Recent Reads - Eve by Anna Carey

Eve (Eve #1), by Anna Carey

 3 of 5 Stars

Buy It:  Barnes & Noble  /  Amazon


Genre: Young Adult, Dystopian

Pages: 318

Publication: 10/4/2011, HarperCollins

Why I Chose It:  I received an ARC in exchange for a thoughtful and honest review.

Synopsis (from Goodreads):  Where do you go when nowhere is safe?

Sixteen years after a deadly virus wiped out most of Earth’s population, the world is a perilous place. Eighteen-year-old Eve has never been beyond the heavily guarded perimeter of her school, where she and two hundred other orphaned girls have been promised a future as the teachers and artists of the New America. But the night before graduation, Eve learns the shocking truth about her school’s real purpose—and the horrifying fate that awaits her.

Fleeing the only home she’s ever known, Eve sets off on a long, treacherous journey, searching for a place she can survive. Along the way she encounters Arden, her former rival from school, and Caleb, a rough, rebellious boy living in the wild. Separated from men her whole life, Eve has been taught to fear them, but Caleb slowly wins her trust . . . and her heart. He promises to protect her, but when soldiers begin hunting them, Eve must choose between true love and her life.

In this epic new series, Anna Carey imagines a future that is both beautiful and terrifying. Readers will revel in Eve’s timeless story of forbidden love and extraordinary adventure

My Review:  Let me start by saying that 3 out of 5 stars is not a bad review. It's a good review. And just because a book isn't my favorite, it doesn't mean others won't love it. Other than that, I'm not sure what to say about this one. It wasn't bad, well some of it was bad, but for the most part it was just meh. I don't hate it. It just wasn't extraordinary. And in a year filled with extraordinary reads for me, I was left wanting.

Let's start with what I liked:

1) World Building - I felt some things were left unexplained or grazed over, but I see all sorts of potential and I'm excited to see where it goes in the remainder of the series.

2) Arden - Eve's rival at school, she takes off, fleeing school before Eve discovers the truth about her future. Once Eve escapes, she runs into Arden in the wilderness and they team up to survive. Arden was strong, brave, complex. All the things I want from a heroine. She has a back story that's more than simply her life at the school. It gave her character a depth I failed to find in Eve. I probably would have liked the story more had it centered on Arden.

Some things I found lackluster:

1) Caleb - I didn't fall in love with Caleb. Nothing about his description appealed to me. In fact, I kept thinking how dirty he must have been. Not exactly a guy I want to snuggle up to.

And now for things that really bugged me:

1) Eve - This girl was annoying. She was supposed to be super smart and special, but she made stupid mistakes. She was naive. And not in a cute, isn't-she-so-adorable sort of way. In a dangerous sort of way. She got people killed.

I get it. She is the way she is because of the life she lived and the way she was brought up, but I just couldn't get behind her and root for her. Too often I wanted to smack her.

2) It was slow. I know not everything can be told at a break-neck pace, but I found myself able to put this book down quite a few times. And when I did, I rarely had the desire to return to it. I could leave it sit for days on end without craving another paragraph, just one more chapter. That for me is how I know a book has hooked me.

3) The Ending - Really?! Seriously?! Come on now. If I'd been through all Eve and Caleb had been through, if I'd loved him the way Eve was supposed to, I never would have accepted what happened at the end. No way. I don't want to say too much, because I don't want to spoil it, but really, come on.


I will cautiously recommend this book. It's worth a read. I've seen rave reviews. And while I personally cannot gush about it, I will definitely read the sequel to see where the story is going.

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Happy Release Day - Untraceable by S.R. Johannes

Today I want to celebrate the release of an incredible book by an amazing author - Untraceable (The Nature of Grace #1) by S.R. Johannes.

Everyone leaves a mark.

What if your could be erased?

A new young adult wilderness thriller with a missing father, a kickbutt heroine, and of course - two hot boys.

