Dec 6 2012

Book Review: Golden Lily by Richelle Mead

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Title: Golden Lily

Author: Richelle Mead

Series: Bloodlines #2

Genre: Teen Paranormal Fantasy

Rating: 4.5/5 stars

The Overview: Sydney Sage is an Alchemist, one of a group of humans who dabble in magic and serve to bridge the worlds of humans and vampires. They protect vampire secrets—and human lives.

Sydney would love to go to college, but instead, she’s been sent into hiding at a posh boarding school in Palm Springs, California–tasked with protecting Moroi princess Jill Dragomir from assassins who want to throw the Moroi court into civil war. Formerly in disgrace, Sydney is now praised for her loyalty and obedience, and held up as the model of an exemplary Alchemist.

The Review:

I’ve mentioned before in my review of book #1, “Bloodlines“, that Richelle Mead is one of my all-time favorite authors. I love everything she does, and I have yet to finish a series where I didn’t immediately want to go back and read it again.

All of her works are incredibly character driven, and this one in particular is probably the most introspective yet. While characterization is one of my most important elements when evaluating a book, I often get bored if the book focuses too much on that element. There has to be a balance of character, world-building, ideas, events, and plot to excel with me. Mead is one of the few authors that manages to address all these things while still delving deep into the thoughts of the main character.

Another thing I love about the author is her uncanny ability to make relationships feel natural and progressive. Not only does that help get readers more connected, but it also gives them more incentive to find out what happens next. I feel a stronger connection to her male leads than any other author’s, and I’m certain that has to do with her pacing and the way she develops the love story.

Overall, this series is a 4.5/5 star read, but I have to say it is my least favorite of all of Mead’s works. Thus far, anyway, as she’s got the tendency of making the final few books in a saga unforgettable. If you’ve never read anything by her, I would recommend starting with the “Vampire Academy” series, as this is a spinoff.

Other books you might like:

  • “Succubus Blues” by Richelle Mead (MA)
  • “Touch of Frost” by Jennifer Estep
  • “Firelight” by Sophie Jordan
  • “Marked” by P.C and Kristin Cast
  • “The Glass House” by Rachel Caine

by Niki Hawkes

Dec 4 2012

Coming Soon: The Last Threshold

Mar 5.Title: The Last Threshold

Series: Neverwinter Saga #4

Author: R.A. Salvatore

Release Date: March 5, 2013

As mentioned in my review of “Homeland“, R.A. Salvatore is one of my favorite authors in the fantasy genre. One of the best things about him is his ability to deliver one great book after another and “The Last Threshold” should be no different. If you haven’t picked up a Drizzt book, you are sorely missing out!

Dec 4 2012

Book Releases: 12/4 – 12/8

188421426

Title: Alien vs. Alien

Series: Katherine “Kitty” Katt #6

Author: Gini Koch

Overview: Jeff and Kitty Katt-Martini and the rest of the American Centaurion Diplomatic Corps are still recovering from their introduction to Washington D.C. politics, parties, and conspiracies. So when compromising pictures arrive, no one’s too surprised. They’re also the least of anyone’s worries. Evil androids running amok, birds of all kinds and from all places creating havoc, a Senator trapped in an ever-tightening web of intrigue, and escalating international tensions all seem tough but manageable. But the disappearance of Jeff Martini and Charles Reynolds during the International One World Festival signals more than the usual nastiness — and it looks like even ACE can’t help them. Then new trouble arrives in old packages and even with the best hackers in the world, beings from near and far, the full might of Earth’s military, and the Wonder Twins on their side, Centaurion Division’s outmanned and outgunned. Now Kitty’s racing against the clock to find not only Jeff and Chuckie, but to keep the peace between Middle Eastern countries, all while searching for the bases of super-soldier operations — to stop them or die trying.

