REVIEW | The Masterminds

Series: Masterful #2
Author: Olivia Wildenstein
Genre: young adult, contemporary, thriller, romance
Published: October 12, 2016
Purchase: Amazon | B&N | Book Depository

From prisons and reality TV to mansions and safe houses, THE MASTERMINDS revisits THE MASTERPIECERS and closes the twins’ story. It is a tale of imperfect love and imperfect people. 

The only downside to Joshua Cooper’s investigation of a mob runner is not being able to discuss it with his two best friends, nineteen-year-old twins, Aster and Ivy Redd. However, when Ivy sells one of her quilts to the mob runner, and Aster hits him with her car in a motel parking lot, they become entangled in his investigation. The FBI even believes the twins could knowingly be involved with the mob. Joshua will do everything he can to disprove their suspicion and nail the true criminal. 

Brook Jackson is a judge on the Masterpiecers’s art competition. That is his official job; his unofficial job is running questionable errands against easy cash. But a ripped quilt and the girl who sewed it will make Brook’s life and heart spiral out of control. 

Accused of money laundering, Brook becomes the fall guy. After three weeks of imprisonment, he cuts a deal with Joshua: his freedom for the real felons and a meeting with Ivy. Although eager to clear his name, Brook wants to win Ivy’s forgiveness—and if she’s willing to give it to him—her love. 

BLOG TOUR | Blood Red Snow White

full tour schedule can be found at: The Fantastic Flying Book Club

Series: N/A
Author: Marcus Sedgwick
Genre: young adult, historical fiction
Published: October 25, 2016
Publisher: Roaring Brook Press
Purchase: Amazon | B&N | Book Depository | iTunes | Kobo

It is 1917, and the world is tearing itself to pieces in a dreadful war, but far to the east of the trenches, another battle is breaking out - the Russian Revolution has just begun...  

Blood Red, Snow White captures the mood of this huge moment in history through the adventure of one man who was in the middle of it all; Arthur Ransome, a young British journalist who had first run away to Russia to collect fairy tales.  

Told as three linked novellas, part one captures the days of revolution but retells the story as Russian Fairy Tale, with typical humour and unashamed brutality. Part two is a spy story, set over the course of one evening, as Ransome faces up to his biggest challenge, and part three is a love story, full of tragedy and hope, as every good Russian love story should be.

REVIEW | Into the Light

Series: Into the Dark #2
Author: Caroline T. Patti
Genre: young adult, fantasy, paranormal, romance
Publish: August 23, 2015
Publisher: Month9Books
Purchase: Amazon | B&N | Book Depository

Mercy’s family is back together and the threat of danger appears to have passed. But any relief she feels is short lived as she is ripped from her body and thrown in jail. Gage and Nathaniel’s plans to break Mercy out won’t exactly be easy. Stuffed full of a chemical binding agent, Mercy is trapped inside the body of a convict without the ability to breach and set herself free. Unfortunately for Mercy, being trapped in jail becomes the least of her problems when she meets her evil twin, Justice. 

REVIEW | Into the Dark

Series: Into the Dark #1
Author: Caroline T. Patti
Genre: young adult, fantasy, paranormal, romance
Publish: August 18, 2015
Publisher: Month9Books
Purchase: Amazon | B&N | Book Depository

A “sweet sixteen” party is supposed to be among the most memorable events of a girl’s life. But on the night of her party, Mercy Clare wakes up in the waiting room of a hospital with no memory of how she got there. To make matters worse, she’s wearing something she would never be caught dead in: her best friend Lyla’s clothes. Mercy’s nightmare is just beginning. The doctor tells her, referring to her as Lyla, that Mercy is lying in the hospital bed waiting to die. A trip to the bathroom confirms Mercy’s fears, as Lyla’s face stares back at her and Lyla’s curvy figure pokes through her tight clothes. But finding out what’s really going on won’t be easy. Because if Mercy wants her body back . . . it might just cost her Lyla’s life.

