Review: It Wasn't Always Like This by Joy Preble

Title: It Wasn't Always Like This

Author:  Joy Preble
Publisher: Soho Teen 

Publishing Date: May 17th 2016

Pages:  256
Genre: YA Sci-Fi Thriller 

Series:  Stand Alone
Source: ARC 

 

In 1916, Emma O’Neill is frozen in time. After sampling an experimental polio vaccine brewed on a remote island off St. Augustine, Florida, she and her family stop aging—as do the Ryans, her family’s business partners. In a way, this suits Emma fine because she’s in love with Charlie Ryan. Being seventeen forever with him is a dream. But soon a group of religious fanatics, the Church of Light, takes note. Drinking the elixir has made the O’Neills and Ryans impervious to aging, but not to murder—Emma and Charlie are the only ones who escape with their lives.

On the run, Emma is tragically separated from Charlie. For the next hundred years, she plays a cat-and-mouse game with the founding members of the Church of Light and their descendants. Over the years, a series of murders—whose victims all bear more than a passing resemblance to her—indicate that her enemies are closing in. Yet as the danger grows, so does Emma’s hope for finding the boy she’s certain is still out there . . .

This book wasn't on my radar right away. I really don't like the cover and really nothing pulled me into this book. For some reason I kept going back to it and reading about the book again. I decided to give it a shot because time travel books can be good. This one was worth the read. I did enjoy it. It was entertaining, interesting, something a bit different,

Emma drank the tea. When she was 17 years old her and her family became immortal. They no longer got sick, they did not age. They could die of unnatural causes. So Emma' family is killed. Yup killed by some religious cult fanatic people. The family of her beloved were killed too. So there is just Emma and her beau Charlie. To give Emma a chance, Charlie tells her to go her own way. So they split up. For decades they have been searching for each other and descendents of the evil cult religion is searching too. Its a race for Emma and Charlie to find one another or for the crazies to find them and kill them. 

There were quite a few things I loved about this book.... This book did have a Tuck Everlasting feel but more updated.... 

Emma an Charlie. Their story and their characters. I did enjoy this. I loved Emma. She was strong but also human. She screwed up and she is paying for her mistakes. She was innocent in what happened but has had to live to live with it and live with it alone. That is just sad. She was strong and hopeful most of the time. Charlie was a good kid too. I didn't know him quite as well as I would have liked, but what I knew I liked. He was selfless, kind, smart, and loyal. 

Their story was tragic and just killed me on the inside. I mean if you fall in love at 17 and then drink a tea that makes you immortal and ageless... shouldn't you be able to spend eternity with the one person you fell in love with. Yup nope...not for Charlie and Emma. And that was just tragic. 

I loved the pacing. It was really fast paced and had me turning the pages like crazy. It was interesting and I wanted to know what was going to happen. I loved the past and the present scenes and how they fed into each other. I loved the chase, the bad guys, and the story in general. 

The secondary character, Pete, A PI that Emma worked with. I loved him. I loved his ability to forget science and what he has been taught his entire life. Forget how things seem impossible. He believes Emma's story and he is her true friend. He was like another father to her. I loved him.  

I also loved that this book as a thriller as much as a romance. It was a big search and find and chase and do it all before the baddies catch up. I loved this aspect of the book. 

There were  just a few things I didn't like. 

I wanted to connect more with the characters and the love story. It just wasn't quite deep enough for me. I did love what I knew and felt but always felt it could have been more. I wanted more of their romance too. The romance from the past was sweet and I felt it but I just didn't have enough time with them as a couple. That made me sad. 

There wasn't enough story to the story.  I enjoyed the story and understood story but I could have had more... More on the water, more on the cult and its play in all this. More everything. It wasn't there wasn't enough... I just could have had more. 

There wasn't enough Pete. Yup would have liked to seen more of him. 

Really liked the book, the story, the romance, the characters. I just would have liked a tad bit more.

Really liked the book. It was a good sci fi/fantasy thriller. 

So excited for THE RAVEN KING by Maggie Stiefvater! Managed to get to her event at Blue Willow this week despite getting caught in crazy Houston traffic caused by a shoot out on the beltway. Yeah, that was no fun.
But from my last minute seat on the floor, I snapped this pic:
I have loved, loved the world Maggie has created for the Raven Boys series. Truly magnificent writing. Brilliant. Only a few chapters in and already hooked again.
Maggie Stiefvater is the real deal, y'all. You probably know this already. But her artist's eye helps create stories like no other and her characters twine themselves around your heart. *I'm looking at you Ronan. And you Gansey. And you Blue and Adam.... Okay I'm looking at all of them.*
Two years ago I got to hear her teach about writing at SCBWI LA, which was also a true pleasure to learn about process through her eyes.
Anyway. If you haven't started the RAVEN BOYS series yet, do so right now. Four books, Raven King being the finale. You will thank me.
Til next week, when the IWALT countdown begins because tomorrow is MAY!!

