Review: No One to Trust by Iris Johansen

No One to Trust by Iris Johansen
Release Date: August 26th, 2003
Publisher: Bantam
Buy: Amazon | Book Depository

Goodreads Summary

He is the most terrifying of killers: ruthless, cunning, charismatic. And he has the means to get whatever he wants. And what Rico Chavez wants most is Elena Kyler--and he wants her dead. Trained as an assassin, Elena didn’t need anyone to survive. But now she finds herself on the run from one dangerous man and turning for help to another.

Sean Galen was a man without illusions. He knew it was only desperation that caused Elena to accept his help--a mother’s desperation to save her young son from a psychopath father who would raise their son in his own chilling image. And yet he was determined to get this woman who had never been able to trust anyone or anything in her whole life to accept him as her ally. But both Galen and Elena know that Chavez’s power and wealth mean there is no place they can be safe and no one they can trust--not even each other. Already Chavez’s assassins and connections to those in the highest positions of power have turned this into a war with no rules.

With two shocking acts of brutal violence, Chavez shows he will stop at nothing and that nothing will stop him. Soon a trail of horrifying murders will follow Galen and Elena across country to a last stand and a shattering showdown. For Chavez is a master of control and he wants more than just to take Elena’s life. He wants her alive long enough to see him destroy every reason she has for living. He wants her to turn against everything and everyone she ever believed in. He wants her to commit the ultimate act of betrayal. And by the time he is through, he wants her to beg him to take the only thing she’ll have left to give: her life.

No One to Trust was surprisingly good. I was a little worried about giving Johansen a second chance after having most of my alarms set off when I read the The Killing Game. This book, while set in the same universe, was so much better in so many ways. 

For starters the female lead was incredibly likable in a way Eve perhaps wasn’t. The way Elena grew up hardened her. She was not a female lead to pity but one to admire. I was fascinated by how strong she was. She was kick ass in a way that I, as a reader, haven’t come across often. She was willing to do whatever it took to keep her child safe but she wasn’t ruthless, she just did what she had to survive. It wasn’t the bad ass in her that was willing to walk over anyone but the mother in her that would do anything she had to in order to protect her son. She was vulnerable but she tried to overcome her faults. Most importantly, in spite of her kickassedness, she wasn’t afraid to ask for help when she needed it, after making sure the person was trustworthy of course.

Sean was very interesting. I was surprised by how easily he developed feelings for Elena but I loved how he never pushed her. He made his feelings very clear but he also made it clear that he didn’t expect anything in return. He knew she would walk over him if she had to to protect her son. It’s very easy to admire a lead who respects the female lead and doesn’t view her as an object to protect. Instead he views her as a person who is more than capable of killing him but he wants to take care of her because no one else has.

The romance between the two, despite the fact that it came out of nowhere (not necessarily insta.. but just.. yeah), was very well done. Elena is bound to have intimacy issues, and yes they weren’t cured in one go. It took her a while to finally let go and they had to work to get to the point. She didn’t just wake up ‘cured’. One of the things I really loved was how their hotness was not in fact emphasized. Sean’s handsomeness was mentioned in passing but the focus was clearly on their personalities so it was easy to see why they would fall in love with one another and it was easy to admire the romance. 

The secondary characters were a definite plus which is why I was disappointed by some of the twists this book took. Another drawback for me as a reader was the fact that it was set in the same world as the Eve Duncan series. I usually wouldn’t mind so much but seeing that I don’t feel any tenderness towards the characters in that series, it becomes somewhat of an issue.

The suspense itself was nicely developed and the book kind of just flew by in a way that didn’t feel rushed.

I would recommend this to anyone looking for a quick entertaining read to help them cool off. 

