Dark Visions (#1-3)

Dark Visions 

(#1-3)

L.J. Smith

Release Date:

December 1, 2009

Publisher:

Simon Pulse

Pages:

732

Source:

My Personal Copy

Reading Level:

Young Adult

Description:

Kaitlyn Fairchild has always felt like an outsider in her small hometown. Her haunting eyes and prophetic drawings have earned her a reputation as a witch. But Kait's not a witch: She's a psychic. Tired of being shunned, Kait accepts an invitation to attend the Zetes Institute, where she can have a fresh start and study with other psychic teens. 

Learning to hone her abilities with four other gifted students, Kait discovers the intensity of her power--and the joy of having true friends. But those friendships quickly become complicated when Kait finds herself torn between irresistible guys. Rob is kind and athletic, and heals people with his good energy. Gabriel is aggressive and mysterious, a telepath concealing his true nature as a psychic vampire, feeding off of others' life energy. Together, Rob and Gabriel's opposing forces threaten the group's stability. 

Then one of the experiments traps the five teens in a psychic link. A link that threatens their sanity and their lives. And Kaitlyn must decide whom to trust...and whom to love.

My Thoughts:

 Dark Visions is a trilogy made up of The Strange Power, The Possessed, and The Passion. I read all 3 of these books together, so I am only doing one review.
I liked the basic idea and the plot of Dark Visions. In my opinion, this is a great series ruined by very unlikable characters. I hated Kait and Rob with a passion. I never saw anything in their relationship. There was no feeling in it, and it felt forced. I think Gabriel could have been better if we could have had more from his perspective. There was a lot going on there we didn't get to experience. Most all of Gabriel's interaction was him being a jackass. In the final book I did feel sorry for Gabriel. I still didn't like him, but all the dirty things Rob and Kait do make me have some level of sympathy for him. It also made me hate Kait and Rob that much more.
Okay, so to end my little rant here. I wanted to like this series, but the characters just didn't make the cut for me. I would not recommend this series. I am extremely happy I purchased it off the bargain rack.

Ruin and Rising (The Grisha #3)

Ruin and Rising

(The Grisha #3)

Leigh Bardugo

Release Date:

June 17, 2014

Publisher:

Henry Holt and Co.

Pages:

433

Source:

My Personal Copy

Reading Level:

Young Adult

Description:

The capital has fallen. The Darkling rules Ravka from his shadow throne.

Now the nation's fate rest with a broken Sun Summoner, a disgraced tracker, and the shattered remnants of a once-great magical army.

Deep in an ancient network of tunnels and caverns, a weakened Alina must submit to the dubious protection of the Apparat and the zealots who worship her as a Saint. Yet her plans lie elsewhere, with the hunt for the elusive firebird and the hope that an outlaw prince still survives.

Alina will have to forge new alliances and put aside old rivalries as she and Mal race to find the last of Morozova's amplifiers. But as she begins to unravel the Darkling's secrets, she reveals a past that will forever alter her understanding of the bond they share and the power she wields. The firebird is the one thing that stands between Ravka and destruction-and claiming it could cost Alina the very future she's fighting for. ~Amazon

Teaser Sentence(s):

' "We put on our best clothes, and die heroes." '

My Thoughts:

I am having a hard time coming up with a solid rating for this book. Overall, I absolutely love this series, but I did have a few problems. Mal was incredibly bland to me. I kept thinking throughout books one, two and three that he would grow on me, or do something that made me respect him as a character. That never happened. In fact, I was sorely aggravated when the scene with the Phoenix finally came into play. I do not want to give away any spoilers, especially the ending to the series, but this whole scene felt like a giant cop-out to me. I was highly disappointed in the the 3rd amplifier, and it lead me to dislike Mal a little more. (Am I the only one hating on Mal?)

 Well damn, so far I have made it seem like I hated this book. That is not the case. Ruin and Rising starts off somewhat slow, with Alina being held 'prisoner' in a huge underground cathedral. But the story soon picks up. We finally get an accurate account of what happened with Morozova. One of my favorite characters in this series is Nikolai. I absolutely favored him over Mal. I loved him as Stormhound, and I love him as the Prince of Ravka. He was by far my favorite character and I quote him often.

I would recommend this series. It's has great characters (with the exception of Mal), great creatures, and I loved the world Bardugo created.

Sweet Oblivion (Sweet #1)

Sweet Oblivion

(Sweet #1)

Bailey Ardisone

Release Date:

December 30, 2012

Publisher:

Self-Published

Pages:

386

Source:

My Personal Copy

(Kindle Freebie)

Reading Level:

Young Adult

Description:

 Nariella has a hard life. Hated and beaten by her foster father, she finds solace in the one person who has always been there for her--Rydan, her overprotective best friend. His sheltering only gets worse once Nari collides--literally--with Mycah. a boy being chased by two kinds of evil; a boy who Nari is convinced is either the devil or an angel. But she was wrong. He's something completely different.

 Then there's Namine. A servant who lives in fear for her family, for herself, and for the dying kingdom she lives in. But there is hope, and she's the only one who can bring that hope home to save them all. Namine will risk everything to make that happen, even if it means betraying her king.

People always want the truth until they have it. To be let in on secrets until they get burned by them. Nari is no different. But once she's kidnapped, tortured, and ultimately becomes intertwined in a secret world she never could've imagined existed. She knows there's no going back to blissful ignorance. And maybe she doesn't want to.

If darkness is the absence of light, what results from the absence of truth?

Nothing but Oblivion.

~Amazon

My Thoughts:

 Sweet Oblivion was an extremely confusing read. At one point I told my husband, 'I am 80% finished with this book, and I haven't a clue what is going on.' Most of the book felt plot less. I couldn't figure out what point the story was trying to make or where it was going. The chapters alternate between two point of views- Nariella and Namine. 

 Nariella is girl who is obviously in the real world. That much is easy to figure out, but she is surrounded by characters you know nothing about. Rydan has been Nariella's friend since childhood, but he is so silent and closed off the only thing you really learn about him is he is very talented with music. Then there is Mycah. He just suddenly starts showing up, and when he leaves no one can even remember he was there. Mycah is a very easy to like character. He has a lot of mystery around him that keeps making you want to turn the pages. 

 The Namine chapters give you very little information to help you figure out the story. It is easy to guess that she is in a fantasy world and not Earth. Other than the not-on-earth thing I had no idea what was happening, or even what the point of these chapters were. 

 Then the last 5% of this book happened. Everything started to make sense, and somewhat fall into place. It really left on a huge cliffhanger, but I loved it! I have not purchased the second book in this series yet, but I do plan to do it when I am able. I really can't wait to find out what is going to happen next. And I think I will understand what is going on better in the next book. The ending had several surprises, and really made the other 95% worth it. Sweet Oblivion was on it way to having a low rating from me, but in the end it was a major turn-around. 

*Update* #5 I'M BACK!!

 After having the blog on pause for well over a year it finally seems that I am back! I am super excited for this. I have moved to a new city, in a new part of the state, and now all my internet problems are solved. I have already started cleaning up around here, and looking into re-designing some aspects of the blog. I do not know exactually when my first review post will be. I have a few I have typed up and saved over the year. Currently, I am reading Stone Cold Touch by Jennifer L. Armentrout. I may make that my first review since coming back. We will just have to see how it goes.

 As always, I am welcoming to any suggestions anyone has to offer on things to add or change around here. So, feel free to send me a message or a comment. (E-mail can be found on the About Me page.) So, I guess that's it for this update. I have missed my blog so much. I cannot wait to start connecting with readers again, and sharing the things I read!