Unmarked by Kami Garcia

Unmarked by Kami Garcia
Release Date: September 30, 2014
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Pages: 384
Series: The Legion #2
Review Source: Netgalley

Synopsis: (from Goodreads)

The heart-pounding sequel to the instant New York Times bestseller, Unbreakable, by New York Times bestselling Beautiful Creatures co-author Kami Garcia.

He is here... and he could be anyone.

Kennedy Waters lives in a world where vengeance spirits kill, ghosts keep secrets, and a demon walks among us–a demon she accidentally set free.

Now Kennedy and the other Legion members–Alara, Priest, Lukas, and Jared–have to hunt him down. As they learn more about the history of the Legion and the Illuminati, Kennedy realizes that the greatest mystery of all does not belong to any secret order, but to her own family. With the clock ticking and the life of someone she loves hanging in the balance, Kennedy has to ask the question she fears most: what is it about her past that has left her Unmarked?

My Thoughts:
One of the things I absolutely adored about the first book, Unbreakable, was the Supernatural feel to it. They hunted down clues in different locations, they fought off spirits or whatever came their way. In terms of cast members it was more of a Scooby Gang, but the feel of the book was pure early days Supernatural, and it was awesome. Needless to say I was disappointed when that feeling was missing here.

While the book has a different feel to it, that doesn’t mean it lacks in excitement. There are some huge reveals that I can't really even hint around, because they’re massive spoilers that you definitely want to read for yourself. There’s a lot going on in regards to studying the history and mythology behind the Legion of the Black Dove. Because so much happened I can’t really say that Unmarked suffers from second book syndrome. What I can say is that I should have been excited by how action packed the book was, but instead I was almost bored at times because of where it ended up. I think what I missed were the quieter moments, like the conversations between Kennedy and a certain character (you might guess who, but I can’t talk about it, because, of course, spoilers).

Another thing I didn’t care for was the complete cliffhanger ending. While the first book also ended at a crazy moment, it ended in a place that the book was leading you to. The group had followed a set of clues and the book ended after the big reveal. In Unmarked, on the other hand, we’re still working towards something when the book suddenly ends. Yes, a piece of information is revealed, but plotwise we’re totally hanging off a cliff, which is not my cup of tea.

I definitely still enjoyed this book, but I didn’t love it like the first book. I look forward to where the series is going -- I just wish it had stayed closer to the first book with group antics and more conversations, instead of Kennedy being so insular.

The Cover:
Kind of meh?

Rating:
[3/5]

Purchase Links:
Kobo | Amazon.ca | Amazon.com | Chapters-Indigo | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository

Cracked by Eliza Crewe

Cracked by Eliza Crewe
Release Date: November 5, 2013
Publisher: Strange Chemistry
Pages: 215
Series: Soul Eater #1
Review Source: Netgalley

Synopsis: (from Goodreads)
Meet Meda. She eats people.

Well, technically, she eats their soul. But she totally promises to only go for people who deserve it. She’s special. It’s not her fault she enjoys it. She can’t help being a bad guy. Besides, what else can she do? Her mother was killed and it’s not like there are any other “soul-eaters” around to show her how to be different. That is, until the three men in suits show up.

They can do what she can do. They’re like her. Meda might finally have a chance to figure out what she is. The problem? They kind of want to kill her. Before they get the chance Meda is rescued by crusaders, members of an elite group dedicated to wiping out Meda’s kind. This is her chance! Play along with the “good guys” and she’ll finally figure out what, exactly, her ‘kind’ is.

Be careful what you wish for. Playing capture the flag with her mortal enemies, babysitting a teenage boy with a hero complex, and trying to keep one step ahead of a too-clever girl are bad enough. But the Hunger is gaining on her.

The more she learns, the worse it gets. And when Meda uncovers a shocking secret about her mother, her past, and her destiny… she may finally give into it.

My Thoughts:
The concept of this book sounded so fun and interesting, mostly because of a main character who wasn’t the hero. Meda is a truly unique main character, and I loved that. She’s not all evil, but she’s definitely not the typical definition of good either. Meda’s main goal is her own survival, and she likes to think she'll do anything to make that happen, but she also feels guilty about this fact. Meda’s mom raised her with morals, so the fact that she has to suck people's souls to live? It doesn't really sit right with her. On the other hand, she can’t help but take pleasure in violence. She tries to only kill bad people, and she feels begrudging respect for her new friends, but she's only with them because they have something to offer her (or at least this is what she claims, though you can read between the lines and see something more). There are so many layers to Meda’s character, and I adored that. The book features a very curious transformation, and I'm intrigued to see how Meda will continue to grow in Book 2.

