BOOK REVIEW: Warm Bodies by Isaac Marion

Name: Warm Bodies (Warm Bodies #1)
Author: Isaac Marion
Number of Pages: 241
Publisher: Atria
Date Published: April 26th, 2011
Source: Bought
Rate: 3.5/5

R is a young man with an existential crisis--he is a zombie. He shuffles through an America destroyed by war, social collapse, and the mindless hunger of his undead comrades, but he craves something more than blood and brains. He can speak just a few grunted syllables, but his inner life is deep, full of wonder and longing. He has no memories, no identity, and no pulse. Just dreams.

After experiencing a teenage boy's memories while consuming his brain, R makes an unexpected choice that begins a tense, awkward, and strangely sweet relationship with the victim's human girlfriend. Julie is a burst of vibrant color in the otherwise dreary and gray landscape that R lives in. His decision to protect her will transform not only R, but his fellow Dead, and perhaps their whole lifeless world...

Scary, funny, and surprisingly poignant, Warm Bodies is about being alive, being dead and the blurry line in between.
[Goodreads] [Amazon] 

BOOK REVIEW: Mortal Heart by Robin Lafevers

Name: Mortal Heart (His Fair Assassin #3)
Author: Robin LaFevers
Number of Pages: 444
Publisher: HMH Books for Young Readers
Date Published: Nov. 4, 2014
Source: Given to me by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing company for an honest review
Rate: 4.5/5

Annith has watched her gifted sisters at the convent come and go, carrying out their dark dealings in the name of St. Mortain, patiently awaiting her own turn to serve Death. But her worst fears are realized when she discovers she is being groomed by the abbess as a Seeress, to be forever sequestered in the rock and stone womb of the convent. Feeling sorely betrayed, Annith decides to strike out on her own.

She has spent her whole life training to be an assassin. Just because the convent has changed its mind doesn't mean she has...



[Summary from Good Reads][My Review on GoodReads][AMAZON]

BOOK REVIEW: Dark Triumph by Robin LaFevers

Name: Dark Triumph (His Fair Assassin #2)
Author: Robin LaFevers
Number of Pages: 400
Publisher: HMH Books for Young Readers
Date Published: April 28th, 2014
Source: Given to me by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company for an Honest Review
Rate: 4/5

The convent views Sybella, naturally skilled in the arts of both death and seduction, as one of their most dangerous weapons. But those assassin's skills are little comfort when the convent returns her home to the life that nearly drove her mad. And while Sybella is a weapon of justice wrought by the god of death himself, he must give her a reason to live. When she discovers an unexpected ally imprisoned in the dungeons, will a daughter of Death find something other than vengeance to live for?






[Summary taken from GoodReads][AMAZON]

BOOK REVIEW: Tiger's Destiny by Colleen Houck

Name: Tiger's Destiny (Tiger's Curse #4)
Author: Colleen Houck
Number of Pages: 464
Publisher: Splinter
Date Published: September 4th, 2012
Source: Bought
Rate: 4.5/5

With three of the goddess Durga's quests behind them, only one prophecy now stands in the way of Kelsey, Ren, and Kishan breaking the tiger's curse. But the trio's greatest challenge awaits them: A life-endangering pursuit in search of Durga's final gift, the Rope of Fire, on the Andaman Islands in the Bay of Bengal.  It's a race against time--and the evil sorcerer Lokesh--in this eagerly anticipated fourth volume in the bestselling Tiger's Curse series, which pits good against evil, tests the bonds of love and loyalty, and finally reveals the tigers' true destinies once and for all. A smart  phone tag code on the back cover links readers to the series website. 


[Summary taken from GoodReads] [AMAZON] 

BOOK REVIEW: Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

Name: The Hunger Games (Hunger Games #1)
Author: Suzanne Collins
Number of Pages: 374
Publisher: Scholastic Press
Date Published: September 14th 2008
Source: Bought
Rate: 4/5

The nation of Panem, formed from a post-apocalyptic North America, is a country that consists of a wealthy Capitol region surrounded by 12 poorer districts. Early in its history, a rebellion led by a 13th district against the Capitol resulted in its destruction and the creation of an annual televised event known as the Hunger Games. In punishment, and as a reminder of the power and grace of the Capitol, each district must yield one boy and one girl between the ages of 12 and 18 through a lottery system to participate in the games. The 'tributes' are chosen during the annual Reaping and are forced to fight to the death, leaving only one survivor to claim victory.

When 16-year-old Katniss's young sister, Prim, is selected as District 12's female representative, Katniss volunteers to take her place. She and her male counterpart Peeta, are pitted against bigger, stronger representatives, some of whom have trained for this their whole lives. , she sees it as a death sentence. But Katniss has been close to death before. For her, survival is second nature
[Summary taken from GoodReads] [AMAZON]

BOOK REVIEW: Lark Rising by Sandra Waugh

Name: Lark Rising (Guardians of Tarnec #1)
Author: Sandra Waugh
Number of Pages: 384
Publisher: Random House Books for Young Readers
Date Published: September 23rd, 2014
Source: Given to me by the Author and Publisher for an honest review
Rate: 4.5/5

Lark has foreseen two things—she will fall for a young man with sage green eyes,and he will kill her.

Sixteen-year-old Lark Carew is happiest close to home, tending her garden and gathering herbs for medicines. But when her Sight warns her that monsters called Troths will soon invade her village, Lark is summoned on a journey to seek help from the legendary Riders of Tarnec. Little does she suspect that one of the Riders, Gharain, is the very man who has haunted her visions. Or that the people of Tarnec have called her there for another reason: Lark is the Guardian of Life, the first of four Guardians who must awaken their powers to recover four stolen amulets. Together, the amulets—Life, Death, Dark, and Light—keep the world in Balance. To take back the Life amulet, Lark will have to discover her true inner strength and give in to a love that she swears will be her downfall
[Summary taken from GoodReads] [AMAZON]

BOOK REVIEW: Fifty Shades Darker by E.L. James

Name: Fifty Shades Darker (Fifty Shades #2)
Author: E.L. James
Number of Pages: 532
Publisher: The Writer's Coffee Shop Publishing House
Date Published: September 16th, 2011
Source: Review (Bought)
Rate: 4/5

Daunted by the singular tastes and dark secrets of the beautiful, tormented young entrepreneur Christian Grey, Anastasia Steele has broken off their relationship to start a new career with a Seattle publishing house.

But desire for Christian still dominates her every waking thought, and when he proposes a new arrangement, Anastasia cannot resist. They rekindle their searing sensual affair, and Anastasia learns more about the harrowing past of her damaged, driven and demanding Fifty Shades.

While Christian wrestles with his inner demons, Anastasia must confront the anger and envy of the women who came before her, and make the most important decision of her life. 

[Summary taken from GoodReads] [AMAZON]

BOOK REVIEW: Tiger's Voyage by Colleen Houck

Name: Tiger's Voyage (Tiger's Saga #3)
Author: Colleen Houck
Number of Pages: 560
Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton
Date Published: November 1st, 2011
Source: Review (Bought)
Rate: 4.8/5

With the head-to-head battle against the villainous Lokesh behind her, Kelsey confronts a new heartbreak: in the wake of his traumatic experience, her beloved Ren no longer remembers who she is. As the trio continues their quest by challenging five cunning and duplicitous dragons, Ren and Kishan once more vie for her affections--leaving Kelsey more confused than ever.




[Summary taken from GoodReads][AMAZON]

BOOK REVIEW: Fifty Shades of Grey E.L. James

Name: Fifty Shades of Grey (Fifty Shades #1)
Author: E.L. James
Number of Pages: 385
Publisher: Vintage
Date Published: May 25th, 2011
Source: Review (Bought)
Rate: 4/5

When literature student Anastasia Steele goes to interview young entrepreneur Christian Grey, she encounters a man who is beautiful, brilliant, and intimidating. The unworldly, innocent Ana is startled to realize she wants this man and, despite his enigmatic reserve, finds she is desperate to get close to him. Unable to resist Ana’s quiet beauty, wit, and independent spirit, Grey admits he wants her, too—but on his own terms.

Shocked yet thrilled by Grey’s singular erotic tastes, Ana hesitates. For all the trappings of success—his multinational businesses, his vast wealth, his loving family—Grey is a man tormented by demons and consumed by the need to control. When the couple embarks on a daring, passionately physical affair, Ana discovers Christian Grey’s secrets and explores her own dark desires.

Erotic, amusing, and deeply moving, the Fifty Shades Trilogy is a tale that will obsess you, possess you, and stay with you forever.
[Summary taken from Goodreads][AMAZON]

BOOK REVIEW: Demon Kissed by H.M. Ward

Name: Demon Kissed (Demon Kissed #1)
Author: H.M. Ward
Number of Pages: 496
Publisher: Laree Bailey Press
Date Published: April 15th, 2011
Source: Review (bought)
Rate: 3.7/5

The Valefar boy tricked Ivy Taylor into kissing him, but he took much more than a kiss - he stole her soul and left her within inches of death. By surviving, Ivy is drawn into the conflict between the Martis and the Valefar. The war between these two immortal forces has raged for millennia without distraction. Until now.

