Enders by Lissa Price

Title: Enders

Author: Lissa Price

Publisher: Random House Children's

Released: January 7th 2014

Pages: 288 (eBook)

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Someone is after Starters like Callie and Michael - teens with chips in their brains. They want to experiment on anyone left over from Prime Destinations -With the body bank destroyed, Callie no longer has to rent herself out to creepy Enders. But Enders can still get inside her mind and make her do things she doesn't want to do. Like hurt someone she loves. Having the chip removed could save her life - but it could also silence the voice in her head that might belong to her father. Callie has flashes of her ex-renter Helena's memories, too . . . and the Old Man is back, filling her with fear. Who is real and who is masquerading in a teen body?

No one is ever who they appear to be, not even the Old Man. Determined to find out who he really is and grasping at the hope of a normal life for herself and her younger brother, Callie is ready to fight for the truth. Even if it kills her.

It tied all the knots and ticked all the boxes that Starters created, but despite my complete adoration for the first instalment, Enders left a lot to be desired. I don't know whether it's the fact I've grown up a lot since Starters was released or what, but it just didn't impact me as much as I had hoped it would.

Perfection by J. L. Spelbring

Title: Perfection
Author: J. L. Spelbring
Publisher: Spencer Hill Press
Released: May 7th 2013
Pages: 320 (ARC)
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The personification of Aryan purity, Ellyssa's spent her whole life under her creator's strict training and guidance; her purpose is to eradicate inferior beings. She was genetically engineered to be the perfect soldier: strong, intelligent, unemotional, and telepathic. 

Only Ellyssa isn't perfect. 

Ellyssa feels emotions--a fact she's spent her life concealing. Until she encounters the epitome of inferiority: a dark-haired boy raised among renegades hiding since the Nazis won the war a century ago. He speaks to her telepathically, pushing thoughts into her mind, despite the impossibility of such a substandard person having psychic abilities. 

But he does. 

His unspoken words and visions of a place she's never visited make Ellyssa question her creator. Confused and afraid her secret will be discovered, Ellyssa runs away, embarking on a journey where she discovers there is more to her than perfection.

Oh dear....I really don't know what to say. I couldn't wait to read Perfection when I received it  through the ARC share - I mean, imagine a world where Hitler had succeeded and won the war? It's an understatement to say I was excited. However, halfway through and I just knew it wouldn't get any better than disappointing. I think this is a classic example of a book with an amazing concept that just isn't delivered in a way that makes it interesting.

V For Vendetta by Alan Moore and David Lloyd

Title: V For Vendetta
Author: Alan Moore
Illustrator: David Lloyd
Publisher: Vertigo
Released: March 1982
Pages: 296 (Paperback)
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"Good evening, London." It's nine o'clock and this is The Voice of Fate... It is the Fifth of the Eleventh, Nineteen-Ninety-Seven...

"The people of London are advised that the Brixton and Streatham areas are quarantine zones as of today. It is suggested that these areas be avoided for reasons of health and safety...

Police raided seventeen homes in the Birmingham area early this morning, uncovering what is believed to be a major terrorist ring. Twenty people, either of them women, are currently in detention awaiting trial...

The weather will be fine until 12:07 A.M. when a shower will commence, lasting until 1:30 A.M... 

Have a pleasant evening."

A frightening and powerful tale of the loss of freedom and identity in a chillingly believable totalitarian world, V for Vendetta stands as one of the highest achievements of the comics medium and a defining work for creators Alan Moore and David Lloyd.

Set in an imagined future England that has given itself over to fascism, this groundbreaking story captures both the suffocating nature of life in an authoritarian police state and the redemptive power of the human spirit which rebels against it. Crafted with sterling clarity and intelligence, V for Vendetta brings an unequaled depth of characterization and verisimilitude to its unflinching account of oppression and resistance.

"Remember, remember the fifth of November..."

