Angelas 2014 ReadCap

This is my 2014 end of year Read-cap! I'm pretty sure I forgot a few and that I might have added 1 or 2 from mid-end of last year, it was really hard too keep up with everything. I swear I'll do better next year with keeping track of  everything.  

We have a full post of our top picks, along with the years biggest let downs. 

Click here to see them all. 

Overall 2014 was an amazing year for books, book events, and book to movie adaptions. I'm so excited to start 2015. January first we will have a post up about what's to come for SBSR in 2015. Thank you all so much for making our first year such a success. 

If I have done a review for the books all you'll have to do is click the title and it'll take you straight to the review.

Shatter Me- Tahereh Mafi
Unravel Me- Tahereh Mafi
Ignite Me- Tahereh Mafi
Unite Me- Tahereh Mafi
Half-Blood- Jennifer L Armentrout
Pure- Jennifer L. Armentrout
Deity-Jennifer L. Armentrout 
White Hot Kiss- Jennifer L. Armentrout
Stone Cold Touch- Jennifer L. Armentrout
Obsidian- Jennifer L. Armentrout
Onyx- Jennifer L. Armentrout
Opal- Jennifer L. Armentrout
Origin- Jennifer L. Armentrout
Opposition- Jennifer L. Armentrout
Don't Look Bank- Jennifer L. Armentrout
Wicked- Jennifer L. Armentrout
Wait for You- Jennifer L. Armentrout   

Legend- Marie Lu
Prodigy- Marie Lu
Champion- Marie Lu
The Young Elites- Marie Lu
Hex Hall- Rachel Hawkins
Demon Glass- Rachel Hawkins
Rebel Belle- Rachel Hawkins 

Days of Blood and Starlight- Laini Taylor 
Black City- Elizabeth Richards
Phoenix- Elizabeth Ricahrds
Wings- Elizabeth Ricahrds
Reboot- Amy Tintera
Rebel- Amy Tintera 
Taken- Erin Bowman
Frozen- Erin Bowman
The Hunt- Andrew Fukuda
The Prey- Andrew Fukuda
The Trap- Andrew Fukuda
The Retribution of Mara Dyer- Michelle Hodkins

The Evolution of Mara Dyer- Michelle Hodkins
The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer- Michelle Hodkins 

If I Stay- Gayle Forman
Where She Went- Gayle Forman
Throne of Glass- Sarah J. Maas
Crown of Midnight- Sarah J. Maas
Heir of Fire- Sarah J. Maas
City of Ashes- Cassandra Clare
City of Glass- Cassandra Clare
City of Fallen Angels- Cassandra Clare
City of Lost Souls- Cassandra Clare
City of Heavenly Fire- Cassandra Clare
Nowhere- Jon Robinson
Anywhere- Jon Robinson
Altered- Jennifer Rush
Erased-Jennifer Rush
Hush Hush- Becca Fitzpatrick
Crescendo- Becca Fitzpatrick
Silence- Becca Fitzpatrick
Finale- Becca Fitzpatrick

The Scorch Trials- James Dashner
The Death Cure- Jmaes Dashner
Matched- Ally Condie
Crossed- Ally Condie
Reached- Ally Condie
The Raven Boys- Maggie Stiefvater
The Dream Thieves- Maggie Stiefvater
Blue Lily, Lily Blue- Maggie Stiefvater
The 5th Wave- Rick Yancey
Infinite Sea- Rick Yancey
Never Fade- Alex Bracken
In the Afterlight- Alex Bracken 
Enclave- Ann Aguirre
Cinder- Marissa Meyer
Poison Princess- Kresley Cole
A Thousand Pieces of You- Claudia Gray
The Selection- Kiera Cass
The Elites- Kiera Cass
The One- Kiera Cass 
Panic- Lauren Oliver
Delirium- Lauren Oliver
Pandemonium- Lauren Oliver
Requiem- Lauren Oilver
Before I Fall- Lauren Oilver 

In the End- Demitria Lunetta
In the After- Demitria Lunetta 
Rush-Eve Silver
Push- Eve Silver
The Winner’s Curse- Marie Rutkoski
The Winner’s Crime- Marie Rutkoski 
Siege and Storm- Leigh Bardugo
Ruin and Rising- Leigh Bardugo
Shadow and Bone- Leigh Bardugo 
The Lover's Dictionary- David Levithan
Every Day- David Levithan
Dust Lands- Moria Young
Rebel Heart- Moira Young
Rising Star- Moira Young
Filthy 1-Megan D. Martin
Filthy 2-Megan D. Martin
Filthy 3- Megan D. Martin
Filthy 4- Megan D. Martin
Pawn- Aimee Carter
Captive-Aimee Carter  

