The Year We Fell Apart

The Year We Fell Apart is by debut author Emily Martin

Few things come as naturally to Harper as epic mistakes.  In the past year she was kicked off the swim team, earned a reputation as Carson High's easiest hook-p, and officially became the blacksheep of her family.  But her worst mistake was destroying her relationship with her best friend, Declan.

Now, after two semesters of silence, Declan is home from boarding school for the summer.  Everything about is different, he's taller, stronger...more handsome.  Harper has changed, too, especially in the wake of her mom's cancer diagnosis.

While Declan wants nothing to do with Harper, he's still Declan, her Declan, and the only person she wants to talk to about what's really going on.  But he's also the one person she's lost the right to seek comfort from.

As their mutual friends and shared histories draw them together again, Harper and Declan must decide which parts of their past are still salvageable, and which parts they's have to let go of once and for all.

The Breakdown:
1. Martin story telling style is very reminiscent of Sarah Dessen and Huntley Fitzpatrick.  Her story is real and heavy with emotions at times.  The characters really drew me in because they are beautifully flawed.

2. Harper is far from the perfect heroine, but she is one that I could feel a connection with.  She is a girl who has made mistakes, but really starts to try to put her life back together.  More than once, she allows her friend Sadie to get her into troubling situations, and who did not have that friend in high school.  I like that in the end while she has regrets, she does not let them define her anymore.

3.  I love the relationships in this story.  Some are strong, some new, and some a little broken, but they all serve a purpose in helping Harper find herself again.  I think of my favorites besides Declan and Harper, is the new friendship building between Harper, Mackenzie and Gwen.  Harper needs better girlfriends to support her, because Sadie gets her into more trouble than is supportive.

4.  This is really a great coming of age story about loves, friendships, and even loss.  I really enjoy Harper's character growth, and the slow repair of her and Declan's relationship.

To Read or Not to Read:
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Lair of Dreams

Lair of Dreams is the second book of Libba Bray's Diviners series.

The longing of dreams draws the dead, and this city holds many dreams.

After a supernatural showdown with a serial killer, Evie O'Neill has outed herself as a Diviner.  With her uncanny ability to read people's secrets, she's become a media darling, earning the title "America's Sweetheart Seer."  Everyone's in love with the city's newest It Girl... everyone expect the other Diviners.

Piano-playing Henry DubBois and Chinatown resident Ling Chan are two Diviners struggling to keep their powers a secret- for that can walk in dreams.  And while Evie is living the high life, victims of a mysterious sleeping sickness are turning up across New York City.

As Henry searches for a lost love and Ling strives to succeed in a world that shuns her, a malevolent force infects their dreams.  And at the edges of it all lurks a man in stovepipe hat who has plans that extend farther than anyone can guess... As the sickness spreads, can the Diviners descend into the dreamworld to save the city?

The Breakdown:
1. It amazes me how many characters that Bray develops so well in this book.  The main characters are so well fleshed out that none of them feel flat.  Even the small part characters used to forward the story of the sleeping sickness and the hungry ghost feel very real with their dreams and their fears.  I love reading about each characters past, dreams, and secrets.  Bray does an amazing job of having a character driven story, which in my opinion make the best stories.

2. I love that while Bray focuses on the sleeping sickness story, she does not ignore the subplots that are supporting a bigger story in the series.  Bray is definitely setting up for a bigger story involving a shadowy group and the Diviners, which is strongly hinted at the end.

3. I very much enjoyed learning more about different characters past from Henry's life and family in New Orleans and how he came to be in New York City to Sam's quest to find his mother and his past with her, that is still very much a work in progress.

4. Also have to love the shout out in the book to Gemma Doyle.

To Read or Not to Read:
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Remembrance

Remembrance  by Meg Cabot is a new Mediator novel.

All Susannah Simon wants is to make a good impression at her first job since graduating from college (and since becoming engaged to to Dr. Jesse de Silva).  But when she's hired as a guidance counselor at her alma mater, she stumbles across a decade-old murder, and soon ancient history isn't all that's coming back to haunt her.  Old ghosts as well as new ones are coming out of the woodwork, some to test her, some to vex her, and it isn't only because she's a mediator, gifted with second sight.

