Posts Categorized: Review

Monday, August 27, 2012

Review: Origin by Jessica Khoury

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Origin
Jessica Khoury
Publication date: September 4th 2012
by Razorbill

 

Pia has grown up in a secret laboratory hidden deep in the Amazon rain forest. She was raised by a team of scientists who have created her to be the start of a new immortal race. But on the night of her seventeenth birthday, Pia discovers a hole in the electric fence that surrounds her sterile home—and sneaks outside the compound for the first time in her life.

Free in the jungle, Pia meets Eio, a boy from a nearby village. Together, they embark on a race against time to discover the truth about Pia’s origin—a truth with deadly consequences that will change their lives forever.

*A copy was provided by Penguin Canada for review purposes*

Reminiscent of Lost, Origin takes place in the Amazon Rainforest where scientists are experimenting, and Pia is their most prized subject. Born and raised in a small secret village, Pia has never left the compound, has never seen anything other than the same old faces, the same old sterile labs and homes… until now.

Fascinating in itself, this story is told in a wonderfully vivid setting that sets the perfect mood for the reclusiveness of this secret scientific project. I can’t say that I’m very familiar with that part of the world, and I think this fact played a large part in how mesmerizing it was for me. Exotic animals, plants, and cultures create an atmosphere that is both unique and enchanting. The jungle is not just the setting, it’s an ambiance with sounds, smells, visualizations that come alive when you’re reading this book. Then, when you add hidden laboratories and secret experiments, it compels you even further. When I wasn’t immersed in the beauty of the Rainforest, I was contemplating the secrets and lies that run rampant within it. This encompasses immortality, science, magic, forbidden romance, betrayals, conspiracies, and evil plans, which are sure ways to create an exciting plot; Origin is definitely no exception.

Fast paced and energetic, the plot in Origin is set at just the right pace to keep you vigilant, while letting you absorb and savor the atmosphere. Pia, our protagonist, is a very peculiar character; her evident naiveté, lack of experience, and — surprisingly for someone immortal — vulnerability, would usually make for an unlikeable character, but because of her circumstance I found her quite compelling. Although I won’t admit to being completely in tune with her, she provoked a lot of wonderment and thought about her situation and what it would be like to know you will outlive everyone you love. Soon, she meets a native outside the fence – a boy named Eio (do not ask me to pronounce this, it sounds like I stubbed my toe O_O). Raised in the jungle, Eio is much more suited for the outdoors than Pia; he’s resourceful and strong. I liked him as a character. I didn’t find he and Pia had a whole lot of chemistry flowing between them, though. They develop a relationship that progresses fairly quickly; before I had time to register their attraction for each other, they were already falling in love. I never felt it, this alleged burning affection. Still, it was cute, it was definitely cute, maybe even sweet.

Overall, with an incredibly beautiful and imaginative setting, Origin’s enticing premise is sure to captivate fans of science fiction/fantasy. Plus, it’s all in a fabulous standalone self! 


4 Hot Espressos

Review: Spark by Brigid Kemmerer

Posted by on 08/25/2012 • 28 Comments

SparkBrigid KemmererSeries: Elemental, #2Publication date: August 28th 2012by K-Teen

 

Gabriel Merrick plays with fire. Literally.

Sometimes he can even control it. And sometimes he can’t. Like the fire that killed his parents.

Gabriel has always had his brothers to rely on, especially his twin, Nick. But when an arsonist starts wreaking havoc on their town, all the signs point to Gabriel. Only he’s not doing it.

More than Gabriel’s pride is at stake — this could cost him his family, maybe his life. And no one seems to hear him. Except a shy sophomore named Layne, a brainiac who dresses in turtlenecks and jeans and keeps him totally off balance. Layne understands family problems, and she understands secrets. She has a few of her own.

Review: Erasing Time by C.J. Hill

Posted by on 08/23/2012 • 19 Comments

Erasing TimeC.J. HillPublication date: August 28th 2012by Katherine Tegen Books

 

In this high-action and romantic futuristic adventure, there is no escape from the future for two contemporary girls pulled out of their own time.

When twins Sheridan and Taylor wake up 400 years in the future, they find a changed world: domed cities, no animals, and a language that’s so different, it barely sounds like English. And the worst news: They can’t go back home.

