• Reading level: Young Adult
• Hardcover: 336 pages
• Publisher: Greenwillow Books (February 22, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0062004999
• ISBN-13: 978-0062004994

MY THOUGHTS: 

First of all, let me say this book is not a light or quick read.  It is 418 pages in ARC format.  It is also has a romance with a darkness to it that is not what you would normally see in a normal young adult romance.  

The first half of this book was very difficult for me to get through.  It was confusing with talk of Touch, Upstairs, Downstairs, The Bound, The Fallen and everything in between.  Afterlife is not what Eden thought it would be.  She thought heaven with angels, or hell with demons.  What she didn’t expect was living on Earth still — forgotten by everyone she knew– yet immortal.  Add onto that the ability of Touch and it can leave you even more confused than Eden the first few chapters. 

In my opinion, there were too many people to keep track of, too many paranormal trends, and the romance between Eden and Az felt forced.  Yet, when you get past the first half of the book, everything starts to fall into place.  The things start clicking in your mind like a puzzle that has finally been solved and it all starts to make sense.  When Az reappears in Eden’s life, the romance turned up a notch and took off.  Between Az struggling not to completely Fall, Gabe trying to keep his friends secrets from the Bound, and Eden trying to find her way with new abilities, you find yourself hoping for each character to find happiness and love.  

Then for the last half of the book, it EXPLODES!  The suspense, drama and climatic scenes will leave you in awe at the excitement that follows.  Usually, you expect a huge and climatic ending in the final chapters, but the author used the last half of the book as one giant climax for the reader.  

The ending was frustrating in the fact that now I have to wait forever for the next book to see what is to come with each person in the story.  

MY RATING:

ARSON
Author: Estevan Vega
Source: Author Submission
* I received this book free of charge in exchange for an honest review*

• Perfect Paperback: 336 pages
• Publisher: Tate Publishing (May 4, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1615666036
• ISBN-13: 978-1615666034

SUMMARY:

Arson Gable feels like a freak. He can create fire. He never asked for it. He never wanted it. But he can’t shut it off. Before now, three things were true: he both loved and despised his grandmother; his life was going nowhere; and he was alone. But when a strange girl–who feels more normal behind a mask than inside her own skin–moves in next door, Arson hopes to find something he’s never had: purpose. Using what he fears most about himself, Arson must face his consuming past and confront the nightmare that is his present as he walks the fine line between boy and monster. Dark, moody, and breathtakingly relevant, Arson, the chilling chronicle of an isolated boy with unimaginable ability, is sure to ignite the hearts and minds of a new generation. 

MY THOUGHTS:

This is a book that I have seen around the book blogging community for some time now and have read wonderful things about.  When the author contacted me to review the book as well, I jumped on the chance! The cover alone had me drooling with anticipation, so the story was just icing on the cake!

Arson is a 17 year old boy who can create fire with his mind.  He has been trying to control his power even though he has no idea why or how he received it.  He has felt alone since the death of his parents until he meets Emery, a girl who wears a mask and has secrets of her own who has moved in next door.  Both Arson and Emery have problems that are real, yet with a paranormal touch added in. 

Secrets will arise, romance will blossom, and suspense filled with intrigue will keep you moving in this wonderfully paced plot. Just when you think the story will come close to an end, the cliffhanger of an ending will have your head exploding in flames at the frustration of knowing you will have to wait for the next book to get more of the characters involved in this book. 

A well written young adult book filled with action, love and suspense that will have you sitting at the edge of your seat! Well done!

MY RATING:

Outstanding Book That Will Stay On My Bookshelf For Rereading! 5 STARS

STRANGE ANGELS
Author: Lili St. Crow

• Reading level: Young Adult
• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Razorbill (May 14, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1921518324
• ISBN-13: 978-1595142511

SUMMARY:

Dru Anderson has what her grandmother called “the touch.” (Comes in handy when you’re traveling from town to town with your dad, hunting ghosts, suckers, wulfen, and the occasional zombie.)