BLOG TOUR | There Once Were Stars

full tour schedule can be found at: Xpresso Book Tours

Series:
Author: Melanie McFarlane
Genre: young adult, science fiction, dystopia
Publish: April 26, 2016
Publisher: Month9Books
Purchase: Amazon | B&N

Peace. Love. Order. Dome. That’s the motto that the Order has given the residents of Dome 1618 to live by. Natalia Greyes is a resident of Dome 1618, a covered city protected from the deadly radiation that has poisoned the world outside for four generations. Nat never questioned the Order, until one day she sees a stranger on the outside of the dome. Now Nat wants answers. Is there life outside the dome and if so, what has the Order been hiding from everyone?

WAITING ON WEDNESDAY | Scythe

Series: N/A (at least for now...)
Author: Neal Shusterman
Genre: young adult, science fiction, dystopia
Publisher: Simon & Schuster BfYR
Expected Publication: November 2016

In a world where disease has been eliminated, the only way to die is to be randomly killed (“gleaned”) by professional reapers (“scythes”). Citra and Rowan are teenagers who have been selected to be scythe’s apprentices, and—despite wanting nothing to do with the vocation—they must learn the art of killing and come to understand the necessity of what they do.  

Only one of them will be chosen as a scythe’s apprentice. And when it becomes clear that the winning apprentice’s first task will be to glean the loser, Citra and Rowan are pitted against one another in a fight for their lives.

REVIEW | Zero

Series: Zero #1
Author: Morgan Dark
Genre: young adult, contemporary, mystery, thriller, fantasy
Publish: June 28, 2016 (first published May 4, 2015)
Publisher: Rubiños 1860
Purchase: Amazon | B&N

A baffling robber. 

A mystery hidden for years. 

And an elite boarding school where no one is who they say they are. 

Kyle Bradford is the envy of Drayton College, but everything takes a turn when a dangerous shadow, hidden in the darkness, starts to stalk him. From then on, his life falls apart. Unjustly accused of being the main suspect behind the robberies terrifying high society, he is forced to prove his innocence. And to do so, he has to find the real culprit: Zero, an infallible criminal who keeps his identity hidden under a silver mask. What Kyle does not know is that his enemy is keeping a secret. A secret he would sacrifice everything for. 

A dizzying, heart-stopping thriller you won’t be able to put down.

REVIEW | Sunset Rising

Series: Sunset Rising #1
Author: S.M. McEachern
Genre: young adult, science fiction, dystopia, romance
Publish: November 12, 2013
Purchase: Amazon | B&N | Book Depository

Desperate to find refuge from the nuclear storm, a group of civilians discover a secret government bio-dome. Greeted by a hail of bullets and told to turn back, the frantic refugees stand their ground. They are grudgingly permitted entry, but the price of admission is high. Two hundred and eighty-three years later…  

Life as a slave in the Pit had never been easy, but for seventeen-year-old Sunny O’Donnell it was quickly falling apart. Her mother had been killed in the annual spring Cull, leaving her alone with a father who was no longer interested in living the short time he had left. Not that she blamed him for mourning. Her own heart was aching with overwhelming grief. But if they didn’t earn enough credits to keep their place inside the Pit, they would be kicked out into a world still teeming with radiation. That left her to earn the credits for both of them, and it didn’t help that her boyfriend, Reyes Crowe, was pressuring her to marry him and abandon her father. 

Sunny didn’t think life could get any worse until a chance encounter with Leisel Holt, the president's daughter, and her fiancé, Jack Kenner, leaves her accused of treason. Slated for execution, she escapes with a man she considers an enemy and discovers she not only has to work with him to survive, but also to lead the revolution. 

Sunset Rising is Book One of a trilogy. The next two books are: Worlds Collide (Book Two) published March 2014; and New World Order (Book Three) published January 2015. 

MINI REVIEW | Anna and the Swallow Man

Series: N/A
Author: Gavriel Savit
Genre: young adult, historical fiction
Publish: January 26, 2016
Publisher: Knopf Books for Young Readers
Purchase: Amazon | B&N | Book Depository

Kraków, 1939. A million marching soldiers and a thousand barking dogs. This is no place to grow up. Anna Łania is just seven years old when the Germans take her father, a linguistics professor, during their purge of intellectuals in Poland. She’s alone.  