Review: What She Left Behind By Tracy Bilen

Title: What She Left Behind

Author: Tracy Bilen

Publication date: May 1st 2012

Publisher: Simon Pulse 

Buy: Amazon

“Don’t even think of leaving… I will find you,” he whispered. “Guaranteed.” Sara and her mom have a plan to finally escape Sara’s abusive father. But when her mom doesn’t show up as expected, Sara’s terrified. Her father says that she’s on a business trip, but Sara knows he’s lying. Her mom is missing—and her dad had something to do with it. With each day that passes, Sara’s more on edge. Her friends know that something’s wrong, but she won’t endanger anyone else with her secret. And with her dad growing increasingly violent, Sara must figure out what happened to her mom before it’s too late…for them both.

This book. Just, just wow.

Sara’s dad is violent, her mom does not stand up to him, Sara is terrified of him and she can’t help; and on top of that her big brother is dead.

Sara and her mom are planning on leaving and running as far as they can from the abuse her father afflicts on them. On the day, they are meant to run away and start over Sara’s mom doesn’t show up. Waiting for the whole day at their designated meeting place she returns home to find her dad in complete darkness telling her that her mother went away for a few weeks on a business trip. Wanting and needing to get away Sara decides to stay with her father to find out what really happened to her mother and why she is missing but at the same time not wanting to leave in case her mother does come back to for her.

I love the plot. I haven’t read a book about an abusive dad in detail and it’s such an emotional topic. The book starts off a little dull but after about 50 pages it kick starts and begins to unravel a great and thought-out plot line. For most of the ending I was on my tiptoes scared for Sara about her dad finding out that she’s snooping around trying to find answers about her missing mom. My heart was practically escaping me whenever Sara came close to being caught out by her dad. I was actually scared of a character.

Tracy Bilen can seriously create tension and make every single hair on my body stand up in fear of what would happen next. This book is so realistic that half of the time I was wondering if this was based on a real event or something. Usually I don’t read a lot of realist fiction as it’s far too realistic for my liking but this was great. I loved this book so much!

Sara is a good character. I don’t really like how she doesn’t stand up for herself. I wanted her to stand up to her dad and tell him to stop, or even call someone for help like her grandparents or someone who lives close enough to take her and her mom away. But at the same time I know that there are a lot of teenagers and kids that are in this situation and I guess that Sara’s response is ordinary and it does happen in real life. I didn’t really expect her brother to be the same and just take it when he was alive.

 Alex is a really great character. He’s by far my favourite; with the whole I don’t care about school attitude and always making some kind of joke to his teacher about his hall pass. I just loved him. Plus the name, I’m a sucker for the name Alex. I don’t understand Sara’s and Alex’s relationship though. It’s so random! They have known each other for a long time and Alex randomly decides that he likes Sara? Hmm. I wasn’t really buying this. Spoilers- At the very end when he turns up to save Sara, her mother and Zach I really thought that Alex was going to turn out to be somehow working with Sara’s dad and completely go crazy and help him kill them or something. I really thought that was going to happen…

I’m still really disappointed with the ending. The story has such a massive build up to the end. Throughout the entire book the questions “Where is Sara’s mom?” “What will her dad do?” “Why did Matt kill himself?” fly about. Even the massive plan of escaping the abuse at home and finding her mother somehow was ruined by the very end. Sure the whole cabin experience and what happened was shocking. I’m still shocked, but just the fact that everyone was fine and they somewhat lived happily ever after shocked me even more. I like the fact that none of my favourite characters were killed off. It’s a nice surprise and I didn’t have to keep my breath in wondering whether or not someone was going to be killed but at the same time I wish the ending was more shocking. It was just disappointing compared to the running around and trying not to be caught by her dad and be hit or worse killed. 

OKAY GUYS GUYS GUYS! THIS IS SUPER EXCITING. I am giving away a signed copy of What She Left Behind! And 7 signed bookmarks!!!

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Ice Storm by Anne Stuart

Title: Ice Storm
Author: Anne Stuart
Series: Ice #4
Release Date: November 1st, 2007
Publisher: Mira
Buy: Amazon

Goodreads Summary

Behind her mask is a deadly secret. The powerful head of the covert mercenary organization The Committee, Isobel Lambert is a sleek, sophisticated professional who comes into contact with some of the most dangerous people in the world. But beneath Isobel's cool exterior a ghost exists, haunting her with memories of another life, a life that ended long ago.

