Aug 31, 2015

It's Monday! What are You Reading?

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is hosted by Sheila at Book Journey. It's a fun meme where we gather to share what we've read last week and our reading plans for this week.


Last Week I Read:

The Wrath and The Dawn by Renee Ahdieh (4.5 stars)
Soul Corrupted by Lisa Gail Green (ARC) (3 stars)


Reviews That Were Posted:

The Drafter by Kim Harrison (ARC) (3.5 stars)
Crucible Zero by Devon Monk (ARC) (4 stars)
A Whole New World by Liz Braswell (ARC) (2.5 stars)
Dead Upon a Time by Elizabeth Paulson (ARC) (3.5 stars)


About To Start Reading:

Get Dirty by Gretchen McNeil


What I Hope to Maybe Start Reading:



Other Posts of Interest:








Aug 30, 2015

Stacking the Shelves

This weekly meme is hosted by Tynga's Reviews.

Stacking The Shelves is all about the books we are adding to our shelves each week, sharing with you our excitement for our newest titles and maybe have you discover a new book in the process!



I had a pretty awesome week! Didn't add a whole lot, but did add some nice titles!!


 Lair of Dreams by Libba Bray--SIGNED!! I even thought ahead and brought my metallic sharpies to get the signature on this page!! YAY!
Insidious by Dawn Metcalf--loooove this cover!!


Then for review from the publisher via Netgalley & Edelweiss, I received:

 Soul Corrupted by Lisa Gail Green (ARC)--already read it too! It was an okay read, as you can see from my review yesterday!
Into the Dim by Janet B. Taylor (ARC)--was pretty excited and surprised to see approval for this one! Can't wait to dive into it!


And then I did a little shopping for myself, since I started a new job and all! I found some little things that I just couldn't pass up!

Itty Bittys from Hallmark: Catwoman! and Rapunzel!!

Then a Beanie Boo that's the Grim Reaper! I saw it and thought of Reyes! And I might have bought an extra one for my Spooktacular Giveaway come October! ;)





 

Aug 29, 2015

ARC Review--Soul Corrupted by Lisa Gail Green

In Soul Corrupted, the sequel to Soul Crossed, life in Heaven isn’t all "happily ever after" for Josh and Grace. Now Guardian Angels, they are entrusted with finding and saving the next potential Antichrist. But Grace is consumed with worry about her family, which is dealing with the aftershocks of her death. She's particularly concerned about her brother Noah, who has turned down a dangerous path of drugs and violence—and she's frustrated by the rules of Heaven, which forbid her from contacting them.

Josh has troubles of his own. A former Demon, he questions his ability to guide troubled souls to the light. When he discovers that Noah made a deal with Lucifer and has even been hanging around with Josh’s old Demon pal, Keira, he makes a forbidden counter-deal with the Devil to save Noah's soul. Josh's side of the bargain? He has to sever his relationship with Grace.

Josh and Grace's world is about to spin out of control, testing the limits of true love and blurring the border between Heaven and Hell.

Soul Corrupted is the second installment in Lisa Gail Green’s Of Demon and Angels series, which started with Soul Crossed.


I received this ARC from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review, I was in no way compensated for this review.

Lisa Gail Green returns to Grace and Josh’s story in Soul Corrupted. We had the classic demon meets angel story last go around, where the two, naturally, fall in love and then chaos ensues. Well, the chaos seems to be continuing as the hunt for the next Antichrist is still underway.

Grace spends a lot of her time in Heaven checking in on her family, especially her younger brother, Noah, who seems to be having a rough go of things lately. Josh struggles to make her happier because of all this. And he tries to direct them back onto their task in finding the next Antichrist. There’s two possible candidates this go around, a young boy and a preteen girl with a strange, wandering/dead eye. She somehow reminded me of Mad Eye Moody, only you know, with the potential to be absolutely evil!

Then comes the kicker, in order to protect Grace, Josh makes a deal of sorts with Lucifer and basically pretends he hates her, breaks her heart and pretends to be with Keira, who disguises herself as another girl. All to keep Grace distracted from Lucifer’s ultimate plan. And it works. Grace is left heartbroken over Josh’s behavior and is just crushed. To me, this could’ve been done a lot better. I felt like it was too simple and clean cut to be believable, with what Josh actually says in his breaking up with her. And then she readily believes him! After all they went through in the first book, I would’ve thought there would be a bigger argument over this breakup rather than the wishy washy tears we got.

Grace came off a little childish in this one for me. She seemed to bemoan her brother’s life a lot. Like how he’s acting out because he misses her so much. When as we learn from Keira’s point of view—which also takes place in this book—Noah has been going through a lot lately and it doesn’t resolve around missing Grace in that same sense. He’s quite different and it’s chilling! Though, to be honest, I can’t remember much about him from the first book. 

I guess one thing I was happy to see in this book was the absence of animal cruelty. I guess that was more of a Cam thing and not something to expect from every book, thank goodness! And the two kids, really, that are the potential Antichrists weren’t as evil as you’d think. The girl was wicked scary, though. Also to note, I was surprised by how small of a role they each played in this one.

There was a pretty shocking twist near the end, but in truth, I sort of saw this coming through hints in the story. I thought it was obvious, really. And it’s not so much of a bad thing either. Just something to say, I guess! LOL! The next, and I assume, final book in this series/trilogy is definitely going to be a doozie! I am curious to see how things will turn out from that particular outcome. And naturally, see how Grace and Josh overcome the new obstacles that they are facing!

As far as romance goes, there really wasn’t much in this one. The little bit of time that Grace and Josh were a couple, only a few kisses were shared before the breakup. Then there’s basically nothing on the horizons for romance. Which is to be expected. We’re talking about the upcoming end of the world. I think the kissing can wait! Don’t you? Haha!

Overall, Soul Corrupted was a pretty good read. I felt like the first one was better, despite my dislike of animal abuse. This one lacked spark. And there were a few too many clichés going around with Grace and her dealing with Josh’s breakup. Minor nuisances like that were a little heavier this go around and kind of detracted from my enjoyment of the story. But I still plan to read its finale whenever that comes out, once I’m this far into a supposed trilogy, there’s little to stop me from finishing it! 


If you enjoyed any part of Soul Crossed, I highly recommend reading this one. Despite a few hangups I had, it was still a pretty decent read. Just not the greatest! And if you at all like the whole Heaven and Hell hookups (YA), this is definitely something you might want to look into! Just be sure to start with Soul Crossed!


Overall Rating 3/5 stars


Soul Corrupted releases September 6, 2015



ARC Review--Dead Upon a Time by Elizabeth Paulson

It's a fairy-tale nightmare...

One girl is kept in a room where every day the only food she's given is a poisoned apple. Another is kept in a room covered in needles -- and if she pricks her finger, she'll die. Then there are the brother and sister kept in a cell that keeps getting hotter and hotter...

A sinister kidnapper is on the loose in Kate's world. She's not involved until one day she heads to her grandmother's house in the woods -- and finds her grandmother has also been taken. Already an outcast, Kate can't get any help from the villagers who hate her. Only Jack, another outsider, will listen to what's happened.

Then a princess is taken, and suddenly the king is paying attention -- even though the girl's stepmother would rather he didn't. It's up to Kate and Jack to track down the victims before an ever after arrives that's far from happy.


I received this ARC from Rockstar Book Tours for participation in the blog tour, for an honest review, I was in no way compensated for this review.


Dead Upon a Time is the perfect read for fairy tale fans of all ages! Elizabeth Paulson writes in a way that the book itself feels like a fresh new fairy tale. While there is still danger and action, it's done in a way that it's not overly graphic, so this the perfect read for younger readers who starting out their YA reading life, at least I thought so. Being familiar with the old, classic fairy tales of Grimm, doesn't hurt either, as we know most of those were dark.

The story starts out like Little Red Riding Hood, when Kate Hood goes to into the woods to bring her grandmother some food. Her grandmother is sort of an outcast from the village and thus lives outside it. Though what Kate finds is an empty cottage in shambles, plus a few mystery looking tapestries that depict horrifying scenes of torture. And by that I mean, they are scenes straight from the fairy tales we grew up with.

Scared and frightened, Kate returns to town looking for help, but alas, no one will help her. Except for one. Jack. Jack was once her childhood friend, but now, he too is an outcast after the whole matter with the giant that pretty much turned the town against him. Now with his help, they're off to figure out the clues and find her grandmother. But it's not long before the king gets involved when his daughter Ella becomes one of the missing as well.

This was a rather fast read being just over 200 pages and yet, I wished for more! The pacing was rather typical of an adventure/fairy tale. It moves forward at a steady pace, but builds up the anticipation. What I also wished we could've had was a bit more detailed answers. There's high suspicion placed on the new queen, the stepmother of Ella when Kate and Jack are taken to him. And yet, nothing ever really came out of it. I would've liked to known more. Kate started building her suspicions and speculations, but that was it. Once we left the castle to continue the journey, that was the end of seeing the "wicked stepmother".

What I also wished we had more of was romance. There wasn't much. You could tell there might be something between Kate and Jack, they were friends once in their childhood. But alas, that too, never really makes it to the page. The lack of romance kind of robs the story of its fairy tale-ness. For even in Grimm fairy tales, there was always a happily ever after with some prince or princess. But sadly, not here.

The ending though was quite exciting! If a bit surprising. I liked the twist in details and such, but also felt a little bombarded by it. There wasn't any clue or hint as to who the evil villain was and once they were revealed, it was just kind of like ta da! Instead of dun dun dun!

Despite those few minor hangups, I still enjoyed the story. It was a cute sort of read. I liked the mishmash of fairy tales, that weren't meant to be fairy tales. The torturing the villain did, just happened to resemble fairy tales we know, but in this world that's set in some far distant past, didn't have fairy tales basically. 

The setting was another thing that nagged at me in the beginning. There was no clear cut way of it. At times, it almost felt like it could be modern times. Some of the vernacular felt a bit too modern, but I could've just been making myself feel that way. Since this read itself isn't meant to be a fairy tale, I guess I was making myself think it should read like one because it has traces of fairy tales in it! Yes, I'm very convoluted at times in my reading! LOL!

Dead Upon a Time was a fun read! I enjoyed it for the most part! I wouldn't mind there being more to the story though! Readers always want more after all. As far as I can tell, this is a standalone, things wrapped up nice. But again, I wouldn't mind seeing more in this world!


Overall Rating 3.5/5 stars


Dead Upon a Time releases August 25, 2015








Aug 27, 2015

Follow Friday

This is a weekly blog meme hosted by Parajunkee's View and Alison Can Read.

Here are the general rules to Follow Friday:

1. Follow the Follow My Book Blog Friday Hosts and any one else you want to follow on the list  
2. Follow our Featured Bloggers
3. Put your Blog name & URL in the Linky thing.
4. Grab the button up there and place it in a post, this post is for people to find a place to say hi in your comments
5. Follow Follow Follow as many as you can
6. If someone comments and says they are following you, be a dear and follow back. Spread the Love...and the followers
7. If you want to show the link list, just follow the link below the entries and copy and paste it within your post!
8. If your new to the follow Friday hop, comment and let me know, so I can stop by and check out your blog!



This week's question is: Share a random quote from the book you are currently reading.- Suggested by Journey Through Fiction



MY ANSWER: Going to share with you from my read as of now...basically last Friday as at this time I don't know how busy or tired or whatever I'll be at my new job that I start on Monday!


"Jahandar reached for the first page...

And stifled a cry.

It burned his hand.

No matter.

He dragged his sleeve across his fingertips and tried again.

The text was an early form of Chagatai. Translating it would be a painstaking process, even for a man as learned as Jahandar. And especially with such pressing time constraints.

Again, no matter.

His heart thundered as he drew the single candle closer to begin his work.

For his children, he would move mountains.

He would not fail again." p 66-67

Really liking this one so far too!!






Random Thursday

Continuing with the book titled That's a Fact Jack: A Collection of Utterly Useless Information [Updated] by Harry Bright & Jakob Anser...I learned a few new things today about complete randomness...


"The universe is beige. According to astronomers at John Hopkins University, the color of all light in the universe hexadecimal RGB value #FFF8E7. The color is now referred to as 'cosmic latte'."


"If you put a mirror one light-year away from Earth and looked at it through a telescope, you would see two years into Earth's past."





Aug 26, 2015

Review--The Wrath and The Dawn by Renee Ahdieh

One Life to One Dawn.

In a land ruled by a murderous boy-king, each dawn brings heartache to a new family. Khalid, the eighteen-year-old Caliph of Khorasan, is a monster. Each night he takes a new bride only to have a silk cord wrapped around her throat come morning. When sixteen-year-old Shahrzad's dearest friend falls victim to Khalid, Shahrzad vows vengeance and volunteers to be his next bride. Shahrzad is determined not only to stay alive, but to end the caliph's reign of terror once and for all.