And then Anna meets the Swallow Man. He is a mystery, strange and tall, a skilled deceiver with more than a little magic up his sleeve. And when the soldiers in the streets look at him, they see what he wants them to see.  

The Swallow Man is not Anna’s father—she knows that very well—but she also knows that, like her father, he’s in danger of being taken, and like her father, he has a gift for languages: Polish, Russian, German, Yiddish, even Bird. When he summons a bright, beautiful swallow down to his hand to stop her from crying, Anna is entranced. She follows him into the wilderness.  

Over the course of their travels together, Anna and the Swallow Man will dodge bombs, tame soldiers, and even, despite their better judgment, make a friend. But in a world gone mad, everything can prove dangerous. Even the Swallow Man.  

Destined to become a classic, Gavriel Savit’s stunning debut reveals life’s hardest lessons while celebrating its miraculous possibilities. 

MINI REVIEW | Shift

Series: the Caelian Cycle #3
Author: Donnielle Tyner
Genre: young adult, science fiction, fantasy, dystopia, romance
Publish: July 22, 2016
Purchase: Amazon | B&N

Chaos is what rules Sadie’s life. Separation, lies, and an overpowering Talent have pushed her fragile sanity to the breaking point. Without Kian to fall back on, Sadie has to learn that her strength comes from within – as well as from those she loves. Just when Sadie begins to attain some stability, the true nature of her Talent reveals itself, causing her world to shift.  

War is on the horizon. Tensions are rising at an exponential pace between the US government and the Caelian citizens of America ever since the exploits of the HPC were exposed. Communities are being torn apart. The United States is on the brink of another civil war. Mistrust, hatred, and fear are the fuel behind the violence plaguing its citizens. Something needs to shift.  

Peace is what unites the HCA and the Caelian families who strive for positive change. Some progress is being made, until Miles Koenig reveals his master plan 20 years in the making. Hoping to enact change and unify the nation, Sadie embarks on a dangerous mission not only to stop her grandfather, but to transform the pending war into a revolution for peace.  

Everything is going to SHIFT 

BLOG TOUR | My Name is Milena Rokva

full tour schedule can be found at: The Fantastic Flying Book Club

Series: Alexandra Gastone #2
Author: T.A. Maclagan
Genre: young adult, contemporary, thriller, espionage, romance
Publish: July 12, 2016
Purchase: Amazon | B&N | iTunes | Kobo

After seven years living as Alexandra Gastone, Milena Rokva is now free to be her true self, if only she knew who that was or had time to find out. Milena is in a race against time to bring down Perun, the very organization that trained her as a spy. Perun is no longer content to use their network of sleeper agents to protect her homeland and is maneuvered to take control of the world’s energy markets, sending the globe into chaos. 

Working with her surrogate grandfather, Albert Gastone, his CIA friend Brad and her old handler, Varos, Milena finds herself embroiled in an epic spy game teamed with friends whose endgames do not necessarily align with her own. The only person Milena can truly trust is herself. 

Can Milena take down Perun, protect her fellow cadets and make a life for herself with her boyfriend, Grant, as well as the friends and family she’s come to love as Alexandra Gastone? Buckle in for a wild ride as the Alexandra Gastone duology comes to a close.

REVIEW | Under My Skin

Series: N/A
Author: Laura Diamond
Genre: young adult, contemporary, romance, realistic fiction
Publish: April 12, 2016
Publisher: Swoon Romance
Purchase: Amazon | B&N | Book Depository

Bookish Brit Adam Gibson is one wonky heartbeat away from a fatal arrhythmia. He's torn between wanting to live and knowing that someone else must die in order for him to do so. He needs a new heart.  

Adam stops talking to his friends, refuses to meet kids at his new school, and shuts his parents out entirely. His days are spent wondering if can cope with having a dead man's heart beating inside his chest, or if he should surrender to the thoughts of suicide swirling around in his head.  

And then a donor is found.  

Outspoken artist Darby Fox rarely lets anything stand in her way of achieving her goals. She also happens to be the twin sister to a perfect brother with good looks, good grades, manners, and the approval of their parents - something Darby has never had.  