But Isobel's past and present are about to collide when Serafin, mercenary, assassin and the most dangerous man in the world, makes a deal with The Committee. Seventeen years ago Isobel shot him and left him for dead. Now it looks as if he's tracked her down for revenge. But Isobel knows all too well that looks can be deceiving, and that's what she's counting on to keep her cover in this international masquerade of murder.

I was so excited when I found this book because it seemed that for the first time (for me) we would have a kickass female who works for an agency while the guy would be someone who DIDN'T work for an agency. 

I was right to be excited because this book had the female lead I'd been looking for in thrillers. She was strong yet vulnerable in the right ways. She didn't enjoy killing people (even the bad ones) but she was't going to sit around and whine about it, somethings just had to be done. Plus she was an 'ice queen'. I am sure most of us have read at least one book with an ice queen right? Yeah well so have I and it didn't work out so well. The character had come off as more like a wannabe 'ice queen' then anything else. In this case however, the author did it just right. No one can really be that emotionless and of course, neither was Isobel but what I loved most about her was that she didn't break down easily. As soon as the love interest (who I absolutely have to talk about... and not because he was swoony) came in, she didn't melt into a puddle of mush. She was always tough throughout the book and even in the end you don't see her lose that. You do see her slowly developing defects in her armor. They don't come all at once and some of them are there before the book begins but it's a slow journey, one that doesn't end up Isobel becoming a flowery girl (thank god for the small favors) but instead an even better character. One that you're proud of.

Isobel felt so real to me. She had been betrayed once and that changed her. She became very closed off but she never seemed bitter. Instead she took that experience and tried to learn from it and made changes that would make her feel more safe. I can see how what happened made her choose the profession she did. It made sense.

Moving on to Killian. To put it quite bluntly, he was an asshole, at least in the beginning, but he was an asshole who was done right. Not one of those annoying characters that just bug you. He was such a determined person and I enjoyed it. I loved how he didn't just fall head over heels for a girl and that was it. He did what he had to and without regret. I was actually pretty surprised when we were introduced to his character, I knew he was supposed to be the love interest but I couldn't imagine how he could fall in love with anybody. I hoped that it would be a gradual change but I really wanted to know how the author would turn the tables on his situation. The author did not disappoint me. She put it so well that I found myself clapping my hands like a retarded seal (no offense to seals.. I love you guys) when the pieces of the puzzle started coming together. 

Their relationship was interesting as well. I had a great time watching it slowly develop. With all the mixed feelings Isobel had about loving and wanting to kill(she would do it too.. which is why I love her) Killian and with Killian who never seemed to be able to admit the truth to himself until Isobel laid it out for him.

The plot, no matter what I make it sound like, isn't full of Isobel and Killian's romance. There are some flash backs from the past in the beginning that give us an idea about what happened. But as the book moves on there is so much more going on. This book seemed like a giant puzzle, Stuart gave us pieces one by one and even gives us chances to look at the big picture but you still get surprised by some of the things, and then realize that it was obvious. 

I really enjoyed this book and would recommend it to anyone looking for a light enjoyable thriller with great characters and not an overload of romance.

Grave Secret by Charlaine Harris

Title: Grave Secret
Author: Charlaine Harris
Series: Harper Connelly #4
Release Date: October 27th, 2009
Publisher: Berkley 
Buy: Amazon

Goodreads Summary

"While Tolliver slept, I wondered if it was possible that Cameron was still alive...At first, I'd thought she'd been abducted by a gang, sold into slavery, something lurid and horrible. Then I'd wondered if maybe she'd simply been fed up with her life: the tawdry parents and the tacky trailer, the sister who limped and looked abstracted, the baby sisters who never seemed to stay clean. Most days, though, I was sure she was dead."

Lightning-struck sleuth Harper Connelly and her stepbrother Tolliver take a break from looking for the dead to visit the two little girls they both think of as sisters. But, as always happens when they travel to Texas, memories of their horrible childhood resurface...

