Team Human By Justine Larbalestier and Sarah Rees Brennan

 

 

Are you Team Human or Team Vampire?

 

Justine Larbalestier and Sarah Rees Brennan have both  written some of the wittiest  young-adult fiction on the market. With them working together they are a force to be weakened with.  

From the start it is clear that Team Human is a satire. And in any good satire its main weapon is its wit, which is found load and clear in the lead  Mel. She is witty, clever, and determined. Not afraid to speak her mind or stand up for what she believes in.

When i first started to read this book i was honestly not sure what to expect. Another story about vampires trying to fit in to the human world, or  another star cross lover story about  girl who falls in love with a vampire and her jealous friends? 

But i was remarkably surprised at the story’s content. Yes it is a story about a girl who falls in love with a vampire, but it is also a story of friendship in its purest form. The type of friendship that everyone hopes to have. The friend that would do anything and everything for her friends. 

The lead character Mel is what some would call opinionated others would maybe say she is a little racist.  But when Mel’s best friend Cathy falls head over heels for the new guy, who just happens to be a vampire, Mel will do everything in her power to stop her. Including jeopardizing her  friendship. But is there any way to stop someone in love? 

Mel’s feelings on vampires are clear at the start of the book. It’s not that she goes out of her way to dislike them, but she also doesn’t think a lot about them. Her opinion is only made worse by the fact her friend Anna’s dad ran away with a vampire. Leaving Anna devastated.

When Anna tells Mel that her mum has been acting strangely, Mel makes it her mission to find out  what  Anna’s  mum is up to. The hunt for truth will see her cross paths with a vampire cop, her human son and  zombies.  But what Mel will find could be worse than they ever thought possible.

 As Mel tries to convince Cathy that becoming a vampire is the worst thing that she can do. She slowly falls for Kit. A human who is living among vampires after be left on their door step as a baby.  

There is something for everyone in this story, humor, love and mystery. 

Would you let your Best friend date a vampire???

 

The Story 

Just because Mel lives in New Whitby, a city founded by vampires, doesn't mean she knows any of the blood-drinking undead personally. They stay in their part of town; she says in hers. Until the day a vampire shows up at her high school. Worse yet, her best friend, Cathy, seems to be falling in love with him. It's up to Mel to save Cathy from a mistake she might regret for all eternity!
On top of trying to help Cathy (whether she wants it or not), Mel is investigating a mysterious disappearance for another friend and discovering the attractions of a certain vampire wannabe. Combine all this with a cranky vampire cop, a number of unlikely romantic entanglements, and the occasional zombie, and soon Mel is hip-deep in an adventure that is equal parts hilarious and touching.

Acclaimed authors Justine Larbalestier and Sarah Rees Brennan team up to create a witty and poignant story of cool vampires, warm friendships, and the changes that test the bonds of love.

Rating: 3.5 stars

Book: Team Human
Author: Justine Larbalestier and Sarah Rees Brennan

Type: stand alone
Publisher Allen & Unwin

Endure by Carrie Jones

Endure is the final instalment of this amazing series by Carrie Jones. I have to say that it has been an amazing ride.

I fell in love with series from the moment I first started reading it. This series has made me laugh and cry. Endure has been no different, though knowing it was the last book made me a little reserved about reading it.

Zara and her friends will make you feel like you are part of their world and like any good friends you will have moments were you love them and moments when you hate them for the way they act but by the end you are one happy family.  

Zara is at the centre of a coming apocalypse. The fact that she’s successfully rescued Nick from Valhalla isn’t enough. Now that the Evil pixies are ravaging Bedford, Zara and her friends are going to need more than one great warrior. They are going to need an army.

Zara isn’t even sure what her role is anymore. After all she’s not just fighting for her friends and family but now she is a pixie queen she is fighting for them.

To align her team of pixies with the humans that she loves will be her greatest battles yet. 

