Angela's September Recap

Angela’s September Reads

-Throne of Glass- Sarah J. Maas
-Crown of Midnight- Sarah J. Maas
-Heir of Fire- Sarah J. Maas
-White Hot Kiss- Jennifer L. Armentrout
-Hex Hall- Rachel Hawkins
-Demon Glass- Rachel Hawkins
-Midnight Thief- Livia Blackburne
-Anywhere- Jon Robinson
-Nowhere- Jon Robinson
-Altered- Jennifer Rush
-Erased-Jennifer Rush
-Vault of Dreamers- Caragh M. O’Brien
-The Winner’s Curse- Marie Rutkoski
-The Winner’s Crime- Marie Rutoski (ARC)
-Forsaken- Lisa Stasse
-Rush-Eve Silver
-Infinite Sea- Rick Yancey
-Rot and ruin- Jonathan Mayberry (I am currently broken up with Rot and Ruin and have placed it in the friend zone for now.)


My top choice(s) for September are…. Drum roll please!.. Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas and Rush by Eva Silver. I’m only going to post my review Crown of Midnight right now and then in October I’ll schedule my review Rush.  September was a hard month to pick a top choice because I loved almost everything I read, but these two books had standout performances.


September Favorite- Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas
So Crown of Midnight!!!! WOW... JUST WOW!

I can't… I can't even speak. This book deserves more than Ten Stars!!!

Crown of Midnight is the second installment of the Throne of Glass series (rumor is there are going to be six books in total; yes I did squeal after saying that). In no way, shape, or form did I think I would love this series as much as I do. I had the first book on my TBR list for months! I finally caved in after seeing so many of my fellow blogger going on and on about this series. (I may or may not have finished all three books in one weekend.) After reading the first one I was worried the second one wouldn’t live up. In my review of TOG I said how much I liked Celaena; because I do, but I also mentioned that I thought that something was missing. I now know what that is; because I got it in this book. I wanted more from Celaena, more fighting, more of her story, more badassassin. THANK YOU SARAH MAAS for giving me everything I wanted and more in a book. This book picks up where the first one ended Celaena has won the title of champion (trust me that isn’t a spoiler) and is about to start her contract with the King to be his assassin (which of course opens up the door and lets in all the crazy). Oh and yeah were talking about the same king that threw her in the salt mines in now her boss… or so he thinks. Celaena has a mission of her own, because we all know from book one NO MAN tells her what to do. (As Leah and I like to say she’s all “Swords before lords and daggers before swagger”)  She’s not the only one with her own agenda Chaol and Dorian are not far behind her.  Celaena really steps up her BA game, ya girl is kicking A and taking names. I don’t want to give away to much because this is a 2014 must read, but Celaena may or may not reach her breaking point and start cracking skulls. There are so many amazing twist and turns and the ending with have you flipping over furniture and calling a clean up on aisle five from having your mind blown.

10/10 Stars

-Angela 

Leah's September Recap

-Black City by Elizabeth Richards

-Throne of Glass by Sarah Maas

-Crown of Midnight (Throne of Glass #2) by Sarah Maas

-Mortal Danger by Ann Aguirre

-Infinite Sea by Rick Yancey

-Trial by Fire by Josephine Angelini

-Alienated by Melissa Landers

-Hex Hall by Rachel Hawkins

-Demonglass (Hex Hall #2) by Rachel Hawkins

-Winner's Curse by Marie Rutkoski

-Forest of Hands and Teeth

-Pawn by Aimee Pawn

-Uninvited by Sophie Jordan

-Phoenix (Black City #2) by Elizabeth Richards**

**This book has a star beside it because I am in the middle of it, but temporarily broke up with it so I could start another. I promise I'll come back and finish it later!!

So in upcoming months we will post book reviews as we finish them and then at the end of the month we'll post our monthly book haul recap. Since we didn't start the blog until almost the end of this month, we're going to do it a little differently then we will in the future. This month we're are just going to post our list and then in the next few weeks we'll back track and post reviews for September books on here. BUT at the end of all of our monthly book haul recap posts we will crown the winner of our favorite book of that month!

Also, Angela and I will do separate posts with our individual book recaps because with the amount of books we each read... Well, it would be a ridiculously long post if we tried to cram it all together. So y'all get a special treat of getting an individual post from each of us that shows our own person tastes! Enjoy!

September's Favorite Book-

This was a really hard decision for me because I was really torn between two books, but one book stood out so much that there was no way I couldn't pick it.

Infinite Sea by Rick Yancey

This is the sequel to the 5th Wave that came out last year, and I am not exaggerating when I say it is absolutely amazing. If you liked 5th Wave then you will LOVE this book. Rick Yancey took me to a darker place than the first book but I enjoyed it so, SO much more. Like the 5th Wave, the book switches perspectives with each section.

The biggest difference is that the character Ringer is a huge part of this book. A lot of the book is from her perspective so you really get a good look at her back story (her family, how she earned her nickname, etc.) and it really helps you appreciate her character and what she brings to the table. Zombie, Poundcake, Nugget (Sam), Teacup, Vosch, Evan, and of course Cassie are still big parts of this book as well. There are a few new characters that are introduced (one word: Razor.. OMG) that completely help this book go from awesome to AMAZING.

I sat down intending to only read a few chapters but ended up finishing the whole thing in about 3hours. It is so action packed and the ending......... holy cow. That ending. I was in tears and in shock and just O M G. It is one of the best endings I have ever read in a book. The fact that I have to wait almost an entire year to get book year 3 and get some resolutions makes me want to throw myself on the floor and have a freak out. GO BUY THIS BOOK RIGHT NOW.


Stay tuned for a post about what I have coming up in October. It's going to be an extra special month for sure. :-) Can't wait to share it with y'all.

#MCM Book Boyfriends Edition

Since we are equal opportunity bloggers, we knew we had to do something for the fellas since we have our Wednesday feature of #WCW Author Edition. What better way to celebrate guys than to talk about our favorite book boyfriends!

This week's featured book boyfriend is Daemon Black from Jennifer L. Armentrout's Lux Series. If you have read ANYTHING we have written you know how much we adore JLA's writing. She has this amazing skill to put onto paper what you imagine to be your dream guy.... and let me tell you, she outdid herself with Daemon. (insert: extreme swooning)

Daemon starts out as a total D in the books, but you don't even care. His bad attitude just makes you want to know more about him and why he acts the way he does. He is beautiful on a galactic level (get it? Cuz he's an alien?). Black hair. Green eyes. A body sculpted by little baby Jesus and the angels themselves. Imagine all your hopes and dreams, what pizza taste like, and the first time you heard the Beatles combined... THAT WHAT DAEMON BLACK IS!

The more you get to know Daemon the more you love him. Once you get past his tough outer core, you get to this deeply emotional and romantic guy who has had some pretty awful stuff happen to his family which is why he acts the way he does. He is still snarky and has a bad attitude sometimes but his man-strating is worth it once you realize that he will literally burn down entire cities for your love. His love and sarcasm level are out of this world.

And let's not even get into the scandy scenes. Seriously, I don't know how JLA does it, but she can write things and imply things that make your whole body blush without even really saying what they are doing. Her books should come with a bottle of water and a small portable fan, they are that hot.There were times during this series where we felt like we needed to put down the book and promptly walk straight into the ocean to cool off. We can't even look at cookies the same after her writing.

If you haven't read the Lux series then you NEED to go read them now! Seriously, go. You will thank us later.

<3 A&L

Trial by Fire by Josephine Angelini

When I saw this book in Barnes and Noble, I knew I HAD to buy it. I love witch books and I loved the idea of this one. Let me repeat that statement:
  I loved the idea of this one.

The main character is named Lily and she lives in Salem, MA. She is a pretty dorky girl who has severe allergies to the point where pretty much being alive causes her to have an allergic reaction to something. On top of being the sick girl in high school, her home life isn't much better. Her mom is crazy (like legitimately), her dad is a no show who dipped out when things started getting weird with her mom but refuses to officially divorce in order to avoid having to take care of his kids, and an older sister who tries to be as present as she can but goes to school out of town. Lily has had a friend named Tristan her whole life. As boys do, Tristan went off to camp one summer looking normal and came back after some major growth spurts looking super handsome. Since then, Tristan has became an infamous player in Salem.. But despite his new found popularity, he has always stuck by Lily.

Lily has crushed on him since forever and finally one night Tristan takes it to the next level... He makes a pass at her and kisses her. Cue confusion on her part if they are in a relationship. He holds her hand when they go to school and he even invited her out to a party (despite her being allergic to the world). So after some drama at home with her mom and sister, she dolls herself up and goes to this party against every one's better judgement. As soon as Tristan picks her up, he starts criticizing her hair and clothes (she straightened her naturally curly hair and wore a cute dress vs. jeans and a tshirt). It doesn't get much better from there.