To make matter worse, Tolliver learns from his older brother that their father is out of jail and trying to reestablish contact with other family members. Tolliver wants nothing to do with the man - but he may not have a in the matter.

Soon, family secrets ensnare them both, as Harper finally discovers what happened to her missing sister, Cameron, so may years before.

And what she finds out will change her world forever...

Wow.

I cannot believe this series is over.

It's been a long journey.

I was reluctant to read this book because well I love this series. It's hard to come across something that's just different. 

The synopsis kind of reminded me of When Lightning Strikes, with a girl getting hit by lightning and gaining super powers. Now that I think about it they even gained similar powers, one gained the power of finding missing people while the other can find dead bodies and tell the cause of death.

Personally I prefer the finding dead bodies. I guess it's because the author doesn't dress the power up. She makes it seem like something 'normal' (or as normal as something like that can be). The power isn't some ohmygerd that is so badass. It drains her and it doesn't really help her save lives only tell how they were lost. 

I guess it's not only that but how she presents our female lead.

Harper is a down to Earth person. She had a shit childhood and still has to deal with the aftermath of getting hit by lightning but you know she has moved past that. She, with the help of her step-brother Tolliver, started to make a living off of her powers. What I like most about her is that she doesn't let the non-believers bring her down. She does her job and takes the money she doesn't care if people believe her or not as long as she gets the money. She also doesn't let people make her feel guilty for charging money. Everyone has got to earn their living right? She is also very dependent on Tolliver. I guess it could make her a bad female lead when everyone wants a kick ass lead but for me I like it that she isn't trying to prove how tough she is to the world and you know it is alright to depend on someone. 

The other thing is that the mysteries in each of the books are believable. Neither Harper nor Tolliver are bad ass detectives or anything. They put some clues together with the help of Harper's powers but they make wrong guesses all the time. They never get anything right at first try and to add to that well they don't usually want to get involved in them in the first place. I guess this makes the characters more relateable because they aren't perfect. 

Tolliver and Harper's relationship is interesting. I mean I always knew it was going to happen. It seemed to me and I'll admit I was waiting for it to happen but when it did it felt weird. On one hand their relationship didn't change a lot it just had the added physical elements but there were times were I felt awkward trying to read a specific scene. But that said they share a great relationship. They are supportive, tell each other everything, take each other's advice. The kind of things you look in a good couple.

I also think this book was a great ending to a great series. The book ties things up and answers our questions. The ending isn't picture perfect but it's all tied up nicely, no lose ends, no open endings.

Meh I am just sad I have no more Harper Connelly books to look forward to. Maybe I'll find something, maybe I won't.

Mini Reviews: Crash by Lisa McMann and What Really Happened in Peru by Cassandra Clare

Title: Crash
Author: Lisa McMann
Series: Visions #1
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Date Published: January 8, 2013
Buy: Amazon

The only books I’ve read by the author other than this one are the first two books in the Dream Catchers series. The two books are similar in some ways but different in others, I want to compare the two but I cannot seem to. I want to say Crash is better but then I remember something equally good about Fade or Wake. I did give this one a higher rating though by 0.5 because of the ending. Lisa is full of surprises. Her books are original in ways you won’t find in the YA genre and I love her for it. 

Jules is a great character, she is determined and hardworking and smart and makes good choices. Even though Jules is in love with Sawyer, she never acts like a jealous or insecure person, whereas Janie (the main character from the Dream Catchers series) was slightly insecure. Her determination is evident from the fact that even when Sawyer was clearly telling her to let it go, she didn’t, she didn’t care about what he thought, she had to do it for herself if not for him and so it was her decision in the end. The plot is great and so are the other characters, I recommend this book to everyone.

Title: What Really Happened in Peru
Author: Cassandra Clare, Sarah Rees Brennan
Series: The Bane Chronicles #1
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books
Date Published: April 16, 2013
Buy: Amazon

Oh Magnus. I am so excited for the rest of his tales. I think it might be possible that this set of short series becomes my favorite.

