Review: Struck by Jennifer Bosworth

Mia Price is a lightning addict. She’s survived countless strikes, but her craving to connect to the energy in storms endangers her life and the lives of those around her.

Los Angeles, where lightning rarely strikes, is one of the few places Mia feels safe from her addiction. But when an earthquake devastates the city, her haven is transformed into a minefield of chaos and danger. The beaches become massive tent cities. Downtown is a crumbling wasteland, where a traveling party moves to a different empty building each night, the revelers drawn to the destruction by a force they cannot deny. Two warring cults rise to power, and both see Mia as the key to their opposing doomsday prophecies. They believe she has a connection to the freak electrical storm that caused the quake, and to the far more devastating storm that is yet to come.

Mia wants to trust the enigmatic and alluring Jeremy when he promises to protect her, but she fears he isn’t who he claims to be. In the end, the passion and power that brought them together could be their downfall. When the final disaster strikes, Mia must risk unleashing the full horror of her strength to save the people she loves, or lose everything

I'm really not sure how to review Struck. I liked the general idea (Mia being a 'lightning addict') but this wasn't talked about nearly enough and had a lot of religion in it, which I had read about in reviews but didn't think it would take up most of the book. I think it should have been mentioned in the blurb - I don't think I would have been so annoyed with it if it had been.

Struck was original - instead of a war, government taking over or global warming making the area dystopian, subjects I've seen a lot in YA dystopia, it was a storm that destroyed LA, and I have never read a book whose main character has similar 'powers' to Mia. These are what interested me in the book, but Struck consisted mainly of strange religious groups predicting the end of the world and trying to get Mia on their sides. I really wanted to find out more about Mia and the lightning, but it wasn't explained as much as I thought it would be.

I liked Mia more than I thought. I'm glad she wasn't the kind of main character who spent most of the book deciding which boy to be with. Main characters like that *really* annoy me >.>. I didn't get why she continued to be around and like Jeremy so much when she found out he had TRIED TO KILL HER and hung around her house all the time. In fact I didn't like Jeremy at all. The way Mia describes him as being good looking and smart kind of made me think that the author just wanted to put him in to be a 'perfect' boy character and added in romance to fit in with other YA books.

Struck was an ok book with a good concept, but I didn't like the romance and the amount of religion in it.

Rating: 2.5/5

Review: The Phoenix Files: Arrival by Chris Morphew

Luke is having a rough year. When his parents split up, his mum drags him to Phoenix, a brand-new town in the middle of nowhere.

But Phoenix is no ordinary town. There are no cars, no phones and no internet. Luke thinks this is as weird as it gets.

Then he discovers that someone is plotting to wipe out the human race. Phoenix is suddenly the safest and most dangerous place on earth.

And the clock is already ticking.

There are 100 days until the end of the world.


I didn't think I was going to like this book, as others had compared it to the 'Tomorrow' series by John Marsden which I didn't enjoy.  But Arrival turned out to be a pretty good book.

The basic storyline, stopping the end of the world, is a very popular one which sometimes annoys me a lot.  But this book was different - the strange town of Phoenix and the mysterious things the main characters find to hint at what's going on made Arrival more interesting and original than other 'saving the world' books.  These parts of the book also kept me reading, as I wanted to find out what each clue meant.

I found it easy to read and wasn't confusing at all.  Everything was well described and explained.  The only thing I didn't see being mentioned was how old the main characters were - it didn't really matter, but some of the things Luke said seemed quite young to me.  I imagined him to be about 12-13.

There was less action in this book than I thought there was going to be, but it didn't stop Arrival being a good read.  Sometimes the writing style seemed a bit like it was for younger readers, but it wasn't childish at all.  Although I enjoyed this book and have no real bad things to say about it, I didn't really feel gripped by it.

Overall I liked Arrival, and despite the kind of overused basic storyline is was made more original and interesting.  I just didn't feel particularly gripped or pulled in by it.

Rating: 3.5/5

Showcase Sunday #6

This is a meme hosted by Books, Biscuits and Tea where bloggers taking part showcase their new books.

From the library:

Stalking the Enemy by Jane Prowse:  I read and reviewed the first book, The Revenge of Praying Mantis, when I started this blog a while ago.  I hope I will enjoy this just as much.

Struck by Jennifer Bosworth:  I like the idea for this book, but I've heard mixed reviews.  Hopefully I will like it.

Inside Out by Maria V. Snyder:  I have read the second book without knowing it was the second one until I was reading it.  It was quite confusing, so hopefully because Inside Out it the first it will be less confusing!

Partials by Dan Wells: Again, looks interesting, and with mixed reviews on Goodreads.

(I really need to read some different genres....)

Review: Gamerunner by B.R. Collins

Rick is a Gamerunner. His job is to test there are no glitches or bugs in The Maze - the computer game that is much more than just a computer game. In The Maze you physically become your avatar. You fight, run and loot, all the time avoiding the deadly slicing traps - whirling blades that appear from nowhere. Rick has known nothing outside The Maze and his life at the headquarters of Crater, the company that created The Maze. When Rick's father falls out of favour and Rick is faced with being thrown out of Crater HQ into the outside world - a world of flesh-dissolving acid rain and ferocious, feral roving gangs - Rick has some life-changing decisions to make ...


This book had an exciting start which quickly got me interested in the book.  One of the first things I noticed was how the author wrote in third person, but instead of using the character's name sometimes, always used 'he'.  Later, when the character's name (Rick) is found out, it's used a bit more, but it made me feel like the book was from the point of view of someone who is watching Rick, rather than Rick himself.  This writing style also stopped me from getting to know him more, and I think I would have liked him more as a character and liked the book more if it had felt more as if it was from Rick's point of view, rather than from someone watching's point of view.

I really liked the concept of this book though!  The whole idea of video games where the player is actually IN them was definitely a good idea, and a *great* change from the usual very similar sci fi/dystopian YA books that have been popular recently.  However I found that everything wasn't explained nearly enough - why was 'the maze' made?  What is 'Crater' and the building Rick and the others live in?  What is it like, and what does it look like?  What happened  for it to be dangerous to go outside?  I had so many questions about this book.  Rick often wonders whether Daed is his father or related to him, and I expected this to be explained as it came up quite often.  But it wasn't.

There were quite a few loose ends left at the end of the book, not just the mystery of Daed being related to Rick.  I didn't like the ending.  WHY did Rick want to go outside so badly, and why did he **spoiler** burn everything in his room **end spoiler*?  It seemed like a pretty random thing for him to do.  The only major part of the plot that was cleared up is what Asterion was, which was a good conclusion I didn't expect, but apart from that I disliked the ending.

I'm not sure if there's a sequel that might tie up the loose ends.  If there is, I might look out for it.  I liked the concept for Gamerunner, and I didn't really get bored by it, but no much else.

Rating: 2/5 

Review: TimeRiders by Alex Scarrow

Liam O’Connor should have died at sea in 1912.
Maddy Carter should have died on a plane in 2010.
Sal Vikram should have died in a fire in 2026.

Yet moments before death, someone mysteriously appeared and said, ‘Take my hand ...’

But Liam, Maddy and Sal aren’t rescued. They are recruited by an agency that no one knows exists, with only one purpose—to fix broken history. Because time travel is here, and there are those who would go back in time and change the past. That’s why the TimeRiders exist: to protect us. To stop time travel from destroying the world...


I have been wanting to read TimeRiders for a while now, but have always put it off.  I'm so glad I eventually did read it though!  I didn't think it was going to be as good as it was.

I haven't read that many books about time travel, and the ones I have have not been believable to me at all.  However, I thought this book's idea of time travel to be a lot more believable, thanks to well thought out (but short, so not making it confusing or boring!) explanations.

I loved the beginning to this book.  It was immediately exciting and mysterious, and really pulled me into the book!  The descriptions of what happened to the present day world when something in the past changed were great.  I could almost feel confused and shocked along with the characters as everything suddenly changed.

It wasn't just the changed present day world descriptions that were great - I could easily picture all of the settings and characters in my head, which really helps me to get into a book.  TimeRiders was exciting and gripping throughout the book, especially when the Maddy, Sal and Foster were faced with a **SPOILER - HIGHLIGHT TO READ!**  post apocalyptic world **SPOILER OVER** and Liam was faced with **SPOILER** being stuck in the past**SPOILER OVER**.

Overall I really enjoyed TimeRiders.  I have two small complaints - it was sometimes a bit confusing when the point of view swapped quickly between characters, and some words Sal uses I didn't know.  Unless I'm just stupid and don't know them, I think there should have been an explanation.

Rating: 4.5/5

Review: Matched by Ally Condie

Cassia has always trusted the Society to make the right choices for her: what to read, what to watch, what to believe. So when Xander's face appears on-screen at her Matching ceremony, Cassia knows with complete certainty that he is her ideal mate... until she sees Ky Markham's face flash for an instant before the screen fades to black.

The Society tells her it's a glitch, a rare malfunction, and that she should focus on the happy life she's destined to lead with Xander. But Cassia can't stop thinking about Ky, and as they slowly fall in love, Cassia begins to doubt the Society's infallibility and is faced with an impossible choice: between Xander and Ky, between the only life she's known and a path that no one else has dared to follow



*****CONTAINS SPOILERS!!******



I have to say I didn't think I would love this book, but I felt like trying something different so I borrowed it from the library.

One thing I noticed after reading a chapter or two was a lack of description and world building - Cassia mentions the tablets she carries, the fact she lives in a dystopian future and being matched but none of this is explained well, or a small description is given near the end of the book.  I wanted to know about all these things - why is it necessary for everyone to have the tablets, be matched and why is the world dystopian?  What does it look like?  What happened in the past?  These were all questions I was wondering early and throughout the book.  Some of the places Cassia visits had very little or no description, making the parts set there a bit confusing for me.  I felt that this book was only made a dystopian as it's a popular genre at the moment - apart from the obvious things it could easily be a teen drama book set in present day.

I found the long scenes about Cassia's grandfather should have been further into the book or even left until the second or third book so readers get to know him a bit more and so they also know WHY everyone dies at 80, which Cassia finds out quite a while after this part in the book.  I think the scenes would have made more sense and would fit in better if they had happened after Cassia found out about the poison.
 Talking of the storyline, I didn't feel there was much OF a storyline o.0.  The entire book focused on Cassia trying to decide whether to be with Ky or Xander.  There were a few moments where the Officials randomly did something like cut down trees or take away artifacts, which made no sense.  It was as if the author thought she NEEDED to make them do something a bit 'evil' to fit in with some other popular dystopians....

I didn't hate any of the characters or find them annoying, but neither did I love any of them.  I found none of them to have much too them and being a bit flat or much backstory at all, the only one having a bit of backstory being Ky.  Which generally made me feel a bit 'meh' about them.

I don't think I will be reading the next in the series.  In general I disliked this book, but I didn't HATE it and I think readers who like drama or romance books would enjoy this book.

Rating: 2/5

Showcase Sunday #5

This is a meme hosted by Books, Biscuits and Tea where bloggers taking part showcase their new books.

Given to me (!!):

The Dead of Winter by Chris Priestley:  This looks like a horror, which isn't the genre I usually choose, but I'm going to give it a read anyway.  :)

Tyme's End by R. Collins:  Again, this looks like a horror.

My Name is Mina by David Almond:  I've heard quite a lot about this and Skellig by the same author, but I've never been interested enough to read them.  I have read that the book makes more sense if you read Skellig first, but I'm going to read My Name is Mina first - although it's not what I'd usually read it stll looks quite good.

From the library:

Matched by Ally Condie:  Despite this being in a genre I like (dystopian), I don't think I'm going to love Matched, but I'm trying to read books I would not usually choose at the moment to read a bit more of a variety.

Seizure by Kathy Reichs:  I enjoyed the first book, Virals, so I'm wondering if this is going to be as good, better, or worse....

Time Riders: City of Shadows by Alex Scarrow:  I only realised as I picked this up to read yesterday that it wasn't the first in the series! *facepalm*.  I'll still read it anyway, but if it's very confusing because I've not read the others I won't review it.