The twenty-fifth-century government transported the girls to their city hoping to find a famous scientist to help perfect a devastating new weapon. The moblike Dakine fights against the government, and somehow Taylor and Sheridan find themselves in the middle. The only way to elude them all is to trust Echo, a guy…

Defiance by CJ Redwine: Review + Guest Post

Posted by on 08/21/2012 • 35 Comments

DefianceC.J. RedwineSeries: Defiance, #1 Publication date: August 28th 2012by Balzer + Bray

 

Within the walls of Baalboden, beneath the shadow of the city’s brutal leader, Rachel Adams has a secret. While other girls sew dresses, host dinner parties, and obey their male Protectors, Rachel knows how to survive in the wilderness and deftly wield a sword. When her father, Jared, fails to return from a courier mission and is declared dead, the Commander assigns Rachel a new Protector, her father’s apprentice, Logan—the same boy Rachel declared her love for two years ago, and the same boy who handed her heart right back to her. Left with nothing but fierce belief in her father’s survival, Rachel decides to escape and find him herself. But treason against the Commander…

Review:Don’t Turn Around by Michelle Gagnon

Posted by on 08/20/2012 • 30 Comments

Don’t Turn AroundMichelle GagnonSeries: PERSEF0NE Trilogy #1 Publication date: August 28th 2012by HarperCollins

 

Sixteen-year-old Noa has been a victim of the system ever since her parents died. Now living off the grid and trusting no one, she uses her computer-hacking skills to stay safely anonymous and alone. But when she wakes up on a table in an empty warehouse with an IV in her arm and no memory of how she got there, Noa starts to wish she had someone on her side.

Enter Peter Gregory. A rich kid and the leader of a hacker alliance, Peter needs people with Noa’s talents on his team. Especially after a shady corporation threatens his life. But what Noa and Peter don’t realize is that Noa holds the key to…

Onyx Review, Guest Post, & Giveaway

Posted by on 08/17/2012 • 46 Comments

I know a lot of you are absolutely loving this series alongside me so I’m happy to have the Onyx make a stop at Xpresso Reads. I have my  review for you today, as well as a fantastic guest post about sex in YA by Jennifer L. Armentrout, and there’s a giveaway!

OnyxJennifer L. ArmentroutSeries: Lux, #2Publication date: August 14th 2012by Entangled Teen

 

Being connected to Daemon Black sucks…

Thanks to his alien mojo, Daemon’s determined to prove what he feels for me is more than a product of our bizarro connection. So I’ve sworn him off, even though he’s running more hot than cold these days. But we’ve got bigger problems.

Something worse than the Arum has come to town…

The Department of Defense are here….

Review: Semi-Charmed Life

Posted by on 08/16/2012 • 35 Comments

Semi-Charmed LifeNora ZelevanskyPublication date: July 3rd 2012by St. Martin’s Griffin

 

In Nora Zelevansky’s hilarious debut, Semi-Charmed Life, an Upper West Side naïf, Beatrice Bernstein, gets swept up in the seemingly magical life of socialite Veruca Pfeffernoose, while ghost writing her blog. Veruca’s glitteringly opulent world soon seduces Beatrice away from her own insular, arty family with a promise of fancy parties, travel outside Manhattan (for once) and one desperately cute guy. But when her new glitzy lifestyle starts to take on dark undertones, Beatrice has to decide who she is—once and for all. With her own magical touch, Zelevansky deftly explores the world of rarified Manhattan in this sparkling modern fairy tale of first love, finding one’s voice and growing up.

*A copy was provided by St….

Review: Speechless by Hannah Harrington

Posted by on 08/14/2012 • 39 Comments

SpeechlessHannah HarringtonPublication date: August 28th 2012by HarlequinTeen

 

Everyone knows that Chelsea Knot can’t keep a secretUntil now. Because the last secret she shared turned her into a social outcast—and nearly got someone killed.Now Chelsea has taken a vow of silence—to learn to keep her mouth shut, and to stop hurting anyone else. And if she thinks keeping secrets is hard, not speaking up when she’s ignored, ridiculed and even attacked is worse.But there’s strength in silence, and in the new friends who are, shockingly, coming her way—people she never noticed before; a boy she might even fall for. If only her new friends can forgive what she’s done. If only she can forgive herself.

*A copy was provided by Harlequin Teen for review purposes*

Can you imagine not…