Review: Prized by Caragh M. O'Brien

Prized by Caragh M. O'Brien


My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

Synopsis from Goodreads:
Striking out into the wasteland with nothing but her baby sister, a handful of supplies, and a rumor to guide her, sixteen-year-old midwife Gaia Stone survives only to be captured by the people of Sylum, a dystopian society where women rule the men who drastically outnumber them, and a kiss is a crime. In order to see her sister again, Gaia must submit to their strict social code, but how can she deny her sense of justice, her curiosity, and everything in her heart that makes her whole?

Book 2 in the Birthmarked series


This is the US cover.
Pretty nice huh?



It is probably advisable to read Book 1 Birthmarked before starting this book to understand some of the world-building and back story, but not absolutely essential because this new story has a completely different tone to the first one. Gaia has struck out into the wasteland with her baby sister, looking for the village that her grandmother was rumoured to have escaped to. She has left without Leon and without knowing what has happened to him and if he is still alive. Where the world of the Enclave was very high-tech, the new village that Gaia finds herself in is very rustic and basic, so the whole book has the feel of more of a survival story, rather than a fight against a futuristic controlling society.



The new village is very odd, and run by a group of matriarchs, but there are many political and social problems resulting from the fact that there are very few women in the village. The way they run things is very backwards to what Gaia is used to and she has a lot of trouble adapting and learning a whole new set of rules and what behaviour is socially acceptable. The village itself though I loved. It was so well described and the people and customs felt so real to me, it was like I was there. I really liked the two brothers who vie for Gaia's attention, and they were both really sweet to her, trying to do little things to make her happy like planting flowers in her garden, and then drawing straws to see who would walk her home. Where in her old town Gaia had resigned herself to a life of being the local midwife, and thought she would always single because of her scarred face, in Sylum she finds men are fighting for her attention- so it's not so much a love triangle, as a love square!



Little Gaia is the hero in this story again, as she experiments, questions, and pieces together the snippets of rumours that she hears about varying success rates of leaving the village. Her brain is constantly trying to work out the dual mysteries of the village- why people drop dead when they try to leave, and why the village is mostly populated by men- and is again solving puzzles and riddles to come up with the answers. She manages to put together all the little clues, and with her outsider's perspective and analytical brain comes up with the answers that had eluded the other villagers.



Gaia is such a steadfast and spunky character, and will always do what she thinks is morally right even if she ends up being punished for it. She has the admiration of two local brothers, and through her constant questioning and making a stand against any percieved injustice, she also earns the respect of a large portion of the village.

I love these books and definitely recommend this series to fans of a good dystopian novel. Fantastic world-building, characters that stay with you, and a clever and complex story that is intense and emotional, with a romance story that is sweet and real.



Thanks to the publisher and netgalley for the advance e-copy.

Rest of the series:

Book 1 Birthmarked. Read my review of it here. 

Book 3 is titled Promised and is due for release late 2012.







Review: Tiger's Quest by Colleen Houck

Tiger's Quest by Colleen Houck


My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

Synopsis from Goodreads:
Back in Oregon, Kelsey tries to pick up the pieces of her life and push aside her feelings for Ren. But danger lurks around the corner, forcing her to return to India where she embarks on a second quest-this time with Ren's dark, bad-boy brother Kishan, who has also fallen prey to the Tiger's Curse. Fraught with danger, spellbinding dreams, and choices of the heart, TIGER'S QUEST brings the trio one step closer to breaking the spell that binds them.

 

Book 2 in the Tiger series
The quest to free the two Indian princes from their curse continues in this second book in the series. Kelsey has moved back home to Colorado, but has been given her own house, college is paid for, and she has a generous allowance to live on. She has decided to continue to help the princes by conducting research from afar while she tries to sort out her confused feelings about Ren, and throws herself into her studies and resuming a normal life again. But when Ren shows up in Colorado determined to win her back again, it is only the start of the complicated battle of emotion between them. I just adore Ren, who is beautiful, sweet, generous, patient and understanding and who fusses over Kelsey like a mother hen! He keeps gazing at Kelsey with his lovely blue eyes and quirky smile and finding reasons to hold her or touch her hair, making Kelsey (and me) melt. Not to mention literally fighting off other guys for her.


The course of true love definitely doesn't run easily for Kelsey and Ren, with struggles and separations, and as Kelsey continues on the next stage of their quest with Ren's brother Kishan, the two of them grow close and complicate things even further. Kishan is very much devoted to Kelsey, but torn between whether he is protecting Kelsey for his own sake or looking after his brother's girl. The former bad boy with his rogueish charm is haunted by the decisions he made years ago and plagued by guilt. When the two brothers are together it brings out the worst side of Kishan- he is all cockiness and posturing, but when he is travelling alone with Kelsey we see a completely different side to him- a tenderness and vulnerability, and a sense that all he really wants is some stability.


