[Review] Memory of the After (Level 2) by Lenore Appelhans

 The Memory of the After/Level 2The Memory Chronicles #1
Lenore Appelhans
January 15th, 2013
Simon and Shuster Books for Young Readers
281 pages

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 In this gripping exploration of a futuristic afterlife, a teen discovers that death is just the beginning.

Since her untimely death the day before her eighteenth birthday, Felicia Ward has been trapped in Level 2, a stark white afterlife located between our world and the next. Along with her fellow drones, Felicia passes the endless hours reliving memories of her time on Earth and mourning what she’s lost-family, friends, and Neil, the boy she loved.

Then a girl in a neighboring chamber is found dead, and nobody but Felicia recalls that she existed in the first place. When Julian-a dangerously charming guy Felicia knew in life-comes to offer Felicia a way out, Felicia learns the truth: If she joins the rebellion to overthrow the Morati, the angel guardians of Level 2, she can be with Neil again.

Suspended between Heaven and Earth, Felicia finds herself at the center of an age-old struggle between good and evil. As memories from her life come back to haunt her, and as the Morati hunt her down, Felicia will discover it’s not just her own redemption at stake… but the salvation of all mankind.

Don't let the title fool you, they're the same book, I'm unsure of why it has two titles? I read it as The Memory of the After, but it was originally Level 2, and has since changed back to Level 2. Super confusing.

This book started out with a very interesting view of the afterlife. Those in purgatory would replay their lives back in a series of interactive Youtube type clips. Other people could tap into and view any memories shared in the public database. It has a few elements of The Matrix as well, but giving specifics would give the whole story away.

Unfortunately, with the unique setup, the need to escape was inevitable. The love triangle was also inevitable. Somehow, the book managed to derail into monotony. It took it's wonderful sci-fi elements and degraded into an almost contemporary piece, forgetting the dangers lurking in the world above.

The plot's escalation and conclusion ended up detached and hurried. Pieces were brushed over for the sake of the contemporary romance details. It didn't hold as much of a wallop as I would have hoped for. It all felt rushed and I ended up not enjoying it as much as I would have liked.

All in all, having pieces of a contemporary romance mixed in with a supernatural thriller are okay, but everything needs to be fleshed out. Don't sacrifice one in order to write the other.

[Review] The Blade Itself by Joe Abercrombie

The Blade ItselfThe First Law #1
Joe Abercrombie
2007
Gollancz
517 pages

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 Logen Ninefingers, infamous barbarian, has finally run out of luck. Caught in one feud too many, he’s on the verge of becoming a dead barbarian – leaving nothing behind him but bad songs, dead friends, and a lot of happy enemies.

Nobleman, dashing officer, and paragon of selfishness, Captain Jezal dan Luthar has nothing more dangerous in mind than fleecing his friends at cards and dreaming of glory in the fencing circle. But war is brewing, and on the battlefields of the frozen North they fight by altogether bloodier rules.

Inquisitor Glokta, cripple turned torturer, would like nothing better than to see Jezal come home in a box. But then Glokta hates everyone: cutting treason out of the Union one confession at a time leaves little room for friendship. His latest trail of corpses may lead him right to the rotten heart of government, if he can stay alive long enough to follow it.

Enter the wizard, Bayaz. A bald old man with a terrible temper and a pathetic assistant, he could be the First of the Magi, he could be a spectacular fraud, but whatever he is, he's about to make the lives of Logen, Jezal, and Glotka a whole lot more difficult.

Murderous conspiracies rise to the surface, old scores are ready to be settled, and the line between hero and villain is sharp enough to draw blood. Unpredictable, compelling, wickedly funny, and packed with unforgettable characters, The Blade Itself is noir fantasy with a real cutting edge.

Generally, when I read straight up Epic Fantasy, I read it out loud to my husband. This means that most books in this genre take a few months to get through, depending on how much time we spend in the car, or how much he wants me to read to him. So, I can spend months entrenched in a fantasy world and with books like Scott Lynch's and Patrick Rothfuss's, its often hard to find anything that lives up to their precedents.

That being said, Joe Abercrombie is not doing a bad job. The book was a little slow moving, and I'm not entirely sure where it was going. It seemed like the entire book was a set up for characterization as the characters are now either on a great quest or fighting wars.

The characters are as different and varied as you can expect. There is a crotchety torturer with a deep and scarred past, a puffed up Gaston like character, a crazy northern berserker, a wizard trope, and a sundry of other characters.

Even though the book didn't feel like it went anywhere, it was still interesting. The concept is sound and it looks to be gearing up for something both intense and tragic.

[Review] Storm by Brigid Kemmerer

 StormElemental #1
Brigid Kemmerer
April 24th
Kensington
353 pages

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 Becca Chandler is suddenly getting all the guys; all the ones she doesn't want. Ever since her ex-boyfriend spread those lies about her. Then she saves Chris Merrick from a beating in the school parking lot. Chris is different. Way different: he can control water just like his brothers can control fire, wind, and earth. They're powerful. Dangerous. Marked for death.

And now that she knows the truth, so is Becca.

Secrets are hard to keep when your life's at stake. When Hunter, the mysterious new kid around school, turns up with a talent for being in the wrong place at the right time, Becca thinks she can trust him. But then Hunter goes head-to-head with Chris, and Becca wonders who's hiding the most dangerous truth of all.

The storm is coming.

I do enjoy Brigid Kemmerer's writing. The voice she gives her characters, the way the action moves, the handling of big reveals are all done exceptionally well. There are plenty of problems I had with the book that seemed minor in the light of her writing. She kept things fun and interesting.

The Merrik brothers are the equivalent of an anime harem. They all have different personalities, control different elements and they all seem to give a crap about the main character. Adding Hunter into the mix, as the mysterious new kid just completed the trifecta of boy toys. Granted, there is only a love triangle, not a tetrahedron, but even calling it a triangle is tenuous at best. None of the characters seemed that romantically inclined. What possible romance there was ended up dry and tasteless.

We do find out what happened at the end of Elemental. It's not pleasant, that is for sure.

Becca's Mary Sue reveal at the end was a little over the top. The way her family was involved even stranger. Why paint marks on the door to begin with if you have to clean it off? I just don't get it.

Then there is Becca's best friend, who waffled around in ever scene and didn't actually add anything to the overarching story. She got in the way a few times, created some unneeded drama, but overall I felt the character to be there just for the sake of halting the plot.

All and all, the book was fun. It was cliche and full of tropes, but I enjoyed it the way I do bad supernatural teen television shows.

[Arc Review] Gameboard of the Gods by Richelle Mead

Gameboard of the Gods
Age of X #1
Richelle Mead
June 4th, 2013
Dutton Adult

Arc provided by Netgalley for an honest review.

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In a futuristic world nearly destroyed by religious extremists, Justin March lives in exile after failing in his job as an investigator of religious groups and supernatural claims. But Justin is given a second chance when Mae Koskinen comes to bring him back to the Republic of United North America (RUNA). Raised in an aristocratic caste, Mae is now a member of the military’s most elite and terrifying tier, a soldier with enhanced reflexes and skills.

When Justin and Mae are assigned to work together to solve a string of ritualistic murders, they soon realize that their discoveries have exposed them to terrible danger. As their investigation races forward, unknown enemies and powers greater than they can imagine are gathering in the shadows, ready to reclaim the world in which humans are merely game pieces on their board.

Gameboard of the Gods, the first installment of Richelle Mead’s Age of X series, will have all the elements that have made her YA Vampire Academy and Bloodlines series such megasuccesses: sexy, irresistible characters; romantic and mythological intrigue; and relentless action and suspense.

 I'm really into Richelle Mead's books. She weaves an interesting tale with great characters. That is no exception here. Unfortunately, the book suffers in length and pacing. Exciting bits are interspersed with extensive sections that, were they subtracted, wouldn't have broke the book. Did we need chapters of extensive specifics on Tessa's school life? What could have been said in a quarter of the time was extended to a full chapter, creating dead areas between the action that required slogging through.

The book opens with a brawl. It lured me in with that whispered promise of action. There's terribly little of it, for it being 464 pages.

I'm unsure where I stand on the romance. Justin and Mae are drawn to each other by supernatural forces, but also by more base instincts. They are genuinely attracted to one another. There are higher forces at work, which makes the sexual tension both awkward and infuriating. Even throughout their tentative chemistry, they are consistently sleeping with other people, creating more awkward moments and unspoken feelings. I felt that the entire thing just didn't work. After awhile, I couldn't continue rooting for them to get together. I've never been one to latch on and 'ship' things when they are clearly impossible.

The mystery was enthralling. In order to not spoil anyone, I'll just say that there were a lot of threads that wove together into a tapestry that was both interesting and satisfying.

The dystopian setting has several interesting and new spins. While there is a rampant degenerative genetic disease, there are high caste's that consider their genetic traits so significant, they would rather remain inferior in health than marry someone below their status or outside their perfect picture in order to weed it out.

Instead of a world technologically devastated, this one has progressed forward.

Despite all the things I enjoyed, I couldn't rate this book higher. The characters, setting and mystery are amazing. The pacing is just off. It's so far off, that there were plenty points where I almost set this book down forever. Nothing about it called to me and made me want to finish it. When it finally picked up, I felt that it was too late. Perhaps I had too high of hopes, but I can honestly say I was disappointed.

[Arc Review] Peregrine Harker and The Black Death by Luke Hollonds

Peregrine Harker and The Black Death
Luke Hollands
June 3rd, 2013
Sparkling Books Ltd.
150 pages

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MURDER. SPIES. EXPLOSIONS. REVENGE.

Peregrine Harker is about to learn you're never too young to die.

London 1908: A secret society stalks the murky streets, a deadly assassin lurks in the shadows and a series of unexplained deaths are linked by a mystery symbol…

When boy-detective Peregrine Harker stumbles across a gruesome murder he sparks a chain of events that drag him on a rip-roaring journey through a world of spluttering gas lamps, thick fog, deadly secrets and dastardly villains.

Every step of Peregrine’s white-knuckle adventure brings him closer to the vile heart of a terrifying mystery – the true story behind the Brotherhood of the Black Death.

This book was a lot of fun. It follows a young journalist through his attempt to uncover a smuggling ring. As with most books of this nature, he gets himself into a heap of trouble in the process.

The first two thirds of the book were exciting, until it reached the point where pontification was the standard and everyone spent several pages discussing their treacherous plans and discoveries. I've always been more inclined towards books that show me, rather than tell me in long speeches. When it became the norm to have some sort of character speech every chapter instead of any action, I quickly lost interest.

The other problem I had with it was that the characters all talk as though they are at least ten years older than they are. I don't know if its just a sign of the time, or if that's how young people spoke back then, but it seemed forever out of character. When the twenty year old is talking like a puffed up old baron and the fifteen year old protagonist is talking like a young chap in his prime, I honestly didn't know what to do with myself.

Still, it was a solid adventure with plenty of twists and turns.

[Cover Reveal] Once Upon a Darkness Cover Reveal

Once Upon a Darkness by Aria Kane will be available from Entranced Publishing June 17!

Gretchen and her twin brother, Hank, were abandoned to a zombie horde when they were five years old. Intended to be a sacrifice by their zealot parents, they were instead rescued by The Company. Raised to become soldiers in the war against zombies, they now provide safe passage through danger zones, one contract at a time.

Clint's only skill is war, but he's weary of killing other men. When his contract with the Marines runs out, he takes a job on Gretchen's team, hoping that the search-and-rescue life will suit him better.

On Clint's second day, their four-man team is attacked, drugged, and taken to a prison full of frightened civilians. The only way in or out is by helicopter and, here, their enemies are human. One by one, the captives are culled from the holding area. Rumors say the facility director uses the prisoners as experimental subjects for the testing of a zombie cure.

When Hank is taken, Clint and Gretchen must put aside their personal feelings and find a way out of the prison, surrounded by thousands of starving zombies, before Hank becomes just one more disposable guinea pig in the hands of a twisted mad woman.

Add Once Upon a Darkness on Goodreads!

About the Author

Aria Kane is a recovering mechanical engineer and romance writer. She lives in sunny Florida with a 60 lb mutt who thinks he's a Chihuahua. You can learn more about her at ariakane.com or on Twitter @aria_kane.

Giveaway

To celebrate the Once Upon a Darkness cover reveal, Aria is giving away a $20 giftcard and an ecopy of an Entranced book of the winner’s choice.

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[ARC Review] The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey

The 5th Wave
5th Wave #1
Rick Yancey
May 7, 2012
Putnam Juvenile
Review from copy of an ARC

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The Passage meets Ender's Game in an epic new series from award-winning author Rick Yancey.

After the 1st wave, only darkness remains. After the 2nd, only the lucky escape. And after the 3rd, only the unlucky survive. After the 4th wave, only one rule applies: trust no one.

Now, it's the dawn of the 5th wave, and on a lonely stretch of highway, Cassie runs from Them. The beings who only look human, who roam the countryside killing anyone they see. Who have scattered Earth's last survivors. To stay alone is to stay alive, Cassie believes, until she meets Evan Walker. Beguiling and mysterious, Evan Walker may be Cassie's only hope for rescuing her brother--or even saving herself. But Cassie must choose: between trust and despair, between defiance and surrender, between life and death. To give up or to get up.

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Wow, I started reading The 5th Wave and I was hooked.   For me, it wasn't one of those books I couldn't put down but one I wanted to savor because I loved the world so much I didn't want it to end.
In The 5th Wave aliens have invaded earth.  They are are killing off mankind in waves.  I have always been fascinated with the idea of any kind of post apocalyptic survival story because I am curious of how people will react.  In The 5th Wave people start out about the way you would think with looting and rioting.  Then as the numbers dwindle down there survivor camps.  Then the aliens start turning humans on humans and there is no one to trust.  The 5th Wave follows the story of two survivors Cassie and Ben.

The book is told in parts and I would read a part and put down the book and think that is crazy or man did they really just do that.  Like the first part is called The Historian and gives details from Cassie's point of view from when the mother ship appeared to right after the 4th Wave.  The first part of the book in my opinion is riveting.  I love stories of survival.  I think that no matter what an alien would throw at Earth there would always be human survivors.  I think humans are like cockroaches or as Cassie, in The 5th Wave, later describes herself as a Mayfly.  Humans always find a way to stay alive and either fight or hide.  Cassie is tired of hiding by the time the first part of the book is over and she has to go find her brother.  So she sets out on a journey and gets hurt and saved by a stranger named Evan. 

I think that Cassie is a strong character.  I loved that she will fight tooth and nail to save her brother.  I liked that she was weak and flawed as well.  I can see where some have compared this book to The Hunger Games because there were parts of Cassie that reminded of Katniss.  The only thing I didn't like about the book was the romance. I felt it was a little too rushed because after the first part there is a lot going on as the book does switch point of views. Overall, I really liked The 5th Wave it had tons of action and parts were I was on the edge of seat wondering what was going to happen next.  I give this book four laser pistols and recommend it fans of aliens and post apocalyptic fiction everywhere.  Now my only problem is waiting until the next book comes out.