Welcome!

First, the names in this aren't my favorite. I mean, Snow? Seriously. Yes, she controls the snow. Sure. But Paige really could have come up with something better than Snow. And Jagger? Like, hey, look at me. I'm a bad ass. Nope. And Algid. Sucks. The names just suck. Period. Moving on. The pacing at the beginning of the book took a bit too long for my liking. I get that she wanted back story so we'd all know how Snow how suffered in Whittaker. That way she could bemoan it later. It just took forever. Like 1/3 of the book. I just couldn't bring myself to care about the Robbers. Oh, and her precious Bale. OMG! I am so over Bale already and he is barely in the book. Was actually hoping they'd just let him die at the end. Sure he had his own little surprise, but I don't care. Move with Kai.



Ah, Kai. I liked him. He was the only character that came off as not pretending through the book, even in the end. I just have a feeling he knew exactly what was going on. He knew who he cared about and didn't let that sway him. Also, I like that he doesn't do magic. I don't know how I feel about the magic in this book. Everything is elemental or potions. That's different, but I'll have to read more to decide how much I care for it.


1. Kai
2. River Witch
3. Snow
4. Greta

Felt like a lot of filler until the very end. A lot of Becky just going on about the facility.



However, the facility was pretty cool. Not so much what they wanted them to do to the real zombies, even if they are already dead. I'm glad Becky didn't give in like the others, and her actions made the others thinks about what they were doing. The end was pretty cool, but poor Mark. Why was he there? Hopefully, the next book explains. The zombie process was interesting. It was unlike anything else I've heard of. Becky goes into detail about it (filler!), and it could have been shortened, but it is good to know. Glad Josh let her go in the end.

Everything came full circle in this book. Lia got some closure. Michael was freed from his father. Cassie found her mother. Okay, granted she killed her. But she found her. Silver lining. And it wasn't her choice anyway so... We get to learn so much about Cassie's past with her mother. Was shocked by the director's involvement! Hello! Did not see that coming. Glad he's out of the picture. Cassie gets to be with her family and the other Naturals which is great now that she knows what happened to her mother. And Dean! My boy Dean. He didn't play as much of a role in this one, but I love that he supported Cassie like she did for him in the second book. He gave up control, which for him was hard after his father, but he trusted her. You just didn't know who to trust in this one and it was great.


"The world is full of drowning people, ready and willing to drown you too." -Ree

The first half was a bore, but I did like the rest. Over-hyped imo, but okay. Now I get to watch the movie.

Really enjoyed this continuation of the series. The murders were much more interesting this time as they used math and logic rather than random killing. Definitely reading Book 4.

Title: Killer Instincts
Author: Jennifer Lynn Barnes
Series: The Naturals (2)
Format: Hardback
Source: CHS

So over the trope of the new girl showing up and being so special that the guys just have to fawn over her because she's just too precious. Seriously. It's like they have to prove their masculinity by always fighting over and protecting her. Let her get herself out the trouble that she gets herself into. Cassie is a big girl. Yet Michael and Dean act like she is completely unable to handle the real world. Granted both of them, along with Lia and probably Sloane too, have seen more, but she has been through plenty. Even in just the first book. She can take it. And if she can get herself into these scrapes then surely she can claw her way back out.

The mystery of the book was fantastic. Okay, so I guessed that Clark and Christopher were the killers, that's true, but I did not have any clue that there would be a third killer. That threw me. Also, I love that Lia is honest enough (haha) to tell Cassie about her problems when everyone else is handling her with kid gloves. She gets in her face and straightens out whatever misgiving Cassie has. Honestly, it makes Cassie tolerable. I hate the female protag who can do no wrong and is all fragile while every male rushes to her rescue. Oh, and Cassie finally choosing  Dean yay!

I finished this book. That is just about all I can say for it.

It was tedious and confusing and really just a bunch of Woolf bathering on about things I really wasn't interested in. 

Title: Aurora Sky: Vampire Hunter
Series: Aurora Sky
Author: Nikki Jefford
Pages: 256
Source: Kindle Freebie
Format: Kindle


- Um, the grammar was okay, I guess



- The plot, the characters, the setting. Everything.
- Didn't buy the romance. Not even a little. It was shallow and horrible. Nope.
- Aurora so so whiney. If they could have picked a worse vampire hunter, it would have been a miracle. She's ungrateful that they saved her. Even if she didn't want to work for them, she should at least be thankful for that much. She's rude and wants everything her way. Couldn't stand her.
- I'm not even sure what the plot was meant to be. It didn't go anywhere. Did she kill a few vampires? Yes, but to what end? Nothing was achieved.
- Her mother was so obnoxiously absent. She didn't care that her daughter was now supposed to be killing these monsters. Didn't care that Dante is just whisking her off to who knows where. She buried her head in the sand. She acts all mad that her daughter has a "dangerous-looking boyfriend" but thinks nothing of her going off to hunt blood-sucking monsters. And she just takes these stranger's word for it that her daughter can do it. Worst part of the book

Title: Cinnamon
Series: Shooting Stars
Author: V.C. Andrews
Pages: 165
Source: Public Library
Format: Paperback


- The dialogue felt off to me. I mean, what senior girl still calls her parents "mommy" and "daddy"? It's just odd.
- Also, I have trouble believing that any teacher would have play practices in her own on the weekend.
- Writing was okay, but not the best.


- The book wasn't loaded down with too many characters.
- Each character was unique and given any quote, I could guess who was speaking.
- Grandmother got what she deserved in the end.
- The ending was satisfying without being a "happy ending".