Synopsis from Goodreads: 16 year old Grace has lived in the Smokies all her life, patrolling with her forest ranger father who taught her about wildlife, tracking, and wilderness survival.

When her dad goes missing on a routine patrol, Grace refuses to believe he’s dead and fights the town authorities, tribal officials, and nature to find him.

One day, while out tracking clues, Grace is rescued from danger by Mo, a hot guy with an intoxicating accent and a secret. As her feelings between him and her ex-boyfriend get muddled, Grace travels deep into the wilderness to escape and find her father.

Along the way, Grace learns terrible secrets that sever relationships and lives. Soon she’s enmeshed in a web of conspiracy, deception, and murder. And it’s going to take a lot more than a compass and a motorcycle (named Lucifer) for this kick-butting heroine to save everything she loves.

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Beautiful cover, right?! And check out these reviews:

"This thrilling story is a dramatic entanglement of mystery, deception and teen romance. The action flows like a brisk mountain stream interspersed with rapids, holding suspense to last page."
- Kirkus Reviews

"Grace is a spunky, independent, nature girl who doesn't need a boy to save her. With wilderness survival, a juicy love triangle, and more twists and turns than a roller coaster, this fast-paced novel had me holding my breath until the very last page—and still begging for more!"
-Kimberly Derting, author of the The Body Finder

Anyway, I have my copy so it's time for you to get yours. Untraceable is available today at Amazon and Smashwords for only $2.99.


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New Author Blog Hop

So today I am participating in the New Author Blog Hop hosted by SN Taylor over at Of Thoughts & Words. It's a chance to learn more about the work of some fabulous debut authors AND win some awesome prizes. To visit all the blogs participating, click here.

For my part I will be showcasing Skeleton Lake by my Dangerous Liaisons partner in crime Angela Kulig.

Synopsis from Goodreads: Unsure if she's drowning or being saved, all Marlow wants to do is run away. Ensnared in a haunting love triangle, she realizes both boys have holes in their hearts; gaping spaces she can never hope to fill.

Scars from loving the same girl, a girl who managed to stay dead.

Now she is being hunted, for what she has become and what she never asked to be. Even as a Skeleton Marlow isn’t the worst thing in the night—she isn’t even close.

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Okay, so now that you know a little about Skeleton Lake, you're all dying to buy it, right? Well you can purchase it through Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Smashwords.

But wait, you can also win a Kindle copy right here on my blog. All you have to do is be a GFC follower and fill out the rafflecopter below. Easy, right?

Of course, I couldn't end this post without also drawing attention to Angela's new book Pigments of My Imagination which will be released December 2, 2011 along with my debut novel Breathe as part of the Dangerous Liaisons tour.

Synopsis from Goodreads: From the moment Lucia steps into Bayside Art Academy, she is fed a steady stream of lies, but it’s not until she meets Michael that she begins to question the people she trusts. Unraveling fact from fabrication seems impossible until Lucia finds her first painting, and discovers the dead do not lie--at least not to her.

A dozen lifetimes ago, Lucia started a war. Not a war with armies or guns, but a bloody war nonetheless. The path leading Lucia to the truth is hidden within lovely art that spans the ages. In this life, however, Lucia doesn't know where to look. Lost, she turns to the one thing she knows with certainty--she is in love with Leo, and has been before.

Click here to add it to your Goodreads shelves.

Synopsis from Goodreads: Life's hard. People make it harder. They tether you to them. Make it difficult to breathe, and damn-near impossible to leave...

Seventeen year-old Abby Rhoades knows this all too well. Born to a mother who could never love her and who vacillates between a sloppy drunk and a suicidal maniac, Abby's never had it easy. But Abby can swim. And Abby has a plan--win the state championship, earn a free ride to Penn State, and leave her small town and suffocating mother behind.

But then the body of Tom Ford, her mother's latest boyfriend and a man Abby adored, washes up along the shore of the Susquehanna River. His injuries suggest murder and suspicion quickly falls on Abby then on her best friend Garrett Scott, both of whom saw Tom the night he died.

