Review: Into the Dim - Janet B. Taylor

Into the Dim
Janet B. Taylor 
Series: Into the Dim, #1
Genre: Young Adult, Science Fiction, Fantasy, Historical Fiction, Romance
Publisher: HMH Books for Young Readers
Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Goodreads 

Thanks to Houghton Mifflin Harcourt for the eARC I received via NetGalley!

Hope has been homeschooled her entire life - she has a photographic memory, and her mother has schooled her a very specific way so that the knowledge wouldn't overwhelm her. When Hope's mom dies in an earthquake, her aunt reaches out to her and Hope ends up going to visit her mother's family in Scotland. When she gets there, she finds out her mother isn't actually dead - she's trapped in England in the time of Eleanor of Aquitaine - and Hope needs to travel back in time to save her.

The way the time travel aspect was explained and portrayed was absolutely wonderful. I really enjoyed the detail Janet B. Taylor included with the science aspect behind the time traveling, as well as how much work went in to preparing to travel to a different time. From the proper way to walk, to the proper dialect, to the correct clothing - everything was so precise and well thought out.

I really enjoyed the time period of Eleanor of Aquitaine. I had no knowledge of this period prior to reading this book so I can't really say if any of the historical basis was accurate (I'm hoping that it is) but the political elements of the time were really interesting to learn about.

Hope wasn't a particularly outstanding heroine, but I enjoyed seeing her interact with her newfound family. These people took her in and made her a part of their group without even really knowing her. Given Hope's sheltered past, she was never able to make friends or interact with anyone her age. Seeing her friendship with Rachel, Collum, and Phoebe.

The thing about Into the Dim that was most unexpected to me is that most of the book happens in present day. While this makes sense given that Janet B. Taylor needed to set up the background of the plot, have Hope travel to Scotland, and show the training involved before time traveling, I really wish there had been more of the historical aspect of the book. Everything in the first half of the book felt really elaborate and thoroughly explained, but some of the action in the second half while they were time traveling felt rushed. I wish the things that happened had just been stretched out a bit more - fleshed out with more detail.

Overall, Into the Dim wasn't an outstanding book, but I really enjoyed it while I was reading it. From the time traveling element to the promise of a bigger conspiracy in future books, Into the Dim was worth the read!

- Kiersten

If you could travel back in time, when would you travel to?

Let us know in the comments!

Review: The Truth About Alice - Jennifer Mathieu

The Truth About Alice
Jennifer Mathieu 
Series: N/A
Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary
Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Word Rating: An important story
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

I received an eARC of The Truth About Alice on Netgalley a few months ago when I went on a really crazy read-now and requesting binge (which was a big mistake since I didn’t have time to read and of the books). I found the cover very intriguing and beautiful, and it definitely does a good job reflecting the story.

Right after I finished The Truth About Alice I didn’t fully appreciate the story that it told, because it is an important story being told. At the start of the story, it’s clear that there are a lot of rumors circulating about Alice Franklin, and they are less than complimentary. The big ones: Alice Franklin slept with two different guys at one party and she caused the death of beloved quarterback, Brandon. Throughout the book, the reader learns exactly what the title suggests – the truth about Alice.

The story is told through shifting points of view of characters that know Alice: a jock, an ex-best friend, a popular girl, and a nerd who has a crush on Alice. It’s cool how the story unfolds and the reader starts to understand what the truth about Alice actually is. The writing style – the sort of stream of consciousness from the narrators – makes the story read very quickly.

I wasn’t especially enthralled by any of the characters but I thought Jennifer Mathieu did a good job getting into the heads of the people who bullied Alice. It’s very clear throughout the story that these characters don’t necessarily want to bully Alice but rather that they are guilty or bad or self conscious about something and they project their problems onto Alice – they use Alice as a scapegoat from their troubles to make them feel better. These characters, particularly Kelsie and Josh, know that what they’re doing is wrong but they care more about what’s easy. It was easy to blame Alice for bad things that happened to Kelsie that summer. It was easy for Josh to let Alice take the blame for his best friend’s death. These characters could not deal with their problems and they made Alice deal instead – and the worst part about it is that a large part of each of them still feels bad because they know it’s wrong.

