Blood Feud by Alyxandra Harvey

Blood Feud by Alyxandra Harvey
Release Date: June 22, 2010
Publisher: Walker Books
Age Group: Young Adult
Pages: 272
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Blood Feud picks up just under two weeks after Hearts at Stake ended, and the Drake family has had a lot to deal with. All the vampire tribes are beginning to assemble and treaties are being made now that Lady Natasha is gone and the courts are preparing for Helena’s coronation. With the state that Lady Natasha left things between the tribes, this means all kinds of cleaning up for Liam and Helena to do, and that doesn’t take into consideration the state the caves and the farmhouse were both left in. That just means that the Solange, Lucy, and the Drake brothers have quite a journey ahead of them.


We meet Isabeau St. Croix (kind of weird, but totally cool name, right?). Isabeau is a Hound, which means she is part of the tribe of vampires that Montmartre created and basically left for dead. The catch is, Montmartre didn’t change Isabeau, his lieutenant, Greyhaven, did somewhere around 200 years ago. Isabeau has spent years waiting until she could get revenge on Greyhaven, and for all intents and purposes she still plans to do so, until she meets Logan Drake.


Now she must join forces with the Drakes’ and fight against the common enemy, Montmartre, who’s still after Solange, the crown, and the power both would bring him. Logan shows Isabeau that not all vampires, outside of the Hounds, are as bad as she seems to think, and that she doesn’t have to be so guarded all the time. But can Isabeau’s quest for revenge survive when it’s all over with? Will Logan be able to show her that there is more to life than living for revenge?


I was so excited to revisit the Drake family and Lucy of course. When I first learned that Blood Feud wouldn’t be from Lucy and Solange’s voices I was a bit disappointed, but since I was going to hear from Logan and this new, interesting, Isabeau I decided it would be alright. And it pretty much was. First, I must admit, I totally missed Lucy. But Logan, while not being as reckless and funny as Lucy, filled a different void, since I did adore him in Hearts at Stake.


Isabeau is a very interesting character, with an even more interesting past. Her voice isn’t as prominent as I would have thought it would be seeing as she is a totally fierce character, but they can’t all be Lucy. Sprinkled throughout are these chapters that are memories from Isabeau’s past and those take you back into the 1700s and are pretty neat, although the French sprinkled throughout was not as fun for me since I don’t know French. Oh, and just a tip, the French word “merde” is used a lot, and finally I looked it up…just so you know, it means “crap”.


I loved Logan’s voice. He’s funny and kind of sarcastic and a bit insane, but so are all the Drakes and so I love it, and it was a nice balance against the guardedness and proper way Isabeau’s voice was. I really enjoyed the romance between Logan and Isabeau that you could see coming before they ever met, but I didn’t like the fact that Blood Feud covers a matter of days, and you don’t really fall in love over only a few days. It just so doesn’t work like that, and while I know that a lot happened between them in those few days, and that it was obviously in the cards for them, it just was a bit unrealistic (an yes, I’m totally aware that it is a vampire novel and so realistic in the first place).


In all honesty, I didn’t enjoy Blood Feud quite as much as I did Hearts at Stake, but I did find it totally enjoyable and I’m still looking forward to the next story in The Drake Chronicles. I have a feeling that the sequels are going to continue in the same way, the common link will be one of the Drake brothers, but the voice will change. I am totally okay with that, as long as there is somewhat of a check in on the previous brothers and they’re counterparts.


Blood Feud carried over all the action and humor from Hearts at Stake, but for me the romance and the pacing faltered a bit. Maybe I’m totally missing Lucy and just wanted more from her. She didn’t even get to break a single nose! Although I have decided that I may just have to add all seven of the Drake brothers to my list of fictional crushes if they are as charming and cute as Nicholas and Logan. Alyxandra Harvey knows how to write a good story and she’s got a great cast of characters to do it with. I can’t wait for the next adventure that the Drake family (and their friends) take me on.


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I received this book as part of Around the World Tours.