They both know what happened that night, but neither one is talking. There's too much at stake and the truth could tear them apart.

Click here to add to your Goodreads shelves.

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Okay, now since you've all been so patient, it's time to enter. Remember, all you have to do is be a follower of this blog and fill out the rafflecopter below. So what are you waiting for?

To Be Read Thursday {14}

TBR Thursday is a weekly post where I draw attention to books by sharing with you the books I've either purchased, won, borrowed, or received for review, plus 10 books currently on my TBR list.

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Books Purchased:

Before I Fall, Lauren Oliver

Buy It:  Amazon

Synopsis from Goodreads:  What if you had only one day to live? What would you do? Who would you kiss? And how far would you go to save your own life?

Samantha Kingston has it all: the world's most crush-worthy boyfriend, three amazing best friends, and first pick of everything at Thomas Jefferson High—from the best table in the cafeteria to the choicest parking spot. Friday, February 12, should be just another day in her charmed life.

Instead, it turns out to be her last.

Then she gets a second chance. Seven chances, in fact. Reliving her last day during one miraculous week, she will untangle the mystery surrounding her death—and discover the true value of everything she is in danger of losing.

Just Listen, Sarah Dessen

Buy It:  Amazon

Synopsis from Goodreads: Last year, Annabel was "the girl who has everything"—at least that's the part she played in the television commercial for Kopf's Department Store. This year, she's the girl who has nothing: no best friend because mean-but-exciting Sophie dropped her, no peace at home since her older sister became anorexic, and no one to sit with at lunch. Until she meets Owen Armstrong. Tall, dark, and music-obsessed, Owen is a reformed bad boy with a commitment to truth-telling.

With Owen's help,maybe Annabel can face what happened  the night she and Sophie stopped being friends.

Eve (Eve #1), Anna Carey

Buy It:  Amazon

Synopsis from Goodreads: The year is 2032, sixteen years after a deadly virus—and the vaccine intended to protect against it—wiped out most of the earth’s population. The night before eighteen-year-old Eve’s graduation from her all-girls school she discovers what really happens to new graduates, and the horrifying fate that awaits her.

Fleeing the only home she’s ever known, Eve sets off on a long, treacherous journey, searching for a place she can survive. Along the way she encounters Caleb, a rough, rebellious boy living in the wild. Separated from men her whole life, Eve has been taught to fear them, but Caleb slowly wins her trust...and her heart. He promises to protect her, but when soldiers begin hunting them, Eve must choose between true love and her life.

For Review:

Hushed, Kelley York

Synopsis from Goodreads: He’s saved her. He’s loved her. He’s killed for her.

Eighteen-year-old Archer couldn’t protect his best friend, Vivian, from what happened when they were kids, so he’s never stopped trying to protect her from everything else. It doesn’t matter that Vivian only uses him when hopping from one toxic relationship to another—Archer is always there, waiting to be noticed.

Then along comes Evan, the only person who’s ever cared about Archer without a single string attached. The harder he falls for Evan, the more Archer sees Vivian for the manipulative hot-mess she really is.

But Viv has her hooks in deep, and when she finds out about the murders Archer’s committed and his relationship with Evan, she threatens to turn him in if she doesn’t get what she wants… And what she wants is Evan’s death, and for Archer to forfeit his last chance at redemption.

Pure (Pure #1), Julianna Baggott

Synopsis from Goodreads:  We know you are here, our brothers and sisters . . .

Pressia barely remembers the Detonations or much about life during the Before. In her sleeping cabinet behind the rubble of an old barbershop where she lives with her grandfather, she thinks about what is lost-how the world went from amusement parks, movie theaters, birthday parties, fathers and mothers . . . to ash and dust, scars, permanent burns, and fused, damaged bodies. And now, at an age when everyone is required to turn themselves over to the militia to either be trained as a soldier or, if they are too damaged and weak, to be used as live targets, Pressia can no longer pretend to be small. Pressia is on the run.