Review: Clockwork Scarab by Colleen Gleason

Title: Clockwork Scarab

Author: Colleen Gleason

Publisher:  Chronicle Books
Publishing Date: September 17th 2013

Pages: 358
Genre:  YA Steampunk/Historical Fiction/Mystery

Series: Stoker and Holmes #1
Source: Audio

  

Evaline Stoker and Mina Holmes never meant to get into the family business. But when you’re the sister of Bram and the niece of Sherlock, vampire hunting and mystery solving are in your blood. And when two society girls go missing, there’s no one more qualified to investigate.

Now fierce Evaline and logical Mina must resolve their rivalry, navigate the advances of not just one but three mysterious gentlemen, and solve murder with only one clue: a strange Egyptian scarab. The stakes are high. If Stoker and Holmes don’t unravel why the belles of London society are in such danger, they’ll become the next victims.

I discovered this book among a blog I regularly follow. I hadn’t heard of it before but she liked it and I thought it sounded different, intriguing, and adventurous. I still havn’t heard much about this book but I couldn’t wait to start the audio. It was a really fun read. There was so much put into the story to make everything run together flawlessly. I loved all the elements, the steampunk setting, the historical characters, the mystery, the mythology, and the science. It was just a little bit of everything but it worked and more importantly it entertained.

This story is about a mystery of the disappearing and found dead girls of London. The mystery is being investigated by Evaline Stoker (Bram Stoker’s Sister) and Mina Holmes( Sherlock Holmes niece). Pretty cool. They are called together by Irene Adler . Just keeps getting better. She calls them forth to work in secret for the crown, solving these mysteries. So these two girls, one very beautiful and fierce, the other very logical and sort of a recluse, start to investigate. They find themselves in the company of street boys, a boy from another time, the London police, and of course the bad guys. They always seem to land themselves in the midst of it all.

This was a very well done story. Mysteries seem to be (to me) the hardest story to write, especially when it’s meant to be a complete mystery to the very end. This one not only had the difficulty of being a mystery, but to follow Sherlock Holmes style. I am very impressed with the writing of this book. It was very classic in tone. I loved the feel of the story. I felt it was another Sherlock Holmes mystery but with new characters and bit of the fantastical elements thrown in. What I really loved was the idea of the mystery being part of a mythical world. Holmes and his brood rely on science and logic to be involved and the heart of everything they do.. so lets throw in some mythology and see Miss Mina Holmes deduce. It was pretty awesome. Which brings me to the plot.. all I need to say is it rocked. I loved it from beginning to end. The mystery was done so perfectly. In the end I didn’t get the answers I needed…. But that just means I need to read the next book.

The setting was pretty spectacular too. It’s a definite hit or miss for me with steampunk. I love historical fiction and I love the idea of steampunk, but it doesn’t always work well for me in books. I think it’s a bit for me to handle on the tone of descriptions thrown in. It tends to slow the pace to a speed I can’t handle or its too much or to vague for me to picture. I know that books, especially ones such as steampunk, rely on the descriptions for the setting to come to life, Its just hard to find the satisifying middle for me. This book did just that. I was lost in the descriptions from the steam vehicles to the outfits, I loved it all and it so very clear.

The characters were a hoot. And yes I said hoot. The interactions between Miss Holmes and Miss Stoker were truly entertaining. Its hard to get a very logical and very magical person in the same room much less agree with each other. Miss Holmes always relying on deductions and science has a hard time going on gut feelings. Miss Stoker is a vampire hunter. She is strong, fast, and works on instinct not thought and really doesn’t have much in the deducing talents. So get them together and not only are they entertaining but they balance each other out. Quite well in fact. In the beginning they deal, in the end they were on the verge of friendship. I actually liked Miss Stoker better, She was the fun one, the dangerous one, the one who always ended up in trouble because she acted before she thought it out. Miss Holmes was a bit on the boring side and bit stuck up. She knew she was smart and in her mind was never wrong.

