Through the Ever Night by Veronica Rossi

Through the Ever Night by Veronica Rossi


Rating: 4.5 stars

Synopsis: WORLDS KEPT THEM APART. DESTINY BROUGHT THEM TOGETHER. Aria has struggled to build a life for herself outside Reverie. It hasn't been easy adjusting to life in the wilderness, but the struggle has been worth it with Perry by her side. But Perry has other challenges. His people are looking  to him for answers. Answers about what happened to his nephew, and what's happening to their world. And they don't trust the privileged Aria, one of the enemy, in their midst. Soon Perry'll be forced to choose between the tribe that looks to him for leadership and the girl that looks to him for love.

 

Review: I loved this book a lot more than the first. I thought the plot was a lot tighter on a whole than the first one and the issues I had with the timing of information in the previous book were completely gone. This book made me so glad I picked it up in the book shop and forced me to start reading such an amazing series.

 

Aria and Perry's relationship was so much more believable for me in this book. The first book was more about the struggle between the pair as they got to know each other and so the relationship didn't happen till the end and felt almost rushed to me in places. In this book, we pick up in Perry's POV right where Aria left off in book 1 with the two reuniting and from there I just loved it. I thought it was such a sweet relationship and what I loved is neither of them is particularly over protective of the other. Yes they want to look out for each other but, if you think about Tris and Four's relationship - the over protectiveness from both of them leads to trust issues and miscommunication and I really didn't like that in their relationship. Aria and Perry don't do that - they know each other has a job to do (another thing about them, they don't keep secrets which just saves so much time) and they completely respect that.

 

This was a very relationship heavy book. We finally meet the elusive Liv and we get to understand her story a little bit better and understand why she ran from Sable and Roar in book 1. The relationship she has with Roar is so sweet and the friendship she begins with Aria is equally beautiful. Aria actually says in the book that in an ideal world her and Liv would have been good friends and I totally agree with that.

 

What I thought was really interesting though was the fact that, while the book is relationship heavy, the characters don't dwell on it. It's more of a subtle undertone throughout the book. When Aria and Perry are apart, of course they think about each other but they're also completely focused on their tasks. This is something I haven't seen much of in YA fiction but I really loved it. It meant we got to learn more about the characters morals but equally about the world that they lived in. The Tides need a leader and we really get a first hand look at how difficult it is being that leader and trying to keep 400 people happy and earning their loyalty. There wasn't a point in the book where I wanted to skip pages to get to the next chapter which can happen when books focus on the mundane of the world - the struggle to survive - but I was completely hooked. I wanted to learn as much as possible about the characters and their lives and I thought Veronica just wrote the book perfectly. I did also like that Veronica didn't include the good old love triangle. There were hints at it - mainly from Perry when Kirra starts putting doubts in his head but we avoided it and I'm all kinds of thankful for that. I really don't like love triangles.

 

Cinder is such an interesting character. The idea that he can harness the power of the Aether is so intriguing and I love that in this book we learn more about Cinder, his power and his past. In book 1 he just kind of appeared and I really loved that Perry has taken him into the Tides and is trying to help him survive. For a total stranger (who, let's face it, could have almost killed him in the last book) I think it's so sweet. Even giving him a birthday because he doesn't know when his is and I loved him and Willow and Flea the dog (because Willow & Flea are kind of a package deal). I think the Tribe will be really good for Cinder and I can't wait to see what will happen to him in the next book

 

The only thing I found confusing came right at the end of the book. In book 1, Aria tells us that Dwellers can't survive on the outside. She can because her father was an Outsider, but normal Dwellers can't do this - they die. Yet at the end of the book, a number of Dwellers are broken out of Reverie and appear to be fine. A little shell shocked and scared yes but dying? No. So - do Dwellers die on the outside or don't they? This was the only discrepancy that I noticed in the book but with the emphasis put on it in the first book it was quite big. Maybe when I re-read the books, I'll better understand and I'll have missed something but, after the first read this was the only disappointing and somewhat confusing thing I found.

 

Overall, this book was a lot better than the first one. The plot was tighter and the characters so much more rounded and real. I loved getting to see the relationships and world evolve and I can't wait to pick up book 3.

 

Image from http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/14742334-through-the-ever-night - no Copyright Intended

 



Under the Never Sky by Veronica Rossi

Under the Never Sky by Veronica Rossi


Rating: 4 stars


Synopsis:  WORLDS KEPT THEM APART. DESTINY BROUGHT THEM TOGETHER.

Aria has lived her whole life in the protected dome of Reverie. Her entire world confined to its spaces, she's never thought to dream of what lies beyond its doors. So when her mother goes missing, Aria knows her chances of surviving in the outer wasteland long enough to find her are slim.

Then Aria meets an outsider named Perry. He's searching for someone too. He's also wild - a savage - but might be the only person who can keep her alive.

And if they can survive, they are each other's best hope for finding answers.

Review: This is a book that I've heard a lot about and always wanted to pick up. I managed to pick up the sequel to this book in a bookstore and then picked this up at the library. Aria's life is incredibly sheltered - she lives under a protective dome where life is lived in realms - think fear landscapes in Divergent but a lot more pleasant. The 'dwellers' have always feared the 'outsiders' until one night Aria tries to find out what happened to her mother by trusting a boy who really shouldn't be trusted.

I did like this book; I thought it was a really good opening to the series and I'm looking forward to the second book. I thought Aria was quite a good female protagonist who just got on with things. Yes there was some initial squealing about how she's going to die but in all fairness, it didn't last long and it was well justified - it's common knowledge that dwellers can't survive on the outside. Perry as well was quite a good protagonist. He's a survivor and is willing to do whatever it takes to protect his family. We get to hear both Aria and Perry's side of the story throughout the book and I thought the dual POV actually worked really well. We needed to hear from both of them in order to understand what their lives are like and I thought Veronica did this really well.

I thought the world building was amazing. There was so much thought put into the world - the dome where Aria lives and the life and secrets the realms hide and the Tides - Perry's tribe. The two contrasting lives and situations were so well thought out and with the dual POV you really got to see how the 'privileged' dwellers lived in comparison to the outsiders who are struggling to survive. I thought the idea of Blood Lord was intriguing. Perry's brother is Blood Lord of the Tides - the ruler in other words - and while Perry is desperate for that title himself, he won't do it because of his nephew Talon. (Which I'll come back to in a minute). Each tribe has a Blood Lord and it's a very bad idea for you to kill one, which Perry finds out during the course of the book. I thought this detail was cleverly used to create an obstacle for Perry and Aria to overcome and it was incredibly well thought out.

While the overall plot of the story was good, there were a few things that I didn't like. We meet Aria at the moment she's about to enter Ag 6 which is off limits and forms the basis of the story. While I can understand why Veronica started the book off here, I thought it would have been better to start a little before this point so there's a chance to see why Aria feels like she has to go through with this and so we get to meet the characters beforehand and get to know them a little bit better. There seemed to be a lot of information that Aria had to tell us so that we understood why she was prepared to break the law and I think the story might have benefited from us being shown the information instead.
There was a lot of information that came a little late in the story. For example, we find out probably about 3/4 of the way into the book that Perry has 'rendered' with Talon - which is why he's so intent on finding him and why he's so afraid of being close to Aria. This whole concept just kind of came out of nowhere and there wasn't really any explanation for it after the fact.

The pacing of Under the Never Sky felt incredibly fast. I normally have issues with slow paced books that linger forever on one section but in this book there was a definite pace to the book which while it moved the book along and kept me reading (I finished the book in a day so the pacing isn't necessarily a bad thing) there were moments when I thought the pace could have been slowed a little so some of the issues I mentioned earlier could have been addressed a little better.

Overall I did enjoy this book and I am looking forward to reading the second book. I'm very interested to see what will happen to Aria and Perry in the next two instalments. A fast paced read that puts an interesting twist on dystopic and sci-fi YA fiction.  
Image from http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11594257-under-the-never-sky - no Copyright Intended

Top Ten Tuesday

This weeks Top Ten Tuesday is the Ten Books I Plan to have in my Beach Bag this Summer. As always, this feature comes from The Broke and the Bookish so go and check them out and here's my list.