Burn a Pure and Breathe the Ash . . .

There are those who escaped the apocalypse unmarked. Pures. They are tucked safely inside the Dome that protects their healthy, superior bodies. Yet Partridge, whose father is one of the most influential men in the Dome, feels isolated and lonely. Different. He thinks about loss-maybe just because his family is broken; his father is emotionally distant; his brother killed himself; and his mother never made it inside their shelter. Or maybe it's his claustrophobia: his feeling that this Dome has become a swaddling of intensely rigid order. So when a slipped phrase suggests his mother might still be alive, Partridge risks his life to leave the Dome to find her.

When Pressia meets Partridge, their worlds shatter all over again.

Books Won:

Ashes, Ilsa J. Bick

Dark Eden, Patrick Carman

The Kingdom of Childhood, Rebecca Coleman

Chrystallia & the Source of Light, P.M. Glaser

TBR Books:

Click on the book cover to see synopsis:

 1. Unwind, Neal Shusterman

 2. The Supernaturalist, Eoin Colfer

 3. Blood Red Road, Moira Young

 4. Ashes, Ashes, Jo Treggiari

 5. Awaken, Katie Kacvinsky

 6. Rot & Ruin, Jonathan Maberry

 7. Drought, Pam Bachorz

 8. Fracture, Megan Miranda

 9. Icefall, Matthew J. Kirby

 10. Twisted, Laurie Halse Anderson

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Recent Reads - You Are My Only

You Are My Only, by Beth Kephart

 4 of 5 Stars

Buy It:   

Amazon

Barnes & Noble

Genre:   Young Adult, Contemporary

Pages: 256

Publication:   10/25/2011, EgmontUSA

Why I Chose It:  I received an advanced readers copy from NetGalley in exchange for a thoughtful and honest review.

Synopsis (from Good Reads):   Emmy Rane is married at nineteen, a mother by twenty. Trapped in a life with a husband she no longer loves, Baby is her only joy. Then one sunny day in September, Emmy takes a few fateful steps away from her baby and returns to find her missing. All that is left behind is a yellow sock.

Fourteen years later, Sophie, a homeschooled, reclusive teenage girl is forced to move frequently and abruptly from place to place, perpetually running from what her mother calls the "No Good." One afternoon, Sophie breaks the rules, ventures out, and meets Joey and his two aunts. It is this loving family that gives Sophie the courage to look into her past. What she discovers changes her world forever. . . .

The riveting stories of Emmy and Sophie—alternating narratives of loss, imprisonment, and freedom regained—escalate with breathless suspense toward an unforgettable climax.

My Review:  This one gets a solid 4 out of 5 stars for the writing style alone. I was so envious of Kephart's skill the entire time I was reading that I almost wanted to put it away and spare my ego, but I couldn't. It's too darn good.

It wasn't the emotional tear-jerker I was expecting, but it is a beautifully written story told from the alternating point of view of two characters that were incredibly unique even if the premise wasn't.  Don't discount this story just because you think it's predictable or something you've read before. It's not.

Emmy is a barely-educated teenager when she marries and has a child. Her husband is an abusive jerk who treats her like garbage. The only bright spot in her life is her baby. So when her child is taken from her she loses it and ends up institutionalized.

Then there's Sophie. Poor, sheltered Sophie who has spent her entire life moving from place to place, avoiding what her mother calls the No Good. She's not allowed to attend school. She's not even allowed outside. But when she sees a boy her age, Joey, playing in the yard next door she finally ventures out and gets a taste of what life should be like. And through friendship and love she learns to stand up to her mother, and to not just accept her fate.

This was one I couldn't put down. It's fast paced, intense, and filled with hope. I kept reading because I had to know if Sophie would escape her sheltered life and find happiness with Joey and if Emmy would ever be reunited with Baby. And because Kephart has a way with words that'll make your heart swell.

