Book Review: Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead

Goodreads summary:

St. Vladimir’s Academy isn’t just any boarding school—it’s a hidden place where vampires are educated in the ways of magic and half-human teens train to protect them. Rose Hathaway is a Dhampir, a bodyguard for her best friend Lissa, a Moroi Vampire Princess. They’ve been on the run, but now they’re being dragged back to St. Vladimir’s—the very place where they’re most in danger...

Rose and Lissa become enmeshed in forbidden romance, the Academy’s ruthless social scene, and unspeakable nighttime rituals. But they must be careful lest the Strigoi—the world’s fiercest and most dangerous vampires—make Lissa one of them forever.

My review:

I have a confession to make.  I am NOT a fan of vampires.  They've always grossed me out, what with the whole drinking blood thing.  I usually tend to stay away from books where the main focus is on vampires, but I'd read so many gushing reviews for Vampire Academy.  So with great trepidation, I started reading it.

And...I actually liked it.  *waits a moment for that to sink in*  In fact, I liked it so much that I've already got the second book from my library and I will definitely be finishing this series (and perhaps even reading the Bloodlines series too).  Mead's writing is certainly addicting, and she has a knack for storytelling.

There's a bit more drama and a bit less action than I'd expected in Vampire Academy.  Still, this didn't really affect my enjoyment too badly.  The drama actually plays an important role in the plot, and ends up making the story flow really well.  I really liked the balance; it was paranormal with a slight contemporary feel.  And there's certainly plenty of twists and action at the end.

Oh the characters.  I think Lissa (Rose's best friend) was my favorite.  I love how complicated her character is; it's such a brilliant cross between light and dark.  Lissa is naturally very sweet and kindhearted, but there's such great character development as her new powers develop and it changes her whole attitude.  Then there's Rose - I liked her pretty well.  She's sassy, unafraid, hilarious, and sticks up for her friends.  The love interest, Dimitri, is okay.  I was rooting for Rose and Dimitri to end up together, but while I liked him, I just didn't love him.  Maybe he'll get better in the later books.

So overall, I was surprised by how much I enjoyed this.  Perhaps it's not completely unique as far as paranormal novels go, but it's certainly thrilling and fun.  And I wasn't even terribly disgusted by the vampires drinking blood thing - yay!  I'll definitely be reading the sequel soon, and I'm especially excited now for the movie coming out in February!

My rating:  4 out of 5

~ Kaitlyn

Feature & Follow #1

Feature & Follow is a blog hop hosted by Parajunkee and Alison Can Read.  This week's question is "How do you handle a book you don't like?  Do you DNF or do you power through?"

I'm one of those people who always has to finish the book, no matter what - which can be really torturous sometimes!  If I really can't stand the book, I'll skim a bit here and there, but I have this thing about always finishing it.  I just don't feel right reviewing/rating it if I haven't read it all the way. 

If you'd like, I'd love it if you follow me through GFC, or on Twitter @KTheBookworm.  If you do, let me know in the comments so I can follow you back! :)

~ Kaitlyn

My Top 5 Books of July 2013

I'm slightly late on my monthly book round-up post.  *sigh* July was a super busy month for me.  Glad it's finally August!  Anyway, here are all the books I read in July:

- Hooked by Liz Fichera
- Also Known As by Robin Benway
- A Tale of Two Centuries by Rachel Harris
- Foretold by Jana Oliver
- Avenger by Heather Burch
- In Between by Jenny B. Jones
- On the Loose by Jenny B. Jones
- The Big Picture by Jenny B. Jones
- Frigid by J. Lynn
- Lullaby by Amanda Hocking
- If I Stay by Gayle Forman
- All Our Yesterdays by Cristin Terrill
- That Summer by Sarah Dessen
- How Zoe Made Her Dreams (Mostly) Come True by Sarah Strohmeyer
- Relic by Renee Collins
- Golden by Jessi Kirby
- The Planet Thieves by Dan Krokos
- Eve by Anna Carey
- Everafter by Elizabeth Chandler
- Etiquette & Espionage by Gail Carriger
- Unthinkable by Nancy Werlin
- A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray
- The Maze Runner by James Dashner
- Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead
- Fox Forever by Mary E. Pearson

Well, amidst going to camp, being sick, and having a birthday celebration, I still managed to find lots of time to read, haha.  My top five books of July:

1. All Our Yesterdays by Cristin Terrill.  I was lucky enough to get an e-arc of this through Netgalley, and oh my word it is just so good.  It's one of my favorite time travel books ever.  There's just so many twists, so much action, and seriously amazing character development.  This book will blow you away.