V For Vendetta is my favourite film, full stop. Books have always had the ability to make me cry easier than films, yet somehow V makes me bawl like a baby every single time. So imagine what I was like when I found out that it was originally adapted from a DC graphic novel (and that my best friend conveniently had a copy of it) To be honest, both the novel and the film are equally amazing, and I must say that it is possibly one of the most accurate film adaptations ever.

Onyx by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Title: Onyx
Author: Jennifer L. Armentrout
Publisher:  Entangled Teen
Released: August 14th 2012
Pages: 366 (Paperback)
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Being connected to Daemon Black sucks…

Thanks to his alien mojo, Daemon’s determined to prove what he feels for me is more than a product of our bizarro connection. So I’ve sworn him off, even though he’s running more hot than cold these days. But we’ve got bigger problems.

Something worse than the Arum has come to town…

The Department of Defense are here. If they ever find out what Daemon can do and that we're linked, I’m a goner. So is he. And there's this new boy in school who’s got a secret of his own. He knows what’s happened to me and he can help, but to do so, I have to lie to Daemon and stay away from him. Like that's possible. Against all common sense, I'm falling for Daemon. Hard.

But then everything changes…

I’ve seen someone who shouldn’t be alive. And I have to tell Daemon, even though I know he’s never going to stop searching until he gets the truth. What happened to his brother? Who betrayed him? And what does the DOD want from them—from me?

No one is who they seem. And not everyone will survive the lies….

Obsidian's publishing sent the entire blogasphere a raging frenzy - the Lux series were the books to read, and eventually I caved in to see what all the fuss was about. Obsidian blew me away, and almost a year later, I've finally gotten round to reading the sequel, Onyx. I liked it - I didn't love it, but I liked it.

15 Minutes by Jill Cooper (Review, Excerpt + Giveaway)

About The Author

Jill loves to blend horror, comedy, the supernatural, and love, through her novels. A fan of genre blending, her work strives to cross boundaries, but most of all strives to entertain. She loves soft cuddly cats, warm blankets, and paranormal romances. Jill resides in Massachusetts, is constantly renovating her home that she shares with her husband, young daughter, and two skittish cats.

Website / Twitter / Goodreads

Review

Title: 15 Minutes

Author: Jill Cooper

Publisher: Self

Released: June 15th 2013

Pages: 236 (eBook)

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I have 15 minutes to save my mother’s life….

15 minutes is all the Rewind Agency gives you in the past, but for Lara Crane it’s enough time to race through the city, find her mother, and stop her from being killed in a mugging that happened over ten years ago.

But that’s not how it happened. The story she’s been told all her life is a lie and when Lara takes a bullet meant for her mother, her future changes forever.

The love of her life acts like a stranger. Her simple life is replaced with a giant house, glamorous clothes and a new boyfriend. 

Except someone knows her secret. And he will try to stop her at every turn as she races against the clock to unravel a dangerous conspiracy.

Science fiction stories featuring time travel can either go really, really well, or really, really badly. With an electrifying plot, an amazing concept and likeable characters, 15 Minutes is one of the best I've read yet.

Crewel by Gennifer Albin

Title: Crewel
Author: Gennifer Albin
Publisher: Faber & Faber
Released: October 4th 2012
Pages: 360 (Paperback)
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Incapable. Awkward. Artless. 
That’s what the other girls whisper behind her back. But sixteen-year-old Adelice Lewys has a secret: She wants to fail. 

Gifted with the ability to weave time with matter, she’s exactly what the Guild is looking for, and in the world of Arras, being chosen to work the looms is everything a girl could want. It means privilege, eternal beauty, and being something other than a secretary. It also means the power to manipulate the very fabric of reality. But if controlling what people eat, where they live, and how many children they have is the price of having it all, Adelice isn’t interested.

Not that her feelings matter, because she slipped and used her hidden talent for a moment. Now she has one hour to eat her mom’s overcooked pot roast. One hour to listen to her sister’s academy gossip and laugh at her dad’s jokes. One hour to pretend everything’s okay. And one hour to escape.

Because tonight, they’ll come for her.

