Review of The Replaced by Kimberly Derting

Advance Review of Kimberly Derting's The Replaced

Release Date: April 28th, 2015

Synopsis as found on GoodReads.com:

Romantic and action-packed, The Replaced is the gripping second installment in the Taking trilogy.

Kyra hasn't been the same since she returned from her mysterious five-year disappearance. Now, on the run from the NSA, Kyra is forced to hide out with others who, like her, have been Returned. Yet she is determined to find Tyler, the boy she loves who was also abducted—all because of her. When her group intercepts a message that Tyler might still be alive but is in the hands of a shadowy government organization that experiments on the Returned, Kyra knows it's a risk to go after him. What if it's a trap? And worse, what if the returned Tyler isn't the same boy she lost?

Perfect for fans of The Fifth Wave and the Body Finder series, The Replaced is both chilling and explosive, with creepy, otherworldly elements and twisty, psychological thrills that will have you questioning what exactly it means to be human.  

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I think I am on an alien abduction kick at the moment, because this is the second book I have read in a row with the same genre. I read an advance of The Taking in December of 2013 and have not been able to get it out of my head. There are always books that I read and I make sure to constantly check on the release of their sequel and this series has been one of those.

In book 1, Kyra wakes up behind a convenient store in her home town with only the memory of getting out of her Dad's car and running away from the fight they were having. She expects to find him in his car looking for her, but he is nowhere to be found. She runs home (however many miles it was, I can't remember) to find that nothing is how she remembers. She knocks on her door, but the person who answers is not her Mother. They claim that her family moved out years ago. She soon finds out that she has been missing for 5 years.

This series, like I said before, is about Alien Abduction. It isn't like any of the other Alien books I have read in the past. Where many are about an Alien Apocalypse or an Alien Takeover, this book is similar to the Urban Legends you hear about people being abducted, experimented on, and then returned. The characters in this story are just returned a little different than they were before. There is even a nod to the Roswell/Government conspiracy rumors and the theory that First Contact happened in the 1950's-60's.

In book 2 we find out that every human abducted is returned with their DNA spliced. They have come back with Alien DNA intertwined with their own. Most of them show only a couple of unique abilities (Very Very Slow Aging & Quick Healing), but for Kyra, she can do much more... more than she even knows yet. We already know she heals faster than any other returned, that sometimes she can hit or throw super hard, and when she is really scared or angry she can move things with her mind. We find out what makes her special as well as why the NSA is so desperate to get ahold of her. There is also a traitor in their midst. Who can they trust and who is working with the No-Suchers...?

This book has all the drama from book 1 with a bunch of brand new characters and a lot more back story. The love story is put on the back burner for most of it though, so for all of you hoping to get to see more of Kyra & Tyler, you may be a little disappointed... but don't worry, they are back together in book 3. Now, when will we get to see book 3? I hope it is sooner than the 13 months it took me to get to read book 2.

Review of The Cage by Megan Sheperd

Advance Review of Megan Sheperd's The Cage

Release Date: May 26th, 2015

Synopsis as found on Amazon.com:

The Maze Runner meets Scott Westerfeld in this gripping new series about teens held captive in a human zoo by an otherworldly race. From Megan Shepherd, the acclaimed author of The Madman's Daughter trilogy.

When Cora Mason wakes in a desert, she doesn't know where she is or who put her there. As she explores, she finds an impossible mix of environments—tundra next to desert, farm next to jungle, and a strangely empty town cobbled together from different cultures—all watched over by eerie black windows. And she isn't alone.

Four other teenagers have also been taken: a beautiful model, a tattooed smuggler, a secretive genius, and an army brat who seems to know too much about Cora's past. None of them have a clue as to what happened, and all of them have secrets. As the unlikely group struggles for leadership, they slowly start to trust each other. But when their mysterious jailer—a handsome young guard called Cassian—appears, they realize that their captivity is more terrifying than they could ever imagine: Their captors aren't from Earth. And they have taken the five teenagers for an otherworldly zoo—where the exhibits are humans.

As a forbidden attraction develops between Cora and Cassian, she realizes that her best chance of escape might be in the arms of her own jailer—though that would mean leaving the others behind. Can Cora manage to save herself and her companions? And if so . . . what world lies beyond the walls of their cage?

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Ever since I was a child, I have been fascinated with the idea of what an alien zoo would look like. There is a scene from Flight of the Navigator where you see all the cages at the back of the space ship and there are a plethora of animals from different worlds in each cage. So when I saw this book as an option to download, I immediately wanted to read it.

What would happen if you woke up in a strange new world. Everything looked like your world, from the sand, the sea, the swamp, and even the little town in the center, but it was all engineered to seem human made. The only problem, even though it all seems real, it just can't be. While the flora is all correct, there is no fauna; there are no birds, there are no bugs... there aren't even any stars in the sky at night. When Cora wakes up, the first thing she finds is the dead body of a girl. She is of Middle Eastern decent and has a collection of dots on her neck.

One by one, she finds different people also in this strange new place with her. There is Lucky, the boy whom she holds a mysterious unknown past with, Leon, the Maori smuggler with violent tendancies and tattoos all over his body, Nok the timid Asian model, and Rolf, the Scottish genius. Each person is special in their own way. If they hadn't been, maybe they wouldn't have been chosen. They soon meet the Caretaker (Cassian), a metallic skinned alien with black eyes. He is to be the one in charge of their new home. He claims that his people, the Kindred, have saved them from the fate of Earth. There job is to repopulate their species. Each of them is meant for eachother. Each of them has a match: Nok & Rolf, Cora & Lucky, and Leon with the deceased Indian girl. They will have 21 days to begin procreating or they will be removed.

Little by little, things come in to focus for Cora. Their new home is nothing more than a cage and they are nothing more than lab rats. She vows to escape and tasks the others with helping her. But for some of them, this cage is better than the thought of going home to a life they hated. While she is working to save them, others are working to find peace and happiness in their new home.

What will happen when Cora finds out that even a gilded cage is better than the truth?

This story is chalk full of twists and turns. The minute I felt like I had figured everything out, there is a new twist. I found myself rooting for the Cassian at many points. I can't wait until the next book comes out... which seeing as how The Cage is not even out yet, looks like I will be waiting a LONG TIME!

Review of City 1 by Gregg Rosenblum

Review of Gregg Rosenblum's City 1

Release Date: January 6th, 2015

Synopsis as found on GoodReads.com:

In the explosive conclusion to the thrilling Revolution 19 series, the time has come to win the cities back from the bots—or die trying.

After finally reuniting at a rebel camp, siblings Nick, Kevin, and Cass are willing to do anything to stay together—and free their parents from bot rule. But the leader of the rebel camp has her own ideas. Cruel and determined, General Clay won’t let anything stand in the way of her plan to destroy the robots and all the brainwashed humans. This means their parents’ lives are at stake, but Nick, Kevin, and Cass can’t desert the rebels when they’re so close to freedom. How far will they go to save the world they believe in?

Created in conjunction with Alloy Entertainment; Howard Gordon, the showrunner of 24 and Showtime’s Emmy Award– and Golden Globe–winning Homeland; and James Wong, the executive producer of American Horror Story; City 1 is the gripping finale to the exhilarating Revolution 19 series.

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After I read the ending of Fugitive X, I was itching to find out what happened next. I don't read many books about Robot Armageddon, so I was very interested in the Revolution 19 series. It was a release from my usual reads. Needless to say, I was and am a fan of it. I enjoy the omnipresent writing style that Rosenblum adopts for the story. We get to know many different characters thoughts, because every chapter is in a different person's point of view.

I have been reading a lot of series conclusions lately, so I know that in my head I keep comparing one to the other, which is doing a huge disservice to the authors of each book, because each book is different. Every author has a different idea that they grow their stories on and no 2 books are exactly alike. So, even though I finished a book yesterday that I was super happy with, it is hard to be as happy with this book's ending.

