focus, there’s more to the story than just time.

But it’s not all about seeing people from the past, not when there are special talents floating around. There’s where the Hourglass comes in. An organisation created to give a hand to people dealing with their gifts, the Hourglass seems like a helpful place to be tied to; except when the founder is involved in a surprise accident and the new leader is sending the organisation in a dangerous direction. I loved it! We’re given a mystery and an enemy – someone to fight against, it definitely makes the story more exciting.

I think my only issue with the book was the insta-love. Emerson and Michael had barely met before they were dying to get all over each other. Part of their chemistry and connection is explained throughout the story, so I won’t go into details; but I’m always a little concerned when characters fall all over themselves immediately for no reason other than seeing each other for the first time. But despite my hesitation towards their connection, I enjoyed the obstacles created for their relationship and the tension that built up; it was so easy to get lost in the moment when it came to Emerson and Michael (and Kaleb – who is a mighty fine distraction thrown into the mix). You can't help noticing that their connection is more than just love-at-first-site. I’m looking forward to exploring more about these relationships in the next book.

An amazing start to a fun and exciting series. Can’t wait to see what happens next.

5/5 stars


Kim
(Originally posted on Goodreads)

Bad to the Bone - Jeri Smith-Ready

Bad to the Bone (WVMP#2) - Jeri Smith-Ready
Grade: Adult - UF
Rating: 5/5 stars

TURN ON. TUNE IN. DROP DEAD.

Welcome to WVMP, “The Lifeblood of Rock ’n’ Roll,” where conartist-turned-station-owner Ciara Griffin manages an on-air staffof off-the-wall DJs—including new boyfriend Shane McAllister—who really sink their teeth into the music of their “Life Time” (theera in which they became vampires). Ciara keeps the undeadrocking, the ratings rolling, and the fan base alive—withoutmissing a beat.

For Halloween, WVMP is throwing a bash. With cool tunes, hotcostumes, killer cocktails—what could go wrong? To start, areligious firebrand ranting against the evils of the occultpreempts the station’s midnight broadcast. Then, when Ciaratracks down the transmission, the broadcast tower is guarded bywhat appears to be . . . a canine vampire? Behind it all is a groupof self-righteous radicals who think vampires suck (and arewilling to stake their lives on it). Ciara must protect the stationwhile struggling with her own complicated relationship, her bestfriend’s romance with a fledgling vampire, and the nature of hermysterious anti-holy powers. To make it to New Year’s in one piece,she’ll need to learn a few new tricks. . . .(Description from Goodreads)

~ * ~ * ~

After finishing 'Wicked Game' I was desperate to get my hands on the sequel. I wanted to know exactly what happened to Ciara and the vampire gang next. 'Bad to the Bone' was equally as exciting and packed full of adventure. I loved it!

It’s hard enough trying to live a normal life in the company of 6 vampire DJs, but Ciara Griffin’s life could not be more complicated. Caught up in the vampire world, Ciara has a pretty neat existence: A marketing job that seems to be an extension of herself, fabulous friends and a fantastic boyfriend who is crazy about her. But when a religious sect hijacks WVMP’s wave length to run anti-vampire segments, Ciara has to find a way to get her station back on track. It’s no surprise that when vampires pop up, religion is not far behind: the evils of blood sucking and living forever. I really enjoyed seeing this play out in ‘Bad to the Bone.’ Jeri Smith-Ready’s vampires follow some of the ‘traditional’ vampire myths and restrictions – such as sunlight and stakes to the heart – but they also face troubles with religious objects and holy water, so it was interesting to see the holy/religious take on their ‘fake’ existence. We get to see Ciara’s struggle with her own ideas on religion too, which helps us understand her a bit more – unravelling another layer of Ciara, because she has so many!

But it’s not just religious sects the vampires have to deal with in this book. There is a secret government organisation that is proving to be more trouble than help. The Control is not new to this series, but their history and involvement in the story can’t be overlooked. Like the rest of the DJs, The Control does not want the truth about vampires leaked; any chances of exposure could mean the death of a vampire or at least their detainment. I still have mixed feelings about The Control. For the most part, they seem to be trying to contain threats and protect vampires, but they’re sneaky and withhold information. I’m curious to find out more about their involvement in the supernatural world.

While not the biggest storyline for the book, I wanted to mention again that I love how unique Jeri’s stories are. Not only are there normal vampires in ‘Bad to the Bone’ but we’re introduced to animal vampires! Seriously, who would have thought anything like that could happen? Not me. It was a super cool concept, and Dexter the Dog is awesome.

Fantastic sequel to ‘Wicked Game’. Very exciting and action-packed; a really fun read!

5/5 stars


Kim
(Originally posted on Goodreads)

Anna Dressed in Blood - Kendare Blake

Anna Dressed in Blood  - Kendare Blake
Grade: YA
Rating: 4/5 stars

Just your average boy-meets-girl, girl-kills-people story...

Cas Lowood has inherited an unusual vocation: He kills the dead.

So did his father before him, until his gruesome murder by a ghost he sought to kill. Now, armed with his father’s mysterious and deadly athame, Cas travels the country with his kitchen-witch mother and their spirit-sniffing cat. Together they follow legends and local lore, trying to keep up with the murderous dead—keeping pesky things like the future and friends at bay.

When they arrive in a new town in search of a ghost the locals call Anna Dressed in Blood, Cas doesn’t expect anything outside of the ordinary: move, hunt, kill. What he finds instead is a girl entangled in curses and rage, a ghost like he’s never faced before. She still wears the dress she wore on the day of her brutal murder in 1958: once white, but now stained red and dripping blood. Since her death, Anna has killed any and every person who has dared to step into the deserted Victorian she used to call home.

And she, for whatever reason, spares his life. (Description from Goodreads)
~ * ~ * ~

I am not a horror-story fan. Despite how much I love paranormal books and can deal with the supernatural: vampires, werewolves, evil faeries - but give me a good ghost story, with the potential for things that go bump in the night, and I run shaking for cover. ‘Anna Dressed in Blood’ definitely had some of those creepy moments; but they were definitely worth it.

Theseus Cassio ‘Cas’ Lowood is a ghost hunter. His father was a ghost hunter and apparently it’s in his blood. As someone who has a long line of hunters in his family, hunting seemed like the obvious choice when it came to what Cas wanted to do for a living. But vengeful ghosts are tricky entities, and Cas still has a long way to go before he understands everything about the undead world. I get a little nervous when the main character of a supernatural seems to already known so much about the world they’re in. I like that it’s different from the New-Human-Stumbles-on-the-Supernatural scene that appears in so many YA books; but when a character is already clued into the paranormal, I wonder where they can go from the start – what’s left to learn? Luckily for Cas, he’s young and manages to come across a few ghosts with more strength than your average spirit; so there’s still a lot of his world left undiscovered – especially when it comes to Anna. Anna Dressed in Blood, the ghost that seems to have more strength than any Cas has ever faced before; but the one ghost Cas doesn’t want to kill.

I liked Cas, he had a cool sense of humour that balanced out the spookiness of the story itself. It was definitely needed for me, as I would have struggled to get through the book if the creepiness outweighed the calm and peaceful. I loved that Cas involved other people in his ghost hunting, despite normally doing the job alone. He recognised that, in Anna’s case, it was going to involve a lot more than just him to get her issues sorted out. My biggest problem with Cas was his voice. As the narrator, his voice should be strong and should really let the readers know who he is as a person and reflect that in the way he speaks and acts. For the first half of the novel, I kept losing ‘Cas.’ More times than I can count, I forgot he was a guy. The ‘male’ part of his voice didn’t seem strong enough. That’s not to say he was a weak narrator – the story and the way Cas told it was easy to get into and flowed well; but there were times in the beginning where I thought he was a girl. I don’t know if I got used to it, or if his voice changed with the direction of the story, but I didn’t notice myself losing him so much in the second half of the book.

I’ve mentioned quite a bit that I’m not a horror fan. For people with a stronger mentality than me, ‘Anna Dressed in Blood’ is probably fairly tame, but I found myself reluctant to read it at night because I didn’t want to be kept up with thoughts of ghosts dismembering people. The book was very descriptive when it came to deaths. The blood, the gore, the action and movement of ghosts as they pushed their hands through bodies and ripped people apart – it captured the moment very well. Despite cringing at descriptions, I really enjoyed the aspects of ghost life. I loved seeing into Anna’s past and discovering why she became a vengeful spirit and I was really interested to see how Cas solved her mystery; how he worked out a way to release her from her destructive path.

There was plenty of action and excitement throughout the book, including a ghost-on-ghost epic battle, which I never saw coming, but kept me on the edge of my seat the whole way through. It was hard not to get pulled into the action. There’s no way to explain the extent of this scene without spoiling the ending, but it left me with a few questions, which I hope will be answered in the next book.

I’ll be interested to see what ghostly adventures Cas gets up to next.

4/5 stars


Kim
(Originally posted on Goodreads)