It's nice to learn more about Magnus. He is a charming, funny guy but he has his own set of insecurities. In the Mortal Instruments and Infernal Devices you don't really see the other side of him. We all assume him to be a happy guy and that's exactly what Magnus wants. He hides from his own insecurities because he doesn't know how to face them. What he wants is for someone to appreciate him for who he is. His mother committed suicide after she found out what she was and most of his human lovers give up on him after a while. It's not that nice of a life.

Ha, I make this short story sound sad but it's not, it's hilarious because common it's Magnus, he is always going to make things awesome because that's what he does. 

Although I really do hope things work out for him and Alec in CoHF because Magnus (and Alec) deserves it. He deserves a chance.

Altered

Title: Altered
Author: Jennifer Rush
Series: Altered #1
Publisher: Little, Brown Books
Date Published: January 1, 2013
Buy: Amazon

Goodreads Summary
When you can’t trust yourself, who can you believe?

Everything about Anna’s life is a secret. Her father works for the Branch at the helm of its latest project: monitoring and administering treatments to the four genetically altered boys in the lab below their farmhouse. There’s Nick, Cas, Trev . . . and Sam, who’s stolen Anna’s heart. When the Branch decides it’s time to take the boys, Sam stages an escape, killing the agents sent to retrieve them. 

Anna is torn between following Sam or staying behind in the safety of her everyday life. But her father pushes her to flee, making Sam promise to keep her away from the Branch, at all costs. There’s just one problem. Sam and the boys don’t remember anything before living in the lab—not even their true identities.

Now on the run, Anna soon discovers that she and Sam are connected in more ways than either of them expected. And if they’re both going to survive, they must piece together the clues of their past before the Branch catches up to them and steals it all away.

“Hope is a waking dream.’ I let the words echo in my head. The quote reminded me of that feeling you get when you start to wake from a dream you don’t want to leave. That crushing sensation in the center of your chest, like you are losing an important piece of yourself you won’t ever get back.”

I read the summary to this book a while ago and I got only this far “Her father works for the Branch at the helm of its latest project: monitoring and administering treatments to the four genetically altered boys in the lab below their farmhouse” before I knew this book and I, we were meant to be.

I wasn’t wrong. It has all the elements I crave for. Everything I love. People on the run, lives built on lies, trying to rediscover the past, people genetically altered, etc. I am a science fiction geek and I am happy to say this book doesn’t disappoint in the least.

I lot of people think this book has a lot of cliches in it and it probably does but the whole idea of the book and the constant feeling of being on the edge totally made me forget about those. There is this thrill to reading this book. It kind of makes me feel like a thrill junkie.

I am always on the look out for books like this one and I don’t come across them often so maybe that’s why I didn’t notice the cliches but I loved every second to it. The book has a good opening. The first 2-3 chapters aren’t full of action but give us a look into what these kids are dealing with, the next few is where the action begins.

Anna as our main character is great, at first I was a bit annoyed with her because of her obsession with Sam. It’s not exactly an obsession but you know how YA girls are always trying to get noticed by the guy they like? Yeah that was Anna in the beginning. But she changed. I think she wants to be trusted by these guys more than anything else. She knows that she has to depend on them for her safety but if they don’t trust her, where would that leave her?

As you can tell, there are 4 guys. You’d think that this would mean that there would be a love triangle-I did, but there isn’t. I am glad for that. She thinks of the other guys as her friends and well Nick hates her guts for some reason unknown to her. But what if another guy is interested in her and she is too blinded by her love for Sam to see it? Nope, we don’t have any of that either. I am really glad for that because then I can pay attention to each individual character and appreciate them.

Now the said 4 guys, namely Sam-the love interest, Trev-the best friend, Cas-the guy everybody loves and Nick-the bad/tortured boy.