201021981Title: Supervolcano: All Fall Down

Series: Supervolcano #2

Author: Harry Turtledove

Overview: In the aftermath of the supervolcano’s eruption in Yellowstone Park, North America is covered in ash. Farmlands cannot produce food. Machinery has been rendered useless. Cities are no longer habitable. And the climate across the globe grows colder every day. Former police officer Colin Ferguson’s family is spread across the United States, separated by the catastrophe, and struggling to survive as the nation attempts to recover and reestablish some measure of civilization…

197774425Title: Wayne of Gotham

Series: N/A

Author: Tracy Hickman

Overview: Behind every mask is a real man. Two men joined by blood but separated by murder: Thomas, the rebellious doctor and heir to the vast Wayne empire, and Bruce, his son, whose life is forever altered when he witnesses the brutal death of his parents. The slaying of Thomas and Martha Wayne is the torturous point on which Bruce turns to become the mysterious crusader Batman—the genesis of a simple mugging gone horribly wrong. The Dark Knight’s file on the case has long been closed, the foundations of Bruce Wayne’s secret life secure. But these foundations are shaken when an unexpected guest invades the grounds of Wayne Manor, raising questions about the event that ended the lives of the mother he loved and the father he worshipped, and sparked his unquenchable drive to protect and avenge. To discover his true family history, Batman must face down old foes, confront his only confidant, invade the evil heart of Arkham Asylum, and shoulder the terrible new burden of a dark legacy.

183375263Title: Andromeda’a Fall

Series: Legion of the Damned #10 (I think)

Author: William C. Dietz

Overview: Hundreds of years in the future, much has changed. Advances in medicine, technology, and science abound. Humanity has gone to the stars, found alien life, and established an empire. But some things never change… All her life, Lady Catherine Carletto (called Cat) has lived for nothing but the next party, the next lover, the next expensive toy. Until, in a bloodthirsty power grab, Imperial Princess Ophelia and her cadre of synth assassins murder her brother the emperor, and go on to purge the galaxy of his friends and supporters—including Cat’s family. The Carlettos are known to be staunch supporters of the Emperor and Carletto Industries has been in the forefront of his pet project—developing cybernetic technology for use by the masses. Now Cat, one of the last surviving Carlettos, is on the run. And, like countless others before her, she finds her sanctuary among the most dangerous of society’s misfits. Welcome to the Legion. Cat Carletto vanishes, and in her place stands Legion recruit Andromeda McKee. A woman with a mission—to bring down Empress Ophelia—or die trying.

175101252Title: A Red Sun Also Rises

Series: N/A

Author: Mark Hodder

Overview: When Reverend Aiden Fleischer, vicar of the sleepy town of Theaston Vale, finds a hunchbacked, light-sensitive and crippled vagabond named Clarissa Stark begging at his door, little does he suspect it’s the start of an adventure that’s literally out of this world! Bribed by an unscrupulous family, Fleischer and his companion flee to London’s missionary college, but in wicked Whitechapel, the faithless priest stumbles upon one of Jack the Ripper’s victims and becomes convinced that he himself is the notorious killer. With her friend’s mind shattered, Miss Stark is relieved when they are both posted to the far away Melanesian island of Koluwai, but here they encounter an even darker evil, one that transports them to another planet. Beneath the twin suns of the planet Ptallaya, Fleischer and Stark encounter an alien species, the Yatsill, master mimics who, after gaining access to Miss Stark’s mind, create their own bizarre version of Victorian London. But Fleischer and Stark’s new home from home is not safe, for the Blood Gods will soon invade, and if he is to defeat them and rescue the woman he’s come to love, Fleischer must first face his own inner demons!

195806289Title: Assassin’s Creed: Forsaken

Series: Assassin’s Creed #4

Author: Oliver Bowden

Overview: Assassin’s Creed: Forsaken is the latest thrilling novelization by Oliver Bowden based on the phenomenally successful game series. The new game, Assassin’s Creed III, takes one of gaming’s most popular franchises to new heights in its most realistic world yet and introduces a brand new Assassin, Connor. During the American Revolution, Connor has sworn to secure liberty for his people and his nation and unleashes his powerful skills on the chaotic, blood-soaked battlefields of the hostile American wilderness. Assassin’s Creed: Forsaken is the story behind who Connor really is and how he has become a deadly killer. The world of the Assassins has become far more lethal than ever before.

183571089Title: Heart of Atlantis

Series: Warriors of Poseiden #8

Author: Alyssa Day

Overview: As a war wages between the immortals of Atlantis and those of the vampire realm, a Poseidon warrior fights to save his world—and the woman he loves. And no risk is too great. The desires of a high priest. Alaric, Poseidon’s High Priest, has made a vow to Quinn, the woman he loves and the leader of the Resistance: to save her friend Jack before his last bit of humanity has been drained. Should Alaric succeed, there’s one intimate danger: he may lose Quinn to the love of the man whose life he saved. But damn Atlantis to the nine hells, he’s willing to put Quinn’s wishes first, regardless of the consequences. The warning of a threat reborn.

196722750Title: Battle for the Cosmos

Series: N/A

Author: Caleb Rigsby

Overview: Architect Charles Grove never thought that he would lead the rebellion to free earth from the clutches of an oppressive, other-worldly regime. But heroes are made in desperate times. In a war that sweeps across a hundred solar systems, Charles discovers that behind the politics, behind the treachery, a plot has been brewing for thousands of years to put the whole universe in jeopardy. This is beyond empire and freedom. This is about good and evil. With his truest friends by his side, Charles must become more than merely a symbol of freedom. Charles must take hold of his destiny as guardian of all free races as he stands against an eternal evil that threatens to bring ruin to the cosmos once and for all.

191782509Title: Breathless

Series: Firelight Novella (ebook only)

Author: Sophie Jordan

Overview: For Az, it’s supposed to be a fun summer vacation with her family. Nothing complicated. Just a quick trip to test the waters as she prepares for a year on her own. That all changes when she rescues a drowning girl and meets Tate—the most gorgeous human boy she’s ever seen. Tate throws her heart, her plans, and her life into upheaval, but the closer she gets to him, the harder it is to hide the secret of what she is.
With no hope for a future together, the last thing that can ever happen . . . is love.

Dec 2 2012

Coming Soon: Frost Burned!

https://i0.wp.com/img1.imagesbn.com/images/200040000/200047500.JPGTitle: Frost Burned

Series: Mercy Thompson #7

Author: Patricia Briggs

Release Date: March 5, 2013

This one deserves a re-post: As one of the best urban fantasies out there – if you haven’t read Patricia Briggs, you’re sorely missing out!

Recommendations: If you love Mercy, but have yet to read the Alpha and Omega spin-off series, consider doing so before March, as there are a few events that might add some great back-history for Frost Burned. I recommend you start with “Alpha and Omega” a novella available in either ebook format or part of the anthology “On the Prowl.”

Dec 1 2012

November’s Your Pick for Nik!: Partials by Dan Wells (5/5 stars!)

partialsTitle: Partials

Author: Dan Wells

Series: Partials #1

Genre: Teen Fantasy

Rating: 5/5 stars!

The Overview: The human race is all but extinct after a war with Partials—engineered organic beings identical to humans—has decimated the population. Reduced to only tens of thousands by RM, a weaponized virus to which only a fraction of humanity is immune, the survivors in North America have huddled together on Long Island while the Partials have mysteriously retreated. The threat of the Partials is still imminent, but, worse, no baby has been born immune to RM in more than a decade. Our time is running out.

Kira, a sixteen-year-old medic-in-training, is on the front lines of this battle, seeing RM ravage the community while mandatory pregnancy laws have pushed what’s left of humanity to the brink of civil war, and she’s not content to stand by and watch. But as she makes a desperate decision to save the last of her race, she will find that the survival of humans and Partials alike rests in her attempts to uncover the connections between them—connections that humanity has forgotten, or perhaps never even knew were there.

partials

The Review:

I have to say that “Partials” blew away all of my expectations and I couldn’t be more thrilled that it was November’s “Your Pick for Nik!”. I haven’t enjoyed a teen book so much since the “Hunger Games”. Incredibly fast-paced and creative, I guarantee you’ll have a difficult time putting this one down!

Writing: The writing was by far my favorite element of this book. Breaking the mold of your typical teen books (especially the many dealing with postapocalyptic settings) Wells managed to deliver one surprise after another throughout the story. It’s this lack of predictability that has moved this book into my top 10 favorite teen books. Don’t get me wrong, I love the genre, but after a while they do all tend to sound alike. “Partials” was so profoundly different that I’m still reeling from it a few weeks later. Wells was incredibly creative and resourceful in his plot-development, and I stand in awe at his originality. Even the scientific aspects dealing with the RM virus deserve some praise – it was written easily enough to follow for us more, uh, literary folks while still coming across as legitimate knowledge from the author (kudos to him for doing his research). In any case, I was convinced he knew what he was talking about.

Another thing I appreciate about the writing was the fact that there was not a single drop of false tension throughout the entire book. False tension is created when an author withholds stupid information to try to add suspense. Wells was actually quite forthcoming, giving the reader all the information he could up front using Kira’s perspective to shape what he wanted us to know. It was refreshing, and made the parts with actual tension that much more intense – you know something serious is going on. In contrast, when things got too intense, he always managed to relieve the tension with a well-placed bit of humor – incorporating it in a clever and non-awkward manner. I even laughed aloud a few times.

Finally, there was a supreme lack of “fluff” in this book. Every scene either worked to advance the plot or reveal character. This is a major part of why the story was so fast-paced, and this leads me to my next observations:

Pacing: I don’t know about you, but when I read, my mind tends to wander every so often and I find myself having to go back and reread several paragraphs or even pages at a time. I didn’t do that once in this entire book. In fact, I was so into the story that I found it difficult to stop and take notes for this post. It’s not the type of book you analyze, it’s the type you just enjoy! It is one of the best-paced books I’ve read in ages, and it makes me even more eager for the second book, “Fragments“, as it’s bound to be just as good. This is where I also draw my greatest comparison to the “Hunger Games” trilogy, specifically “Mockingjay.” It had all of the same elements of Collins’ final book, but didn’t have shocking events just for “shock’s” sake. In any case, Wells definitely figured out how to keep an audience engaged, and I dare you to read it without becoming riveted!

Characters: I actually don’t think the characters were the strongest elements of the story. Most of the characters, save Kira and Samm, were written in a rather flat manner, seeming to be to the vehicles by which we are led to our next events rather than people we were supposed to get connected to. A means to an end, if you will. Not to say they weren’t likable. In fact, for flat characters they were really well-developed. I think Wells did this on purpose to draw the reader’s focus to the events and provided a bit distance from the violence (I guess it’s supposed to make us a little im-“Partial”).

Since the book is written in first-person, the reader really only finds out what Kira thinks of the characters, rather than as the author would describe them. It was done quite well, but I believe this is why it lacked a bit of physical description. I, for one, would have appreciated a few more drop-in reminders. We really only get to know them through their dialog, and they don’t really develop beyond that. All that said, the format the author chose for his characters worked brilliantly within the context, and I didn’t feel the lack because Kira was such a strong lead. She was a living contrast of teenage girl and soldier, managing to be otherworldly and relatable at the same time.

World Building: The best thing I can say about the world building is that I felt like I was there. The imagery was amazing, using beautifully descriptive passages such as, “…last to fall were the buildings, distant and solemn, the gravestones for an entire world” (147).  In addition to this lovely descriptive voice we actually found out more about this world through the attitudes and lifestyles of the people. They are living in a world of extremes where danger lurks around every corner. I loved that the environment was almost a character in its own right.

Overall, “Partials” is one of the best books I’ve ever read, and I think it has the potential to be the next big hit of the genre! Give it a try – you won’t be disappointed!

Other Books You Might Like:

by Niki Hawkes

Now Let’s Discuss!

I had a lot of fun composing this review, but I’m most looking forward to hearing what YOU think. Do you agree or disagree with my assessments and why? What elements of the book worked for you? Did you find the story compelling? Did any of you enjoy the book as much as I did?

Dec 1 2012

Coming Soon: Fragments

Feb 26Title: Fragment

Series: Partials #2

Author: Dan Wells

Release Date: February 26, 2013

“Partials” – the first book in the series – was this month’s “Your Pick for Nik!” (tune in Dec 1st at 10:00 pm MST for the thorough review and discussion). I wont go into it too much here, suffice to say it was one of the best books I’ve read this year, and I am extremely excited to see what happens next! Attention fans of “Hunger Games”: this is the next series for you!