They go to this party and immediately she is bothered by the smoke. Tristan leaves Lily with his friend because he has a "situation" to deal with an ex girlfriend and wants to diffuse it before she causes a scene. The guy that he leave her with ends up spiking her drink (AFTER he was told she is allergic to alcohol) and then tries to put the moves on her. Obviously she gets super upset and feels herself on the verge of a big allergic reaction due to the alcohol. She goes looking for Tristan and busts in on him and his ex getting it on right before she hits for the floor and has a seizure and starts hearing some weird voice in her head. After she gets home and everything gets okay, her and Tristan have this huge blow out because he never promised her exclusivity (what a D, amiright?) and he did nothing wrong with his ex. She gets super upset and goes to have an emo moment on some rocks by the sea by her house.

She hears this voice asking if she is ready to go yet and she is all like "yeah why not everything here sucks." So she gets transported to this alternate world by another version of herself who goes by Lillian and is a super powerful witch who wreaks havoc over the town of Salem. The Salem she is transported to is a mix of futuristic and historical. It is mostly old school, but they are advanced in some things because science is completely banned and witchcraft is the only way to do things. So anyway, Lily meets Lillian and freaks out.

Long story and some spoilers later, Lily meets Rowan who used to be Lillian's boo and her healer guy before she did some really awful stuff to him. I'll spare you the rest of the story and just say I really did not care for this book. Rowan goes through some truly awful things, so instead of being able to focus on the plot or any love situations that could be blooming, I just felt so bad for him. I thought all the characters were awful towards him and just found myself angry for the majority of the book because of this poor dude. I probably wouldn't have even finish this book if I wasn't so invested in his well being, but the ending made me even more mad. Grrrr Josephine Angilini!

 I will say that one element that I think could have really helped this book would have been if there would have been flashbacks to Lily's old world to see what is going on with her family and friends since she is obviously missing. I'm sure that will be covered in the coming sequel, but I won't be reading it.

Unfortunately it seems that most books (ok, all books I've read so far) that are published by Fierce Reads are either really low stars or I couldn't finish. I guess I'll take that as a sign and try and avoid authors under this publisher in the future. So.... if you made it this far, save yourself some dollars and skip this one. There are a lot of other good witch books out there that put this one to shame!

3/5 stars

-Leah

The Winner's Crime: Marie Rutkoski

"I leap without feet to land, my cloth head is filled with sand. I have no wings, yet try to fly... what am I?"...
The second and dramatic second book two of The Winner's Curse series perhaps mmmmm.....

I was very, very lucky to get an Arc of The Winner's Crime. This book is set to come out March, 2015.

I know that when it comes to reading books I only care about one true thing, and that is how the book ends. I REPEAT: IT'S ALL ABOUT THAT ENDING! Doesn't matter if it's the first book or last book in a series. If you don't bring a strong ending then don't let the door hit ya where the good lord split ya... The thing Marie Rutkoski doesn't disappoint on is book endings. The Winner's Crime is no different.

TWC starts off where the first book left off. Krestle is still set to marry the Valoria's crown prince in an ever so awk marriage arrangement. She's still struggling between what is right and what is wrong; who to trust and where her true alliance lies. (Even I still don't know whose side I'm on). Marie Rutkoski isn't just skilled at book ending she's amazing at dropping oh so subtle hints that are usually closely followed by "WTF" moments. This book is sprinkled like a cupcake with surprises that I can't wait for you all to get a taste of.

This book is however very much a second book in a trilogy. It has moments that are a little slower. As usual you know that they are there to lay so much ground work for what will be coming in the next book. The thing I love about this story is Krestle isn't at all your usual suspect as far as ya fem heroines go. She isn't a dagger slinging, muscle having, archery shooting wild women. What she has though is something I think we often overlook in stories, and that is brains. Krestle is oozing with smarts. She has a silver tongue and a quick wit that often lets her see things other over look. This make her even more likeable, believable, and more dangerous than most would think. Arin is still a strong, smart, and very likeable leading male in this novel. And yeah he is still as mysterious and grey eyed as in book one (swoon! grey eyes <3333). He also may or may not have several sneaky tricks up his borrowed shirt sleeves.

Something I absolutely loved about this whole novel is the brief and amazing moment Rutkoski has between Krestle and the father she fears she will never be able to impress. The moment is beautiful and is written to perfection. The thing I really craved was more Arin and Krestle moments. This one didn't have as many as I hope for BUT I'm hoping it's because book three will be overflowing with steamy star-crossed lover-ness and I can be super giddy and heart eyed  that whole book. I just want to shake them both and scream "come on and get together already and make beautiful piano playing babies!". Still the main thing I have to say about this book is THE ENDING THE ENDING THE ENDING!!! IT IS PERFECT, and is worth some of the more book building moments, and slower paced scenes. I have NO doubt that the ending of this series will knock my socks off. Add this series to you TBR list.

8/10 Stars 

-Angela

Hex Hall #1 & #2 Reviews

I decided to just do these two reviews together since they are in the same series, but beware of spoilers!

Hex Hall by Rachel Hawkins

This series has been out for a while, but I had never heard of it until I read Rebel Belle by Rachel Hawkins (we'll write a review on that book later... OMG just wait). I loved Rachel's writing style so much that I searched for other books she has written and came across the Hex Hall series. OMG. I loved it.

The book follows Sophie Mercer who part witch and part human. She lives with her mom (human) and never has met her dad (warlock) and she comes into her powers when she is a young teen. Since coming into her powers she has caused a lot of havoc and her and her mom have moved around a LOT in order to get away from the trouble she has caused. Finally after something pretty big happens which she caused with her powers, she gets word from her dad that she is being sent to this school called Hectate off the coast of Georgia. Hectate (affectionately called Hex Hall by the students) is like a reform school for bad prodigium (witches, faeries, and shapeshifters/werewolves). Of course Sophie has all sorts of misadventures when she goes to Hex Hall, starting with her being roomed with the school's only vampire, Jenna. Some crazy stuff goes down during the semester she is there including students dying, Sophie learning more about her dad's side of the family, and a coven of witches that wants Sophie to join them so they can do some dark magic. Of course any YA book would be incomplete without a hottie and in this book his name is Archer. He is handsome and sassy, but also a nice guy. He and Sophie grow close despite his awful girlfriend. The book ends on a cliffhanger with some major plot twists happening right before. This book was really funny and a good light read for the most part but also had a lot of dark themes going with it. Rachel Hawkins is one of my favorite authors because she can major you cry from laughing and then in the next chapter kill off basically everyone and leave you feeling WTF. I love it. I did only give this book 4/5 stars despite really enjoying the twist and the story overall. It just didn't give me all the feels I needed for five stars.

4/5 stars

Demonglass (Hex Hall #2) by Rachel Hawkins

So this book is the sequel to Hex Hall and picks up a little bit after the first book left off. Archer is gone rogue and is off the map after revealing his connection with the Eye. Sophie is wanting to go through the Removal after finding out that she is actually half demon (not witch). She finally gets to meet her dad (only like 16 years later... Thanks, dad, no rush) and is jetted off to London with him, Jenna, and Cal to spend the summer with him. On their arrival, she finds out that they are actually spending the summer at HQ and she is going to going through some training with dear old dad so she can learn how to handle her powers since he won't agree to her going through the Removal (her being a minor and him being the head of the council and all). She meets some more half demons like her and some crazy stuff happens. All I'm going to say is that there is a definite love triangle in this one (which the other one lacked) but I'm not even mad about it because I am totally #teamCal in this book. The one thing I HATED was how Sophie is so hung up on Archer that she really wouldn't even give Cal a chance, but the heart wants what the heart wants. There are a lot of plot twists in this book and the series takes some weird turns that I didn't see coming. You really get a lot of information about her family and her family's past. Sophie matures a lot in this one and has to make some tough decisions. The ending is super nuts and had me FREAKING out. It leaves it on a major cliffhanger and you'll definitely be trying to get your paws on the third book ASAP. I love witches and witchcraft themed YA books, and this series definitely is at the top of my favorite series list. I haven't read the third book yet, but it is in my next book haul and I am so anxious to see what happens. If you are a fan of Rachel Hawkins and other witchy books (like Hexed) then you'll love this one.

5/5 stars

Maze Runner Movie Review

Haven’t seen The Maze Runner movie yet??!! Loved the books yet contemplating if your love will carry over to the soon to be movie trilogy… Have no fear Leah and I are here with all the skinny on the book to movie.

Much like the Divergent movie it was a film that you know you're going to go in to comparing with the book, but you just need to keep an open mind and try to remember one is a movie and one is the book. Another thing is that it was just around two hours long and should have been two and a half hours with them adding those tiny little extras that would have really take this movie to the next level. There were so pretty big and some small changes from the book. A few I noticed were these…