Ivy is an anomaly-she is the only person who has ever walked away from a demon kiss alive. Her survival gives her unique and deadly abilities. Too powerful to ignore, Ivy is a threat to both armies. These two ancient enemies will stop at nothing to kill the seventeen-year-old.

Surviving is nothing new for headstrong Ivy, but her survival has never depended on another person before. This time it does. And if she misplaces her trust, she's dead. To her horror, she starts falling in love at the worst possible time-with the enemy. He appears to be protecting her. But she can't be certain if he is trying to help her, or help himself to her power. For Ivy, trusting the right person is the difference between love and survival, or a deadly demon kiss.
[Summary taken from GoodReads] [AMAZON]

BOOK REVIEW: Jessica's Guide to Dating on the Dark Side by Beth Fantaskey

Name: Jessica's Guide to Dating on the Dark Side (Jessica #1)
Author: Beth Fantaskey
Number of Pages: 351
Publisher: Harcourt
Date Published: February 1st, 2001
Source: Bought
Rate: 3.8/5

The undead can really screw up your senior year ...

Marrying a vampire definitely doesn’t fit into Jessica Packwood’s senior year “get-a-life” plan. But then a bizarre (and incredibly hot) new exchange student named Lucius Vladescu shows up, claiming that Jessica is a Romanian vampire princess by birth—and he’s her long-lost fiancé. Armed with newfound confidence and a copy of Growing Up Undead: A Teen Vampire’s Guide to Dating, Health, and Emotions, Jessica makes a dramatic transition from average American teenager to glam European vampire princess. But when a devious cheerleader sets her sights on Lucius, Jess finds herself fighting to win back her wayward prince, stop a global vampire war—and save Lucius’s soul from eternal destruction.
[Summary taken from GoodReads] [Amazon]

BOOK REVIEW: Inner Fire by R.L. Stedman

Name: Inner Fire
Author: R.L Stedman
Number of Pages: 266
Publisher: Waverly Productions
Date Published: October 28th, 2014
Source: Was given to me by the publisher and author
Rate: 3.8/5

Maybe it would be better if I started at the beginning.’ Gran watched me carefully. ‘This ability we have; my mother, me. You. We draw heat along our bodies; anger makes us flame.’

When her friend is assaulted, Corinne Peterson can’t help reacting. But she didn’t think and now her hands are burnt, Gran is coming to look after her and, scariest of all, strange men are watching her house. Could they be terrorists? Secret agents?

It seems that Gran’s idea of a solution is to introduce Corinne to Rowan. Okay, sure, maybe eighteen year old Rowan is gorgeous – but he has his own troubles. And right now, Corinne doesn’t need complications in her life.

But in a world of surveillance and secrecy, complexity is inevitable. And as the tension mounts Corinne realizes - maybe Gran can help her, after all.

Warning: contains coarse language and sexual references
[Summary taken from GoodReads] [Amazon]

BOOK REVIEW: Tiger's Quest by Colleen Houck

Name: Tiger's Quest (Tiger's Saga #2)
Author: Colleen Houck
Number of Pages: 479
Publisher: Sterling Publishing
Date Published: June 7th, 2011
Source: Review (Bought)
Rate: 5/5

Back in Oregon, Kelsey tries to pick up the pieces of her life and push aside her feelings for Ren. Kelsey Hayes's eighteenth summer was crazy. The kind of crazy nobody would ever believe.

Aside From battling immortal sea monkeys and trekking the jungles of India, she fell in love with Ren, a 300-year-old prince.

When danger suddenly forces Kelsey on another Indian quest, with Ren's bad-boy brother, Kishan,the unlikely duo begins to question their true destiny. Ren's life hangs in the balance--so does the truth within Kelsey's heart.

Tiger's Quest, the thrilling second volume in the Tiger's Curse series, brings the trio one step closer to breaking the ancient prophecy that binds them.
[Summary taken from GoodReads] [AMAZON]

BOOK REVIEW: Allegiant (Divergent #3) by Veronica Roth

Name: Allegiant (Divergent #3)
Author: Veronica Roth
Number of Pages: 526
Publisher: Katherine Tegan Books
Date Published: October 22nd, 2013
Source: Review (Bought)
Rate: 3.8/5

The faction-based society that Tris Prior once believed in is shattered--fractured by violence and power struggles and scarred by loss and betrayal. So when offered a chance to explore the world past the limits she’s known, Tris is ready. Perhaps beyond the fence, she and Tobias will find a simple new life together, free from complicated lies, tangled loyalties, and painful memories.

