Hannah's Words: Young Adult

Showing posts with label Young Adult. Show all posts

Wednesday, November 20, 2019

ARC REVIEW From Flame and Ash by Carrie Ann Ryan

From Flame and Ash (Elements of Five, #2)

Elements of 5 #2, This book pick up a year after Lyric returned home in that year she started college and trained with another person from the Maison realm. She knew it was only a matter of time before they needed her so she was prepared when it happened. Lyric has studied the history of the Maison realm and trained all that she can now she needs to awaken her other elemental powers. When she is called back it's not by her friend Rosemund and her brother Rhodes it's the new leader of the Obscurite, Easton.

Lyric learns that like the Obscurite the Lumiere has people against her and will do anything to keep her from becoming the Spirit Princess. Lyric and her friends, both new and old, must figure out who is behind this fraction that wants Lyric dead. New lines of the prophecy are learned just confusing everyone even more and Lyric deals with her new feelings for Rhodes and developing feelings toward Easton as well as learning to control two new elemental powers.

Overall, it was an outstanding book a great continuation of the series. Lyric's circle of friends and allies is growing but the cast isn't so large you get confused and with it being in first person it's easy to keep track of everyone with just the one POV. I love the action fighting scenes Carrie Ann Ryan is a wordsmith with description it's like a movie playing in my head it's so easy to visualize. She also does well when it comes to refreshing our memory on the events of the last book, but it would be best of the first book was read first. My only complaint is that Lyric gets a bit repetitive in her train of thought, I understand she's has a dilemma and is trying to sort through it but to mention one event over and over gets kind of tiresome especially when it's at the beginning of the book but the rest of the book is so awesome that it doesn't affect my star rating ( totally 5 stars).

Tuesday, March 19, 2019

ARC REVIEW From Breath and Ruin by Carrie Ann Ryan

From Breath and Ruin (Elements of Five, #1)

Elements of Five #1, debut YA book Carrie Ann Ryan's newest series might not be for everyone and as someone who doesn't typically read young adult I loved it. It didn't feel like a young adult at times I even forgot that Lyric was just eighteen and as per usual Ryan played with my emotions it seemed like I was reading one of her PNR books just without the sex. There is romance in it and I think I know where she's going to go with it but I always expect the unexpected with Ryan. But the story has grabbed my attention and now I won't be happy until I've read them all.

Lyric is just your average teenager who's good at so many things but nothing she wants to do forever. She stuck trying to figure out what she wants to do for the rest of her life when a classmate and her cute older brother ask Lyric and her friends Braelynn and Emory to go hiking. But when something happens on that hike it sends Lyric's life into a tailspin of events that will forever change her life.

The Maison Realm and the wielders remind me of several things from my childhood, specifically The Dark Crystal, and I loved it, it was like The Last Airbender meets The Dark Crystal and Alice in Wonderland. A once happy kingdom now divided into light and dark and one person with all the combined powers is destined to reunite the kingdom. Lyric is said to be this Spirit Priestess with the combined powers of all the elements. Whether or not Lyric actually believes she is is another matter, for now she just wants to help Rhodes get his sister back.

I loved the characters in this book. Lyric is the main character and narrator so we see first hand how she reacts to everything going on around her; her feelings for Braelynn her best friend, Rhodes her crush, Emory her ex-girlfriend and all the others they meet on their journey. Lyric is very conflicted and is unsure about almost everything she's at a crossroads in her life and throw in the fact that she's some prophesied priestess that will stop a war and fix what's broken just compounds on to her insecurity and her self worth. Everyone believes in her but herself so there is quite a bit of internal struggle going on with Lyric along with fighting off bad guys.

Overall, outstanding book. From the start this book pulled me in and kept me entertained the whole time. Engaging characters and descriptive narrative, I can't wait for more Carrie Ann Ryan knows how to set the hook.

Tuesday, March 12, 2019

The Beast's Heart by Leife Shallcross

The classic version of Beauty and the Beast as told from the Beast's perspective. What I love about this book, because I do love it, is that this is more like the traditional version of the fairy tale and not Disney's version. Instead of their being an overall villian with an exciting fight scene at the end it's more man vs. self. The internal struggle of Beast fighting with who he perceives himself to be and who he wants to be and adding Beauty (in this case Isabeau) to the mix he wants to be a better person for her all the while trying to show her he's worthy of her love.

The story starts off with Beast in the woods living as an animal would until he's led back to his home and the iron gates lock behind him. Slowly he starts to remember thing and the magic slowly starts to repair the house and gardens. Beast is there so long he loses track of time the enchantment keeping the grounds in an eternal summer. Beast relearns how to dress and act like a man. The details of his curse still remain foggy in his mind all he knows is that a fairy cursed him to be the beast he is inside.

Isabeau comes along quite like she always does, to save her father after he tries to steal a single rose from Beast's gardens after everything else was given freely. In this we see Beast's side of it, when he allowed her father in he was longing for company but changed his mind at the last moment, but he saw into her father's dream a had vision of his youngest daughter. Beast manipulated the situation to bring her to his home; as soon as he did it he felt bad and after she got there he admitted what he did and told her she was free to leave but he was so lonely. So they struck up a deal she stays for a year and keeps Beast company and she will be free to leave after that. Everything else plays out Isabeau has her dreams she keeps to herself but the Beast when he's not with Isabeau is watching her family through his mirror, first out of guilt for what he took from them but then he started to care about them.

Overall, the slow and steady narration of the Beast is wonderful. I loved this version of the original story and I love how she didn't just end it after the curse was broken. Another thing I liked was how Beast didn't know until almost half the year was over that there was a way to break the curse, the details and the why of the curse slowly get revealed to him as he remembers more about his life before the curse. I loved the small details the descriptive narrative was spellbinding, I didn't want to put this book down.

Tuesday, December 13, 2016

ARC REVIEW Immortal Writers by Jill Bowers

It takes a very intriguing blurb for me to pick a young adult to read and review. The premise was very interesting and very much reminded me of League of Extraordinary Gentleman. The main character, Liz, is a young author whose book series hit it big, like Harry Potter big. As a result the magic in her words became real and she became an Immortal Writer. Her characters came to life, her villain and his angry horde of dragons included. Liz is 19 years old and while that would technically make this a new adult the simplistic writing style and ease of reading makes this more aimed for the younger side of young adult. I think my kids would enjoy this. I enjoyed it the same way I enjoyed Eragon, it's not something I normally read but I enjoyed reading it. Curtis as the hero seemed a little one dimensional, the fact that the book is in Liz's POV takes away from character development of the other characters, you only see things as Liz sees it and you don't get any insight to the other characters beyond that. The book was good the plot was great the romance between Liz and Curtis was obvious and a give in she wrote the perfect man for her and she was already in love with him before she meet the actual man.

Liz is exhausted, she just got done with her book tour and all she wants to do is go to sleep, but Shakespeare has something else planned. William Shakespeare the original Immortal Writer has brought Liz into the fold before her time because her creation is on the loose and has almost gained enough power to expose the living literary world to the real world. Curtis has to train Liz how to fight dragons and Healer teaches her how to use the magic all so she can defeat Kendric. There is lots of action that's broken up with scenes that set up motive and Liz's background and Kendric's background. It all leads to a very exciting climactic conclusion. I liked the interpretation of the other famous authors it was nice to see how someone might view them in a modern setting.

Overall it was a nice and easy read, there is going to be another another book in the series and what I'm liking is that it's not centering around Liz but that of another author.

Tuesday, May 31, 2016

REVIEW & EXCERPT TOUR The Fallen Prince by Amalie Howard

We hope you're ready to be transported by Amalie Howard's THE FALLEN PRINCE, a Young Adult Science Fiction novel and the sequel to THE ALMOST GIRL! Publishers Weekly calls the first in the series “a high-octane thriller.” Grab your copy of this amazing novel today!

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository Books-A-Million | IndieBound

About THE FALLEN PRINCE:

Riven has fought for a hard-won peace in her world, and has come to shaky terms with who and what she is—a human with cyborg DNA. Now that the rightful ruler of Neospes has been reinstated, Riven is on the hunt for her father in the Otherworld to bring him to justice for his crimes against her people. But when she receives an unwelcome visit from two former allies, she knows that trouble is brewing once again in Neospes. The army has been decimated and there are precious few left to fight this mysterious new threat. To muster a first line of defense, her people need help from the one person Riven loathes most—her father. But what he wants in return is her complete surrender. And now Riven must choose: save Neospes or save herself.

Once I found out this was the sequel to The Almost Girl, which I had the privilege to read an ARC of the year before last, I jumped on this so fast. OMG so worth the wait. I loved this just as much as the first book ( Goodreads Review of The Almost Girl ). I freakin' loved the science fiction especially the all the cybernetics it gave it a cyber-punk feel to it like Universal Solider meets Blade Runner in a post apocalyptic alternate dimension. The action, just about non-stop, from the very start I was hooked. It took a bit for me to recall everything from the last book but it soon came rushing back to me and I recommend reading The Almost Girl first but believe me it is worth it. Amalie Howard has a way with words, she's like a magician with words tying me up in impossible knots only to to pull the ends out and end up with a beautifully packaged book, with maybe one loose end.

It's been a year since Riven left Caden behind in their world to rule as is his birth right. One year Riven has been hunting down her Father for the atrocities he committed not only against the throne and their world but particularly because what he did to her, her sister and their mother. Just when Riven is getting ready for the kill The Guardians find her. The Guardians are the protectors of the worlds bound to keep them separate and safe from each other. The Guardians have their reasons Caden is back and he needs her help. Neospes is in danger it's being attacked by reptiles, mutated animals. But these attacks are strange and oddly strategic. Caden needs Riven to help escort him to a recently discovered city to the south, where an alliance as been arranged and if all goes well Caden must marry their Princess; as much as it hurts Riven as much as she loves Caden she knows he must in order to save Neospes. Worst of all Riven has to work along side her father to help the people of Neospes and reactivate the Vectors and become the Legion General once again. But all is not what it seems, enemies hide in plain sight as well as in the dark recesses of the barren wasteland.

Overall, I'm sad that it's over but it was such a fantastic journey.

Cale and I used to dare each other to go outside the dome as kids, knowing we’d get into trouble if we were ever caught. Leaving the safety zone had been illicit and thrilling. It had been our secret spot, a tunnel in the bedrock carved by a long-dried underground stream when Neospes had fresh running water. I stare at the old access hole, now filled with titanium, as the memories rush back.

It was the first time I’d seen a Reptile. Cale had just turned eleven. Thinking himself braver than ever, he’d dared me to accompany him on an early morning adventure beyond the dome. As much as I hadn’t wanted to go, he was my responsibility.

“Come on, Cale. This is far enough. We need to get back.” We’d turned around only to see a horse standing between our secret exit and us. Only, it wasn’t a horse.

“What is that?” Cale had whispered. 

“Cale, get behind me.” 

“No way.” He’d stamped his foot. “I want to see.”

Steam had blown from the creature’s distended nostrils, and then it had charged. I remember the rotting smell and the chunks of flesh hanging off its wired frame. It was also the first Reptile I’d ever killed.

Cale became obsessed with Reptiles after that. He would lure and catch smaller ones, keeping them in cages. He studied the creatures, torturing them—ripping them apart and piecing them back together. I’d always thought his morbid fascination was odd, but, in hindsight, it was understandable. After all, he was a clone with a failing body, searching for a way to reconstruct himself.

But Cale is dead. He’d died months ago in the Outers.

Praise for THE FALLEN PRINCE:

"[P]acked with action . . . Imagery is the highlight of this book."—VOYA

“A parallel-dimension–jumping cyborg soldier must make questionable alliances to save her country from an existential threat in this sequel to The Almost Girl. [O]ffers a solid conclusion.” —Kirkus Reviews

“This sequel to The Almost Girl was everything I wanted: non-stop action, smart science, new and intriguing characters, and a satisfying romance. I couldn’t put it down!” —Page Morgan, author of The Beautiful and the Cursed

“[T]he next step in a dark, clever and thrilling scorched-earth, world-hopping adventure.” —Jet Black Ink

And don’t miss the first book in The Riven Chronicles Series!

THE ALMOST GIRL

About Amalie Howard:

AMALIE HOWARD grew up on a small Caribbean island where she spent most of her childhood with her nose buried in a book or being a tomboy running around barefoot, shimmying up mango trees and dreaming of adventure. 25 countries, surfing with sharks and several tattoos later, she has traded in bungee jumping in China for writing the adventures she imagines instead. She isn't entirely convinced which takes more guts.

She is the award-winning author of several young adult novels critically acclaimed by Kirkus, Publishers Weekly, VOYA, and Booklist, including Waterfell, The Almost Girl, and Alpha Goddess, a Spring 2014 Kid's INDIE NEXT title. Her debut novel, Bloodspell, was a #1 Amazon bestseller, and the sequel, Bloodcraft, was a national silver IPPY medalist. She is also the co-author of the adult historical romance series, THE LORDS OF ESSEX. As an author of color and a proud supporter of diversity in fiction, her articles on multicultural fiction have appeared in The Portland Book Review and on the popular Diversity in YA blog. She currently resides in Colorado with her husband and three children.