JennReneeRead: October 2012

Wednesday, October 31, 2012

Review: Black City by Elizabeth Richards

Title: Black City
Author: Elizabeth Richards
Publisher: G.P. Putnam's Sons BYR
Publishing Date: November 19th 2012
Pages: 384
Genre: YA Paranormal Dystopian
Series: Black City #1
Source: ARC Paperback

A dark and tender post-apocalyptic love story set in the aftermath of a bloody war.

In a city where humans and Darklings are now separated by a high wall and tensions between the two races still simmer after a terrible war, sixteen-year-olds Ash Fisher, a half-blood Darkling, and Natalie Buchanan, a human and the daughter of the Emissary, meet and do the unthinkable—they fall in love. Bonded by a mysterious connection that causes Ash’s long-dormant heart to beat, Ash and Natalie first deny and then struggle to fight their forbidden feelings for each other, knowing if they’re caught, they’ll be executed—but their feelings are too strong.

When Ash and Natalie then find themselves at the center of a deadly conspiracy that threatens to pull the humans and Darklings back into war, they must make hard choices that could result in both their deaths.

I was so totally excited to get the ARC copy of this book for review. I have been eyeing it since I first saw it on Goodreads and it sounded so awesome. A dystopian vampire story of forbidden love, so cool. I am not sure what it is about forbidden love but I love it. Vampires own my heart. Dystopian are just intense. So the mix drew me in, and I loved everything about this book. It really amazed me. It was intense, thrilling, romantic, steamy, and even a little thought provoking. (Just a little) Wow and double Wow!

So way in the future there are darklings and there are humans, half-breeds, wraths, and more. Once upon a time they lived in the same city, now they live with a wall separating them and the mix of the races is against the law punishable by death. There is Ash, a darkling half-breed; there is Natalie, daughter of the Emissary (government). Ash is allowed to stay in the city with his human father. Natalie is moving to the Black City with her mother. One night they meet. At first it is I don’t like you, I don’t trust you, stay away. Then slowly or not so slowly they fall for each other. If they pursue the relationship and get caught they will be killed. There are more problems than just their relationship, Natalie has a stalker, Ash is in the middle of the battle between darklings and humans, and humans are dying from a drug made with darkling venom called Golden Haze and the darklings are being blamed. So this book is full of drama and mystery.

This book took off right away for me. I was hooked within just a few pages. I could not put the book down. It’s been a while since I thought about a book constantly when I was unable to read it, I had to hide the book while at work, and all I wanted to do was read the book. The writing was just my style, flowed nicely, great pace, emotional, intriguing, very vivid. The plot was great, it had so many things going on I was never bored.

The characters blew me away. I thought I was going to have a hard time with Natalie and Ash being stereotypical at first but they really weren’t. Natalie came from a posh family full of privileges… so one would think… but she came from a pretty messed up family yet she comes out strong but with a soft heart. Ash seems like the typical bad boy with no passion or cares but he has a whole lot of drama at home and whole lot of loneliness inside. I fell in love with both right away, along with their friends Day and Beetle. Such an amazing cast for sure.

This story really got intense for me, the segregation…. Yes I know they are vampires but still they have feelings too. There is torture, scheming, blackmailing, lying, and closets full of skeletons. There is also tragedy and loss, strong friendships, and lots of love. Who could ask for more, not me! This book filled me up and left me satisfied but wanting more.

One of my favorite reads of the year if not my favorite. It is a keeper. It was riveting, addicting, and breathtaking. If you like paranormal and dystopian, I highly recommend this book.

Waiting on Wednesday #36 and W.W.W. #23

Waiting On Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Breaking the Sp ine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

I can't wait for:

Fuse (Pure#2) by Julianna Baggott

February 18th 2012

When the world ended, those who dwelled within the Dome were safe. Inside their glass world the Pures live on unscarred, while those outside—the Wretches—struggle to survive amidst the smoke and ash.

Believing his mother was living among the Wretches, Partridge escaped from the Dome to find her. Determined to regain control over his son, Willux, the leader of the Pures, unleashes a violent new attack on the Wretches. It’s up to Pressia Belze, a young woman with her own mysterious past, to decode a set of cryptic clues from the past to set the Wretches free.

An epic quest that sweeps readers into a world of beautiful brutality, Fusecontinues the story of two people fighting to save their futures—and change the fate of the world.

Nobody by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

January 22nd, 2012

There are people in this world who are Nobody. No one sees them. No one notices them. They live their lives under the radar, forgotten as soon as you turn away.

That’s why they make the perfect assassins.

The Institute finds these people when they’re young and takes them away for training. But an untrained Nobody is a threat to their organization. And threats must be eliminated.

Sixteen-year-old Claire has been invisible her whole life, missed by the Institute’s monitoring. But now they’ve ID’ed her and send seventeen-year-old Nix to remove her. Yet the moment he lays eyes on her, he can’t make the hit. It’s as if Claire and Nix are the only people in the world for each other. And they are—because no one else ever notices them.

W...W...W.. Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Should Be Reading.... I wold love to hear What you are currently reading, what did you just finish and what are you reading next...

What are you currently reading?

What did you recently finish reading?

What do you think you'll read next?

Tuesday, October 30, 2012

Review: Carnival of Souls by Melissa Marr

Title: Carnival of Souls
Author: Melissa Marr
Publisher: HarperCollins
Publishing Date: September 4th 2012
Pages: 306
Genre: YA Paranormal Romance
Series: I am Hoping Carnival of Souls #1
Source: Audio

In a city of daimons, rigid class lines separate the powerful from the power-hungry. And at the heart of The City is the Carnival of Souls, where both murder and pleasure are offered up for sale. Once in a generation, the carnival hosts a deadly competition that allows every daimon a chance to join the ruling elite. Without the competition, Aya and Kaleb would both face bleak futures--if for different reasons. For each of them, fighting to the death is the only way to try to live.

All Mallory knows of The City is that her father--and every other witch there--fled it for a life in exile in the human world. Instead of a typical teenage life full of friends and maybe even a little romance, Mallory scans quiet streets for threats, hides herself away, and trains to be lethal. She knows it's only a matter of time until a daimon finds her and her father, so she readies herself for the inevitable. While Mallory possesses little knowledge of The City, every inhabitant of The City knows of her. There are plans for Mallory, and soon she, too, will be drawn into the decadence and danger that is the Carnival of Souls.

From Melissa Marr, bestselling author of the Wicked Lovely series and "Graveminder," comes a brand-new tale of lush secrets, dark love, and the struggle to forge one's own destiny.

I am a huge fan of Melissa Marr. I love her dark side, her world building, her hot male characters, and her pretty kick butt heroines. I was really excited to see that she wrote a new book. I love the cover, the title, the book blurb sounds intriguing. I couldn’t wait to get my hands on it…. It was AWESOME!!!! I was not disappointed at all and oh as an extra bonus (I am a huge Spike/Buffy/Angel fan) Audio is read by James Marsters! So cool!

In a city where daimons live, there is a carnival of souls once a generation. Daimons fight to the death to win so they can rule the city. In the world outside of the city there are witches, the daimons’ arch nemesis. In the middle is a daimon girl being raised by a witch, a girl who has no idea that she is a daimon and was raised to fight and kill daimons. This daimon girl is not your average daimon girl, she is important to the daimons and the witches and has a very high price on her head. To make things a little more confusing, the daimon that is sent to kill her falls for her. No among this girl, Mallory and this daimon assassin, Kaleb, there is another named Aya who is an entirely different story… There stories with interweave and secrets and treachery are discovered.

WOW.. .I was blown away by this book. Everything I expected was there, the mystery, the darkness, the romance, the hot male character, deceit, treachery, and the faded line that runs between good and evil.The world building was amazing. The city amazed me. I wasn’t really sure what to expect except that Melissa Marr is excellent at creating magical worlds full of darkness. The city was dark but still beautiful, deadly but alive. Full of daimons of different caste systems trying to fight their way up or keep their status as the ruling caste. The writing was amazing and swept me up into this make believe world and I felt as though I was breathing the same air as those in the city.

I love all the characters in this book, good, bad , in between, the story needed and used them all. The main characters Aya, Kaleb, and Mallory stole my heart. Each of their lives so complicated and each trying to make the best of the cards they were dealt. Kaleb grew up an orphan, works as an assassin, and is trying to wind the carnival of souls to make a better life for him and his pack mate. Mallory, raised by a which in the mortal world, taught to fight daimons, and constantly on the move just wants to have a normal life. Aya, a girl form the ruling caste in the city that is desperate to win the carnival of souls to save herself from a life of breeding. Each one of these characters saddened me, they each had their secrets, their pains, and their dreams. I wanted so much for all three of them and felt their fight. Mallory and Aya are both very strong but in different was. Anya is hard and can be cold when needed but still very soft. Mallory may be naive but she is determined and doesn’t give up. Kaleb is my many. I love him so. Sexy, dark, and loyal. Can’t get any better than that.

I fell in love with Carnival of Souls, and I am so hoping there is more. I am thinking there is because the book jut sort of ended without a conclusion. I will be getting the next book as soon as it comes out. Even though I listened to this on audio, which rocked, this book will be bought and added to my keeper shelf. Melissa Marr is a genius in my mind!

Teaser Tuesday #31 and Top Ten #21

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by Should Be Reading. Bloggers choose two

sentences out of our current read to peak others' curiosity.

Black City by Elizabeth Richards

November 13th 2012

I tear off a corner of paper from my notebook and scribble a note:

I can't stop thinking about you.

A dark and tender post-apocalyptic love story set in the aftermath of a bloody war.

In a city where humans and Darklings are now separated by a high wall and tensions between the two races still simmer after a terrible war, sixteen-year-olds Ash Fisher, a half-blood Darkling, and Natalie Buchanan, a human and the daughter of the Emissary, meet and do the unthinkable—they fall in love. Bonded by a mysterious connection that causes Ash’s long-dormant heart to beat, Ash and Natalie first deny and then struggle to fight their forbidden feelings for each other, knowing if they’re caught, they’ll be executed—but their feelings are too strong.

When Ash and Natalie then find themselves at the center of a deadly conspiracy that threatens to pull the humans and Darklings back into war, they must make hard choices that could result in both their deaths.

Reaping me Softy by Kate Evangelista

October 30, 2012

Death sat at his desk wearing a scowl which could level a whole mountain range on his androgynous face. Not many thought of him as breathtaking.

Ever since a near-death-experience on the operating table, seventeen-year-old Arianne Wilson can see dead people. Just as she’s learned to accept her new-found talents, she discovers that the boy she’s had a crush on since freshman year, Niko Clark, is a Reaper.

At last they have something in common, but that doesn’t mean life is getting any easier. All while facing merciless bullying from the most powerful girl in school, Arianne’s world is turned upside down after Niko accidentally reaps the soul of someone she loves. This sends them both into a spiral that threatens to end Arianne’s life. But will Niko break his own Reaper’s code to save her? And what would the consequences be if he did?