[Book Review] Tiny Pretty Things by Sona Charaipotra & Dhonielle Clayton

Tiny Pretty Things
by Sona Charaipotra & Dhonielle Clayton 

Black Swan meets Pretty Little Liars in this soapy, drama-packed novel featuring diverse characters who will do anything to be the prima at their elite ballet school.

Gigi, Bette, and June, three top students at an exclusive Manhattan ballet school, have seen their fair share of drama. Free-spirited new girl Gigi just wants to dance—but the very act might kill her. Privileged New Yorker Bette's desire to escape the shadow of her ballet star sister brings out a dangerous edge in her. And perfectionist June needs to land a lead role this year or her controlling mother will put an end to her dancing dreams forever. When every dancer is both friend and foe, the girls will sacrifice, manipulate, and backstab to be the best of the best.

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"Perfection comes at a price..."

With multiple POVs, Tiny Pretty Things makes us see ballet in a whole different way. With girls having such high hopes for a lead position, non-stop training, and backstabing at every corner, this is definitely an intense novel that's filled with drama. The only problem that I had with it is that it was a little too immature for me. 

You have Gigi, Bette, and June who are completely 3 different girls going to a prestige and exclusive ballet school with dreams of becoming the lead for some of the largest pieces that are put on stage. But with the weight ins, family issues, and trying to keep your head up high at the same time, it is not as easy as it seems. When girls get hurt, they have come back up and show that they are worth being on stage because of their dreams and their family's dreams. 

I was shocked at the pave in which this book was written. The characters made me wish that the society wouldn't be so hard on them but having them fight with their inner self and having all the confidence they could get was actually motivational. But the moments where those "teenage love" came out weren't for me. And I am not sure if it was the way it was presented or just me but I did not find them interesting. Overall, the book itself was a great read and I will read more from this author.

[Audiobook Review + Giveaway] Blades of Magic by Terah Edun

Blades of Magic (Crown Service #1)

by Terah Edun 

Release Date: 03/31/14

Length: 8 hours and 14 minutes

Narrator: Sylvia Roldn Dohi

Summary from Goodreads:

It is not a peaceful time in the Algardis Empire. War is raging between the mages and seventeen-year-old Sara Fairchild will be right in the middle of it.

She just doesn't know it yet.

Sara is the daughter of a disgraced imperial commander, executed for desertion. Sara is also the best duelist and hand-to-hand combatant in Sandrin. She lives quietly with her family’s shame but when challenged about her family’s honor, her opponent inevitably loses.

On the night she finds out her father’s true last actions, she takes the Mercenary Guilds’ vows to serve in the emperor’s army. Using her quick wits and fierce fighting skills, she earns a spot in the first division.

There she discovers secrets the mages on both sides would prefer stay hidden. Dark enemies hunt her and soon it's not just Sara questioning the motivation behind this war.

While fighting mages, blackmailing merchants and discovering new friends, Sara comes across something she’s never had before - passion. The question is - can she fight for her empress against a mage who might unwittingly claim her heart?

This is year one of the Initiate Wars. Sara is hoping it doesn't become the year she dies.

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About the Author

Terah Edun is a young adult fantasy writer that writes the stories that she always loved to read as a young girl. She prefers reading and writing high fantasy tales of adventure, magic, fellowship and courtship. Her latest book is Sworn To Conflict, the third in the Courtlight series.

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The simple idea behind thinking that your father died as a disgraced soldier would put any daughter in bad position within herself. And Sara, being the skilled warrior that she is, must obey her family in order to have some sort of memory of her father that is not changed by what everyone thinks. When she discovers that her father might not be guilty overall, she is determined to find the truth and bring respect and honor back to her family's name.

I loved the way the story started - with a big bang. The fights, the witty side of Sara was really entertaining and she was the ultimate badass in my book. And can I mention that she also possessed some sick magic skills and had a sidekick? This book was entertaining, fast, and with the perfect narrator, it brought the story to life. Highly recommended for all High Fantasy lovers! 

 

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[Book Review] Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard

Red Queen
by Victoria Aveyard

The poverty stricken Reds are commoners, living under the rule of the Silvers, elite warriors with god-like powers.

To Mare Barrow, a 17-year-old Red girl from The Stilts, it looks like nothing will ever change.

Mare finds herself working in the Silver Palace, at the centre of
those she hates the most. She quickly discovers that, despite her red blood, she possesses a deadly power of her own. One that threatens to destroy Silver control.

But power is a dangerous game. And in this world divided by blood, who will win? 

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Red Queen was one of the books that highly said: PROCEED WITH CAUTION! just because it was buzzing through the bookish world months before it was released. With my experience, the books that get the most buzz are either going to be my favorite ones or I will hate them. In this case, I'm very torn because I am somewhere in the middle. 

As the story starts, we are introduced to the world building which is pretty simple. You have this mixed between modern and 18th century feel to the society where the technology is advanced enough to have techy gadgets but there is still royalty & fancy dresses with their Queens and Kings and other "proper" politics. But this world is also a lot different since it is split between Silvers and Reds - the name coming from the color of blood that the people carry. 

Silvers are in charge. Being special, they also possess some powers that show Reds that if they do not behave, they will be put into their place. But the war between the two kinds have been raging for awhile and even though the army mostly consists of Reds, there are a lot of arguments. I couldn't really understand the whole situation that well because the book didn't go very deep into it. 

Mare belongs to Reds but since her flirting with the Prince, he decides to take her into the castle and portrayed her a Silver to bring some peace to politics and try to stop the war. Being betrothed to one of the Prince, she must be a part of the Silver Palace including training of the powers which she discovers are very powerful. 

She is special. She is the One. As always. 

And that is why I didn't really feel like it was that much special. Yes, the book cover made me fall in love with the book but the book itself made me realize that things simply will not workout between us. No matter how pretty the graphics are *pout*

[Made-Me-Depressed Book Review] Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli

Simon vs. The Homo Sapiens Agenda
by Becky Albertalli  

Sixteen-year-old and not-so-openly gay Simon Spier prefers to save his drama for the school musical. But when an email falls into the wrong hands, his secret is at risk of being thrust into the spotlight. Now Simon is actually being blackmailed: if he doesn’t play wingman for class clown Martin, his sexual identity will become everyone’s business. Worse, the privacy of Blue, the pen name of the boy he’s been emailing, will be compromised.

With some messy dynamics emerging in his once tight-knit group of friends, and his email correspondence with Blue growing more flirtatious every day, Simon’s junior year has suddenly gotten all kinds of complicated. Now, change-averse Simon has to find a way to step out of his comfort zone before he’s pushed out—without alienating his friends, compromising himself, or fumbling a shot at happiness with the most confusing, adorable guy he’s never met. 

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Is there something wrong with it? Because everyone on the Internet loved this book & I'm sitting here like... mehhh.

Story introduces us to a sixteen-year-old Simon Spier who even though is not openly gay, is completely comfortable with it and just haven't found the right opportunity to announce it to his friends and family. Although emailing with a mysterious boy and getting more flirty is intriguing, he doesn't want anyone to find out. So when his classmate "blackmails" him into hanging out with one of his friends, he wouldn't want the emails getting out. 

Let's stop right there..

Simon is great. Shy and funny and lovable character with great family and friends, he's into that "lovey-dovey" romance that many and MANY girls drool over.. But it was just not for me. at all...

I actually got depressed while reading this book. Yup, that's how much I wanted to DNF it but had to finish because of the buzz it's been getting. Damn book buzz and it's incredible appeal to my visual senses. 

So yes, let's just mark that into it's-not-you-it's-me category so I can go be happy again.

[Book Review] Dear Killer by Katherine Ewell

Dear Killer
by Katherine Ewell 

Kit takes her role as London’s notorious “Perfect Killer” seriously. The letters and cash that come to her via a secret mailbox are not a game; choosing who to kill is not an impulse decision. Every letter she receives begins with “Dear Killer,” and every time Kit murders, she leaves a letter with the dead body. Her moral nihilism and thus her murders are a way of life—the only way of life she has ever known.

But when a letter appears in the mailbox that will have the power to topple Kit’s convictions as perfectly as she commits her murders, she must make a decision: follow the only rules she has ever known, or challenge Rule One, and go from there.

Katherine Ewell’s Dear Killer is a sinister psychological thriller that explores the thin line between good and evil, and the messiness of that inevitable moment when life contradicts everything you believe.

 GOODREADS 

Rule One—Nothing is right, nothing is wrong.
Rule Two—Be careful.
Rule Three—Fight using your legs whenever possible, because they’re the strongest part of your body. Your arms are the weakest.
Rule Four—Hit to kill. The first blow should be the last, if at all possible.
Rule Five—The letters are the law. 

If you thought that having a seventeen year old as a serial killer is silly, think again. Nothing about Kit is silly. She is a cold-blooded killer who is precise and does everything with absolute detail. 

“I kill on order. I am everyone's assassin. I belong to no one but the grim reaper herself.”

Having to train from her mother, Kit knows exactly what she needs to do to make this world better. Take people out one by one if they betrayed someone or broke someone's heart. When a letter comes in from her school, she knows she will do it soon but there are some planning that she has to do first. With everything piling on, she also befriends a cop that is unofficially working on the Perfect Killer case. 

“Sometimes I imagine we're all like paper stars, folded up and gathered together, each of us convinced that we are glittering and celestial, each of us bent into a shape so we believe we're something we're not.”

Incredibly entertaining, I definitely loved the writing and the way characters were set up. Having Kit transform into another version of herself can tell that she has issues but the actual danger of her actions are unbelievable. Great read!

[Book Review] Talon by Julie Kagawa

Talon 
by Julie Kagawa

Long ago, dragons were hunted to near extinction by the Order of St. George, a legendary society of dragon slayers. Hiding in human form and growing their numbers in secret, the dragons of Talon have become strong and cunning, and they're positioned to take over the world with humans none the wiser.

Ember and Dante Hill are the only sister and brother known to dragonkind. Trained to infiltrate society, Ember wants to live the teen experience and enjoy a summer of freedom before taking her destined place in Talon. But destiny is a matter of perspective, and a rogue dragon will soon challenge everything Ember has been taught. As Ember struggles to accept her future, she and her brother are hunted by the Order of St. George.

Soldier Garret Xavier Sebastian has a mission to seek and destroy all dragons, and Talon's newest recruits in particular. But he cannot kill unless he is certain he has found his prey: and nothing is certain about Ember Hill. Faced with Ember's bravery, confidence and all-too-human desires, Garret begins to question everything that the Order has ingrained in him: and what he might be willing to give up to find the truth about dragons. 

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“They wanted me to sit, listen, learn, be quiet, 

when I wanted to run, shout, jump, fly.”

Dragon aspect in any books is always intriguing because you don't know how the story will go, who will they kill, and what the situation actually is. In Talon, we see a whole secret society of dragons who learned how to take human's form to fit in and try to make sure that humans do not suspect anything. The organization that manages the whole society is called Talon but they might not be what everyone thinks they are. With ongoing war against the Order of St. George, they have managed to stay hidden and grow in numbers. 

I would say that if I would have to judge the book by its originality and the whole idea of it, it would definitely be 7 out of 10. But the way Kagawa wrote it definitely felt more like a paranormal romance novel that included the dragon aspect of it but not really dug deep into it. With a cliche love triangle mixed with forbidden love, Talon still includes a lot of action but not enough to overlook the "I'm-a-teenger-I-do-What-I-Want" feel of it. 

“Because you're exactly like me- you don't want your whole life planned out. You're tired of following Talon's rules, of not having any say in your future. You want to know who Talon really is, but it's even more than that, isn't it? You want to be free." His eyes gleamed, golden and brilliant in the shadows. "And I can show you how.”

Ember, Dente, Garret, Riley - POVs of each one of these characters are bringing the story more to life. Ember herself was a little frustrating at times just because she wanted to have fun and didn't care at all about anyone around her. You would think that if you're in training to be one of the killers for Talon, you wouldn't want to kiss random "humans" around. Think my favorite was definitely Garret. Even with him being the enemy, I loved his personality. The emotions that he was feeling and the newness of them were surprising to him & he was just overall badass. 

My overall thought? Although this wasn't as perfect as I would liked it to be, I did enjoy listening to it as an audiobook and think I will continue with the series. I loved Garret and think I can overlook all the other flaws to see where the story goes.

[Audiobook Spotlight] Crossing the Ice by Jennifer Comeaux

Crossing the Ice (Ice #1)

by Jennifer Comeaux

Release Date: 08/03/14

Summary from Goodreads:

Falling hard never felt so good.

Pair skaters Courtney and Mark have one shot left at their Olympic dream. They vow not to let anything get in their way, especially not Josh and Stephanie, the wealthy and talented brother and sister team.

The heart doesn’t always listen to reason, though...

The more time Courtney spends with sweet, shy Josh, the harder she falls for him. But they are on opposite sides of the competition, and their futures are headed in opposite directions. Will their friendship blossom into more or are their paths too different to cross?

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About the Author
Jennifer Comeaux is a tax accountant by day, writer by night. There aren’t any ice rinks near her home in south Louisiana, but she’s a diehard figure skating fan and loves to write stories of romance set in the world of competitive skating. One of her favorite pastimes is travelling to competitions, where she can experience all the glitz and drama that inspire her writing. Jennifer loves to hear from readers! Visit jennifercomeaux.blogspot.com for contact information and to learn more about her books.

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