Night after night, Shahrzad beguiles Khalid, weaving stories that enchant, ensuring her survival, though she knows each dawn could be her last. But something she never expected begins to happen: Khalid is nothing like what she'd imagined him to be. This monster is a boy with a tormented heart. Incredibly, Shahrzad finds herself falling in love. How is this possible? It's an unforgivable betrayal. Still, Shahrzad has come to understand all is not as it seems in this palace of marble and stone. She resolves to uncover whatever secrets lurk and, despite her love, be ready to take Khalid's life as retribution for the many lives he's stolen. Can their love survive this world of stories and secrets?

Inspired by A Thousand and One Nights, The Wrath and the Dawn is a sumptuous and enthralling read from beginning to end.


I have finally read The Wrath and The Dawn by Renee Ahdieh and I must say it was quite fascinating! I was only vaguely familiar with the origin story, A Thousand and One Nights, I mostly remember a retelling of said tale called The Storyteller's Daughter, which if I can recall was the same concept in general.

Shahrzad, nickname Shazi, was an admirable heroine. She was strong willed and wasn't the flouncy sort. She was determined to kill the boy-king who had killed her best friend, among dozens of other young girls for seemingly no reason. Every day he would marry a young bride and by the next dawn, she would be dead. Shazi decides it's time for Khalid's reign to end. She was going to kill him herself if she had to, and that's why she volunteered herself to be his bride. And for whatever reason, this is allowed.

Naturally, Khalid has a reason for why he is murdering his brides every night, though that reason is slow to come by. Instead of trying to figure that out right away, Shazi attempts to just stay alive for as long as possible and to do this, she begins with a story that lasts a night or two longer. Khalid is intrigued by his newest wife and he begins to almost falter in his emotions.

In the meantime, we are getting other perspectives, as this is in third person point of view, from different characters with their own agendas. Such as Tariq, who was a boy from Shazi's "old life". One she loved and who loved her. Tariq is determined to save her at any cost. Though I didn't get any real love vibes from these two. I guess because they aren't together on the pages. So naturally, of course, we start seeing a true love connection with Shazi and Khalid.

I was impressed with their romance. While it seemed to come about rather quickly, it was never really "true love" until much later on. In fact, Shazi tries to fight her growing feelings, because falling for the boy who murdered her best friend wasn't acceptable. I found I didn't mind their love either. It felt believable.

What was a bit confusing for me was the whole reason Khalid was murdering these girls. I mean we get an explanation and I understood it, but I guess I was just expecting something more! Something more detailed, rather than just the answer we were given. So that was kind of a letdown almost, because I felt like this was all building up to something so spectacular and horrifying. Though we do get quite a shock at the end! But it happened so quickly, I was left wondering what exactly just happened. I didn't think it was as horrifying at first, but when I look again and think, is it possible that it was "this", then WOW! That is terrible! So yes, there's a bit of confusion going on for me! LOL!

But all in all, this was a fascinating read! I enjoyed reading a book with a new culture for me to learn about! The glossary in back was most helpful but I found I only referenced it a handful of times, because I was loathe to interrupt reading to understand a word. I got the vague idea of what each new vocab word was, just not in all its details! 

I definitely cannot wait to read the next book, The Rose and the Dagger! And naturally, I am one to torment myself, I did not read the excerpt in back because then I would want to read more! I've learned my lesson from reading sneak peeks! So hence, I will just have to suffer in silence. Haha!


Overall Rating 4.5/5 stars





ARC Review--A Whole New World by Liz Braswell

Welcome to a new YA series that reimagines classic Disney stories in surprising new ways. Each book asks the question: What if one key moment from a familiar Disney film was changed? This dark and daring version of Aladdin twists the original story with the question: What if Jafar was the first one to summon the Genie?

When Jafar steals the Genie’s lamp, he uses his first two wishes to become sultan and the most powerful sorcerer in the world. Agrabah lives in fear, waiting for his third and final wish.To stop the power-mad ruler, Aladdin and the deposed Princess Jasmine must unite the people of Agrabah in rebellion. But soon their fight for freedom threatens to tear the kingdom apart in a costly civil war.

What happens next? A Street Rat becomes a leader. A princess becomes a revolutionary. And readers will never look at the story of Aladdin in the same way again.


I received this eARC from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review, I was in no way compensated for this review.

Also, my apologies for the lengthy review. There was a lot to be said!


The newest series to hit the YA world, A Twisted Tale, in which we get to see beloved Disney movies changed with a single moment. Such as the first one, A Whole New World, where Liz Braswell questions what would happen if Jafar actually got the lamp first instead of Aladdin? And this is the result.

I've read a handful of reviews already that pretty much say this was a wasted read. And while I can see their point and it's very valid, I find that I can't 100% agree with it, maybe 95%! True, not much difference, but I'm stubborn and if I want to read something despite unpleasant reviews, I'll still likely read it on my own. I can't speak for everyone who's read this, but I almost wonder if other readers are expecting to get the villain's side of the story or expecting to root for the villain and that's what caused the unenjoyment or played a role in it all. That's really not the case after I've read this. The villain is still the villain and the heroes are still the heroes. Things just happen differently.

Told in multiple third person points of view, we get to see a little bit of everyone; Aladdin, Jasmine, and even Jafar. But the third person view point wasn't executed properly, in my opinion. I felt like we were being told a LOT of the story instead of shown. The whole show, don't tell is really rather important. There was a sort of disconnect with the story because I barely knew who these people were outside of the Disney movie! And it was funny at times, having them wish things happened differently, basically having them wish this was the movie.

We get to see a new side of Agrabah with the Street Rats. Apparently, the name isn't at all derogatory as we thought, because they even call themselves this. They are thieves of the marketplace, just struggling to survive and have a little personal gain, whereas Aladdin only steals the food he needs in order to live. One of these characters was Morgiana, and I really want to say this was based on a character from the Aladdin TV series! Though it's been years since I've watched it. The name just sounded sooo familiar to me! And I do believe, if I am recalling correctly, she was a Street Rat friend of Aladdin's.

The first 1/4 of the book or so pretty much follows the movie directly. Even the dialogue was nearly spot on from the movie. Which is a take it or leave it kind of thing I guess. And it's at the moment when Aladdin hands off the lamp to Jafar that things change. Jafar becomes ruler of Agrabah and the most powerful sorcerer in the world. Everyone's on pins and needles waiting to see what the third wish will be.

We see the Genie again as well, and while you can almost see the character that Robin Williams brought to life, there was also a difference to him. He wasn't as jovial as we initially met him. I kind of spent a lot of time comparing each character to their movie counterpart. There was a general sameness to them all, but again, subtle differences. Though some of these differences outright bugged me, such as Iago apparently liking to eat the crackers that were constantly shoved down his throat. Really? Abu and Rajah were there as well, though I felt like Abu didn't have his same spunk, though he was talkative in his own way. He just wasn't as adorable as his movie counterpart. And Rajah was even more in this one, and by that I just mean more. He was more than tiger, he was Jasmine's pet.

Though be aware there is a brief moment  or two (can't really elaborate on the second one) of animal abuse in this book. Just wanted to warn fellow animal lovers out there who might pick this up.

And as with any Disney rendition, there's a serious case of insa love. Aladdin and Jasmine meet under the same circumstances--though she says hello to the camel who's her aunt, instead of the doctor--they still fall in love rather quickly. That's just a Disney staple it seems, so again, it's a take it or leave it kind of enjoyment.

Also, it's been said that though marketed as YA, this really doesn't read as YA. It's possibly more middle grade, or just the very young YA. A good read for those looking to venture into the YA world. For Disney fans, I say if you're intrigued even a little by this, then read it. It wasn't a terrible read, but it really wasn't a great read either. So perhaps a library checkout would be best. As I said, the writing was a little subpar and exhibited a lot of telling instead of showing. Character development felt weakened because of this.

A Whole New World has an interesting premise to it, in seeing what would happen if the key moment in a beloved Disney movie was changed. While this one didn't really live up to my expectations, I still look forward to seeing what other authors will contribute to this series.

And on a side note, while I didn't enjoy this author's work here, I truly enjoyed one of her earlier books called Snow, that was written under the name Tracy Lynn. That's back to your basic retelling of Snow White. Not at all related to the Disney movie, either but the original Grimm fairy tale.


Overall Rating 2.5/5 stars


 A Whole New World releases September 1, 2015





 

Waiting on Wednesday

I hate waiting...
Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly blog post by Jill over at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights releases we're eagerly awaiting.


Delilah S. Dawson’s award-winning Blud series comes full circle as Tish and Criminy, stars of Wicked as They Come, embark on a sexy and harrowing final adventure in a world RT Book Reviews called “delightfully edgy with hidden charms.”

