Black City

Publisher: Penguin (Putnam)
Pages: 373
Publication Date: November 13, 2012
Type: ARC, won

A dark and tender post-apocalyptic love story set in the aftermath of a bloody war

In a city where humans and Darklings are now separated by a high wall and tensions between the two races still simmer after a terrible war, sixteen-year-olds Ash Fisher, a half-blood Darkling, and Natalie Buchanan, a human and the daughter of the Emissary, meet and do the unthinkable--they fall in love. Bonded by a mysterious connection that causes Ash's long-dormant heart to beat, Ash and Natalie first deny and then struggle to fight their forbidden feelings for each other, knowing if they're caught, they'll be executed--but their feelings are too strong.

When Ash and Natalie then find themselves at the center of a deadly conspiracy that threatens to pull the humans and Darklings back into war, they must make hard choices that could result in both their deaths.

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Similarly to its fellow Breathless Read, Origin, Black City had a lot to love and a lot to hate.  There were a number of things I enjoyed, and a number of things that put a bit of a damper on my reading experience.

It certainly wasn't a bad read.  Some of the concepts were exceptionally unique; despite having many marks of a typical dystopian or vampire novel, Richards took a new spin on a lot of the classics, and I enjoyed watching her world unfold.  The treatment of the Darklings was strongly reminiscent of the Holocaust, but the differences between these two events raised quite a few moral questions.  Because the Darklings are a legitimate threat, does that in any way excuse the despicable treatment?  Do you want the walls to come down, knowing it could end in a human massacre?

There were also a few very genuine moments that touched me, quite unexpectedly.  Oftentimes these occurred between family members, which was perhaps even better; there aren't enough complex familial relationships in a lot of YA fiction today.

And, deep matters aside, one of the greatest things about Black City is that it's what reviewers like to call "intensely readable."  Despite the plot not really picking up until about two thirds of the way in, I never found myself bored.  I wanted to read on, wanted to unravel the mysteries and see what would happen next in this dark, horrifying world.  

Unfortunately, despite its readability, Black City was still a let down in more ways than one.  The writing could best be described as . . . amateur.  It's somewhat understandable, considering this is Richards's debut novel, and there's definitely potential--throughout the novel, there were the occasional flashes of brilliance.  But the overall quality of writing was lower than I expect from a published novel.  

And that leads to my second issue, which is that the characters simply weren't real or likable.  Both their dialogue and actions were awkward and cheesy, more like caricatures than three-dimensional, believable people.   Not even likable caricatures at that.  They were at turns bratty, petty, idiotic, cruel, and a bunch of other negative adjectives that I'm too lazy to list.  I don't mind flawed characters when it's acknowledged that they aren't exactly the greatest of people, but I was supposed to believe that these guys were just the shit, and I couldn't buy it.  

Despite my troubles with the characterization, if the romance--the main plot of the novel--had developed nicely, over a logical period of time, I might have learned to love them.  Unfortunately, the dreaded insta-love struck once again in the form of--wait for it--soul mates. (Soul mates, Blood Mates, close enough.)  The time-tested excuse for a complete lack of any real connection or chemistry.  At one point, Ash tries to give a dramatic speech about why he really loves Natalie, y'know, for her, and all he can come up with are her annoying/endearing physical habits, because there is absolutely nothing between them but mystical lust and pretty words.

While most of this review would seem to indicate a strong distaste for the novel, the fact of the matter is that, when it comes down to it, I enjoyed this book.  Some parts of it irritated me to no end, but it was a quick, entertaining read, and I know many will like it far more than I.  Three stars for enjoyment.

Born Wicked

Publisher: Penguin (Putnam Juvenile)
Pages: 330
Publication Date: February 7, 2012
Type: Hardcover, bought

Everybody knows Cate Cahill and her sisters are eccentric. Too pretty, too reclusive, and far too educated for their own good. But the truth is even worse: they’re witches. And if their secret is discovered by the priests of the Brotherhood, it would mean an asylum, a prison ship—or an early grave.

Before her mother died, Cate promised to protect her sisters. But with only six months left to choose between marriage and the Sisterhood, she might not be able to keep her word... especially after she finds her mother’s diary, uncovering a secret that could spell her family’s destruction. Desperate to find alternatives to their fate, Cate starts scouring banned books and questioning rebellious new friends, all while juggling tea parties, shocking marriage proposals, and a forbidden romance with the completely unsuitable Finn Belastra.