I would like to also mention the narrator for this audio. She was wonderful, there were so many characters and each one had a very unique self owned voice. She did an outstanding job on getting their personalities down and making them clear to the listeners.

The only downer for me was the pacing did get a bit slow a few times. Very few times though, in the beginning. After about 1/3 of the book, it picked up, then about 2/3 of the way it took off at jet speed. Once it started to pick up it didn’t ever slow back down. The beginning was filled with lots of build up so I imagine the next book will not have a problem with pacing at all. I am really looking forward to the next book.

A great story set in a historical steampunk world that gave off an awesome classic mystery vibe.

Blog Tour': Timespell by Diana Paz- Review and Giveaway

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Title: Timspell

Author: Diana Paz
Publisher:   Rhemalda Publishing
Publishing Date:  April 1st 2013

Pages: 312
Genre:  YA Time Travel

Series: Stand Alone ( but possibly not)
Source: Kindle edition provided by Xpresso Book Tours

  

In TIMESPELL, the brash and impulsive Julia must team up with her sweet and straight-laced best friend, Angie, and the malicious and power-hungry Kaitlyn in order to keep the witch-like powers of her inheritance. But these powers come at a cost. The girls are bound to serve the Fates, and their first mission sends them back in time to Marie Antoinette’s Paris and eventually, into the chaos and war of the French Revolution.

The thing that drew me in first... the cover. Wow it is so beautiful. I did a cover reveal a while back and knew at that moment, I wanted to read this book and I really enjoyed reading this book. It was a fast read, I didn't want to put it down. I just needed to know what happened next. I liked the story and the plot line very much and found it very different than what is out there right now which was very refreshing for me.

The story is about 3 very different girls, Julia, Angie, and Kaitlyn, who are sisters of fate. Past, Present, Future and they have a job to do... save the past.  They each have their own powers and can manipulate time. Of course this sounds exciting, but they have problems from the very beginning. ...  Julia and Angie are best friends they get along great but Kaitlyn has always been their enemy, the mean girl. Now they must team up with her and depend on her. Oh and then there is Ethan, the mysterious good looking boy... and of course don't forget, they have no clue what they are doing. So the three end up in France, during the French Revolution and of course nothing is at easy as it should be.

This was a very fun book  The writing was fast, I felt it took off from the very beginning and I was quickly into the thick of things. It was easy to get acquainted with all the characters and I was able to love and hate a bit about all of them.  The story was very exciting and at times I thought it was predictable but then at other times it caught me off guard. It was a great mix of romance, friendship, history, and action.

The characters really were fun. Each one had their strengths and weaknesses. Angie is a great leader. She had her issues with Kaitlyn before they they became the sisters of fate and she was able to get past it pretty easy to do what she was meant to do. She was very level headed and knew how to hold the group together. Her weakness though... she didn't know how to relax, she was too serious all the time. Julia is well, she is hard to put into words. Her weakness is definitely her heart. She can be very sweet and is there to help when she is needed, but sometimes... her loyalty can get in the way. Kaitlyn is mean, selfish, quite the witch, but she is very fast thinking and even thought I thought she would be the death of them all... she comes around... eventually.

At the very beginning Angie and Julia are already friends and I loved how the third sister just happens to be someone they can't stand and they do what they need to do accept her and work with her. I also like the loyalty and the friendship between the group. They are very dependent upon each other for survival and they embrace that well. Its a great story about loyalty, duty, and friends

The book had many fascinating moments in the present and especially in the past. I loved reading the parts n France int he past. The clothing, the customs, the parties. It was fun. I also really enjoyed the mythical creatures that are thrown into to the mix. This is the book for you if you like historical fiction and fantasy.

The only complaint, and it is truly the only complaint I have about the book, it did feel rushed at times. .I loved the fast paced read it provided but at times I felt a little confused and had to reread a few parts to try to understand where I was in the story. It is not a major flaw, as I still enjoyed the book very much and would be happy to read more if there is going to be more... it just made it a little hard to keep up with.

I really enjoyed it and would love to read more from this author and especially this story... maybe possibly if there will be another???

Diana Paz writes books about magic, adventure, and romance. She was born in Costa Rica, grew up on Miami Beach, moved to Los Angeles in high school, and went to college in San Diego. Basically, she’s a beach bum. Diana graduated from California State University, San Marcos with a Bachelor’s Degree in Liberal Arts. She loves old movies, epic fantasy, all kinds of music, and heading to the beach with a good book. Preferably sipping a highly sweetened iced coffee.

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