Waiting On Wednesday - August 28th

My WOW pick this week is the finale in the Ruby Red Trilogy -

Emerald Green by Kerstin Gier

Releases in October

I'll skip the synopsis to help avoid spoilers, but if you want to read it you can find it here on Goodreads :)

Why am I waiting on Emerald Green? This series is AMAZING! Who doesn't love a story about time travel? If you haven't read it you really should.

What are you waiting on? Leave a link and I'll stop by!

Meme details: Waiting on Wednesday is hosted by Jill from Breaking the Spine. Thanks for hosting! Don't forget to stop by and share your pick.

Review: Partials by Dan Wells

Title: Partials
Series: Partials Sequence #1
Author: Dan Wells | Website
Available: Now
Reading Level: YA
Genre: Sci-fi

Source: Amazon Vine








Synopsis via Goodreads:

The human race is all but extinct after a war with Partials—engineered organic beings identical to humans—has decimated the population. Reduced to only tens of thousands by RM, a weaponized virus to which only a fraction of humanity is immune, the survivors in North America have huddled together on Long Island while the Partials have mysteriously retreated. The threat of the Partials is still imminent, but, worse, no baby has been born immune to RM in more than a decade. Our time is running out.

Kira, a sixteen-year-old medic-in-training, is on the front lines of this battle, seeing RM ravage the community while mandatory pregnancy laws have pushed what's left of humanity to the brink of civil war, and she's not content to stand by and watch. But as she makes a desperate decision to save the last of her race, she will find that the survival of humans and Partials alike rests in her attempts to uncover the connections between them—connections that humanity has forgotten, or perhaps never even knew were there.

Dan Wells, acclaimed author of I Am Not a Serial Killer, takes readers on a pulsepounding journey into a world where the very concept of what it means to be human is in question—one where our humanity is both our greatest liability and our only hope for survival.

My thoughts:

Partials is a book I enjoyed so much more than I had anticipated. I love a good post-apocolyptic/dystopian tale, but feared this may be a little too sci-fi for me. Not the case at all! I was thoroughly invested and amazed at how quickly the pages flew by. I loved all the twists and turns and how the author kept me guessing until the end. While I had my suspicions of what might happen, it was only {partial}ly correct and the author managed to surprise me and leave me with one thought "Holy Crap, I need the next book like NOW!".

Not to say this book is without flaws. Please keep in mind I read an advanced copy, so my issues may not be present in the final copies. I felt there was quite a bit of rambling with the writing which wasn't helping to keep the edge of your seat momentum you expect from a novel in this genre. There is also a TON of characters. Even when I reached the end I still couldn't keep some of them straight (mainly the adults in charge of the city in which protag Kira lives were the ones causing me trouble). Also wasn't a huge fan of Kira's boyfriend. I just wasn't feeling the chemistry and it felt like he tried too hard to be witty. His personality just felt forced. That is simply me being picky and I'm sure he is a perfectly ok love interest, but for me he was just meh.

I must say I loved, loved, loved (did I mention I LOVED) the ethnic diversity in Partials. Kira was of Indian descent which was an awesome choice on the author's part. I'm so tired of cookie cutter main characters in YA and was so glad to see an author finally listened!

Final verdict? This series is most definitely a keeper. 

Review: The Elementals by Francesca Lia Block

Title: The Elementals
Series: Standalone
Author: Francesca Lia Block
Available: Now
Reading Level: Adult/New Adult?



Source: Amazon Vine







Synopsis via Goodreads:

The Elementals is on one level a contemporary story about a young woman, Ariel Silverman, facing the challenges of her first years away at college in Berkeley, California, while her mother battles cancer at home in Los Angeles. But the book takes on deeper, stranger meanings when we contend with Ariel's obsession with the disappearance of her best friend, Jeni, who vanished without a trace a few years before. Her emptiness of spirit seems finally to find some healing with three mysterious, beautiful and seductive young people living in a strange old house in the Berkeley hills. But at what price?

My thoughts:

The Elementals was my first experience with Francesca Lia Block. I know her other series has quite a following, and I've been eager to check her out.

This isn't like any book I have ever read. It was bizarre and addictive, which I find so ironic now that I've reached the end. Main character, Ariel, is spiraling out of control after the disappearance of her best friend and the announcement of her mother's cancer. She heads off to Berkley where BFF, Jeni, was last seen, planning not only to pursue a higher education, but also the truth about what happened to her friend. Once there she is quickly thrust into the role of outcast and bullied by the cool kids. I thought the whole "mean kids" angle seemed slightly cliche and did a disservice to what is a truly brilliant plot. Thankfully, I was able to look past this and embrace the rest of the novel.

The entire time I read I was baffled (for the lack of a better word). Is it a mystery, fantasy, or was I simply lost in the the thoughts of a character whose mind had fractured under the weight of suffocating grief? I won't tell you because this discovery is what makes this novel so special.

The writing is something I just got lost in. Reading late into the night, holding my breath, anticipating what was yet to come. During several chapters I was shocked to find myself covered in goosebumps. It isn't often a book can evoke chills. I've read other reviews where the writing is called disjointed, but I found that to be part of the charm. It helps to enhance how truly lost Ariel is and rang so true to her character and her trials. This is a novel that I know will stay with me and not blend into the shelves like the many before it.  

