Blackout Review

Title: Blackout ( Blackout #1)
Author: Robison Wells
Publisher: HarperTeen
Release Date: October 1st 2013
Source: ARC from Edelweiss
Rating: 4/5


Laura and Alec are trained terrorists.

Jack and Aubrey are high school students.

There was no reason for them to ever meet.

But now, a mysterious virus is spreading throughout America, infecting teenagers with impossible powers. And these four are about to find their lives intertwined in a complex web of deception, loyalty, and catastrophic danger—where one wrong choice could trigger an explosion that ends it all.

Review:

 

Usually I'm put off my a book that seems like it's geared towards to male audience, but in the case of Blackout I was so intrigued by a virus giving teens powers and terrorists I just had to pick it up. I am SO glad I did because I ended up really enjoying this book and can't wait to read the next one ASAP.

 

I have never read a book told partly in the third person perspective of a terrorist, it was very refreshing to read from a perspective of a "villain". I put villain in quotation marks because I am not quite sure if these teen terrorists are in fact bad, the motive behind their destruction may be justified. The overall story reminded me of Gone by Michael Grant which is a book I really enjoyed, with the twist of a virus spreading around powers.

 

While most of the powers acquired by some of the characters are not the best, I give Robison Wells bonus points for being creative. In most books the same basic powers are recycled over and over again, in Blackout you are in for some unique ones.

 

I ended up really enjoying Blackout; it was fast paced, very unique and it's sure to be a pick hit because it does appeal to both sexes and I event think it would appeal to all sorts of age groups as well. It's a very well rounded novel! Do not fear die hard romance fans there is some romance tied into the action paced teen terrorist novel.

Born of Illusion Review

Title: Born of Illusion
Author: Teri Brown
Release Date: June 11th 2013
Publisher: Balzer and Bray
Source: ARC for Review
Rating: 3

Anna Van Housen is thirteen the first time she breaks her mother out of jail. By sixteen she’s street smart and savvy, assisting her mother, the renowned medium Marguerite Van Housen, in her stage show and séances, and easily navigating the underground world of magicians, mediums and mentalists in 1920’s New York City. Handcuffs and sleight of hand illusions have never been much of a challenge for Anna. The real trick is keeping her true gifts secret from her opportunistic mother, who will stop at nothing to gain her ambition of becoming the most famous medium who ever lived. But when a strange, serious young man moves into the flat downstairs, introducing her to a secret society that studies people with gifts like hers, he threatens to reveal the secrets Anna has fought so hard to keep, forcing her to face the truth about her past. Could the stories her mother has told her really be true? Could she really be the illegitimate daughter of the greatest magician of all?

Review:

 

When I discovered that Born of Illusion took place in the roaring 20's I was immediately intrigued. The 1920's is one of my most favourite eras in history. Unfortunately Born of Illusion didn't end up being as amazing as I had hoped, it was still enjoyable though.

 

Overall Born of Illusion had a great concept surrounding a main character, Anna, who is said to be the bastard daughter of Houdini, who herself practises in magic. In her case it's not all trickery, Anna does have some surprising magical powers that she can't explain. I felt like Born of Illusion ended up being your typical physic power paranormal YA novel with the exception of taking place in the 1920's. In sort it lacked creativity a bit.

That being said I did very much enjoy Teri Brown's writing, it was very well done with just the write amount of detail. I loved Anna as a main character, she's a very physically and mentally strong female character who get into weird situations caused by her occupation and mother. There is a bit of a love triangle, usually I don't enjoy love triangles very much but this one was great since you have no clue who she will pick up until the very end. Both guys are very hot as well which helps.

Born of Illusion is a setting dependent novel this gives the illusion (see what I did there) of being in the 1920's emphasised through the speech. Although it didn't live up to my expectations I would still recommend it if your looking for a historical paranormal novel.

Asunder Review

Title: Asunder (New Soul #2)
Name: Jodi Meadow
Publisher: Katherine Teagan
Source: ARC for Review
Rating: 4

DARKSOULS
Ana has always been the only one. Asunder. Apart. But after Templedark, when many residents of Heart were lost forever, some hold Ana responsible for the darksouls–and the newsouls who may be born in their place.

SHADOWS
Many are afraid of Ana’s presence, a constant reminder of unstoppable changes and the unknown. When sylph begin behaving differently toward her and people turn violent, Ana must learn to stand up not only for herself but for those who cannot stand up for themselves.

LOVE
Ana was told that nosouls can’t love. But newsouls? More than anything, she wants to live and love as an equal among the citizens of Heart, but even when Sam professes his deepest feelings, it seems impossible to overcome a lifetime of rejection.

Review:

 

After thoroughly enjoying the fantastic world Jodi Meadow created in Incarnate, Asunder was a sequel I couldn't wait to get my hands on. With the super  adorable relationship between Sam and Ana and the new revelations and questions that arose in Asunder, the book certainly does not disappoint.

I absolutely love the world of The New Soul trilogy, it's creative, magical, and unique. The journey that Ana and Sam undergo is just all the more awesome because of the genius world Jodi has created. The tension between the Old Souls and their negative feeling towards New Souls like Ana causes some very dramatic moments that readers will be fascinated with. The writing is also extremely well done, it's very descriptive and beautifully done.

The only thing that I can say against Asunder is that I would love to see some of the mythical creature mentioned throughout the book like trolls and unicorns. Dragons were apart of Incarnate, and were awesome, but seeing more of them and others would be amazing.

With the introduction of new characters,  a well written continuation of Incarnate with the sweetest of all romances, and with an ending that will have you egerly awaiting the final book in the series, Asunder is a sequel you won't want to miss. It's a case where you should jugde a book by it's cover, and this book has a gorgeous cover.