Sam is the ultimate leader. He isn’t your bad boy but rather your responsible one. He loves Trev, Cas and Nick and puts there needs above everything else. He keeps them together. He acts like their guardian and their friend. It’s what makes me love him, his loyalty to these 3 guys and Anna. Trev is the best friend. Someone all of us like. He is a great friend and even after the fact that Anna feels cheated by them, he tries to make her understand that he is still the same person. He is always there for her, listening to her problems. Cas. Cas. Cas. I cannot say anything about him. He is the most hilarious person ever. He may or may not have ADD, he cannot seem to concentrate on anything for long enough and he loves food. And the last of the boys, Nick, I find him unique, despite everything, you can see his love for Sam, how much he respects him. Nick is an angry person. He may not have his memories but what happened to him in his earlier life left an impression on him forever. This however doesn’t make him incapable of loyalty. He is extremely loyal to Sam and to his fellow “brothers”.

The characters however aren’t the only great thing about this book, so is the plot. I love how everything is unraveled slowly and how the clues are discovered one by one. I never found the clues to have the “way too obvious” vibe to them. They were actually pretty cool. Plus they helped me understand what was happening on the cover of this book.

I was glad by how the author ended the book. There is going to be a second book but the author didn’t feel the need to end it with a cliffhanger, she shouldn’t, the book is awesome and people should want to come back for more. I had loads of fun reading this book and I look forward to reading the sequel.

ARC Review: Bang by Lisa McMann

Title: Bang

Author: Lisa McMann

Series: Visions #2

Publisher: Simon Pulse

Release Date: 8th October 2013

Pre-Order: Amazon | Book Depository

Goodreads Summary

Jules should be happy. She saved a lot of people’s lives and she’s finally with Sawyer, pretty much the guy of her dreams. But the nightmare’s not over, because she somehow managed to pass the psycho vision stuff to Sawyer. Excellent.

Feeling responsible for what he’s going through and knowing that people’s lives are at stake, Jules is determined to help him figure it all out. But Sawyer’s vision is so awful he can barely describe it, much less make sense of it. All he can tell her is there’s a gun, and eleven ear-splitting shots. Bang.

Jules and Sawyer have to work out the details fast, because the visions are getting worse and that means only one thing: time is running out. But every clue they see takes them down the wrong path. If they can’t prevent the vision from happening, lives will be lost. And they may be among the casualties…

Lisa McMann has officially become one of my favorite authors. I read her Dream Catchers series (not the last book because apparently it was disappointing) last year and fell in love with her unique writing style and the way she could create characters that I just loved. When I found out she had a new book at the beginning of this year I became really excited and read it as soon as I could. I loved Crash and Lisa didn’t disappoint with the sequel, Bang.

I got approved for this earlier this year but I waited a long time to read it because I didn’t want to have an enormously long wait for the next book in the series.

I actually have no idea where to start with this review, there are so many things I could talk about and I cannot seem to be able to put my feelings down on paper. I really do hope this review is at least coherent.

As I mentioned before, Lisa writes the most amazing characters. You cannot help but become involved in their lives and eventually fall in love with them.  I think this is one of the few books with somewhat bad parents that I don’t mind because Lisa presents them in such a way that you cannot really resent them (except Sawyer’s parents… them I do not like but I’ll get back to them later).  Jules’ father is a very interesting character.  At the end of the last book we found out his big secret. It actually helped me understand him better. I just couldn’t seem to dislike him in this book. I just wish we got to learn more about him. I feel like he could be a great parent once he gets over his own guilt.  Jules’ mother is an equally complicated character and I feel for her. She is stuck in a mess where her children don’t understand her (it’s complicated) and she doesn’t really have anyone to support her and tell her it’s okay to take a break once in a while.

Now to Sawyer’s family. I really do not understand them, this is probably because they author didn’t spend too much time talking about them but I am curious as to why they are such assholes. Why they treat Sawyer the way they do and why the hell they would abuse their own child because of someone else.

