Book Review: You Are Mine

I hope everyone had a wonderful summer. I know I did. Lots of family fun, mostly camping. Today I'' be reviewing You Are Mine by Janeal Falor. The author contacted me and offered me a copy of the book in return for my honest review. This in no way effects my final review of this book.

Title: You Are Mine

Author: Janeal Falor

Series: Mine #1

Publisher: Chardonian Press LLC

Original Publication Date: May 6, 2013

Format Read: kindle

Genre: YA Fantasy

Purchase: Amazon

Find on Goodreads

Description from Goodreads:
Serena knows a few simple things. She will always be owned by a warlock. She will never have freedom. She will always do what her warlock wishes, regardless of how inane, frivolous, or cruel it is. And if she doesn't follow the rules, she will be tarnished. Spelled to be bald, inked, and barren for the rest of her life—worth less than the shadow she casts.

Then her ownership is won by a barbarian from another country. With the uncertainty that comes from belonging to a new warlock, Serena questions if being tarnished is really worse than being owned by a barbarian, and tempts fate by breaking the rules. When he looks the other way instead of punishing her, she discovers a new world. The more she ventures into the forbidden, the more she learns of love and a freedom just out of reach. Serena longs for both. But in a society where women are only ever property, hoping for more could be deadly.

Wow! I loved this book. I found it to be exemplary. The description sounded good and I sampled the first chapter before agreeing to read for review. When I was done, I was floored. I really don't know exactly how the author found me, but she really had me pegged. This book was almost perfect for me. There was really only one thing that I didn't understand, but if I were to pick out an ideal type of book that I love to read, this book would be one of them. I am looking forward to seeing where the author goes with this series. 

This entire book is from Serena's POV. She lives in a society where women are owned. Their value is based on how much magic there is in their blood. The higher the magic, the more they are worth. Women are basically used to breed more warlocks. Boys are tested early on in their childhood to see how much magic is in their blood. Girls are only tested after they have reach the eligible age for marriage and want to be put in the marriage pool. People without magic or that break the rules are tarnished, which basically means you are really low on the totem pole and have even less rights. 

Whether Serena wants to or not, her father enters her into the marriage pool and she is bought by a man at least as cruel as her father. He wants to meet her and her family, so they all travel to watch a tournament. Warlocks compete to see who is best. Those who die during the tournament have ALL of their possessions given to the warlock who beat them. Serena's intended does pretty good in the tournament until he goes up against a barbarian from Envadi, Zade, where he dies. 

Serena is clearly stressed out by being won by a barbarian and her father is not happy either. He works to try to get her back so he can sell her off to the next highest bidder. Serena is sent to one of the new homes that Zade has won. Like the description states she skirts and breaks the rules expecting to be punished, like her father does constantly, only for him to look the other way. Zade is not the barbarian she thought he was and he and the follow people from Envadi just might be more civilized than the one she lives in.

I really liked it, there was some predictable romance, a little coming of age and finding out who you really are, learning how to stand up for yourself, etc...The world the author came up with I thought was pretty interesting. I hope in the next book that Serena gets to go visit Envadi and see the country first hand. That could be interesting reading about her discovering the world beyond her country. 

The only thing that I don't quite understand is how the magic works. Clearly boys are trained on the use of magic, but I didn't hear of any girls accidentally discovering how to use their own magic. I would assume it would happen at least occasionally. I can also see the men in the country wanting to keep that secret from the women to make sure they stay in line. In the next book I would also love to see Serena actually being trained in how to use her magic. That could be interesting too. 

I also could probably have went for a touch bit more romance, but I think for that to have really worked, we would have also needed Zane's POV and that might have ended up giving away too much of the plot. He wouldn't have been the mystery guy anymore. 

If you find your tastes in books is similar to mine, than you will really like this book. You might even love it. I definitely recommend. I look forward to reading more of this series. 

My Rating: 

Fun, Busy Summer

Hello, everyone! I just want to apologize for not being very active on my blog this summer. My family has been very busy camping and enjoying other activities. Once fall rolls around, I plan on being more active again. In the meantime, if you want to check out my reviews, you can find them on Goodreads and on Amazon. Feel free to follow me or add me as a friend.