I went into Crewel expecting to enjoy it - I came out of Crewel wondering what the heck I had just read. THIS. IS. AMAZING. I have spent the last few days reeling from this book and avoiding writing a review because what the heck am I supposed to say? In my eyes, Crewel just got better and better with each page; it is addictive, imaginative, and full to the brim with suspense.

In Your Dreams by Amy Martin

Title: In Your Dreams
Author: Amy Martin
Publisher: Self
Released: August 15th 2012
Pages: 252 (Kindle)
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Sixteen-year-old Zara "Zip" McKee lives for three things: basketball, books, and bailing out of tiny Titusville, Illinois, where the junior high and high school are in the same building and everyone's known everyone else since birth. But when Kieran Lanier moves to town and passes out on her desk on his first day at school, Zip's life gets complicated in a way she never dreamed. 

Kieran has narcolepsy, and although he sometimes struggles to stay awake, he has no trouble capturing Zip's heart and trusting her with his most guarded secret--he sees bits and pieces of the future in his dreams. 

But just when Zip thinks that maybe she can handle having a boyfriend who sees things before they happen, her budding relationship with Kieran gets a jolt when Kieran's parents reveal that his sleeping disorder is not what it seems and may be putting them in harm's way. And when Zip begins to have unsettling dreams, she must decide if she can live with knowing the future in advance when she's afraid of what might happen.

When Martin approached me with In Your Dreams, I instantly knew I wanted to read it. I'd heard of similar storylines before - you know, main character has narcolepsy but secretly dreams of the future - yet Martin's take on it just seemed to have that little be extra; the setting is so normal and realistic, but then this massive sci-fi twist is thrown in. The author has created a book where the reader is put in Zip's shoes, and rather than reading about a boyfriend with this crazy power, you feel like you're the one with the boyfriend with this crazy power.

Unravelling by Elizabeth Norris

Title: Unravelling
Author: Elizabeth Norris
Publisher: HarperCollins
Released: April 24th 2012
Pages: 445 (Paperback)
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STOP THE COUNTDOWN, SAVE THE WORLD…

Leaving the beach, seventeen-year-old Janelle Tenner is hit head on by a pickup truck.

And killed.

Then Ben Michaels, resident stoner, is leaning over her. And even though it isn’t possible, she knows Ben somehow brought her back to life…

Meanwhile, Janelle’s father, a special agent for the FBI, starts working on a case that seems strangely connected to Ben. Digging in his files, Janelle finds a mysterious device – one that seems to be counting down to something that will happen in 23 days and 10 hours time.

That something? It might just be the end of the world. And if Janelle wants to stop it, she’s going to need to uncover Ben’s secrets – and keep from falling in love with him in the process…

From spending the last eight years obsessing over Doctor Who, I'm a big fan of the science fiction genre. If you've read a few of my sci-fi reviews, you'll know that I'm absolutely rubbish with physics; I just can't get my head around it, which is why it's kind of weird how much I love this genre. From the synopsis I figured that there would be some action sequences and maybe a sci-fi element or two, but boy was I in for a surprise!

All Our Yesterdays by Cristin Terrill

Title: All Our Yesterdays
Author: Cristin Terrill
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Released: August 1st 2013
Pages: 379 (eBook)
Pre-Order: Amazon UK / Amazon US
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Em is locked in a bare, cold cell with no comforts. Finn is in the cell next door. The Doctor is keeping them there until they tell him what he wants to know. Trouble is, what he wants to know hasn't happened yet. 

Em and Finn have a shared past, but no future unless they can find a way out. The present is torture - being kept apart, overhearing each other's anguish as the Doctor relentlessly seeks answers. There's no way back from here, to what they used to be, the world they used to know. Then Em finds a note in her cell which changes everything. It's from her future self and contains some simple but very clear instructions. Em must travel back in time to avert a tragedy that's about to unfold. Worse, she has to pursue and kill the boy she loves to change the future.

I've had my eye on All Our Yesterdays for a while - for a debut, the synopsis hinted at an impressive but ambitious plot. For the first sentence, Terrill had me captured, so when I managed to get my hands on an ARC of it, I could hardly wait to sink my teeth into it! Unfortunately, a couple of pages in and I was already disappointed. However, what initially began as a 2-star book gradually transformed into a 4-star.

Strangelets by Michelle Gagnon

Title: Strangelets
Author: Michelle Gagnon
Publisher: Soho Teen
Released: April 9th 2013
Pages: 280 (eBook)
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17-year-old Sophie lies on her deathbed in California, awaiting the inevitable loss of her battle with cancer…
17-year-old Declan stares down two armed thugs in a back alley in Galway, Ireland…
17-year-old Anat attempts to traverse a booby-trapped tunnel between Israel and Egypt…

All three strangers should have died at the exact same moment, thousands of miles apart. Instead, they awaken together in an abandoned hospital—only to discover that they’re not alone. Three other teens from different places on the globe are trapped with them. Somebody or something seems to be pulling the strings. With their individual clocks ticking, they must band together if they’re to have any hope of surviving. 

Soon they discover that they've been trapped in a future that isn't of their making: a deadly, desolate world at once entirely familiar and utterly strange. Each teen harbors a secret, but only one holds the key that could get them home. As the truth comes to light Sophie, Declan, Anat, and the rest must decide what to do with a second chance at life—if they can survive to claim it.

Concept? Great. Everything else? Bad. I really wanted to like this novel, as it seemed like something fresh and innovative; something that would spark the imagination and leave you reeling for more at the end. Sadly, the only thing I felt at the end was disappointed. Anticlimax of the century.

Mila 2.0 by Debra Driza

Title: Mila 2.0
Author: Debra Driza
Publisher: HarperCollins
Released: March 12th 2013
Pages: 480 (eBook)
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Mila was living with her mother in a small Minnesota town when she discovered she was also living a lie.

She was never meant to learn the truth about her identity. She was never supposed to remember the past—that she was built in a computer science lab and programmed to do things real people would never do.

Now she has no choice but to run—from the dangerous operatives who want her terminated because she knows too much, and from a mysterious group that wants to capture her alive and unlock her advanced technology.

Evading her enemies won't help Mila escape the cruel reality of what she is and cope with everything she has had to leave behind. However, what she's becoming is beyond anyone's imagination, including her own, and that just might save her life.

I was really excited for Mila's release, as I'm a bit of a sci-fi nut, and the concept completely appealed to me. However, after I read What's Left of Me by Kat Zhang, I was hesitant. These two books are completely unrelated, but in my mind I'd sort of paired them together, and had high hopes for both. When Zhang let me down just slightly , I was worried that Driza would do the same.

Unremembered by Jessica Brody

Title: Unremembered
Author: Jessica Crody
Publisher: Pan Macmillan
Released: February 28th 2013
Pages: 303 (Paperback)
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A catastrophic plan crash leaves one survivor: a girl with no memory.
Who is she?
Where does she come from?
Nobody knows and no one comes forward to claim her.
Haunted by a looming threat she can't remember and plagued by abilities she doesn't understand, she struggles to recall who she is. But every clue leads to more questions. And she's running out of time to answer them.
Her only hope is a boy who claims they were once in love.
Alone and on the run, who should she trust? And what if she discovers that she is safer with a past that stays unremembered?

The more I think about it, the lower the books rating dips. The concept of Unremembered has been done - over and over and over again. Even so, I still go into these novels with a shred of hope that this time will be different; that this time, the book will be what the synopsis promises. Unfortunately it wasn't, and whilst I enjoyed some bits, the plot overall seemed a bit dead.

