Review: Cinder by Marissa Meyer

From the Publisher: 

Humans and androids crowd the raucous streets of New Beijing. A deadly plague ravages the population. From space, a ruthless lunar people watch, waiting to make their move. No one knows that Earth’s fate hinges on one girl. . . .

Cinder, a gifted mechanic, is a cyborg. She’s a second-class citizen with a mysterious past, reviled by her stepmother and blamed for her stepsister’s illness. But when her life becomes intertwined with the handsome Prince Kai’s, she suddenly finds herself at the center of an intergalactic struggle, and a forbidden attraction. Caught between duty and freedom, loyalty and betrayal, she must uncover secrets about her past in order to protect her world’s future.

My Thoughts:

The idea for this novel is pure genius. Cinder is a unique adaptation of the classic Cinderella story in which the main character is a cyborg. You may be thinking this is something like Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, where the story is the same with just a few things changed. I assure you it is not. While some of the key components to the Cinderella canon are present, the story is far from an exact telling.

There is, as you might imagine, a pretty heavy science fiction theme throughout the book. The world is very different from our own. The large territory of New Bejing is the setting for this first book in the Lunar Chronicles series. Science has improved, giving the world hover cars and fantastic body implants. However, a horrific disease wreaks havoc with earth's population. It makes the world more believable having problems that have not been solved.

Cinder is a very likable main character. She is smart and daring. Her love for he sister endears her to the reader. But her insecurity and self deprecating outlook give her that illusion of reality that truly strong characters must possess.

Like most young adult fiction today, the cover for the book is wonderful. It caught my eye as soon as I saw it and had me wondering what the book was about. It seems the old saying about not judging a book by its cover just does not apply with this genre. The covers of the books I have read over the past two years are getting more and more eye-catching.

This book will appeal to a wide variety of readers. Marissa Meyer successfully mixes the young adult, science fiction, dystopia and mystery genres into a fast paced novel you will find quite hard to put down.

The Author:

Marissa Meyer was born and raised in Tacoma, Washington, home of Almond Roca and Stadium High School, which was made famous when Heath Ledger danced down the stadium steps in 10 Things I Hate About You. Marissa didn’t actually go to Stadium High School, but she did attend Pacific Lutheran University where she earned her Bachelor’s degree in Creative Writing. She still lives in Tacoma, now with her husband.Cinder is her YA debut.

Rating: 4/5

Book Details:

Cinder by Marissa Meyer
Feiwel and Friends
Publication Date: January 3, 2012

Disclaimer:

I received a review copy of this novel from the publisher. 

Interesting New Releases: Week of Januray 9, 2012

Gideon's Corpse by Douglas Preston & Lincoln Child

A top nuclear scientist goes mad and takes an innocent family hostage at gunpoint, killing one and causing a massive standoff.

A plume of radiation above New York City leads to a warehouse where, it seems, a powerful nuclear bomb was assembled just hours before.

Sifting through the evidence, authorities determine that the unthinkable is about to happen: in ten days, a major American city will be vaporized by a terrorist attack.

Ten days. And Gideon Crew, tracking the mysterious terrorist cell from the suburbs of New York to the mountains of New Mexico, learns the end may be something worse--far worse--than mere Armageddon.

The Secret Crown by Chris Kuzneski

From the mountains of Bavaria to the secret tunnels under King Ludwig II's castles, no one is safe when they search for the Secret Crown.

Hidden among the crates in a recently discovered World War II bunker are documents stamped with an elaborate black swan, the insignia of the murdered King Ludwig II. According to legend, Ludwig stockpiled a massive treasure in the years before his death, a cache of gold and jewels that would finance the construction of the largest castle of all time. But in the years since his death, no one has found any evidence that Ludwig had hidden anything. Until now.

Jonathon Payne and David Jones are pulled into the mystery by a colleague of theirs, a former supply sergeant in the U.S. military who asks them to investigate. They agree to help and quickly find themselves in a life-or-death struggle to uncover the truth about Ludwig's murder and his mythical treasure.

The Jaguar by T. Jefferson Parker

Erin McKenna, a beautiful songwriter married to a crooked Los Angeles County sheriff 's deputy, is kidnapped by Benjamin Armenta, the ruthless leader of the powerful Gulf Cartel. But his demands turn out to be as unusual as the crumbling castle in which Erin is kept. She is ordered to compose a unique narcocoriddo, a modern-day folk ballad of the kind that have recorded the exploits of the drug dealers, gunrunners, and outlaws who have highlighted Mexican history for generations. Under threat of death, Armenta orders Erin to tell his life story-in music-and write "the greatest narcocorrido of all time." Allowed to wander the dark hallways of the castle retreat with only a guitar and a mysterious old priest to keep her company, Erin must produce the most beautiful song that these men have ever heard.

As the mesmerizing music and lyrics of Erin's song cascade from the jungle hideout, they serve as a siren song to the two men who love Erin: her outlaw husband, Bradley Smith, and the lawman Charlie Hood- two men who together have the power to rescue her. Here, amid the ancient beauty and haunted landscape of the Yucatecan lowlands, the long-simmering rivalry between these men will be brought closer to its explosive finale.

T. Jefferson Parker, who is widely hailed as his generation's most accomplished and talented crime novelist, delivers a crime thriller that dramatically redefines the landscape of the cartel wars as an epic clash of good and evil.

Darth Plagueis by James Luceno

Darth Plagueis: one of the most brilliant Sith Lords who ever lived. Possessing power is all he desires. Losing it is the only thing he fears. As an apprentice, he embraces the ruthless ways of the Sith. And when the time is right, he destroys his Master—but vows never to suffer the same fate. For like no other disciple of the dark side, Darth Plagueis learns to command the ultimate power . . . over life and death.

Darth Sidious: Plagueis’s chosen apprentice. Under the guidance of his Master, he secretly studies the ways of the Sith, while publicly rising to power in the galactic government, first as Senator, then as Chancellor, and eventually as Emperor.

Darth Plagueis and Darth Sidious, Master and acolyte, target the galaxy for domination—and the Jedi Order for annihilation. But can they defy the merciless Sith tradition? Or will the desire of one to rule supreme, and the dream of the other to live forever, sow the seeds of their destruction?

Review: Everneath by Brodi Ashton

From the Publisher:

Last spring, Nikki Beckett vanished, sucked into an underworld known as the Everneath. Now she’s returned—to her old life, her family, her boyfriend—before she’s banished back to the underworld . . . this time forever. She has six months before the Everneath comes to claim her, six months for good-byes she can’t find the words for, six months to find redemption, if it exists.

Nikki longs to spend these precious months forgetting the Everneath and trying to reconnect with her boyfriend, Jack, the person most devastated by her disappearance—and the one person she loves more than anything. But there’s just one problem: Cole, the smoldering immortal who enticed her to the Everneath in the first place, has followed Nikki home. Cole wants to take over the throne in the underworld and is convinced Nikki is the key to making it happen. And he’ll do whatever it takes to bring her back, this time as his queen.

As Nikki’s time on the Surface draws to a close and her relationships begin slipping from her grasp, she is forced to make the hardest decision of her life: find a way to cheat fate and remain on the Surface with Jack or return to the Everneath and become Cole’s queen.

My Thoughts:

Everneath is author Brodi Ashton's debut novel. As such, I had no expectations when I started reading. I have to say, I was pleasantly surprised. The story is loosely based on tales from Greek mythology. A girl is tricked into spending time in the Everneath, only to be given a brief period to set things right before having to return and spend eternity below.

At first, you might think this is the second novel in a series. The story starts with Nikki already in the Everneath. But this is the author's first novel. You get the back story spread throughout. I was a little concerned for a bit that all the flashbacks would hinder the flow of the novel, but it actually fits together quite nicely.

What would a young adult novel be without a little romance? Certainly not this story. Nikki and Jack have that deep, connected romance. Cole wants Nikki to be his queen, while Julianna, Nikki's best friend, has her eye on Jack. Only one word comes to mind, angst.

This was a good book and I recommend it to lovers of Dark Fantasy and Young Adult novels. One last tidbit. I love that the rock band is named The Dead Elvises. Awesome!

The Author:

Brodi Ashton received a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of Utah and a master’s degree in international relations from the London School of Economics. Brodi has an active following on her blog, which can be found at www.brodiashton.blogspot.com. She lives in Utah with her family. Everneath is her debut novel.

Rating: 4/5

Book Details:

Everneath by Brodi Ashton
Harper Collins Publishers
Publication Date: January 24, 2012

Disclaimer:

I received an advance copy of this book from the publisher for review.

My Year in Reading

Now that 2011 is behind us, it is time to take a look back at my year in books. I set my reading goal once again at 100 books. Unfortunately, I fell a little short again. I completed 78 books in 2011. That is down slightly over 2010 where I read 84.

Here are my top 12 favorite reads and top 5 un-favorite reads. (How's that for PC?)

Favorite Reads

1. Iron House by John Hart
2. Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins
3. Betrayed by P.C. Cast
4. Bloodlines by Richelle Mead
5. Deadline by Mira Grant
6. Last Breath by Rachel Caine
7. Glow by Amy Kathleen Ryan
8. Only Time Will Tell by Jeffrey Archer
9. Drink, Slay, Love by Sarah Beth Durst
10. Patient Zero by Jonathan Maberry
11. Ghost Story by Jim Butcher
12. Sanctus by Simon Toyne


Un-Favorite Reads

1. The Twisted Thread by Charlotte Bacon
2. Carte Blanche by Jeffrey Deaver
3. Spycatcher by Matthew Dunn
4. The Night Eternal by Guillermo del Toro and Chuck Hogan
5. Harbor by John Lindqvist

Now, onto another year of great reading...

Happy New Year!!!!

New Releases: Week of December 12, 2011

Here are the new releases that caught my eye this week:


Locked On by Tom Clancy

Tom Clancy's All-Star lineup is back. Jack Ryan, his son, Jack Jr., John Clark Ding Chavez and the rest of the Campus team are facing their greatest challenge ever.

Jack Ryan, Sr. has made a momentous choice. He's running for President of the United States again and thus giving up a peaceful retirement to help his country in its darkest hour. But he doesn't anticipate the treachery of his opponent, who uses trumped up charges to attack one of Ryan's closest comrades, John Clark.

Now, Clark is in a race against time and must travel the world, staying one step ahead of his adversaries, including a shadowy organization tasked to bring him in, all while trying to find who is behind this.

Meanwhile, Jack Ryan, Jr., Ding Chavez, Dominick Caruso and other members of the Campus-the top secret off-the-books intelligence agency founded by Jack Ryan during his first term in the White House-deal with a question of their own: Why is a Pakistani military officer meeting with Dagestani terrorists? The answer will ultimately lead to a desperate struggle, with nothing short of the fate of the world at stake.

The Drop by Michael Connelly

Harry Bosch has been given three years before he must retire from the LAPD, and he wants cases more fiercely than ever. In one morning, he gets two.

DNA from a 1989 rape and murder matches a 29-year-old convicted rapist. Was he an eight-year-old killer or has something gone terribly wrong in the new Regional Crime Lab? The latter possibility could compromise all of the lab's DNA cases currently in court.

Then Bosch and his partner are called to a death scene fraught with internal politics. Councilman Irvin Irving's son jumped or was pushed from a window at the Chateau Marmont. Irving, Bosch's longtime nemesis, has demanded that Harry handle the investigation.

Relentlessly pursuing both cases, Bosch makes two chilling discoveries: a killer operating unknown in the city for as many as three decades, and a political conspiracy that goes back into the dark history of the police department.

Audiobook Review: Silence by Becca Fitzpatrick

From the Publisher: 

The noise between Patch and Nora is gone. They've overcome the secrets riddled in Patch's dark past...bridged two irreconcilable worlds...faced heart-wrenching tests of betrayal, loyalty and trust...and all for a love that will transcend the boundary between heaven and earth. Armed with nothing but their absolute faith in one another, Patch and Nora enter a desperate fight to stop a villain who holds the power to shatter everything they've worked for—and their love—forever.

My Thoughts:

Silence is the third installment in Becca Fitzpatrick's teen series, following Hush Hush and Crescendo. The series tells the story of Nora and Patch. Patch is a fallen angel and Nora is a normal teenage girls, or is she? The problematic romance between the two keeps readers turning pages.

Silence begins with Nora having amnesia. As a reader, I had no idea what was going on for a bit either. Slowly we are filled in on the pieces of the story that are missing as Nora searches to learn what happened to her and who she is. It was a little frustrating to read the very beginning, but once I figured out how things were unfolded, I did not mind. If you get stuck, hang in there, it does get better.

Quite a few questions are answered this time around. Some I already knew, Nora was learning them against her amnesia. Others bring the story around to where I had thought it might be leading. I would not say things were predictable, but it was no surprise the way things panned out. As if with any good series, there are many new questions at the end that have me not-so-patiently waiting for the fourth book which is to be published in Fall 2012.

The narrator, Caitlin Greer, does a great job capturing the personalities of the characters. Since most of the book is from Nora's perspective, it is easy to associate her voice with that of the main character's. This was an Audible purchase for me and everything went smoothly.

The Author:

Becca Fitzpatrick's first book, Hush, Hush debuted as a New York Times bestseller. She graduated college with a degree in health, which she promptly abandoned for storytelling. When not writing, she's most likely running, prowling sales racks for shoes or watching crime drams on TV. She lives in Colorado.

Rating: 4/5

Audiobook Details:

Silence by Becca Fitzpatrick
Narrated by Caitlin Greer

Simon Pulse

Publication Date: October 4, 2011