Something Like Fate by Susane Colasanti

Something Like Fate by Susane Colasanti

Release Date: May 4, 2010

Publisher: Viking Juvenile

Age Group: Young Adult

Pages: 288

Overall:

Lani and Erin have been friends for as they can remember. They’ve done everything together, from Girl Scouts to driving, to surviving high school. Jason is Erin’s boyfriend, and Erin thinks they’re perfect together. The thing is Fate has other plans for Jason and Erin, plans that include Jason being with Lani.

Lani and Erin have always had very different tastes in everything from boys and pizza to hanging out. Lani is laid back and more on her own, while Erin is outgoing and likes being the center of attention. But there’s two things that have always bonded the girls; one being their obsession with Fate and everything surrounding it, the other being the accident.

As soon as Lani meets Jason, there’s this instant connection that everyone around them seems to notice, everyone except Erin of course. Lani and Jason have this unworldly, crazy amount of things in common (I’m still trying to wrap my head around everything they have in common). Erin encourages them to hang out, even just the two of them; she trusts her best friend and thinks it’s great they get along so well.

When school ends and Erin goes away to camp for the summer, Lani tries to avoid Jason to no avail. Once they start hanging out, Jason breaks up with Erin and there’s no stopping what happens nest when Fate is playing the game. Lani and Jason start their relationship; keeping it hidden from everyone they know, for the simple reason of wanting to be the ones to tell Erin the truth.

Of course things are never as simple as they should be, there’s always the “girl code” and that says that you can’t date your friends ex, but does that really matter if Fate is involved and if they’re soul mates? It shouldn’t, but this is high school, and a YA novel, so of course it matters! When Erin finds out the truth, she’s furious. She does everything she can to hurt Lani and ostracizes her in the process.

I know some people haven’t liked Something Like Fate because they’ve read other Susane Colasanti novels, but this is my first one and I really enjoyed it. I found Lani to be really smart and have a strong voice, at least when it came to everyone except Erin. With Erin, Lani became a total pushover and would become a doormat or a scared puppy in the corner. Erin is one of those girls that you want to like and that you’ll be civil to, but someone you could never really stand to be around for that long.

My favorite character had to be Blake, Lani and Erin’s other friend that is totally adorable and hilarious. He’s the logical, eyes wide open kind of friend, he reminds me a lot of my own best friend. He’s so hilarious too, I love the opening scene between him and Lani; it amuses me so much. Jason is super sweet and way more sensitive and mature than any of the guys I knew in high school. Although, I must call his maturity into question when he knows he has feelings for his girlfriend’s best friend and stays with her, waiting until the worst possible time to break up with her.

I really loved Lani and Jason’s relationship. They cared for each other in a way that most people only dream about, they are the definition of soul mates, in a sense. Despite their situation, they had this very pure, innocent kind of relationship and that is very endearing to me. On the other hand, I could stand Erin. I tried, I mean I really tried to like her even a little, but I just couldn’t. She’s mean and self-centered and actually a total…witch. Every time she spoke to Lani, it was like she was talking down to her and it grated on my nerves to no end.

I really liked Something Like Fate, I think it’s a great story and it’s made me move the other Susane Colasanti novels I have higher on my TBR pile. For the most part I liked the characters and the story flows so well, I can’t wait to read more from her.

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I received this book as part of Around the World Tours.

Windwhyst by Christine O'Neill

Windwhyst by Christine O'Neill

Release Date: September 7, 2009

Publisher: CreateSpace

Age Group: Young Adult

Pages: 316

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I’m not usually one to read self-published titles, but the premise of Windwhyst was interesting enough for me to ignore its self-published status and give it s a shot. And I’m really glad I did.

Cole Anderson is your usual high school slacker. He’s a graffiti artist, failing his classes, being pretty invisible in school, and has the sarcastic attitude to match. But when he’s caught for defacing school property, Cole is told he must join the restoration team at the abandoned 19th century Windwhyst mansion. He’s joined in that project by his domineering tutor, Thea.