The love triangle aspect of the story is done so well- we really get a sense of Kishan's personality before he declares his love for her. Even when Ren and Kelsey are separated and she and Kishan are off travelling together, she still has dreams about Ren and their communication through these dreams is so moving and a real affirmation of their relationship. But Kishan also has dreams of a future where he is with Kelsey, and the bliss he feels in these dreams confuses him even further, and gives us a real insight into the depth of his desire for Kelsey, and his wish for the future he glimpsed in his vision to become real. We can see how painful it is for him to step aside, and help Ren- so that he doesn't repeat the mistakes of his past.


One of the things I loved about the first book was all the vivid detailing and description throughout, however, I did start to find this a little bit wearing in book 2. I wanted to scream at Kelsey sometimes- "I don't care what you had for dinner, and what he had for dinner, and all about these different tourist sites you visited while you're trying to blend in- Ren has been kidnapped, you need to rescue him, lets go- just get on with it!". There were some parts in the middle where there was just no urgency! That was my only major complaint about this book. It just seemed like the author wanted to show off how much research she had put into the book, but it damaged the flow of the story. I still do love the descriptions and little details, and did again love the beautiful writing and the way that everything is always so well explained, giving us a real sense of both the Indian jungles and the mystical places that the characters travel to. But in moderation!


I love feisty, intelligent Kelsey, but have to say that her biggest flaws are her stubbornness and her inability to see the truth right in front of her eyes. She is also quite isolated, constantly pushing others away, and has very few friends because of this. When she starts at University she doesn't have any old friends to keep in touch with, she barely lets her foster parents know that she has come back from India, and she spends the first term pretty much on her own, burying herself in studying and research. She regards Ren, Kishan and their guardian Mr. Kadam as her family though, and puts all her trust in them completely. She only really comes into her own while she is India with these friends.


Tiger's Quest is an absolutely wonderful novel, filled with magic and adventure. This really is a fantastically imaginative story with visits into other worlds, magical creatures both good and bad, and stories and legends from other cultures and realms. Kelsey gets to travel the world, meeting all kinds of people, and creatures, enduring trials and challenges, using skill and intelligence to solve puzzles and working together with the brothers to lift an ancient curse. She storms a fortress, fights seriously evil bad guys, and develops a useful power of her own. This really is a quest story with a difference, it is magical and action packed. The thing I love most about it though is the bond between the main characters and the confusing relationships between them. I love the way that the author can pull on your heartstrings so completely, in the way that Ren and Kelsey's story develops with a passionate love and a crushing loss. After a fraught rollercoaster of emotions the book ends on a heartbreaking note. This is one of those books that I can't stop thinking about long after I've finished reading it. I definitely can't wait to continue on with Kelsey's story in book 3, but I'm so confused now, who do I like more- white tiger Ren or black tiger Kishan?


Rest of the series

Book 1 in this series is called Tiger's Quest (Read my 5 star review of it here), and book 3 in the series is called Tiger's Voyage. This has just been published 1st November 2011 and I'm very excited to read it very soon.

 

In My Mailbox 13th November 2011

In My Mailbox is a weekly event hosted by Kristi at The Story Siren where book bloggers can talk about the books they've gotten the past week- whether bought, borrowed, swapped or given for review. This feature was started to increase interaction between bloggers and increase our awareness of all the new books coming out.

Bought:

• The Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins. I have already read this fabulous series borrowed from the library but The Works bookshop had an offer on the complete set, and I like to own copies of my my favourite series to re-read them. I may try to skim-read these books again before the film comes out.

• Carrier of the Mark by Leigh Fallon. I'm not too sure what this book is about, but I've seen it on so many blogs recently, with some reviews praising it, and some completely trashing it. It was a complete bargain on FishPond World though, so I got it to make my own mind up!

• Here Lies Bridget by Paige Harbison. I love the sound of this one about a mean cheerleader who dies in a car crash and is forced to see what people really think of her, and who has to make amends to all those she had bullied or wronged in the past to find redemption. This was my charity shop bargain find for the week.

From the Library:

• Working Stiff. This is Rachel Caine's latest urban fantasy series featuring zombies.

For Review:

• Borrowing Abby Grace and Girl Steals Guy by Kelly Green. These books are described as a supernatural Nancy Drew, and feature a girl who can jump into the bodies of others to fix the problems in their life.

Received direct from the author with thanks.


Those were the books I got this week- what did you get?
Happy reading!

Review: The Missing by Lisa McMann

The Missing by Lisa McMann


My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

Synopsis from Goodreads:
The community of Cryer’s Cross, Montana (population 212) is distraught when high school freshman Tiffany disappears without a trace. Already off-balance due to her OCD, 16-year-old Kendall is freaked out seeing Tiffany’s empty desk in the one-room school house, but somehow life goes on... until Kendall's boyfriend Nico also disappears, and also without a trace. Now the town is in a panic. Alone in her depression and with her OCD at an all-time high, Kendall notices something that connects Nico and Tiffany: they both sat at the same desk. She knows it's crazy, but Kendall finds herself drawn to the desk, dreaming of Nico and wondering if maybe she, too, will disappear...and whether that would be so bad. Then she begins receiving graffiti messages on the desk from someone who can only be Nico. Can he possibly be alive somewhere? Where is he? And how can Kendall help him? The only person who believes her is Jacian, the new guy she finds irritating...and attractive. As Kendall and Jacian grow closer, Kendall digs deeper into Nico's mysterious disappearance only to stumble upon some ugly—and deadly—local history. Kendall is about to find out just how far the townspeople will go to keep their secrets buried.

First off- It's a stand alone book and not part of a series *Hooray!*, and also, for being quite a short novel (only 230 pages) it crams a lot in and is compulsively addictive. Part slow-building romance, part haunting mystery story, it quickly becomes spookily eerie and full of tension and suspense. All the way through this I had absolutely no clue what to expect and zero theories and suspicions as to what could have happened to the missing students- which made me even more desperate to find out and keep reading to the nerve-shredding finale!


Like Lisa McMann's other series the writing in this is a very detached style, with very stilted sentences- but again it works because it suits Kendall's personality. Kendall suffers with OCD, which makes her obsessive about order, routine and counting. The ordered, detached style seems to mirror Kendall's sense of isolation as she struggles to cope with everyday situations and her mind can't switch off focusing on the little details- but this also means that she notices things that other people don't.


The characters in this book is one of the best things about it. The story is set in a very small and close-knit town and there are actually very few characters, but despite this they are all relatable and believable. Kendall herself is a fascinating character- sweet and intelligent but also feisty- she is on the school soccer team and easily fits into her school group despite being the only girl in their year at the tiny local school she attends. The little anecdotes really give the sense that her class have all grown up together and know each other so well. The new guy Jacian (pronounced "Hass-ee-an") is understandably moody and miserable after being uprooted away from his friends into this tiny farming town with no prospects for the sports teams, but he develops into a really caring and understanding person as he are Kendall are increasingly thrown together.


I also really felt for Kendall and her despair when her best friend becomes one of the missing. She takes it so hard and I couldn't help but feel really emotional over the hole in her life. It was also that sense of his loss hanging over her- the not knowing what had happened and if he was ever coming back, making her feel unable to move on and make any plans for the future and college. She clings on to his memory and the hope that he is going to come back again. It is when Kendall thinks that Nico is trying to send her a message that things really start to get strange, making Kendall wonder if she is starting to lose her mind.


I really enjoyed this book, which was emotional and eerie, planting a mystery that left me desperate to know the answers to- and had a creepy building tension mixed with a slow-building new romance, which was very sweet and heartfelt.

• This was published under the title Cryer's Cross in the US and other parts of the world.

The Time Will Come #38

The Time Will Come is a weekly meme hosted by Jodie at Books For Company, where we can spotlight those books that we've had sitting on our shelves for too long. Books that we really want to read but never seem to get around to.
To join in write your own TWC post, drop by Jodie's blog to add your post to the linky, and visit the other blogs.

I won Spellbound by Cara Lynn Shultz from Amber over at Down The Rabbit Hole a few months ago, and I still really want to read it, but I have so many books lined up to read in front of it, I don't know when I'll get the chance. I still think this sounds like a great book though and I'm sure I'll get round to it... one day!

Synopsis from Goodreads:
Life hasn't been easy on sixteen-year-old Emma Connor, so a new start in New York may be just the change she needs. But her new posh Upper East Side prep school? Not so much. Friendly faces are few and far between, except for one that she's irresistibly drawn to — Brendan Salinger, the guy with the rock-star good looks, who is also the richest kid in school.

Even when Brendan inexplicably turns cold, Emma can't stop staring. Ever since she laid eyes on him, strange things have been happening. Streetlamps shatter whenever she walks by, and Emma's been having the oddest dreams. Visions of herself in past lives — visions that warn her to stay away from Brendan. Or else…





Also, I love this cover! It feels very dream-like. You can't see it in the picture but the broken glass shards are all shiny!