review - Pivot Point by Kasie West

Title: Pivot Point (Pivot Point #1)

Author: Kasie West

Published: February 12th 2013 by HarperTeen

My rating: 

Summary:

All her life, Addie Coleman's lived in a paranormal compound where everyone is born with different mind abilities. She is able to see two different futures she could experience and is able to choose which path she wishes to go on.
When her parent's split up, she has to decide whether she'll live with her mother in the compound, or with her dad, who's moving out of the compound and into the "norm" world.

So Addie uses her own abilities to see her two choices of what will happen if she chooses to go with either of them, over the space of six weeks. Both will have love, loss and betrayal, and in the end she must choose ultimately which future she'd rather live through.

My thoughts:

Pivot Point puts an interesting twist on love triangles. Each alternating chapter is a chapter in the future where she'd live in the "Norm" world, and then the next is if she were living in the "Para" world, each with a different guy.


The main character Addie can be confusing at times. She can be stubborn and relentless yet in the other future she seems to give up really easily, almost as though she's two different people in the two futures.
At first this bothered me, but I think it's more to do with the other people around her and what they influence her to do, rather than a fault in the consistency.


It kind of starts out like a contemporary chick lit book except with paranormal aspects, although the deeper you get into it, the more complicated and clever it gets. It also becomes quite dark in places but I loved it.

All characters are well developed and lovable (well, not all are lovable, but the villains are still great). Overall I give Pivot Point 4.5 stars as it's a great page turner. This is definitely one to read if you haven't already.

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review - Shadow Kiss by Richelle Mead

Title: Shadow Kiss (Vampire Academy #3)

Author: Richelle Mead

Published: November 13th 2008 by Razorbill

My rating: 

My summary:

Ever since Rose Hathaway (to- be graduate of St Vladimir's) got her first two Strigoi kills, she hasn't been well. She's behaving erratically, having dark thoughts, and worst of all: she's seeing the ghost of Mason, her good friend who called killed only a month or so before.
While Rose questions her stability, Lissa starts to experiment with Spirit, the power that took her to the point of attempted suicide when she used it a few months ago, and the man who tortured her to her to use on him, Victor Dashkov, may be set free. And, to make things even worse, Rose is stuck guarding Christian Ozera for six weeks for a training exercise set my the Academy.
Much to Rose's delight, her and Dimitri's relationship starts to heat up again, but just as it does, an unexpected threat puts the whole Moroi and Dhampir world in a spin, and Rose and Dimitri must put their lives on the line - and Rose must chose between the two people who mean the world to her.

My thoughts: 

For those who've never read the book there are spoilers ahead!

When I first read Shadow Kiss, it made the series for me. This was the definitely the best of Vampire Academy I'd read so far and it was when my obsession of the books officially began.

I know I've said that books I've read have made me very emotional, and that's true, but never as this book did. I swear (and this is very embarrassing tot say, mind you), when I was reading the last few chapters tears welled in my eyes. I was listening to sad music at the time, that mustn't of helped, but still. The end of this book is very upsetting, yet so amazing.

The book starts with Rose finding out that Victor was going on trial, and wasn't just being locked up straight away, which she's very angry about. Adrian gets Lissa and Rose to the trial, and when they're at the court, Rose starts to see ghosts.
Adrian's character is developed more in this book, making me like him more and more. Dimitri actually not so much. He acts like a total dick for the first part of the book, which really upset because I'd liked him a lot in the first two books, but I think it was done of purpose.
That clears up though and you like him again, so you can imagine how absolutely shocked I was when he turned into a Strigoi at the end. I couldn't believe Richelle Mead did that to him!
But as sad as it was, it really made the series suddenly a lot more interesting.
In the first book Dimitri told Rose if he ever turned Strigoi he'd want someone to kill him, so in the end Rose chooses to leave St Vladimir's (and Lissa) to hunt down Dimitri and kill him.

Richelle Mead has really done this story justice with this book. The battle scenes in the end of the book are so suspenseful. The plot thickens and the character develop more.
This definitely was my favourite of the first three books in the series.

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Also by Richelle Mead:

review - The Indigo Spell by Richelle Mead

Title: The Indigo Spell (Bloodlines #3)

Author: Richelle Mead

Published: February 12th 2013 by Razorbill

My rating: 

Summary: 

In the aftermath of a forbidden moment that rocked Sydney to her core, she finds herself struggling to draw the line between her Alchemist teachings and what her heart is urging her to do. Then she meets alluring, rebellious Marcus Finch--a former Alchemist who escaped against all odds, and is now on the run. Marcus wants to teach Sydney the secrets he claims the Alchemists are hiding from her. But as he pushes her to rebel against the people who raised her, Sydney finds that breaking free is harder than she thought. There is an old and mysterious magic rooted deeply within her. And as she searches for an evil magic user targeting powerful young witches, she realizes that her only hope is to embrace her magical blood--or else she might be next.