1. Game of Thrones by Sarah J. Maas - as you'll see from this list, I have a lot of books downloaded on my Kindle that I'm saving up for summer and this is the one that I'm probably most excited about reading this summer because I've heard over and over that this is the series to read and so I can't wait to be a very late comer to this party.
2. The Guardian by Katie Klein - I love me an angel/guardian protector book and this looks like it's going to be great. It's a very short book (only about 175 pages according to Amazon) which makes me slightly worried about the pace of the book but it'll be a perfect short read for summer regardless.
3. Deep Blue Secret by Christie Anderson - this is another protector book and while it sounds slightly cliche I'm still excited to read it and see how Christie has made the plot her own. Looking at reviews, it does seem that most people think it's a good book so I guess I'll have to wait and see...
4. Under my Skin by Shawntelle Dawson - I've already started reading this book but I stopped at about 30% on my Kindle because there were other books that I wanted to read more. BUT, this book has got so many good reviews on Amazon so I'm willing to pick it up and give it another go this summer. Maybe it'll be a repeat of Coldest Girl in Coldtown and I'll end up really loving it.
5. Gravity by Melissa West - As I'm sure you know if you've read my blog, I'm a wee bit obsessed with the lux series which is surprising because I don't normally go in for alien books. Hence me trying out Gravity. I'm not sure whether it's a dystopic novel or just sci-fi but it does sound quite interesting - what can't people peek at?
6. We were liars by E.Lockhart - this is another book that I'm a late comer to. I bought it last summer but never got round to reading it but from the amazing things I've heard about it, I'm definitely excited to read it this year.
7. Vampire Shift by Tim O'Rourke - this sounds so intriguing to me and is something that I personally haven't seen done much of and I don't know why. A cop investigating lots of strange deaths (I'll give you three guesses as to the cause of these deaths). Really interested to see how this one is written.
8. If I Stay by Gale Forman - this is another book I bought last year but never read. I have watched the movie though which reduced me to tears, so while I do know what happened, I do want to read the book and it's sequel Where She Went this summer.
9. Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare - there's probably a really horrible punishment for not having read this series by now, especially since I loved the Mortal Instruments series but, until recently, I was never really driven to pick up the first book but after watching many booktubers and reading reviews with people raving about the series I decided I really do need to read this - especially since I love the Shadowhunter world. Plus, apparently Will Herondale will become an instant book boyfriend so...
10. Saving June by Hannah Harrington - yes I know I've read this book but is you've read my previous review, I think this is a perfect read for summer. A road trip with friends and some killer music along the way? This book is a really nice light read for summer and will definitely be a re-read for me.

So those are the ten books I'm going to have in my beach bag this summer. What about you?

Saving June by Hannah Harrington

Saving June by Hannah Harrington

Rating: 5 stars

Synopsis: If she'd waited less than two weeks, she'd have been June who died in June.

But I guess my sister didn’t consider that. When sixteen-year-old Harper’s sister June, the perfect, popular, pretty one to Harper’s also-ran, commits suicide just before her high school graduation, nothing in Harper’s world makes sense anymore. With her family falling apart, Harper has a plan – steal June’s ashes and take her sister to the one place she always wanted to go: California. Embarking on a wild road trip of impromptu gigs and stolen kisses with mysterious musician Jake, the one person who could hold answers about June, Harper’s determined to find peace for her sister. But will she find peace for herself along the way?

Review: This is a book that I read last year and immediately fell in love with. Yes the main plot point is slightly depressing by Hannah makes the whole story feel quite light hearted and fun which makes it a really easy read especially for summer.

Haper's older sister June has committed suicide, leaving the family in turmoil. Harper blames herself for not noticing and, despite June being dead, we really get to see the relationship the two had through Harper and her memories of June. One of the things I really liked about Harper as a character is that she admits she was particuarly awful to June before she died but this book is about her trying to make up for that by taking her sister to the one place she always wanted to go. California.

All of the characters in this book were so well developed. They all had individual stories and personalities and it was really interesting to delve into Jake's character in particular because we don't know much about him, just that June knew him in some way. He's stubborn and a jerk sometimes but, when it counts, he's a really decent guy and I loved getting to know him and watching his relationship with Harper change and grow over the course of the book.

The idea of stealing June's ashes was quite amusing for me - it just seemed like such a strange thing to do, but at the same time, I could completely understand why Harper had to do it. Her parents would never have accepted it. The use of the road trip was also really inventive for me. Hannah didn't just stick her characters on a plane and fly them to California - they wouldn't have had the money for that and besides, a road trip means there's a lot more time for character development. There are so many stops along the way and each one reveals a little more about the characters and their history which I thought was really nice and totally made me want to take a spontaneous road trip in a beat up old van with some friends.

The secondary focus of this book for me though was the music. Jake is a musican - his brother works in a record store and his whole life revolves around music and throughout the trip, he imparts everything he knows onto the two girls and onto us the reader. Harper's sarcasm cut through it though so it doesn't sound like a boring history lesson but is actually really interesting and at the back, we get a list of all the songs mentioned throughout the book to create our own 'playlist' and really understand what Jake is telling us in the book.

Overall, I think this book is a great summer read. It encompasses things I think everyone dreams of doing - jumping in a car one day and just driving. Taking the scenic route and doing things you never dreamed you would be doing but it also highlights the bond between sisters and how, even in death, that bond never disappears. It doesn't matter what you did when they were alive as long as you recognize the fact that there will always be things you wish you had said or done when they were alive. Reall poignant and funny but with little glimpses of real sadness beneath it all that uncovers the essence of how we cope when we lose someone we love.

Image from http://www.amazon.co.uk/Saving-June-Hannah-Harrington/dp/1848450958 - no Copyright Intended

Top 10 Tuesday

This week's Top Ten Tuesday is the Top 10 Authors I really want to meet. As always, this post comes from The Broke and the Bookish, so go and check them out and lets get started. As always, there are going to be some authors on this list that are really obvious and you can probably guess some of them, but some of them may surprise you a little. Without furthur ado, here we go:

1. Maggie Stiefvater - because she just seems like the coolest person ever and I think we would just get on so well because she seems a little bit mental, just like me!
2. Julie Kagawa - because despite not liking The Immortal Rules, she did bring Ash and Puck and Meghan and Grimalkin into my life and for that, she goes on the list, and we can obsess over them for a while.
3. Jennifer L. Armentrout - again, she brought Daemon Black into my life. Which automatically puts her on the list. I would love to know how she came up with the idea of him and if I can steal him from her. No? Oh well...
4. Holly Black - I'm really interested in reading more of her work but I loved the Coldest Girl in Coldtown and I think it would be really awesome to know how she came up with the idea for the book, and what she did to make it stand out from all the other vampire books out there.
5. Cassandra Clare - again, I think Cassandra Clare is just a really cool lady and it would be great to find out how she came up with the world of the Shadowhunters. It's so diverse and different and you can tell there was so much work put into building it and I'd quite like some tips for my own writing.
6. Claire Merle - I loved her 'Glimpse' duology and I think it would be really interesting to find out how she came up with her ideas and what she's up to next
7. Kim Harrington - following on from my last post, this is a duology that I love and have loved for so long and Kim Harrington just seems like a really funny person and the kind of person I'd love to spend a day with.
8. Becca Fitzpatrick - when I first read the Hush Hush series I wasn't really sure what I thought about it. I read the series after finishing Black Ice and while I did enjoy the book, there were things that irritated me and, I think that clouded my judgement because, I really did like this series. I love angel books and I think Becca would be a really interesting person to talk to.
9. Claudia Gray - again, I really did love the Evernight series and I think her writing advice would be really useful.
10. Gayle Foreman - the master writer behind If I Stay which is a film and book I love to pieces. I'd love to know how to evoke tears from readers like me who never normally cry at books (or their movie counterparts) but can be found sobbing in the corner after reading this book or watching this film.

So, there are my Top 10 Authors I'd love to meet. What would be in yours?

Clarity by Kim Harrington

Clarity by Kim Harrington

Rating: 5 stars

Synopsis: Clarity "Clare" Fern sees things. Things no one else can see. Things like stolen kisses and long-buried secrets. All she has to do is touch an object and the visions come to her. It's a gift. And a curse. When a teenage girl is found murdered, Clare's ex boyfriend wants her to help solve the case - but Clare is still furious at the cheating jerk. Then there's brother - who has supernatural gifts of his own - becomes the prime suspect, and Clare can no longer look away. Teaming up with Gabriel, the smouldering son of the new detective, Clare must venture into the depths of fear, revenge and lust in order to track the killer. But will her sight fail her just when she needs it most.

Review: I picked up Clarity on a whim a couple of years ago, thinking it's a cheap e-book that I probably won't like. I devoured it. I loved everything about it. Clare isn't your normal teenage girl and Gabriel is the perfect hot book boyfriend - just how I like them.

The plot line is really interesting and, I know what you're thinking, a supernatural book gone wrong - but no. Kim delivers an amazing book where the supernatural abilities aren't so far-fetched that you can't imagine them being real. The use of a psychic family is what really gives the supernatural aspect an interesting twist. Psychics are a huge part of our society and, whether you love em or hate em, they do make interesting characters and Clare's family are no exception to this. Clare is a headstrong teenage girl who is trapped in her family business. Labelled as a freak because of her powers, all she wants is a normal summer. One where she doesn't have to help her mom and brother give psychic readings in their dining room. Her wish comes true in a morbid way when a girl is murdered and the mayor wants Clare to help. Clare is so sassy and sarcastic and she doesn't back down from a fight. With all the stick she's had to put up with in her past, you can definitely understand why. But even the prospect of a summer out of the house might not happen when her ex-boyfriend and mayor's son Justin comes knocking to ask for her help.