The Chaos of Stars- Kiersten White
Beautiful Bastard- Christina Lauren
Under Different Stars- Amy Bartol
Fire in the Woods- Jennifer M. Eaton
The 100- Morgan Kass
Wallbanger- Alice Clayton
Unteachable- Leah Raeder
The Ring and the Crown- Melissa de la Cruz
Mystic City- Theo Lawrence
The Program- Suzanne Young
These Broken Stars- Amie Kaufman &  Megan Spooner
Beg- C.D Reiss
The Black Mage- Rachel E. Carter
The Jewel- Amy Ewing
Born at Midnight- C.C Hunter
NIL- Lynne Matson
All Our Yesterdays- Cristin Terrill
Taboo Unchained- C.M. Stunich 
The Bodies We Wear- Jeyn Roberts 

Take Me Tomorrow- Shannon A. Thompson
So it Goes- Grace Elizabeth Collins 
Moon Tortured- McKenzie Hunter
Falls the Shadow- Stefanie Gaither
Unremembered- Jessica Brody
The Kiss of Deception- Mary E. Pearson
Gravity- Melissa West
Forbidden- Tabitha Suzuma
The Beginning of Everything- Robyn Schneider
Snow Like Ashes- Sara Raasch
Say Her Name- James Dawson
The Girl in Between- Laekan Zea Kemp
Midnight Thief- Livia Blackburne
Vault of Dreamers- Caragh M. O’Brien
Forsaken- Lisa Stasse
Rot and Ruin- Jonathan Mayberry
Unwind- Neal Shusterman
Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea- April G. Tucholke

Under the Never Sky- Veronica Rossi
The Onion Girl- Charles de Lint
Chasers of Light- Tyler Gregson Knott
Will Grayson, Will Grayson- John Green
Paper Towns- John Green
Vampire Academy- Richelle Mead
Alienated- Melissa Landers
The String Quartet- Dan Hupalo
Branded- Abi Ketner
Fire & Flood- Victoria Scott
Labor Day- Joyce Maynard
Winter's Tale- Mark Helprin
The Future of Us- Jay Asher
This is Where I Leave You- Jonatha Tropper
Not a Drop to Drink- Mindy McGinnis
The Murder Complex- Lindsay Cummings
The Taking- Kimberly Derting
We Were Liars- E. Lochart
The Spectacular Now- Tim Tharp

The Book of Ivy- Amy Engel
Unbroken- Laura Hillenbrand
Uninvited- Sophie Jordan
Ugly Love- Colleen Hoover
Maybe Someday- Colleen Hoover 
Everneath- Brodie Ashton
The Truth About Alice- Jennifer Mathieu
Rush- Maya Banks
Fever- Maya Banks 
Burn- Maya Banks 
Keep Me Safe- Maya Banks
Outlander- Diana Gabald
Pushing the Limits- Katie McGarry
Love, Rosie- Cecelia Ahern  
Arclight- Josin L. McQuein
Raw- Belle Aurora 
Love Letters to the Dead- Ava Dellaira

Yup, if you weren't counting, and I doubt you were that was 174 books. 

174 books in one year is insane!!!! In 2015 I'm going to aim to pass that mark... I can not wait to kick off my reading... Just need to figure out what book should be honored with the number one spot. mmmmm choices choices.

My most read author this year was (surprise lol) Jennifer L. Armentrout totaling out with 13. Followed by Cassandra Clare and then Lauren Oliver both with 5. 

My most viewed review was Take Me Tomorrow by Shannon A. Thompson. This book was gifted to me from her. She was so sweet to work with so I'm so glad she got a lot of coverage from it. My next most reviewed posts were both tied in view numbers. Forbidden by Tabitha Suzuma and the other one was kind of a surprise to me and that was Blue Lily, Lily Blue by Maggie Stiefvater.

My Favorite Series that ended this year were The Mara Dyer Trilogy Series, The Lux Series, The Mortal Instruments Series, The Selection Trilogy, and The Shatter Me Trilogy. My favorite starts to series (only one book currently out) were Wicked and Under Different Stars. My favorite ongoing series were The Throne of Glass Series and The 5th Wave Series. Favorite Duology was the Reboot Duo. And Favorite Stand-Alones were Unteachable, Ugly Love, Maybe Someday, Raw, and Forbidden. 

I was going to just pick my top four favorites but clearly that didn't work out too well. Anyways...

Thanks again for making this year one of the best. Fingers-crossed that 2015 is even better! Thank you to everyone that has followed us and all the authors who were so kind to trust their reviews in our hands...

But most of all I would like the thank my Co-Blo (I know you hate that word), my partner in crime, the only person who understand my fangirl, and twin Leah for everything she does! Without her this blog wouldn't be possible because we all know I have no computer skills! 
I can't wait to see what the New Year bring for us! 

  I hope you all have a wonderful New Year!