If what her mother wrote is true, the Cahill girls aren’t safe. Not from the Brotherhood, the Sisterhood—not even from each other.

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Let me start off by saying this was not what I expected.

When I saw the premise of a novel set in the late 1800s, centered around witches, I expected it to be something ala the Gemma Doyle trilogy--set in a normal historical backdrop, with a fantasy element.  That does not describe Born Wicked.  Quite frankly?  Born Wicked is a dystopian, all the way, from the conglomerate countries that have taken over various parts of the world to the oppressive regime and secret rebels.  This was a dystopian with old speak and habits.

And as a dystopian, it was lacking in several areas.  The world-building was scarce.  Most of it is summed up in a few vague sentences.  We get very little information about the rest of the world, or even about Cate's New England.  I had a very blurry understanding of the setting, and that made it difficult to really place these events or put them in some sort of context.

Also, there was a simple lack of believability.  In this novel, girls are treated like total scum.  In fact, the Brotherhood's teachings center around just how awful and wicked girls inherently are, and how they must learn to be idiotic, docile creatures.  Forget preaching about Heaven and Hell, charity, divine figures, belief in the Lord!  All they preach about, all the time, is the wickedness of females.  Girls are considered useless, foolish, and idiotic.  They must either be engaged by their 17th birthday or declare their intentions to join the Sisterhood.  They are meant to look pretty and sit around, holding teas and gossiping.  If they act in any way that could be deemed scandalous--say, doing something other than looking pretty and gossiping--they can be  convicted and sent to a mental institution or a prison ship.

And even aside from their awful treatment of the female gender, the Brotherhood restricts society as a whole; they've closed the borders, censored books, controlled the post.  

But despite all of this, not once, in the past 100+ years, has their been any previous resistance.  None.  At least not anything the author found noteworthy.  And I simply didn't find that realistic at all.  The fact that no one, in over a century, had staged a rebellion against this cruel, controlling regime?  I simply couldn't buy it.  

Also, I was disappointed in the portrayal of the Sisterhood.  In novels where there's a group trying to rise against the restrictive government, I do like when the rebellious group is portrayed as more than just the wonderful saviors.  I think it's important to remember that it's not a black-and-white portrait, that there are many, many shades of gray.  Except . . . with the Brotherhood and the Sisterhood, it came off as more of a black-and-black, with Cate and those close to her being the only white in sight.  That was a bit of a letdown, because I think a more complex group would've been more realistic, and provided more of a moral conflict.

However, despite what it may sound like, I didn't really dislike this novel.  I quite enjoyed the writing style, despite the occasional hiccup.  It seemed suited to the supposed time period, and had moments of real loveliness.

I also liked the characters, for the most part.  While I wish the antagonists of the novel had been given some more depth, for the most part, the characters were interesting, flawed, and fun to read about.  While Cate did irritate me at times, I admired her spirit and her loyalty, and while at times I wanted to fault her for her selfish choices, I couldn't; because, honestly?  In her place, I can't say I'd have done any differently.  I enjoyed reading through her perspective, and I liked that her relationships with her sisters played such a crucial role in the plot.

The plot itself . . . was slow.  Not much really happened until late in the novel, but despite that, it didn't really bore me.  It was entertaining, even if it was fairly predictable and relied on the age-old plot device of a discovered diary.  The romance was surprisingly enjoyable, despite featuring a love triangle; it really wasn't much of a triangle at all, since there's only one person Cate really has feelings for, and I quite liked him.  Finn was sweet and adorable and he reads.  That's a keeper, Cate. That's a keeper.

While I had many critiques for this novel, when it comes down to it, this was a fun read.  It kept me interested from beginning to end, and I'm curious to see where the next novels will take us.  I would recommend it to fans of the dystopian genre, or to any who just really, really adore a man who reads.

3 stars.

Unearthly

Publisher: HarperCollins (HarperTeen)
Pages: 435
Publication Date: January 4, 2011
Type: Paperback, won

In the beginning, there's a boy standing in the trees . . . .
Clara Gardner has recently learned that she's part angel. Having angel blood run through her veins not only makes her smarter, stronger, and faster than humans (a word, she realizes, that no longer applies to her), but it means she has a purpose, something she was put on this earth to do. Figuring out what that is, though, isn't easy.


Her visions of a raging forest fire and an alluring stranger lead her to a new school in a new town. When she meets Christian, who turns out to be the boy of her dreams (literally), everything seems to fall into place—and out of place at the same time. Because there's another guy, Tucker, who appeals to Clara's less angelic side.


As Clara tries to find her way in a world she no longer understands, she encounters unseen dangers and choices she never thought she'd have to make—between honesty and deceit, love and duty, good and evil. When the fire from her vision finally ignites, will Clara be ready to face her destiny?


Unearthly is a moving tale of love and fate, and the struggle between following the rules and following your heart.


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I didn't expect to love this so much.


I know, I know.  That's what everyone says!  The cover, the pitch, the genre itself--they're all so very, very misleading. But me, I read this over a year after publication.  I'd already seen the reviews claiming that this wasn't your typical angel book, that this was different, fantastic, sheer awesome, etc.  So I wanted to love it. I wanted to fall for this as hard as everyone else. 


But at first, I wasn't certain that would happen.  At first, it seemed fairly stereotypical.  Girl with supernatural abilities, new school, hot guy, the works.  I was nervous.  


Then, when I saw that I'd stayed up till two in the morning reading this, I realized just how very awesome this novel happens to be.


This book looks down at a sea of PNRs and laughs in their faces.  And why?


There is family.  No conveniently disappearing parents, an actual sibling with actual importance.  Real interactions with real relevance to the plot, family dynamics that are wonderfully realistic despite their supernatural abilities.


There are friends that you don't want to constantly punch in the face.  Friends that aren't the stereotypical I-just-drank-ten-lattes-and-I'm-also-ridiculously-gorgeous creatures one tends to find in YA today.  Friends that don't just disregard everything that leaves the MC's mouth, but also don't put up with their bullshit.


There is angel mythology.  You know, actual angel mythology?  Not just whatever random rules happen to fit your PNR?  So often nowadays, authors decide it's a good idea to just create their own versions of angel mythology, where fallen angels are good and hot and "good" angels have nothing better to do than fall in love within the span of three seconds.  Cynthia Hand doesn't make that mistake.  Her fallen angels make sense.  They can make themselves appear beautiful, yes, but they're evil, and weighed down by a constant grief that comes from disobeying god.  And the angel-bloods? They have a purpose, a reason they were put on this earth.  That is what angels are.  So thank you, Cynthia Hand.  Thank you very, very much.


There is an actual romance.  Not a guy and a girl who see each other, find one another insanely attractive, make googly eyes, and fall "in love" before they've even spoken five words.  I won't even attempt to deny that one of my favorite parts of Unearthly was Tucker and Clara's relationship, because I felt it.  Because I felt that they genuinely knew each other, cared for each other, fit together as a couple should, and when they finally kissed, the butterflies in my stomach just about exploded.


There is Clara.  Clara, who can be self-centered, brash, awkward.  Clara, who cares about her friends and her family and doesn't pretend she's anything close to perfect.  Clara, who felt more like a real teenage girl than almost any purely human MC I've ever read.


So, I adored this.  Because of the beginning, and the fact that the writing tripped me up several times throughout the book, I can't give this five stars, but it is most definitely more of a 4.5 .  Highly recommended.

Under the Never Sky

Publisher: HarperCollins
Pages: 374
Publication Date: January 3, 2012
Type: ARC, for DAC ARC tour

Since she'd been on the outside, she'd survived an Aether storm, she'd had a knife held to her throat, and she'd seen men murdered. This was worse. 

Exiled from her home, the enclosed city of Reverie, Aria knows her chances of surviving in the outer wasteland - known as The Death Shop - are slim. If the cannibals don't get her, the violent, electrified energy storms will. She's been taught that the very air she breathes can kill her. Then Aria meets an Outsider named Perry. He's wild - a savage - and her only hope of staying alive. 

A hunter for his tribe in a merciless landscape, Perry views Aria as sheltered and fragile - everything he would expect from a Dweller. But he needs Aria's help too; she alone holds the key to his redemption. Opposites in nearly every way, Aria and Perry must accept each other to survive. Their unlikely alliance forges a bond that will determine the fate of all who live under the never sky.
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I'm just going to start off by saying that this is not a dystopian.


Yes, yes, I know.  I know that's what it's labeled.  I know that's how it's been marketed.  I know that people seem to think that, by virtue of this being set in the future of earth, that must be its classification. But nowhere in this did I find the telltale signs of a dystopia: a story that explores the effects of a cruel, totalitarian government and the various complexities and faults of human nature, as related to and reflected in society.  While I thoroughly enjoyed this book, I wouldn't say it did either of those.  It is a Sci-Fi, a bit of a post-apocalyptic, but not a dystopian.


Genre issues aside, I wasn't sure what I would think of this book.   I'd seen such a wide range of reactions from numerous reviewers whose opinions I deeply respected.  What seemed to be the most common determining factor was one that I had already seen before, in Divergent: the ability of the reader to suspend their disbelief, or ignore an almost complete lack of explanation.  And as with Divergent, I side with those who could suspend their disbelief.  No, we are never really told what in the world the Aether is, though it is utterly critical to the storyline.  No, there is never a very detailed explanation of what occurred during "the Unity" and how they came to be where they are at the start of this story.  But I enjoyed the plot, the writing, and most of all, the characters, enough to push aside my questions and just enjoy the ride.


I thought both the plot and the pacing were fantastic.  The plot is stunningly unique, and considering how very difficult originality can be these days, I seriously respect Rossi for coming up with something as crazy and marvelous as all this.  Virtual realms, tribes, mutants, a combination of incredibly advanced technology and tribes that had essentially reverted centuries.  It was new and wonderful and I loved that.  The pacing is steady and consistent; just enough action here, enough romance there, enough time for deep introspection, and off again.  The pacing kept me essentially glued to my copy; if I'd had a day with nothing to do but lounge about and read, I'd have finished this in hours.  Sadly, the world is not a wish-granting factory, and school frowned upon my desire to read this book in one sitting.  Despite that, I still managed to finish the majority of this in under two days; I picked it up in every spare second.  (Really, every spare second.  I think my teacher death glare tally had reached about twenty when I decided to stop counting.)

Rossi's writing was perfect for the book.  A bit lovelier and less clipped than most action-filled stories, but not so flowery as to distract from the plot.  There were some truly beautiful parts that I read several times over, just for the sake of it.  While, as I mentioned previously, this doesn't explore the typical questions of a dystopian, I do think that Rossi managed to give this some genuine depth, more than you see in many adventure stories of today.  It's not one of those books that is so thoughtful and deeply moving that it will change your outlook in life, but it's more than the typical quest with the typical teeny bopper romance.  There is thought and emotion and complexity, and I loved that.

Most of all, though, I loved the characters.  None of these characters are anywhere near flawless, but I don't love them solely for their imperfections.  I love them because they were all so very . . . realistic.  I would read a part, and just think how perfectly fitting it was.  I'd get that feeling, the feeling that if these characters were real people and they had gone through what this book said they had, if they were put in these very situations, that was precisely how they'd respond. I loved that, and I loved them.  Aria, so sheltered at first, so horrified and confused when she's first tossed into the Death Shop, slowly becoming the badass girl at the book's end. Incredibly curious and incredibly persistent and determined to do anything and everything for the people she loves.  Perry, whose exterior is so harsh and wild, but who wishes only to make up for something that was never really his fault.  Always chasing after people but never fast enough, always trying to protect them but never good enough.  Finding some form of redemption from the girl he'd thought to loathe.

And Roar. Oh, Roar, I do so adore you.  If things don't work out with Liv, I'm always here.  

There were many other noteworthy characters, but frankly, I don't have anything new to say: they were wonderful.  They were real and imperfect and incredible, and I cannot wait to read their stories again.