I didn't really like Justin to start off with. He seemed to be your typical cheating boyfriend and there was just something I didn't like about him. But as the book progressed, I did end up liking him as a character, especially when you get to learn more about the whole cheating episode. Then the second book came about and I hated him again. While I'm not going to discuss the sequel here, Justin totally lost any and all respect I had for him in the second book.

Gabriel on the other hand was a really interesting character. While initially he's attracted to Clare, when he finds out about her powers he becomes cold and distant and, when you find out why you're heart just breaks for him. Totally gorgeous and deadly sarcastic, he really does fall for Clare and she falls for him and the way they have to prove their love for each other is really different and interesting to read about and it left me dying for the release for Perception to find out whether they do get together because Kim does leave us hanging.

The murder aspect was really interesting because she made it believable for teenagers to be investigating a murder which is something a lot of authors don't manage to do. Some people have said it's an obvious guess as to who did it but, as usual, I didn't guess it and was completely surprised - I personally think that's an awesome trait to have and it really helps separate books out for me because if I can guess who's done it then it really is quite obvious.

This is an amazing series to read and I loved every second of it. I'd really recommend giving it a go, even if supernatural or psychics don't normally do it for you, give this series a go because I really think it might change your mind.

Image from http://kimharringtonbooks.com/Books.html - no Copyright intended 

Top Ten Tuesday

Another Top Ten Tuesday (this time on a Monday because I've managed to get five minutes on a laptop that works) and this week it's my Top Ten Books I'll Probably Never Read. As always, this feature comes from The Broke and the Bookish blog so, if any of you have your own blog and want to try it out - there's a list there of all the prompts up till June. Here we go:

1. The Shiver trilogy by Maggie Stiefvater - this might come as a surprise to some of you because most of Maggie's books I rave about - specifically the Raven Boys series - but I've heard so many mixed reviews about this series; most of them being quite bad ones, that it's just kind of put me off reading the trilogy. Maybe I'll pick it up one day but for right now, this is one of Maggie's series I'm in no hurry to pick up
2. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte - there are very few classic books that I actually really enjoy and I really don't like the Bronte sisters. I've read a quarter of Jane Eyre and, to date, is the only book I have never persevered with to finish. I'm reading Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte for college and I've had the same problem - I don't like the Bronte's writing style or the plots. The books seem to be a love hate thing and unfortunately for me, I'm definitely in the hate camp
3. The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R Toilken - 'What?!?!' I hear many of you cry - hear me out. I've never been interested in the series and it's never occurred to me to pick the book up because of this. Yes it's a classic and I'm sure it's a great book but it's never appealed to me and I don't think it ever will.
4. Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins - I'm beginning to realise I'm going to be making enemies with this list but again, the series has never really appealed to me. I've picked them up in a library haul but I always seem to find other books I'm more excited about reading. I'm sure this book and it's companions are as amazing as everyone seems to think but for me, there are other books that appeal to me a lot more.  
5. The Golden Compass by Phillip Pullman - so I've kind of watched the film of this (and by kind of I mean it was a while ago and all I can remember if Lyra riding a polar bear) and I didn't really enjoy it (again, from what I can remember) so it's unlikely that I will ever have the urge to pick up this book
6. Cross my heart and hope to Spy by Ally Carter - this is a series that I see every time I walk into a book shop and every time I look at it and wonder if I should try it but so far I've always decided the answer to that is no. It's never been a book that I've thought - I have to pick that up - like most of these books, there's always another book I'd rather be reading
7. The Selection series by Keira Cass - this is a series that I have contemplated picking up, but, like Shiver, I've heard so many bad things about this series that I don't really think I'll ever pick the series up.
8. The 100 by Cass Morgan - the reason I won't pick this book up is because it's based on the TV show and the TV show is just better. I've seen this book in libraries and I did start to read the first couple of pages but, from what I can tell, it's just a book version of the TV show and I'd rather watch the show than re-read what I've just watched
9. Half Wild by Sally Green - I really didn't like the first book in this series. I picked the first one up last year and read it on holiday and I was really disappointed in it. There was something missing and it just really put me off picking up this sequel
10. The Fault in our Stars by John Green - I've read half of this book and, despite the hype, don't feel the urge to pick it up and finish it. I do want to read some more of John Green's work - some that haven't had the build TFioS has. I think if I read this book now, I'd be quite disappointed because of all the hype it's had - maybe when this phenomenon has died down a little I'll read it but, if/when that happens, for now it's on this list

So there you go, there's by Top 10 of books I'll probably never read. There are a couple like the Shiver trilogy that I'm still undecided by so maybe I'll pick them up and give them a go soon, maybe not. What would be on your list?