Review: Panic

Panic
Author: Lauren Oliver
Published: March 4, 2014
Hardcover, 408 pages
4.5 Gold Stars

(summary from Goodreads)

Panic began as so many things do in Carp, a dead-end town of 12,000 people in the middle of nowhere: because it was summer, and there was nothing else to do.

Heather never thought she would compete in Panic, a legendary game played by graduating seniors, where the stakes are high and the payoff is even higher. She’d never thought of herself as fearless, the kind of person who would fight to stand out. But when she finds something, and someone, to fight for, she will discover that she is braver than she ever thought.

Dodge has never been afraid of Panic. His secret will fuel him, and get him all the way through the game, he’s sure of it. But what he doesn't know is that he’s not the only one with a secret. Everyone has something to play for.

For Heather and Dodge, the game will bring new alliances, unexpected revelations, and the possibility of first love for each of them—and the knowledge that sometimes the very things we fear are those we need the most.

When I heard Oliver had a book coming out, I knew I needed it right away. When I heard it was a contemporary book, I immediately thought about Before I Fall, her debut that blew me away. And while this book has the same prose as her others, it is so completely different that I can't even compare it to the others. Panic is so different from anything I've read, by Oliver or otherwise. When I saw that it was written in third person, I was worried. I'm so in love with hearing characters come to life in their own words, but I bit my tongue and took my words back after the first chapter. Panic came to be one summer when the graduating students got bored. There's no much else to do in Carp anyway, so they may as well make it interesting. Panic is a game that lasts all summer, only graduates may play. You don't have to, but the prize waiting for you at the end makes me hard not too. But Panic is not easy. Panic makes you face your worse fears or worse. People have been injured, people have died. But Heather needs to the money so she can get out of Carp and Dodge needs the money so he can help his sister. 

This book was so hard to put down. Even the parts between the challenges, the parts where not much was happening, kept me anticipating what would come next. Just like the contestants of Panic, I didn't know what was in store for me next. Each word Oliver used made me second guess anything I thought might happen. With each day,  a new Panic challenge would arrive anonymously, sending fear through the contestants. Heather was relatable, coming from a not so good home life and realizing that the money could help her get her sister out of the small town. She is certainly not your typical YA heroine in her looks. She's bigger and taller, while it's her friend, Nat, is the cute pretty one. And Dodge is so far from the normal YA hero, it's a breath of fresh air. He's dirty and conniving, but it's all for a reason. Both are trying to do what's best for their families, even if they risk their own lives doing it, and both are also wading through the waters of love, hoping against all hope that they will still have a chance when Panic is over.

Oliver's characters were not perfect at all. Their flaws only made their motives more thrilling and made me rooting for both Heather and Dodge to win Panic. The secrets they kept from each other, their reasons for playing, gave me a thrill that I don't get very often in other books. Even in the last few chapters, there was no telling who would take the prize home and who would actually survive to tell about it. Everything about the book was unique and I was engaged all the way to the end. The Delirium series fell short for me, but Before I Fall still reminds one of my favourites. This book was reminiscent of her first novel and I was glad to see that side of her back again. Can't wait for more, Lauren!

“It was so strange, the way that life moved forward: the twists and the dead ends, the sudden opportunities. She supposed if you could predict or foresee everything that was going to happen, you’d lose the motivation to go through it all. The promise was always in the possibility.” 

Review: Cold Spell

Cold Spell
Author: Jackson Pearce
Published: November 5, 2013
Hardcover, 323 pages
5 Gold Stars

(summary from Goodreads)

Kai and Ginny grew up together–best friends since they could toddle around their building’s rooftop rose garden. Now they’re seventeen, and their relationship has developed into something sweeter, complete with stolen kisses and plans to someday run away together.

But one night, Kai disappears with a mysterious stranger named Mora–a beautiful girl with a dark past and a heart of ice. Refusing to be cast aside, Ginny goes after them and is thrust into a world she never imagined, one filled with monsters and thieves and the idea that love is not enough.

If Ginny and Kai survive the journey, will she still be the girl he loved–and moreover, will she still be the girl who loved him?

Fairytale retellings have always interested me. I find myself automatically drawn to them and hoping for the best. Jackson Pearce is leading the pack with her series of four that interlock into something much bigger than just a fairytale. Unfortunately, I read them out of order and I'm wishing I could go back in time and have a do-over since the series would make so much more sense to me if I had. I knew they would all connect, but I had no idea how well they would connect together. Sisters Red started off the series with a retelling of Little Red Riding Hood and introduced us to a world where werewolves lurk in the woods and are attracted to girls in red. I don't have a review for this one, but it was fantastic. I wasn't interested in reading Sweetly, a retelling of Hansel and Gretel, so I skipped it and went straight to Fathomless, an interesting take on The Little Mermaid. It didn't blow me away as much as the first, but it connected the worlds together with mention of the werewolves again. I didn't realize how it connected so well to Sweetly as well since I hadn't read it (I've read it now, review to come) So when I picked up the final book in the series, Cold Spell, excited for a retelling of The Snow Queen, I couldn't fully appreciate everything Pearce has done with this series.

I fell more in love with the story of The Snow Queen after watching Frozen (because let's face it, that movie is amazing) and was excited to know Pearce had a retelling of it as well. Kai and Ginny have been friends forever and have only recently taken it further. A strange cold has taken over the town and when a mysterious girl named Mora shows up and suddenly Kai is gone, Ginny knows the woman has taken him and she'll do anything to get him back. Setting out on her own, she quickly makes some friends, some enemies, and slowly unlocks the mysteries surrounded his disappearance. I loved that this one connected so much to Sisters Red, as we meet some of the characters' family and learn more about fenris(werewolves) hunting. We finally get a connection to all the books like finding out about the ocean girls and how the fenris play into the whole thing.

The supporting characters were wonderful in this one. Ella and Luke took Ginny in as family and they were willing to help her with whatever she needed. Ginny has lived a pretty sheltered life, so it's a good thing she had people helping her because she couldn't do much on her own. Throughout the novel, we see Ginny realizes a lot about herself, she didn't really have a plan for her future as she was living through Kai most of the time. It's nice to see her character develop over the novel, coming into her own by the end, realizes she wants Kai, but doesn't need him. We also have the chance to view the story from Mora's viewpoint, given more insight to the background of the ocean girls from Fathomless, and how she in turn became the snow queen. It was a nice take on the fairytale, giving it an updated feel and much more mystery. Pearce has a way of taking something that is old and beloved and turning it into her own creation. She takes the fairytales and keeps them as a background to her own story. This is hard to do, since I've tried writing retellings and end up jut rehashing the story. She has made them all her own and this series connects and weaves together to form a much bigger story than any of the fairytales can be on their own. I recently read that she'll be writing a retelling of Alice in Wonderland, so I'm excited to see how she'll play that card.

“You know I’m in love with you, right, Ginny?” He’s looking at my knuckles, running his thumb across them. His eyes flicker to mine. It’s the first time he’s said it aloud, or at least, aloud and meant it like this. “I’ve always been in love with you.” 

Review: Fire with Fire

Fire with Fire
Authors: Jenny Han and Siobhan Vivian
Published: August 13, 2013
Hardcover, 528 pages
4 Gold Stars

(summary from Goodreads)

Lillia, Kat, and Mary had the perfect plan. Work together in secret to take down the people who wronged them. But things didn’t exactly go the way they’d hoped at the Homecoming Dance.

Not even close.

For now, it looks like they got away with it. All they have to do is move on and pick up the pieces, forget there ever was a pact. But it’s not easy, not when Reeve is still a total jerk and Rennie’s meaner than she ever was before.

And then there’s sweet little Mary…she knows there’s something seriously wrong with her. If she can’t control her anger, she’s sure that someone will get hurt even worse than Reeve was. Mary understands now that it’s not just that Reeve bullied her—it’s that he made her love him.

Eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth, burn for a burn. A broken heart for a broken heart. The girls are up to the task. They’ll make Reeve fall in love with Lillia and then they will crush him. It’s the only way he’ll learn.

It seems once a fire is lit, the only thing you can do is let it burn...

The first book in this series,  Burn for Burn, set up life on a small island and a plan for revenge that went horribly wrong. Now Lilia, Mary and Kat are back, cleaning up their mess and trying to figure out a new plan of attack. You think these girls would learn, but they just keep getting themselves deeper and deeper. Things get even more complicated in this book - feelings are involved, friendships are tested, and suddenly it's not so easy to see who the good guys are and who are the bad. 

What I love about these girls is that they are drastically different yet find a way to be really good to each other. Lilia is from the rich part of town, a promising future at an ivy league college and a good family life. Kat isn't as lucky, living with her dad and brother and knowing she'll be stuck on the island forever. And Mary, her life in ruins, misses her parents and worries about these strange powers she seems to hold. But they all smile to each other and meet up in secret still, even though they know they don't have to, and continue to plot revenge on those who have wronged them. They stick up for each other even when their plans don't work out. 

The story seemed to drag on at points and I'm nut sure this book really needed to be 500 pages. It was nice to get some more background on each of the girls and there was definitely some build up for the final instalment, but there was also a lot of filler. We got to learn more about Mary's ability and some family history that may explain it. Her powers almost seem to be holding this story together as I know they will end up playing a much bigger part in the end. There are a lot of intermixing of lives in this one. Lilia and Reeve get closer than they thought they would, a plan for revenge that doesn't turn out quite right. Mary is left wanting Reeve yet also wanting to hurt him. And Kat wants Alex but Alex is still hung up on Lilia. For an island so small, there's an awful lot of drama, but it was entertaining to read and leaves a lot open for the finale. The plans for revenge keep going wrong so I'm curious to see if the girls will finally give up or if they will try to come up with a different plan. There is so much character development and so many different plots that it's hard to believe it will wrap up in one more book. This is the kind of book you need to read instead of just reading reviews about. It's hard to explain and it's worth diving into. The last book should be an explosion and I can't wait to see how this will all wrap up. There's really no way of guessing the end to this series, seriously, these girls keep you guessing until the end!

“It’s all about attitude. You act like you’re the shit and guys are so dumb they’ll totally believe it.” 

16. Fever

Book #16: Fever

Author: Lauren DeStefano

Published: February 21, 2012

341 pages

5 gold stars

(summary from Goodreads)

Running away brings Rhine and Gabriel right into a trap, in the form of a twisted carnival whose ringmistress keeps watch over a menagerie of girls. Just as Rhine uncovers what plans await her, her fortune turns again. With Gabriel at her side, Rhine travels through an environment as grim as the one she left a year ago - surroundings that mirror her own feelings of fear and hopelessness.

The two are determined to get to Manhattan, to relative safety with Rhine’s twin brother, Rowan. But the road there is long and perilous - and in a world where young women only live to age twenty and young men die at twenty-five, time is precious. Worse still, they can’t seem to elude Rhine’s father-in-law, Vaughn, who is determined to bring Rhine back to the mansion...by any means necessary.

The Chemical Garden that DeStefano has created is among my favourite dystopian series. She's created a world that seems real in every sense, a world that could very well become our future. After trying to make a better human race, the world has become quite the opposite, where man only live until 25 and girls under 20. The world has become a death trap where girls are sold into slavery/prostitution or wives. Rhine, our heroine that has kept quiet throughout her years with her brother, became a wife in the first novel, Wither, but managed to escape the house and those who would hurt her. Now, on the run with her lover Gabriel, Rhine is on a mission to find her brother and return safely home. Seeing as this is only the second book in the trilogy, she doesn't make it home yet.

The world is scary in DeStefano's future. It's scary in most dystopian novels, but this one frightened me the most. To know you are going to die at the age of 20 is a horrible thought. Then on top of that, the chances of getting sold or having to sleep with men for money are much too high for my liking. Rhine's life is not easy and my heart beat quickly with hers as I read her story, hoping nothing too terrible would happen to her. Rhine has never done anything wrong, yet the world is against her, using her for its own cruel amusement.

Gabriel is her strength. He is kind and loving and trying very hard to be strong with her in a world that he has never known. Considering he grew up as a slave in a household, never seeing beyond the fence, he is doing well. We meet a few new characters at the Carnival of Horrors (a prostitution ring disguised as a carnival) like Maddie, a malformed child who will not talk to anyone. Rhine immediately relates with her, as she is malformed as well, and Maddie takes to Rhine like a mother, giving Rhine enough hope to keep going.

Rhine stays strong throughout the whole book even though terrible things are happening to her and around her. She is on the run, her freedom in her sights but knowing that she can't have it. She is technically still married to Linden and she knows his father is surely after her, trying to get her to come back to the mansion so he can experiment on her like he did the other wives. The novel is fast-paced, and kept me reading to the end, eager to see if Rhine would finally escape Vaughn's evil grasp. I can't wait for the final book in this series.

"Everything that happened before feels like a million years ago now. This is the freedom I craved throughout my marriage. To share a bed not because of a wedding ring or a one-sided promise that was made for me, but because of desire. Inexplicable yet undeniable. I have never craved closeness like this for anyone else."

15. Pandemonium

Book #15: Pandemonium

Author: Lauren Oliver

Published: February 28, 2012

375 pages

5 gold stars

(summary from Goodreads)

I’m pushing aside the memory of my nightmare,
pushing aside thoughts of Alex,
pushing aside thoughts of Hana and my old school,
push,
push,
push,
like Raven taught me to do.
The old life is dead.
But the old Lena is dead too.
I buried her.
I left her beyond a fence,
behind a wall of smoke and flame.

We first met Lena in Delirium, in a world where is a disease and at the age of 18, everyone gets the cure for it. Lena is on the edge of getting her cure when she meets Alex. Well, you can guess what happens. Pandemonium picks up right where Delirium left off. Lena has escaped the city and is now in the Wilds, running and trying to start a new life. There she meets other Uncured and learns to survive without her family and truly learns just how strong she really is.

Lena is the perfect herione. She picks herself up, after so much tragedy and pain, and starts a new. With the help of Raven, she becomes whole again and ready to fight back.

The novel takes place in two tenses: Before and After. It flips back and forth with each chapter, showing us who Lena was when she crossed the fence, and who she became. At first I thought this might be confusing, but Oliver skipped back and forth like a rock over water. The transitions were smooth and each chapter connected perfectly even though they took place months apart from each other. While one advanced, so did the other, and it just made me keep reading. Oliver has a way with words. Her prose and descriptions capture me and force me to re-read them over and over because they are just so beautiful. The way shows Lena's life is true and heartbreaking. We watch as Lena learns to love again, learns to open herself back up to life and living. This is what she has to do to keep going. That's the way of life, even if that's not what we want from this character, it's what she needs, it's what everyone needs.

Beautiful, heartbreaking and intriguing, Pandemonium is a great addition to the ever growing world of dystopian thrillers.

"I wonder if this is how people always get close: they heal each other's wounds; they repair the broken skin."

13. The Way We Fall

Book #13: The Way We Fall

Author: Megan Crewe

Published: January 24, 2012

309 Pages

4 gold stars

(summary from Goodreads)

When a deadly virus begins to sweep through sixteen-year-old Kaelyn’s community, the government quarantines her island—no one can leave, and no one can come back.

Those still healthy must fight for dwindling supplies, or lose all chance of survival. As everything familiar comes crashing down, Kaelyn joins forces with a former rival and discovers a new love in the midst of heartbreak. When the virus starts to rob her of friends and family, she clings to the belief that there must be a way to save the people she holds dearest.

Because how will she go on if there isn’t?

It starts with a itch. Then you start sneezing. Then you get super friendly with your neighbours but none of them want to go near you because you're sick. But how do you say no to someone that's smiling and saying everything you want to hear? Well if you're smart, you find a way. Megan Crewe has taken a small vacation island and turned it into the breeding ground for a new virus. Our heroine, Kaelyn, wants to help in anyway she can but it's not as easy as it seems. Told through a series of letters to her friend Leo, who is no longer living on the island, we follow Kaelyn's journey as she discovers the virus, sees the virus and feels the virus affect everyone around her.

She breaks my heart and I was rooting for her the entire time. The journal entry format made this book hard to put down. With its fast paced, action packed plot, with every turn of the page you wonder if she'll make it to the end. Her emotions are real and heartfelt and her reactions to the terrifying events taking place around her are believable. The minor characters react in every way you would think people might react in a situation like this. Some get angry and try to fight their way off the island. Some get even more angry and try to kill the virus through violence. Some hide, hoping to survive. Some help where they can to help others survive. Some die trying. A lot of the characters are too calm at points, points where I know if this was happening to me, I'd be screaming or too terrified to leave the house. But I'm not as brave as Kaelyn, I guess, who in the light of danger and death, keeps a cool head and continues to struggle to survive. She's not a quitter, that's for sure.

I'm excited to read the sequel, now that the virus is spreading it will be interesting to see what Crewe does to advance this new disease. Her voice, dialogue and descriptions put me right onto the island with Kaelyn, and wondering when or if I will ever make it to the other side.

"Most people think the scariest thing is knowing that you’re going to die. It’s not. It’s knowing you might have to watch every single person you’ve ever loved – or even liked – waste away while you just stand there."

8. Legend

Book #8: Legend

Author: Marie Lu

Published: November 29, 2011

Pages: 305

4 Gold Stars

(summary from Goodreads)

What was once the western United States is now home to the Republic, a nation perpetually at war with its neighbors. Born into an elite family in one of the Republic's wealthiest districts, fifteen-year-old June is a prodigy being groomed for success in the Republic's highest military circles. Born into the slums, fifteen-year-old Day is the country's most wanted criminal. But his motives may not be as malicious as they seem.

From very different worlds, June and Day have no reason to cross paths - until the day June's brother, Metias, is murdered and Day becomes the prime suspect. Caught in the ultimate game of cat and mouse, Day is in a race for his family's survival, while June seeks to avenge Metias' death. But in a shocking turn of events, the two uncover the truth of what has really brought them together, and the sinister lengths their country will go to keep its secrets.

Full of nonstop action, suspense, and romance, this novel is sure to move readers as much as it thrills.

There was so much action packed into 300 pages that there was no place to stop and take a break. Lu throws us into a dystopian future of America, where there is a war much like the Cold War, where states are battling for power. The Republic trains soldiers very young, and June, one of the narrators, got a perfect score on her test and is not a military prodigy. She has no problem with this future set out for her, that is, until she meets Day. Under false circumstances, she gets to know him before she realizes he is the criminal wanted for her brother's death. Well, that just complicates things doesn't it? At what point do you try to push aside the feelings you have for someone or trust them when they say they are innocent?

June soon discovers more about the Republic than they let on. This is the main plot point of most dystopian thrillers. All seems well and the government is running the country to a tee until someone finds out something they shouldn't and a rebellion is started. What's a good dystopian without a rebellion?

The story is told from both June and Day's perspective. It's a nice way of writing it, because then we already know just how innocent Day is and we also know why June has found him. The story is mainly about what you would do for the people you love and that is a great way to tell a story. Even if it's taking place years in the future, in a completely different world, you still have the same mentality when it comes to family and friends. There is still humanity, even in a world full of war and chaos.

Secrets, betrayal, death and life, all come together through the eyes of two young pawns in a war they may not see coming. Nothing is what it seems and the more they uncover the truth, the more they need to escape it. The writing is realistic and the plot is fast-paced, keeping you turning the page an eager to find out what will happen to June and Day and the ones they love. This book stands alone in the aftermath of The Hunger Games, following the dystopian trend, but also leading its own. I can't wait to find out what happens next.

"Each day means a new twenty-four hours. Each day means everything's possible again. You live in the moment, you die in the moment, you take it all one day at a time...You try to walk in the light."

4. Beauty Queens

Book #4: Beauty Queens

Author: Libba Bray

Published: May 4, 2011

Pages: 396

5 Gold Stars

(summary from Goodreads)

The fifty contestants in the Miss Teen Dream pageant thought this was going to be a fun trip to the beach, where they could parade in their state-appropriate costumes and compete in front of the cameras. But sadly, their airplane had another idea, crashing on a desert island and leaving the survivors stranded with little food, little water, and practically no eyeliner.

What's a beauty queen to do? Continue to practice for the talent portion of the program - or wrestle snakes to the ground? Get a perfect tan - or learn to run wild? And what should happen when the sexy pirates show up?

Welcome to the heart of non-exfoliated darkness. Your tour guide? None other than Libba Bray, the hilarious, sensational, Printz Award-winning author of A Great and Terrible Beauty and Going Bovine. The result is a novel that will make you laugh, make you think, and make you never see beauty the same way again.

A Note From Our Sponsor

Well it’s been a wild ride hasn’t it? I don’t want to alarm you, and I can’t guarantee that everyone is safe and sound now, but I’d like to take a minute to let you know that The Corporation had no part in this matter as much as “they” would let you otherwise believe. It is not our fault that a plane holding all 50 contestants of The Miss Teen Dream Beauty Pageant crashed onto a deserted island. It is not our fault that we could not get there to rescue them. It is not our fault that being on this island may have liberated these girls. This island may or may not have taught them to be self sufficient, mean you this was with much help from Corporation products such as Lady ‘Stache Off and no doubt with a little help of The Miss Teen Dream Pageant morals as well.

There’s no way past it. These girls are brave. They learn to fish, built huts, find fresh drinking water, all the while wearing torn pageant dresses and sashes. These are Miss Teem Dreamers and The Corporation recognizes that. That may or may not be why we thought them a threat. Oh, I’m getting off track here. Where was i?

The Corporation did not plan for the girls to stay very long. We had it all set up, but damn are these girls smarter than they look. They are outspoken, quick thinkers and they sure know how to use those pageant moves as weapons. Especially that Miss Texas, now she’s a pure bred. There’s no stopping her once she’s put her mind to something. And Miss Nebraska sure won’t take anybody’s crap. Most of these girls seem like your typical, clean cut beauty queens. Well think again viewers. There is more to these girls that meets the eye. Once again, The Corporation feels like we could have done more to help these girls, maybe get them off that island before they started to become, well, independent and thinkers. You can’t let a woman think too much, or else this happens.

Let’s just all pretend none of this happened. Let’s go back to thinking great things about The Miss Teen Dream Pageant and all the wonderful Corporation aspects it stands for. We do not condone this behavior, but let me just leave you with this final message from The Corporation:

Never leave fresh, smart girls alone together on an island. Because they will get angry when they find out what you plan on doing and they will in fact seek revenge. And these girls are pretty resourceful, so they will win.

“Maybe girls need an island to find themselves. Maybe they need a place where no one’s watching them so they can be who they really are.”