From a sophomore haunted by the murderous specter of a child to ghosts of a very different kind- including Paul Slater, Suxe's ex, who shows up to make a bargain Suze is certain must have come from the Devil himself- Suze isn't sire she'll make it through the semester, let alone to her wedding night.  Suze is used to striking first and asking questions later.  But happens when ghosts from her past- including one she found nearly impossible to resist- strike first?

The Breakdown:
1. I love the Mediator series, and I was super excited to read this newest one.  I love that Cabot came back to this series, and showed what has been going on in all my favorite characters lives.  She keeps the same adventure themes as in the beginning of the series, but there are distinct more adult overtones since Suze is all grown up now.

2. Suze is one of my all time favorite characters, and I love her even more as an adult.  She is confident, loyal, and caring.  Plus, I honestly love that she has a foul mouth, since I can have quite the foul mouth myself at times.  Despite having some very unique gifts, she feels like a normal girl with mostly normal problems.

3. I love Suze and Jesse relationship, in that is is not always perfect, they have fights and issues, but they are always there for each other, and do their best to protect the other.  At times, they are so perfectly intuned to each other that it makes them all the cuter of couple.

4.  It was fun to catch up with other characters and seeing what they are up to now including CeeCee, Gina, Suze's stepbrothers, and not in the least Paul Slater.  Interesting to watch Slater try to worm his way back into Suze's life, and how she takes care of the problems he presents.

5.  I really enjoyed this book.  The story was great, and the characters are wonderful.  I hope that Cabot does a few more books in this series.

To Read or Not to Read:
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Endure

Endure is the final novel in Sara B. Larson's Defy trilogy.

At last, Alexa and King Damian are engaged to be married.  But their lives are far from safe.  The kingdom of Antion is under siege, and Rylan is a prisoner of the enemy.  Even worse, Alexa remains at the mercy of the evil Dansiian Rafe, who controls her mind and force Alexa to kill or harm Damian at any moment.  Despite this, Alexa is determined to rescue Rylan, which soon leads her far from Damian and deep into enemy territory.

When she arrives, what awaits her is deadlier than anything she could have ever imagined: an army of black sorcerers and a horrifying plot to destroy the world as Alexa knows it.  Will she be able to gather the strength to free herself, protect the love of her life, and save the land?  Will there ever be true peace?

The Breakdown:
1. Larson brings her trilogy to a thrilling end in this book.  Larson's books never lack for action.  There are plenty of harrowing dashes through the jungle and fight scenes to keep me on the edge of my seat.  And in this book, she finally introduces King Armando, and he is seriously crazy.

2. I do have to say that I get a little annoyed with Alexa at times.  She does make some very poor decisions that not only put herself in danger but the kingdom at times.  I am glad that it works out for her in the end, and she does show some amazing strength when times got really rough.

3. Fair warning, no character is safe in this book.  Larson manages to kill of several characters that I really liked, so keep a tissue handy.  I see why she does it for the story, and it was necessary, but that does not mean there were not tears on my end.

4.  I do love that Larson explains the origins of sorcerers and black sorcerers in this book.  It really gives a lot to the story, and explains how Armando was behind the black sorcerers' attacks from the beginning.  I thought she ended the story quite well, and it left me with no lingering questions.

To Read or Not to Read:
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The Return

The Return by Jennifer L. Armentrout is the first book of her Titan series.

The Fates are cackling their bony asses off...

It's been a year since Seth made the deal with the gods that pledges his life to them.  And so far, the jobs they've given him have been violent and bloody- which is kind of all right with him.  But now Apollo had something else in mind for Seth.  He's got to play protector while keeping his hands and fingers off, and for someone who really has a problem with restraint, this new assignment might be most challenging yet.

Josie has not idea what this crazy hot guy's deal might be, but it's a good bet that his arrival means the new life she started after leaving home is about to be thrown into an Olympian-sized blender turned up to puree.  Either Josie is going insane or a nightmare straight out of ancient myth is gunning for her.

But it might be the unlikely attraction simmering between her and the golden-eyed, secret-keeping Seth that may prove to be the most dangerous thing of all.

Because history has once again been flipped to repeat.

The Breakdown:
1. The Return is the start to JLA's follow up series to the Covenant series, so if you haven't read that whole series, yet, there will be spoilers in this review.  And now on to the review. I was excited to read this series, for Seth to really get this story out there.  In the Covenant, he mostly comes off as an arrogant jerk, but there are moments JLA shows there is more to him, and this book really delves more into that aspect of him.

2. I kind of love Josie.  She does not take Seth crap, and sees through the mask he puts on for the world.  And considering the world she has been thrust into, I would say she is taking it remarkably well. She is strong, and smart, but best of all she is caring, and helps to teach Seth that is a sum of everything he has done, not just the bad stuff.

3.  I love that this book shows Seth's vulnerable side. I like seeing his regrets, and how he is trying to make amends the best way he knows how from his actions while following Ares. I also liked learning more about his childhood, and how that made him easier to manipulate into Ares cause. But most of all, I liked see him truly caring for another person, and not because he needed her, like with Alex, but because she saw him for the real Seth.

4.  I was super excited to see some of my favorites pop in this book, including Luke and Deacon, and Solos.  Luke and Deacon are always entertaining, and I kind of want a love interest for Solos.  Also liked that this series is going to address the consequences of having let the titan Perses out to help defeat Ares in the last series.  Can't wait to see where JLA takes the series.

To Read or Not Read:
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Sword and Verse

Sword and Verse is by debut author Kathy MacMillan

Raisa was only a child when she was kidnapped and enslaved in Qilara.  Forced to serve in the palace of the King, she's endured hunger, abuse, and the harrowing fear of discovery.  Everyone knows that Raisa is Arnath, but not that is a Learned One, a part of an Arnath group educated in higher order symbols.  In Qilara, this language is so fiercely protected on the King, the Prince, and Tutors are allowed to know it.  So when the current Tutor-in-training is executed for sharing the guarded language with slaves and Raisa is chosen to replace her, Raisa knows that, although she may have a privileged position among slaves, any slip-up could mean death.

That would be challenging enough, but training alongside Prince Mati could be her real undoing.  And when a romance blossoms between them, she's suddenly filled with dangerous hope for something she never before thought possible: more.  Then she's approached by the Resistance- an underground army of slaves- to help the Arnath people.  Joining the Resistance could mean freeing her people... but she'd also be aiding in the war against her beloved, an honorable man she knows wants to help the slaves.

Working against the one she loves- and a palace full of deadly political renegades- has some heady consequences.  As Raisa struggles with what's right, she unwittingly uncovers a secret that the Qilarites have long since buried... one that, unlocked, could bring the current world order to its knees.

And Raisa is the one holding the key.

The Breakdown:
1. First congrats to MacMillan on her debut novel.  I was fascinated by the world she created in this book.  It was interesting to see how writing was used as a tool to keep the lower classes down.  I also enjoyed that the start of each chapter was the snippet of the gods' story which lead to the writing segregation in the population.  It really added well to the overall story, and she ties it in so nicely in the end.

2.  I find Raisa an interesting character.  Torn by her love of the Prince, and her desire to help her people.  Many times she has to make some really tough decisions, and they don't always turn out well for her. I love her courage, especially in the end.  She is brave in the fight even if her greatest skill is her ability to write.

3.  Mati and Jonis each play important roles in Raisa's life.  With Mati, she finds love, and it is with him that she truly learns to trust and knows that there can be a better world.  Jonis, a member of the Resistance, helps Raisa to find her courage.  Although they had very different positions in life, they both were strong characters who were working hard to make better lives for their people.

4. I loved that this story really emphasized that knowledge is power, and that learning should not be a thing just for the few privilege.  It very much explored the idea that the pen is mightier than the sword, with lots on intrigue to keep me interested.

To Read or Not to Read:
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