 • Thomas starts to remember things from his past almost right away. He smacks his head against the ground and wham he remembers the past and starts having flashbacks. It even shows him flashing back to being in the lab with Teresa and speaking with the Creators, when in the book that comes way later.
 • In the book the serum to save people from the stings is kind of taken for granted and even though it’s not readily available they do have it. To keep from using it they just keep from the grievers.
• Teresa doesn’t spend like anytime in a coma. (side-note: she is probably the only person I didn’t like who they choose to play her. She basically is like Kristen Stewart's cousin).
 • A device which Minho and Thomas take from a Griever they kill helps them find the Grievers entrance and unlocks hidden parts of the maze. There is no cliff to jump off either.
 • Teresa and Thomas aren’t telepathic
 • In the movie Alby and Thomas get along fairly well, which I didn’t really like. Alby didn't nearly come off as the BA leader that he does in the book.
 • Minho is more of a BA in the movie than in the book. (which we approve of). They left out the scene where Minho tries to make Thomas the Keeper of the Runners which I really thought would've added to the film.
 • The maze is constructed of 8 marked areas each which open up on different days. The patterns in the maze are different and the codes the kids need to use to escape is found in the numbers of the areas rather than the words spelled out by the maze over a long period of time. This did as far as watching the movie make it easier to follow.
 • There weren’t as many Griever attacks in the movie as there were in the book. Probably do to time constraints. Instead of them just taking kids here and there when they came they came hard. They were super scary too. I (Leah) kind of envisioned them in the book to be like robotic cow things whereas in the movie they are these robotic spider Predator creatures.
 • Gally takes over as the leader for a quick little minute. (side note- Gally's eyebrows are on point the whole movie. Why can't my eyebrows naturally arch like that?)
 • AND THE BIGGEST DIFFERENCE… THE ENDING!!! I don’t want to give away all the spoils but there were so big chunks of the ending missing.

But the good news is that there has been such a good turn out for the movie that The Scorch Trials already has a premiere date. Don't make any plans for September 18, 2015!

And if you needed any convincing whether you should see the movie or not... Well, I'm just going to leave this here:



Dylan O'Brien

<333
-A & L

Q&A

We thought it would be really cool to do a question and answer session with each other since our blog is brand new and y'all don't know anything about us besides the fact that we are raving fangirls. Hopefully this will give y'all a little more insight on our personalities and the types of books we read/will be reading.

 Q&A Session w/ Leah

 1. Favorite book/series? So hard to choose just one! I can narrow it down to my top three: Lux by Jennifer Armentrout, Divergent by Veronica Roth, and Shatter Me by Tahreh Mafi

 2. Favorite character? Juliette Ferrars from Shatter Me. She is such a BA lady as she grows into herself and her powers as the series goes on.

 3. Least favorite book/series? Forest of Hands and Teeth. I wrote a scathing review of this book on my GR account. UGH HATED IT SO MUCH.

 4. How many books do you read per week on average? Usually between 3-7 depending on what else I have going on. My social calendar isn't normally full so it's usually more towards the higher end :-)

5. Favorite genre of books? YA obviously... But more specifically I LOVE anything vampire and I am also really starting to enjoy fantasy

 6. Least favorite genre of books? I know it's not technically a genre, but zombies. They just don't really do it for me. I have had Rot and Ruin sitting on my bookshelf for months and just can't bring myself to read it.

 7. Favorite book cover? The Mara Dyer books!! I also have them set as my phone background because they are SO beautiful.

 8. Who is your #1 book boyfriend? CAN'T CHOOSE. I have a three way tie between Daemon Black, Aaron Warner, and Noah Shaw. Those three are in a category all of their own. SWOON. ALL THE FEELS.

 9. Favorite book villain? Aaron Warner!! He is so dastardly in the first few books but turns out AMAZING. Love him and his skinny tie self.

 10. Why did you want to start a blog? I've always loved writing. I remember my 5th grade teacher telling me how I had a way with words and I should do something with it. Well, what better way to use my skills than by reviewing and talking about the things I love most.. BOOKS!

 11. Biggest IRL phobia? Heights. I seriously can't even get on a ladder without getting dizzy.

 12. Do you have any pets? I have 3 wonderful puppies. Lily, Herschel, and Dooley. Rescuing animals is something I feel strongly about, particularly pit bull rescue. One of the favorite things to describe myself as is a Pit Bull Mom!

 13. Favorite book to movie adaptation? This is an easy one even though all of the movies aren't out yet... The Hunger Games. The way it has been adapted to screen is amaze-balls. I credit the HG to being one of the top books that got me so into the YA genre so it holds an extra special place in my heart. I CANNOT wait for the last two movies to come out.

 Q&A Session w/Angela

 1. Favorite book/series? Lux by JLA. All I have to say is one word....... ALIENS

 2. Favorite character? Wren from Reboot. She is so BA, and like Wren I feel no feelings.

 3. Least favorite book/series? The Matched series! I have never been so bored in my life! We are never ever ever getting back together.