I am not going to spend a lot of time talking about the other characters because we all know about how awesome they were from the previous book, but I just want to say that I am just so happy that Lisa can write teens that are relateable, they act like real teens yet they are smart. They all come with their set of insecurities but they work together in such a way that you just want to hug them and tell them how proud you are. I also love how none of them actually want to be heroes that go out and save the world, they don’t want to be dumped with this responsibility, but they do it anyway because they have to. I am also glad that Lisa didn’t create a cliché for Trey’s character (since he is gay).

The relationships are pretty strong too. Like the one between the three siblings? Golden. They help each other out but they also act like real siblings. They aren’t all lovey dovey. They love to mess with each other (and manipulate ;)). 

The one relationship that I was looking forward to seeing more of was Sawyer and Jules’. I mean they just got together at the end of the last book. I’ll admit to being a tad bit disappointed (for reasons I don’t fully comprehend), I mean they had a great relationship but something seemed to be missing. They were supportive and their worlds’ didn’t completely revolve around each other. Their relationship wasn’t completely based on love or lust but a mix of both and I was glad for that because it seemed like a realistic teenage relationship. As for the relationships between parents, they are a little iffy but I am pretty sure we’ll see more development there in the next books.

One thing that did manage to surprise me was the fact that I wasn’t very curious about the science behind the visions. I am curious being and I tend to question things a lot and the fact that I didn’t really question this speaks for how captivating the plot of the book was. I love how they break down details from the visions and try to piece together the clues. It’s really entertaining to see the whole thing unfold and then the actual scene, those always make my heart beat a little (a lot) faster.

This book was a great sequel and I am glad it didn’t disappoint. I definitely recommend this to the fans and if you haven’t read the first book? What the hell are you waiting for? GO READ IT! I command you to. 

Undercurrent by Paul Blackwell

Title: Undercurrent
Author: Paul Blackwell
Publisher: HarperTeen
Release Date: July 23rd, 2013
Pre-Order: Amazon

Goodreads Summary

A shadowy figure. An intense roar. The sensation of falling—fast.

That’s all Callum Harris remembers from his tumble over the waterfall. But when he wakes up in a hospital bed and finds his best friend trying to kill him, Callum knows something is seriously wrong. Unfortunately for him, the mysteries are just getting started.

Why are his parents acting like he’s some big sports star all of a sudden? And why are all the buildings in town more run-down than Callum remembers? Worst of all...what happened to Callum’s brother? Either Callum has gone seriously crazy or something happened when he went over the falls. Something impossible. Callum needs answers, and now. Because in this twisted new version of the life Callum knew, his former best friend isn’t the only one who wants to see him dead.

Filled with mind-bending suspense and unsettling thrills, Undercurrent is a grippingly paced teen debut that will pull you under and never let go.

“It’s black where I am. All night sky and no stars”

I may have been a little lenient with the rating of this book but after reading two disappointing YA books this was definitely a relief so I decided to round up instead of rounding down.

This book starts with Callum waking up in a hospital but things aren’t the way he remembers them. For starters, his best friend tries to kill him when he is still in the hospital!

Callum is a complicated character. I am not sure whether I liked him or not because there were times when I was seriously annoyed with him but I never actually disliked him. Some of the things he does are just really stupid. He tries to go with the flow when he should have tried to figure things out right from the start. I, for one, would have felt a lot better if he had actually tried to ‘improve’ his image, everyone thinks he is an asshole and he does nothing to change that. I also think he should have tried to work things out with Bryce like he did with Willow. Aside from that, what I liked most about him was how much he cared about his family; it was evident from all the flashbacks.

I think the strongest relationship in this book was the one between Callum and Cole. I think it was portrayed really realistically. Cole can be a bully but he clearly loves his younger brother. That surprise in the end though, that really was sad.

One of the plus points in this book for me was that there wasn’t romance. Usually that wouldn’t be a plus point but after reading two YA’s that had HORRIBLE romances, it was kind of a relief. That is not to say the main character doesn’t share any relationship with a female. We know that Callum obviously has a crush on Willow but the thing is, the relationship between Callum and Willow is very well developed.