Day 1: Your fave book.- Sorcerer's Stone
Day 2: Your fave movie. - Meh, it's been a while
Day 3: Is there any of the films adaptations that have made you angry because they’ve ignored important parts of the book. - See answer 2
Day 4: Least fave female character and why. - Luna- She just irritates me.
Day 5: Fave male character and why. - Fred or George, because they are freaking hilarious
Day 6: What house would you want to be in. - Pottermore says Slytherin
Day 7: Fave female character and why. - Mrs. Weasley, because she's an awesome mom.
Day 8: What do you think would be your fave lesson. - Charms
Day 9: Least fave male character. - Filch
Day 10: Horcruxes or Hallows. Hallows- way more powerful
Day 11: What character would you say you are most like. - Hermione
Day 12: Fave ship.(relationship, eg - Ron/Hermione, Harry/Ginny etc) I always shipped Harry/Hermione
Day 13: Least fave movie. See answer 2
Day 14: Team Voldemort or Team harry. - Harry, of course!
Day 15: Who would be your best friends at Hogwarts. (three only) Hermione, Neville, Harry
Day 16: Fave professor - Snape
Day 17: Are you excited about The Deathly Hallows movie or scared it won’t do the book justice. ???
Day 18: Least fave book. Half-Blood Prince
Day 19: Do you prefer the books or films. - Books, of course
Day 20: If you had to meet one member of the cast, who would it be. - Emma Watson
Day 21: Out of all the characters that died, if you could bring one back, who would it be. George
Day 22: Pick a favourite quote from any of the books/films - "Always" so cliche but I love it
Day 23: Any part of the books/movies that makes you cry. - Dobby dying!
Day 24: Any particular scene you wished would have been put in the movie but it wasn’t.- ??
Day 25: Nineteen years later. Are you happy how it turned out, or do you wish something was different, ie Neville married Luna. Harry + Hermione! Oh, and George would have lived.
Day 26: If you could be able to work one spell without a wand what would it be. Expeliarmus
Day 27: Would you rather own The Invisibility Cloak, The Resurrection Stone or The Elder Wand.- Elder Wand
Day 28: Do you listen to Wizard Wrock, what do you think about it. Nope
Day 29: Did you enjoy A Very Potter Musical. Nope, I don't do musicals
Day 30: What affect has Harry Potter made on your life and how much does it mean to you- It's the book I go to when I'm sad/angry/bored/anything but happy, then when I'm happy too. It's my Plan A Escape

All these characters are so childish. Valerie. Aurora. Even Fane and how old is he? 258? Seriously. They all need to grow up. And why is this organization using children to hunt vampires anyway?

Fane has to be a vampire. Like has to be. Shouldn't they have trained Aurora to recognize them???

Weekly Reads & Reviews

Currently Reading:

 

Title: Red Queen
Series: Book 1 of Red Queen series
Author: Victoria Aveyard
Pages: 383
Format: Hardback
Source: Public Library


I am still not sure how I like the writing in this book. When I first started I thought, "Wow, this is so lush and vivid and wonderful and I WANT MORE!". But as I read more, the novelty wore off. That isn't to say that the writing worsened or became lackluster in any way. I just got past the honeymoon phase. However, the writing was definitely solid throughout the entire book. Pace was well done as were the twists and turns. Character development was there, but I could have done with more about the main characters and not so many side charactes.


Mare- She is brutal and bad ass, even before she learns of her ability and I love her for that. She remains true to herself throughout and never veers from what she believes. She does play the game that the Queen has set for her, but she does it for her own reasons as well. She has one awesome ability (but I won't spoil that for you :))
Maven- I could say so much, but that would end in one big spoiler. However, I will say that he is wonderful at playing people and I am eager to see how his character develops through the series. P.S. I was so hoping for a romance here!
Cal- Okay, I wanted a romance here as well. Guilty. But I do enjoy my love triangles. Again, he is a character, much like Mare, who stayed true to his beliefs, and I admire him for that, even if I disagree with his views. I like his balance of warrior/soldier and prince and vulnerable young adult. Very well done.
Queen Elara- I imagine her much like Cecilia (I believe is her name, but feel free to correct me) from Game of Thrones. In fact, it was her face that I imagined while reading this book. Their characters are nearly identical. She's sneaky and can come off as completely heartless were in not for the love she obviously has for Maven. That is her saving grace.
Evangeline- Oh, this girl. Couldn't stand her. She had no redeeming qualities, however, I attribute this to her upbring.


This is a tricky one. There are so many YA tropes throughout this book. It reads like a combination of The Selection and Hunger Games with some Darkling (Siege and Storm) and Game of Thrones tossed in for fun. Despite that, the story was well-crafted even if they reminded me of other books and shows (I've yet to read GoT, I know, I know. I'll get to it). There were up and downs and I couldn't wait to read what would happen next. I do believe the story will deviate from the formula in the next installment, and began to in the last couple of chapters.


Solid again. While I would have liked to have known more about the world they are in (they refer to the past but not often), there is pretty good detail about the environment as it pertains to people. But what I want to know is, is this taking place some place comparable to our world? Like was there a war, a la The Selection/Divergent that left the world this way? Is it completely original? How did the people get their powers? Were they bestowed on them? Perhaps that was in there somewhere and I missed it.


Thoroughly enjoyed the book. Writing was great. Detail, which I love. Likable characters. Tropes just held it back from being a 5 Star for me.