Steel Lily by Megan Curd

Title: Steel Lily
Author: Megan Curd
Publisher: Self
Release: August 20th 2013
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Avery Pike is a commodity. No, more than a commodity. Her existence is guarded at all costs.
She’s a water Elementalist, the strongest of her dwindling kind. She creates steam to provide energy to fuel Dome Four: the only thing standing between humanity and an earth ravaged by World War III. No steam, no Dome. No Dome, no life.
Or so she thinks.
That is, until a mysterious man offers her a way out of having to donate steam. A way to escape the corrupt government of Dome Four. While the offer seems too good to be true, Avery is intrigued.
But when she arrives to her new home, she realizes the grass isn’t any less dead on this side of the fence. Instead, the lies are just hidden better...which means digging deeper.
When Avery enlists the help of her friends to uncover the truth, it may make her wonder if she was better off being a government tool than searching for freedom.
Some secrets are better left concealed, but humankind was never meant to live in a cage. And when you can control the most sought after resource, you can learn to control anything…including the fate of your world.

I read the Steel Lily synopsis and fell in love. So when the author approached me about it in exchange for an honest review, how could I resist? Steampunk is a genre I've wanted to try in a while, and I have to say that Steel Lily was the best introduction book I could have ever imagined.

The Power of Six by Pittacus Lore

Title: The Power of Six
Author: Pittacus Lore
Publisher: Penguin
Released: August 23rd 2011
Pages: 380 (Hardback)
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I’ve seen him on the news. Followed the stories about what happened in Ohio. John Smith, out there, on the run. To the world, he’s a mystery. But to me . . . he’s one of us.

Nine of us came here, but sometimes I wonder if time has changed us—if we all still believe in our mission. How can I know? There are six of us left. We’re hiding, blending in, avoiding contact with one another . . . but our Legacies are developing, and soon we’ll be equipped to fight. Is John Number Four, and is his appearance the sign I’ve been waiting for? And what about Number Five and Six? Could one of them be the raven-haired girl with the stormy eyes from my dreams? The girl with powers that are beyond anything I could ever imagine? The girl who may be strong enough to bring the six of us together?

They caught Number One in Malaysia.
Number Two in England.
And Number Three in Kenya.
They tried to catch Number Four in Ohio—and failed.
I am Number Seven. One of six still alive.
And I'm ready to fight.

You know, nowadays I'm usually quite apprehensive when it comes to sequels, especially if their prequel was amazing. I Am Number Four blew me away - it was from a male point of view, yet I could relate to him perfectly and found myself sucked into his crazy reality. Luckily, The Power of Six held exactly the same grip as its predecessor, and I found myself skipping revision in order to read more. If you haven't read the first book, then beware spoilers.

Dead Romantic by C. J. Skuse

Title: Dead Romantic

Author: C. J. Skuse

Publisher: Chicken House

Released: February 4th 2013

Pages: 328 (Paperback)

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Camille wants to find the perfect boy, with an athlete's body and a poet's brain. But when she's mocked at a college party, she kows there isn't a boy alive who'll ever measure up. Enter Zoe, her brilliant but strange best friend, who takes biology homework to a whole new level. She can create Camille's dream boy, Frankenstein-stylee. But can she make him love her?

Reading the synopsis, I didn't imagine Dead Romantic would be a serious novel. And I was right - it wasn't. But it was amazingly hilarious, and had such an interesting and fun storyline that I just couldn't put it down. 

Breathe by Sarah Crossan

Title: Breathe
Author: Sarah Crossan
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Released: October 2nd 2012
Pages: 384 (Paperback)
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When oxygen levels plunge in a treeless world, a state lottery decides which lucky few will live inside the Pod. Everyone else will slowly suffocate. Years after the Switch, life inside the Pod has moved on. A poor Auxiliary class cannot afford the oxygen tax which supplies extra air for running, dancing and sports. The rich Premiums, by contrast, are healthy and strong. Anyone who opposes the regime is labelled a terrorist and ejected from the Pod to die. Sixteen-year-old Alina is part of the secret resistance, but when a mission goes wrong she is forced to escape from the Pod. With only two days of oxygen in her tank, she too faces the terrifying prospect of death by suffocation. Her only hope is to find the mythical Grove, a small enclave of trees protected by a hardcore band of rebels. Does it even exist, and if so, what or who are they protecting the trees from? A dystopian thriller about courage and freedom, with a love story at its heart.

Plague by Michael Grant

Title: Plague
Author: Michael Grant
Publisher: Egmont
Released: April 5th 2011
Pages: 522 (Hardcover)
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It's been eight months since all the adults disappeared. Gone.

They've survived hunger. They've survived lies. But the stakes keep rising, and the dystopian horror keeps building. Yet despite the simmering unrest left behind by so many battles, power struggles, and angry divides, there is a momentary calm in Perdido Beach.

But enemies in the FAYZ don't just fade away, and in the quiet, deadly things are stirring, mutating, and finding their way free. The Darkness has found its way into the mind of its Nemesis at last and is controlling it through a haze of delirium and confusion. A highly contagious, fatal illness spreads at an alarming rate. Sinister, predatory insects terrorize Perdido Beach. And Sam, Astrid, Diana, and Caine are plagued by a growing doubt that they'll escape—or even survive—life in the FAYZ. With so much turmoil surrounding them, what desperate choices will they make when it comes to saving themselves and those they love?

Sometimes I sit back and wonder why I still continue with this series. It's a bit like marmite - you either love it or hate it...or in my case, dislike it but have this intense desire to find out what's going to happen next. This is what propels me through this book - the constant countdown to the big she-bang at the end.

Icons by Margaret Stohl

Title: Icons
Author: Margaret Stohl
Publisher: HarperCollins
Release: May 7th 2013
Pages: 368 (eBook)
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Your heart beats only with their permission.

Everything changed on The Day. The day the windows shattered. The day the power stopped. The day Dol's family dropped dead. The day Earth lost a war it didn't know it was fighting.

Since then, Dol has lived a simple life in the countryside -- safe from the shadow of the Icon and its terrifying power. Hiding from the one truth she can't avoid.

She's different. She survived. Why?

When Dol and her best friend, Ro, are captured and taken to the Embassy, off the coast of the sprawling metropolis once known as the City of Angels, they find only more questions. While Ro and fellow hostage Tima rage against their captors, Dol finds herself drawn to Lucas, the Ambassador's privileged son. But the four teens are more alike than they might think, and the timing of their meeting isn't a coincidence. It's a conspiracy.

Within the Icon's reach, Dol, Ro, Tima, and Lucas discover that their uncontrollable emotions -- which they've always thought to be their greatest weaknesses -- may actually be their greatest strengths.

Clockwork Princess by Cassandra Clare

Title: Clockwork Princess

Author: Cassandra Clare

Publisher: Walker

Released: March 19th 2013

Pages: 568 (Paperback)

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Tessa Gray should be happy - aren't all brides happy?

Yet as she prepares for her wedding, a net of shadows begins to tighten around the Shadowhunters of the London Institute.

A new demon appears, one linked by blood and secrecy to Mortmain, the man who plans to use his army of pitiless automatons, the Infernal Devices, to destroy the Shadowhunters. Mortmain needs only one last item to complete his plan. He needs Tessa. And Jem and Will, the boys who lay equal claim to Tessa's heart, will do anything to save her.

I think that perhaps my heart has been torn in two from happiness and heartbreak and the Angel only knows what else. This review contains spoilers - and a lot of fangirling and tears.

Across the Universe by Beth Revis

Title: Across the Universe
Author: Beth Revis
Publisher: Razorbill
Released: January 11th 2011
Pages: 398 (Paperback)
Buy: Amazon UK / Amazon US


Amy
has left the life she loves
for a world 300 years away.

Trapped in space and frozen in time, Amy is bound for a new planet. But fifty years before she's due to arrive, she is violently woken, the victim of an attempted murder. Now Amy's lost on board and nothing makes sense - she's never felt so alone.

Yet someone is waiting for her.
He wants to protect her - 
and more if she'll let him

But who can she trust amidst the secrets and lies?
A killer is out there - and Amy has nowhere to hide...