Ever since landing in the magical world of Sang and falling in love with dashing ringmaster Criminy Stain, Tish has been waiting for the axe to fall. Until her dying grandmother’s last breath on Earth, Tish can’t bring herself to give up her all-too human frailty and commit to life on Sang as a youthful, long-lived Bludman like her handsome husband. But when a peculiar twist of fate delivers Tish’s grandmother to Sang, an unexpected chain of events forces Tish and Criminy to embark on one last wild adventure. From old friends to new and into the lair of terrifying enemies, the couple’s love and longevity will be pushed to the brink by each harrowing encounter. Is blud thicker than blood, and can Tish and Crim find their wicked ever after?


CRIMINY RETURNS!! At least for 1 final book!! Can't wait to read this one where we get to see Criminy and Tish again! So far I am only seeing it as an ebook, but I REALLY hope that changes because I NEED a paperback to go with my other 3!

TITLE: Wicked Ever After
AUTHOR: Delilah S. Dawson
PUBLISHER: Pocket Star
GENRE: Urban Fantasy
RELEASE DATE: October 5, 2015 


Something Wicked This Way Comes...

As a thief, I stick to the shadows as much as possible. But when the head of the Sinclair Family picks me to compete in the Tournament of Blades, there's no escaping the spotlight—or the danger.

Even though he's my competition, Devon Sinclair thinks I have the best shot at winning what's supposed to be a friendly contest. But when the competitors start having mysterious "accidents," it looks like someone will do anything to win—no matter who they hurt.

As if I didn't have enough to worry about, mobster Victor Draconi is plotting against Devon and the rest of my friends, and someone's going around Cloudburst Falls murdering monsters. One thing's for sure. Sometimes, humans can be more monstrous than anything else...


Another one I can't wait to read!! Really liked Cold Burn of Magic and excited to see what's in store next for Lila!! And this cover is just sooo awesome too! Love the shadowy silhouettes!

TITLE: Dark Heart of Magic
AUTHOR: Jennifer Estep
PUBLISHER: Kensington
GENRE: Paranormal YA

RELEASE DATE: October 27, 2015 




 

Aug 25, 2015

ARC Review--Crucible Zero by Devon Monk

The national bestselling author of Infinity Bell returns to her “fresh and unique” world where the truce between the ruling Houses has shattered and chaos now reigns. Only one woman has the power to save the world—but she could also destroy it...

Matilda Case never thought of herself as a hero. But because she is galvanized—and nearly immortal in her stitched, endlessly healing body—she doesn’t have much of a choice. Even if she doesn’t want to save the world, she’s the only one capable of traveling in time to do so.

But her rescue attempt hasn’t gone as planned. She’s stuck in an alternate universe, and her world is in danger of disappearing. Worst of all, an unfathomably powerful man who can also travel through history doesn’t want her to put things to rights. He’s willing to wage bloody war to stop Matilda, unless she surrenders control of time to him.

Now, with the minutes ticking, Matilda must make impossible decisions, knowing that one wrong choice will destroy her—and any chance of saving everything she loves...


I received this ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review, I was in no way compensated for this review.


Devon Monk returns to her House Immortal series with what I believe is the final book! If you haven't read the series yet, you're missing out! Here we have a futuristic setting that basically involves modernized Frankensteins! Crucible Zero was a whirlwind of action and adventure, making it a suitable read for all Urban Fantasy fans!

Matilda has done what should be impossible, she's traveled back in time in order to save the people she loves and put a stop to Slater once and for all. But odd thing is, while she managed to go back in time, it's to a completely new time. It was a bit confusing at first to grasp, but as the story rolls along, it becomes easier to understand.

Matilda wants to kill Slater. That's the number one goal. But also in this new(ish) world, the plague is still a problem, but her brother Quinten happens to be formulating a cure. And he who holds the cure, pretty much controls the world. But Quinten isn't the power hungry type. To make matters more complicated, Slater knows that Matilda isn't from this specific time period. He knows her completely. And now it's basically a race to see who can kill who first and chose the set time period, as Slater rather rule the world in where everyone Matilda loves is dead. 

She gets to re-meet Abraham and Foster, and start relationships anew. It was odd because in some sense, Abraham knew her. I can't remember the very last moments of Infinity Bell which might have further explained the event behind that, but as I like to tell myself, just roll with it! While there was still some romance in this one, things were back to being all to new between Abraham and Matilda. Matilda knew she still loved her Abraham, but this wasn't necessarily her Abraham 100%. But yet an attraction still lay between them and watching it regrow and spawn was just as enjoyable as the first time we saw these two grow to care for one another.

Perhaps the hardest thing to read through, were the moments when Matilda traveled through time again for seemingly no reason. I couldn't figure out the reasons behind it, possibly just some faulty backlash from her first time-traveling event that takes her back to her old timeframe. What made it confusing to grasp was that these passages weren't always clear. You didn't know what was happening until suddenly Matilda is in a new situation after being in the middle of another. But luckily, there were only a handful of these kind of moments.

The rest of the story involved one race to another. It was quite exciting because time is of the essence, so it makes the story hurtle at a fast pace. Matilda, Foster, and Abraham have to defeat Slater before he kills them after all.

The ending was just as harrowing and exciting as the rest of the story! And it's within this ending you see some finality. Which makes me believe that this is the end of the series. I haven't heard anything that said how long this series is, but I believe that it ends here. And if it does, I'm completely happy with that! The ending was perfect! You get the sense of Happily Ever After, yet still knowing that life will go on for these characters. And that's really the best kind of ending a reader can hope for!

Crucible Zero was a fast-paced and thrilling read! I highly recommend starting from the beginning of this series and giving it a read-through! It's unique and engaging, sure to please Urban Fantasy readers of all kind!


Overall Rating 4/5 stars


Crucible Zero releases September 1, 2015





Teaser & Top Ten Tuesdays

http://adailyrhythm.com/
Here are the rules:
 
1. Grab your current read      
2. Open to a page
3. Pick out 2 lines that are SPOILER FREE
4. Name the title, author, etc



"His breath fanned on her skin as he bent toward her ear. 'This morning, I was no where I should have been. Last night, I was not where I wanted to be.'" p 112














TITLE: The Wrath & The Dawn
AUTHOR: Renee Ahdieh
PUBLISHER: G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers
GENRE: Fantasy YA
RELEASE DATE: May 12, 2015





Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish. This feature was created because we are particularly fond of lists here at The Broke and the Bookish. We'd love to share our lists with other bookish folks and would LOVE to see your top ten lists!

Each week we will post a new Top Ten list  that one of our bloggers here at The Broke and the Bookish will answer. Everyone is welcome to join. All we ask is that you link back to The Broke and the Bookish on your own Top Ten Tuesday post AND add your name to the Linky widget so that everyone can check out other bloggers lists! If you don't have a blog, just post your answers as a comment. Have fun with it! It's a fun way to get to know your fellow bloggers.



This week's topic is: Top Ten Books That Would Be On Your Syllabus If You Taught Fantasy vs. Dystopian 101


*in no particular order

Oh yes this will be a fun class in seeing the differences between Fantasy (the past...or is it?) and the possible bleak future!!


THE FANTASY READS:


1. THE KISS OF DECEPTION by Mary E. Pearson--a wonderful fantasy series that is just awesome! Especially in its ability to trick the reader!
2. FALLING KINGDOMS by Morgan Rhodes--loove this series, so we're including it! Plus I think it's a fine example of multiple points of view, but keeping the reader's focus on the story and not making them confused!
3. SNOW LIKE ASHES by Sara Raasch--read this earlier this year and can only remember loving it! So hence, it's in the syllabus!

4. A COURT OF THORNS AND ROSES by Sarah J. Maas--the prefect blend of fantasy and faeries and fairy tale!
5. POISON STUDY by Maria V. Snyder--because it's awesome and an amazing series! Plus it was practically my first fantasy read and I thought it was well done in creating a fantasy world and not making it overly confusing!


THE DYSTOPIAN READS:


6. ANGEL BURN by L.A. Weatherly--a creepy future where angels are trying to rid Earth of humans!
7. UNDER THE NEVER SKY by Veronica Rossi--another dismal and bleak future taking place on Earth!
8. THE VAULT OF DREAMERS by Caragh M. O'Brien--a deceptively creepy read where you never know who to trust in this futuristic setting!


9. DIVERGENT by Veronica Roth--because despite Allegiant, I really did enjoy this series that was practically my first dystopian! So yes, this is included in the syllabus!

10. POISON PRINCESS by Kresley Cole--a creepy future where nearly everyone on Earth is dead and gone, except a remaining few who are caught in a deadly game? Will the past repeat itself as it has time and again? Seriously?! LOVE this series and need the next book!!!