Thea Wallace is your stereotypical teen movie style overachiever. She’s, as Cole puts it, “President of This and That and Your Mom Club” (Windwhyst, page 7). So of course she’s involved in just about anything and everything that can be put on a college transcript, and anything that will help her succeed, while everything else like friends, is just a formality.

While working at Windwhyst, the two stumble upon a hidden room full of treasures. As they are browsing those treasures, they find Augusta and Josiah Lyons, brother and sister and that have been dead for upwards of 250 years. After meeting the Lyons’ and getting over the idea that ghosts don’t exist, they find that the ghosts aren’t something to be feared, but are people too.

After talking to the Lyons’, Thea and Cole are approached by PELF, a horror movie-esque company that wants to meet with the ghosts and study them. Thea and Cole come to find that PELF isn’t at all what they seem and is actually much more dangerous and deadly. PELF is the kind of company that would give Norman Bates a run for his money in the creep factor.

With the help of a third, ex-military ghost, the friends set out to defend the world and the lives they all cherish. Now they’re all thrown into a world of murder, history, love, war, laboratories, experiments, and PELF.

Now there is more at stake for Cole than he ever thought possible. He’s faced with difficult decisions in terms of love, life, and the survival of not only himself, but also of Thea and the ghosts. And the project Cole was forced into has now played a bigger role in his life than he ever thought possible.

I actually really liked this story. I adored the characters…at least most of them, and thought they were extremely well developed. Cole and Thea had this very amusing love-hate, push-pull relationship. They’re polar opposites and it totally works for them. The ghosts are very intriguing, they’re full of history and life; even if they’re not actually living per say.

I found the involvement of PELF and its employees to be a totally different twist on a typical ghost story. It made things dangerous and adventurous for our protagonists, and exciting for the reader. Plus with Cole as the narrator, it gave a nice change to the normality of having a female voice, and a different spin on the issues and conversations they all had.

I did find a few grammar and spelling mistakes here and there and while that kind of irked me a bit at the moment, there weren’t enough to take away from the story or to be a big enough distraction. And I have found that it’s fairly common to find some in a self-published novel. Also while reading this story I did come to find a few awesome facts, such as the author, Christine O’Neill, is not only sixteen years old, but Windwhyst was also her NaNoWriMo novel! Now how cool is that?

Personally, if I had seen this book in the bookstore, I probably would have skipped right over it based on the cover alone, but I'm glad I didn't. While the image makes me think of the Windwhyst mansion and I think it's cool that the author took the photo, I wouldn't have used it as a cover. I don't really think it fits the nature of the story, and unlike the story it contains, the cover is a bit blah.

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I received this book for review for Teens Read Too.

Nailed by Jennifer Laurens

Nailed by Jennifer Laurens

Release Date: November 10, 2008

Publisher: Grove Creek Publishing

Age Group: Young Adult

Pages: 240

Overall:

Mandy is a girl that knows what she wants. Unlike most 18 year olds, she also knows who she is and what she wants to do with her life. I knew very few people in high school that knew either one of those things, and I admired the ones that did…I also quite admired Mandy for the same reason.

Ever since she was a little girl Mandy has wanted to follow in her father’s footsteps and work in construction. She wants to learn the trade and become not only a professional, but she wants to either take over her father’s business or start one of her own. In order to put that plan into motion, Mandy doesn’t follow her friends on after graduation trips; she stays behind to start her apprenticeship.

The first crew Mandy is assigned too belongs to her brother, Marc, and he is less than happy about it to say the least. Marc isn’t cutting Mandy any slack, he does everything to make sure she pulls her weight, even if it’s just clean up and grunt work. But soon, the older, flirtatious A.J. has Mandy’s attention, as well as the mysterious, brooding Boston (a nickname she affectionately gave him on the first day because of his hat).

With the help of her best friend Cam, Mandy finds herself trying to decipher what is really going on in this push-pull, triangle A.J and Boston have her in. Framing a house is easy for Mandy, the hard work and physical labor is easy, it’s this new mine field of testosterone and desire that’s hard for her.

This is the second novel by Jennifer Laurens I have read, and this is the second one I have loved. Nailed is fun, different, and at times, almost lyrical. Mandy is a heroine of sorts to be admired; she’s cute, fun, straightforward and she’s very wise beyond her years. Cam is adorable and uses those trashy romance novels as insight into the dream relationship. He’s actually quite insightful and he’s one of the best, best friends I’ve seen in a novel lately, to the point that he reminded me of my best friend.

A.J. is older, gorgeous, and a total gentleman. He’s constantly flirting with Mandy, but never pushy, he’s actually very sweet. Boston is a mystery at first, but when Mandy starts to find out more about him and find that they have more in common than she thought, even he can’t help but to warm up to her. He’s one of those guys that are totally sexy, but he’s got the hard exterior, but the sensitive, caring heart that almost any girl desires.

I love Jennifer’s writing style, its fluid and it flows. It’s experienced and has a beautiful touch woven into the words. The characters are so well developed, even the ones that aren’t seen all that much, like Cam. The intense moments are well balanced with comical ones. I really only had one issue with the book and it was minor and mainly my own quirkiness. In the first few chapters, Mandy and Cam frequented Barnes and Noble, but then it randomly changed to Borders, even though the descriptions and the café was the same. I think it was more of an oversight on an editor’s part, but still it irked my nerves for a bit.

Nailed was a fantastic, adorable story and I anyone that’s looking for a cute romantic novel to take up a few hours, then they should totally pick it up. I really recommend it and look forward to reading more from Mrs. Laurens in the future.

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I received this book as part of Around the World Tours.

Falling for Romeo by Jennifer Laurens

Falling for Romeo by Jennifer Laurens

Release Date: October 1, 2007

Publisher: Grove Creek Publishing

Age Group: Young Adult

Pages: 208

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We all know the basic story of Romeo and Juliet. Boy meets Girl, Boy and Girl fall in love, Boy and Girl’s families are mortal enemies, so the star-crossed lovers take their lives to be together. It’s one of the most tragically romantic stories in literary history.

John Michaels is the hottest guy in school, he’s treated like a god, and in the eyes of his peers he can do nothing wrong (think John Tucker in John Tucker Must Die), so it’s no surprise when he lands the coveted role of Romeo in the school play. He seems to do for this school production of Shakespeare’s classic, what Leonardo DiCaprio did for the 1996 movie version.

Jennifer Vienvu is focused, beautiful, and within her school, she is an established actress and a shoe in for Juliet. Jenn is your All-American girl, she’s lovable and kind, she gets good grades, and she’s involved. There’s only one flaw in Jenn’s professional performance is that her Juliet has to kiss John’s Romeo. What everyone doesn’t know is that the kiss they share on stage will be Jenn’s first kiss. John is the guy every girl in school wants to kiss, the guy that lives next door to her, and the guy that used to be her best friend.

Living next to each other since they were kids, John and Jenn grew up being the best of friends; they even did one of those blood ritual things to signify their friendship. As they got older and John turned into the popular guy he is now, they lost each other, they grew apart. Now they are thrown back together and there’s an undeniable chemistry between them that causes them to wonder which kisses are part of the act and which kisses are real.

When our story plants us right in the middle of rehearsal, and right in the middle of the love-hate relationship our characters have with one another. Being thrown into the middle of the story kind of jarred me at first because most of the time you read through all this back story and it takes multiple chapters before you get into the plot. After the initial shock of just being thrown in, I really enjoyed being able to get right into the plot. Sometimes you get bogged down in all the details and back story that you forget what the main plot of the story even is, and that didn’t happen here.