I'm not sure if this was supposed to be a Young Adult contemporary novel or not. When I requested it from NetGalley it was listed under the Teen section, however I didn't really get a YA feel from it. Amazon recommends it for ages 12+ and there's nothing in it that would keep me from recommending to a younger audience, but I definitely feel this is suited to lovers of mainstream fiction like that of Jodi Picoult.

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To Be Read Thursday {13}

TBR Thursday is a weekly post where I draw attention to books by sharing with you the books I've either purchased, won, borrowed, or received for review, plus 10 books currently on my TBR list.

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Books Purchased:

I've been waiting on this one since I finished reading the first book in the series, Matched. So, of course, I ran right out and purchased it in hardcover. I can't wait to start reading!

Crossed (Matched #2), Ally Condie

Buy It:  Amazon / Barnes & Noble

Synopsis from Goodreads:  In search of a future that may not exist and faced with the decision of who to share it with, Cassia journeys to the Outer Provinces in pursuit of Ky - taken by the Society to his certain death - only to find that he has escaped, leaving a series of clues in his wake.

Cassia's quest leads her to question much of what she holds dear, even as she finds glimmers of a different life across the border. But as Cassia nears resolve and certainty about her future with Ky, an invitation for rebellion, an unexpected betrayal, and a surprise visit from Xander - who may hold the key to the uprising and, still, to Cassia's heart - change the game once again. Nothing is as expected on the edge of Society, where crosses and double crosses make the path more twisted than ever.

Dawn of Darkness, Daniel A. Kaine

Buy It:  Amazon / Barnes & Noble

Synopsis from Goodreads:  Unburdened by the pain of loss and heartbreak, Mikhail is content with his life of solitude. But everything began to change the day he realised he has a psychic ability — the power to alter the emotions of those around him.

Ushered into the Military Academy with others like him — other Daevas — Mikhail does his part to help tip the scales of war against the vampires that destroyed the world and plague what remains of humanity. But after going up against his first vampire, Mikhail starts to question everything he thought to be true.

To discover the truth and expose the lies he once believed, Mikhail will set out on a journey of discovery, and learn some things about himself in the process.

Books Received for Review:

Cinder (Lunar Chronicles #1), Marissa Meyer 

Buy It:  Amazon / Barnes & Noble

Synopsis from Goodreads:  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.

Tempest (Tempest #1), Julie Cross

Buy It:  Amazon / Barnes & Noble

Synopsis from Goodreads:   The year is 2009.  Nineteen-year-old Jackson Meyer is a normal guy… he’s in college, has a girlfriend… and he can travel back through time. But it’s not like the movies – nothing changes in the present after his jumps, there’s no space-time continuum issues or broken flux capacitors – it’s just harmless fun.

That is… until the day strangers burst in on Jackson and his girlfriend, Holly, and during a struggle with Jackson, Holly is fatally shot. In his panic, Jackson jumps back two years to 2007, but this is not like his previous time jumps. Now he’s stuck in 2007 and can’t get back to the future.

Desperate to somehow return to 2009 to save Holly but unable to return to his rightful year, Jackson settles into 2007 and learns what he can about his abilities.

But it’s not long before the people who shot Holly in 2009 come looking for Jackson in the past, and these “Enemies of Time” will stop at nothing to recruit this powerful young time-traveler.  Recruit… or kill him.

Piecing together the clues about his father, the Enemies of Time, and himself, Jackson must decide how far he’s willing to go to save Holly… and possibly the entire world.

To Be Read Books:

Click on book cover to see a synopsis:

 1. Bad Taste in Boys, Carrie Harris

 2. Thirteen Days to Midnight

 3. Sisters Red, Jackson Pearce

 4. Forgotten, Cat Patrick

 5. Shut Your Eyes Tight, John Verdon

 6. Genesis, Karin Slaughter

 7. Witchlanders, Lena Coakley

 8. Ripple, Mandy Hubbard

 9. Deadly Cool, Gemma Halliday

 10. Uglies, Scott Westerfeld

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