Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Review: Legend by Marie Lu

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Legend
Marie Lu
Release date: November 29th, 2011

What was once the western United States is now home to the Republic, a nation perpetually at war with its neighbors. Born into an elite family in one of the Republic’s wealthiest districts, fifteen-year-old June is a prodigy being groomed for success in the Republic’s highest military circles. Born into the slums, fifteen-year-old Day is the country’s most wanted criminal. But his motives may not be as malicious as they seem.

From very different worlds, June and Day have no reason to cross paths – until the day June’s brother, Metias, is murdered and Day becomes the prime suspect. Caught in the ultimate game of cat and mouse, Day is in a race for his family’s survival, while June seeks to avenge Metias’s death. But in a shocking turn of events, the two uncover the truth of what has really brought them together, and the sinister lengths their country will go to keep its secrets.

Im such a sucker for dystopians. I love the energy; the rush I get from them. When I got a hold of an ARC of Legend I was thrilled. Now I know I had a good reason to. This is one of the good ones. A dystopian well worth reading!

We’ve got two narrators: the notorious criminal, Day, and the noble citizen, though a little rebellious, June. Day has escaped death before, and he’s only trying to survive while taking care of his family, especially his sick brother. June got a perfect score on her Trial and she’s trying to get revenge for her brother’s death. Their paths cross and the story takes hold in the most unprecedented way.

I truly enjoyed both of these narrators equally – which rarely happens. They both have great characteristics that make each POV really interesting and addicting. I couldn’t wait to find out how their situations would play out. It was brilliant. We go through the story on both sides, night and day, and we’re persuaded to root for each of them the all the same. It was original and well thought out.

The plot was typical dystopian; the world is completely changed and a new government has taken over, and they may or may not have everyone’s best interest at heart *cough*. The reason for the present peril and what happened to the world wasn’t explained as much as I would have liked. I hope the next instalments discloses more details. We did get enough to still make sense of it and enjoy the story, though.

It was fast paced, which is always welcome in this type of book. There were no slow or boring parts, and it also didn’t go in the direction I imagined it would. Which is great because it took me off guard and kept me really glued to the story.

This is another one not to miss, folks!

You will have a chance to enter to win this ARC starting tonight. Open internationally.


4/5 hot espressos


Freebie!

Posted by on 09/21/2011 • 2 Comments

Anathema by K.A. Tucker is currently free on Smashword.

Evangeline has spent her teenage years in obscurity. Her foster parents have the emotional aptitude of robots and her classmates barely acknowledge her existence. About to turn eighteen and feeling like a social pariah, she is desperate to connect with someone. Anyone. When Evangeline meets Sofie after literally stumbling upon her café, she believes she’s found that connection. Willing to do anything to keep it, she accepts a job as Sofie’s assistant and drops everything to fly to Manhattan, where she is thrust into a luxurious world of Prada, diamonds, and limitless cash. With such generosity and kindness, it’s easy for Evangeline to dismiss certain oddities . . . like Sofie’s erratic and sometimes violent behavior, and the monstrous guard dogs. She’s…

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WoW (2)

Posted by on 09/21/2011 • 24 Comments

Waiting on Wednesday Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event that is hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine and spotlights upcoming releases that we’re eagerly anticipating.  My pick this week:                                    Dark Companion                                    Marta Acosta                                    Release date: June, 2012 

When foster teen Jane Williams is invited to attend elite Birch Grove Academy for Girls and escape her violent urban neighborhood, she thinks the offer is too good to be true. She’s even offered her own living quarters, the groundskeeper’s cottage in the center of the birch grove. Something’s not quite right about the school — or is it Jane? She thinks she sees things in the birch grove at night. She’s also beginning to suspect that the elegant headmistress and her sons are hiding secrets. Lucky is the gorgeous, golden son who…

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Review: Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher

Posted by on 09/20/2011 • 11 Comments

Thirteen Reasons WhyJay AsheyFirst published October 18th, 2007

Clay Jensen returns home from school to find a mysterious box with his name on it lying on his porch. Inside he discovers cassette tapes recorded by Hannah Baker—his classmate and crush—who committed suicide two weeks earlier.

On tape, Hannah explains that there are thirteen reasons why she decided to end her life. Clay is one of them. If he listens, he’ll find out how he made the list.

I absolutely loved this book. What an eye opener. In Thirteen Reasons Why we listen to audio tapes that was sent to 13 people by Hannah who committed suicide, to explain her reasons why.

First I want to mention that to all the reviewers who say that her reasons weren’t “good…

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Review: Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi

Posted by on 09/20/2011 • 15 Comments

Shatter Me (Shatter Me, #1)Tahereh MafiRelease date: November 15th, 2011

Juliette hasn’t touched anyone in exactly 264 days. The last time she did, it was an accident, but The Reestablishment locked her up for murder. No one knows why Juliette’s touch is fatal. As long as she doesn’t hurt anyone else, no one really cares. The world is too busy crumbling to pieces to pay attention to a 17-year-old-girl. Diseases are destroying the population, food is hard to find, birds don’t fly anymore, and the clouds are the wrong color.The Reestablishment said their way was the only way to fix things, so they threw Juliette in a cell. Now so many people are dead that the survivors are whispering war- and The Reestablishment has changed its mind. Maybe Juliette…

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Review: Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs

Posted by on 09/19/2011 • 4 Comments

Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar ChildrenRansom RiggsFirst published June 7th, 2011

A mysterious island.An abandoned orphanage.A strange collection of very curious photographs.It all waits to be discovered in Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, an unforgettable novel that mixes fiction and photography in a thrilling reading experience. As our story opens, a horrific family tragedy sets sixteen-year-old Jacob journeying to a remote island off the coast of Wales, where he discovers the crumbling ruins of Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children. As Jacob explores its abandoned bedrooms and hallways, it becomes clear that the children were more than just peculiar. They may have been dangerous. They may have been quarantined on a deserted island for good reason. And somehow—impossible though it seems—they may still be alive. A spine-tingling fantasy…

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Review: White Cat by Holly Black

Posted by on 09/19/2011 • 5 Comments

White Cat (Curse Workers, #1)Holly BlackFirst published January 1st, 2010

Cassel comes from a family of curse workers — people who have the power to change your emotions, your memories, your luck, by the slightest touch of their hands. And since curse work is illegal, they’re all mobsters, or con artists. Except for Cassel. He hasn’t got the magic touch, so he’s an outsider, the straight kid in a crooked family. You just have to ignore one small detail — he killed his best friend, Lila, three years ago.Ever since, Cassel has carefully built up a façade of normalcy, blending into the crowd. But his façade starts crumbling when he starts sleepwalking, propelled into the night by terrifying dreams about a white cat that wants to tell him something….

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In My Mailbox (1)

Posted by on 09/19/2011 • 8 Comments

“In My Mailbox” is a meme, created by Kristi at The Story Siren, that features books I’ve received/purchased/borrowed during the current week. This is my very first IMM post. Hurrah! This week, I have received for review:      I have gotten from giveaways:        This is it for this week. I have not purchased any this week. I’ve been too busy to shop *gasp*. Yes, it is true. 🙁 What’s in your mailbox this week?

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