Rachael @ Moosubi ^__^

There are some readers that come into a book looking to be deeply moved or find a deeper meaning. No Angel, on the other hand, is the type of book that really isn't meant to be serious.It's filled with ridiculousness, drama and sometimes crude humor, even in its more "serious" or darker moments. Nonetheless, I enjoyed No Angel's light plot and characters.

One of the things that makes No Angel stand out is its lead. Unlike most paranormal books, No Angel follows a teenage guy. Raffi's not a Gary Stu, and at times, he's thinking of somewhat crude things. However, just like the blurb claims, his voice is pitch-perfect as a teenager and pretty easy to relate to. What's more is that his adventures are absolutely hilarious - somehow, he always gets into some form of unfortunate trouble and is forced to improvise his way out. That's not to say, however, that he's not a sort of hero. Although he's not the most upstanding citizen, he tries his best to help others and become a hero. Things just usually don't go as they planned. However, in that sense, Raf was a great narrator for No Angel, proving to be an entertaining yet somewhat heroic complement for its silly plot.

The side characters were also well written.By themselves, they probably wouldn't have stood out, but together they definitely formed a formidable group. Faith, for example, could be classified as a Mary Sue had she been the sole focus of the novel. However, she's balanced out by characters like Krystal, who's a bit wacky but witty and sarcastic in her own way. Though their personalities were really nothing new, each of their characters were unique and entertaining to follow. The chemistry between the characters and their secret plans and journeys also worked well together to create an even better story.

No Angel's plot really brought the book together. Though I place a lot of emphasis on the pure ridiculousness of the book, there's also more to my enjoyment of No Angel. It wasn't just that there was an abundance of ridiculous, laugh-inducing drama. It was also that it's a break away from the usual YA paranormal romance. How many angel books have you seen with a male lead, and one whose plot isn't largely focused on romance? From what I've seen, there aren't that many. As such, No Angel not only has a large entertainment factor, but is also refreshing in its rather different approach.

No Angel isn't particularly enlightening, but it's a book that's totally refreshing and immensely entertaining. Keeble's style of characters and new take on overdone genres such as angels is something I definitely will look forward to in her other works. If you're looking for a book that's different from a typical romance or a quick weekend read, definitely pick up No Angel!

It will take a certain type of reader to enjoy LOVE IN THE TIME OF GLOBAL WARMING. At times, this book is extremely confusing or unbelievable, and at times flowery in prose. While it's definitely an original book and one with a potential deeper meaning, LOVE IN THE TIME OF GLOBAL WARMING was ultimately a book I didn't enjoy. 

My main problem with the novel was that I couldn't believe its premise. While I loved that the book was a mash-up of dystopia, sci-fi and Greek mythology, the mix also made the world unbelievable. A dystopia, specifically, is supposed to creep you out in some way because it's a plausible version of the future. But when you add mythical Greek creatures into the mix, it doesn't quite work out. There's Giants, for example, that are roam around the land and attack humans. Apparently, they're extremely mutated and genetically modified forms of humans. While it's possible that this could happen in the far future, the explanation was too short for me to really believe it.

Some of the characters' decisions were also hard to believe or sympathize with. There's a point, for example, that Pen decides she wants to visit an art museum before leaving to find her family. Well, considering that Pen claimed finding her family was so important to her, and, well, she was in the midst of an apocalypse, it was hard to believe that she'd want to go look at some art.

On that note, it was also hard for me to connect with the characters. While Block's prose is lyrical and conveys a mystical and dark feeling, it prevented me from really caring about the characters. For the entirety of the book, I felt that Pen was somewhat detached or distant. Added with the fact that some of her decisions didn't make sense to me, it was hard for me to care about her. The same was true for most of the side characters - I felt like I only got to know their general personalities, rather than their flaws or emotions.

If there's one thing that Block excels at, however, is creativity. Even though I thought the world was unbelievable, it's one that's richly imagined and interesting to explore. The different creatures and places from The Odyssey were recreated in a darker and more contemporary way. While it did at times make the plot predictable, I enjoyed seeing how Block re-imagined different aspects of the original story.

LOVE IN THE TIME OF GLOBAL WARMING was overall a disappointing read. Although the world and concept were rich in creativity, ultimately the characters and unbelievability detracted from my experience. If you're thinking about trying this book, I'd suggest reading a few pages or a sample before purchasing the book, since your enjoyment of the novel is dependent on how you respond to Block's prose.

* I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a review. This did not affect my opinion of the book.

I love the idea of girls coming out to kick butt in male-dominated sports. Dairy Queen, for example, which is probably my favorite, was not only hilarious, but really well done. And even though I didn't love Out of Play, I still loved the hockey aspect in it. Wild Cards, on the other hand, was incredibly disappointing in almost every aspect.

My main problem with this book was that there was barely any football. If you have a blurb talking about a girl playing football, you'd think that there would be football, right? What actually happens, though, is that there's literally one chunk at the end of the book, with instances of training scattered in the middle of the plot. Yeah, um, a bit disappointing considering that the blurb pretty much gives you the idea of a football-centric plot.

Now, normally I would be okay with that plot structure, but instead of butt-kicking, football awesomeness, there was a ton of angst. In the beginning of the book, Ashtyn prided herself on being a non-clingy and trusting girlfriend. Well, after she breaks up with her ex-boyfriend (I don't even remember his name...), she becomes clingy, possessive and totally untrusting towards Derek. Even though she kept on rejecting him and saying that they weren't together. The whole love-hate relationship works if it's done well and builds tension, but I think in Wild Cards, it really takes away from the book. Ashtyn boomerangs from drooling on Derek and getting really intimate with him, then suddenly rejecting him and pushing him away. After a while, it got really annoying and repetitive, really detracting from my enjoyment of the book.

Derek, on the other hand, was just an okay character. He's pretty much flawless, so he wasn't a particularly interesting character. However, unlike Ashtyn, he didn't create a ton of unnecessary drama. I'd say overall I tolerated him, but I wasn't impressed by him either.

And the ending. I won't give it away just in case you're planning to read Wild Cards, but I felt that it was terribly unrealistic and rushed. I also felt that the whole debacle surrounding the ending just added unnecessary drama to the novel.

Wild Cards definitely isn't a book I'd recommend, because if its lacking characters, football plot and romance. If you're a fan of Simone Elkeles's works and enjoy love-hate relationships, you might enjoy this book more than I did. However, personally I'd recommend trying Dairy Queen or other sports books before you pick up this one.

* I received a free copy of this book for review purposes. This did not affect my opinion of the book.

After reading and really relating to Amy in PRETTY AMY last year, DEAR CASSIE was originally one of my most anticipated reads. Unfortunately, however, the book couldn’t quite live up to my expectations…

One of the reasons why I really enjoyed PRETTY AMY was that I felt like I could really relate to Amy’s character. Sure, sometimes she was whiny and filled with angst. Sure, sometimes she was a bit of a brat. But that didn’t really matter to me, because realistically, it was probably how I really would have felt. In DEAR CASSIE, however, I found that Cassie still had that teenage angst without the relatibility Amy had. Throughout the whole book, Cassie was either swearing at her campmates or whining about her situation. I understood that she was in an extremely unfortunate situation. However, until about 80% through the book, she never bothered to change herself or make her situation better.

The love story also didn’t work for me. I did like that it wasn’t the focus of the story, but it didn’t stand out to me either. Basically, you have the classic arrogant and cute boy who’s able to warm the heart of the broken and standoffish girl. Of course, the girl doesn’t really like the guy at first, but they eventually fall in love. Realistically, I’m sure we’ve all heard of that story multiple times :/ What’s more is how crazy the romance went in the end. For the sake of not spoiling the book, I won’t give specifics. But let’s just say that it went a bit too far…

The only real redeeming factor in this book was Cassie’s eventual development. The overall message of forgiving yourself was pretty encouraging, as was her more positive character. Despite my frustration with her character, I also felt like Lisa Burstein did a realistic job of getting into her head.

Overall, I did not enjoy DEAR CASSIE. Not only was I frustrated with Cassie’s voice for the majority of the book, but I also felt that the romance was subpar. Teenagers or readers who particularly enjoy stories about broken people might enjoy this book more, but I’d give the book 2.5 out of 5 flowers.

* Originally posted at The Book Belles.

I love high fantasy and stories involving royalty, so I was incredibly excited for The Princess in the Opal Mask. And while I didn't find this book to be exactly five-star material, it was still a fun and light read!

Elara was somewhat like your typical YA heroine, but there still was a part of her that I could really connect to. Though she's not particularly physically strong, her wits always kept her on her feet and made her an entertaining character to follow. Despite her shaky start and sometimes more manipulative and colder moments, it really felt like she had the makings of a true leader. It was really encouraging to see her get through all her struggles, particularly in the beginning of the book, to get her own happy ending.

Wilha, on the other hand, was harder for me to connect to. I get that having to wear a mask is hard because it hides your true identity and what not, but it was still hard for me to sympathize with her character. Especially since Elara had gone through much worse problems, Wilha seemed a bit snobby. What's more is that even after Wilha's released from her mask, she does something that seemed, to me, incredibly selfish and a bit stupid. From my perspective, it didn't seem like she grew much by the end of the book either. As such, compared to Elara, Wilha had much less of an effect on me.

Since there's a ton of action in the story (ie.: fight scenes), the plot is much more character-driven. Because of that, I felt similarly about the storyline - while I found Elara's story totally compelling, Wilha's was, well, not as much. After a certain point in the story (specifically, when Wilha made what was in my opinion a selfish and stupid mistake), Wilha's storyline became much blander. While Elara was learning about world politics, the castle and such, Wilha's part in the storyline is smaller, focusing on her day-to-day interactions with the characters she meets. Personally, I found that that part of the story was more boring to read, considering I was expecting more politics and action in both storylines.

One last thing I'd like to mention is age group. There isn't anything particularly inappropriate, but because of the relatively simple plot structure, The Princess in the Opal Mask might appeal more to younger readers. For example, there's a "twist" involving Elara and Wilha's past that I could guess even after simply reading a few pages that ended up coming after a hundred. The storyline is also relatively simple, but also light and enjoyable enough for younger readers. Wilha's storyline might also appeal to younger readers more so than it did to I.

The Princess in the Opal Mask didn't turn out to be what I expected, but it was, nonetheless, still an extremely quick and enjoyable read. Though its plot structure made the storyline relatively predictable, it also made the story light and perfect for a weekend read. I particularly recommend this for younger YA fantasy readers or those looking for a quick fairy-tale like read.

* I received a free copy of this book for review purposes. This did not affect my opinion of the book.

Saving Francesca, Melina Marchetta

I'll never get tired of this book.

The thing about mysteries is that they have to be both entertaining and surprising. FIND ME, on the other hand, excels at suspense, but was completely predictable. Nonetheless, I thoroughly enjoyed the story and its thrills.

The romance didn’t seem to take up too much of the book, but I wasn’t a total fan of it either. I didn’t really see a chemistry between Wick and Griff, so it didn’t add much to my enjoyment of the story. If you’re the type of reader who needs to have romance in the story, you might enjoy their relationship more. Personally, however, I found the romance rather bland.

I was also mixed about Wick. For the most part, she was a great heroine – she was brave, smart and persistent. I particularly admired her willingness to do absolutely anything for Lily. But what I was a bit doubtful about was her hacking skills. In the novel, the most she does to solve the mystery was track an IP address, which really isn’t hacking. I also didn’t understand why Wick didn’t use her hacking skills to trap her father and his cohorts. At times, her complete distrust of the police also seemed a bit ridiculous.

The pacing in FIND ME, however, is brilliant. Right off the bat, you’re thrown into the mystery, and from then on, the story doesn’t stop moving. I found myself completely immersed in the story (except for a couple parts, which I’ll talk about later) and was trying to guess the killer myself. This suspense was what really kept me reading and enjoying the story.

The ending and huge “reveal” really threw me off, though. When the villain was revealed, I just felt that the ending really let me down, especially since I got so hooked on the suspense earlier. In fact, the villain ended up being the one guy I thought he couldn’t be, since it would have been too simple.

Above all, FIND ME was a book I enjoyed. Even though I was mixed about the ending, romance and Wick, the suspense and Wick’s snark were an absolute thrill to read. I particularly recommend this to readers who need romance in their stories. Otherwise, I’d say that readers who enjoy the thrill of the chase more than the end of the chase itself might also enjoy this story.

* I received a free copy of this book for review purposes. This did not affect my opinion of the book.

One of the things I love about stories is that no matter how absurd something might seem, someone is able to come up with something spectacular. The Mirror and the Meretrix is a prime example of this - it combines classic courtroom drama and mystery with mythology and fairy tales.

I think one of the biggest pluses about this story for me was that it reminds me of my one of my all time favorite games, Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney. In both the video game and the story, there is a young, confident, inexperienced and talented lawyer who defends underdogs in court in order to either prove them innocent or lessen their punishment in some way. In order to do so, they examine crime scenes or places of interest, as well as cross examining the testimonies of witnesses. Combined with my endless marathons of Detective Conan, Criminal Minds, Suits, and NCIS, I think it's safe to assume that I'm a huge fan of crime or legal dramas, as well as novels such as The Mirror & The Meretrix that follow the genre.

On the other hand, you also have numerous retellings of those (now not-so) sweet fairy tales you remember. Sure, there's some angels, centaurs, and mythology involved, but most of the story is centered around around fairy tales. One may be upset to see the oh-so-sweet fairy tales twisted into such malicious matters, but I, for one, was interested in how the author was able to turn the tales of Snow White and the Seven Dwarves, Little Red Riding Hood, and many more into one epic tale. Overall, seeing glimpses of many tales blended into an intense story was certainly a treat for me, especially one involving legal drama.

I also thought that the characters were well developed, with distinct but certainly likable personalities. All of them were reasonably confident, fiercely loyal to each other, and bring special "skills" per se to the table. Each of their POVs also brought different insights, adding more plot layers. My only complaint is that sometimes, due to the multiple POVs, I figured out what was going to happen or who was responsible for whatever because one character in one POV already found a clue that connects to another, eventually leading to the solution. Of course, since the beginning, the author already gives you a basic idea of who the culprit is, so I suppose it's inevitable, although I admit that the author does a good job weaving an intricate story from a seemingly basic case.

Overall, The Mirror & The Meretrix is an amazing and complicated read, filled with suspense and lots of mysterious fun! I can't wait to read its sequel! This isn't a light read - there's a bit of info-dumping in the beginning. However, if you're a fan of crime or legal fiction, or are a fan of fairy tales (but not a traditionalist), this book will definitely be a treat for you

Before you read this book, ask yourself these questions:

- Are you okay with graphic sex scenes?
- What exactly are you expecting out of this book?
- Are you fine with unlikable characters, or characters that make decisions that you might not ever make? Even if they bend morals or values you’ve known your whole life?

USES FOR BOYS is the type of book that someone could completely hate or just fall in love with, but it really depends on what type of reader you are. Admittedly, it’s not the type of book that would appeal to many YA readers, especially if they’re expecting something completely different.

I’m still not quite sure what I think of Anna, but as the book progresses, you might find that Anna isn’t the most likable of heroines. At times, she’s cold to those who might really care about her, or just manipulative, in order to get what she wants. She also makes a lot of choices that might also be considered “dirty”. Because of that, I admit that I couldn’t quite relate to her character. To an extent, however, I still admired her. By the end of the book, you really can see how strong, loving, and supportive she could be, despite her past. She just goes through so much, just to have life push her back, yet somehow she survived. Her recovery was, in my opinion, remarkable.

What you expect of the book will also make or break your experience. Everything about the cover, and even some parts of the blurb SCREAM a fluffy, humorous, or somewhat happy story. Instead, USES FOR BOYS is much more dark and gritty. Throughout the story, you encounter alcohol, rape, heartbreak, runaways, and so many other things. In fact, you don’t meet Sam (who, as you can see from the blurb, is probably the positive part in Anna’s story) until about 60 or 70% into the book. Before that, Anna had suffered so much. The mood and story definitely weren’t fluffy, except for a few romantic moments with Sam. This is definitely NOT a beach read.

Of course, I’m not saying that’s a bad thing, but rather, maybe something unexpected. The plot might have a sad beginning, but it’s more of a story about learning to move on and recover, even after struggling so much. At times, Anna’s story is heart breaking, but it’s also moving and emotional. By the end of the book, you do also end up with a sense of hope for Anna, for a sort of “new beginning”, and a chance for happiness.

The language is probably my one qualm about the book. As the book went on, sometimes Anna’s voiced seemed detached and a bit jumbled. Sometimes the book also skips around in terms of order of plot events, making it a bit confusing for me. Sometimes some details are also skipped over, so I suppose you also have to infer what had just happened. For this, what I suggest is to read the first few pages, if you get the chance, to see if you’re fine with the language. Eventually, I got used to it, but it could be a bit taxing to get through.

And on an age-appropriateness note, USES FOR BOYS is probably a VERY mature YA novel, maybe even in the New Adult category. There are A LOT of sex scenes, some of them being pretty graphic…

Personally, I found that USES OF BOYS was a moving but very dark story about recovery. If you’re looking for a darker and different type of contemporary, you might want to consider Uses for Boys, although as always, I suggest reading the first few pages or checking the book out at the library to see if the book is for you (:

* A copy of this book was provided for the virtual blog tour. This did not affect my opinion of the book.

So I know a total of six "Asian" books, four of them being high fantasies and one being a dystopia. And as much as I love reading action scenes about those sword-slinging, dragon-slaying warriors of death, I can't say I find a ton of humor in or am able to relate to them. SINCE YOU ASKED... though, is not only a book that had characters I could relate to, but also a book that made me laugh!

Holly is not only a character that almost every teenager can relate to, but also one that was hilarious, felt authentic and that I admired. Like almost any teenager, she faces your everyday high schooler problems - bullying, hard tests, stupid people, popularity and, of course, parents. However, I especially really liked how Holly handled these problems. Personally, I'm not the most outspoken person, so I really admired Holly's ability to express her opinions freely. Whenever she had a problem with someone's treatment of her, or with whatever issue it is in high school, she never hesitated to tell everyone. And, of course, she'd do it in a way that might be full of snark, but still entertaining.

It was also a plus that Holly was, well, oriental Asian. I'm not Korean, but a lot of stereotypes and expectations that oriental Asians face are the same, so I felt like I totally understood what Holly was going through. Mainly, there's that Holly has to balance her need to live peacefully alongside her Korean family with her desires to become a normal "American" girl. There's also that Holly has to decide between making her parents proud, or following her own literature or liberal art related passions. They're both struggles that I, luckily, don't have to deal with as much as Holly, but were, in my opinion, well portrayed and definitely realistic. 

As for the plot, it probably won't appeal to everybody, but I ended up really liking it! It's not focused on a romance, or even family problems, but more as a phase in Holly's life. And maybe not even a life changing one. But somehow, I ended up liking it that way. I think it was Holly's best friend, David, who said that people expect huge things to happen on the last day of school. Well, really, it might be the whole school year that people expect huge things to happen. Obviously life changing events don't happen all year long, though. So instead, I think the novel really focuses on depicting how Holly reacts to different situations challenging her culture and identity, as well as her satirical views on normal high school traditions, like Homecoming.

The same is true for the ending. I was looking at the book's GR page a few days ago, and some readers commented that the ending was too open ended. Again, it's not the type of ending you typically see in a lot of YA contemporaries, and one that might not appeal to anyone. But realistically, that's how life happens - it doesn't tie up nicely. Which is, strangely, how I liked it.

In a market saturated with the seemingly same, cutesy and short plot in each and every story, SINCE YOU ASKED... stands out in that it's 100% realistic and contains some pretty refreshing views on high school, culture, and sometimes even life itself. I'd say if you're looking for a short contemporary read that's just different, you should definitely try this out - Holly's voice and columns are unique, entertaining and absolutely hilarious!

* A copy of the novel was provided for the blog tour. This did not affect my opinion of the book – this review expresses my honest opinions

As I'm uploading my reviews to BL, I'm starting to cringe at how horrid some of my old reviews were written. Yuck >__<

Soon-to-be college student Noah Gallagher expects a boring summer with his sister and grandmother and working a marine biology internship. Then he meets Mara, who’s beautiful, mysterious and shares a chemistry like never before, only to find out she’s a selkie like those in his grandmother’s tales. Soon, Noah embarks on a quest to save Mara’s kidnapped selkie sister.

TIDES isn’t the most exciting or quick-paced book, but it’s definitely a beautifully written novel. The language flows extremely well and has a mellow, peaceful sort of feel that’s both pleasant sounding and intriguing. The world Cornwell creates is especially beautiful, making you feel as if you can actually feel and see the island and ocean! However, because of this the plot moves more slowly, focusing more on building the world and sweet romance. In fact, Noah actually doesn’t start investigating the kidnapping until after over half of the book. I was also a bit disappointed to see not as much focus on Lo’s bulimia, as it was resolved pretty easily.

Still, TIDES is a very well-written story, complete with a heartbreaking and bittersweet ending. Cornwell's world and language is beautifully crafted, and definitely an author to watch out for! Younger fantasy readers or fans of selkie lore definitely should check this book out.

* I received a free copy of this book for review purposes. This did not affect my opinion of the book.

I have this thing with sequels. Either I loved the first book and the second book, or I loved the first book and thought the second book was just... meh. STUDENT BODIES, though, is one of those cases that the sequel really surprised me - in a good way!

One of the reasons POLTERGEEKS didn't make it into my absolute favorites list was because it seemed to... happy, I suppose, for me. That's alright with me - after all, I still enjoyed the plot - but it's not my absolute favorite because it's still your classic hero story, with your brave heroine, sidekicks and mostly-happily-ever-after. Again, nothing particularly wrong with that. But not exactly too original or dark either, which is why the first book was something I'd still recommend to middle grade readers.

What I liked about STUDENT BODIES, though, is that it really goes into darker and more "mature" subjects. You still have that fantastical spell chanting and potion making - just more things that I thought made it more of a YA novel. In case you couldn't tell from the blurb, Julie now has a boyfriend, Marcus, and has to deal with how to balance that with her duties as a Shadowcull and her parent. While I'm sure none of us have her powers, I'm sure we could all relate to Julie's frustration at times, which I didn't see in the last book. Other than that, there are heavier themes about bullying, though that still seemed a bit middle-grade to me (think: wedgies and dumpsters).

On that note, I'm still in love with Julie's voice! It has just the right amount of sass and smarts in it, and just a bit of teenage angst for realistic-ness. On the other hand, she’s still the bad-ass, magic-wielding heroine. Cumming’s balance of the two was great, and I really enjoyed her character! 

Other than Julie, my favorite part of the book was Twyla! They’re quite different characters, but at the same time, they’re also very similar in their drive to investigate. I loved how they worked together as a team, so hopefully we see more of them in the next book! At the same time, though, I also felt that Marcus’s character wasn’t as enjoyable. Maybe it’s because of the romance, or because of Twyla’s addition, but I didn’t really feel his pull as much. 

Nonetheless, STUDENT BODIES is a fun and quick sequel that I’d easily recommend! In fact, even if you felt like POLTERGEEKS was a bit too happy or juvenile, I still feel as if STUDENT BODIES is an improvement from the first. Otherwise, fans of the series or urban fantasy magic definitely should check this series out! (:

* A free review copy of this book was provided for the blog tour. This did not affect my opinion of the book.

Pre-review:

What an.... interesting title. Can't wait to see what comes next though!