Quotable Quotes:

“It’s hard to remember what you fall in love with. Usually it is an expression in the eyes, an exchange, or a gesture or the sound of a voice, a word spoken. Those things can get blended with the atmosphere around you at the time — a fragrance in the air, a play of light, even music — so that they become almost one with each other and when you see or smell or hear the memories of a place you feel the love again, but as a pang of loss. Sometimes the feelings get connected so deeply to your body that even your own skin, your own eyes in the mirror remind you of what you no longer have. Sometimes it only takes a few things for someone to attach the way I did — enough hunger, enough loneliness, enough loss, someone who will feed you and touch you and listen. Sometimes attachment — call it love — is more complex than that. When you are in the state I was in, love can be tied up with other things, like excitement and danger, and the desire to know what really happened, what actually took place.”

Cover Thoughts:

Stunning! Nuff said :)

Review: Pivot Point by Kasie West

Title: Pivot Point
Series: Pivot Point #1
Author: Kasie West | Website
Available: Now
Reading Level: YA
Genre: Sci Fi
Source: Amazon Vine









Synopsis via Goodreads:

Knowing the outcome doesn’t always make a choice easier . . .

Addison Coleman’s life is one big “What if?” As a Searcher, whenever Addie is faced with a choice, she can look into the future and see both outcomes. It’s the ultimate insurance plan against disaster. Or so she thought. When Addie’s parents ambush her with the news of their divorce, she has to pick who she wants to live with—her father, who is leaving the paranormal compound to live among the “Norms,” or her mother, who is staying in the life Addie has always known. Addie loves her life just as it is, so her answer should be easy. One Search six weeks into the future proves it’s not.

In one potential future, Addie is adjusting to life outside the Compound as the new girl in a Norm high school where she meets Trevor, a cute, sensitive artist who understands her. In the other path, Addie is being pursued by the hottest guy in school—but she never wanted to be a quarterback’s girlfriend. When Addie’s father is asked to consult on a murder in the Compound, she’s unwittingly drawn into a dangerous game that threatens everything she holds dear. With love and loss in both lives, it all comes down to which reality she’s willing to live through . . . and who she can’t live without.

My thoughts:

Ever had to make a tough decision? Wish you could see both paths before deciding? That is exactly what Pivot Point's protag, Addie, can do thanks to her gift of divergence. In Pivot Point we are first introduced to Addie in a hidden compound where gifted folks live. They have these crazy mind abilities like persuasion, telepathy and telekinesis, just to name a few. When her parents decide to divorce she must choose between living with her mom in the hidden town or going with her dad and living with the "norms" (people like you and I). So of course she uses her ability to see which choice is best, but nothing could have prepared her for what happens during her "search".

I loved that the story was told while Addie was in search mode, alternating each chapter between life with her mom and life out in the normal world with her dad. I was really impressed with the pacing and how the author kept the alternating story lines from getting jumbled. The world building in Pivot Point was top notch. Both main and secondary characters were well developed. The author really did a stunning job. The ending was absolutely fabulous, although somewhat predictable. I knew what was coming, but the author's ability to wrap up the story so seamlessly left me wowed.

I'm so excited to see more sci-fi hitting the shelves of the YA section and can't wait to read the next book in this series! Even if you don't consider yourself a fan of sci-fi I highly suggest giving Pivot Point a try. I don't think it will disappoint.  

Review: Out of the Easy by Ruta Sepetys

Title: Out of the Easy

Author: Ruta Sepetys | Website

Available: Now

Reading Level: YA

Genre: Historical

Source: LibraryThing

 Synopsis via Goodreads:

 It’s 1950, and as the French Quarter of New Orleans simmers with secrets, seventeen-year-old Josie Moraine is silently stirring a pot of her own. Known among locals as the daughter of a brothel prostitute, Josie wants more out of life than the Big Easy has to offer.

She devises a plan get out, but a mysterious death in the Quarter leaves Josie tangled in an investigation that will challenge her allegiance to her mother, her conscience, and Willie Woodley, the brusque madam on Conti Street. Josie is caught between the dream of an elite college and a clandestine underworld. New Orleans lures her in her quest for truth, dangling temptation at every turn, and escalating to the ultimate test.

With characters as captivating as those in her internationally bestselling novel Between Shades of Gray, Ruta Sepetys skillfully creates a rich story of secrets, lies, and the haunting reminder that decisions can shape our destiny.

My thoughts:

Josie is the daughter of a prostitute and hasn't had the most traditional upbringing, but she is determined to make something of herself. She works at a book store and also cleans the brothel where her mother works each morning to help build a meager savings. She has hopes of going to college far from New Orleans where she won't be known as the hooker's daughter. Of course if things went smoothly for dear Josie the author wouldn't have a story to tell us. Toss in a sinister bad guy, a dead rich guy, and a little romance and you have a story you won't want to put down.

Out of the Easy is set in one of my most favorite places, New Orleans. I loved experiencing 1950's NOLA through the eyes of protag, Josie. I admit I squealed a little when I discovered this is historical fiction and YA. Yippee!

Out of the Easy contained fascinating, well-developed characters paired with an amazing setting. It is a keep you flipping the pages into the wee hours of the night mystery. I'm hard-pressed to find anything I didn't enjoy about this novel.

Excuse the dust

Bloggy makeover in progress :)