Love

-Angela

Ugly Love: Colleen Hoover

Ugly Love: Colleen Hoover 

When Tate Collins meets airline pilot Miles Archer, in a drunken blaze of glory, she knows it isn’t love at first sight. But that doesn't stop them from being attracted to one another. Once their desires are out in the open, they realize they have the perfect set-up. He doesn’t want love, she doesn’t have time for it, so that just leaves the sex. This arrangement could really work out for the both of them, as long as Tate can stick to the only two rules Miles has for her: Never ask about the past and don’t expect a future.
They think they can handle it, but realize almost immediately they can’t handle it at all. So where will this leave them..?

HOLY CRAP ON A CRACKER!!!! MY HEART IS SO PERFECTLY BROKEN! I DON'T THINK I TOOK A BREATH THE WHOLE TIME I READ THIS BOOK! WHAT DID YOU DO TO ME COLLEEN HOOVER!!! I HATE YOU BUT I LOVE YOU! YOU RUINED ME AND I CAN'T THANK YOU ENOUGH! 

IF YOU CAN'T GUESS IT BY MY NON STOP CAPS THEN I DON'T KNOW WHAT ELSE TO DO THAN SCREAM "I LOVED THIS BOOK!!!!". 

WOW JUST WOW! I DON'T KNOW HOW OR WHEN I'LL GET OVER THIS BOOK HANGOVER.

Ugly Love was nothing like I expected it to be. I excepted it too be like a 50 Shades of Grey fan fiction with just a butt ton of thrown together steamy scenes... No, it wasn't it was so much more. I knew I was going to like Miles (because he sounded so hot), but I had no idea that I was going to love him. That he was going to have an actual back story... That he was going to be actually interesting in a realistic way... I had no idea he was going to break my heart.

All that being said I have a few bookish confessions to make before I really get into the review, I choose to read this book 1) because I heard it was becoming a movie and if there's anything I love nearly as much as reading it's seeing movies 2) because this is who they have playing Miles:

Yeah I didn't notice the dog at first either...

and 3) I also need to admit that I didn't get what was so appealing about this book that it was actually going to become a movie... I get it now. I get all the hype and talk surrounding this book. I have NEVER, EVER, EVER cried so hard in a book. That's the very last thing I thought this book was going to make me do.

The characters in this book felt so real. Tate was naive and normally that would make me wanna punch a B, in her case it made me love her. Unlike most leading ladies she isn't overly sassy, or has incredible lol rebuttals, she was realistic. Her brother Corbin, OMG CORBIN, I loved every single thing about him. He has to be one of my favorite sub characters ever. He was what I imagined a brother would be and even with him not being a constant character just his presence had me. Then there's Miles and he is hands-down the star of this book. The moment you meet him you hate him. He is a mysterious mess and I thought he was going to annoy me fast. He won me over once they started going into his back story. The further they went into it the more I could feel what was coming... Yes, I knew where this story was going and what was going to happen but in no way, shape, or form was I actually prepared for it. I was a blubbering weeping ball of emotions.

The switch between time and POVs was done flawlessly and revealed the perfect information at the perfect time to keep you hooked and wanting more. Colleen set up this story so at first you would only like Miles because of his looks (which I've already made clear I was guilty of)...

"his shirt isn't buttoned. I'm staring at his stomach. Oh my word he has the V. Those beautiful indentations on men that run the length of their outer abdominal muscles, disappearing beneath their jeans as if the indentations are pointing to a secret bull's-eye."

And yes, he is a looker, but by the end I could have cared less about what he looked like. He could have worn a bag over his abs for the last half of the book and my heart would have still been his. The relationship between Tate and Miles is like nothing I have read before. It was something else that really surprised me about this book. Saying it was complicated would be an understatement. I thought that the steamy scenes were going to take up most of this book, but it didn't... Normally that would be something that would make me rank a book lower, but the scenes were so well written and again realistic. They were well placed and well thought out. Just enough to make this book not "too much" which is what had me falling hard for this read, way harder than I anticipated. The scenes are hot though like dump a bucket of water on your head hot. Miles and Tate's conversations roll so smoothly and the moments between them are so; I don't even know a word for them, they're just perfect (that word really doesn't do justice). Not only is he romantic but he made average things so hot.

Orange juice is hot, rugs are hot, scrubs are hot, and curtains are so so hot. whoosh. 

Honestly though the scenes that turned out to be my favorite were just "average scenes", like when they all go and visit Tate and Corbin's family for Thanksgiving. That whole section had to of been my favorite. I loved how I thought this story was going to be Tate's but turned out to be Miles'. I love how I thought this book was going to be a light sexy read but turned out to be a heartbreaking love story. I just loved how everything came together while falling apart.. Because when all Miles story is finally shown and is laid out in it's fullest I was basically like this...