I hope you are enjoying your summer as much as I am :)

Book Review: Becoming a Legend

I loved the first book, The Legend of the Blue Eyes by B. Kristin McMichael, so much that the author graciously supplied me with a copy of the second book in the series. This in no way effects my final review of this book.

Title: Becoming Legend

Author: B. Kristin McMichael

Series: The Blue Eyes #2

Publisher: Lexia Press

Original Publication Date: June 6, 2013

Format Read: kindle

Genre: YA Paranormal

Purchase: Amazon

Find on Goodreads

Description from Goodreads:
Arianna Grace is about to turn seventeen and her life has been very complicated lately. She is the leader of four clans of night humans: dearg-dul, baku, tengu, and lycan. While the four clans seem to get along better with each other, there is internal conflict on both sides of her family, not to mention the three boys vying for her attention.

Edward Lucan is making a chase for the power to lead the baku clans and is playing his cards by using his nephew Andrew to lure Arianna into a trap. Unfortunately for Lucan, Andrew has his own plans. He has spent the last year waiting for Arianna to see him as more than a friend, and he now finds it necessary to make a move for her affection, despite his uncle.

In the dearg-dul estate, Arianna discovers that the ambitious Lord Seeger has been laying his own strategies for power and is slowly poisoning her. After getting away with her grandfather's murder, he is setting his sights on her. Luckily for Arianna, her team is on to all of the plans and is making some plans of their own. Will it be enough to keep Arianna safe? Several people close to Arianna have been keeping secrets. If Arianna is to take power and control of the night, she will need to know the truth. Will someone finally tell her what it truly means to become the legend everyone is waiting for, before it is too late to turn back?

This book picks up about a year later from the first book. For most of the book Arianna remains just as ignorant about the world of night humans as she did in the first book, except it's a year later. I felt like she should have known a little more at the beginning of this book. I felt like she should have been training both physically and mentally during that year to truly be the leader of the four clans. But clearly she hasn't.

While I liked it, I did not like it as much as the first book. For me, it felt like it suffered a little bit from The Middle Book Syndrome. The entire time I was reading it, I felt like it was just setting me up for the final book in the series. Which I do have to say based on where book two ends, sounds like it will be an awesome end to the series. Plot-wise though, I didn't really feel like this book had it's own individual story arc in the series. Maybe I missed it? That's not to say that you don't continue to learn new things about the world McMichael created, you do. It's a whole lot bigger than we are lead to believe in the first book. You also learn a little bit more about the legend and there is some plotting from various bad guys on how they can either kill Arianna or use her to get the power they crave. 

With all of that being said, I'm still looking forward to the third book, Winning a Legend. 

My Rating:

Book Review: Hex Hall

Good evening everyone! Today I'll happily be reviewing Hex Hall by Rachel Hawkins. It is the first book in the Hex Hall series.  

Title: Hex Hall

Author: Rachel Hawkins

Series: Hex Hall #1

Publisher: Hyperion Books

Original Publication Date: March 2nd 2010

Format Read: kindle

Genre: YA Paranormal

Purchase: Amazon

Find on Goodreads

Description from Goodreads:

Three years ago, Sophie Mercer discovered that she was a witch. It's gotten her into a few scrapes. Her non-gifted mother has been as supportive as possible, consulting Sophie's estranged father--an elusive European warlock--only when necessary. But when Sophie attracts too much human attention for a prom-night spell gone horribly wrong, it's her dad who decides her punishment: exile to Hex Hall, an isolated reform school for wayward Prodigium, a.k.a. witches, faeries, and shapeshifters.

By the end of her first day among fellow freak-teens, Sophie has quite a scorecard: three powerful enemies who look like supermodels, a futile crush on a gorgeous warlock, a creepy tagalong ghost, and a new roommate who happens to be the most hated person and only vampire student on campus. Worse, Sophie soon learns that a mysterious predator has been attacking students, and her only friend is the number-one suspect.

As a series of blood-curdling mysteries starts to converge, Sophie prepares for the biggest threat of all: an ancient secret society determined to destroy all Prodigium, especially her.

I've been wanting to read this book for a while now as it kept popping up everywhere with a few places even suggesting it might be the book for me, based on other books I've read. Boy were they right! I really liked this book, it might even be love. I'm sure part of it is because Rachel Hawkins clearly grew up around the same time I did and shares the same wonderful sense of humor I do.  