The story 

In Endure we find Zara still strugling to deal with all the changes that have happened in her life.  She’s successfully rescued Nick from Valhalla, but  even that hasnt gone the way that she dreamed it would . But that is far from Zara's biggest problem. Bedford is being ravaged by evil pixies and they dont only need  a great warrior, they need an army War is coming  and this time there may be no way to stop it . 

With unexpected twist and turns Endure you will have you guessing to the very end.

Rating: 5 stars

Book: Endure 
Author: Carrie Jones

Type:  series

Avalible at:  amazon

 Website: http://www.carriejonesbooks.com/my-books/need-series

666 Park Avenue By Gabriella Pierce

666 Park Avenue by Gabriella Pierce is the first book in this incredible series. It is Secret circle meets Gossip girl.

The story starts in Paris, but is primarily set in New York and tells the story of American-born Jane Boyle. Who after the tragic death of her parents is sent to live with her paranoid and overprotective grandmother in France.

Jane left her overprotective grandmother when she was old enough and move to Paris to become an architect.

It is in Paris that Jane is swept of her feet by Malcolm Doran. He is everything she ever dreamed about and though she hasn't known him very long she has fallen madly in love with him. When she makes the ultimate decision to follow her heart and leaves her whole world behind to move to New York to be with Malcolm. To the family she has always hoped for but first impressions can be deceiving and with the Doran Family that is exactly what she will find out.

Before she goes she has to tie up some loose ends and pay her grandmother one last visit.  And this is where the story really gets interesting. I don’t want to say to much more but hold on to your broom sticks. 

What I found refreshing about this story was that even though it is a story about witches, this fact that it felt like it wasn’t constantly being pointed out in the story. That Gabriella allowed the story and characters to grow and developed with out constantly reminding us they are witches .

I loved the fact that the chapters were not long and drawn out.  That if I had to put the book down ( not that I wanted to) I was not in the middle of a chapter.

666 Park Avenue has just been made into a TV series by ABC in the States, you can watch the trailer here:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_rL4GSQfU60

The story is full of twist and turns that will leave you begging for more.

Will this fairy tale have a happy ending or will it become a nightmare?

The story


What if your mother-in-law turned out to be an evil, cold-blooded witch . .. . literally?

Ever since fabulously wealthy Malcolm Doran walked into her life and swept her off her feet, fledgling architect Jane Boyle has been living a fairy tale. When he proposes with a stunning diamond to seal the deal, Jane can't believe her incredible luck and decides to leave her Paris-based job to make a new start with Malcolm in New York.

But when Malcolm introduces Jane to the esteemed Doran clan, one of Manhattan's most feared and revered families, Jane's fairy tale takes a darker turn. Soon everything she thought she knew about the world--and herself--is upended. Now Jane must struggle with newfound magical abilities and the threat of those who will stop at nothing to get them.



Rating: 4.6 stars
Publisher: Constable and Robinson

Book: 666 Park Avenue

Author:  Gabriella Pierce 

Type: series
Avalible at:  amazon

Blue moon by Alyson Noel

This series is one of my favorites. with its mix of adventurous, love and darkness. which i really enjoy reading. 

Ever is one of those extraordinary character that doesn't come along very often.

I admire how she is coping with Riley passing over, But when Miles's play ends, and Damen just leaves her at the theatre,  I was in shock . 

My mind was racing, thinking, "How could he?" He waited SIX HUNDRED years for her! How could he just leave her ?" 

But near the end, when Roman admitted he did it, I wasn't surprise. 

My all-time favorite part of the whole book is the ending. It was sweet how Ever give up anything up for Damen, but when she put her blood in the antidote, I thought it would make him stronger, and they’d have a normal relationship again. But I was mad  when  Roman told Ever that if they exchange DNA, he’ll die, I was about to cry. Their relationship was so strong, and now she can’t even touch him, afraid that he might die! 

The Story

Ever has a chance to bring her family back from the dead—but only if she's willing to sacrifice the guy she loves more than life itself.

Just as Ever is learning everything she can about her new abilities as an immortal, initiated into the dark, seductive world by her beloved Damen, something terrible is happening to him. As Ever's powers are increasing, Damen's are fading—stricken by a mysterious illness that threatens his memory, his identity, his life.

Desperate to save him, Ever travels to the mystical dimension of Summerland, uncovering not only the secrets of Damen's past—the brutal, tortured history he hoped to keep hidden—but also an ancient text revealing the workings of time. With the approaching blue moon heralding her only window for travel, Ever is forced to decide between turning back the clock and saving her family from the accident that claimed them—or staying in the present and saving Damen, who grows weaker each day...

Rating: 4.5 stars
Book: blue moon 

 Author: Alyson Noel 
Type: series
Avalible at:  amazon , kmart, Target 

Untamed by PC Cast & Kristen Cast

 Untamed is the fourth book  in the House of Night series by P.C & Kristin Cast.  Much like the other books in the series the events in Untamed start from where the action in Chosen left off.  The storyline of this novel takes place over a few days, which defiantly speeds up the story. As a result there is less emphasis on love, sex and bloodlust

 The  dark intrigue that had been making its way through the story has  finally surfaced. Now that Zoey and her friends are aware that Neferet is no longer standing on the side of light and a  new enemy has revealed its self  giving them a lot  more to worry about.

 In addition to having a cast of characters that I have come to know and love there are  a couple of exciting new characters not to mention some major character.

Life sucks when your friends are pissed at you. Just ask Zoey Redbird – she’s become an expert on suckiness. In one week she has gone from having three boyfriends to having none, and from having a close group of friends who trusted and supported her, to being an outcast. Speaking of friends, of the two Zoey has left, one is undead and one is unMarked. And Neferet has declared war on humans, which Zoey knows in her heart is wrong. But will anyone listen to her? Zoey’s adventures at vampyre finishing school take a wld and dangerous turn as loyalties are tested, shocking true intentions come to light, and an ancient evil is awakened.

Rating: 4.3 stars

Book: Untamed 

 Author: PC Cast & Kristen Cast
Type: house of night 
Avalible at:  amazon , kmart, Target 

Rapture By Lauren Kate

Being the final book in the series i have to admit that i had mixed emotions about reading it. As i have truly enjoyed

and fallen in love with series and didn't want it to end. But in the end i am glad that i read it. 

This book wrapped up the series in a great way, but at the same time it did leave me wanting more. There were parts of the book that i thought were a little  bit predictable, But lots of surprises to. It is hard to not spoil the book for those who have not read it.

Like Passion the book did take you on a journey around the world, but this time  Luce and Daniel were together. 

I did miss the Cam factor in this book. He has  played a big part in the first and second books. Though with the other characters there was a sense of closure.  Cam just seemed to disappear

I thought that he may have played a bigger part in Luce discovering who she was. 

There aren’t  many new characters to meet in this book, with the exception of Dee. She had such a important role, but I don’t want to tell you  how. 

Lucifer or bill did keep making appearances. I liked how we were shown the kind of impact he had on Luce. His influence on her definitely made a difference to the way she acted in this book.

All in all, I’m sad that this series is over, but it was wrapped up very well. The ending was bittersweet, for sure. I wish that there was another way for it to end!  

I’m glad it ended the way it did. I won’t be forgetting this series. It will always hold a special place in my heart.

The story

The sky is dark with wings . . . .

Like sand in an hourglass, time is running out for Luce and Daniel. To stop Lucifer from erasing the past they must find the place where the angels fell to earth. Dark forces are after them, and Daniel doesn’t know if he can do this—live only to lose Luce again and again.

Yet together they will face an epic battle that will end with lifeless bodies . . . and angel dust. Great sacrifices are made. Hearts are destroyed. And suddenly Luce knows what must happen.

For she was meant to be with someone other than Daniel. The curse they’ve borne has always and only been about her—and the love she cast aside. The choice she makes now will be the only one that truly matters.

In the fight for Luce, who will win?

The astonishing conclusion to the FALLEN series. Heaven can’t wait any longer.

Rating: 4 stars

Book: Rapture 

 Author:Lauren Kate
Type: Fallen series
Avalible at:  amazon , kmart, Target