Darby's always had bad timing. She picks the worst time to argue with her brother Daniel. In a car with bald tires, on an icy road in the freezing cold, the unthinkable happens. In a split-second, everything changes forever.  

When life forces Adam and Darby together, undeniable sparks fly, and a deep connection is made. But the secret inside of Adam may be the thing that pushes them apart forever.

REVIEW | The Masterpiecers

Series: Masterful #1
Author: Olivia Wildenstein
Genre: young adult, contemporary, mystery, romance
Publish: April 15, 2016
Purchase: Amazon | B&N | Book Depository

Nineteen-year-old Ivy Redd’s talent with a needle and thread has earned her a spot on a coveted reality TV art competition set in New York’s Metropolitan Museum. The prize: a significant amount of money and instant acceptance into the Masterpiecers, the school that ensures new artists fame and fortune. Her talent has also thrust her and her twin sister, Aster, into the spotlight.  

Not that Aster needed help with becoming a media favorite. She managed that on her own by running over a wanted mobster. She told the police it was self-defense, because she couldn’t tell them the truth—the truth would make her sister look bad. 

Locked in an Indiana jail to await her trial, Aster watches Ivy on the small TV hanging in the dayroom. It’s the highlight of her day, until she finds out what her sister truly thinks of her. Then, observing her sister becomes a punishment far crueler than imprisonment.

REVIEW | Gifted

Series: The Hayven #1
Author: J.A. George
Genre: young adult, contemporary, fantasy, romance
Publish: April 13, 2016 (first published May 10, 2015)
Purchase: Amazon

There is no chosen one in this story. 

Avery Gray was just in the wrong place at the wrong time and happened to make a decision that altered her future forever. It happens to us every day.

Avery is a size twelve university student with a penchant for dry humour, and she's as normal as they come. One rainy afternoon, Avery had to make a choice: go through the alleyway or around it. Two possible options. One would have had her future continue on as planned., the other would ensure that her future never remained the same again. She unknowingly went with the latter. 

Change can be good. It can bring new opportunities, new friends and a life you never thought possible. Change can be bad. It can bring you people determined to burn your city to the ground. 

It all depends on the decisions you make.

BLOG TOUR | Unplugged

full tour schedule can be found at: The Fantastic Flying Book Club

Series: The Wired #1
Author: Donna Freitas
Genre: young adult, science fiction, dystopia
Published: June 21, 2016
Publisher: Harper Children's
Purchase: Amazon | B&N | Book Depository | iTunes | Kobo

The first book in a provocative new series from acclaimed author Donna Freitas—Feed for a new generation. 

Humanity is split into the App World and the Real World—an extravagant virtual world for the wealthy and a dying physical world for the poor. Years ago, Skylar Cruz’s family sent her to the App World for a chance at a better life. 

Now Skye is a nobody, a virtual sixteen-year-old girl without any glamorous effects or expensive downloads to make her stand out in the App World. Yet none of that matters to Skye. All she wants is a chance to unplug and see her mother and sister again. 

But when the borders between worlds suddenly close, Skye loses that chance. Desperate to reach her family, Skye risks everything to get back to the physical world. Once she arrives, however, she discovers a much larger, darker reality than the one she remembers. 

In the tradition of M. T. Anderson’s Feed and Scott Westerfeld’s Uglies, Unplugged kicks off a thrilling and timely sci-fi series for teens from an award-winning writer.

REVIEW | The Manifesto on How to be Interesting

Series: N/A
Author: Holly Bourne
Genre: young adult, contemporary, realistic fiction, romance
Published: August 1, 2014
Publisher: Usborne Publishing
Purchase: Amazon | Book Depository

Apparently I'm boring. A nobody. But that's all about to change. Because I am starting a project. here. Now. For myself. And if you want to come along for the ride then you're very welcome.

Bree is by no means popular. Most of the time, she hates her life, her school, her never-there parents. So she writes. 

But when Bree is told she needs to stop shutting the world out and start living a life worth writing about, The Manifesto on How to be Interesting is born. A manifesto that will change everything... 

...but the question is at what cost?