2. Etiquette & Espionage by Gail Carriger.  I simply adore historical books, and this one has all the charm, wit, and elegance of a Jane Austen novel - except there's also some pretty epic steampunk elements mixed in.  Perfection?  I think yes.

3. How Zoe Made Her Dreams (Mostly) Come True by Sarah Strohmeyer.  Ahh, this was the perfect summer read.  Sometimes, after reading tons of fantasy and dystopian, you just need a lighthearted contemporary read.  This book is too cute for words, and I was reminded a lot of The Devil Wears Prada movie while reading it.  Strohmeyer is one of my favorite authors now!

4. Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead.  I am NOT a fan of vampires (they just gross me out), so I wasn't expecting to like this one when I picked it up.  I was a little surprised by how much I enjoyed it.  It's an all-around fun paranormal read.  I especially loved the strong friendship between Rose and Lissa.

5. Golden by Jessi Kirby.  I've read and liked Kirby's two previous books, but Golden is definitely her best yet!  It's a sweet, achingly beautiful story of self-discovery.  I was flipping the pages like crazy and found myself relating to the main character and the journey she was going on.  Loved it.

What are some of your favorite reads from this past month?

~ Kaitlyn

Waiting on Wednesday (26)

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine that spotlights upcoming releases for books we can't wait to read.

My pick is Curtsies & Conspiracies by Gail Carriger!

Goodreads summary:

Does one need four fully grown foxgloves for decorating a dinner table for six guests? Or is it six foxgloves to kill four fully grown guests?

Sophronia's first year at Mademoiselle Geraldine's Finishing Academy for Young Ladies of Quality has certainly been rousing! For one thing, finishing school is training her to be a spy (won't Mumsy be surprised?). Furthermore, Sophronia got mixed up in an intrigue over a stolen device and had a cheese pie thrown at her in a most horrid display of poor manners.

Now, as she sneaks around the dirigible school, eavesdropping on the teachers' quarters and making clandestine climbs to the ship's boiler room, she learns that there may be more to a school trip to London than is apparent at first. A conspiracy is afoot--one with dire implications for both supernaturals and humans. Sophronia must rely on her training to discover who is behind the dangerous plot-and survive the London Season with a full dance card.

In this sequel to bestselling author Gail Carriger's YA debut Etiquette & Espionage, class is back in session with more petticoats and poison, tea trays and treason. Gail's distinctive voice, signature humor, and lush steampunk setting are sure to be the height of fashion this season.

My thoughts:

I'm so excited for this!  November can't come fast enough.  I just read the first book in this series, Etiquette & Espionage, this past week.  It was so charming and funny, and I love the steampunk feel to this series. 

Also, is it me or do these books have some of the absolute best titles/covers ever?  I'm obsessed with these gorgeous covers, and I think the titles are so clever.

What are you waiting on this Wednesday? 

~ The Bookworm

Book Review: Eve by Anna Carey

Goodreads summary:

The year is 2032, sixteen years after a deadly virus—and the vaccine intended to protect against it—wiped out most of the earth’s population. The night before eighteen-year-old Eve’s graduation from her all-girls school she discovers what really happens to new graduates, and the horrifying fate that awaits her.

Fleeing the only home she’s ever known, Eve sets off on a long, treacherous journey, searching for a place she can survive. Along the way she encounters Caleb, a rough, rebellious boy living in the wild. Separated from men her whole life, Eve has been taught to fear them, but Caleb slowly wins her trust...and her heart. He promises to protect her, but when soldiers begin hunting them, Eve must choose between true love and her life.

My review:

Eve is not a terrible read, but it is what I like to think of as "meh."  I don't really have any love/hate feelings for it.  I think I'm just getting tired of dystopian novels.  Perhaps if I'd read this book a couple years ago, I'd have enjoyed it more.  But I was annoyed by the extremely naïve main character and the lack of world-building.

The story starts off pretty well.  The letter from Eve's mom at the beginning is very sweet and heartbreaking, and I enjoyed the prologue.  I even highlighted a quote I liked on my Kindle.  However, after the first few chapters, my interest started fading.  I got seriously annoyed with the main character, the shockingly naïve Eve.

Oh, Eve.  Where do I start?  Many reviewers have pointed to this example, and it definitely made me annoyed, too.  In the first quarter of the book, Eve is out in the wild and stumbles across a bear cub, and she thinks it looks like Winnie the Pooh, so she decides to pet it.  Because that's such a smart idea, right?  I just wanted to shake some sense into her.



After that scene, I pretty much lost hope for Eve.  I know it's part of her character - that she was raised to be very innocent and naïve - but I just felt like she didn't have enough strength in her character to make me admire her.  I kept thinking of her as a little girl instead of a teenager, which made the romance really awkward.