I also really liked the world building in the book, how it was set up with the Templar/Crusaders fighting against demons. I feel like I learned a lot about this group without it being information overload. It was so interesting to read about the Crusaders’ powers and how they protected the good in the world. My favourite part about them, though, was seeing the religious aspect of their order brought into the everyday life of the characters (in things like prayers, talking about how God has a plan, etc). These types of religious orders are included in fiction so often, yet I can’t recall too many other books where the members actually have a faith that they live day to day. I loved seeing this religious tradition actually put into practice in the book.

Cracked was such a good book, one about choice, about knowing yourself and that your decisions/actions make you who you are. For a book about demons and killing there is a lot of humour (wry as it may be) contained in its pages. Meda is absolutely hilarious in her unapologetic evilness (though I'll leave it to you to see how evil she truly is), and she has the most hilarious internal dialogue. This book was sad, funny, and exciting, sometimes all at once, it seemed, and I definitely recommend it.

The Cover:
Not supremely original, but I like it.

Rating:
[4/5]

Purchase Links:
Book Depository | Chapters-Indigo | Amazon.ca | Amazon.com | Barnes & Noble

Fractured by Sarah Fine

Fractured by Sarah Fine
Release Date: October 29, 2013
Publisher: Amazon Skyscape
Pages: 357
Series: Guards of the Shadowlands #2
Review Source: Netgalley

Synopsis: (from Goodreads)
In the week since Lela returned to Rhode Island as Captain of the Guard with Malachi as her second in command, local news has been dominated by chilling sightings of human-like creatures running on all fours. Lela knows there’s only one explanation: the Mazikin have arrived in the land of the living.

Needing to maintain the appearance of a normal life for her foster mother, her probation officer, and her classmates, Lela returns to Warwick High along with Malachi. At night they secretly hunt for the Mazikin nest. To assist, two new Guards from very different parts of the Shadowlands are assigned to Lela’s unit, including the bad boy Jim, who repeatedly challenges Lela's authority. Lela struggles to keep all her Guards on the right side of the law, but their mistakes come at a terrible cost.

As one painful revelation follows another and the Mazikin start targeting those closest to her, Lela finds herself more vulnerable than she’s ever been, wanting a future more than she ever has. With an enemy determined to separate soul from body, one question remains: how much is she willing to sacrifice to protect those she loves?

My Thoughts:
I feel the need to point out that this is definitely not a happy story. Does that need to be pointed out, when the first book takes place in a version of hell for suicides? I’m not sure, but yes, this is a great book, but one that was definitely tough to read at times. There are some good moments, but they quickly dissolved into angst and pain and despair. While this sounds pretty horrible, it really is a good book (I feel like it's somehow necessary it keep pointing this out).

Fractured picks up where book 1 (Sanctum) left off, fighting the Mazikin in the human world. Our characters are trying to prevent them from taking over people, and are attempting to figure out and stop their end game. While a lot of the “twists” in the book are generally predictable, they still bring about some major feels. There were definitely moments when I was flailing (in a horrified way) and crying. It takes talent to bring about such visceral reactions, and Sarah Fine has talent in spades.

One thing I’m always impressed by in Fine’s writing is how intricate the world building is. Even though we’re physically in the human world for this book there were many details revealed of the different afterlife options, and also about the Mazikin. I’m looking forward to seeing more of this in the next book.

Fractured definitely leaves its readers with a cliffhanger. We’re left with a big decision and a question of “what now??”. There are such big things on the horizon for this series, and it definitely made me wish there wasn’t a big wait for the next book. If you’re looking for something happy and light, I’d strongly recommend you find something else (Cinderella Screwed Me Over, anyone? So cute!), but if you’re looking for something intricate and gritty, I’d really suggest you check out this series. I know I’ll be waiting with bated breath for the third installment.

The Cover:
A little busy, but gorgeous!!

Rating:
[4/5]

Purchase Links:
Book Depository | Chapters-Indigo | Amazon.ca | Amazon.com | Barnes & Noble

Unbreakable by Kami Garcia

Unbreakable by Kami Garcia
Release Date: October 1, 2013
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Pages: 320
Series: Legion #1
Review Source: Netgalley

Synopsis: (from Goodreads)
Supernatural meets The Da Vinci Code in this action-packed paranormal thriller, the first book in a new series from New York Times bestselling author Kami Garcia.

I never believed in ghosts. Until one tried to kill me.

When Kennedy Waters finds her mother dead, her world begins to unravel. She doesn’t know that paranormal forces in a much darker world are the ones pulling the strings. Not until identical twins Jared and Lukas Lockhart break into Kennedy’s room and destroy a dangerous spirit sent to kill her. The brothers reveal that her mother was part of an ancient secret society responsible for protecting the world from a vengeful demon — a society whose five members were all murdered on the same night.

Now Kennedy has to take her mother’s place in the Legion if she wants to uncover the truth and stay alive. Along with new Legion members Priest and Alara, the teens race to find the only weapon that might be able to destroy the demon — battling the deadly spirits he controls every step of the way.

Suspense, romance, and the paranormal meet in this chilling urban fantasy, the first book in a new series from Kami Garcia, bestselling coauthor of the Beautiful Creatures novels.

My Thoughts:
As soon as I read the synopsis for ‘Unbreakable’ I knew I had to read it. I really, really love books about ghost hunting, and I wish there were more of them. On top of that awesome concept, the book had a total Supernatural vibe, which I absolutely loved. Add a plot-line in about an ancient secret order that comes together against ghosts, and I am totally sold. This book was perfect because it was super creepy without being terrifying (though I’m definitely a wimp and I made sure to read the whole book during daylight hours).

The characters in ‘Unbreakable’ were interesting, if a bit stereotypical. But the way the characters fit into clichés was kind of awesome, because they still had depth to them, and they’re the type of characters who you can't help but love. Besides Kennedy, our main character, there’s Priest, the younger nerdy genius boy; Alara, the badass tough chick who's actually sweet and nurturing; Lukas, the sweet boy who's doomed to be friend zoned; and Jared, the dreamy emo boy who pushes people away. What’s great about Jared is that he easily could have been the total jerk bad boy who, as a reader, you totally don’t understand why the main girl likes him. Jared, thankfully, is not this way at all. He’s the damaged, tortured type who holds people at arm’s length, but he’s actually quite sweet to Kennedy, so I was definitely able to root for him.

The romance aspect of the novel definitely moves very quickly, and there's a bit of a love triangle as well. I feel like the flirtation could have been drawn out more, since this is the first book in the series, and the connection seemed to become quite deep, quite quickly. Still, because I did dig their connection, I could accept it and not have it ruin the book or anything.

This is a short, fast paced novel, which is awesome for action sequences, but not so great for the overall plot structure. I loved this book, but it was very much a first act. It's the beginning of a saga and it sets up the story fantastically, but there aren't a lot of real answers given. It’s more of an introduction that provides more questions for next time. That’s not entirely a bad thing, but if you’re looking for a standalone story, or even a series book with a contained plot, then you should probably look elsewhere. Despite my (relatively minor) reservations on some aspects of this book, I wholeheartedly enjoyed ‘Unbreakable’ and I'm looking forward to reading the next volume in the series.

The Cover:
It's intriguing, but it's not my favourite.

Rating:
[4/5]

Find Unbreakable by Kami Garcia on Goodreads, Book Depository, & Amazon.

Rage Within by Jeyn Roberts

Release Date: September 4, 2012
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books For Young Readers
Pages: 384
Series: Dark Inside #2
Review Source: ARC from S&S Canada

Synopsis: (from Goodreads)
In this apocalyptic sequel to Dark Inside’s “well-balanced, realistic suspense” (Kirkus Reviews), four teens continue the struggle for survival as they face a world gone mad. Aries, Clementine, Michael, and Mason have survived the first wave of the apocalypse that wiped out most of the world’s population and turned many of the rest into murderous Baggers. Now they’re hiding out in an abandoned house in Vancouver with a ragtag group of fellow teen survivors, trying to figure out their next move.

Aries is trying to lead, but it’s hard to be a leader when there are no easy answers and every move feels wrong. Clementine is desperate to find her brother Heath, but it’s impossible to know where he’d be, assuming he’s alive. Michael is haunted by the memories of his actions during his harrowing struggle to survive. And Mason is struggling with something far worse: the fear that he may be a danger to his friends.

As the Baggers begin to create a new world order, these four teens will have to trust and rely on each other in order to survive.

My Thoughts:
Even though I enjoyed 'Rage Within' from the start I do wish I had time to re-read ‘Dark Inside’ before starting this second book. Jeyn Roberts does a fabulous job with her four main narrators, but I found it difficult to keep track of the large cast of characters at first. Once my memory was jogged I found myself enjoying the book even more, especially because all of our main characters are together in one location now.