Then her dad turns up dead—but still walking—and Dru knows she’s next. Even worse, she’s got two guys hungry for her affections, and they’re not about to let the fiercely independent Dru go it alone. Will Dru discover just how special she really is before coming face-to-fang with whatever—or whoever— is hunting her? 

MY THOUGHTS:

I had really high expectations for this book.  It sounded great from the summary and I had heard wonderful things about the series.  However, it ended up being a disappointment for me.

When Dru’s Father takes off for another hunt, he doesn’t come back.  She is worried and scared about him which is understandable.  They hunt things that go bump in the night, and things that most people think are not real.  When her Father does return though, she finds he has been turned into a zombie.  After he attacks her, Dru is forced to shoot and kill her father.  She finds herself hiding out with a boy from school named Graves.  He quickly finds out that Dru is not like other girls when a werewolf attacks and he is bitten.  Instead of him turning though-and forcing Dru to kill him- he ends up only half changing.  Together they try to figure out what is going on, while another boy named Christophe tries to convince them that he is there to help as well.

This book had more description than actual dialogue.  It went overboard in the supernatural to the point of enough already.  While I loved the character of Graves-even when he was whiny and scared- Christophe came off as a jerk, while Dru came off as a stuck up ditz.  She is suppose to be trained in this stuff growing up with a father who hunts.  At times, she couldn’t even take the safety off a gun!  There were many filler scenes and pages with no actual reason to be in there.  A lot of repetitive story with no substance and progression.  By the time I neared the end of this book, I didn’t really care what happened to anyone in the story.

That being said, the story could have potential in the rest of the series.  If the books following Strange Angels would put its focus on the characters and their interaction more than the dialogue of useless information, then the plot of the story could really take off and make it work. The basis of the plot is the only reason I am giving this a 2 star rating instead of a 1 star rating.  I still might give the next book a try, but I don’t have the excitement in the series as others might have.

MY RATING:

THE DEVOURING
Author: Simon Holt

• Reading level: Young Adult
• Hardcover: 240 pages
• Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers (September 1, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0316035734
• ISBN-13: 978-0316035736

SUMMARY:

When Reggie finds an old journal and reads about the Vours, supernatural creatures who feast on fear and attack on the eve of the winter solstice, she assumes they are just the musings of some lunatic author. But soon, they become a terrifying reality when she begins to suspect that her timid younger brother might be one of their victims.

Bone-chilling, terrifying, thrilling…what are you waiting for?

MY THOUGHTS:

When Reggie finds a journal at the book store she works at, she brings it home and starts a bone-chilling and true to life story that you would expect to see in movies.  She reads about Vours who devour your fears and bring them to life on Sorry Night.  She is into scary movies and her best friend Aaron is quite the movie buff as well.  Reggie’s mother left her, her brother Henry, and her father a few years ago.  The hurt of her leaving never faded with Henry, even though Reggie has tried to fill in as a mother to him instead of a sister.  When Sorry Night approaches, Reggie makes the mistake of reading part of the tale to Henry as a bed time story.  Little did they know, the Vours were more than just a story.

Reggie figures out that the Vours have come and taken Henry to Fearscape.  What she doesn’t know is how to get Henry back.  With Aaron helping and her boss Eben holding mysterious secrets, Reggie tries to confront the Vours and bring Henry back to the real world. 

This was a perfect read for this time of year. With Halloween approaching, I loved sitting down with this fear gripping read.  I admit that at times it felt like a B-Rated horror flick, but the idea of Vour’s alone were chilling and heart racing.  The book was full of action, even if it stumbled at times, and the devotion that Reggie has for saving her brother was strong. 

The ending left a bunch of open story, but this is only the first book in the series.  It left us still wondering about how Eben knew things at times, and also what he wasn’t sharing was left a mystery.  Since the book didn’t have closure at the end, I wouldn’t recommend getting your hopes up for a happily ever after.  Still, it makes me want to read the next book in the series as soon as I can to find out what did happen and see what other secrets will unfold!

MY RATING: