Review: Snow Like Ashes (Snow Like Ashes, #1) by Sara Raasch

Snow Like Ashes by Sara Raasch

My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Received: bought
Publication Date: October 14th 2014
Publisher: Balzer + Bray
Genres & Themes: YA, Fantasy, Magic, War, Family, Friendship, Romance,

BLURB:

A heartbroken girl. A fierce warrior. A hero in the making.

Sixteen years ago the Kingdom of Winter was conquered and its citizens enslaved, leaving them without magic or a monarch. Now, the Winterians’ only hope for freedom is the eight survivors who managed to escape, and who have been waiting for the opportunity to steal back Winter’s magic and rebuild the kingdom ever since.

Orphaned as an infant during Winter’s defeat, Meira has lived her whole life as a refugee, raised by the Winterians’ general, Sir. Training to be a warrior—and desperately in love with her best friend, and future king, Mather — she would do anything to help her kingdom rise to power again.

So when scouts discover the location of the ancient locket that can restore Winter’s magic, Meira decides to go after it herself. Finally, she’s scaling towers, fighting enemy soldiers, and serving her kingdom just as she’s always dreamed she would. But the mission doesn’t go as planned, and Meira soon finds herself thrust into a world of evil magic and dangerous politics – and ultimately comes to realize that her destiny is not, never has been, her own.

Review: The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky

The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky

My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Received: borrowed
Publication Date: February 1999
Publisher: MTV Books and Pocket Books
Genres & Themes: YA, Family, Friendship, Love, Abuse, Realistic Fiction, LGBT.

BLURB:

Charlie is a freshman.

And while he’s not the biggest geek in the school, he is by no means popular. Shy, introspective, intelligent beyond his years yet socially awkward, he is a wallflower, caught between trying to live his life and trying to run from it.

Charlie is attempting to navigate his way through uncharted territory: the world of first dates and mix tapes, family dramas and new friends; the world of sex, drugs, and The Rocky Horror Picture Show, when all one requires is that perfect song on that perfect drive to feel infinite. But he can’t stay on the sideline forever. Standing on the fringes of life offers a unique perspective. But there comes a time to see what it looks like from the dance floor.

The Perks of Being a Wallflower is a deeply affecting coming-of-age story that will spirit you back to those wild and poignant roller-coaster days known as growing up.

Book Tour: Crushed (Soul Eater #2) by Eliza Crewe

Crushed by Eliza Crewe

My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Received: author
Publication Date: September 22, 2014
Publisher: Indie
POV: 1st & female
Pacing: very slow
Genres & Themes: YA, Demons, Urban Fantasy, Romance, Friendship, Family

Amazon, Google Play, Barnes & Noble, Kobo

BLURB:

Meda Melange has officially hung up her monstrous mantle and planted her feet firmly on the holy and righteous path of a Crusader-in-training. Or, at least, she’s willing to give it a shot. It helps that the Crusaders are the only thing standing between her and the demon hordes who want her dead.

The problem is, the only people less convinced than Meda of her new-found role as Good Girl are the very Crusaders she’s trying to join. So when a devilishly handsome half-demon boy offers escape, how’s a girl supposed to say “no?”

After all, everyone knows a good girl’s greatest weakness is a bad boy.

Review: The Witch of Duva (The Grisha, #0.5) by Leigh Bardugo

The Witch of Duva by Leigh Bardugo

My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Received: Freebie!
Publication Date: June 5th 2012
Publisher: Tor
POV: 3rd person & female
Pacing: Fast
Genres & Themes: Fantasy, Family, Witches, Dark.

BLURB:

There was a time when the woods near Duva ate girls…or so the story goes. But it’s just possible that the danger may be a little bit closer to home. This story is a companion folk tale to Leigh Bardugo’s debut novel, Shadow and Bone.

Review: Anna and the French Kiss (Anna and the French Kiss, #1) by Stephanie Perkins

Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins

My rating: 5 of 5 BRILLIANT stars
Received: bought
Publication Date: December 2nd, 2010
Publisher: Speak
POV: 1st person & female
Pacing: just okay
Genres & Themes: YA, Contemporary, Romance, Traveling, Friendship, Love

BLURB:

Can Anna find love in the City of Light?
Anna is happy in Atlanta. She has a loyal best friend and a crush on her coworker at the movie theater, who is just starting to return her affection. So she’s less than thrilled when her father decides to send her to a boarding school in Paris for her senior year. But despite not speaking a word of French, Anna meets some cool new people, including the handsome Étienne St. Clair, who quickly becomes her best friend. Unfortunately, he’s taken —and Anna might be, too. Will a year of romantic near misses end with the French kiss she’s waiting for?

Review: The Walled City by Ryan Graudin

The Walled City by Ryan Graudin

My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Received: NetGalley
Publication Date: November 4th 2014
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Pacing: fast
POV: Alternative (3) female + masculine
Genres & Themes: YA, Dark, Thriller, Romance, Family, Survival

BLURB:

There are three rules in the Walled City: Run fast. Trust no one. Always carry your knife. Right now, my life depends completely on the first. Run, run, run.

Jin, Mei Yee, and Dai all live in the Walled City, a lawless labyrinth run by crime lords and overrun by street gangs. Teens there run drugs or work in brothels—or, like Jin, hide under the radar. But when Dai offers Jin a chance to find her lost sister, Mei Yee, she begins a breathtaking race against the clock to escape the Walled City itself.

Review: Soulless The Manga, Vol. 1 (The Parasol Protectorate Manga)

Soulless: The Manga, Vol. 1 by Gail Carriger

My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Received: borrowed
Publication Date: March 1st 2012
Publisher: Yen Press
Genres & Themes: YA, Manga, Romance, Steampunk, Vampires, Werewolves, Mystery.

BLURB:

The life of a spinster in Victorian London isn’t an easy one on the best of days, but such a life becomes infinitely more complicated when said spinster is “soulless” – a preternatural bridging the gap between the natural and supernatural worlds. Miss Alexia Tarabotti has this unique distinction, and when she is assailed at a formal gathering by a rove vampire, an encounter that results in the death of the half-starved creature, her circumstances become exponentially more complicated indeed! Now caught up in an intrigue with life or death stakes, Alexia must rely on all her talents to outmatch the forces conspiring against her, but it may be the man who has caught her eye – Lord Conall Maccon – and their budding flirtation that truly drives her to her wit’s end!

Review: Salt & Storm by Kendall Kulper

Salt & Storm by Kendall Kulper

My rating: 2.5 of 5 stars
Received: bought
Publication Date: September 23rd, 2014
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Pacing: slow
POV: 1st person & female
Genres & Themes: YA, Historical Fiction, Fantasy, Witches, Magic, Romance, Family.

BLURB:

A sweeping historical romance about a witch who foresees her own murder–and the one boy who can help change her future.

Sixteen-year-old Avery Roe wants only to take her rightful place as the witch of Prince Island, making the charms that keep the island’s whalers safe at sea, but her mother has forced her into a magic-free world of proper manners and respectability. When Avery dreams she’s to be murdered, she knows time is running out to unlock her magic and save herself.

Avery finds an unexpected ally in a tattooed harpoon boy named Tane–a sailor with magic of his own, who moves Avery in ways she never expected. Becoming a witch might stop her murder and save her island from ruin, but Avery discovers her magic requires a sacrifice she never prepared for.