But Tris’s new reality is even more alarming than the one she left behind. Old discoveries are quickly rendered meaningless. Explosive new truths change the hearts of those she loves. And once again, Tris must battle to comprehend the complexities of human nature--and of herself--while facing impossible choices about courage, allegiance, sacrifice, and love. 

[Summary from Goodreads] [AMAZON]

BOOK REVIEW: Insurgent by Veronica Roth

Name: Insurgent (Divergent #2)
Author: Veronica Roth
Number of Pages: 525
Publisher: HarperCollins Children's Books
Date Published: May 1st, 2012
Source: Review (Bought)
Rate: 4/5

One choice can transform you—or it can destroy you. But every choice has consequences, and as unrest surges in the factions all around her, Tris Prior must continue trying to save those she loves—and herself—while grappling with haunting questions of grief and forgiveness, identity and loyalty, politics and love.

Tris's initiation day should have been marked by celebration and victory with her chosen faction; instead, the day ended with unspeakable horrors. War now looms as conflict between the factions and their ideologies grows. And in times of war, sides must be chosen, secrets will emerge, and choices will become even more irrevocable—and even more powerful. Transformed by her own decisions but also by haunting grief and guilt, radical new discoveries, and shifting relationships, Tris must fully embrace her Divergence, even if she does not know what she may lose by doing so.
[Summary taken from Goodreads] [AMAZON]

BOOK REVIEW: Dearly Departed by Lia Habel

Name: Dearly Departed ( Gone with the Respiration #1)
Author: Lia Habel
Number of Pages: 470
Publisher: Del Rey
Date Published: October 18th, 2011
Source: Review (Bought)
Rate: 5/5

Love conquers all, so they say. But can Cupid’s arrow pierce the hearts of the living and the dead - or rather, the undead? Can a proper young Victorian lady find true love in the arms of a dashing zombie?

The year is 2195. The place is New Victoria - a high-tech nation modeled on the manners, mores, and fashions of an antique era. A teenager in high society, Nora Dearly is far more interested in military history and her country’s political unrest than in tea parties and debutante balls. But after her beloved parents die, Nora is left at the mercy of her domineering aunt, a social-climbing spendthrift who has squandered the family fortune and now plans to marry her niece off for money. For Nora, no fate could be more horrible - until she’s nearly kidnapped by an army of walking corpses.

But fate is just getting started with Nora. Catapulted from her world of drawing-room civility, she’s suddenly gunning down ravenous zombies alongside mysterious black-clad commandos and confronting “The Laz,” a fatal virus that raises the dead - and hell along with them. Hardly ideal circumstances. Then Nora meets Bram Griswold, a young soldier who is brave, handsome, noble . . . and dead. But as is the case with the rest of his special undead unit, luck and modern science have enabled Bram to hold on to his mind, his manners, and his body parts. And when his bond of trust with Nora turns to tenderness, there’s no turning back. Eventually, they know, the disease will win, separating the star-crossed lovers forever. But until then, beating or not, their hearts will have what they desire.

In Dearly, Departed, romance meets walking-dead thriller, spawning a madly imaginative novel of rip-roaring adventure, spine-tingling suspense, and macabre comedy that forever redefines the concept of undying love.
[Summary taken from Goodreads]

BOOK REVIEW: Legend of the Oceina Dragon by J.F. Jenkins

Name: Legend of the Oceina Dragon (The Dragon Saga #1)
Author: J.F. Jenkins
Number of Pages: 270
Publisher: CreateSpace
Date Published: February 22nd, 2011
Source: Review (Nook-Bought)
Rate: 3.8/5 (I know weird right!)

Darien Oceina is the youngest son of the Great Dragon Lord of the Water. For years he's loved and cherished Tai Dawson from afar. Tai is a simple, ordinary girl who doesn't even know Darien exists. On his eighteenth birthday, he chooses her as his wife. But there’s one problem: She thinks his choice means she's going to be offered as a sacrifice to the Dragon Lord, but instead, she’s forced to move to his home, far away, to give up her life and be his bride.

When she first sees Darien after the ceremony, she doesn’t expect to feel anything but hatred toward him. The two are struggling with the complications of a new marriage when their nation is attacked by a rival dragon species. Together they learn to love one another while they struggle to stay one step ahead in a game where the prize is their survival.
[Summary taken from GoodReads]

BOOK REVIEW IN A NEW WAY: The Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas

Name: Crown of Midnight (Throne of Glass #2)
Author: Sarah J. Maas
Number of Pages: 420
Publisher: Bloomsbury USA Children
Date Published: August 27th, 2013
Source: Review (Bought)
Rate: 4.5/5

"A line that should never be crossed is about to be breached.

It puts this entire castle in jeopardy—and the life of your friend."

From the throne of glass rules a king with a fist of iron and a soul as black as pitch. Assassin Celaena Sardothien won a brutal contest to become his Champion. Yet Celaena is far from loyal to the crown. She hides her secret vigilantly; she knows that the man she serves is bent on evil.

Keeping up the deadly charade becomes increasingly difficult when Celaena realizes she is not the only one seeking justice. As she tries to untangle the mysteries buried deep within the glass castle, her closest relationships suffer. It seems no one is above questioning her allegiances—not the Crown Prince Dorian; not Chaol, the Captain of the Guard; not even her best friend, Nehemia, a foreign princess with a rebel heart.

Then one terrible night, the secrets they have all been keeping lead to an unspeakable tragedy. As Celaena's world shatters, she will be forced to give up the very thing most precious to her and decide once and for all where her true loyalties lie...and whom she is ultimately willing to fight for.
[Summary taken from GoodReads]

BOOK REVIEW -- Divergent by Veronica Roth

Name: Divergent (Divergent #1)
Author: Veronica Roth
Number of Pages: 487
Publisher: Katherina Tegan Books
Date Published: February 28th, 2012
Source: Review (Bought)
Rate: 4/5

In Beatrice Prior's dystopian Chicago world, society is divided into five factions, each dedicated to the cultivation of a particular virtue--Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent). On an appointed day of every year, all sixteen-year-olds must select the faction to which they will devote the rest of their lives. For Beatrice, the decision is between staying with her family and being who she really is--she can't have both. So she makes a choice that surprises everyone, including herself.

During the highly competitive initiation that follows, Beatrice renames herself Tris and struggles alongside her fellow initiates to live out the choice they have made. Together they must undergo extreme physical tests of endurance and intense psychological simulations, some with devastating consequences. As initiation transforms them all, Tris must determine who her friends really are--and where, exactly, a romance with a sometimes fascinating, sometimes exasperating boy fits into the life she's chosen. But Tris also has a secret, one she's kept hidden from everyone because she's been warned it can mean death. And as she discovers unrest and growing conflict that threaten to unravel her seemingly perfect society, Tris also learns that her secret might help her save the ones she loves . . . or it might destroy her.
[Summary from GoodReads][AMAZON-BUY]

ARC BOOK REVIEW: Frozen by Melissa De La Cruz & Michael Johnston

Name: Frozen (Heart of Dread #1)
Author(s): Melissa De La Cruz
Michael Johnston
Number of Pages: 365
Publisher: Orchard Books
Date Published: October 2nd, 2014
Source: Netgalley (Given to me for an honest review, thank you!!!)
Rate: 4/5

From New York Times bestselling author Melissa de la Cruz and Michael Johnston comes this remarkable first book in a spellbinding new series about the dawn of a new kind of magic.

Welcome to New Vegas, a city once covered in bling, now blanketed in ice. Like much of the destroyed planet, the place knows only one temperature—freezing. But some things never change. The diamond in the ice desert is still a 24-hour hedonistic playground and nothing keeps the crowds away from the casino floors, never mind the rumors about sinister sorcery in its shadows.

At the heart of this city is Natasha Kestal, a young blackjack dealer looking for a way out. Like many, she's heard of a mythical land simply called “the Blue.” They say it’s a paradise, where the sun still shines and the waters are turquoise. More importantly, it’s a place where Nat won’t be persecuted, even if her darkest secret comes to light.

But passage to the Blue is treacherous, if not impossible, and her only shot is to bet on a ragtag crew of mercenaries led by a cocky runner named Ryan Wesson to take her there. Danger and deceit await on every corner, even as Nat and Wes find themselves inexorably drawn to each other. But can true love survive the lies? Fiery hearts collide in this fantastic tale of the evil men do and the awesome power within us all.

[Summary taken from GoodReads][Get it at AMAZON]