 4. How many books do you read per week on average? 4/7. I'm not the biggest social butterfly and I suffer from insomnia so I tend to have lots of free reading time.

 5. Favorite genre of books? Dystopian/Aliens (seriously it should be it's own genre)

 6. Least favorite genre of books? Historical fantasy

 7. Favorite book cover? Mara dyer.. Also my phone background because #twinning

 8. Who is your #1 book boyfriend? DAEMON BLACK <33333333 If by now you don't know who Daemon Black is then YOU AREN'T DOING LIFE RIGHT! and Aaron Warner. They truly are in a group all of their own.
 
9. Favorite book villain? Its a tie between Aaron Warner and Sebastian from Mortal Instruments

10. Why did you want to start a blog? For the love of YA duh! Oh and being able to connect with people though books.

11. Biggest IRL phobia? Having my organs harvested while being awake... thanks Unwind!

12. Do you have any pets? yup one pup named Shellie, googly eyes everywhere<3

13. Favorite book to movie adaptation? I know that saying Harry Potter would be a total cop out so I'm going too so I'll say Mortal Instruments (yeah I'm one of those fans) or Fault in Our Stars (again one of those fans judge all you want I'll just shake it off).

Black City... Black Black City

So this is my review of Black City by Elizabeth Richards. (You're welcome from the earbug in the title, by the way.)

I didn't really know what to expect from this book going into it other than being told not to judge it by the first ten pages or so. That being said, seriously, don't judge this book by the first few pages. When I read them, I thought to myself "WTF am I reading?" But it totally gets better, trust me.

This book follows Natalie who is the Emissary's (like the governor of their "state") daughter and Ash who is a twin blood Darkling (basically a vamp) and their journey of insta-love and bringing down the government in true YA fashion. I enjoyed the two main characters for the most part. Ash is pretty BA is his hot vampy way who is a Haze (vamp venom) dealer. Basically he is the bad boy from the wrong side of the tracks.  Natalie is also pretty awesome because she basically says EFF ALL THIS and does what she thinks is right in most situations.

Anyway, so these peeps live in this city called Black City which is basically this city that has a huge wall down the middle dividing the living people from the Darklings (or Darkwing ducks as we like to affectionately call them). Their country is ruled by this guy name Purian Rose who thinks he is all YEEZUS and is basically trying to eliminate all the Darklings and all other sinful things. The plot twist (not a spoiler) is that Ash isn't fully a Darkling. He is a half blood which means his human dad hooked up with his vampy mom and they made this cute little half human/half Darkling thing. It's way more complicated than my explanation but I'd give away some major spoilers if I went too indepth.

Natalie has some pretty awful things happen to her family which causes them to move away for a while and eventually come back to Black City after this big war and the death of her dad. Natalie's mom (the Emissary) makes her go to this public school which is LIKE OMG AWFUL to set an example of her daughter going to school with common folk. Really though her mom is a total B and gets worse as the story goes along (no spoiler). She has this could-be hottie guard who is basically her body guard and has to follow up around every where, but he is a major jerk and to add insult to injury they used to date so now it's just totally awkward. So Natalie makes friends with this really sweet girl named Day who basically shows her how the blue collar people live and brings her down to earth a bit. Day also used to date this druggy dredlock hippie named Beetle (yes, Beetle) who is best friends with Ash. Day and Beetle broke up and now Day hates Ash. Well, of course this means that Natalie an Ash totally have to date. Cue lots of drama. Add in the fact that there is another war brewing between the humans and Darklings, so you know all that is going to happen when the story is taking place. I'm completely over simplifying the story on all of this because I'd have to give away a lot of spoilers to tell y'all what really happens. Let me just say go buy this book and read it for yourself because some cray stuff goes on. For real.

I will say this book had one of the biggest WTF twists that I've read so far this year. Most of the other "twists" I was able to figure out at least somewhat what as going to happen, but there is one BIG one that completely caught me off guard. After it happened I was like "well, that complicates things..." That alone boosts my rating of the book up.

There were some parts that were a little snoozefest for me, but it mostly had to do with the instalove and cheesy romance that comes with it. Normally I don't mind the insta-love, but this one came on a little thick in the I WILL SACRIFICE EVERYTHING FOR YOU way. Especially after the big twist, I was like "I bet you guys wish you would've thought all that through a little more, huh?!" I will say Evangeline was one of my favorite characters (I love a character who you can't figure out if they are good or evil) and cannot wait for her to reappear in later books.

The ending was a little strange to me as well. It goes from ZOMG GONNA DIE to Oh ok, cool not gonna die really quickly which I thought was a little bizarre. I texted Angela and was like "this chick is like the Mockingjay." Trust me, you'll get it and think the same thing with the end... even down to their version of President Snow coming and dropping threats and leaving weird presents. It left it wide open for the rest of the series to develop, so I am really excited to start the next two books.

All in all, not a bad read. Not my favorite book I've read, but I think the series has a lot of potential. I am a sucker for vampire books (pun intended) so I love the darkness the story has. I plan on starting the second book in the series Phoenix tomorrow, so stayed tuned for the review in a few days.

4/5 stars
-Angela

#WCW Author Edition

So since we are social media whores we thought it would be totes cute to do a #wcw for our favorite lady authors! This post has potential spoilers, so beware! 

1. Jennifer L. Armentrout: Anything JLA writes is gold to us. We would basically read her grocery list and love it, as Angela once put it. The way she builds her characters and brings the romance in a not so cheesy way is so awesome. She makes you feel all the feels with the hotties while also giving you action, drama, and humor as well. She could make a Gargoyle eating cookie dough sound hot, we know this because she has. She is the total package as far as we are concerned. She is our #1 person to meet at YALLFest this year and the person we are most likely to stalk at the RT convention. We even ordered Lux themed t-shirts to wear so we can fangirl out with her!
Favorite books: Lux series and White Hot Kiss.

2. Tahreh Mafi: Seriously, have you looked at this lady? First of all, she is beautiful beyond words with a style all her own (what we would give for a shopping spree in her closet). She also wrote one of our favorite series, Shatter Me, and for us took YA to an entirely new level. For me (Leah), I was still a little skeptical about the fantasy portion of YA (the main characters have "powers") and the first book has a very unique writing style... but OMG. This book. It had me laughing and crying and feeling every emotion. By the end of the series I was so worn out emotionally that I had the biggest book hangover that I JUST COULDN'T EVEN. She had me cheering for one character and then broke my heart and then bound it back together and broke it again and then HAD THE BEST ENDING EVER. For me (Angela) I'm a huge lover of poetic one liners and deep metaphors and she is the master of them; so from page one she had me by my heartstrings. She has also written one of my all time favorite character, Kenji. Her book reminds me so much of X-men which is another reason I couldn't get enough. Seriously, how many books have you read that actually make you feel complete at the end? No crazy cliffhangers or unanswered questions (yes we're looking at you, Lauren Oliver). It is so amazing.
 Favorite books: Shatter Me series 

3. Kierra Cass: We had no idea what to expect going into these books. Dystopian novel meets realty TV meets a monarchy? WUT? But as someone smarter than me once said "don't judge a book by its cover" (because we were totally embarrassed to be seen with this princess looking covers at first). This book is so much more than a girl who gets swept into a competition to be queen. It has so much heart break and emotion that I didn't see coming. There are a few side stories too that really tug at your heart (hello guard and Marlee). I hated some characters but by the end LOVED them. She really takes character development to a new all time high. This is another book that had us in tears by the ending.... Didn't see some of those twists coming. We had to order a crane to come in to pick our jaws up off the floor. Kierra has two more books coming out for this series (no publication dates so far) AND I CANNOT WAIT. She is also on our top list to meet at YALLFest. Not to mention she is from Charleston so shout out to our southern lady!!! So please don't judge these books by their semi cheese covers and go out and buy it!
Favorite books: The Selection series 

<3 A&L

The Vault of Dreamers: Caragh M. O'Brien

YAY my first post! (please forgive the puppy fur clinging to my sweater in this picture. Dog owner problems.)

I figured in honor of Leah and I going to the Fierce Read book tour that I would write about one of the books from it.

I finished The Vault of Dreamers by Caragh M. O'Brien and ummm yeah; I don’t really know how I feel about it. It was interesting…. It actually makes me kind of sad to say that because I was so excited about reading it.

Anyways. Tvod is about Forge School the most prestigious arts school in country. It’s not your typical school however because every moment of the students’ lives is televised as part of the insanely popular Forge Show. The students’ schedules are really strict. They have to do twelve hours of induced sleep meant to enhance creativity, along with going to some pretty odd classes. When first year student Rosie Sinclair skips her sleeping pill, she discovers there is something off about Forge. She starts to wonder what’s really going on with the staff and what's happening in the places the cameras aren’t allowed. What’s worse is, she starts to notice that the edges of her consciousness do not feel quite right. She tries to seek help in her friend and semi boyfriend, Linus, but even starts to wonder if she can even really trust him. She starts unearthing the ghastly secrets that the Forge School is hiding and what dreaming truly means there. Sounds amaze right? Cute boys, mystery, and reality TV; sigh all ya girls favorites things.

This story however kind of let me down. I didn’t love the book but I was in love with the concept that it had. This book really didn’t make me feel much of anything. The characters are just okay. Rosie seems like she might be a super strong character later on maybe in book two or three but right now she’s just kind of so/so. Linus seems really adorable, cute, and probably the most likable character in the story, but really that’s about as much as I can say about them. I didn’t really have a special bond or connection with either of them. Come to think of it I don’t really feel like I knew any of the characters. The “twist” at the end was rather predictable for the most part. I will say the little bit of romance that was sprinkled here and there was cute, but nothing to write home about. I also wish the characters (well Rosie) was older. In the story she is fifteen and Linus is seventeen. I wish they were both seventeen because the thought of people watching a fifteen year old dressing REALLY freaks me out (barf).

 This story was lacking some major pazzle. At the end I felt like nothing at all had happened. The ending was also a little confusing and felt crammed along with rushed. This book got a little maze on me and I found myself a tiny bit lost. I mean I guess I got what was happening but at the same time had no idea what was going on (hopefully that makes sense). I would overall say the cover of this book is lovely, the writing style is okay, the concept is swell, but the book fell short in the parts that mattered the most. I would give this book  

4.5/10 stars 

-Angela

Hello, World!

Hello out there! Angela and I have decided to finally combine forces and make a blog to give more in depth reviews of all the books we read. We are both super active on Goodreads (I'll post links to our profiles at some point... still trying to figure out this whole blog thing), so we wanted our own space to dedicate to our love for books.

 What an appropriate day to start a blog. Today, our awesome local bookstore Blue Bicycle (hosts of YALLFest)  hosted The Fierce Reads Book Tour featuring authors Marie Rutkoski (The Winner's Curse), Caragh M. O'Brien (Vault of Dreamers), and Ann Aguirre (Mortal Danger).To be honest, this was my very first book panel/signing so I was beyond excited. The event started at 5:30 so we were having to pull some Fast and the Furious driving to get where we needed to be since we don't get off work until 5pm... BUT WE MADE IT ON TIME! Oh my gosh, what a fun experience. All of the authors were so personable and had the group laughing the entire time. I really enjoyed getting to know them and hearing how each story came into works.

Angela was even awesome enough to thumb wrestle Marie Rutkoski for an ARC of her second book The Winner's Crime!! WHAT. You could probably hear her shriek all over Charleston when she saw the ARC. Needless to say, we had a killer time. I can't wait for Angela to finish the ARC so I can borrow it. Stay tuned for a review!

If you haven't had a chance to read The Winner's Curse, I would definitely recommend it. I'm going to go ahead and say up front that I was NOT a fan of the book at first. I enjoyed the main character but had a lot of problems with how she went about things, and I really didn't like the main guy. Most of all, I HATED the ending. OMG throw the book against the wall HATE. Angela was all like "OMG wasn't that the most romantic ending ever?!?!" I thought she was on crack because we interpreted the ending COMPLETELY different. Luckily we were about to reach out to Marie on Twitter and ask her to settle the score. Unfortunately for me, Angela was right and the ending meant what she thought it meant. This however completely changed the book for me, so I really am looking forward to reading the ARC and also purchasing the book when it comes out.

As far as Vault of Dreamers, I have not had a chance to read it yet. Angela has read it, so maybe she can swoop in and give a review or you can check our her GoodReads review about it. It is on my (neverending) To-Read shelf.

Mortal Danger was sort of a dud for me. I really liked the concept of it except I really hated how it was gone about. The main character basically makes a deal with the devil when she is planning to commit suicide. She is granted three favors, the first she promptly uses to turn herself into a super hot girl. The book landed itself on the Did Not Finish shelf for me. I made it to the half way point (which is the respectable point in which you can break up with a book) and had rolled my eyes so much at all the vanity that I just couldn't anymore. After speaking with the author about how dark the book supposedly finishes, I am re-interested and may have to pick it back up eventually to give it another whirl.

All in all, it was definitely a successful trip. We are really looking forward to YALLFest coming up in November at Blue Bicycle. If anyone out there is planning on attending, leave us a comment so we can see about meeting up! We love new book fangirl/boy friends!

That's all for now, guys. I am going to go try to work on this blog layout stuff (though it may as well be in French) so it looks as pretty as we hope it will. I'm also about halfway through Black City by Elizabeth Richards, so I am hoping to get a review up for that here soon!

-Leah

(I'll be posting a review for The Vault of Dreamers this week -Angela)