Populated with new faces as well as familiar ones, the Bloodlines series explores all the friendship, romance, battles, and betrayals that made the #1 New York Times bestselling Vampire Academy series so addictive—this time in a part-vampire, part-human setting where the stakes are even higher and everyone’s out for blood.

-- Goodreads description

My thoughts:

Waiting a year for this book was pure torture. I was starved from lack of Sydney/Adrian moments by the time I actually got the book (there were a few delays - my supplier was out of stock) I devoured it in almost one go.

The Indigo Spell is probably my favourite in the Bloodlines series so far. The mystery was so enrapturing and I think I fell in love with Adrian even more than before (if that's even possible...) His wit never failed to make me giggle, sometimes even outright laugh, and I loved Sydney's stubbornness and sassiness which she reserves only for Adrian (although she does a little changing herself which is good - but I'm not saying any more about that).

Oh, and did I mention how amazing the Sydney/Adrian moments are? They're incredibly - they had me out of my chair squealing and jumping around like a fangirl aged thirteen.

I loved the whole deal with the Alchemists and their betrayals and such, and I loved meeting Marcus - he's terrific. 

I hope Eddie gets the happy ending he deserves, as with Jill... (and of course we can't forget Adrian and Sydney now can we??) 

There was a massive cliffhanger at the end and I can not wait for the next book coming out in November. It seems so far away... oh well at least it isn't next year!! Can't wait to read Adrian's POV, it's going to be INCREDIBLE!!!

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cover reveal - The Fiery Heart by Richelle Mead

The Fiery Heart is the fourth novel in Richelle Mead New York Times bestselling Bloodlines series (spin off to International bestselling Vampire Academy series) set to be released November 19th this year!

In The Indigo Spell, Sydney was torn between the Alchemist way of life and what her heart and gut were telling her to do. And in one breathtaking moment that Richelle Mead fans will never forget, she made a decision that shocked even her. . . .

But the struggle isn't over for Sydney. As she navigates the aftermath of her life-changing decision, she still finds herself pulled in too many directions at once. Her sister Zoe has arrived, and while Sydney longs to grow closer to her, there's still so much she must keep secret. Working with Marcus has changed the way she views the Alchemists, and Sydney must tread a careful path as she harnesses her profound magical ability to undermine the way of life she was raised to defend. Consumed by passion and vengeance, Sydney struggles to keep her secret life under wraps as the threat of exposure—and re-education—looms larger than ever.

Pulses will race throughout this thrilling fourth installment in the New York Times bestselling Bloodlines series, where no secret is safe.

-- Goodreads description

What do you think? Looks good doesn't it? I'm literally counting down the days to this one!

Other books in the Bloodlines series:

Sweet Evil review

Title: Sweet Evil (The Sweet Trilogy #1)

Author: Wendy Higgins

Published: May 1st 2012 by HarperTeen

My rating: 

My summary: 

One girl, one boy. One good, one evil.

What if your survival depended on you being a bad influence?

For some teens, this is their reality. Each born and raised by fallen angels, and to serve a different purpose - to deal drugs, to persuade kids to be alcoholic, or to get them in bed as soon as they meet them.

Southern girl Anna Whitt has always been blessed with the gift of seeing and feeling other's emotions, although sometimes it doesn't feel like such a gift. She can feel darkness pulling at her from within, but luckily for good girl Anna, she has her Angel part to balance it out.
It's not until she meets Kaiden Rowe, a son of a fallen angel, does she learn the truth about her terrifying heritage.

Now her balance of angel and devil is put to the test, and in the end... will Anna embrace the good, or the evil?

My thoughts:

It's not often when I can put a five-star-rating on a book without having to really think it through, to decide if I think it's worthy. Sweet Evil is one of those exceptions. As soon as I finished it, I knew I had to give it five stars.

The story brings out a roller coaster of emotions from the reader, and it flies over a long period of time, covering what most authors would cover in two books, but yet I didn't feel exhausted after reading it, I just wanted more.

The characters are well developed and likable  even Anna, who I originally thought would be one of those annoyingly goody-two-shoes no-faults kind of girl. She does come across like that in the beginning, although her character changes and evolves which I believe all good stories should have.

The ending was incredibly heartbreaking yet fulfilling at the same time and there was a massive cliffhanger, so I've already pre-ordered the sequel, Sweet Peril (set to be released April 30th 2013) because can't wait to read it.

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House Of Night review

Title: Marked (House of Night #1)

Author: P.C. Cast, Kristin Cast

Published: October 16th 2012 by Atom

My rating: 

My summary: 

Zoey Redbird is an ordinary teen going to an ordinary school and has an ordinary life. Until the day she is 'marked'. Zoey and her friends have always known vampyres are real, though they never dreamed they would become one themselves. 
Because of the mark, Zoey soon changes into a vampyre and can no longer live among humans. 
She must leave her family and friends and join The House of Night, a school for young vampyres, learning on a nocturnal schedule.
But Zoey is no ordinary vampyre. She is chosen by the vampyre's goddess, 
And at The House of Night there is something wrong. Vampyres aren't using their powers to do good. 
With help of the powers Nyx gave her, and her new friends at House of Night, Zoey must stop those who are going against everything the goddess has taught them.

My thoughts:

The House of Night is co authored by a mother and her daughter. Their creativity leaps of the page in this book. They have captured every character so well and made every detail believable. This novel gives a new twist to vampires that I have never come across before. 
The mixture of goddesses and vampyres really works for me as it is refreshing to read something so different to most young adult paranormal romance fiction.

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Frostbite review

Title: Frostbite (Vampire Academy #2)

Author: Richelle Mead

Published: April 10th 2008 by Razorbill

My rating: 

My summary:

Winter break has arrived at St Vladimir's but Rose feels anything but celebratory. Her badass mother punched her in the face, a guy she could never like has a massive crush on her, and she keeps getting stuck in the mind of her best friend Lissa while she's making out with her boyfriend.
And as if Rose's problems aren't enough, the academy is crawling with guardians after a recent Strigoi attack, and the landscape of the beautiful posh Idaho resort all the students are sent to is only an illusion of protection.
When a few of her friends sneak off to make an attack on the deadly Strigoi, Rose joins forces with Lissa's boyfriend to save them. 
But as Rose soon finds out, heroism isn't as easy as it may seem...

My thoughts:

***caution spoilers ahead, read with caution***
In Frosbite you learn more about the powers of Spirit, and we get introduced to Adrian Ivashkov, another Spirit user, like Lissa.
He's a rather complex character, a bit of a wreck, but I instantly liked him. He had good sense of humour and even though Rose didn't like him, and he wasn't such a big character, I knew he'd become a bigger, because he had a certain likable quality in him.
We also learn more about Mason in this book and I was liking him more and more and was really upset when he was killed. He had a massive crush on Rose and they had a fight, which was why he left to find the Strigoi nest, so Rose blamed herself for his death, which is sad.
Dimitri and Rose's relationship doesn't deepen in Frostbite as Dimitri has his eye on someone else, which tears Rose up.
Later on in the book when Rose and Christian (that's Lissa's boyfriend) go to rescue Mason, Mia, and Eddie when they try and seek out the Strigoi's nest, they find them, but they can't rescue them. The Strigoi capture them all, and hold them captive, feeding off Eddie. 
They do manage to escape with the help of Christian's fire power and Mia's water power, and Rose ends up killing two Strigoi (with a blunt sword by the way, which is skilled) but Mason is killed.
In the process of this, Mia and Rose bond, and the old hatred between them dies. So from you go from hating Mia at the beginning of them book to thinking she's epic at the end. That's pretty clever of Richelle Mead.
In the end, Rose's worries of Dimitri liking someone else is relieved as he tells her he couldn't love anybody else apart from her. So sweet :')
Overall, I loved this book maybe even more than the first in the series, and Richelle Mead has done a wonderful job of making me love the characters even more (if that's even possible?)

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Finale review

Title: Finale (Hush, Hush #4)

Author: Becca Fitzpatrick

Published: October 23rd 2012 by Simon & Schuster for Young Readers

My rating: 

My Summary: 

This is the fourth and final book in the bestselling Hush, Hush series. In the previous book, Silence, Nora swore an oath that if Hank Miller (aka The Black Hand and her dad) died, she'd take his place as leader of the Nephilim race. And, naturally, he died so she became the leader. So in Finale Nora is to lead the Nephilim army to war against the fallen angels, which also means against Patch (aka fallen angel and love of her life).
Naturally, she doesn't want to do this, so she and Patch devise a plan: lead everyone to believe they are no longer together and while Nora tries to convince the Nephilim not to fight the fallen angels, Patch would be finding out as much as he can about the fallen angels' plans, stopping the war before it even begins.
But even the best of plans turn astray and when Nora finds herself with a supposed friend turned into unexpected enemy, and an troubling addiction to deal with, it leaves her unprepared for her most frightening journey yet...

My thoughts:

It's done. Patch and Nora's story is finished and I'm more than bit sad about that. Although, I must say it ends well and I don't find myself wishing there was another book so I guess that means it's completed.

Overall I enjoyed this book, yet it's not my favourite in the series.
Oh, and Nora totally changes. She goes from sweet protective Nora to manipulative ass-kicking Nora. I actually think I liked the earlier Nora more, it seemed more HER - just saying.

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