I want to rant and rave even more about this book, but this is something you really need to read and experience for yourself. Ugly Love might just be the biggest surprise read I've had all year. I can't express enough how impressive the characters, plot, and play out of this story are. I didn't think that this book was going to be so hard on me... And yes, it hurt. And yes, it was a total sobbing fest, but that ending... Good golly miss molly.. That ending was perfection. I don't know if I can ever forgive Colleen Hoover for what she did to me, but God dang it I love her so much for it. I didn't see this coming and I've never been so happy to be emotionally slapped in the face like I was reading this.  

THANK YOU COLLEEN HOOVER! You gave me a book hangover that even the strongest ibuprofen couldn't cure.

*please give her a round of applause people* 

10/10 Stars 

-Angela 

Moon Tortured: McKenzie Hunter

Moon Tortured: McKenzie Hunter

Skylar's death unlike most came at her birth. In a final ditch effort to save her unborn dying child Skylar's mother, a witch, scarifies herself  to get a super shade to inhabit Skylar's body. For twenty-three years, Skylar lived a life of oblivion, content with her simple job, loving adoptive mother and the monthly inconvenience of a full moon hangover after being sedated and caged when she changed into a wolf. After waking up one night in a strange room in Illinois, lacking memory and banged up she's rescued by the mid-west pack. Sounds good and all, but Skylar isn't sure she can really trust them.

I was gifted this book by McKenzie Hunter in exchange for an honest review. 

There are a lot of thing about this book that I liked. Skylar's 23, not an odd age like 15, and that she's a fem werewolf. The start of this book really gets things going. Skylar is attacked by vampires and her adoptive mother is killed. This face paced-ness keeps up through out the book. Skylar is sassy, sarcastic, and nosy all the things I love a leading lady to have. She did start out a tiny on the blah side but did grow to be more loveable. This urban fantasy read has a lot of world building as well. Something I felt a lot of books I've read lately haven't had. The only thing lacking in MT was the romance... Yeah I know, I know not all books need to have a romance to strong. But I felt like when one is sort of introduced that the author so go through with it and I think McKenzie with the writing style she has would write and amazing romance between Skylar and Ethan. I'm hoping as well with the next book that Skylar does branch out a little more and stops being such a lone wolf (pun intended).

Throughout this book I was left wondering who to trust and who not too, which keep this story from being overly predictable. The ending was unexpected and that really what you want out of a story.


6/10 Stars 

-Angela 

Branded: Abi Ketner and Missy Kalicicki

Branded:  Abi Ketner and Missy Kalicicki
Fifty years ago The Commander came into power and murdered all who opposed him. He thinks the seven deadly sins are the downfall of society. To punish the guilty, he created the Hole, a place where sinners are branded on their necks according to their sins. Sinners are sent there to live a less than human existence in deplorable conditions, under the watchful eye of guards who are far from friendly and willing to kill them at any moment.Lexi Hamilton now has LUST wrapped around her neck. She's been accused of a crime she didn’t commit, and was sent to the Hole. She doesn't plan on letting them destroy her.

You know how you're always told to never judge a book by its cover…
Well I’m guilty as charged.

After having several people recommended this book I was a little skeptical about actually reading it because the cover to me was a little cheesy… Oh boy am I eating my words now. I read this book in just a few hours because I was so pulled in by it's story line. I loved the characters, how it flowed, and how different Abi and Missy really made this book. I am a serious lover of all ya/dystopian novels (borderline obsessed if you couldn't guess) and I really think this was such a different and creative spin on the dystopian world and how it could be.

The seven deadly sins is such a unique spin on this ever growing genre. In Branded "sinners" or people accused of sinning are automatically thrown into the Hole and forced to live and work there. When Lexi is accused of LUST she has the same fate as the rest. She is tattooed with a giant blue lace patterned strip around her throat. In the Hole ever color stands for something different.

Lust – blue
Gluttony – orange
Greed – yellow
Sloth – black
Wrath – red
Envy – green
Pride – purple
 
Lexi Hamilton is a character I loved. She is the perfect combination of both fierce and broken. They make it clear from the get go that she hasn't committed the crime she's accused of but where she's from it doesn't matter. Lexi is assigned her own guard, Cole. Clearly her and Cole fall in love. AND IT'S IN THE CUTEST WAY EVER!!! When her and Cole meet all he sees is her brand and treats her the way you think he would... AS A TOTAL D! He also informs her that Blues never last in the Hole. Cole, however, seems to soften and be kind to her and in such a terrible place, as a connection forms between them. She has to rely on him constantly and he literally saves her life, like all the time. As the story goes on we learn Lexi has a terrible background story. When Lexi story unfold it was really hard to read about because it's such a sad tale. She was neglected, starved, abandoned and abused. As Cole and Lexi become closer she tries to find ways she can share the "ugly" parts of herself. After a series of unfortunate events happen he discovers how she really is and the romance beginnings. Branded is a story that relies heavily on the romance, and I aint mad about it. Before I talk more about Cole I guess I should mention that relationships, of course, between guards and sinners is forbidden. So their relationship has to be kept on the DL. SWOON! Forbidden love my fav! 

Cole though... Whoosh! Even with him being a jerk at first you'll still love him. He turns out to be thoughtful, and sweet and HOT! So SO hot. The way he is always kicking butt for Lexi had me swooning all over the place. The sub characters in this book hold their own and one had me in tears (can't give out details because spoils). The setting of this story is described so well and I loved everything about it. Branded does dip a little on the dark side compared to most ya books, but it was something that I liked and it was nice to break the mundane. 

The relationships both romantic and friendly are so intense and well laid out. The thing this book really had going for it was how fast paced it was. From start to finish there is never a dull moment. There is the perfect about of twist and turn that leave you on the edge of your seat. 

Branded surprised me on so many levels and is def at the top of my favorites list. I can't freaking wait till Hunted comes out. 

10/10 Stars 
-Angela

The Selection by Kiera Cass

When I read the description for this book, I knew straight away it was right up my alley. It sounded like a non-reality TV version of pretty much any dating show. 35 girls in a competition to get a handsome young prince? Add in a dystopian world and a few love triangles? Oh yes, this is definitely my kind of book.

So, this girl named America Singer is born into a musical family of a lower caste (the caste system is by numbers in this country) and has just came of age right at the same time the young prince is finally of age to look for a lady. All the girls from the country register in a lottery of sorts and get "randomly" chosen to come to the castle and basically compete for the prince. Sounds awesome right? Well America didn't think so. She already had a guy named Aspen who was even lower and poorer than her family but was super swoon worthy. Because of their differences in the social rankings, they both pretty much knew that being together in the future is a long shot, but they still longed and hoped. America doesn't want to sign up for the lottery, but her family really wants her to (especially her mother who is a little cray) because it really is a good opportunity for the family. You see, whatever girl wins becomes the princess but their whole family gets bumped up to One status (the highest, basically royalty only) which means they are set for life. Even if the girls don't get picked, their families receive a stipend while they are away. Money is money, especially when you're poor.

Anyway, so Aspen thinks America needs to at least enter the picking just so he can say in the future that he didn't hold her back. Well as luck would have it, she actually gets selected. America's pissed, her family is stoked, her and Aspen break up, and her world pretty much falls apart. She goes off to the competition ready to lose but ends up doing really well. The people of the country love her because she is real. She speaks to them and wants to meet them when the opportunity arises. America right away makes a BFF, Marlee, who turns out to be awesome.

America assumes she is going to hate Prince Maxon because of course he is super hot and royal so that automatically means he is going to be stuck up and awful... Only he isn't. And they hit it off really well. The rest is all cake from there, right? Except it's not. It's never that easy because c'mon, this is a YA novel.

 The process of girls getting cut and getting to know the other competitors was pretty enjoyable as well. Their are some bitches and some really sweet girls. The competition is pretty cut throat because some girls have been waiting for this their whole lives. Add in a douchebag king and a sweet queen and you've got some pretty interesting eliminations. By the end of the book the 35 girls are narrowed down to the Elite six, which is where book two picks up.

This was a super quick read for me. I really enjoyed the competition and seeing America change through the book. Where she ends up at the end isn't the same person she was in the beginning. It's a really cute read that I enjoyed. I loved the two sequel books as well. This series ranks in my top trilogies and I am super stoked when the author announced that their was going to be more in the series! Can't wait for The Heir next year

5/5 stars

Don't Look Back by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Have you ever wanted a chance to start over? To erase all of your memories and start life fresh? That's exactly what happens to Samantha Franco, except her memories begin with her standing on a road covered in blood and dirt. She has no idea who she is or how she got there or what happened. After being taken to a hospital, her identity is finally figured out and her parents show up a few hours later. Too bad she has no idea who her mom and dad are, that they are super rich, that she has a twin brother, she has a boyfriend who she is basically betrothed to, and she and her mean girl friends basically rule their high school. She also has no idea that her best friend's name is Cassie and is missing.

Sam has to rebuild her life with memories other people have with her and share with her. She has to rely on her boyfriend to tell them how in love they are. She has to rely on her friends to tell her how popular she is and how she is the queen bee of the school. She has to rely on her twin brother to tell her everything about herself that her parents don't want to-- how she was an awful person who manipulated and terrorized everyone with her bestie Cassie.

Sam hates her former self. She doesn't understand how she could ever have been so mean to everyone around and treated everyone so bad. She spends most of the book feeling the shame and embarrassment as she tries to make everyone realize that the old Sam is gone, including her brother's super hot friend Carson. Carson is the son of grounds keeper of her family estate. They were childhood friends, but after Sam met Cassie her whole life changed. She dumped her former friends and the person who she could have been and turned into the mean girl that everyone expected her to be.

Now that Sam is a completely different person, how can she maintain her former relationships? She is expected to have a fairy tale relationship with her boyfriend but now finds herself having feelings for someone else. She hates her friends and finds friendship in her twin brother who seems to be one of the only people she can trust. After Cassie's body turns up and the case officially turns into a murder case, Sam is the number one suspect. People whisper at school and even her own parents can't look her in the eye and say she is innocent. But without having any memory from that night, how does Sam know that she didn't actually kill Cassie? Sam finds herself questioning everyone around her and her own sanity. I was really rooting for Sam to figure out what was going on, and I kept getting super frustrated for her when everyone was calling her crazy. Every time I thought I knew what was happening, something new would pop up.

The book has a lot of mystery surrounding it and I felt like I was playing a game of Clue the whole time. I kept thinking EVERYONE was a suspect and felt super suspicious the whole time. There is a big twist at the end, but I guessed it a few chapters before just by picking up on clues. It's a very unique twist and really brings a creepy feel to the book. Even with all the mystery and drama, JLA still gives you a few steamy scenes with a good romance to keep you feeling the feels. The book sort of reminds me of the Mara Dyer series, so if you are a fan of that, then I think you'll enjoy this book.

Like all of JLA's books, the book neatly resolves itself after all the twists and drama so that you have a good ending. I'm very happy with the ending (I was super worried for a while) and think this is an AWESOME standalone book. I was so relieved after reading because it seems like every book I've read lately has been a bust. Once again, JLA proves herself to be my favorite YA author.

5/5 stars. 

Leah's October Reads

October was a really good book month for me. If you remember, I was planning on dedicating this whole month to The Mortal Instruments series. Well, that was my intention, but if you have ever read the series, you know how long the books are and how in depth they go. I kept finding myself having to take breaks in between books (even though I LOVE THE SERIES SO FAR!) because I was just so overwhelmed with emotion and information from this killer endings. I am currently about halfway through book three and taking a break because I am SO mad with everything that is happening to poor Simon. In the meantime, I've read lots of really awesome books. Seriously, some of my favorite books of the year was read this month. Here is my list, and I'll put my absolute favorites at the very end:

-City of Bones by Cassandra Clare
-City of Ashes by Cassandra Clare
-Losing It by Cora Carmack
-Forbidden by Tabitha Suzuma
-I Hunt Killers by Barry Lyga
-These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman
-The Jewel by Amy Ewing
-Born at Midnight by C.C. Hunter
-All Our Yesterdays by Cristin Terrill
-Pivot Point by Kasie West
-The Young Elites by Marie Lu
-Don't You Forget About Me by Kate K. Quinn
-Stone Cold Touch by Jennifer L. Armentrout
-Awake at Dawn by C.C. Hunter

October Favorite! 

 This is really, REALLY hard for me. Like I said above, some of my top books this where read this month. If I HAVE to choose, my top picks are Stone Cold Touch and All Our Yesterdays. Stone Cold Touch was highly anticipated for us because of how much we love Jennifer L. Armentrout and how awesome White Hot Kiss was. Roth made the Holy Grail of Book Boyfriends list because he is hot hot hot and so swoon worthy. Demon or not, he is such an awesome character that JLA developed. You want to hate him in this book, but it's only because the pieces of your heart are laying all over the floor. And the ending of the book..... OMG the ending. I may or may not freak out because I have to wait until July for book three. Alas, this book comes in second place (though it is very close) because my actual top favorite made me feel so many feels that I have no choice but to name it my top.

All Our Yesterdays is probably in my top five books that I have read all year, which should say a lot. I was kind of skeptical when I first read the synopsis because it sounded super action packed and intense but I didn't know where all it could go. I picked up the book and couldn't put it down. I was so invested in the characters, and every time I thought I had things figured out everything fell apart. It was so intense. I felt all the feels in this book, and again, this ending is what made it... The ending. I can't even talk about it without wanting to tear up. I don't know why I reacted so strongly towards the end except maybe it was just so unexpected for me. I had tears pouring out and was literally yelling at my book at the same time. But, you know, it wasn't just the ending of this book.. The whole thing was just nerve wracking and heart wrenching that it takes the cake hands down as my favorite for this month. I just can't explain it. You just need to go buy it.

Unremembered: by Jessica Brody

Unremembered: Jessica Brody

When Freedom Airlines flight 121 went down over the Pacific Ocean, no one ever expected to find survivors. Which is why the sixteen-year-old girl discovered floating among the wreckage alive and completely unharmed is making news. She has no memories of boarding the plane. She has no memories of her life before the crash. She has no memories what so ever. No one knows who she is, and DNA populated no answers as well. Seraphina struggles to piece together her forgotten past and discover who she really is. With every clue only comes more questions. Her only hope is a strangely alluring boy who claims to of known her before the crash and says that they were in love. But can she really trust him? And will he be able to protect her from the people who have been making her forget?


ugh... WHY WHY!!! WHY!!! was this book so utterly predictable!!!

This girl (Seraphina) woke up from a plane crash and can't remember anything... I find that odd because it only took me to page 23 to figure everything out; why couldn't she!! I wanted to love this book but my eyes nearly fell out from rolling them so hard. First off I'll start with the "romance" part of this book... The two star-crossed lovers have absolutely no sparks between them. Their romance is more than unbelievable and weak. You want me to believe that this guy loves this girl even though they barely know each other and most of their time spent together is in brief flashbacks....

NO.

The story relies to much on the romance that doesn't live up to what it could have been.

Now to the "plot" part of this book... This book is suppose to be SCI-FI as well, yet nothing scientific is explained. The first half of this book is alright. The second half of this book is a delivery from the hot mess express. The characters in this book are boring as Hell. I can't even remember the love interest name I think it was like Zen or Sen or something lame, and I only remember the girl's because it was so dumb. If I had to read one more time about how this girl had a face sent from the heavens or eyes like oh my god again I was going to run out in traffic. This story also tries to work in time traveling and FAILS times ten on doing so. Then, as the truth started coming to light, I found myself more and more disappointed by the revelations. I want an author to have things come together and make sense or at least trick me into thinking that they do. Oh and considering the second half of the book is where the action is, that doesn't exactly speak well for it. Nothing about this book comes together. The plot, characters, and world building all fall short. By fall short I really mean there's really nothing at all to any of them.

This books title is Oh so fitting.

2/10 Un-Stars 

-Angela

Don't You Forget About Me by Kate Karyus Quinn

This book was published recently and after seeing a ton of 5 star reviews on Goodreads, I deemed this to be my Halloween spooky read. The plot seems original and the cover was cool, so why not?

The story Skylar who lives in the town of Gardenville where no one gets sick or is unhappy... except every fourth year. Every fourth year the teenagers in town go nuts and something bad happens. Four years ago from when the story is being told, Skylar's older sister Piper basically murders 16 of her fellow classmates by making them play chicken with a train and then jump off a bridge. I think it's pretty obvious to say there is some sort of mind control thing going on with Piper. Oh, and 16 year old Piper is having some sort of illicit relationship with her 21-ish year old high school teacher Elton who happens to show up the night of the incident.

Anyway, so Piper ends up disappearing after the incident. There is a reformatory in the town where the crazy teenagers go, but it has never been confirmed if Piper is actually there or she is dead or missing or what. Skylar has spent the past four years pretty much trying to forget everything about her life because she is mourning Piper. She turns into a druggie off of these pills Elton (after the whole Piper disappearing thing he makes it his goal to reform the town and drug everyone into submission so no one goes nuts) and some wonder quints develop out of forget-me-not flowers (oh what a coincidence) that make you forget. They druggies that are hooked on them are referred to as notters. There's also some dude named Foote who I think eventually will turn into a love interest but he is constantly described as wearing a fedora, so that would be a NOmance in my book. There's also Jonathan who's sister LuAnn ended up in the reformatory but now she's out and talking about Piper or something... I don't know. I really don't.

This book falls onto the did-not-finish shelf for me after I got a little over 100pg in and pretty much had no idea what I was reading. I didn't even know what Skylar looked like. It just didn't jive with me, so DNF it is. Other reviewers rave about it and it's unique paranormal plot that supposedly happens, so maybe someone out there will like it more than me. It just reminds me too much of Between The Devil and The Deep Blue Sea which was an absolute WTF/hate read for me. No, just no.

1/5 stars

Nil: Lynne Matson

Nil: Lynne Matson

On the island of Nil, there's only one real rule... You have exactly 365 days to escape or you die. Seventeen-year-old Charley was sucked out the Target parking lot and woke up naked and on Nil. Lost and alone, Charley finds no sign of other people until she meets Thad, the hot leader of a clan of teenage refugees. Charley learns that leaving the island is harder than she would have thought and falling in love isn't helping. With Thad’s time running out, Charley realizes that she has to find a way to beat the clock, and quickly.

