The Collector (Dante Walker #1)

The Collector

(Dante Walker #1)

Victoria Scott

Release Date:

March 25, 2013

Publisher:

Entangled Teen

Pages:

352

Source:

My Personal Copy

Reading Level:

Young Adult

Description:

Dante Walker is flippin' awesome, and he knows it. His good looks, killer charm, and stellar confidence have made him one of Hell's best-a soul collector. His job is simple: weed through humanity and label those round rears with a big red good or bad stamp. Old Saint Nick gets the good guys, and he gets the fun ones. Bag-and-tag.

Sealing souls is nothing personal. Dante's an equal-opportunity collector and doesn't want it any other way. But he'll have to adjust, because Boss Man has given him a new assignment:

Collect Charlie Cooper's soul within ten days.

Dante doesn't know why Boss Man wants Charlie, nor does he care. This assignment means only one thing to him, and that's a permanent ticket out of Hell. But after Dante meets the quirky Nerd Alert chick he's come to collect, he realizes this assignment will test his abilities as a collector...and uncover emotions deeply buried.

Teaser Sentence(s):

'"Let's name it."

"Name my car? No."

"Yes! Ooh, let me do it. How about Elizabeth Taylor? She was flashy and looked good in red."

"You want me to name my car Elizabeth Taylor?"

"Not want to. Did. It's done."'

My Thoughts:

I found The Collector to be a fun, fast read. I really liked the idea of the Collectors and the Liberators. It was a fresh idea for me. 

Charlie wasn't the perfect girl like most books portray, and she wasn't the type of girl who pitied herself either. I really liked that. It made her seem strong and more normal.

Dante is pretty much a tell-it-like-it-is jerk. I liked him though. I kept finding myself smiling at all his rude comments. I hope in the next book he lightens up a little, and maybe has a little fun. I think he deserves it.

The romantic relationship Dante and Charlie develop felt a little far-fetched. I do not think their relationship would have really worked out. But I took this book very lightly, and just read it for the enjoyment. I didn't really dwell on the things that would have bothered me in other books. 

I would recommend this book to you if you are looking for something fun that you do not have to take too seriously.

Clockwork Princess (The Infernal Devices #3)

Clockwork Princess

(The Infernal Devices #3)

Cassandra Clare

Release Date:

March 19, 2013

Publisher:

Simon & Schuster

Pages:

568

Source: 

My Personal Copy

Reading Level:

Young Adult

Description:

THE INFERNAL DEVICES WILL NEVER STOP COMING

Tessa Gray should be happy-aren't all brides happy? Yet as she prepares for her wedding, a net of shadows beings to tighten around the Shadowhunters of the London institute. A new demon appears, one linked by blood and secrecy to Mortmain, the man who plans to use his army of pitiless automatons, the Infernal Devices, to destroy the Shadowhunters. Mortmain needs only one last item to complete his plan.

He needs Tessa.

Charlotte Branwell, head of the Institute, is desperate to find Mortmain before he strikes. And Jem and Will, the boys who lay equal claim to Tessa's heart, will do anything to save her. For though Tessa and Jem are engaged, Will is still in love with her.

The last words of a dying Shadowhunter provide the clue that might lead Tessa and her friends to Mortmain. But their small group cannot stand alone, and the powerful Consul doubts that Mortmain is coming. Deserted by allies, the Shadowhunters find themselves trapped when Mortmain seizes the medicine that keeps Jem alive. With his best friend at death's door, Will must risk everything to save the girl they both love.

To buy Will time, the warlock Magnus Bane joins with Henry Brandwell to create a device that could help defeat Mortmain. As they all work to save Tessa and the future of the Shadowhunters that resides with her, Tessa realizes that the only person who can save her is herself-for in the discovery of her own true nature, Tessa could become more powerful than she ever dreamed possible. But can a lone girl, even one who can command the power of angels, face down an entire army?

Danger and betrayal, secrets and enchantment, and the tangled threads of love and loss intertwine as the Shadowhunters are pushed to the very brink of destruction in the breathtaking conclusion to the Infernal Devices trilogy. ~book blurb

Teaser Sentence(s):

'Every meeting led to a parting, and so it would, as long as life was mortal. In every meeting there was some of the sorrow of parting, but in every parting there was some of the joy of meeting as well.'

My Thoughts:

It's been a couple weeks since I finished reading Clockwork Princess, and it's still getting to me. I opened the book to check the number of pages, and seriously, my eyes start watering!

Cassandra Clare managed to conclude this series flawlessly. Everything came together smoothly in the end. I never would have guessed the love triangle between Tessa, Jem and Will would have worked out the way it did. I grew really close to these characters throughout this series, and it really is sad to have to let go of them all. In the end, I have never been more happy for a fictional character than I was for Tessa. She got everything she deserved; love, happiness, and answers to secrets long kept. 

If you haven't read The Infernal Devices or Mortal Instruments, I suggest you do so, and make yourself familiar with the world of the Shadowhunters!

The Morning Star Tour & Giveaway

 The Morning Star

(The Morning Star #1)

Tania Penn

Release Date:

January 10th, 2013

Genre: 

Young Adult

Paranormal Romance

Goodreads  |  Tania Penn Website  |  Amazon

Find Tania on Goodreads!

Description:

Being the daughter of Lucifer keeps seventeen year old Dawn Belial busy. For almost her entire lifetime, she has been trying to think of a way to free her Archangel mother, Michaela, whom her father has held captive for centuries. She's also attending high school - balancing trigonometry, history, and recruiting souls for her father along with her wicked half-sister, Venus.

There has been no time for love until she meets mysterious Gabriel, a British exchange student. As they fall in love against their will, she discovers a startling secret about him, and a shocking connection to her mother that changes everything.

My Thoughts:

I was lucky enough to receive a proof of The Morning Star a little while back. You can check out my review HERE. I rated this book 5 stars. It was an awesome read!

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The Morning Star

Author: Tania Penn

Release date: January 10, 2013

Pages: 277

Source: received review copy from author

Reading level: Young Adult

Buy on Amazon

Description:

Being the daughter of Lucifer keeps seventeen year old Dawn Belial busy. For almost her entire lifetime, she has been trying to think of a way to free her Archangel mother, Michaela, whom her father has held captive for centuries  She's also attending high school - balancing trigonometry, history, and recruiting souls for her father along with her wicked half-sister, Venus.

There has been no time for love until she meets mysterious Gabriel, a British exchange student. As they fall in love against their will, she discovers a startling secret about him, and a shocking connection to her mother that changes everything. -Amazon

Teaser Sentence: 

'"Hi there." British accent. That's all he had to say, internally I think I started melting. (Really dirty thoughts now.)'

My thoughts:

Books about angels can be either hit or miss in my personal opinion. I feel it's really hard to write one that I like. I was thrilled with The Morning Star. It had lots of angels and talk of the creator, but I did not feel like I was being preached to, or reading an overly religious book. 

A Morning Star is filled with well written characters I immediately connected with. Everyone was very well written. I loved the way Lucifer was portrayed. He was still very angelic in his appearance and social standings, but still had the attitude you would expect out of a fallen angel. Dawn-the daughter of Lucifer and an Archangel- is relatable, and an awesome protagonist. She has a lot of good in her, but she is the daughter of the devil. And, Gabriel, he's hot, blonde, and British. (I swear I go into books not knowing there is going to be a guy with an accent.) I think I am in love with this angel. 
The feel, the story line, the characters-everything about this book felt fresh and new to me. The only thing I had a problem with was that it ended. (But that's a good thing right?) This is one of those series that I want to have the next book in my hands the day it comes out. I recommend you get a copy now! 

Fallen

Description: There's something achingly familiar about Daniel Grigori. Mysterious and aloof, he captures Luce Price's attention from the moment she sees him on her first day at Sword & Cross boarding school in sultry Savannah, Georgia. He's the one bright spot in a place where cell phones are forbidden, the other students are all screw-ups, and security cameras watch every move. Even though Daniel wants nothing to do with Luce-and goes out of his way to make that very clear-she can't let it go. Drawn to him like a moth to a flame, she has to find out what Daniel is so desperate to keep secret...even if it kills her. -Amazon

Author: Lauren Kate
Release date: December 8, 2009
Publisher: Delacorte Books for Young Readers
Pages: 464
Source: Borrowed from a friend
Reading level: Young Adult

Teaser Sentence(s): '"I fall in love," he explained, taking her hands and holding them tightly. "Over and over again. And each time, it ends catastrophically."'

My thoughts: I honestly did not like this book. The first 3/4 of the book were really boring in my opinion. I will say though, the last 1/4 of the book did gain a little of my attention. Luce was not intriguing to me at all, but in her defense she did spend most of the book having no clue what was going on. I couldn't really find anything about the characters that I liked. Daniel's attitude should be different in the second book, so that gives me a little hope for him. I will give the second book in this series a chance, since it seems like the first book was a lot of set up. A younger reader, which this book was intended for, would probably enjoy it better than I did.

Rating: