Aversion by Kenechi Udogu

I received this novel from the author in exchange for an honest review

I don't go for paranormal YA romance often, but i'm glad that I picked Aversion up a few days ago! This book holds an intriguing but lighthearted story with just the right amount of romance and action to be appealing for a grand amount of readers, including kids.

For Gemma Green’s first time, things should have been straightforward. Find your subject, hold their gaze and push a thought into their head to save them from future disaster – Aversion complete. A pretty simple process given that the subject was to have no recollection of the experience. But Russ Tanner doesn’t seem to want to forget. In fact the more she tries to avoid him, the more he pushes to get to know her. Gemma knows she has a problem but is she facing the side effects of a failed Aversion or has the school’s tennis champ really fallen for her?

When I turned the first page of Aversion I wasn't expecting much. The Paranormal YA genre isn't my favorite, in fact I find most books in this genre despicable, but I must admit that Udogu did an extraordinary good job at pulling me into this story.

Now this novel isn't a masterpiece. There are some things that didn't work for me, but i will get to those later. First I want to emphasize how wonderful I found the writing. It was clean, simple and yet beautifully crafted. Because of this simplistic language, It's a perfect story for children. I'm not saying that it doesn't belong it the YA category, I just think that if you're looking for a bedtime story to tell your little ones? Go for Aversion.

One thing that that this novel lacked was character depth (no rhyme intended). Yes, every character (Which weren't many-not a bad thing, though) had their own personalities, pros and cons... but. There's a big but in there. I felt like all of them were very flat in their own ways. The main character, Gemma, was resourceful, pretty funny, very like-able and a realistic teenager, she's completely fine. But then we get the matter of her Dad, Russ and the villains. Gemma's Dad wasn't displayed enough in my opinion. He plays an essential part in the story and at the end of the book I wasn't very moved by any of his "revelations'' simply because I didn't know what to expect from him in the first place. Like I said, flat.

Then we have Russ, who is the perfect wonder-boy (really? really!?). Sporty (tennis, guys. Not even football or anything. tennis), funny, brave and he doesn't care about what people think of him. perfect boy right there.

Another point that i'd like to bring forward is the action and romance. I like how Udogu balanced them but (me being an action-lover) I found that the action lacked something. I wasn't on the tip of my chair and my heart wasn't pounding during any of these scenes. A bit more action wouldn't have hurt either.

Now the romance, Hah, I don't like Mr. Russ perfection. Why? He's not realistic and I found the romance very cheeky. Romance just isn't my thing, but if you enjoyed the romance in other Paranormal YA novels; you'll adore this!

Overall this YA (or childrens) novel was fun, lighthearted and easy to comprehend. Not only was it very enjoyable, but it's also super short! It has 133 pages and I read it within an hour. I'm very excited to start reading the sequel: Sentient.

Lots of Luck,

Bee

The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey #ReadingCram

So today I finished this book. I. Loved. It.

After the 1st wave, only darkness remains. After the 2nd, only the lucky escape. And after the 3rd, only the unlucky survive. After the 4th wave, only one rule applies: trust no one.

Now, it’s the dawn of the 5th wave, and on a lonely stretch of highway, Cassie runs from Them. The beings who only look human, who roam the countryside killing anyone they see. Who have scattered Earth’s last survivors. To stay alone is to stay alive, Cassie believes, until she meets Evan Walker.

Beguiling and mysterious, Evan Walker may be Cassie’s only hope for rescuing her brother—or even saving herself. But Cassie must choose: between trust and despair, between defiance and surrender, between life and death. To give up or to get up.

The 5th wave is something special, if not necessarily very original. It's another one of those YA apocalyptic novels, but the way the author mixes romance with action and logic is mesmerising..

What I loved most is how contemplative I became while reading. Throughout the whole book I was considering worst-case scenarios. And just as the main character; I trusted no one.

It's hard to write a review about this book because there really isn't much to say. The characters were great. Some grow in character as the story progresses, some don't. But all of them, yes even the secondary characters, have their own personalities and stick to them.

Wait, wait. There was this one thing that did bother me. Where were the aliens? C'mon guys. A little more action on their part would be appreciated! The lack of actual aliens was a bit disappointing.

And don't get me started on the writing. Metaphors packed with sarcasm. I loved it.

The plot was... I don't even know. The author leaves you guessing until the last few chapters about basically everything.

This review is pathetic. I haven't said anything... This is what a good novel does to me. My inner critic just died because there's nothing to criticise!

 5 out of 5.

 Why? Because this book achieved exactly what it was trying to achieve. It wanted you to think, to be paranoid, to have a laugh when the characters made sarcastic comments. This novel makes you love every character, and makes you question the intentions of pretty much...well, everyone. Including the characters you love.

Just go and read it, because this review is a mess and you probably don't even understand what I'm talking about. (For reviewers that did a MUCH better job at speaking of this book and share my opinions click this or this)

Lots of Luck,
Bee

Blue Lights by Hollow Frazer

‘One villain, a white room and the deadliest creature he will ever meet.’ 

Swallowed by the harsh sea, Morgan Sanders finds himself trapped in a white room with no entry or exit. Upon awakening, he is greeted by the ghosts from his past. ‘Blue lights’ is a fantasy and supernatural short story that follows the struggle of an antagonist in a fight against his dying body and a sinister realm between life and death. 

Can he beat the odds stacked against him or will he forever be trapped?

So this was interesting. There's not much to say, this story being about 20 pages long, but what was written in there? I liked it.

So basically, Morgan get's thrown of a ship for some reason and ends up in an... empty chamber of doom? I'm not sure.

I think that the author was trying too hard to put this story in a small amount of pages. This would be great if it would have been stretched out a few dozen pages. Some more explanation would have been nice, too.
The whole story was a little confusing... but enjoyable.

What made me like this book was the amazing writing style. I loved how Frazer described the environment and made me able to really picture what was going on so vividly. Like a movie playing on in my mind.

I think this was pretty interesting... even though it got a BIT confusing.

And then there was the ending. To be continued... what?! There's gonna be more? I thought this was a standalone short story... apparently not, hm.

That's about all I have to say! You guys should check this out, I read it within one hour and yeah... it was pretty enjoyable. I'll give it 3 stars... well, more like 2,5  because there wasn't really much action going on except for that flashback thing? The writing was so good though...hm. Jup 3 stars it is!

Lots of luck,
Bee

The Elect by Elle Todd

*I received this book as a free copy in exchange for an honest review*

Hmm. I could name at least 5 books that are similar to this one, the only difference being the kind of supernatural power the main character possesses... Well that, and the fact that I actually enjoyed this book (mostly) while those others annoyed the crap out of me.

Allison Noble never liked the Baileys. They were too good-looking, too popular, too charming to be legitimate. For most of their high school career she avoided the pair, convinced their outward affability was just a ruse to disguise their true character. Okay, yeah, she’s a little neurotic. Even so, she never suspected that what they were hiding was dangerous. It never occurred to her that they might have abilities based more in fiction than reality. Why would it? People can’t produce fire with their bare hands. There are no such things as mind control and telekinesis. Except, she discovers, there are. 

The Baileys are Elect, gifted with supernatural powers Allison is able to not only sense, but use herself. In the history of the Elect, there has never been one such as she, and with good reason. Because she wasn’t born to such power, she has a difficult time controlling it. Accidents happen, putting them all at risk. As others draw near—some who wish to protect her, others who want to destroy her—she is forced to uncover the secrets of her past, and face the consequences of being what her own kind refers to as an abomination.

For starters i'd like to point out that, even though this will come over as mean, The Elect wasn't anything too special.

Sure, i enjoyed it and thought the whole idea of being ''elect" was pretty cool... but it was just another one of those supernatural YA novels. Girl discovers she has awesome powers, complicated romance, parent dies, girl has to run and hide her powers, etc. It's always the same, if slightly different.

That fact aside, let's talk about the things i enjoyed about this novel!

I really like the main character, Ally, mainly because she reminded me of myself. 

She even has the same birthday as me, February 1st! That's a plus one.

She wasn't one of those typical teenage girls you find in YA novels. 

Allison was a realist.

And I admired her for being such a nice daughter.
Even though all the shit that came down on her, she dealt with it pretty nicely.

Next up are the relationships in this book. I basically loved all the characters, which is a first.

Allison didn't drool over the guys she was around (thank Merlin), but pretty much had casual relationships with all of them.

Except one of them, of course. *winks*

 I won't say who she ends up with because i really liked the whole shipping throughout the book.
At the beginning i really shipped Nate and Allison.. Then Jeremy and Allison... then Troy and Allison.. then Nate again and then Ryan. That loop repeated itself for the first half of the novel.

Which brings me upon another important point of this novel.

The first 200 pages are basically high-school drama. If you ask me, the novel focused too much on Allison's relationships than her actual powers. The book only started to get intense in the last chapter (which was pretty awesome). The rest was really just... not that interesting to me.

As for the writing; it was okay. It wasn't very descriptive, which bothered me just a little.
I love it when a book really describes the environment, but i understand that most people might find that boring.
Don't get me wrong, i'm not saying that the writing was bad. I'm saying that if it had been more descriptive, it would have enhanced my reading experience.

But the thing that bothered me the most is that 60% of the time I couldn't tell who was talking. There was nearly no indication whatsoever of which lines were Allison's or one of her friends'.
It killed a smooth reading experience.

Mayor spoiler alert below, so if you haven't read the book... go away!

THAT ENDING. I loved it! Action packed, drama, violence, mystery and a cliffhanger!

That ending is what made me excited for the next book.
If the ending lacked any of those 3 points, i probably would forget about this novel and move on.
But now? I'll most certainly read the second book because i'm really curious and want more!

Spoiler alert again.
What's up with parents dying in YA novels?! What i think was really sad is that we, as readers, didn't really get to know Regina before she passed away. It was so sad... and yet, Ally had been dealing with her paranormal roller coaster on her own for months already... so her mother's death didn't really affect me that much.

Or I just don't have a soul.

That's more likely.

And may I just point out how awesome the cover is?! I love it! Would you look at that.

I recommend this book to people that enjoy YA paranormal novels. It's a pretty light read and I read it in a few hours. It reminded me a lot of the Lux series... minus Deamon. So if you're into that series, you'll enjoy this too!

Lots of Luck,
Bee

The Four Kings by Scott Spotson

*I received a copy of this novel for free in exchange for an honest review*

I really enjoyed this novel. It was very interesting to read through!

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Politics, magic, and love don't mix. Or do they?

When the world is overcome with The Great Blight of poverty, corruption, and hopelessness, a group of young wizards seizes control and makes sweeping changes--which divides the human race into loyal supporters of the new regime, and bitter, angry revolutionaries.

In the midst of the turmoil is Amanda Fullerton, a grad student who is hired to act as liaison between the wizard council in North America and its citizens. While ruling like monarchs from their perch in the sky, the self-proclaimed "Liberators" create a widening gap among the Mortals, with Amanda caught in the middle.

As Amanda tries to serve both sides, she becomes embroiled in the twisted agendas of these puppet masters. With alluring, yet deadly wizard games that threaten her life and romantic entanglements, Amanda discovers her "dream job" is anything but! While the four wizards--Demus, Indie, Regi, and Justica initially unite under their libertarian ideals and their revered god Elsedor, their unique personalities eventually lead to infighting, with the fate of the continent up for grabs.
...................................................................................................................................................................

To kick this off i'd like to say that the plot was fantastic. I positively loved all the politics and the whole image that this book created.

The author's imagination is amazing!

And even though I had no idea what they were talking about 35% of the book, i can tell he thought the plot through very well.


Also, the magic was displayed in a very nice manner. A wizard's power was basically unlimited... which brings me upon a thought that kept popping up into my mind while reading: "Why wasn't there ever an evil wizard?" Really? No evil wizard out for world domination hm? If I had that kind o power i would go around living the good life! I just can't imagine that there hasn't at least been one wizard that has gone astray and misused their powers.

Plus, the book said that when a wizard was to die; his magic would die with him. Only the mighty Elsedor (their god) had somehow managed to make his magic live on. So... did all the buildings and houses the four wizards made just disappear? :/ That wouldn't really be efficient.


And let me just point out that before we get to the actually action, we first have to read through 300 pages of debates and stuff like that. Now, I personally really enjoy reading about politics, but i can imagine a lot of people finding it very heavy to get through.

Around page 400 the plot really starts to develop and lots of action happens.

Those two combined make this novel really enjoyable.


Something that really bothered me was the amount of one-dimensional and self-contradictory characters.

Let's take Amanda, the main character, for example. She's displayed as caring, ambitious, smart and cunning. And yet.. she plays Demus like a rag doll.

Indie, what about her? We didn't really get to know a lot about her personality at all. She's bold,smart,demanding...and then she just goes back and forth between being harsh and nice. Same goes for Justica. I didn't really know what to expect from those two.

As for the two remaining wizards, Regi and Demus, they were developed a little more. But just a little. Demus was nice at times, but also really arrogant, bold, aggressive,cunning and kind of a control freak.

And Regi was described as "the perfect gentleman" Sweet, strong, caring, smart and all those things. Really? So you created the perfect man there. No flaws, eh?

As a reader you don't really... get to know the characters very well, and so you don't feel affected when something bad happens to them.


And there were tons of type-os during the first half of the novel. Random letters scattered around, missing words, words that were only halfway written and words that were misplaced or just didn't belong in the sentences at all.


Another thing that was questionable is the fact that no wizard bothered to do something about Amanda. She knew lots of their secrets and they just let her be? Shouldn't they lock her up or something? Or make her swear secrecy in some magic way that she can't break. Just saying, are they just trusting her with their precious secrets?


And then there was the baby thing. Any explanation on WHY that was possible, please? Nope? Still waiting... *turns last page* nope. Nothing.


Having read my review, you might have gotten the impression that i didn't enjoy it that much. Now that isn't true. Sure, this novel had its flaws and was far from perfect, but even though some things just didn't add up i still really enjoyed the plot lines that were going on. The action was addicting and i kept anticipating to read and find out what was going to happen next.

I recommend this book to any person that enjoys reading about politics, magic and dress ups.

Lots of Luck,
Bee

Twisted Reflections ( Adventures of Alexis Davenport #2 ) by Shay West.

*I received this Ebook as a free copy in exchange for an honest review*

Hm. I don't know about this one. 

There wasn't anything wrong with this novel, it just didn't pull me under like the first book of the series.

Alexis Davenport is learning to come to grips with her ability to travel through time, but she still hasn't been able to stop the evil Drifter and his Master from trying to alter the past.

When she travels back to ancient Egypt, Alex gets a most unexpected surprise; she meets someone who can help her figure out how to use her powers, another Traveler like herself.

But can Alex learn how to control her gift before Drifter finds a way to stop her from meddling in his Master’s plans?

This review might contain minor spoilers. You've been warned. Also, if you haven't read Dangerous Reflections then go away!

I want to start off by saying that i'm a little disappointed. To be honest, it felt like reading Dangerous Reflections again. 

The plot didn't move on at all, i could just have skipped Twisted Reflections and not miss out on anything important.

Whiny teenagers, annoying crushes and bore-some scenes; Drama. Where's the time traveling?! All that happened was Alexis whining about her free time and being a typical annoying teenager.

I couldn't stand her throughout the book.

I was hoping that there would be more action in this novel, nope. I got more crying teenagers instead.

Now i'd like to mention something that just doesn't add up. 

During one of Alexis' adventures through time, in Dangerous Reflections, she got cut on her arm. When she returned to her own timeline the cut was also present on her own body.

   BUT. When she went to Sparta, in Twisted Reflections, she battled the ''bad guy'' and got sliced up pretty badly. And yet, when she returned to present time, her body was completely fine. 

Also during her adventures in Sparta, she was bleeding to death. But she was thinking of her love life. what? Why? 

You don't think about your love triangle while being naked and bleeding to death in the middle of a street while your enemy is a few feet away from you!

Gosh.

I think this novel was a little boring. I'll give this book 2 1/2 stars.

I'd recommend it to younger readers, let's say from the age of 12 to 15. 

Definitely give it a try if you're into teen drama. I can't stand that kind of stuff, but not everyone likes the same cup of tea.

Twisted Reflections on GoodReads.

Dangerous Reflections on Goodreads.

My review of Dangerous Reflections.

That was all! Lots of luck,

Bee

Shadowcursed by Gelo R. Fleisher

*I received this Ebook as a free copy in exchange for an honest review*

That was better than i was expecting. Very original!

Bolen is a thief, plying his trade under the spires of an ancient and sprawling city. Worried that he's growing too old, Bolen has lined up a risky job, just to prove that he can still pull one off.

Tonight, he's going to break into a nobleman's vault and help himself to its contents. What he doesn't know is that inside is the key to a secret as old as the city itself.

Kings have killed for it, demons have coveted it, priests have prayed for it, and in a few moments it will be in his hands. And when it is, the adventure of his life will begin.

For starters i have to point out that it started off wonderfully. I love how the author described the environments. He did a great job on the writing. I could really imagine all the scenes clearly, which is very important to me. 

  But... near the end it got a little sloppy, making me think that Gelo either didn't check it or just wrote it really quickly just to finish the book. It was nothing too bad, though. Just a little bothersome.

Also, in the middle it all went a little too slow for me. Too much sitting around and talking to monks and not enough sneaking around and blood. 

Which brings me upon the ending. What was up with that? O.o Not that it was bad or anything, just a little out there. Not exactly what I was expecting. I'm a little sad that it was't a heart-rate-picks-up-omgwhatshappenin?! kind of ending and more of a laugh out loud for no reason one.

The language they used also bothered me. It was very modern and it really killed the medieval mood that was going on.

And now let's talk about Bolen. I don't get what his deal is. First he's brave, going to the Tanni manor and all that, then he's a coward by not just telling Markus that he doesn't have the damn statue. Like c'mon. You're in your 50s, you're an adult and all that. Just tell the guy that you don't have the statue! You're only digging a deeper hole for yourself! -_- But of course my attempts to yell at my Kindle didn't prevent Bolen to do stupid stuff.

Then the whole deal about Markus and his little girlfriend, or whatever she is to him.I don't understand what his power was all about. Sure, he was evil and wanted to engulf the world in shadows or something right? But...how did he manage to get the city under his thumb? Magic, yes, i got that. But i can't really figure out what his limits were. brainwashing, bending flames, transforming into a black monster. Like... hmm. I don't even know what was going on in those last few scenes.

Don't get me wrong, i really enjoyed this novella. It was light and quick to read. But i think it's more for amusement than as a serious book. 

I give Shadowcursed 3.5 stars. it wasn't perfect. A lot could have been improved, but i enjoyed it quite a lot ^.^

I would recommend this novella to you if you're looking for something quick to read. It's only about 100 pages after all. 

This book on GoodReads.

About the companion game: Requiem.

Author's Blog

Lots of luck,

Bee

Dangerous Reflections (The Adventures of Alexis Davenport, book one) By Shaw West

This book really surprised me, i thought it was going to be one of those stereo-typical girly teen novels where the whole book is about love but the author tries to hide that fact by adding some sort of supernatural skedaddle *cough* Lux *cough* 

But i actually really enjoyed it.

 

Alexis Davenport wants to go home. She hates her new school, her mother for moving her away from her friends, and her father for walking out.

To make matters worse, Alex is haunted by images of strange girls reflected in her mirror. It’s bad enough juggling homework, a relentless bully, boys, and a deadbeat dad; now, she must save the world from an evil presence hell-bent on changing the past – and our futures. Who knew her A+ in history was going to be this important?

Lets start with the plot. I think it was a very refreshing look on time-travel. To be honest, i've never really read any books on such a topic and i thought it would be kind of far-fetched. But hey, i read books about alternative universes where people fight each other with giant flaming pitchforks, so i can't really complain. 

That's actually the first thing that really surprised me, i found myself enjoying the idea of time travel and the way it was showcased in this novel.
I also was very shocked that i actually liked the romance that was going on, which wasn't a lot, but it was nice. I didn't like Beau at all, and i was expecting him and Alexis to end up together (thank the universe that it didn't happen). All in all it was very realistic when Alex was in school. There was bullying, jealousy, love and new-found friendships  ^.^ And the way she dealt with all of the crap everyone gave her just gave it all an extra ounce of realism and...fun.
Also, the action scenes and her time spend in the past were pretty good :). I loved the way she analysed everything and was able to recall all these little facts about important people. Like i said before, the time traveling was described in a very creative way. But... one thing that i found kind of strange is how calm she was when finding out that she could travel through time. Like, sure she was confused and everything, but she adapted pretty quickly and accepted all the stuff that was going on almost immediately.
I would probably have an emotional breakdown in the corner or something.
    I also loved the whole reason why she was traveling through time, (superhero! ^.^) it adds just the right amount of suspense to the book. I'm not often a fan of the whole good guy/bad guy thing, but Shay got me to the point of craving to know what the "evil intentions" of this Master guy were. I'm kind of mad that she left me in my suspense... after this review i'm diving into the sequel, Twisted Reflections, to figure it all out ;).

Alexis was a great character. There, i said it. She most certainly wasn't perfect, but very realistic and witty. What made me love her is that you can really see her grow up as you read. At first she's very insecure and doesn't want to stand up for herself. But as she travels through time and has all these experiences, she just becomes more confident and keeps caring less about what people think of her. It was really interesting to read. She was kind of mean to her mother, though. I really wanted to slap her several times when she gave her mother a hard time. But i suppose that's just how teens are *sigh*.
   Other than Alexis, the other characters really stood out. All of them had their own distinct personalities and were unique.

The best thing about this book was definitely the way it made my stomach turn every time Alex got into trouble while time traveling or when she got bullied. It really made me feel sad and i wanted it all to get better for her. When she started to stick up for herself and have fun i really got happy, to the point that i had this huge grin on my face and my family started asking what the hell was so funny that i had to keep laughing out loud while reading. I even found my heart rate picking up when there was some real action going on. That hasn't happened in ages, usually i just have an impassive face while reading, but Dangerous Reflections really got to me.

Oh, and can I just point out that the cover is BEAUTIFUL! Like, wow. It really catches your attention. I like it very much.

There was a pretty funny type-o that i want to share really quickly. there weren't many, but this one made me giggle. Even though it's kind of lame but oh well. ;). So.. after Alex gets kissed for the first time she's all happy and all of that. And then she thinks to herself: My fist kiss! yeah, fist. Not funny at all, i know. Just leave me and my bad sense of humor alone!  D':

I'll give this book 3 bright and shining golden stars! It wasn't perfect, but just fun and light to read. I really recommend this book to you if you're... into time traveling? Jup, i suppose that's right. Dangerous Reflections really is a page-turner and i read it in an hour or two.

That was it for now! You can expect a review of the second book in this series, Twisted Reflections, somewhere in September! I hope you'll be around for a while longer to check that out!

Lots of Luck,
Bee

At One's Beast by Rachel Barnard

Ugh.

That really sums up this book. Brace yourselves for the most negative review in the history of pandas.

Every girl and boy in the village of Frey fears the beast who lives in the forest. Ten years ago, the beast was formed from the town’s rage -- and the evil that lurks inside all people in moments of weakness. Every year since, the townspeople have sacrificed one of their own to appease his anger. This year the sacrifice does not go as planned. A young man saves the chosen girl from fate. She is torn between doing her duty and untangling the identity of her savior and captor. The young man grew up with thoughts of revenge on the town that turned their backs on him, but when he is close to the girl, he is reminded of who he used to be. From once upon a time to happily ever after, the people of Frey will have to rally together to rid the town of evil once and for all, but in the process will they destroy everything that is good in their world?

I wish i could say that At One's Beast at least started off good... but that would be a big lie. So, basically this novel evolves around the city of Frey. But there's some kind of "evil" lingering in the town? That's the first point of how bad this book was. The author gave no explanation whatsowever about this evil or how it got into Frey in the first place. She didn't explain why this Well was so important! Like... why? Why was this evil there, you can't just say EVERYBODY IS EVIL MWUAHHAHAHA and then just go along with that. NO, you can't. it ruined the book, darling. One of the main characters is Zosimos or "Zos" if you will, he fell into the "evil well" that i mentioned above. But that whole scene was so vague that i didn't understand what was going on at all. He heard "voices"in his head that compelled him closer to the well? WHY. Rachel, you need to give explanations, not leave open ends everywhere! It just made the whole reading a pain in the behind because nothing made sense.
Also, after Zos got pulled out of the well, he was covered in black stripes or something. Like tattoos ,i assume, that ran across his body.

Okay Bee, take a deep breath.

Also, i didn't connect to the characters at all. Whenever something happened that brought danger upon any character i just... got bored. I didn't care at al about Alcina, the female main character. The love triangle didn't affect me, because i couldn't be bothered to care about both boys. Alcina just claimed that Aethon was her childhood best friend... but we never saw any real interaction between them.

Hmm, oh. So another infuriating thing about this book is that Zos was supposed to be "the beast" of whom the villagers were all afraid of. But... i don't get WHY they were afraid of him. Because yes, when living in the woods he did raid some shops. But that's it. He didn't kill anyone. a as far as I know he hadn't seen any human for years... so why were the villagers still making a big deal out of him? He was living peacefully in his little house in the woods, nobody had even seen him. So there you have that question again. WHY. Nothing made sense.

I could rant on forever, but i think this is enough negativity for today. 

Okay, maybe just one last thing ;)

the ending... god. Spoiler alert right here.
So it's a happy ending. The people of Frey suddenly accept Zos because he saved some random girl. ... i don't.... WHAT?! For YEARS they were afraid of him. for YEARS they repelled him. And he saves one girl. i repeat, ONE GIRL. And he is welcome back with open arms? No. Fuck that. Also, for some magical reason the stripes on his skin vanish, except for one black tear streak on his cheek.

what

the

fuck

people.

No, just no. I dreaded reading this book. I kept procrastinating and just didn't want to read it -.-
I don't recommend this book to you. And Rachel, if you read this, please consider rewriting your book.
This awful novel deserves no stars at all. But am i allowed to do that? Whatever. 0 stars for At one's Beast.

Lots of Luck,
Bee

The Murder Complex by Linsday Cummings

At first i didn't really want to write this review because i have very mixed feelings towards this book... but then again, i made this blog to share my views. And so here i am with yet another review! :)

Synopsis:

:

Meadow Woodson, a fifteen-year-old girl who has been trained by her father to fight, to kill, and to survive in any situation, lives with her family on a houseboat in Florida. The state is controlled by The Murder Complex, an organization that tracks the population with precision.

The plot starts to thicken when Meadow meets Zephyr James, who is—although he doesn’t know it—one of the MC’s programmed assassins. Is their meeting a coincidence? Destiny? Or part of a terrifying strategy? And will Zephyr keep Meadow from discovering the haunting truth about her family?

Before anything else i have to say that The Murder Complex was good...well, for the first 50 paged, that is.
You see, i received this book over a book-swap and was intrigued by the name. Because lets face the facts, "The Murder complex" just screams "BLOOD. LOTS OF DEATH LIES WITHIN ME!" So yeah, i was pretty intrigued. And the book was truly good in the beginning, but when shit went down the plot was very predictable. And if there's one thing i hate it is when the nutella runs out. And if there's another thing i hate it is when you figure the plot out way before the main character does.

Okay, that was really the biggest flaw of this book.

Another flaw, in my opinion, was the relationship between Meadow and Zephyr (love the names btw). Insta love much? For one, it doesn't fit Meadow's personality to get attached to someone in that way. Love means death. That's usually lesson number one in the ya dystopian main character guide for survival.
It wasn't exactly love at first sight, well, not for Meadow anyway. She did like him though...but...
Yeah, getting back on track. So in short: Meadow tries to keep her distance at first but when her family gets kidnapped she suddenly falls in love and after that she wants to kill him and actually shoots him in the leg and after that they're all happy-couple again! ^.^ YAY! ..wait what? Not yay. Not freaking yay! I don't get their deal. They know eachother for hardly a weak and they're willing to die for eachother? *sigh* fine fine. I'm going to try and stop criticizing every romance in any book i read... i just can't stand stand insta love, kay?! Kay.

Hmm... what else? *looks at notes* Right! So even though i figured most of the plot out from the beginning... the few plot twists in the end did get to me. Plus that ending! Phew! !SPOILER so in the end she like... prepares to me killed but she wants to take as many "leeches" with her, right? In my opinion she should have shot herself right then and there. No sequel or anything. Just a bloody stand alone. ...but that's just my messed up opinion ;).

I really liked Meadow, she wasn't as stupid as most semi-badass main characters. She kept her calm and killed without mercy. Just how i like it.   

Overall this book was pretty amusing. But... nothing to take too serious. It reminded me heavily of mockinjay (the hunger games #3). I'm not saying that miss Cummings copied anything, but the YA genre is so cramped that there's really no space for creativity. Most ideas are already taken, so coming up with something original is very tricky.

Still i liked it, even though it isn't the greatest book out there. It was amusing and in the end it did keep me on my toes.
So if you're sick of reading those heavy graphic novels and want something light then i'd say join The murder complex! ^.^ We're a happy family, i promise! >:-)

Kill.
Destroy.
No escaping.
No turning back.
This is your duty.
Purge the earth.
This is the murder complex.

I just loved that xD.
Anywayyy, i give this novel two blood-dripping stars. I was torn between giving it one or two... but now i'm going through my notes, it doesn't seem fair to give it merely one star.

So there you have it! ^.^ hope you enjoyed my review! Tell me if you either agree or disagree, or maybe if you're planning on reading it? :)

See you next time, 

Bee

Heir of Fire by Sara J. Maas

Bravo Sara J. Maas! Bravo for yet another great book.



Synopsis:

Celaena has survived deadly contests and shattering heartbreak—but at an unspeakable cost. Now, she must travel to a new land to confront her darkest truth . . . a truth about her heritage that could change her life—and her future—forever. Meanwhile, brutal and monstrous forces are gathering on the horizon, intent on enslaving her world. Will Celaena find the strength to not only fight her inner demons, but to take on the evil that is about to be unleashed?

I don't know how i am supposed to write a review for this book. I can not summon the words that could describe it.
This book wasn't great, no. It was glorious!

 ^._.^ Heir of Fire was by far the best book i've read in years. Hell, it's probably the best book i've read ever. It even went so far that it surpassed my love for harry potter. THAT is how glorious it was. By now i have read this book twice over the last 3 days... and damn, i will read it again and again until i memorize every word and emotion written on those glorious pages (Gee i'm being dramatic).

Okay, so i'm going to wipe the drool and tears off my face and actually write this wyrd forsaken review!

First things first. HoF is written in multiple point of views, which was most certainly a trait that i loved the most about the novel. Not only do we follow Celaena, or should i say Aelin, on her heart breaking journey, but we also join Dorian, Chaol, a brutal blackbeak, a traiterous healer, a kickass Fae warrior and a few other loyal followers of her majesty Aelin Ashryver Galathynius. Unlike some other books i've read these few past years, none of the storylines were either irrelevant or boring. It didn't matter if i was following Aelin through her struggles fo find inner peace or Chaol and Dorian in the castle. I loved all the storylines. All the point of views. Simply because it was written beautifully. And this is not exaggerated one bit. I loved every single character, to the point that i even liked the bad guys. That is how well Sara J. Maas wrote. Every little detail. It was refined and thought through and... just glorious!

I must admit that i did like Aelin's story best. I even had to wipe away a few tears at some point ("You left me. I have no one left. No one." I died).

From the first page to the last i wasn't able to tear myself away from my e-reader... i might have forgotten to feed the dog. DON'T JUDGE ME D:.

I am so proud of all of the characters. They have grown so much... even Dorian isn't a selfish little bastard anymore!

But, even though this novel was fantastic and deserves every pixel of the 5 golden stars i will give it, there are some tiny little bit a that didn't add up.
How do i put this without spoiling stuff? Hmm, the fact that aelin (celaena) at first didn't want to be queen. Then, after a long long time, she swore she would be the best queen ever or something, and then again she... hesitated? Like she just wanted to go back to being Celaena *sigh*. Maybe i just misinterpreted that part. But it was a little vague of you ask me.

That was the only thing i noticed about this book, though. Almost flawless.

It's so hard not to burst open and poor my feelings down on this blog xD But i suppose i can't spoil anything -.- ugh, okay here goes my attempt to be excited without spoiling stuff:

Manon Blackbeak.

The magic was great. As you already know, well if you've read crown of misnight that is, Aelin has the gift of fire. She can bend it to her will if she trains hard enough. But the way the Magic is described and how itnall works is... good. Really really good. It's not overpowered or useless.. it's perfect. The way you inherit the powers from your ancestors and all that mojo... it's fantastic. Plus the fire weapon thing was totally awesome.

Ironteeth! So you remember baba yellowlegs? Pretty, pointy teeth, iron nails that can tear gour throat out? Yeah, that one. Well, in HoF we travel along with Manon, the heir of the blackbeak clan (she's my second favourite character ;) ). They're brutal and badass and cruel and heartless and badass! Their bloodlust and everything just... i don't know... fascinates me. I liked that storyline a lot. Lot's of blood ;).

Dear readers, i recommend you read this book once it's out. No, i recommend you run to whatever bookstore is nearest and pre order now!

Bee over and out!

obsidian by jennifer L. Armentrout

Synopsis:
Starting over sucks.When we moved to West Virginia right before my senior year, I'd pretty much resigned myself to thick accents, dodgy internet access, and a whole lot of boring.... until I spotted my hot neighbor, with his looming height and eerie green eyes. Things were looking up.And then he opened his mouth.Daemon is infuriating. Arrogant. Stab-worthy. We do not get along. At all. But when a stranger attacks me and Daemon literally freezes time with a wave of his hand, well, something...unexpected happens.The hot alien living next door marks me.You heard me. Alien. Turns out Daemon and his sister have a galaxy of enemies wanting to steal their abilities, and Daemon's touch has me lit up like the Vegas Strip. The only way I'm getting out of this alive is by sticking close to Daemon until my alien mojo fades.If I don't kill him first, that is.


Hey again! Bee here, so i know it's already tuesday and i should have done a sunday's poems... but due to a lack of internet i coudn't post one of those... so for now it will be just this review! Sorry!


I quickly want to say that i might spoil some stuff in this review due to pure exasperation.
Okay, that being said, let's get started!

So i finished this book yesterday and am about halfway through Onyx, the second book of the lux series, and am greatly disappointed.
A friend of mine had given me the impression that this book was great... how trusting i am.

