Book Review: Anna Dressed in Blood by Kendare Blake

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Anna Dressed in Blood, book review, fiction, horror, Kendare Blake, paranormal, young adult

Book Synopsis:

Anna #1
Published Sept 2011 by Tor Teen
YA, Horror, Paranormal | 369 pages
Cas Lowood has inherited an unusual vocation: He kills the dead.

So did his father before him, until he was gruesomely murdered by a ghost he sought to kill. Now, armed with his father’s mysterious and deadly athame, Cas travels the country with his kitchen-witch mother and their spirit-sniffing cat. They follow legends and local lore, destroy the murderous dead, and keep pesky things like the future and friends at bay.

Searching for a ghost the locals call Anna Dressed in Blood, Cas expects the usual: track, hunt, kill. What he finds instead is a girl entangled in curses and rage, a ghost like he’s never faced before. She still wears the dress she wore on the day of her brutal murder in 1958: once white, now stained red and dripping with blood. Since her death, Anna has killed any and every person who has dared to step into the deserted Victorian she used to call home.

Yet she spares Cas’s life.

Book Review: ★★★★★

“What about Birmingham? That place is so haunted you could take two a month and still probably have enough to make it through grad school.”
Page 26 – Anna Dressed in Blood

Every now and then I get into the mood to read a horror novel. Something that will make me regret reading into the wee hours of the night. I had seen this book around the book community and I heard that it was a great, creepy read. I bought it on sale and finally picked it up on the last few days of 2013.

I really enjoyed this book and the way it was written. It wasn’t as creepy as I expected it to be though, but maybe I’m just a tough cookie :p I felt the story was more gory than creepy. Although it did have its moments and there were times where I was regretting reading it before bed.

I felt it really refreshing to read a book from a male perspective. I feel a lot of the books I read lately, especially the YA ones, were all centered on girls. I really enjoyed the writing. It was succinct, funny, enticing and well done. The story was very vivid and in some instances really gruesome. But I loved every minute of it.

The story itself was super intriguing and enticing. I couldn’t have imagined how the story would go and I was pleasantly surprised with the ending. The first gruesome scene took me completely by surprise. The plot got very serious really fast and I was really excited to see how things would turn out. I even bought the sequel before I finished because I knew I would want to read it. I’m really excited to see what it has in store for us, though I’m not sure what to expect because I feel like this novel was fairly wrapped up.

If you want a creepy and gruesome read, I highly recommend this book.

“I smile quietly. She is with me all the time. I feel stupid now, for not seeing it sooner. But hey, at least we’ll have this strange story to tell, love and death and blood and daddy-issues. And holy crap, I am a psychiatrist’s wet dream.”
Page 288 – Anna Dressed in Blood

Book Review: Scarlet by Marissa Meyer

Tags

book review, fiction, Lunar Chronicles, Marissa Meyer, Scarlet, science fiction, young adult

Book Synopsis:

Lunar Chronicles #2 Published Feb 2013 by Feiwel and Friends YA, Science Fiction | 454 pages The fates of Cinder and Scarlet collide as a Lunar threat spreads across the Earth… Cinder, the cyborg mechanic, returns in the second thrilling installment of the bestselling Lunar Chronicles. She’s trying to break out of prison—even though if she succeeds, she’ll be the Commonwealth’s most wanted fugitive. Halfway around the world, Scarlet Benoit’s grandmother is missing. It turns out there are many things Scarlet doesn’t know about her grandmother or the grave danger she has lived in her whole life. When Scarlet encounters Wolf, a street fighter who may have information as to her grandmother’s whereabouts, she is loath to trust this stranger, but is inexplicably drawn to him, and he to her. As Scarlet and Wolf unravel one mystery, they encounter another when they meet Cinder. Now, all of them must stay one step ahead of the vicious Lunar Queen Levana, who will do anything for the handsome Prince Kai to become her husband, her king, her prisoner.

Book Review: ★★★★★

At the start of this sequel to Cinder we’re taken across the world to the European Federation. The book starts out centered on a new character; Scarlet. She’s a simple farmer who meets the mysterious street fighter Wolf. I loved the dynamic between these two and couldn’t get enough of them. I also found Scarlet’s story a bit more fun to read than Cinder’s. We still get to see Cinder and what happened to her after the ball. We’re also introduced to a Captain Carswell Thorne, who I found absolutely hilarious.

I loved how Meyer wrote this sequel in such a way where the connection between Scarlet and Cinder was so mysterious and hidden until later on in the novel. It kept me wrapped up in the story and I kept reading just to find out how their stories would connect.

I think I liked this book even better than Cinder. The story was more adventurous and I thoroughly enjoyed the addition of the new characters. The writing, as usual, was amazing. Meyer has a way of creating a world that just sucks you in. The detail is so simple and yet so vivid that you can even smell the farm that Scarlet is from.

I devoured this book. I couldn’t get enough of it. Now I’m impatiently waiting for Cress to be released so I can continue on the adventure with Cinder, Scarlet and all their companions. (Yes, I’ve already pre-ordered my copy).

Book Review: Cinder by Marissa Meyer

Tags

book review, Cinder, fiction, Lunar Chronicles, Marissa Meyer, science fiction, young adult

Book Synopsis: 

Lunar Chronicles #1
Published in January 2012 by Feiwel & Friends
YA, Science Fiction | 384 pages
Humans and androids crowd the raucous streets of New Beijing. A deadly plague ravages the population. From space, a ruthless lunar people watch, waiting to make their move. No one knows that Earth’s fate hinges on one girl. 

Cinder, a gifted mechanic, is a cyborg. She’s a second-class citizen with a mysterious past, reviled by her stepmother and blamed for her stepsister’s illness. But when her life becomes intertwined with the handsome Prince Kai’s, she suddenly finds herself at the center of an intergalactic struggle, and a forbidden attraction. Caught between duty and freedom, loyalty and betrayal, she must uncover secrets about her past in order to protect her world’s future.

Book Review: ★★★★★

I absolutely LOVED this book! I was a bit hesitant to read this at first. It was blowing up in the online book community and I don’t always enjoy those popular books. This was, however, recommended to me by Isis and I’m so glad I listened. Within the first few pages I was in love! I knew from the name and from reviews that this novel was a retelling of Cinderella, but it turned out to only be in a very broad sense.

Meyer has created a whole new (futuristic) world. The descriptions are wonderful and simple. You are just instantly transported into this world. I absolutely loved that Cinder was a cyborg. it just made everything so interesting and fascinating. The introduction of a fatal pandemic with no cure was just the icing on the cake.

The characters were very well done. They each had their own voice and were very three-dimensional. I even started loving the android! Despite the fact that I figured out the big reveal half way through, I was still very surprised by the end of the novel. It ended with a huge cliff hanger and I can’t wait to start book two.

I’m so glad I read this book! New instant favorite series and author. I highly recommend this to everyone!

Book Review: The Chaos of Stars

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book review, fantasy, fiction, Kiersten White, mythology, The Chaos of Stars, young adult

Author: Kiersten White
Publisher: Harper Teen
Publication Date: September 2013
Genre: Young Adult, Mythology, Fantasy
Pages: 276
Book Description: Isadora’s family is seriously screwed up.

Of course, as the human daughter of Egyptian gods, that pretty much comes with the territory. She’s also stuck with parents who barely notice her, and a house full of relatives who can’t be bothered to remember her name. After all, they are going to be around forever—and she’s a mere mortal.

Isadora’s sick of living a life where she’s only worthy of a passing glance, and when she has the chance to move to San Diego with her brother, she jumps on it. But Isadora’s quickly finding that a “normal” life comes with plenty of its own epic complications—and that there’s no such thing as a clean break when it comes to family. Much as she wants to leave her past behind, she can’t shake the ominous dreams that foretell destruction for her entire family. When it turns out there may be truth in her nightmares, Isadora has to decide whether she can abandon her divine heritage after all.

I picked up this book anticipating an action packed novel. And while it wasn’t, I was pleasantly surprised and really enjoyed it. The book was more focused on a young girl – born and raised by gods – finding herself in a normal world rather than the usual action/adventure that is found in fantasy novels. I enjoyed reading how Isadora found herself and found love through the help of friends and Ry. Seeing Isadora change and realize that she already had the love she wanted through the novel was heart-warming. This novel felt more like a contemporary/realistic fiction except the protagonist just happened to be the child of Osiris and Isis. Completely natural…

The Chaos of Stars was a sweet and quick read. It may not appeal to many people, however, but if you’re looking for a light love filled novel to get over a book hangover or to pass the time then I say to give this book a try.

My Rating: ★★★★

Book Review: The Throne of Fire

Tags

book review, fantasy, fiction, mythology, Rick Riordan, The Kane Chronicles, The Throne of Fire, young adult

Author: Rick Riordan
Series: The Kane Chronicles #2
Publisher: Disney Hyperion
Publication Date: May 2011
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy, Mythology
Pages: 446
Book Description: Ever since the gods of Ancient Egypt were unleashed in the modern world, Carter Kane and his sister Sadie have been in trouble. As descendants of the House of Life, the Kanes have some powers at their command, but the devious gods haven’t given them much time to master their skills at Brooklyn House, which has become a training ground for young magicians. 
And now their most threatening enemy yet – the chaos snake Apophis – is rising. If they don’t prevent him from breaking free in a few days’ time, the world will come to an end. In other words, it’s a typical week for the Kane family. 

To have any chance of battling the Forces of Chaos, the Kanes must revive the sun god Ra. But that would be a feat more powerful than any magician has ever accomplished. 

First they have to search the world for the three sections of the Book of Ra, then they have to learn how to chant its spells. Oh, and did we mention that no one knows where Ra is exactly? 

In the second book we are introduced to some new characters. The book opens with Sadie and Carter having found some new initiates to teach the way of the Gods. We’re also introduced to some new gods as well. My favorites were Walt and Bes. I loved seeing these characters and seeing how they interacted with the Sadie and Carter.

This second book was better than the first one for me. Probably because there were now more people, the story line was well on it’s way and I was already used to Sadie and Carter. The action in this story was also more interesting for me. I loved the adventures the Kanes went on and meeting Tawaret was just hilariously wonderful. I love where Riordan has taken the story and I can’t wait to see what happens to the siblings next.

The writing is perfect, as per Riordan’s usual. The story just pops out of the page and you fall in love with all the characters. They’re believable and unique and different. Riordan just makes you laugh and cry and then beg for more and this book was no different. On to book three!

My Rating: ★★★★