One small aside: while I did love the concept of the Marked, and while I think Rossi portrayed the heightened senses remarkably well, I was a bit . . . confused . . . about something.  At first, to Perry, Aria smells positively awful. He's completely repelled by her scent.  But then she receives her, ah, first blood, and suddenly she smells like . . . violets? Now, I'm no Scire, but somehow that doesn't match up for me.  Sans deoderant or any proper form of cleaning, girls on their period smell  nasty as fuck. And I'm pretty sure if you brought that scent into sharp relief, it would still be nasty as fuck, only stronger.  I get that Aria's scent is violets, but how is he not utterly disgusted by the scent of certain other things?

Aside from that slight confusion, I really, really loved this story.  I can't quite give it five stars, but it is extremely close.  More of a 4.5 than anything.  Highly recommended.

Now if only Through the Ever Night (gorgeous title, by the by) would magically move its release date, I'd be a happy camper.

Dark Inside

Since mankind began, civilizations have always fallen: the Romans, the Greeks, the Aztecs…Now it’s our turn. Huge earthquakes rock the world. Cities are destroyed. But something even more awful is happening. An ancient evil has been unleashed, turning everday people into hunters, killers, crazies.

Mason's mother is dying after a terrible car accident. As he endures a last vigil at her hospital bed, his school is bombed and razed to the ground, and everyone he knows is killed. Aries survives an earthquake aftershock on a bus, and thinks the worst is over when a mysterious stranger pulls her out of the wreckage, but she’s about to discover a world changed forever. Clementine, the only survivor of an emergency town hall meeting that descends into murderous chaos, is on the run from savage strangers who used to be her friends and neighbors. And Michael witnesses a brutal road rage incident that is made much worse by the arrival of the police--who gun down the guilty party and then turn on the bystanding crowd.

Where do you go for justice when even the lawmakers have turned bad? These four teens are on the same road in a world gone mad. Struggling to survive, clinging on to love and meaning wherever it can be found, this is a journey into the heart of darkness – but also a journey to find each other and a place of safety.

This was a really fantastic read.

I've been wanting this book for months.  I mean, Jeyn is awesome, the premise is awesome, the cover is awesome, the reviews were awesome, so that all led me to think this would be a pretty freaking awesome book.  And I was not wrong.

There are many things I liked about this book.  It was horrifying and haunting and thought-provoking.  The writing was powerful and even beautiful in certain places. 

But possibly the thing I liked most about this book is one of the reasons I like dystopian/apocalyptic novels in general: I loved seeing just how people, real people, reacted to such a horrible and devastating situation.  Jeyn really took us to the heart of the human spirit and showed us how some can be so courageous in the face of danger, and others so cowardly, and how sometimes, they can be both.  Not all of our characters are heroes.  One of the main characters even commits an extremely selfish act that hurts many others, but the thing is . . . I didn't hate him for it. I thought I would, but I didn't.  Because when I think about it, really think about it, if I had been in that situation . . . would I have done any differently?

The answer is no. No, I probably wouldn't have.

And that's what's so great about this.  There is no pretty sheen to Jeyn's characters.  They are real, intensely flawed human beings, and I love them for it, and I loved seeing just how people changed when tragedy came calling.  Who became the leaders, who became the followers. Who became the heroes, and who became the cowards.  Who couldn't be quite sure what they were.

I only had two problems with this novel.  The first is that some of the dialogue was a bit awkward. The majority of it was actually very realistic, but there were a few lines--mostly ones by Daniel or Chickadee--that just sounded awkward when I tried to say them.  However, I'm going to be lenient here, because despite being unrealistic the lines were really powerful/intriguing.

The second problem is that I still feel a bit left in the dark.  I mean, it's made 100% clear on the last page who Nothing is, though it isn't directly spelled out, but we still have very little information about the Baggers and the evil that's possessed them.  I realize this is only the first book in a series, I just would've liked a bit more information.

But really, overall, this was a stunning debut novel. Harsh, gritty, and surprisingly deep, Dark Inside is a book I would recommend to anyone who likes their books dark.  (That makes me think of coffee.  "Harsh, gritty, in a surprisingly deep cup, Parkland Coffee is a coffee I would recommend to anyone who likes their coffee dark.")

Final note--the cover! I freaking love the cover.  It's so, so fitting.  With the fading, dusty city in the background, the shaded forms, the deep earthquake cracks, the eyes with black veins like the Baggers--it's perfect, and very eyecatching. Bravo, Simon & Schuster!

4 stars.