Summer 2016 Review Train | Vanishing Girls

full review train stops can be found at Space Between the Spines

Hello,

Welcome to my Summer 2016 Review Train stop hosted by Brittany from Space Between the Spines. I hope you guys dropped by and read the reviews for the previous stops: The Unexpected Everything @ Ready, Set, Read, Future Shock @ Always Me, The Summer I Turned Pretty @ Blue Eye Books, and Even If the Sky Falls @ Tsundoku Books.

Series: N/A
Author: Lauren Oliver
Genre: young adult, contemporary, mystery, thriller
Published: March 10, 2015
Publisher: HarperCollins
Purchase: Amazon | B&N | Book Depository

New York Times bestselling author Lauren Oliver delivers a gripping story perfect for fans of We Were Liars and I Was Here, about two sisters inexorably altered by a terrible accident. 

Dara and Nick used to be inseparable, but that was before the accident that left Dara's beautiful face scarred and the two sisters totally estranged. 

When Dara vanishes on her birthday, Nick thinks Dara is just playing around. But another girl, nine-year-old Madeline Snow, has vanished, too, and Nick becomes increasingly convinced that the two disappearances are linked. Now Nick has to find her sister, before it's too late. 

In this edgy and compelling novel, Lauren Oliver creates a world of intrigue, loss, and suspicion as two sisters search to find themselves, and each other.

REVIEW | Every Exquisite Thing

Series: N/A
Author: Matthew Quick
Genre: young adult, contemporary
Publish: May 31, 2016
Publisher: Headline
Purchase: Amazon | B&N | Book Depository

From Matthew Quick, bestselling author of The Silver Linings Playbook, comes a heartfelt, unconventional and moving novel for readers who love John Green and Annabel Pitcher.

Nanette O'Hare is an unassuming teen who has played the role of dutiful daughter, hard-working student, and star athlete for as long as she can remember. But when a beloved teacher gives her his worn copy of The Bubblegum Reaper - the mysterious, out-of-print cult-classic - the rebel within Nanette awakens.

As she befriends the reclusive author, falls in love with a young but troubled poet, and attempts to insert her true self into the world with wild abandon, Nanette learns the hard way that sometimes rebellion comes at a high price.

A celebration of the self and the formidable power of story, Every Exquisite Thing is Matthew Quick at his finest.

REVIEW | The Last of the Firedrakes

Series: The Avalonia Chronicles #1
Author: Farah Oomerbhoy
Genre: young adult, fantasy, romance, adventure, magic, 
Published: August 15, 2015
Publisher: Wise Ink Creative Publishing
Purchase: Amazon | Book Depository

16-year-old Aurora Darlington is an orphan. Mistreated by her adopted family and bullied at school, she dreams of running away and being free. But when she is kidnapped and dragged through a portal into a magical world, suddenly her old life doesn't seem so bad. 

AVALONIA is a dangerous land ruled by powerful mages and a cruel, selfish queen who will do anything to control all seven kingdoms - including killing anyone who stands in her way. 

Thrust headlong into this new, magical world, Aurora's arrival sets plans in motion that threaten to destroy all she holds dead. 

With the help of a young fae, a magical pegasus, and a handsome mage, Aurora journeys across Avalonia to learn the truth about her past and unleash the power within herself. Kingdoms collide as a complicated web of political intrigue and ancient magic lead Aurora to unravel a shocking secret that will change her life forever.

REVIEW | Under My Skin

Series: N/A
Author: Zoë Markham
Genre: young adult, science fiction, horror
Published: March 31, 2015
Publisher: Carina UK
Purchase: Amazon

Inside we are all monsters… 

Chloe was once a normal girl. Until the night of the car crash that nearly claimed her life. Now Chloe’s mother is dead, her father is a shell of the man he used to be and the secrets that had so carefully kept their family together are falling apart. 

A new start is all Chloe and her father can hope for, but when you think you’re no longer human how can you ever start pretending? 

A contemporary reworking of a British horror classic, Under My Skin follows seventeen-year-old Chloe into an isolated world of darkness and pain, as she struggles to understand what it really means to be alive.  

Set against the familiar backdrop of everyday, normal teenage worries, Chloe's world has become anything but...