Review: Insignia by S.J Kincaid

More than anything, Tom Raines wants to be important, though his shadowy life is anything but that. For years, Tom's drifted from casino to casino with his unlucky gambler of a dad, gaming for their survival. Keeping a roof over their heads depends on a careful combination of skill, luck, con artistry, and staying invisible.

Then one day, Tom stops being invisible. Someone's been watching his virtual-reality prowess, and he's offered the incredible--a place at the Pentagonal Spire, an elite military academy. There, Tom's instincts for combat will be put to the test and if he passes, he'll become a member of the Intrasolar Forces, helping to lead his country to victory in World War III. Finally, he'll be someone important: a superhuman war machine with the tech skills that every virtual-reality warrior dreams of. Life at the Spire holds everything that Tom's always wanted--friends, the possibility of a girlfriend, and a life where his every action matters--but what will it cost him?

Gripping and provocative, S. J. Kincaid's futuristic thrill ride of a debut crackles with memorable characters, tremendous wit, and a vision of the future that asks startling, timely questions about the melding of humanity and technology



******CONTAINS SPOILERS FOR THE BOOK!!! DO NOT READ IF YOU DON'T WANT ANYTHING SPOILED FOR YOU!!*******

When I first heard about this book a few months ago, I immediately REALLY wanted to read it. It was great to see a YA book set in the future that wasn't set in the same old dystopian city with the same old kind of main character (I like dystopians, but some are just far too similar to each others for me...). I loved how Insignia was set in the future with advanced technology but apart from that, everything seemed similar to how it is now, which made it more believable to me. It also had a pretty original concept - I have read a book where the main character had a computer in his head but it was extremely different to Insignia and apart from that, I have never read anything like it. As a gamer myself I liked how games were quite a big part of the book, too!

I liked how the author explained things throughout the book, which did not make it confusing to read at all and there weren't any points where I thought 'wait, when/how/why did THAT happen?!'. The action was good - there wasn't too much of it to distract from the story, but it still made it an exciting read.

The characters were also great, and as we found out more about them I found myself wondering about each other their backstories, especially how they were selected to be Combatants. Hopefully we will find out more about them in book 2 :D. I also liked how they changed throughout the book.

So many books have an end battle where the character strangely seems to be amazing at fighting and wins. I was pleased that Tom didn't beat Medusa by luck and sudden good fighting skills. Tom losing to Medusa in every online game fight they did actually made me feel quite nervous for Tom before the end battle!

Overall an excellent book I'd definitely reccomend. :)

Rating: 4.5/5

Review: Virals by Kathy Reichs

Tory Brennan, niece of acclaimed forensic anthropologist Temperance Brennan (of the Bones novels and hit TV show), is the leader of a ragtag band of teenage "sci-philes" who live on a secluded island off the coast of South Carolina. When the group rescues a dog caged for medical testing on a nearby island, they are exposed to an experimental strain of canine parvovirus that changes their lives forever.

As the friends discover their heightened senses and animal-quick reflexes, they must combine their scientific curiosity with their newfound physical gifts to solve a cold-case murder that has suddenly become very hot if they can stay alive long enough to catch the killer's scent.

Fortunately, they are now more than friends they're a pack. They are Virals.


I actually finished this book a while ago, and although I remember most of it, some parts I don't remember as well as when I first finished it.  So any mistakes on characters, plot, etc are probably because of this!

I thought this book sounded interesting - it had a mix of action/adventure, supernatural and crime, which sonds a bit odd but was mostly fine when I was reading.  To start with the book was quite slow, mainly concerntrating with Tory meeting with her friends, going to school and describing where she lived, and even with Tory's discovery of important things (I won't spoil the book by saying what!) there was more of her just doing everyday things than any of the promised exciting action.

However, Virals did get better as Tory and her friends found out more about what they were investigating and the research building's (?) secret work.  And I was definately not expecting the action at the end, which really improved the book for me!  I liked how all of the mysteries Tory came across were solved at the end of the book and weren't dragged on into the next book.

The supernatural element of the book was good, but I think sometimes it didn't suit the general theme of the book (crime), and it only seemed to appear when it would help the characters and the plot!  However, from the ending I think it might be featured a bit more in the next book.

I didn't really have many problems with the characters in this book, apart from the author making Tory's Dad's girlfriend (?) obviously (and kind of unrealisticly) annoying, and how Tory and her friends never told their parents what was actually going on/the parents didn't seem to care or notice.

Overall I enjoyed Virals, but there were just a few small things I disliked and some slow paced parts.

Rating: 4/5

Review: Starters by Lissa Price

Callie lost her parents when the Spore Wars wiped out everyone between the ages of twenty and sixty. She and her little brother, Tyler, go on the run, living as squatters with their friend Michael and fighting off renegades who would kill them for a cookie. Callie's only hope is Prime Destinations, a disturbing place in Beverly Hills run by a mysterious figure known as the Old Man.

He hires teens to rent their bodies to Enders—seniors who want to be young again. Callie, desperate for the money that will keep her, Tyler, and Michael alive, agrees to be a donor. But the neurochip they place in Callie's head malfunctions and she wakes up in the life of her renter, living in her mansion, driving her cars, and going out with a senator's grandson. It feels almost like a fairy tale, until Callie discovers that her renter intends to do more than party—and that Prime Destinations' plans are more evil than Callie could ever have imagined. . .




I couldn't wait to read this book and was really excited when my reserved copy from the library came through!  I started it straight away (despite a massive reading pile!) and finished it early the next morning.  I usually take 2-3 days to read an average length book, so I think it's obvious I was gripped by Starters from the first chapter.

The concept for this book seemed a bit strange at first, but it didn't put me off.  I liked how it started and wasn't slow at all - it got me into the book immediatly.  In fact there was rarely, if any, slow paced parts in this book.  It was mysterious and tense which definately helped me want to carry on reading.

I liked the main character, Callie.  She seemed to be a mature and sensible main character, even in strange situations, which I think really helped the book.  I liked most of the other characters too, but I found Madison a bit annoying, however it wasn't much of a problem as she wasn't in the book a lot and got a bit better towards the end.