While the ex-best friend and the jock are the most to blame for Alice’s misfortune, the popular girl, Elaine, and the nerd, Kurt, still hold some responsibility. Elaine is more of a bystander – she doesn’t necessarily start any of the rumors about Alice but she adds fuel to the fire, helping the rumors spread. Kurt is a bit of a different case. He’s always been an outsider, so he can’t really step in and stop the rumors. However, he does attempt to befriend Alice and helps her to feel better about the past.

My biggest complaint about the story is that it just wasn’t as emotional as I wanted it to be for the subject matter. Sure, they all had their dramatic stories, but I just didn’t feel very emotionally attached to any of the characters.

Overall, I think The Truth About Alice is an important story, one that peaks into the minds of bullies and bystanders. The story does a great job of showing how petty and dramatic people can be and how they don’t see the full consequence of their actions. The characters didn’t necessarily want to hurt Alice, but they didn’t think through all the things they said about her – they just wanted to feel better. It’s a good read but it would definitely have been more enjoyable for me had I felt more emotionally attached to the characters.

- Kiersten

What do you think of books about bullying?

Let us know in the comments!

ARC Review: The Young World - Chris Weitz

The Young World
Chris Weitz
Series: The Young World Trilogy, #1
Genre: Young Adult, Post Apocalyptic
Release Date: July 29, 2014
Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Word Rating: Pretty good
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

A few months ago when I was still super busy with school, I went on a ridiculous requesting binge on Netgalley and The Young World was one of those requests. After requesting all those books and hearing back about most of them within the week, I completely forgot that I requested The Young World. In fact, when I saw the advertisements for The Young World at BEA in the showroom bathrooms (Flush... while you still can), I didn't even recognize it (but I thought the ads were absolutely hilarious). So imagine my complete surprise when I received an email from Little, Brown Books for Young Readers via Netgalley telling me that I was approved for The Young World. It was probably more exciting because I didn't even remember requesting it, but that's besides the point.

The Young World is about a society in which a Sickness kills all the adults and children, leaving a world filled with teenagers, and when the teenagers reach adulthood, they also catch the Sickness and die. So basically everyone is dying and there isn't much hope for the world because all the adults who knew how to work things like electricity and water are all dead and no one really understands how to combat this virus. I know, sounds like the ideal living situation to me too.

The story is told through alternating perspectives between Jefferson and Donna and it follows their motley group's adventure through New York City to find a cure for the Sickness. I definitely felt like the two different voices were distinct and I never got confused about which character was narrating. Between Jeff, Donna, and the rest of their group, there is a really wide variety of characters: Jeff is half Japanese, SeeThrough is a Chinese immigrant, BrainBox has some sort of behavioral disorder, and Peter is African American and gay. Obviously the characters are so much more than those descriptions, but I really felt like the diverse group was a good representation of the type of people who would be living in downtown New York City, and I appreciated how Weitz doesn't make their differences a huge plot point.

Obviously since the narrators are Jeff and Donna, most of the story focuses on them. Jefferson is a character who is shown as a leader from the very beginning. Besides being a leader, Jeff is also a big thinker. Throughout the story, it's very clear that surviving isn't really enough for him - he wants to save the world and raise it anew, better than before. Jeff's narration is consumed by a lot of his big thoughts. It seemed pretty clear to me through Jeff's point of view that Weitz has a lot to say about society and it's not very subtle; I felt like there were pages of social commentary in between the actual plot actions. While I did enjoy reading those thoughts and felt it shaped Jefferson's character, it definitely slowed down the book a lot due to its abundance.

While Jeff was the big thinker, Donna was more of a wistful thinker. Sure, she wanted to survive and figure out how not to die when she becomes an adult but she mostly wished she could have back all the things that she took for granted before the Sickness. Donna is so headstrong and stubborn throughout the whole story. She's moody, she doesn't know how she feels, she's jaded, and she's tired - she feels like a girl who's tired of the world ending. Donna was such a foil to Jeff and seeing them interact throughout the story was more dynamic because of that.

When I got to the end of The Young World, I felt like everything that happened was so whirlwind and crazy. It felt a bit rushed and confusing but I can see how it adds to the confusion of Jeff and Donna at the time. Even though the ending isn't really a cliffhanger since the characters are not in immediate danger, the end of The Young World left me craving more of the story.

Overall, while I don't really have anything bad to say about The Young World and I was pulled into the story throughout the read, I wouldn't say that I love it by any means. The Young World is a good read - it's filled with action and adventure, some romance, and the apocalypse. There is so much great gallows humor and Weitz definitely had some deep thoughts on society. I recommend The Young World to those who like apocalyptic reads, the urban setting of New York City, and some interesting, bigger thoughts about the world.

- Kiersten

What post-apocalyptic books have you read recently?

Let us know in the comments!

Blog Tour Review + Giveaway: Bound - M.J. Stevens

Bound
M.J. Stevens
Series: The Guardians, #1
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy, Science Fiction
Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Word Rating: Interesting
On Goodreads

About the book:

‘No good deed ever goes unpunished, Mellea…’

Mellea Wendorn hasn’t exactly had a normal life. Misfortune seems to follow her, and her family, wherever she goes. However, when Mellea stops to assist a mysterious young man suddenly her prior hardships seem trivial.

His name is Leo. He is a Successor, a child of the Guardians of Selestia.

He is royalty.
He is handsome.
And he wants Mellea completely to himself.

Unable to escape the Guardian’s laws, Mellea must learn the ways of the royals. She is convinced her life can’t get much worse. But when a timeworn Guardian enemy arises from the shadows, Mellea must make a choice that will change her destiny forever.

Review:

When I started reading Bound it kind of felt like a contemporary - Mellea is a girl who just graduated from high school and is working to save money to pay for college; however, my mistake was not for long. Soon after, M.J. Stevens began to introduce Selestia and the idea of the Guardians.

As I was reading, I was skeptical at first. The inciting incident is nothing less than alarming - throwing Mellea into the world of the Guardians, a world she cannot escape. It seemed almost cruel to me what was happening to Mellea, especially with some of her initial exchanges with Leo. There's one in particular that I found particularly alarming and I was worried that she'd forgive him without another mention of the happening. Fortunately, M.J. Stevens had Leo bring up the event and sort of rationalized it to a point where I was no longer appalled by his actions and unable to forgive him.

Throughout the story I found it very easy to understand Mellea's point of view and to care about her. While at times she felt younger than her age, more like the 16-year-old heroines in other young adult novels, I still felt like she had reason behind her thoughts and actions. The way she transforms when she finally decides to make the best out of the situation is something I think can apply to all people in various situations.

While the reveal of the enemy was fairly predictable, I still enjoyed that aspect of the story as well. The enemy was interesting and I was constantly intrigued by what they were up to and what the Guardians would do to defeat them. The action helped to balance out some parts of the story that were less eventful, such as Mellea's study time.

All in all, I did enjoy Bound. I liked the idea of the Guardians as well as the enemy and I'm intrigued by some of the elements in the story that were set up for later on. I look forward to see what M.J. Stevens has in store for Mellea, her relationship with Leo, and the Guardians' battle against their enemy.

- Kiersten

Purchase links:

Amazon

About the author:

M.J. Stevens is a true storyteller.

For a long time, words were never her best friend. However she has always had a creative spirit and writing became the lead way that she could share her ideas with the world. Today, it is her number one passion in life.

“I wish I could say that I was one of those kids that read insane amounts of books and that’s why I was inspired to write, like a lot of authors. But I actually found the joy on people’s faces [when they talk about stories they love] more inspiring and wanted to create something of my own that will give young readers that same excited expression.”

Author links:

Website | Twitter | Goodreads | Facebook

Giveaway:
Tour-wide giveaway: Paperback copy of Bound (UK English edition)(US/CAN)
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Tour hosted by:

Review: Branded - Keary Taylor

Branded
Keary Taylor
Series: Fall of Angels, #1
Genre: New Adult, Paranormal, Romance
Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Word Rating: Interesting
On Goodreads

There was a time a few months ago when I was binge-one-clicking free eBooks on Amazon – Branded was one of those. In my dilemma to choose a new book, I was scrolling through the ridiculous amount of eBooks I own and I chose Branded, to be completely honest, because it had a really pretty cover. I mean, the cover is just stunning (I see a Cover Cosmetics in your future, Branded). Anyway, I basically devoured this book on Christmas Eve, and while it was far from perfect, I found Branded to be very enjoyable.

When I started reading the book, I didn’t even remember what it was about – not even a little – but the premise of the story comes into play right away. We find out in the beginning of Branded that Jessica tries to sleep as little as possible because when she does she has terrible nightmares. These nightmares are not your average nightmares though – in these nightmares, Jessica stands trial for the dead in front of a panel of angels. During the trials, the good and bad deeds of the person are made known. If the person has lived a life of good, he is exalted and sent to heaven. If not, he is condemned, branded with a hot iron, and sent to hell. But here’s the crazy part – when the person on trial is branded, so is Jessica. After every nightmare, Jessica wakes up screaming and often in pain from a new branding.

Even though this is the main idea behind the story, I found that there wasn’t really much of it throughout the book. Rather than a paranormal dominated by her nightmares and why she has them, most of the story is dedicated to Jessica coming out of her shell and beginning to trust people. Of course the nightmares have a deeply psychological affect on her, it is certainly not the center of this story until the end. Another somewhat misleading aspect of the blurb for this book is that it sounds like there is a love triangle. Let me tell you, there is no love triangle. Like, not at all. Sure, there are two guys, but there is no competition between them. Not even a little. Nope. So if you hate love triangles, you certainly don’t have to worry about that in this one.

For the romance, however, it was a bit insta-love-y. I am by no means opposed to insta-love but usually I like it in young adult rather than a story like this. Jessica is 20 and her love interest, Alex, is 23. Alex is super charming and perfect and rich and kind and understanding to Jessica. He literally does no wrong throughout the whole book – he has no flaw. The only thing he sort of does is get upset out of jealousy, but not to worry – he goes and apologizes about it right away! He was just too perfect. I enjoyed his charm, but if he had moments of flaw I think he would have been that much more enjoyable. Someone that perfect just isn’t believable.

Jessica, on the other hand, is nowhere near perfect, which is fine. She is broken by her memories of the nightmares and how they have ruined every relationship she’s ever had – family, friends, and basically everyone. Jessica’s past was sad – her mother thought she was crazy and wanted her to be institutionalized, so Jessica had to run away and start a new life on her own at 16-years-old. Is the fact that a 16-year-old can just run away, get a job, find someplace to live, and not have anyone looking for her believable? Not really, but that’s Jessica’s story.

At the start of the book, all she has is the somewhat odd next-door neighbor, Sal, who she takes care of. I felt bad for Jessica and how the nightmares that have plagued her for her entire life have left her alone and afraid to make connections. I mean, yes, you do sound crazy when you tell people you have to face angels in your sleep and then you often get branded and the branding remains on your neck after you wake up. That’s because it is crazy. Thinking back on it, I don’t even understand how Alex just took this information when Jessica told him. He doesn’t even question it. Not at all. Nope. He just perfectly wrapped his arms around her for comfort. If only we all had our own perfect Alex.

Anyway, after meeting Alex Jessica decides she needs to act like a real person and do things. She decides to take a yoga class and befriends her yoga instructor, Emily. It was nice to see Jessica face her problem, realizing that she had been locking herself away from the world and that she needed to get out and interact with people.

Now you’re probably wondering about the other boy I mentioned earlier. No? Well, I’ll tell you a little about him anyway. Where Alex is the most perfect person of perfection that ever was perfect, Cole is even more beautiful and obsessed with Jessica and sort of creepy. When Cole moves in two doors down from Jessica, he immediately turns the charm on to her. Cole wants nothing more than Jessica, as it turns out, and he’ll do anything to have her. Cole has a very little role in the story until the end. I suppose his strong “I want you so bad” vibe was too much for Jessica and she tried to stay away as much as possible. Good for you, Jessica. You go, Jessica.

The thing that has me most conflicted about this story is the ending. While there were times in the book that seemed to drag, having too much unnecessary detail, the ending was almost too quick. Lots of things happen in the end without much chance to fully comprehend what will happen as a result. I FELT SO MANY FEELS. The ending isn’t exactly a cliffhanger, but we have almost no idea what will happen as a result of the ending. I’m not entirely sure if I’m happy with the end of Branded, but I am anxious to start the next book, Forsaken.

Overall, I did enjoy Branded. I think this book could use a bit more editing – there were a lot of typos, grammatical errors, and general wordiness – but it has a lot of potential. Keary Taylor was able to tell a story with such a different concept. I was able to predict some of the twists early on in the book, but I still think she was rather successful in her execution. I look forward to reading more of her work in the near future, starting with Forsaken!

- Kiersten

What would you do if you woke up from a nightmare with a branding on the back of your neck?

Let us know in the comments!

Review: Stolen Away - Alyxandra Harvey

Stolen Away
Alyxandra Harvey
Series: N/A
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy, Paranormal, Romance
Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Word Rating: Interesting
On Goodreads

I got Stolen Away as a Kindle daily deal – I was so intrigued by the blurb that I had to have it. Eloise Hart is just a normal girl who likes to fly under the radar. One day when she’s at the ice cream parlor with her friends, a strange boy in medieval dress kneels in front of her and tells her that she needs to go with him or “the others” will find her. Of course, Eloise is totally freaks out and leaves. As it turns out, Eloise’s aunt Antonia was married to the King of Faery, Lord Strahan, and Strahan wants to lure Antonia back to the world of Faery with Eloise as bait. Soon, Eloise gets captured and it’s up to her friends to try to save her.

Stolen Away is told from alternating point of views between Eloise and Jo. Although I found both girls to be charming, their voices were very similar and I found it a bit confusing sometimes. When the girls were separated, it was fine because of how different their situations were, but when they were together, I could barely follow who was saying what because of the “she said” and “I said”s.

Jo’s story seems to center around her romance. Jo’s romance was cute, but it was really rushed, even more so than Eloise’s. Jo sees this gorgeous stranger at a party, but doesn’t get a chance to talk to him. One day while she’s at a coffee shop, said stranger appears and she starts getting to know him. Of course, when I say, “getting to know him,” I’m using this rather loosely. Jo ends up bringing this guy to her family’s farm and kissing him before she even knows his name. In fact, he actually shows up at her farm later on and they kiss some more and she still doesn’t know his name after this encounter. Once she finally knows his name, she insists that she loves him. Sounds a bit like my favorite Pixar dog…

But seriously. After they actually get to know each other, the romance grew on me a lot more. In between seeing this boy, Jo is supposed to be helping her friend escape from the Faery Rath in which she is trapped. Jo is surprisingly resourceful when it comes to finding her friend, but she’d probably do a better job if she weren’t obsessed with her handsome stranger.

On the other hand, Eloise’s story is a lot more action packed. Her story follows how she’s trapped in Strahan’s Faery Rath and how she finds out about the Faery world and her aunt’s part in it. Through Eloise’s point of view, the reader finds out most of the mythology in this book. Although the mythology is interesting, it’s thrown at the reader a bit too fast. Like Jo, Eloise had a romance, but hers was much briefer. Eloise’s romance was so sweet and made me giddy. I wish there had been more of this romance.

The ending of Stolen Away, while finishing the actual conflict of the story, seemed to need more. I wish there had been a few more chapters to explain how everything turns out rather than the few pages of epilogue we get right after the conflict is resolved. It was just too brief. After investing myself in the plot and the characters, I just wanted more from the ending. Honestly, I would love to see a sequel. With a second book, Stolen Away would definitely move up to 4 stars for me.

Overall, I really wanted to enjoy Stolen Away more than I did, but it was just too brief. This book had so much potential with its story, but it lacked the follow through and elaboration I was looking for. However, I would still recommend this story for someone looking for a fun paranormal story with interesting faery mythology.

- Kiersten

How would you react if some faery king kidnapped you?

Let us know in the comments!

Review: It's a Mall World After All - Janette Rallison

It's a Mall World After All
Janette Rallison
Series: N/A
Genre: Young Adult, Teen, Romance
Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Word Rating: Cute and Light
On Goodreads

I got this as a Kindle daily deal, and, to be completely honest, I'm pretty sure the major sell point with this for me was the allusion to the Small World rides at Disney parks (I'm just a sucker for A Small World). When I began reading this, I wasn't quite sure if I would like it. The story starts with Charlotte working at a perfume stand in Bloomingdales, musing about what she's learned at the mall. This sets up the major conflict of the story - Charlotte's best friend's boyfriend is at the mall with another girl.

Let's start with Charlotte. Charlotte struggles with holding grudges and generally trusting people. I found myself conflicted about whether I was annoyed that she was holding grudges or annoyed that she considered forgiving the person who did such things to her (I guess I learned something from this book...). Despite her general judgy-ness, she's very sarcastic and sometimes funny, but, sadly, some of the humor was lost on me. There were points where I wanted to laugh because I could tell it was an attempt at humor, but it just wasn't that funny. I felt bad because I make jokes that no one laughs at all the time, so I kind of empathized. Don't get me wrong, there were many humorous points throughout the story, just fewer than intended.

Then there's Charlotte's love interest - Colton. Oh, what is there to say about Colton... He starts off as a super arrogant know-it-all. He's able to one-up Charlotte in almost every way possible, which, of course, drives her crazy. Basically he's awesome because he's smart, strong, gorgeous, and insightful. However, there were many points in the story where, if I was Charlotte, I probably would have slapped him across his handsome face while yelling obscenities regarding his always thinking he's right. I guess I just get angry easily.


Of course, we cannot forget the best friend, Brianna, and her boyfriend, Bryant. To be honest, their relationship kind of made me sick. Brianna is one of those girls who gives up her whole life for her boyfriend. I really don't understand why girls feel the need to give up everyone else who was ever important to them just for some guy. She even tells Charlotte not to make her choose. Like, I'm sorry, what did you just say to me? And then Bryant with his superior attitude. Ew.

There are also some semi-interesting minor characters, including Kelly, Wesley, and Candice. Kelly is so desperate for Wesley to ask her out that she has Charlotte stalking him, which presents some really funny situations throughout the book with Wesley's extreme awkwardness. Candice is a rich snob and her dialogue with Charlotte is pretty hilarious.

Besides the romantic aspect of this story, there was also Charlotte as a philanthropist. One day, Charlotte is approached by two boys whose families don't have a lot of money. From here, Charlotte convinces Colton to organize a gift giving event for some children like the two she met at the mall. Charlotte's concern for the children and giving nature was charming and heartwarming, especially at the final event. Also, there is the greater lesson regarding grudges. In middle school, Charlotte was tormented by her classmates with an assortment of bug jokes - jokes that she couldn't seem to let go of. Through her growing relationship with Colton, Charlotte learns about people changing and growing up as well as how to forgive people.

Overall, I found this book to be charming. Going into it, I wasn't looking for anything deep or dramatic, and I got exactly what I wanted: a quick, fun, easy read, which ended up having a greater message about generosity and forgiveness. It was not the most well written book I've ever read, but I found I could look past that and still enjoy the story.

- Kiersten

Do you think it's ever justified to hold a grudge?

Let us know in the comments!