This book has a very interesting scientific concept and I think the author puts a rather original spin on it. I did guess what was going on pretty early on but the author still managed to surprise me.

The book did have an open ending but it didn’t bother me so much, mostly because I was so relieved. For most of the book I was shouting (in my head) for things to turn out the way I wanted them to and they did. I still have many questions but there is supposed to be a sequel. I hope it does get approved because with such an interesting concept, it would be a shame if there wasn’t more.

Sins & Needles by Karina Halle

Sins & Needles by Karina Halle
Series: The Artists Trilogy #1
Date Published: January 24, 2013
Buy: Amazon

Goodreads Summary

Ellie Watt is used to starting over. The daughter of a grifting team, Ellie spent her childhood being used as a pawn in her parents’ latest scam. Now she’s much older, wiser and ready to give her con artist life a rest. But returning to the dry desert town of Palm Valley, California means one more temptation than she bargained for – Camden McQueen. Once known as the high school weirdo, Camden is bigger and badder than the boy he used to be and a talented tattoo artist with his own thriving business. Ellie’s counting on Camden still being in love with her but what she’s not counting on is how easily unrequited love can turn into obsession over time. When Camden discovers Ellie’s plan to con him, he makes her a deal she doesn’t dare refuse, but her freedom comes with a price and it’s one that takes both Ellie and Camden down a dangerous road.

“You’re a con artist. A liar. A thief. An unredeemable soul. You can’t be reformed. You can’t be saved. You’ll die trying to make the world pay for what it did to you. And you’ll die alone.”

I read this book because of the author. I’ve read what has been published so far of the “Experiment in Terror” series and I loved every single bit of it. I saw this book (and the pretty cover) and I had to read it. Then I read the summary. It was right up my alley. I love books with mysteries and with ummm.. Con Artists (I don’t know what that says about me, I blame The Curse Workers for my obsession). So how could I not want to read this. I was glad I had found this book only a few days before it released or I would have died waiting for this master piece.

I read it and I wasn’t disappointed one bit. I read it in one reading. I didn’t get up to do anything else. How could I, I didn’t exist in this world, but in another that Karina had created.

“You’re a bad person, Ellie,” he said without a trace of irony.“I’m not bad. The world is bad and I’m just trying to survive in it.”

I. Love. Ellie. She is absolutely awesome. Although I wish we saw a bit more of her in her con artist brilliance. Anyways, I love her single minded determination. Nothing can stop her from achieving her goal. The whole time she was planning to con Camden, even though she liked him, she wouldn’t change her mind. No matter how many times her conscience screamed at her to stop. She wasn’t hung over him but they did have a history, she felt bad for what she had done but she couldn’t change it so she didn’t bother trying to make up for it or apologize. Apologies don’t fix things.

Camden. Where can I find this guy? Like seriously. He isn’t even a con artist and he managed to trick her. Halle may have hinted that he may be conning but it was still a surprise when he turned her own mission against her. I started laughing when that happened. The irony was so epic. The sweet guy (who by the way isn’t that sweet) conning the con artist.

Ellie of course was surprised this happened, not because she was conned-con artists get conned as well, but because it was Camden. She didn’t see it coming. Of course when they do strike their little deal, this doesn’t mean Ellie trusts him, she is always on the look out, making sure he won’t pull of something again, no matter how nice he is or genuine he acts. Better safe than sorry.

The plot to this book was great. I was so surprised when the book ended. I read the last page and tried to scroll down, and I saw that it was the last page. So yes it was a cliff hanger but not one that annoyed me, it was one that made me want more. But since Karina is awesome, I won’t have to wait forever for the sequel. Back to the plot, it was great. The whole thriller part was great, it wasn’t a mystery and shouldn’t be mistaken as one. But there were people on the run so I was very happy. I loved how the whole book had a past and present timeline going on, although I DID prefer the present one, more Camden  .

I look forward to reading the sequel and I plan on visiting the author’s blog and the goodreads page everyday until I get an exact release date for it. (It's coming out this August)