Cover Reveal! Unchosen by Michele Vail

COVER REVEAL!
Today we are revealing the Cover for UNCHOSEN! The second book in The Reaper Diaries series from Michele Vail.

It comes to you in November so stay tuned!
What do you think?



Have you read Undeadly?

Let us know what you thought!
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Enter to win 1 of 5 finished copies of WICKED KISS by Michelle Rowen





MY KISS CAN KILL.

I used to be ordinary Samantha Day, but that's changed. Now, after one dark kiss from a dangerous boy, I can steal someone's soul...or their life. If I give in to the constant hunger inside me, I hurt anyone I kiss. If I don't...I hurt myself.

Bishop is the one whose kiss I crave most, but if I kiss him, I'll kill him. Then there's another boy, one I can't hurt. One whose kiss seems to miraculously quell my hunger. They're both part of a team of angels and demons that's joined forces in my city to fight a mysterious rising darkness, an evil that threatens everyone I know and love. I just wonder if I'll be able to help Bishop-or if I'm just another part of the darkness he's sworn to destroy....


NIGHTWATCHERS

When angels and demons must work together, something beyond evil is rising... 


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Clockwork Princess First Chapter Reveal



Those wonderful people at Simon & Schuster have released the first chapter!

Synopsis of Cassandra Clare's Clockwork Princess

Danger intensifies for the Shadowhunters as the New York Times bestselling Infernal Devices trilogy comes to a close.

If the only way to save the world was to destroy what you loved most, would you do it? The clock is ticking. Everyone must choose.
Passion. Power. Secrets. Enchantment.

Danger closes in around the Shadowhunters in the final installment of the bestselling Infernal Devices trilogy


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Latest Blogs from our Favourite YA Authors - 27th February 2013




Here's a round up of blogs from our favourite YA authors:
x



Is there an author you'd like to see updates from?
Just let us know and we'll add them to our list!
-CB xx
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Review: Bloodlines by Richelle Mead


Bloodlines (Bloodlines #1) by Richelle Mead 

Publishers: Razorbill
Published Date:  August 23rd 2011
From: Bought
My rating: 4 out of 5
Synopsis:
Blood doesn't lie...

Sydney is an alchemist, one of a group of humans who dabble in magic and serve to bridge the worlds of human and vampires. They protect vampire secrets - and human lives. When Sydney is torn from her bed in the middle of the night, at first she thinks she's still being punished for her complicated alliance with dhampir Rose Hathaway.

But what unfolds is far worse. Jill Dragomir - the sister of Moroi Queen Lissa Dragomir - is in mortal danger, and the Moroi must send her into hiding. To avoid a civil war, Sydney is called upon to act as Jill's guardian and protector, posing as her roommate in the last place anyone would think to look for vampire royalty - a human boarding school in Palm Springs, California.

But instead of finding safety at Amberwood Prep, Sydney discovers the drama is only just beginning..
Review:
It took me a few times to get into this book. It's been on my ´to-read' since it came out. Mostly because I wasn't that interested in the Alchemists when they featured in the Vampire Academy series. Sydney Sage was an interesting character in the story but I didn't think she had the charisma to pull off a spin-off series.

Well, I'm happy to say I was wrong. But if you're looking for something that equals Vampire Academy then this isn't it. It doesn't really compare with the series nor hold the intensity of life at Court with Lissa and Rose, and the wheelings and dealings of dhamphirs and moroi. Part of what kept most people addicted to VA was the fiery relationship between Rose Hathaway and Dimitri Belikov and how their love story pans out.

Bloodlines isn't a love story. Sydney Sage becomes more of a detective and caretaker,  unravelling the secrets of her new life in Palm Springs. What makes this book compelling are the other characters that have been brought over to this series. Eddie, Jill and of course the wonderful Adrian, and if you haven't read Adrians Lost Chapter then read it here!

Back to Bloodlines, after the happenings of Last Sacrifice, Jill, Sydney, Eddie and Adrian are all moved to Palm Springs. Jill needs her education and also needs to stay hidden from the political world of the moroi. She's the only other Dragomir and Lissa's throne depends on her being alive. New characters come into play. Jill starts dating. Sydney wants to keep her Alchemist head on but things start spiralling out of control when moroi girls start dying. Plus a new tattooist in town is giving tattoos to the rich kids who can pay, and the tattoos are spelled to give extra abilities be it strength, speed or popularity. Enter Sydney and her Alchemist knowledge, and Adrian, who has nothing to do all day. Together they start to figure out that something more sinister is at work in Palm Springs and it needs to be stopped.

The ending leads into a interesting cliffhanger that made me immediately want to grab Book 2, The Golden Lily.

Overall, this spin-off has an interesting premise and I was surprised at how much I really liked Sydney. And there is a certain chemistry going on with her and Adrian that will, I'm sure, develop into more. A good start to the series, now lets see if The Golden Lily can hold its own as the sequel!

-CB x



You can reach Richelle Mead here:
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Review: Silver (Bandia, #1) by Talia Vance


Silver (Bandia #1) by Talia Vance  

Publishers: Flux Books
Published Date: September 8th 2012
From: NetGalley
My rating: 3.5 out of 5
Synopsis:
"As I step into the room, a silver flash blurs my vision. Before I can take a breath, the world falls away."

Brianna has always felt invisible. People stare right past her, including the one boy she can't resist, Blake Williams. But everything changes at a house party where Brianna's charm bracelet slips off and time stands still. In that one frozen, silver moment, Blake not only sees her, he recognizes something deep inside her she's been hiding even from herself.

Discovering she is descended from Danu, the legendary Bandia of Celtic myth, Brianna finds herself questioning the truth of who she is. And when she accidentally binds her soul to Blake, their mutual attraction becomes undeniable.

But Blake has his own secret, one that could prove deadly for them both.

Bound together by forbidden magic, Brianna and Blake find themselves at the heart of an ancient feud that threatens to destroy their lives and their love.
Review:
I loved the Irish folklore, and the lore of the Milesians, Danu and Killian. The Seventh Sons and Daughters are now out to kill each other and our heroine Brianna is a Seventh daughter, but has a past that is unknown to her apart from stories her Nana told when she was younger.

The characters were great and the story easily weaved them in and out with perfect pace. There's a lot of drama and tension but mostly between Brianna, Blake and Austin (yes, there's a triangle!)

What I wasn't keen on was the heavy narrative between each piece of dialogue. Sometimes I had to skip it to get to the next bit. Sometimes I thought the story lacked depth. But overall it's a good yarn brought into modern day. If you're a fan of books with folklore and history then this is for you!

-CB x




You can reach Talia Vance here: 
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Review: The Sweetest Dark (The Sweetest Dark #1) by Shana Abé


The Sweetest Dark (The Sweetest Dark #1) by Shana Abé  

Publishers: Random House Publishing Group
Published Date: April 2nd 2013
From: NetGalley
My rating: 3 out of 5
Synopsis:
“With every fiber of my being, I yearned to be normal. To glide through my days at Iverson without incident. But I’d have to face the fact that my life was about to unfold in a very, very different way than I’d ever envisioned. Normal would become forever out of reach.”
 
Lora Jones has always known that she’s different. On the outside, she appears to be an ordinary sixteen-year-old girl. Yet Lora’s been keeping a heartful of secrets: She hears songs that no one else can hear, dreams vividly of smoke and flight, and lives with a mysterious voice inside her that insists she’s far more than what she seems.

England, 1915. Raised in an orphanage in a rough corner of London, Lora quickly learns to hide her unique abilities and avoid attention. Then, much to her surprise, she is selected as the new charity student at Iverson, an elite boarding school on England’s southern coast. Iverson’s eerie, gothic castle is like nothing Lora has ever seen. And the two boys she meets there will open her eyes and forever change her destiny.

Jesse is the school’s groundskeeper—a beautiful boy who recognizes Lora for who and what she truly is. Armand is a darkly handsome and arrogant aristocrat who harbors a few closely guarded secrets of his own. Both hold the answers to her past. One is the key to her future. And both will aim to win her heart. As danger descends upon Iverson, Lora must harness the powers she’s only just begun to understand, or else lose everything she dearly loves.
Review:
The first thing I should mention about this book is that its beautifully written. Sometimes I thought the prose was a little over the top, and could have been simplified. But the author does a wonderful job of creating the backdrop for the story, and creating atmosphere.

So to the story. This is a paranormal romance. I haven't come across such a strange mix of creatures before. For our benefit we're weaved into a mythical story of a Drákon girl and a boy who came from the stars. A tad unusual but it did have a refreshed feel to it as I had no preconceptions of characters who could turn animated objects to gold.

There is a love triangle of sorts which again has a little twist in it. The story is told from three angles (four if you count the letters from the mysterious Rue). Overall the love aspect isn't one of indecision. Lora made up her mind from the beginning of who she liked and stuck with it.

The story begins in London at an orphanage, then takes us to Wessex where the rest of the plot unfolds. A prestigious boarding school becomes Lora's home complete with hostile girls and a rich family living nearby. But an unusual alliance is formed when Lora becomes the object of the coveted Armand's affections. His girl in waiting, Chloe, is the step-sister of Lady Sophia. And although Sophia appeared to dislike Lora she soon came to her senses to do anything to spite her sister. In return Lora makes an ally although she never does become any more popular due to her poor background.

The main backdrop of the story is WW1. The main reason Lora goes to Wessex in the first place is to escape the bombings by the German Zeppelins. The war is ever apparent throughout the story and becomes the spin in the final chapters.

The reason I've given this book a lower rating is that there is little tension from the middle towards the ending. No evil enemy to capture or kill, no threats on Loras or Jesse's lives because of discovery of their secret. In fact it all falls a little flat. We also, despite an initial search, never find out how the Drákon characters are related whether through cousins, second cousins, maybe a possible sister. It gets completely forgotten. I half expected some distant relation to pop up and claim Lora for his long lost child, but we got nothing. And the story of Rue all seems pointless as it now bears no meaning to the main story. Except in a possible sequel. At times Jesse's dialogue annoyed me and became too abstract to hold any meaning but I understand that was probably more to allure Lora.

Overall I did like this book and I certainly recommend it. But once I got to the last pages I couldn't help feeling a little underwhelmed.

-CB x






You can reach Shana Abé here: 
Available from Amazon:

    
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