This book deals with the takeover of the Baggers, and, as you’d expect, it has a creepy and suspenseful vibe to it. You see the characters trying to survive under the radar, and there’s danger at every turn. The narrator ‘Nothing’ also continues on from the book before, and even when you have guesses as to who this is you can never be completely sure who to trust and who not to trust.

I loved the overall themes and subplots of ‘Rage Within’. You have the growing relationships between certain characters, with each person trying to fit into a role. Along with this you have questions about what makes a good leader, and who should really be in charge of the group. There’s definitely a lot of loss and hardship in the book, leading into questions about humanity and what potential for darkness might be within all of us.

If you enjoyed ‘Dark Inside’ you’ll definitely want to pick up ‘Rage Within’. It’s a fabulous second book that looks deeper into what caused the Bagger attacks to begin with. I loved how there was a parallel between this fictional world and our own, leading readers to think about how we treat the earth and its resources. If you like apocalyptic books with a deliciously creepy vibe to them then look no further than 'Rage Within'.

The Cover:
It's SO CREEPY and sinister, which basically makes it perfect for this book. ;)

Rating:
[Strong 4/5]

Find Rage Within by Jeyn Roberts on Goodreads, Book Depository, & Amazon.

Girl of Nightmares by Kendare Blake

Release Date: August 7, 2012
Publisher: Tor Teen
Pages: 336
Series: Anna #2
Review Source: eARC from Macmillan through Raincoast Books

Synopsis: (from Goodreads)
It's been months since the ghost of Anna Korlov opened a door to Hell in her basement and disappeared into it, but ghost-hunter Cas Lowood can't move on.

His friends remind him that Anna sacrificed herself so that Cas could live—not walk around half dead. He knows they're right, but in Cas's eyes, no living girl he meets can compare to the dead girl he fell in love with.

Now he's seeing Anna everywhere: sometimes when he's asleep and sometimes in waking nightmares. But something is very wrong...these aren't just daydreams. Anna seems tortured, torn apart in new and ever more gruesome ways every time she appears.

Cas doesn't know what happened to Anna when she disappeared into Hell, but he knows she doesn't deserve whatever is happening to her now. Anna saved Cas more than once, and it's time for him to return the favor.

My Thoughts:
This book really disappointed me. I was excited to check it out, and everyone was giving it rave reviews. Then I started to read it and I wondered what I was missing. The humour of the first book is almost completely lost here. There are still funny parts, sure, but they are few and far between. The whole Supernatural (TV series) feel is gone, and that made me especially sad, because that's one of the main reasons I loved the first book so much.

I can understand that after the events of the first book this one would be more somber, but the way 'Girl of Nightmares' was written I found myself not caring at all about the characters. Cass spends all his time moping over the loss of Anna. He starts seeing and hearing her, and wants to save her. He's almost zombie-like trying to find out where she might be and how she's connected to him. I just found it really hard to identify with a guy who is willing to repeatedly risk his own life, and his friends' lives, for the remote chance of rescuing an unstable dead girl.

The second half of the book was definitely stronger than the first, simply because there was more action. The end of the book was actually quite awesome, though not good enough to redeem the whole book. Tons of people really loved 'Girl of Nightmares', but it just failed to grasp me like the first book did. I was really bored by the characters and how the plot was so circular. Kendare Blake definitely does have a talent for horror, and I would probably pick up a novel by her again, but I would definitely do so with more caution based on this reading experience.

The Cover:
Super creepy and pretty awesome.

Rating:
[2/5]

Find Girl of Nightmares by Kendare Blake on Goodreads, Book Depository, & Amazon.

Guest Post: Teresa Lo on The Gateway to Hell

I'm super pleased to be hosting a guest post today from author Teresa Lo. Her book 'Hell's Game' sounds absolutely intriguing, so I asked if Teresa would mind sharing her inspiration for the story. She happily obliged:

Teresa Lo

My Inspiration for Writing HELL’S GAME:

The Legend of The Gateway to Hell in Stull, Kansas

I remember the first time I saw an Ouija Board. My older sister, Alice, had acquired it from a garage sale, and when she brought it into our house, my parents flipped out and demanded she get rid of it...or ELSE. Alice told them she threw it away, but she really stuffed it into a hall closet, where it sat, waiting for several years before someone asked it to come out and play.

When I was in junior high, I dug it out, and my friends and I played with it at a slumber party. My friends asked what boys liked them, and me being a big nerd, I asked what SAT score I would one day get. (For the record, I moved the planchette and gave myself a 1600. This was when a 1600 was a perfect score.) After that night with Ouija, I never tried the game again, even though throughout my teenage years, I experimented with a lot of legends to see if they were real. Bloody Mary. Light as a feather, stiff as a board. Breaking chain mail.

However, there were some things I would never have the guts to try. One of those was to test the legend of the Gateway to Hell in Stull, Kansas, a small town that was only a few hours of a drive away from my hometown of Coffeyville, Kansas.

The way I heard it was that on Halloween night, the Gateway opened, and it was hidden inside of an old church in the middle of the town cemetery. On Earth, there were seven Gateways, portals that demons could enter Earth through and that humans could fall into Hell from. The legitimacy of the legend was confirmed in 1995 when The Pope refused to fly over Stull on one of his trips to the United States. Whether or not the Pope story was true didn’t matter. It was enough to freak me out.

Unlike me, others wanted to dance with the Devil. Like the doomed teenagers in my book Hell’s Game, people actually partied on Halloween night in the cemetery, hoping to see demons emerge. A few even entered the church, and some had the gull to throw bottles at the decrepit old building, hoping to provoke the evil inside of it.

The church mysteriously crumbled in 2002, but the legend will forever live on in Kansas. For years I had been trying to write a story that would incorporate the Gateway and the people who dared to test its truth, and it took me several different versions before I got to Hell’s Game.

In Hell’s Game, a group of popular teenagers pull a prank on the school nerd, Ronnie Smalls, and they convince him to enter an old church in the town cemetery that is rumored to be the Gateway to Hell. To their surprise, the Gateway is real, and demonic hands snatch up Ronnie. Soon after, the group is forced to play a high-stakes game through Hell in order to free Ronnie’s soul and save themselves from the various consequences of their cruelty. I wanted to tell a morality story that was both exciting and true to the legend of Stull, and I really hope readers enjoy it!

Thanks so much for sharing about your inspiration, Teresa!

How creepy yet awesome does that sound?? It definitely reminds me of something that would happen on an episode of Supernatural (obviously a compliment).

Be sure to add Hell's Game on Goodreads and/or purchase it on Amazon for only 99¢.

Anna Dressed in Blood by Kendare Blake

Release Date: August 30, 2011
Publisher: Tor Teen
Pages: 316
Series: Anna #1
Review Source: First read from library; sent review copy from Raincoast Books

Synopsis: (from Goodreads)
Just your average boy-meets-girl, girl-kills-people story. . .

Cas Lowood has inherited an unusual vocation: He kills the dead.

So did his father before him, until his gruesome murder by a ghost he sought to kill. Now, armed with his father's mysterious and deadly athame, Cas travels the country with his kitchen-witch mother and their spirit-sniffing cat. Together they follow legends and local lore, trying to keep up with the murderous dead—keeping pesky things like the future and friends at bay.

When they arrive in a new town in search of a ghost the locals call Anna Dressed in Blood, Cas doesn't expect anything outside of the ordinary: move, hunt, kill. What he finds instead is a girl entangled in curses and rage, a ghost like he's never faced before. She still wears the dress she wore on the day of her brutal murder in 1958: once white, but now stained red and dripping blood. Since her death, Anna has killed any and every person who has dared to step into the deserted Victorian she used to call home.

And she, for whatever reason, spares his life.

My Thoughts:
I'm having a hard time writing up my thoughts about why this one is so great. It totally kept my interest, and I just wanted to keep reading it. When I wasn't reading it I was peeking over at the book thinking "Hmm, when can I read some more?" So, to me, that's an indication of an awesome book.

Basically I think this one is just so unique and interesting. Cas is a ghostbuster, though he would smack you if you called him one to his face. There's the name connection with Supernatural, and I have to say that Cas's personality, with his wry sense of humour, and his vocation totally reminded me of the show. It even had that perfect creepiness that wasn't too scary. (And believe me, I am a total scaredy cat).

Interestingly enough I didn't totally buy the romance angle of the story. Honestly, I loved the connection between Cas and Anna, but taking it to the level of romance was weird to me. I don't know, I'll have to think about it more. So Cas and Anna were awesome, but so were all the supporting characters. They all came together to form a crazy cool ghost-busting Scooby gang, and all their interactions were quite fun.

Basically I appreciate how funny and interesting this one was, even amongst creepier and darker moments. Plus I was totally psyched with the Ontario setting, even though I've never actually been anywhere even close to Thunder Bay. Not my typical read, but everyone convinced me of how awesome this one was, and after reading it? I totally agree.

The Cover:
I think it's pretty awesome and creepy!

Rating:
[4.5/5]

Find Anna Dressed in Blood by Kendare Blake on Goodreads, Book Depository, & Amazon.