Tuesday, May 12, 2015

Review: A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas

A Court of Thorns and Roses

Author: Sarah J. Maas
Release: May 5th 2015
Genre: Fantasy, Faeries, YA
#1 in the A Court of Thorns and Roses trilogy
Sequels: A Court of Mist and Fury (#2), A Court of Wings and Ruin (#3)


Plot:

A thrilling, seductive new series from New York Times bestselling author Sarah J. Maas, blending Beauty and the Beast with faerie lore.

When nineteen-year-old huntress Feyre kills a wolf in the woods, a beast-like creature arrives to demand retribution for it. Dragged to a treacherous magical land she only knows about from legends, Feyre discovers that her captor is not an animal, but Tamlin—one of the lethal, immortal faeries who once ruled their world.

As she dwells on his estate, her feelings for Tamlin transform from icy hostility into a fiery passion that burns through every lie and warning she's been told about the beautiful, dangerous world of the Fae. But an ancient, wicked shadow grows over the faerie lands, and Feyre must find a way to stop it . . . or doom Tamlin—and his world—forever.

Saturday, May 9, 2015

Review: The Heir by Kiera Cass

The Heir

Author: Kiera Cass
Release: May 5th 2015
Genre: Dystopia, YA
#4 in the Selection series
Series: The Selection (#1), The Elite (#2), The One (#3), The Crown (#5)


Plot:

Princess Eadlyn has grown up hearing endless stories about how her mother and father met. Twenty years ago, America Singer entered the Selection and won the heart of Prince Maxon—and they lived happily ever after. Eadlyn has always found their fairy-tale story romantic, but she has no interest in trying to repeat it. If it were up to her, she'd put off marriage for as long as possible.

But a princess's life is never entirely her own, and Eadlyn can't escape her very own Selection—no matter how fervently she protests.

Eadlyn doesn't expect her story to end in romance. But as the competition begins, one entry may just capture Eadlyn's heart, showing her all the possibilities that lie in front of her . . . and proving that finding her own happily ever after isn't as impossible as she's always thought.

Friday, May 8, 2015

Review: The Fill-In Boyfriend by Kasie West

The Fill-In Boyfriend

Author: Kasie West
Release: May 5th 2015
Genre: Contemporary, YA


Plot:

When Gia Montgomery's boyfriend, Bradley, dumps her in the parking lot of her high school prom, she has to think fast. After all, she'd been telling her friends about him for months now. This was supposed to be the night she proved he existed. So when she sees a cute guy waiting to pick up his sister, she enlists his help. The task is simple: be her fill-in boyfriend— two hours, zero commitment, a few white lies. After that, she can win back the real Bradley.

The problem is that days after prom, it's not the real Bradley she's thinking about, but the stand-in. The one whose name she doesn't even know. But tracking him down doesn't mean they're done faking a relationship. Gia owes him a favor and his sister intends to see that he collects: his ex-girlfriend's graduation party — three hours, zero commitment, a few white lies.

Just when Gia begins to wonder if she could turn her fake boyfriend into a real one, Bradley comes waltzing back into her life, exposing her lie, and threatening to destroy her friendships and her new-found relationship.

Wednesday, May 6, 2015

Review: Die magische Gondel (The Magic Gondola) by Eva Völler

Die magische Gondel / The Magic Gondola

Author: Eva Völler
Release: August 19th 2011
Genre: Time Travel, Historical, YA
#1 in the Zeitenzauber (Time Spell) trilogy
Sequels: Die goldene Brücke/The Golden Bridge (#2), Das verborgene Tor/The Hidden Gate (#3)


Plot:

17-year-old Anna is spending her summer with her parents in Venice. During a stroll through the city, Anna discovers a mysterious red gondola. But aren't all gondolas in Venice black? 
Shortly after, she is pulled into the red gondola by a handsome stranger after an unfortunate tumble into the canals during a historical boat parade. But before she can climb onto the pier again, the air suddenly flares white. The world blurs in front of Anna and she is pulled back in time, straight into historical Venice. 
There, she has a mission to fulfill before she can go home again.

Tuesday, May 5, 2015

Review: Chantress by Amy Butler Greenfield

Chantress

Author: Amy Butler Greenfield
Release: May 7th 2013
Genre: Historical, Magic, Witches, YA
#1 in the Chantress trilogy
Sequels: Chantress Alchemy (#2), Chantress Fury (#3)


Plot:

“Sing, and the darkness will find you.” 

This warning has haunted fifteen-year-old Lucy ever since she was eight and shipwrecked on a lonely island. Lucy’s guardian, Norrie, has lots of rules, but the most important is that Lucy must never sing. Not ever. Now it is 1667, Lucy is fifteen, and on All Hallows’ Eve, Lucy hears a tantalizing melody on the wind. She can’t help but sing—and she is swept into darkness.

When she awakes in England, Lucy hears powerful men discussing Chantresses—women who can sing magic into the world. They are hunting her, but she escapes and finds sanctuary with the Invisible College, an organization plotting to overthrow the nefarious Lord Protector. The only person powerful enough to bring about his downfall is a Chantress. And Lucy is the last one in England.

Lucy struggles to master the song-spells and harness her power, but the Lord Protector is moving quickly. And her feelings for Nat, an Invisible College apprentice and scientist who deeply distrusts her magic, only add to her confusion…

Time is running out, and the fate of England hangs in the balance in this entrancing novel that is atmospheric and lyrical, dangerous and romantic.

Friday, May 1, 2015

Review: An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir

An Ember in the Ashes

Author: Sabaa Tahir
Release: April 28th 2015
Genre: Fantasy, YA
#1 in the An Ember in the Ashes duology
Sequels: A Torch Against the Night (#2), Untitled (#3, #4)


Plot:

AN EMBER IN THE ASHES is a thought-provoking, heart-wrenching and pulse-pounding read. Set in a rich, high-fantasy world with echoes of ancient Rome, it tells the story of a slave fighting for her family and a young soldier fighting for his freedom.

Laia is a slave. Elias is a soldier. Neither is free.

Under the Martial Empire, defiance is met with death. Those who do not vow their blood and bodies to the Emperor risk the execution of their loved ones and the destruction of all they hold dear.

It is in this brutal world, inspired by ancient Rome, that Laia lives with her grandparents and older brother. The family ekes out an existence in the Empire’s impoverished backstreets. They do not challenge the Empire. They’ve seen what happens to those who do.

But when Laia’s brother is arrested for treason, Laia is forced to make a decision. In exchange for help from rebels who promise to rescue her brother, she will risk her life to spy for them from within the Empire’s greatest military academy.

There, Laia meets Elias, the school’s finest soldier—and secretly, its most unwilling. Elias wants only to be free of the tyranny he’s being trained to enforce. He and Laia will soon realize that their destinies are intertwined—and that their choices will change the fate of the Empire itself.