Yeah...the romance.  What does Caleb see in Eve?  Thankfully there was no insta-love, but it still didn't make sense for him to fall in love with her.  I also thought Caleb was a bit too perfect at times.  Sure, he's nice and sweet, but...that's all he is.  It made him a very bland character.  And no, I am NOT trying to say that I don't like "good guys," because I much prefer "good guys" to the "bad boy" type.  I just wish he had more of a personality.

There's also the lack of world-building.  I had so many questions I wanted explained, and I found the ending left me unsatisfied.  It felt like hardly anything happened plot-wise.  I've heard that the world-building improves later on in the series, but I don't really think I'm interested enough to pick up the sequel, unless I happen to see it at my library.  I know some of my friends have enjoyed Eve.  It just wasn't a great read for me.

My rating:  2 out of 5 stars

~ The Bookworm

ARC Review: Relic by Renee Collins

Goodreads summary:


After a raging fire consumes her town and kills her parents, Maggie Davis is on her own to protect her younger sister and survive best she can in the Colorado town of Burning Mesa. In Maggie’s world, the bones of long-extinct magical creatures such as dragons and sirens are mined and traded for their residual magical elements, and harnessing these relics’ powers allows the user to wield fire, turn invisible, or heal even the worst of injuries.

Working in a local saloon, Maggie befriends the spirited showgirl Adelaide and falls for the roguish cowboy Landon. But when she proves to have a particular skill at harnessing the relics’ powers, Maggie is whisked away to the glamorous hacienda of Álvar Castilla, the wealthy young relic baron who runs Burning Mesa. Though his intentions aren’t always clear, Álvar trains Maggie in the world of relic magic. But when the mysterious fires reappear in their neighboring towns, Maggie must discover who is channeling relic magic for evil before it’s too late.

Relic is a thrilling adventure set in a wholly unique world, and a spell-binding story of love, trust, and the power of good.

My review:

Although I had some minor problems with Relic, I mostly enjoyed it, and I'd recommend it to fantasy fans who are looking for something unique.

What I liked:

Hands down, my absolute favorite thing about Relic is the setting.  How often do you read a YA book - with fantasy elements, no less - set in the West?  It's a creative and enthralling setting, and Collins writes the descriptions of the land very well.  I'm usually not a fan of westerns, but Relic has changed my mind about that! 

Also, the plot held my attention pretty well.  The opening chapters are very gripping and action-packed.  The plot slows down slightly in the middle of the book, when Maggie and her sister are staying at Alvar Castilla's home.  I felt like I was waiting for something to happen, but the plot picks up quickly after that and there are lots more developments.  And there's an awesome little twist at the end that I didn't see coming!

I liked most of the characters in Relic, especially the minor characters.  Maggie got on my nerves here and there, but I really liked her little sister Ella and her friend Adelaide.  I thought Alvar Castilla to be very stereotypical at first, but he turned into a rather fascinating character with hidden layers to him.

What I didn't like:

I did get annoyed with Maggie sometimes.  I like that she thinks things through and is very practical, but she makes some foolish decisions that I didn't like.  For example, staying at Castilla's house and letting herself get swept away in a life of luxury.  It didn't really fit her "sensible" character and I got irritated with her at times.

And I wasn't crazy about Landon, the love interest.  He seemed too much like your typical YA love interest to me: he's a bit of a "bad boy," but of course he has a sweet side and immediately falls in love with the heroine.  So I just wasn't really a fan of the romance. 
Another small issue is Maggie's sister Ella.  Great character, and I loved the relationship between the two, but I wish she'd had more development.  Maggie was always going on about how much she loved Ella and wanted to take care of her, but Ella was never really in enough of the scenes.  I would've liked her character to have a bigger role.

Still, these are just little things I noticed, and for the most part Relic is an entertaining story with a brilliant setting and creative fantasy elements.  I can't wait to read more of this author's work!

My rating:  3.5 out of 5 stars

~ The Bookworm

Recent Cover Reveals!

Just a round-up of some recent cover reveals I'm really excited about!  I've included the release dates below each cover.

- Wings by Elizabeth Richards (no pub date announced yet)

- See Me by Wendy Higgins releases October 1, 2013

- Three by Kristen Simmons releases February 11, 2014

- Enders by Lissa Price releases January 7, 2014

- Panic by Lauren Oliver releases March 4, 2014

What do you think of these covers?  My favorite is Wings, but I really love them all - except I'm not crazy about Enders.  It's a great cover except for the girl's bangs...they just look awful, at least to me.  Which cover is your favorite?

~ The Bookworm