Ok so let me start off by saying that I'm pretty torn about this book. I both liked it and hated it. Mainly I just hated it. First off the insta love in this book was taken to a whole new level...It's overwhelming and takes up a majority of the story. There's less cheese in the diary section of Publix than there was in this book. To prove my point I give you:

Exhibit A: "Thanks for the company. And for this." I touched the delicate lei. "It's beautiful" "Not to sound totally lame, but it doesn't compare with the girl who's wearing it." Then he kind of groaned and laughed both at once. "man, that did sound lame, but it's true" "very lame," I agreed. "And I hate to break it to you, but I think your visions going." "my visions just fine... like I said, it's perfect..."

BARF right... and I bet you had a hard time telling which one was Charley and which one was Thad. If it wasn't for the titles on each chapter I probably wouldn't have known myself. There was NO difference between how Thad and Charley thought. Since we're talking about Charley and Thad let me tell you about them... Charley is a six foot tall super model look alike that has that Oh-what-me-pretty-noooo attitude that is beyond annoying! She does WAY too much swooning EVEN FOR MY TASTE. Then there's Thad the tall buff snow boarder who also happens to be an over six feet tall super model who has jelly beans for brains. And yes they fall instantly in love... That's only the first problem with this book. 

They are constantly talking about all the danger that's on the island. There's lions and tigers and bears oh my! Yet none of these things ever mess with them. You think a bunch of animals would eventually roll up to their camp and try to jack their food... NOPE, for the most part all the animals keep to themselves. (Except this one random cat thing that seemed like it held some kind of importance, but actually was as random as the rest of this story.) There also seems to be a pretty endless supply of food just lying around, along with clothes. Half the time everyone's crying about what's on the menu... BOOHOO and to think people out there in the real world are paying 10 dollars a roll for sushi and you just have it there for free. Hard life. Not to mention that the plants around them are edible... yeah you heard me, THE LEAVES AROUND THEIR CAMP ARE EDIBLE TOO. YET EVERYONE IS HUNGRY... HMMM HERE'S AN IDEA, GRAB THE CLOSET SHRUB AND EAT YA IDIOT. Something else I failed to mention was that they are fighting SO hard for their lives... no time for fun and games... Wait I spoke to soon, there's plenty of time. They play volleyball, go surfing, work out, they even have gliders (Another thing that was mentioned like once but was never brought up again). 

The island is also dripping with nosy mother f-ers. Everyone is all up in everyone's business, oh wait nope they only seem to notice Thad and Charley's drama EVEN THOUGH THERE'S LIKE FIFTY OTHER PEOPLE ON THE ISLAND! But back to what I know we are all dying to hear about... The love. It's awful! It's so over the top and annoying. They seriously fall in love in seconds. A new Ya book record. They are even dropping L bombs all over the place after just a few short weeks. Plus they are always using these "inside jokes" with each other OVER AND OVER AND OVER... Then Thad gives Charley this awful little nick name thing and I thought if I had to hear "Charley with an e-y" one more time I was going to set myself on fire! 

He pulled out his pineapple slicer, and with slow, deliberate stokes, Thad carved the first five letters of my name. Then he paused. "tell me how to finish... i-e or e-y?" "e-y" I answered. He chuckled "so right." "what's that suppose to mean?" Thad finished etching the y and blew on my name. Without turning he said, "because for your name to end in Lie doesn't fit. You're the most real girl I've met on or off Nil." 

If I was Charley I would have taken that knife right out his hands and slit my wrist because there's no way I'm going to make it another 300 days with this guy. As far as the plot goes, if you've seen the show Lost you already know whats going to happen. Just throw in some shimmering liquid light things that you'll need to be eaten by to be sent home, and you have Nil. I'm not kidding the comparison between the two is uncanny. Purgatory, parallel universes, weird animals, random people everywhere, and there's a strange maze looking symbol written on rocks all around. HMMM why does that last one sound so familiar... I just can't put my finger on it.

There are also so many plot holes in this story. Everything is just so convenient. Kids appear who know all these crazy traits... one is a baker who makes awesome bread... where the hell did the yeast come from? There's a carpenter who just happens to know how to build using wooden nails. LIKE COME ON GIVE US A BREAK! The kids on this tropical vacation don't even have to be smelly because they have some girl who knows how to make fancy soap! With no real world building involved in this story, besides a list of things that are on this island, Which include a sweet snowy mountain, volcanoes, and a wild flower field. The sub character in this book for the most part are pointless. None of the characters really care if they stay on the island or get off as long as they have their gf/bf with them. 

Guess I should say something nice about this book... The first like 40 pages of this book are cool, and the last 40 pages are cool too. I liked the ending mainly because it was the end, but I guess it was sweet too. Probably the best part of the whole novel. Over all this was a cluster-F of a book that could of made a cool trilogy or even a better standalone, if some of the fifty things listed above were fixed. I had high hopes for this book, and had heard a lot of good things about it... Sadly I was let down.

4.5/10 Stars

-Angela