Like the description states, you follow Sophie, who does quite have a handle on her magic. She discovered she was a witch at the age of 13. She's gotten into trouble a few times, but so far her absent father has been able to get her out of it. But, on prom night when Sophie tries to help out a girl by pulling off a little spell, it goes off a little TOO well. The fall out is that her father can no longer protect her and she is sent off to live at Hex Hall until she is 18. 

However, once Sophie arrives she quickly realizes exactly how woefully unprepared she is to live at such a place and just how ignorant she is about her powers and the world of witches, warlocks, faeries, and shapeshifters. She quickly ends up being the target of mean girls and bumbles her way into trouble. Thankfully, she has one refuge, her room and her roommate, Jenna. Jenna herself is an outcast, the only vampire student at the school. 

This isn't just your regular school book though, there is more to the story. There is a mystery as a few of the students have ended up dead, appearing to have been drained of their blood. Who is there number one suspect? Why Jenna, of course. Sophie just knows that Jenna wouldn't do such a thing, so she works to try to figure out who really did it. 

There is also some budding romance, a ghost, some awesome pop culture references, as well as some surprising twists and turns to the story. It is a pretty fast read, although that could have been because I was so into the story, that I just kept reading, and reading, and reading...

I highly recommend checking out this book and I think Rachel Hawkins has just added herself onto my list of go-to authors. I can't wait to read the next book in the series.

My Rating: 

Novella Review: Dark Child: Episode Three

Good evening everyone! Today I'll be reviewing Dark Child: Episode Three by Adina West. It is the third book in the Dark Child series.  I received a copy of this book for free in return for my honest review, through the Never Too Old For Y.A. Books Group on Goodreads. However, I received a copy of the book directly from the author's publisher. This in no way effects my final review of this book. 

Title: Dark Child: Episode Three

Author: Adina West

Series: Dark Child #3

Publisher: Momentum Books

Original Publication Date: April 1, 2013

Format Read: kindle

Genre: YA Paranormal

Purchase: Amazon

Find on Goodreads

Description from the publisher:

Dead? Kat clenched her fists, her stomach a writhing tangle of knots. Her pulse thundered in her ears.

Had this all been an elaborate ruse to trap her? The platelet study; the offer to come and work at the Hema Castus Research Institute; the special attention from Director Norris … Surely they’d have had no way of knowing who she was. Still, if the Directorate controlled Hema Castus, and the Directorate wanted her imprisoned, even dead, everything took on a much more sinister light. And anyway, why did the Directorate want her dead?

Kat has always known she’s special. Different. But finding out why is still a shock, especially when she discovers the malevolent Directorate, a clandestine organization of untold power, have put a price on her head.

Forced into hiding in the remote White Mountains, Kat’s life is suddenly in the hands of the wild and dangerous unalil. But trusting her new protectors isn’t easy, since they seem almost as terrifying as the killers who pursue her . . .

This is a novella-length episode of Dark Child. This is part three of five.

This novella picks up where the last one left off. Kat is still processing the fact that Char has told her she is not human. So, we finally get into the nitty gritty with this episode a bit with Kat finally no longer being clueless about the world around her. In this episode Kat also has to flee to New York to get away from those that are hunting her. Things definitely are getting more intense too. 

Like with the first two episodes as time goes on our list of characters continues to grow. My favorite of the new characters we meet is Akilina. She is a very old Dark Child, who can craft metal into amulets with protective runes specific to each person after reading them. 

Overall, I liked this episode the same as I liked the first two. I have come to two conclusions at this point though, 1) I would just go ahead and by the complete Omnibus edition and skip buying the individual episodes and 2) At this point I'm not sure how everything is going to get resolved in two more episodes. 

I feel I should also comment that according to the publisher, this series of episodes would be great for fans of The Mortal Instruments. I'm going to have to say I don't necessarily agree with that assumption. Yes, it is an urban fantasy series and yes there are vampires or night children, but I feel that is a completely different world with a completely different writing style. I feel a more accurate statement would to just say that this series would be great for urban fantasy or paranormal readers and call it good at that. 

So, if you are a fan of urban fantasy or paranormal books, I would recommend maybe giving this series a try, but I would recommend just getting the omnibus edition or picking up all five episodes at one time. I look forward to seeing what the next two episodes bring. Happy Reading!

My Rating: