An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir (a book published this year)

For once a book that was actually worth all the hype surrounding it! This book was really fast paced and each chapter ended in a great cliff-hanger that was made even more awesome because of the changing perspectives. Yes, this book had a lot of elements found in other YA, like the trials and the dictator society, but the book was unique and interesting. I only have two problems with the book; it didn't really remind me of ancient Rome and that it is a stand alone. The book was pitched as ancient Rome and I didn't see that at all. It isn't a huge deal, I just feel like it was advertised wrong. Also there is no way that this book can be a stand alone. There were so many loose ends and problems that need to be resolved! I am giving this book a five star rating but only on the assumption that there will be a second book (if not the book would get lower ratings because it wasn't wrapped up well enough).

SPOILERS TO FOLLOW...

I have to start off by saying that this book was quite violent for YA. Most YA characters have some sort of trauma in their past but Laia and Elias's pasts are f-ed up. Laia's parents and older sister were arrested and tortured to death, then she watches her grandparents get murdered right in front of her. Elias was abandoned at birth and then forced to attend a school to teach him to kill people when he is six. The school leaves his in the desert to die when he is like eight and makes him watch other kids get beat to death. Also in the third trial he has to kill his friends in order to prove he is strong. Don't get me wrong, I loved the drama but WOW.

I also liked the not so romantic romance. At first I was surprised because it seemed like Laia would end up with Keenan and Elias would be with Helene. It surprised me because normally when there is a male and female characters whose story lines cross they end up together. I liked how there was the conflict with the attraction with people besides Elias and Laia. It was interesting and something you don't normally see in YA. I still am pulling for them to ed up together though because Helene is just to ruthless for Elias.

The main thing I have to say about the book though, is that IT CAN"T BE A STAND-ALONE!! There are so many problems that need to be solved. For one thing, the whole reason Laia went to Blackcliff was to help free her brother, which didn't happen in this book! If it was a stand-alone we could assume that Elias eventually helps her free her brother but come on, I want to know how. Also the Teluman blacksmith tells Laia that he and her brother have a lot of work to do to help overthrow the empire. AND Marcus can not remain emperor. I also want more of the Elias/ Laia romance. We still don't know who the spy is in the resistance, although it could be Maven. We don't know the whole story about Cook. Also, there is a chance that Laia's parents are still alive. She never saw their bodies and someone told her that people can survive for years in Kauf because they are tortured not killed there. I can't believe they would leave all of this unresolved. The author says she has their stories planned out til the end, she just needs someone to publish the next book!

MY RATING: *****

Slammed by Colleen Hoover (a popular author's first book)

This book was a reread for me but after reading all of Colleen's newest books I wanted to go back to the first book she published and fall in love with her writing all over again. I enjoyed going back to read this book because the first time I read it for some reason I skimmed a lot of the poetry, which is what makes this book so unique. I love that Colleen Hoover is constantly changing the experience you have while reading her books. I love how she doesn't just write but she makes the story come alive. I felt that all over again when I read this book and the amazingly captivating poetry that is a part of it. I loved her characters like always and i was in tears a few times while reading. She is one of my favorite authors because of her unique books and her love for her fans. She is so down to earth and a fun loving person. I really like how she donates her books to the free library near where she lives. This book was just as awesome the second time around.

Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson (a book with more than 500 pages)

Aaahhhhhh! I finally read a Brandon Sanderson book and I understand what all the hype is about! This book was so good. It had a great world, magic system, and characters. I loved the politics involved in the plot and the way it was constantly changing into something I wasn't expecting. A great adult fantasy read!

Spoilers Follow!

I have to say that I loved Vin's character and I loved seeing how she grew in the novel. In the beginning she was weak and didn't trust anyone but by the end she was a BOSS! I also liked learning about her background before the crew, even if it wasn't mentioned very often. Her story is one filled with even more pain than Kell's but she was able to overcome it. I was thrilled to find out that her either didn't betray her and even died for her because I think that realization will go a long way in helping her trust others.

The other characters were equally interesting but Kelsier was the hardest to figure out. I wasn't able to discern his true motivations until after his death because I doubted him just like the other members did. I couldn't help but compare his inner dialect to the diary of the "Lord Ruler" and I was concerned that he would be corrupted. The scene where he dies was so abrupt and unexpected that I had to reread the paragraph to make sure he was really dead. I kept thinking that there was a twist and that he would burst into the shop smiling but it never happened. I felt terrible for Vin because he was one of the first people she was able to truly trust. 

The other characters were equally awesome and I can't wait to see how they develope in the next book. I am particularly excited to read about Elend as king and his relationship with Vin. At the end I was a little concerned that she wouldn't go back to him but she did (thank the Lord Ruler). I am curious about their relationship because they haven't even kissed in the first book. I get that it is a fantasy novel, and it's written by a guy, but I can't help but want a little romance to spice things up. I am also eager to learn more about the Deepness and maybe even the man who was supposed to be the Hero of Ages. (BTW I am proud to announce that I figured out that the Lord Ruler Rasheik before it was actually revealed, but I was still surprised).

MY RATING: *****

Vanishing Girls by Lauren Oliver (a book with a love triangle)

In all technicality this book doesn't have a love triangle; people that have read this book will understand what I'm talking about but originally it started out with two sisters liking the same boy. It is getting harder now to just read whatever I want and fit it into a category, so soon I will have to start reading more specific books. But for now I can work to fit this book into the love triangle category.

I didn't really like this book at all. I hated the "twist"; even though I didn't see it coming, it wasn't very original and it seemed like a bit of a stretch for the book. I didn't like how the book was marketed because the synopsis really didn't fit the story. It was a really slow book but I kept reading because I wanted to see what happened at the end but that only disappointed me too. Dara doesn't even disappear until  3/4 of the way through the book. I was expecting the whole thing to be about the missing girls but it wasn't. I also found the characters to be really annoying. Nick seemed to get on my nerves more because she blamed everything that happened to her on her sister even thought her sister was the one that was hurt in the accident. Dara complained a lot too and I just couldn't relate to either one of them.

MEGA SPOILERS TO FOLLOW....

If you read the book and you read the top part and were confused by how I talked about the sisters, I understand. After finding out that they were both Nick the whole time, I struggled to try and think of them as two separate people. After finding our about Nick's personality disorder, I hated to think about how her family and friends had overlooked this for so long. I know that she  was seeing a therapist but her family let her continue to think that her sister was alive. Even Parker enabled her through his relationship with "Dara". When they were kissing in the car and her called her by her real name, he didn't seem surprised when she freaked out and he even tried to defend himself. They all overlooked it while she continued to pretend to be two separate people. They let it get to the point when she could have harmed herself during her breakdown. 

I also didn't like the Madeline Snow story. The synopsis made it seem like Dara and Madeline were related in some way but that wasn't true. Really Madeline wasn't even kidnapped, she just got scared and ran off for ten days! I can't believe that a child could hide for that long and the police wouldn't find her. Also, Madeline's sister's cover story wasn't very convincing. She made up this whole story about being at the ice-cream shop when Madeline was taken, when really she was wasted at a club! When I found that out, I didn't understand how the police wouldn't immediately figure out that was a lie. If she had really been at Big Scoop people would have seen her, she would have been on video, and the police would have verified all of that. Even the neighbor didn't tell the police she was lying until Madeline had been missing for about a week. Overall, i pretty much hated it and was beyond disappointed because I had been so excited to read a YA thriller.

MY RATING: *

The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins (a mystery or thriller)

I actually finished this book about two weeks ago but I haven't had a chance to review it, so I am going to keep this post short. I enjoyed this book and I would compare it to Gone Girl in the sense that they both have unreliable narrators but I didn't like it as much as I liked Gone Girl. I was frustrated by the main character and her drinking problem and I thought the plot was very slow moving. There were a few plot twists that caught me off guard but ultimately I figured who did the crime about 2/3 through. My main issue was how frustrated I was with the main character, her drinking problem, and her obsession with her ex husband and Scott.

MY RATING: *** 1/2

Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan (a book my mom loves)

As soon as I saw this challenge on the list  I knew that I would read Joy Luck Club because every women in my family, including my mom, loves this book. I enjoyed it but o wouldn't say I loved it. I thought the book was very unique and revealed a lot about the Chinese culture and how their women are expected to behave. There were a lot of surprises in this book about the women and the trials they faced in their lives. Each chapter revealed a bit more about their trials and past but the stories never really "entwined" live the back of the book said. I liked reading each story but if you enjoy a more plot driven book, this isn't for you. The main plot that I wanted to read about (June visiting her missing sisters) was only two chapters in the whole book and they were the very first and last chapter. I liked th book but it was mostly character driven which I don't enjoy as much as a book with huge plot twists.

MY RATING: ***1/2

Fairest by Marissa Meyer (a book you can read in one day)

Since this book was obviously short enough to finish in one day, this is going to be a short post because I don't have a ton to say. There also aren't really spoilers in this post because it is a companion novel; as long as you have read up to Cress nothing in this post should spoil you too much. 

I thought this was a neat novella to read if you want to know more about Levana. I love the Lunar Chronicles series and I didn't want to wait until Winter came out to read more about this world. I thought it was interesting to read about Levana's marriage and how manipulative she was even as a child. I also didn't know that Winter wasn't her real daughter, so that helped me piece together their relationship. I also really enjoyed seeing Cinder and Winter as kids before they got  separated and grew up in completely different worlds. Cinder's mother wasn't what I was expecting and I was glad to know that she was separated from her mother early on because her mom was probably worse than Levana. It was interesting to find out the reason that Levana wears her glamour or the veil all the time. Overall it is a good read for those who love the Lunar Chronicles because it reveals stuff about the characters. I wouldn't recommend buying it though because it isn't very long and it isn't necessary for the series; just borrow it from your library.

MY RATING: ***1/2