I absolutely loved the characters. They’re fun and vivid, you get to know more than just the main characters. The director Chip is totally amusing, even when he’s being hard on them, he’s still funny. There are also a few side characters (Fletcher, Jessica, and Freddy in particular) that only appear every so often, but they offer a few gems of their own and leave an impression. Of course all characters can’t be lovable and endearing, I honestly detested Lacey and Alex, and they annoyed me to no end.

Falling for Romeo also has another aspect that I was surprised about at first, but very much loved, it switched between Jenn and John’s point of view. A lot of times I’m wary of stories that switch POV, but I absolutely love it in this case. Jennifer Laurens does a fabulous job at bringing you into the lives of both Jenn and John through both perspectives. I loved the insight into not only how they view one another, but also how they view themselves. The tension between Jenn and John in social settings and in the moments they have alone is enough to draw you to them.

I really enjoyed Falling for Romeo, it had a unique style and that’s totally refreshing. The characters were great and well developed, and there’s enough Romeo and Juliet quotes to make anyone who’s ever read the play (or seen the movie) to make them smile. Unless they’re me, and then you quote right along with the book…only you do it out loud and get funny looks from those around you.

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I received this book as part of Around the World Tours.

The Snowball Effect by Holly Nicole Hoxter

The Snowball Effect by Holly Nicole Hoxter

Release Date: March 23, 2010

Publisher: HarperTeen

Age Group: Young Adult

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Have you ever read a story where it felt like you were actually part of the characters lives? The Snowball Effect is one of those kinds of stories, and Lainey Pike is one of those kinds of characters.

Eighteen year old Lainey is your somewhat typical jaded teenage girl, except she has bigger issues to deal with. Her stepfather died in a motorcycle crash, her grandmother died shortly after that, and her mother fully lost it and hanged herself in their basement…two days after her high school graduation.

Sounds like a lot to deal with, right? Well, there’s more…Her mother left behind another child, Lainey’s brother, Collin, is five years old and has sever behavioral problems, and now there’s someone else to add to their dysfunctional family, Vallery, Lainey’s long gone older sister. Vallery hasn’t been in Lainey’s life since she was a very young child, and Vallery never even knew Collin existed, until now. And now, Vallery is back and in charge of Collin, but not willingly and definitely not patiently.

To add to everything else in Lainey’s already chaotic life, there’s Riley, her adorably sweet boyfriend, who wants them to move in together and start a life of their own. But now that Vallery is back and they’re sharing the responsibility of Collin and for everything else, Lainey has way more to deal with than she ever has.

Now, Lainey has to get to know Vallery all over again, and get Collin to not only behave, but behave for Vallery and come to trust her. Then there’s the task of trying to find a way to forgive her mother for being mentally absent and leaving her. But how easy can it be to make peace with a dead woman?

There was so much about The Snowball Effect that I absolutely adored and it’s hard to know where to start! Lainey is one of those characters that is so easy to relate to. She’s frustrated with her siblings and her job, she has her friends and relationships to deal with, and it’s all complicated.

Holly Nicole Hoxter has an adorable hit on her hands. The story did tend to jump around a bit, but it made up for that with it’s realistic look at a teenager’s way of coping, while trying to move on and improve their life, plus dealing with whatever else life throws their way. Then there’s Riley, whom I absolutely adored! He’s kind and sweet and totally loves Lainey, no matter how she treats him. Talk about a fantastic boyfriend! There’s also the relationship that Lainey, Collin, and Vallery forge with one another, and I found it to be realistic and beautiful.

But there’s more to The Snowball Effect than the story itself. Hoxter’s writing flows so beautifully, and she has a talent that few writers have. There are few writers that have the ability to take an incredibly sad situation, such as the loss of a loved one, and make it so hilarious, yet moving. This is an author that I not only look forward to reading more from, but I also know will go far.

Watch out for Holly Nicole Hoxter, she’s a talented author and an awesome storyteller. The Snowball Effect actually reminded me somewhat of a Sarah Dessen novel, and that is always a good thing! I definitely recommended this to all teens, and adults, that enjoy a good, realistic, entertaining story.

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I received this book as part of 1 ARC Tours.