Review: With Zombies by Michael F. Stewart

With Zombies (Assured Destruction #3)

by Michael F. Stewart

Publication Date: March 31^st 2014

Publisher: Non Sequitur Press
Source: Kickstarter

Find This Book: With Zombies

Rating: 5/5

Being a read-to-review blogger for Stewart in the past, I naturally helped fund his Kickstarter campaign for book three back in March. This landed me with a nice paperback collection of the trilogy in April that I was dying to start! The wait until now fed my excitement and I was not disappointed.

            Michael F. Stewart has a knack for entrapping readers in his high tech-storytelling. I picked it up this morning around 10 and did not set it down until I finished at 2 (which says a lot considering it took me an hour to concentrate and read 20 pages of my psych book yesterday). I love getting immersed in Janus’s world of hacking and Shadownet. All of the funny pop culture references don’t hurt either (Star Wars is my favorite). It just really feels like he’s writing about and for the young adults of this new generation. The problems that Janus faces are a little extreme, but really they’re not so far off. They are problems that anyone could be going through and that’s part of what makes Stewart’s novels so interesting and relatable.

            In this book everything really pieces together, plot-wise. Questions that were raised in Assured Destruction and Script Kiddie are finally answered, but in an exciting and dramatic way. Everything finally comes together! Some writers can drag out their books and get caught up in telling emotions that make their stories boring. This was NOT the case. The stakes were raised, the plots were twisted, and I was super excited! Sure, Janus has been through a lot, she needed to sort herself out and show her more emotional human side, but made her even more relatable. I was rooting for her the entire 225 pages no matter what she was up to, Michael wrote so much heart and spirit into this young woman that it would be hard not to love her.

            One thing I especially liked about this book is that she relied on the people around her. With her family business still on the line, her mom being hospitalized, community service, not being able to miss school, and having to deal with a virus that has infected Ottawa, Janus has quite a lot on her plate. The first two books she tried to do things her own way, risking her life and getting severely injured each time. For this adventure Jonny is Janus’ rock, always being there for her and helping her to the best of his abilities. Honestly he’s a keeper and I really hope after everything they’ve been through that they stay together forever. On top of that, Jan calls in all of her friends to help her and their friendship was just the greatest thing to read. She never would have made it through without them! She can finally trust people and isn’t alone anymore.

            This book, as well as it’s counterparts are perfect YA contemporary fiction novels. The technological geek side of me was eager to eat up the words as quickly as possible. This is a also a book I would recommend to people who seek diversity when they read. Jan’s mom as MS (Multiple Sclerosis) and I think this was represented well. The author deals with each character’s disabilities flawlessly with out making them seem like they’re not a whole person.

Review: Witchling by Yasmine Galenorn

Witchling (Otherworld #1)

by Yasmine Galenorn

Publication Date: October 3^rd 2006

Publisher: Berkley
Source: Library

Find This Book: Witchling

Rating: 5/5

Witchling, is about three sisters from the Otherworld living Earthside. Basically, the Otherworld is another dimension, and the people are Fae, Cryptos, and Demons. Thousands of years ago the 2 dimensions lived in the same plane as each other, but then the Fae went to war with the humans, so the gods (the Greek ones to be exact) asked the Elementals to do something about it. They made a pact that sealed off the dimensions with limited access through portals regulated by the Fae. This pact was split into 9 seals and given to each of the elementals involved to guard. Over the course of time, they had gotten lazy and all of the seals eventually fell into a mortal's hands. Now modern day, the OW had become nothing but legends until the OW revealed itself once again. Humans are now aware of the OW's existence and have treated OW creatures as celebrities on Earth.

The Three sister's are half-Fae, half-human. Their mother was a human who moved to the Otherworld to be with her husband, a fae. The story is told by the Point of View of Camille, the eldest daughter, and an incompetent witch. Being half human has pretty much made their powers harder for them to control all the time and Camille's magic doesn't always go as planned. Her younger sisters are Dililah, a werecat who not only turns on the full moon but also turns when she's gets stressed out during PMS (pre-moon-syndrome), and Menolly, who had amazing climbing skills until she was unwillingly turned into a Vampire on one of her assignments. Since they lived in the Otherworld while growing up, they were constantly ridiculed by the Full Blood Sidhe, especially Delilah ("Pretty Kitty") because she only turns into a small tabby cat while, typically, were-cats turn into big cats.

So living Earthside as OIA agents (Otherworld Intelligence Agency) has made them minor celebrities in Seattle, and they have come to love quite a few Earthside luxuries. Then Jocko, a stunted Giant OIA agent who runs the Wayfinder bar, was garroted. Even while stunted he's taller and stronger than any human, basically impossible for a human to kill. Additionally the rope gives off a strong Demon aura. dun-Dun-DUNNN!! Demons live in the Subterranean Realms of the Otherworld. They supposedly are to never allowed to reach Earth to cause their chaos, and THESE Demon scouts are looking for seals to give to their King. Of course the King is up to no good, planing to destroy the pact, destroying the separation of worlds, and allow him to bring an army to Earthside! With new dangers, new friends (such as a dragon that can morph into human form, an adorable gargoyle cub, and a foxy Japanese guy), and some intense passions between the characters, can the girls defeat top-notch demons and get the first seal from a mysterious 'Tom Lane'?

I absolutely loved this book, it incorporated many known mystical devices while also incorporating new which explained a couple of questionable things. It was very entertaining, and pretty hard to set down once I had started! The characters all have their problems, which made it more relatable, even with all of the fantastical elements. It was really quite loveable. I also loved the authors writing style and I can't wait to read the next book :D

Review: Anatomy of a Single Girl by Daria Snadowsky

Anatomy of a Single Girl (Anatomy #2)

by Daria Snadowsky

Publication Date: March 11^th 2014

Publisher: Ember
Source: Publisher

Find This Book: Anatomy of a Single Girl

Rating: 5/5

I won this book in an author giveaway on Goodreads. This has not altered my opinion in any way and my review will be honest, as usual.

            When I first read the blurb for this book, I thought it would be perfect for me. It seemed like exactly the kind of book I needed to read at the moment. Ok so he wasn’t my first boyfriend, but he was the first guy I actually cared about and it was the first time someone had broken up with me, so I felt like I could really relate to what Dom was going through and that reading a book getting over a breakup would help me out emotionally too.

            Reading through Dom’s perspective was great, I felt like her best friend that she shared everything with. Sure, I didn’t always agree with her decisions like looking at her ex-bag or talking to her ex post-breakup but as she said, life is full of ups and downs. You can’t have happiness without sadness; you can’t have passion without pain. You will have lows, but you will also have high moments in your life as well. She might not have founds the perfect guy for her, but her heartache helped her discover what she wanted.

1)    To never put a guy before her dreams

2)    That each guy had his own pros (Love, Passion, and Friendship) and that all three are necessary for a relationship.

I might not have a Calvin or a Guy in my life, but I’ve had a Wes. This book put me in Dom’s world so know I don’t NEED to learn for myself. Anatomy of a Single Girl did for me what every great book should do. Teach.

            On top of Dom’s awesomeness the reader also gets a great friendship between Dom and Amy. Dom realizes what boys do to their relationship now that Amy is the one ditching Dom for her boyfriend. Seeing Her point of view of Amy and her relationship was another eye opener for me. You want someone to love you for who you are, but sometimes you can’t help but change. However, above all your girls have your back. As Dom’s mom expresses at the beginning of the book, school is the time to meet all sorts of people, not the time to latch on to one person who’s “the love of your life”. Growing up is about discovering who you are and what you really want.

I feel like this review is really short for some reason but I really can’t find anything else to say about it. The writing style was simple and powerful. Everything about the characters was realistic. The author even goes out of her way to show how the book could have ended- if it was an unrealistic movie. There was nothing not to like about Anatomy of a Single Girl!

Review: Prismatic by Sarah Elle Emm

Prismatic (Harmony Run #1)

by Sarah Elle Emm

Publication Date: May 2012

Publisher: Winter Goose Publishing
Source: Publisher

Find This Book: Prismatic

Rating: 4/5

I won this book in an author giveaway on Goodreads. This has not altered my opinion in any way and my review will be honest, as usual.

            I’ll start this off by informing you that the blurb isn’t quite like the book. I haven’t really put my finger on it yet, but it’s just not as interesting as the book actually is. I guess what I mean is that the blurb makes the book seem cliché while the book is actually much more in-depth. The book addresses humanity and emotional connections unlike other similar teen books, such as the Hunger Games. “Why does the Hunger Games come to mind?”, you  might ask. Well, with a teen girl living in segregation and with little food realizing she’s not normal and taking it upon herself and some friends to overthrow a president who somehow took control of America, how could it not? Maybe the plot of this book wasn’t as action-packed, and it didn’t have an adorable book-boyfriend like Peeta, but Prismatic certainly holds its own.

For starters, there are realistic relationships among friends, siblings, and significant others- without being toxic. Jabari and Rain have the cutest relationship ever in an environment that discourages love. These two get to know each other in a harsh and stressed place and truly care for each other. Best part? Marriage isn’t allowed in New Segregation and pregnancy out of wedlock is punishable by unpayable fines and imprisonment when the fines can’t be payed. My point being that Jabari and Rain’s relationship isn’t just relieving stress through physicality like some books. They’re together because they deeply care for each other and have each other’s backs. While the relationship is the most adorable thing, it’s not the focus of the book-which I loved. The author pays equal attention to Rain’s younger brother Daktari, and their friends Zi, Marcello, and Cole. (How frickin cool are their names?? Considering 5/6 characters aren’t white I really appreciated the culture exhibited through the author’s choice of names and the interactions all the kids have with their mentor, Takara.

The whole point is that these teenagers form The Freedom Front with the goal of overthrowing President Elizabeth Nicks. She has somehow single-handedly taken over America and segregated the country by race: White, Black, Asian, Mixed etc. Mixed being the worst of the worst. Rain and Daktari’s father is Black while her mother is white so they ended up in the Indy Mixed Zone. Her mother didn’t have to come, she could have stayed with her own mother in the luxurious white zone, but instead she chose her family. Tells you a lot about her character considering the mixed zone forces 12 hour shifts for low pay, no new clothes/books, restricted internet, censored messages to the outside, imprisonment for doing nothing against the law, and the only thing available to eat is canned vegetables and old bread left over from other zones. Let’s just say that their mother has a severe case of depression and has nerve attacks. On the plus side, mixed races have special powers. Not everyone, and mostly children since they have the free time and imagination to notice and use their skills but enough have them. This is the main plot and the reason why these teens have a shot at taking down the President of the United States.

I thoroughly enjoyed the plot of this book, the world building and can’t wait until they try and overthrow the president! However, I really hope things are explained in later books. How did Nicks win the presidency? How can people just obey her like that? Does she have special powers? How can nothing have leaked about the mixed zone treat in a whole 4 years? And most importantly, what’s happening in other countries and why isn’t anyone stepping in to help???? All of these questions and the not quite perfect editing (“Broad though his shoulders and very strong” doesn’t make any sense to me what-so-ever) is what brought this book down to a 4 for me and I hope to see great improvement in the future.

Lastly, I’d just like to thank Sarah Elle Emm for my copy of Prismatic. Her writing style was one of the best I’ve read in awhile. The book was funny, the characters all had their different quirks and perspectives, and the intricate themes were told in a beautifully simplistic way that a young adult reading this could grasp. On top of this, Emm was one of the most polite authors I’ve ever worked with, and even sent me a thank you card! This book is definitely worth reading. Sarah has no where to go but up, and I’m going to try and get my hands on book two!

Review: The Throne of Fire by Rick Riordan

The Throne of Fire (Kane Chronicles #2)

by Rick Riordan

Publication Date: May 3^rd 2011

Publisher: Hyperion
Source: Bought

Find This Book: The Throne of Fire

Rating: 5/5

Rick Riordan is one of my favorite authors of all time! I honestly wasn’t sure about my choice of reading The Kane Chronicles because I’m not as into Egyptian mythology as I am with Greek, but this series is great! I’m sure I’d have enjoyed the book even more if I was really into Egyptian myth, but Rick describes the gods/creatures so adeptly that anyone could read and enjoy this book. It’s a remarkable way to teach kids the culture of ancient Egypt. Grab their attention with intense action and sassy characters while inserting actual facts so they learn while also enjoying it.

The fact that the kids aren’t super-human demigods but magicians descended from the ancient pharaohs of Egypt is an awesome concept. I don’t think the book would have been as enjoyable if these kids were similar to the kids of Camp Half-Blood/Camp Jupiter. Weapons are great and all, but the Hieroglyphs being divine words of power and creating spells was so cool.  That being said, the changes were kind of weird at first. I mean, OLD magicians, gods traveling as companions, CELLPHONES. Once I got into the changes The Throne of Fire made for a great book. Something I don’t understand is how the 21^st nome can be in Brooklyn, and Mt. Olympus and a bunch of demigods can be in Manhattan and they don’t know about each other and notice when the world is about to end because of another group of gods. Like how does the mist work on the Egyptians? I mean, Percy had the sky turned blue to signal to his mom that he was ok. The Egyptians didn’t see that when they were right there? Or the invisibility spell on the Greeks? Carter and Sadie could see the fight at the 21^st nome from outside the spell, so if a demigod just happened to be, oh I don’t know, flying around on his Pegasus, you’re telling me he wouldn’t notice?? Clearly Carter and Percy have had an interaction and both seen the same monster and the same for Sadie and Annabeth. Plus Amos said to not go into Manhattan, so there has to be something going on about all this. What would even happen if they realized that there were other gods wanting to destroy the world???

Anyway, back on topic, this book was absolutely hilarious, which is one of the reasons why I love Rick Riordan’s writing. He can have a completely serious and intense life-or-death situation and insert the best comic relief. For example, Apophis is going to break free of his prison and bring chaos to the world and Carter is grumbling over how Sadie bought him Pikachu pajamas (ADORABLE by the way). The pop culture references throughout the book are what make this so relatable and modern. They also make the book a refreshing read. Carter and Sadie have impressive personalities and their brother-sister relationship was so relatable. The bickering and teasing weren’t too over-the-top and deep down they actually care for each other and are the people who know each other best.

Getting to meet new gods like Bes the Dwarf God, Tawaret protector of childbirth, Ptah the creator, Khonsu the moon and time. Not going to say why/how they meet them because of spoilers, but it was all really interesting.

The only thing I have against this book is Sadie’s age. She turns 13 in this book, yet she acts extremely mature for her age. It’s hard to remember that she’s only 12/13. I don’t know about you guys, but I wasn’t kissing two different guys on my 13^th birthday, and I certainly wasn’t setting myself up for a love triangle at that age either. I guess I wouldn’t be able to read about hot Anubis if it wasn’t for Sadie’s interest, but still she’s only 13!

All in all, not as good as PJ&tO or HoO, but it was entertaining and a fun read. Besides, nothing can really compare to Percy Jackson or Heroes of Olympus. I’m already getting ready to read The Serpent’s Shadow. I can’t wait!