Yes, the story is (for the most part) resolved. There was a definitive ending, but then there is an extra chapter where you think maybe this isn't the end. I hope it isn't the end, because even though there were no major character deaths (Many people died, this is war! Just not the main characters I loved), I just didn't feel there was enough surprising dramatic portions. I found myself getting a little bored in a few parts which really depresses me, seeing as how I loved the first 2 books.

Don't let my review make you think that this series is not worth picking up, because I hope everyone makes their own decisions on what they think about it. It is definitely worth reading. Let me know what you thought & how you felt about the ending.

Thanks for checking out my blog and stay tuned for my next great read!

Review of The Darkest Minds: In the Afterlight by Alexandra Bracken

Review of Alexandra Bracken's The Darkest Minds: In the Afterlight

Release Date: October 28th, 2014

Synopsis as found on GoodReads.com:

Ruby can't look back. Fractured by an unbearable loss, she and the kids who survived the government's attack on Los Angeles travel north to regroup. With them is a prisoner: Clancy Gray, son of the president, and one of the few people Ruby has encountered with abilities like hers. Only Ruby has any power over him, and just one slip could lead to Clancy wreaking havoc on their minds.

They are armed only with a volatile secret: proof of a government conspiracy to cover up the real cause of IAAN, the disease that has killed most of America's children and left Ruby and others like her with powers the government will kill to keep contained. But internal strife may destroy their only chance to free the "rehabilitation camps" housing thousands of other Psi kids.

Meanwhile, reunited with Liam, the boy she would-and did-sacrifice everything for to keep alive, Ruby must face the painful repercussions of having tampered with his memories of her. She turns to Cole, his older brother, to provide the intense training she knows she will need to take down Gray and the government. But Cole has demons of his own, and one fatal mistake may be the spark that sets the world on fire.

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If I looked at all of the books I have read as a whole, you would think there is a growing commonality in many of them. There are the Dystopian books, the books about Aliens, the ones about Vampires, or Werewolves, or Ghost Hunters, or Witches, or Mermaids... and then there are the books about kids with powers. The Darkest Minds series definitely falls into one of the many categories of books I like. But when looked at with every other series with a similar topic, it stands out about & beyond them.

I remember my reaction to the treatment of the children at Thurmond when I first read The Darkest Minds. I was shocked and appalled, but I could definitely picture everything happening. I'm not sure if it is the way our world works now a days, with all of the shootings, murders, and physical abuse I hear about in the news, or if it is just the amazing writing style that Bracken uses, but I believe what she writes. I can imagine vividly what she writes and I can't say that about every book I read. I do read a lot.

This book is the conclusion of the trilogy and where many series give me an ending that I am unsatisfied with, I can not say that in this case. I am so happy with the ending that she has written that I still feel like I am on a high. That incredible book ending high. With every thing that these kids have dealt with, the government putting them into camps, being hunted down like animals for money, being turned in by their own parents for fear of what they can do, being killed off... you would think that a happy ending would unfeasible.

If you haven't read this series, you are surely missing out!

Review of The Lost Souls: Creators by Tiffany Truitt

Review of Tiffany Truitt's The Lost Souls: Creators

Release Date: August 9th, 2014

Synopsis as found on GoodReads.com:

The dramatic conclusion to the Lost Souls trilogy, which answers readers’ questions and finally pits natural Tess against the true enemies of Templeton, the creators

Heartbroken but more determined than ever after a tense showdown in the woods, sixteen-year-old Tess once again returns to the safety of her community of Isolationists. Bolstered by new alliances and desperate to protect those she loves, this time she knows she can return stronger and more powerful than ever to take back what is hers. As she trains in combat and grows more confident, Tess receives beautiful letters penned by her forbidden love, the chosen one James, from his prison in Templeton. He is now serving as a bodyguard to the creators-the team of scientists who created artificial life in the first place. And what he has discovered about the true origin of the illness that halted natural life could change everything. Enemy will become ally and death will bring new hope in this stunning conclusion to Tiffany Truitt's epic Lost Souls trilogy.  

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I have a love hate relationship with series conclusions. I will ALWAYS want to know what happens next when I read a book. When I picked up Chosen Ones 2 and a half years ago, I knew I would read this series until its completion. Chosen Ones was such an incredible read. It had the forbidden romance, the defying of government, the people with amazing unbelievable powers... I remember reading it in little to no time & then telling everyone I knew that they had to read it. As the series has gone on, I have come to fall in love with the characters from this story. So it is really hard to say goodbye to any of them.

When we left off in Naturals, Tess was traveling to meet with George (the crazy Chosen One from Templeton who had tried to hurt her at every turn) who had her sister Louisa held captive. The Isolationists had just kicked her and her rag tag team of Naturals out of their compound. When they arrive, Tess discovers that Louisa is pregnant with George's child. George will only exchange Louisa for James (the Chosen One that Tess is in love with).

In the beginning of Creators, we are left with a distraught Louisa, who thought George was in love with her (turns out he was only using her... besides her, anyone could have guessed that), a distraught Tess (she has just lost the man she loves), and SURPRISE... their father back from the dead? Charlie, their father had run away from their home many years ago, because he didn't want to see what would become of his family under the rules of the Chosen Ones. He is now the head of the Rebellion. Together they head back to the Isolationists compound.

This book seemed much more rushed that the prior 2, but I think so many conclusions seem rushed lately. I know the hip thing to do is write a Trilogy, but why not a Quartet? Tetralogy? Whatever its called, four books are better than 3. Maybe so many characters would not have had to die if more could have been written? Yes, MANY MANY characters die. Including 3 or 4 I really loved. It breaks my heart knowing that some of them will never find happiness in the nether world.

One thing I really did not like was the direction Truitt went with both Charlie (their father) and Henry. Both ended up being vile people only out for Revenge. I could have imagined a much happier ending for either of them. But alas, not all endings can be happy!

If you enjoy a great dystopian tale, check out the Lost Souls series by Tiffany Truitt. Although there is a lot of sadness, there is a lot of joy and adventure throughout the story!

Review of Little Peach by Peggy Kern

Advance Review of Peggy Kern's Little Peach

Release Date: March 10th, 2015

Synopsis as found on GoodReads.com:

What do you do if you're in trouble?

When Michelle runs away from her drug-addicted mother, she has just enough money to make it to New York City, where she hopes to move in with a friend. But once she arrives at the bustling Port Authority, she is confronted with the terrifying truth: she is alone and out of options.

Then she meets Devon, a good-looking, well-dressed guy who emerges from the crowd armed with a kind smile, a place for her to stay, and eyes that seem to understand exactly how she feels.

But Devon is not what he seems to be, and soon Michelle finds herself engulfed in the world of child prostitution where he becomes her “Daddy” and she his “Little Peach.” It is a world of impossible choices, where the line between love and abuse, captor and savior, is blurred beyond recognition.

This hauntingly vivid story illustrates the human spirit’s indomitable search for home, and one girl’s struggle to survive.  

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It is hard to review a book that ended long before I really got to know any of the characters. At only a couple hundred pages, this book is a very quick read. While the story is ultra realistic and I can picture it happening right now (because it is happening right now, everyday across the US), I never really connected with Michelle (Peach). Don't get me wrong, I feel immensely sad for the life the character is tricked into, but I never really got to know her as a character. Maybe that was the author's point in writing this story... these girls are lost & forgotten with no one who cares for them. They are never known by anyone.

While parts of the story confused me, like why I didn't find out until halfway through the story that Baby is only 12 years old (I thought she was an older girl dressing much younger), I do believe this story is thought-provoking and can be very eye-opening to a lot of young girls. While I have known about human trafficking from the news, different television series, and other books, some readers of a different generation might read this for the first time and realize that the world is not all Champagne & Fairy Tales.

Review of Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard

Advance Review of Victoria Aveyard's Red Queen

Release Date: February 10th, 2015

Synopsis as found on Amazon.com:

Graceling meets The Selection in debut novelist Victoria Aveyard's sweeping tale of seventeen-year-old Mare, a common girl whose once-latent magical power draws her into the dangerous intrigue of the king's palace. Will her power save her or condemn her?

Mare Barrow's world is divided by blood—those with common, Red blood serve the Silver- blooded elite, who are gifted with superhuman abilities. Mare is a Red, scraping by as a thief in a poor, rural village, until a twist of fate throws her in front of the Silver court. Before the king, princes, and all the nobles, she discovers she has an ability of her own.

To cover up this impossibility, the king forces her to play the role of a lost Silver princess and betroths her to one of his own sons. As Mare is drawn further into the Silver world, she risks everything and uses her new position to help the Scarlet Guard—a growing Red rebellion—even as her heart tugs her in an impossible direction. One wrong move can lead to her death, but in the dangerous game she plays, the only certainty is betrayal.

Synopsis as found on GoodReads.com:

The poverty stricken Reds are commoners, living under the rule of the Silvers, elite warriors with god-like powers.

To Mare Barrow, a 17-year-old Red girl from The Stilts, it looks like nothing will ever change.

Mare finds herself working in the Silver Palace, at the centre of
those she hates the most. She quickly discovers that, despite her red blood, she possesses a deadly power of her own. One that threatens to destroy Silver control.

But power is a dangerous game. And in this world divided by blood, who will win?

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It is always exciting when you read a great book and know that it is going to be a huge success. Red Queen is everything I ever hope for when I pick up a new book. It has action, mystery, romance, suspense... a multitude of things wrapped up with a beautiful Red & Silver bow. I'd have to say this book is going to be the Hunger Games of 2015!

After the world has been devastated by war, a new race of people are discovered. While there is no real back story as to what happened in the past, we know that man-kind is now divided by classes. There are the Silvers who rule over all others with amazing abilities (which I will list some of in a few), but also, when cut, bleed Silver blood. There are the Reds, who are common folk who are forced into a semblance of slavery to do the bidding of the Silvers. The Reds have no powers (and also bleed Red blood). Then there are the techies, whom are not talked about much, but the reader finds out at one point that they live in Factory towns building all weapons, cameras, and whatever else is needed by the Silvers. Techies are never allowed to leave the life they are born into, even to become soldiers.

I won't give you too much back story on Mare Molly Barrow, because you read enough from the synopsis to get the gist. She is a Red, who by chance & fate ends up in the palace at the wrong place/wrong time. While different girls from different Silver families are being paraded around to show their powers to see which one will be chosen by one of 2 princes to become their brides, she falls onto a forcefield made of electricity. Instead of immediately dying, her powers are ignited. Never before has there been a Red with powers before. Even though this happens in front of hundreds of people, the King & Queen decide to make up a ruse so that no one will find out the truth. Thus begins Mare's life in this treacherous new world.

Now, I mentioned before that the Silvers have a plethora of powers. Some are mentioned in the book, & others are hinted around, but it is said that there are too many to possibly list them. I will list the ones that were named within:

Whisper - Can Read Minds
Telky - Can Move Objects With Their Mind
Greenwarden (Greeny) - Manipulates Plants & The Earth
Cloner - Multiples Themselves Into Multiple Clones On Command
Oblivion - Obliterates Anything They Think Of (Human Bomb)
Nymph - Controls Water
Swift - Moves Incredibly Quickly
Strongarm - Immense Strength (Sometimes Comes With Enlarged Body Parts)
Animos - Controls Animals
Magnetron - Controls Metal
Shadow - Bends Light
Burner - Controls Heat & Fire
Storm - Controls Weather
Blood Healer - Can Heal Themselves
Skin Healer - Can Heal Others
Silk - Quick, Quiet, Perfectly Balanced, & Agile
Eyes - Can See The Immediate Future
Silence - Can Turn Off Other's Powers
Singers - Can Make Others Do What The Want By Speaking To Them
Shiver - Freezes Objects

I tried to keep track of every different power that was written about, but I know I missed a few. I got really into this book & may have overlooked some powers. There are a few that were talked about that were never named, like a girl who could shatter glass with her voice, turning their skin to stone, & of course, Mare's powers over Electricity were never given a name.

I hope I have written enough about this book to entice you into picking it up when it comes out next month, because I really do believe that it is going to be a huge success. I didn't want to give too much away, because I want you to enjoy finding out the little things like I did while reading. Enjoy & Happy New Year!