You probably want to know why i didn't like the book, aye? Well, the first and biggest reason is the maddening romance betweem Katy, the bookish and kind of cool main character, and Daemon, the rude alien lightningbulb. They were dancing around eachother for the whole first book and a good part of the second book -.- like i get the whole "Humans and lightning people can't be togeter or else we will disappear and probably get tortured by evil people" thing that was going on. BUT COME ON. In the beginning of the book Daemon was wary of Kat, which i understand... i mean who could resist her witty comebacks? Plus the book said she has a nice bum... that works for- okay getting off topic here *cough* totally not having crushes on fictional characters.
Anyway, as I was saying, Daemon was being a dickface because he wanted to protect his sister's and his people's secrets. But doing so he totally pissed Kat off on several occasions, which, i must admit, was pretty amusing... i had no problem with him being a jerk. However, I did have a big problem with His shifting emotions. One moment he was all sweet and not that bad, the next he was a total jerk and embarass her and after that he could turn cold as ice. Get your shit together dude. Either you want to kiss her or not, don't play with her.
pkus, at the end of the book it was like he flipped a switch. At once he was totally unto Katy and i was like SERIOUSLY?! And then all of a sudden Katy isn't attracted to him anymore. Or so she says. *facewalls*

Now let's talkabour dear kittycat. She isn't exactly innocent in this maddening romance either. Their sexual tension is obvious. Hell, her house basically blew up when they started getting it on! And yet she tries, and failes, to hide her feelings. For him and for herself. She denies that she is in love with a lightbulb from outer space, who is kind of hot.
Which brings me onto another point of why i didn't like this book! :D
Miss armentrout used every opportunity to point out Daemon's hotness. After the tenth time she used the adverb sexy when describing his smirk I GOT THAT HE'S A HOT ALIEN. Literally, as he's made of light...hehehe get it? Hot-light, no? Okay bad joke.
Moving on!

Surprisingly, there weren't only bad features to this book. I must admit that overall the concept was good. Aliens that are made of touchable light? Cool. Light aliens that can shoot firebulbs? Awesome. That's really the onlly thing that was good about this book in my opinion.

Ah, there you have it "in my opinion". You should know that i don't particularly like storys that evolve around romance, like this one. I was disappointed, yes, but if you're a fan of romance do check this book out :) It wasn't for me, as i'm more into the bloody stuff, but yeah... if you dig sexy alien boys then do give it a try.

If you ask me i'd say that armentrout should have brought the alien stuff more to the surface. The romance is really everything this book is about. Every chapter involves daemon and kat. It's a little too much.

Bee over and out.

Defy by Sara B. Larson.

Here I am with my first review! forgive me if it's bad, i'm still trying to get a hang of this reviewing thing xD. So let's cut to business, shall we?

Synopsis:
Alexa Hollen is a fighter. Forced to disguise herself as a boy and serve in the king's army, Alex uses her quick wit and fierce sword-fighting skills to earn a spot on the elite prince's guard. But when a powerful sorcerer sneaks into the palace in the dead of night, even Alex, who is virtually unbeatable, can't prevent him from abducting her, her fellow guard and friend Rylan, and Prince Damian, taking them through the treacherous wilds of the jungle and deep into enemy territory.
The longer Alex is held captive with both Rylan and the prince, the more she realizes that she is not the only one who has been keeping dangerous secrets. And suddenly, after her own secret is revealed, Alex finds herself confronted with two men vying for her heart: the safe and steady Rylan, who has always cared for her, and the dark, intriguing Damian. With hidden foes lurking around every corner, is Alex strong enough to save herself and the kingdom she's sworn to protect?


Defy by Sara B. Larson was a pretty good book, but it could have been waaaaay better.
For starters i'd like to point out that the cover is amazing! I love that it's just simple, a dagger, and it looks great.

I was very excited for this book because after reading a few reviews and stuff i had the picture of an awesome  girl kicking everyone's as... how wrong i was.
Let's just say that Alexa, the main character, is indeed a bad-ass character...BUT, she's too girly to be kick-ass. When Prince Damian showed only an ounce of affection she was on the floor drooling all over herself GET YOURSELF TOGETHER WOMAN! It ain't like you've never seen a guy shirtless, so get your chin off the ground and walk away.

That´s pretty much what i was thinking the whole time while reading this book. She, Riley and Damian have the worst love triangle ever. It´s annoying and i don´t particularly like any of the characters. Damian is an arrogant ass and Riley is a jealous bastard. Please, Alexa, i get that you´ve never had time to appreciate the male body during your teen years but tone it down please. Thank you! :)

BLOOD! >:D

Okay! Now let´s drop the bad romance and move on to the plot.

It was good. But not great. I really liked the idea of this book and all that, but it could´ve been a tad more vicious if you ask me. Like, the great battle in the end? Not so great! It was boring... Alexa spend weeks training and all we get is some fire and BAM it ends. Like, no blood, no backstabbing no torture. I WANT BLOOD!


But i suppose it was good enough.. i don´t want to spoil anything but the deaths in the end really got to me for some reason.

Even though i criticize this book a lot... i did like it. I don´t know if it was because there was magic involved or because i really like the mystery that´s tied to the story... but I do know that i will read the prequel :)

I'll give this book 3 stars, which is surprisingly good for this book... but what can I say? I just liked it.
I'd recommend this book to you if you like bad-ass female main characters that kill people!

Bee over and out! *salutes*