One thing I would have liked to see in this book was more description and information about where Callie lives and how the war affected the country (?) she lives in.  I also found a few parts slightly predictable.

However I generally loved this book!  It was a lot more 'dystopian' than most books in this genre I have read - I would definately (and already have) reccomend it to others.

Rating: 4.5/5

Review: Divergent by Veronica Roth

In a future Chicago, 16-year-old Beatrice Prior must choose among five predetermined factions to define her identity for the rest of her life, a decision made more difficult when she discovers that she is an anomaly who does not fit into any one group, and that the society she lives in is not perfect after all.

Sometimes I say I'm not sure what to expect from a book, or it was very differant to how I thought it would be.  I have to say Divergent was amost *exactly* how I expected it to be.  Of course I didn't know about every little thing that happened, but I thought it was a little preditable at times.

I quite liked the book, but there were definately a few things I didn't like about it.  As I've said before I REALLY do not like the kind of writing style used in this book!  It feels blunt and dull and I didn't get a good image of many of the characters or settings in this book.  Divergent was quite a long book, which wasn't a problem, but I think if the book had less of Tris trying to fit in/her 'initiation' and more of the kind of thing towards the end of the story, it would have been shorter and a whole lot more realistic.

I would have liked to have found out more about the world Tris lives in.  Apart from the 'factions' and some other things, it doesn't seem all that futuristic/dystopian/post apocalyptic and I think it could have actually been set in present day, and was just set in the future because that is the 'thing' at the moment.

Also, I really don't see how this book could turn into a series longer than about two books.  I couldn't find much that would lead on to many other books, apart from Tris being Divergent and the 'war'.  For this reason, I don't think I'll read the second and any other books in the series, unless I come across them at the library or something.

I didn't love this, but it was still quite good.  I actually liked Tris, if I looked past the way she narrated.  At times I thought she did some rather stupid things and thought it was fine because she was 'brave' and 'a Dauntless', but apart from that I did think she was a good main character for the book.

Rating: 3.5/5

Review: Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein

I have two weeks. You’ll shoot me at the end no matter what I do.

That’s what you do to enemy agents. It’s what we do to enemy agents. But I look at all the dark and twisted roads ahead and cooperation is the easy way out. Possibly the only way out for a girl caught red-handed doing dirty work like mine — and I will do anything, anything, to avoid SS-Hauptsturmführer von Linden interrogating me again.

He has said that I can have as much paper as I need. All I have to do is cough up everything I can remember about the British War Effort. And I’m going to. But the story of how I came to be here starts with my friend Maddie. She is the pilot who flew me into France — an Allied Invasion of Two.

We are a sensational team.

**SPOILERS!!**





I'm really not sure what to think of this book.  When I picked it up and read the blurb I expected to read about Verity/Julie and Maddy's journey to France, but instead it was written almost like a diary by Verity where she describes various things in her life.  I was a bit confused as to why she focussed so much on her best friend, Maddy's, life and how the whole story was told from her point of view.  This was quite clever and I didn't realise that 'Queenie' was actually Verity until it was mentioned.

One thing I didn't understand about this style was how would Verity know what Maddy was thinking in these situations, or what she was exactly doing and thinking in the events where Verity wasn't there.  Apart from that I thought it was an interesting way to write and I didn't have a problem with it.

The book did kind of drag on a bit at times and I read it quite slowly, probably because of this.  I thought the book got better when Maddy started to narrate it - things that Verity had done were suddenly more clear and things that weren't even obvious were also revealed.  It also got more tense at this part as Maddy was trying to rescue Verity.

I thought the characters, especially Maddy and Verity, were good - I really got to 'know' them during the book.  I didn't like Verity a huge amount - I didn't hate her, but she definately wasn't my favourite character. 

Overall I liked this book!  I didn't love it, but it wasn't bad and I didn't hate it.


Rating: 3.5/5

Review: The Third Day, The Frost by John Marsden

Life in the war zone enters its sixth month of heart-stopping tension in the latest installment of the internationally bestselling Tomorrow series.

In the third installment of the Tomorrow saga, the anything-to-survive existence of Ellie and her friends has sharpened their senses and emboldened their plans. They aren't merely on the defensive anymore; they're also striking back. Their strategy? Attack the enemy not just on land, but also on water. If they have any hope of sabotaging the formidable container ship at Cobbler's Bay, then stealth is a must, but so, too, is one very big explosion.
And if they fail, they may face a whole new kind of terror -- imprisonment.

As I wasn't a fan of the first two books in the series, I was sure I wouldn't like this one much.  However, I was actually wrong!  I liked this book a lot more than the others.  I felt more happened in this book - there wasn't so many long parts where the characters just talked, and the talking parts were shorter and more interesting.  The characters seemed to have a better idea of what they were goig to do during the book, rather than sit around wondering if they were going to be found or captured.

This book was definately a whole lot more tense than the others, and I really got an idea of how the characters, especially Ellie, were feeling at differant times.  Mostly because of this I felt that we get to know them all a bit better, and while before the amount of main characters was slightly confusing it was easy to tell who was who as we know their personalities better now.

Although I liked this book, I wasn't really pulled in by it - if I had another book sitting next to it, I was more likely to pick up that one.  But when I was actually reading it, I was quite gripped.

There wasn't any romance, which I thought was good as I think it can distract from the main story!  As I have said before I'm not really into romance, especially in action and adventure books like this, so it could just be me.

Overall I enjoyed this a LOT more than the first two in the series.  I don't think I will carry on with the series - I am wondering what will happen after the unexpected ending, but it wasn't a cliffhanger enough for me to be desperate to carry on.  I think a cliffhanger ending would have been great considering I was getting into the series a bit more and would have made it even more exciting, but I was fine with how it ended anyway.

I am really not sure how to rate this book!  I feel a 3.5 would be too low, but a 4 too high.  So I'm not going to rate it.

Thank you to Chicklish for sending me this book!

Review: The Truth About Celia Frost by Paula Rawsthorne

Celia Frost is a freak. At least, that's what everyone thinks. Her life is ruled by a rare disorder that means she could bleed to death from the slightest cut, confining her to a gloomy bubble of 'safety'. No friends. No fun. No life.

But when a knife attack on Celia has unexpected consequences, her mum reacts strangely - and suddenly they're on the run. Why is her mum so scared? Someone out there knows. And when they find Celia, she's going to wish the truth was a lie.

A buried secret, a gripping manhunt, a dangerous deceit... What is the truth about Celia Frost?

This book sounded differant and interesting, so I really wanted to read it!
I wasn't dissapointed at all with it.  I didn't know what to expect, and what I found was a book full of excitement that was tense and had me gripped from the start.  I couldn't wait to get to the end and find out anwers to all the questions that I had throughout the book.  Fortunatly, all the things I had been wondering about were explained.
Although this book definately wasn't confusing, it was one of those books where as I read on, I understood things that happened earlier in the book better - and I love books like that!  Some of the chapters were from the point of view of someone who was trying to find Celia and her mum, which made the book more mysterious and added more excitement in parts that might have been otherwise boring.
To start with I liked Celia, the main character, but when she discovered there wasn't anything wrong with her I started to dislike her.  I didn't like how she tried hard to make her mum angry or worried, and it just annoyed me a bit.  however, that's pretty much my only complaint about the book!

I really liked this book.  It was gripping, exciting and I didn't predict what was going to happen at all - I really could not guess the reason why Celia's mum was so worried about her.

Rating: 4/5

Away!

Hello!

From tomorrow (Sunday) I will be away until Thursday, and I won't have any posts up until next week's Showcase Sunday.

Katie :)

Review: The Power of Six by Pittacus Lore

I've seen him on the news. Followed the stories about what happened in Ohio. John Smith, out there, on the run. To the world, he's a mystery. But to me . . . he's one of us.

Nine of us came here, but sometimes I wonder if time has changed us—if we all still believe in our mission. How can I know? There are six of us left. We're hiding, blending in, avoiding contact with one another . . . but our Legacies are developing, and soon we'll be equipped to fight. Is John Number Four, and is his appearance the sign I've been waiting for? And what about Number Five and Six? Could one of them be the raven-haired girl with the stormy eyes from my dreams? The girl with powers that are beyond anything I could ever imagine? The girl who may be strong enough to bring the six of us together?

They caught Number One in Malaysia.
Number Two in England.
And Number Three in Kenya.
They tried to catch Number Four in Ohio—and failed.

I am Number Seven. One of six still alive.

And I'm ready to fight.

I really wanted to read this after finishing the first book, I Am Number Four.  I saw some bad reviews on Goodreads for this though, so I really wasn't sure whether I would enjoy it as much as the first one.

I was wrong!  It was just as good as I Am Number Four.  In this book, we see events from two differant points of view - from John/Four's and also from Marina/Seven's.  The characters haven't met each other, so I expected them to meet at the end - I'm not going to say if they did or not, but the ending definately left the story open for a third book.

There was a lot more action in the book, which was one of the problem I had with the first.  It was exciting and tense, and when I was reading I couldn't put the book down!  I usually dislike books written in first person and in the present tense (I don't know why, they just seem to be a bit blunt...), but I didn't find this one like that at all.

One thing I like about the characters is that they all seem like real people, even though a few of them have powers and are from a differant planet.  I think the characters really helped the books to be so good!  I have to say I did wonder about Number Five - we've met Four, Six and Seven, why not Five? o.0

The ending was pretty unexpected, and a bit of a cliffhanger.  I can't wait for the third book.

Overall I loved this, and I was quite gripped by it.  Although it is an alien book, it's made more believable by the fact it's set in present day and on Earth, rather than in the future or on a differant planet.  Sometimes I don't like unrealistic books in this kind of setting, but it definately worked for this.

Rating: 4.5/5

Review: The Messenger Bird by Ruth Eastham

Nathan's father has been arrested. He works for the Ministry of Defence and is accused of leaking top secret information. But as he is dragged into a police car, he gives Nathan a message. It leads to a riddle, but it's not from Dad. It's from an ex-Bletchley Park employee, Lily Kenley, and was written in 1940. Nathan begins to follow the clues left behind by Lily. But how can this war-time story link to his father's fate? Hope for Dad's appeal is fading fast. He must solve the puzzle. Time is running out.

As I said in Showcase Sunday I found out about this book through an Amazon suggestion - I really had no idea what it would be like, but it looked pretty good, and interesting too.

And it didn't dissapoint!  It's very fast paced, with the excitement starting in the first chapter - but this didn't make it hard to understand at all.  I loved how Nathan, the main character, had to find and work out clues to help save his dad from prison.  It really added mystery to the book, and it made me want to carry on reading to see where the clues would lead and what they meant.  I think it was a bit unlikely how quickly Nathan solved the clues, but if it had taken weeks for him to work out what they meant I don't think the book would have been so exciting and fast paced.  The mystery of who Lily was was also an excellent part of the story.

The ending was quite unexpected, and added some action - it definately ended the book well!  This is a short review because I can't find much else to say, this book is great.  I think the book was written for younger teens, but don't be put off by that, it's still a good read.  I would also reccomend this to people who enjoy reading about World War II.

Rating: 4.5/5

Review: Agent 21 by Chris Ryan

Some authors just write about it. Chris Ryan has been there, done it, and lived to tell the tale. Agent 21 is the first in a brand-new action-packed adventure series by the real-life SAS hero.

When Zak Darke's parents die in an unexplained mass murder he's left alone in the world. That is until he's sought out by a mysterious man: 'I work for a government agency,' the man tells him. 'You don't need to know which one. Not yet. All you need to know is that we've had our eye on you. There's a possibility you could help us in certain . . . operational situations.'

Zak becomes Agent 21. What happened to the 20 agents before him he'll never know. What he does know is that his life is about to change for ever . . .

There are a lot of teen spy books around at the moment, and I have to say I love this genre.  So I was
pretty excited to read this book, as I had not heard of it before.

The book gripped me immediatly with a mysterious prologue - after that, to start with it reminded me of other popular spy books, Alex Rider and CHERUB, but after the first 'do you want to be a spy?' part it was more original.  It was believeable - there weren't any unrealistic gadgets and the main character, Zak, recieved plenty of training before going on a mission, while in other books the character suddenly knows exactly what to do without any help!

It was full of action and excitement, however this did not make the book confusing at all!  The action fitted well with the story and also seemed realistic.

I liked the characters.  They were all sensible and they didn't miss hugely obvious things - sometimes I feel like shouting at character when they miss obvious things! xD We don't find out a lot about any of them, and I think it would've been nice to at least have found out a bit more about Zak, the main character, so we can get to know him better.

The ending was good - it wrapped up the book well, but still left it open for a sequel (which I will definately be reading!).

This was generally a great book, my only complaints being that it sometimes lacked original ideas and we don't get to know the characters that well.  (For some reason I thought this book was about a secret agent who was 21 years old - I have no idea why.... :S)

Rating: 4/5

Review: The Dead of the Night by John Marsden

When their country is invaded and their families are taken, eight high school teenagers band together to fight. Seventeen-year-old Ellie and her friends have survived the invasion, but two of their band are captured: Kevin is imprisoned and Corrie is alive, but in a coma. Homer and Ellie are determined to get them back and to continue their campaign against the enemy. They discover that there are other rebels out there, fighting the invaders - but who are they and can they be trusted? As the pressure grows, can Ellie work out her conflicted feelings for the brilliant, arrogant Homer and the strong, gentle Lee? As war rages, and the enemy closes in, Ellie and her friends must once again fight for their lives... but how many of their band will be left? A truly involving story about teenagers facing the incredible challenges of warfare, amid the intensity of first love. Would you sacrifice everything to save your country and your family?

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This review contains referances from my review on the first book:  http://thebookreviewlibrary.blogspot.com/2012/06/review-tomorrow-when-war-began-by-john.html

I have to say, after being a bit dissapointed with the first book, I wasn't expecting this to be any better.  When I started the book, I was glad to find that the start wasn't nearly as slow, even being a bit tense in some parts as the characters sneaked around the enemy solidiers.

There were more exciting parts in this compared to the other book, but I still found it slow paced and lacking in the action I was expecting.  As with the first book, plenty of the story was spend describing the characters gathering supplies, setting up camp and talking, which is probably quite realistic but not particularly interesting to read about - in fact I found myself skipping through boring parts.

We STILL don't find out more about the war - who are the invaders?  Why are theey invading?  Where are the 'friendly' soldiers? When the main characters join a military camp, I expected these questions to be answered - but it turned out the camp had no clue what they were doing and seemed a bit of a pointless part of the story, apart from providing some action.

There were lots of characters, which made the book get confusing after a while.  Some of them I didn't see any introduction for, and just suddenly appeared.

I think there were one or two 'innapropriate' parts in the books, which I skipped through or were in the parts I skipped as they were boring - but I don't think they were nesscerary at all.

This had a bit more action and wasn't so slow, but overall it was still rather boring at times.  The series definately has a good idea, though.

Rating: 3/5

Showcase Sunday #4

This is a meme hosted by Books, Biscuits and Tea where bloggers taking part showcase their new books.

Sorry for not posting a Showcase Sunday last week, I had no new books to review!

All borrowed from the library.

Agent 21 by Chris Ryan:  I hadn't heard of this book until I saw a review of it.  I've already started it and it's great so far!

The Power of Six by Pittacus Lore:  I read the first book, I Am Number Four, a while ago and thought it was pretty good.  I'm excited to read this, hopefully it's as good or better!

The Messenger Bird by Ruth Eastham:  I found out about this book from an Amazon suggestion!  I haven't heard of it or seen any reviews before, so I'm not completly sure what to expect but it looks good.



Review: Tomorrow When the War Began by John Marsden

I haven't posted in some time, sorry! 

When their country is invaded and their families are taken, eight high school teenagers band together to fight. Seventeen-year-old Ellie Linton wants one final adventure with her friends before the school holidays are over. Packed in Ellie's parents' land rover they drive to the famously isolated rock pool Eden dubbed 'Hell' by the locals. Returning to their home town of Wirrawee, the seven teenagers realize that something is seriously wrong. Power to the houses has been cut, pets and livestock have been left dead or dying, and most alarmingly of all, everyone's family has vanished. When the hostile armed forces discover that the teenagers are lying low in the vicinity, Ellie and her friends must band together to escape, outwit and strike back against the mysterious enemy that has seized control of their town and imprisoned their friends and loved ones...

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I recived the first three in this series from Luisa from Chicklish - thank you!  Here is my review for the first (the second and third book reviews will also appear on Chicklish).

Most of the Amazon reviews I saw for this book told me it was exciting and full of action.  I knew it was about a war, but not much else.

It started very slowly, with the main character, Ellie, randomly organising a camping trip and seemed to invite everyone she knew - even if she didn't know them that well.  This part of the story didn't really capture me - nothing exciting happened, it was just a group of teens going camping for a few days, although we get introduced to the other main characters and find out a bit about them.

The story picked up when the characters arrived back from their trip and found out that there was something odd happening in the town.  There isn't much of an explanation as to why Australia was invaded so suddenly, why everyone else was captured/kidnapped/put in prison (I can't remember if it ever said), or even who invaded, which might be revealed in the other books but I think should've been mentioned in this one. 

There wasn't as much action as I expected - most of the book was about the group avoiding the war and planning on how to survive.  I was quite surprised they were never spotted or discovered at all during the book, and at some parts it hardly seemed like an action/war story.  I wasn't really sure where the story was going at all, apart from the general idea of 'survive and don't be caught'.

I didn't have a favourite character.  I found there were quite a few characters who were in Ellie's group, which got a bit confusing, and we didn't really find out a lot about them.  I wasn't a huge fan on Ellie, especially when she was talking about boyfriends - it seemed to me as if she was always desperate for one.  She mentioned that she hardly knew Lee, but within a few chapters she decided she was in love with him....I'm not hugely into romance so maybe it's just me but those parts of the book didn't seem to fit.  We don't even find out much about Ellie.

Even though it wasn't action packed, I didn't think it was too slow paced after the first camping trip part.  Overall, it was ok.  It wasn't hugely exciting, and I didn't like Ellie and the romance didn't fit (in my opinion).  I have to say if I didn't have the next two to review, I would not bother continuing this series.

Rating: 3/5

Review: Witch & Wizard by James Patterson

The world is changing-the government has seized control of every aspect of society, and now kids are disappearing. For fifteen-year-old Wisty and her older brother Whit, life turns upside-down when they are hauled out of bed one night, separated from their parents, and thrown into a secret compound for no reason they can comprehend. The new government is clearly trying to suppress Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Being a Normal Teenager.

Imprisoned together and condemned to death, Wisty and Whit begin exhibiting strange abilities and powers they never dreamed of. Maybe there is a reason they were singled out. Can this newly discovered witch and a wizard master their skills in time to save themselves, their parents-and maybe the world?

**Contains SPOILERS**

When I picked up this book in the library, I had no idea what it was about, apart from the fact it might include magic, as it didn't have any blurb on the back!  When I was about to read it I looked at it on Amazon and thought it looked ok.  I think it's set in the future.

As soon as I started the book I was pulled into it - it was certainly fast paced, with so much happening all through the book.  It was quite exciting too, and wasn't too predictable, however I was a bit unsure of what the characters were trying to acheive apart from freeing the kids from prison.  Were they trying to find out what their enemies were planning?  Or was freeing the kids the whole point of the mission?  Either way it was still a good story and and I definately wasn't left feeling that it was a pointless book.

Even though the book was exciting and had a good story there was something I wasn't too keen on, but I can't put my finger on it...argh!  At some points I thought it was a *little* childish, with enemy names like 'The One Who Is The One' which I at first thought was a nickname thought up by the main characters, and also when the characters say things along the lines of  'kids are better than adults, we will run the world better than them'.  Also calling adults 'grown ups', which I think is a quite childish description, and using words like 'abracadabra' for their spells sounded very young too.  I don't know if the book was written for younger teens/kids though.
It was also confusing at times, and despite being taken in by the book at the start I wasn't so gripped by it later on.  Although I think this book is in the adventure genre, there was a lot more it, not just magic and adventure - it also had dystopian/futuristic and supernatural themes in it, which was what I think made it confusing.

Overall this book was exciting, fast paced and some of the narrative by Whit and Whisty was quite lighthearted, but there was just SOMETHING about it, along with what I've put.  Hmm. This most definately was not one of the best adventure books I've read.

Rating: 3/5

Showcase Sunday #3

This is a meme hosted by Books, Biscuits and Tea where bloggers taking part showcase their new books.

Borrowed from the library:

Witch & Wizard by James Patterson:  I have had this sitting around for about a week!  I didn't know anything about it until I googled the book - looks good.  I like some of the Maximum Ride series, but some of them are a bit....meh so hopefully this will be more like the good ones.

Sent to me (!!):

Tomorrow When the War Began, The Dead of the Night and The Third Day, The Frost by John Marsden:  Eek!  The first books I have had sent to me! :D  Thank you to Luisa from Chicklish for sending me these books.  I am guest reviewing the second two for Chicklish, and I will post reviews for all three here.  They look pretty good!

Review: Slated by Teri Terry

Kyla's memory has been erased,
her personality wiped blank,
her memories lost for ever.

She's been Slated.

The government claims she was a terrorist,
and that they are giving her a second chance -
as long as she plays by their rules.
But echoes of the past whisper in Kyla's mind.
Someone is lying to her, and nothing is as it seems.
Who can she trust in her search for the truth?

I had no idea what this was going to be like!  I don't think I have read anything like this and I haven't heard of the author before, but I saw some good reviews so I decided to try it!

As soon as I started the book I was gripped by it.  The whole book made me want to carry on reading, find out what was going to happen to the characters, discover what happened at the end.  Some parts of the book were very unexpected, which defiately made it hard to put the book down!  I also liked how it was set in the future, but it wasn't hugely futuristic and made the more unrealistic parts of the story fit well, and I liked how the author gave a good idea of WHEN in the future the book is, unlike other dystopian books I have read.  The world the characters live in reminded me of the Hunger Games - I personally am not a THG fan but I think that would appeal to fans.

Parts of when Kyla is trying to find out about her past reminded me of Girl, Missing by Sophie Mckenzie!  Readers who enjoyed that book might like this, too. 

I was expecting ore exciting bits in this story, but instead it was a bit mysterious, which kept it interesting!

However one thing I did not like was the writing style.  I'm not a huge fan of present tense books, and I felt parts of this seemed a bit dull or blunt.  I didn't really have a favourite character and I didn't feel like I got to know the main character, which I think might have something to do with the style.  It didn't really interfere with the book though and after a few chapters I didn't notice it as much, and I know lots of books are written like this at the moment.

I also didn't like the ending much.  While I was reading, I was thinking 'I can't wait to get to the end so I know what happened to this character' but Kyla doesn't find out about hardly anything she was wondering about throughout the book, and I think if these things are continued for some time in the sequel it will feel a little like the story is dragging on and needs something new.  Kyla doesn't even find out a large amont about what happened to her in the past. If the book didn't have extra character dissapearances I think the ending would be better, but I felt a bit annoyed at how I didn't find out what happened. 

I did enjoy this book a lot and I was completly gripped by it, and it had a pretty original idea!  As I said it reminded me of some other books, if you liked them you might like this :).

Rating: 4/5

Showcase Sunday #2

This is a meme hosted by Books, Biscuits and Tea where bloggers taking part showcase their new books.
Sorry this is a day late, I didn't have time to post it on Sunday :).

Borrowed from the library.

Unfortunatley I only have one book this week to review :(.

Slated by Teri Terry:  I have heard good reviews of this book, and it sounds quite good.  I'm not really sure what I'm going to think of this book though, but hopefully it will be good!

Review: Double-Cross by Sophie McKenzie

Narrated by Nico, Double-Cross is full of telekinetic action as the Medusa Project team arrive in Sydney, Australia, for another exciting mission - and come face-to-face with two more Medusa teens: Cal, a boy who can fly, and Amy, a girl who can shapeshift...but who is double-crossing who?


I enjoyed every other book in this series, and I was glad I finally managed to read this :).

The book was very fast paced - within the first or second chapter things were happening.  It was very exciting, with events happening very close to each other and with no boring bits at all.  It was slightly unrealistic at times (minus the fact the characters had powers), but many books like this are.

It was narrated by Nico, one of the main characters.  For some reason he annoyed me in this book, but not in the others so much - I don't know if the author intended that or if it's just me, though!  I thought having the chapters from differant character's points of view, like in the last book, but it wasn't something I would have noticed if I hadn't read the last book before tis one.  I like how in this series all the characters are very differant, making them more interesting to read about than a bunch of similar people. 

At times this book was a little predictable, and I could almost guess what would happen at some parts.  However, some bits of the book were quite unexpected!  It ended on a litte bit of a cliffhanger - if I hadn't already read the last book I would be dying to read it! 

I also liked the cover of this book (and others in the series) - the cover has an action packed feel to it, which suits the book.

I would reccomend this book to fans of books with some action. I did enjoy this book, but I thought some bits were a bit predictable but it wasn't boring at all and was an exciting read.  If you're thinking of reading this, definately read the books before it in the series first - it might be a bit confusing otherwise.

Rating: 4/5

Review: Hattori Hachi: The Revenge of Praying Mantis by Jane Prowse

As I turned, Mad Dog shouted, "Hattie - RUN!" Shadowy figures were filling the room. The graffiti on the walls wasn't graffiti at all - it was real people, throwing strange animal shadows and now it looked like they were peeling off the walls. One of them was already on the stairs behind Mad Dog, while around me lizard and panther shadows were turning into humans.
Hattie Jackson is just an ordinary fifteen-year-old - until her mother disappears and Hattie's life is turned upside down. With the help of her friend Mad Dog, Hattie discovers the truth about her mother's 'other life' and the role she must now take on to defeat a terrifying army of evil Ninjutsu warriors, led by Praying Mantis - the most deadly assassin of all ... A thrilling page-turner by an exciting new author.

I thought this book was interesting and differant when I saw it, I don't think I have seen a ninja book before!  It definately looked like a great book.

I was right!  It was excellent.  Although the idea of the book was unrealistic, it was made more beliveable by setting it in a normal place, with the main character being a normal 15 year old girl.  The story was original and not predictable, and apart from eventually meeting the villian, Praying Mantis, I couldn't tell what was going to happen.

The book wasn't full of action and excitement to start with, but this didn't make it boring - it was interesting to read about Hattie's ninja training and all the events that happened.  However, at the end it got very fast paced and exciting!  It did get *slightly* confusing as it was so fast paced.  I loved how there were explanations for everything odd going on, clearing up everything that might have seemed strange during the book.

Parts of this (for some reason) reminded me of the Power of Five books by Anthony Horowitz - I think it was the 'enemies in disguise slowly taking over the world' bits that came into it sometimes.

I liked how each character was individual - none of them seemed similar and had differant good and bad things about them, which made them seem like real people.

Overall I loved this book.  It had a great story, plot and an unusual idea!  I've just seen there is a second book, I will be definately reading this.

Rating: 4.3/5

Review: Della says: OMG! by Keris Stainton

Della's over the moon when she kisses her long-standing crush at a party - but then she discovers her diary has disappeared...
When scans of embarrassing pages are sent to her mobile and appear on Facebook, Della's distraught - how can she enjoy her first proper romance when someone, somewhere, knows all her deepest, darkest secrets?

I haven't read a book like this for a long time, and I wasn't sure what to expect from this at all.

It was very differant to what I thought it was going to be like - I thought it would be mostly focussed around Della trying to find her diary, but I found it was mostly about Della's friends and boyfriend.

This wasn't really my kind of book!  I wasn't a fan of the constant boyfriend problems and everything that happened seemed to be related to the charaters' relationships.  However, I liked how the book wasn't very serious and was quite a lighthearted read, which suited the story.

I also quite liked the cover for this book.  It was simple but still eye catching, not covered in pink hearts like some similar books I have seen! 

Im general I wasn't a huge fan of this, but I know LOTS of people like these kinds of book - it just wasn't my kind of thing to read!  I would reccomend this to anyone who enjoys school/friends/boyfriend stories and nothing too serious!

I'm not going to rate this as I don't think it would be too fair! :)

Review: Blood Ransom by Sophie McKenzie

Clones Rachel and Theo now live thousands of miles apart. They keep in touch, but things just aren't the same. When Rachel discovers that evil scientist Elijah is still working in secret for a section of the government and about to murder Daniel, she sets out to rescue the little boy, but her plans backfire with disastrous consequences. Across the Atlantic, Theo becomes suspicious when Rachel misses their weekly internet chat. He discovers a report online saying she's killed herself and travels to Scotland to find her, certain that she has been kidnapped. A clue leads him to Elijah's mysterious clinic, where the sinister Aphrodite Experiment is underway. But what is Elijah really planning? Why does he need to track Rachel down so badly? And will Rachel and Theo be able to pay the ultimate ransom that he demands?

**MAY CONTAIN MILD SPOILERS!!**

 After reading and enjoying the first book, Blood Ties, I was glad I had finally managed to read the sequel! 

I thought this book was just as good as the first!  It had less action but was still quite exciting.  I liked how the chapters alternated between being narrated by Theo and Rachel, the main characters, which gave me views on what was happening from both of them.  This also gave the book some suspense - often the chapter would end as something was about to happen and I'd want to carry on, only for a new chapter to start! 

One thing I was a bit worried about was that the book might not have much of a point, as I thought the first book didn't really need a sequel.  I was wrong - the book definately had a good storyline and a point to it, with a good ending that didn't make me feel that the book had been pointless.  I thought this book got better nearer the end as it became more exciting.

The characters were also realistic.  For some reason the character Grace annoyed me - maybe it was because how Rachel went quickly from not wanting much to do with her to trying to be with her as much as possible, or the fact I don't like little kids. xD.

Although this book is great, I did think some parts were a little predictable and not completly unexpected, again more near the beginning of the book.  But this didn't make it boring at all - I didn't get bored at all during reading it.

In general I thought this book was excellent! 

Rating: 4/5