Forbidden: In A Nutshell

Goodreads' description:

"Seventeen-year-old Lochan and sixteen-year-old Maya have always felt more like friends than siblings. Together they have stepped in for their alcoholic, wayward mother to take care of their three younger siblings. As defacto parents to the little ones, Lochan and Maya have had to grow up fast. And the stress of their lives—and the way they understand each other so completely—has also also brought them closer than two siblings would ordinarily be. So close, in fact, that they have fallen in love. Their clandestine romance quickly blooms into deep, desperate love. They know their relationship is wrong and cannot possibly continue. And yet, they cannot stop what feels so incredibly right. As the novel careens toward an explosive and shocking finale, only one thing is certain: a love this devastating has no happy ending."

Forbidden by Tabitha Suzuma

One sentence sum-up: a story of the most illicit romance of all — that of brother and sister.

My reaction: Forbidden is the kind of book that reaches out and punches you in the gut. And I mean that in a good way.

I don't even really know how to describe my reaction to this book. I found it a little slow at the very beginning, but I started to get really wrapped into the characters and their lives, and pretty soon when I wasn't reading it, I was thinking about it and feeling the need to read some more. For me, it was kind of like watching one gigantic train wreck and not being able to tear my eyes away. That's not a reflection on the writing — which is very well crafted — but rather on the fact that I knew this was not going to end well. I hadn't been spoiled as to the specifics of the ending, but I knew it wasn't going to be happy.

It doesn't even start with the characters in a good place. Their mother is obviously running for 'Worst Mom of the Year' and their father is nowhere to be seen. Maya and Lochan are taking care of the whole family themselves and burning themselves out doing it. The younger siblings don't understand and the middle child has entered the rebellious teen phase. And it only gets worse from there, when the nature of Maya and Lochan's relationship turns romantic and you just know that spells trouble ahead. There was this dread in the pit of my stomach, this feeling that it was only a matter of time until they got caught and someone found out... And yet, irrationally, I kept hoping, and I kept reading.

Best aspect: The way Suzuma makes you care about her characters. Forbidden isn't driven by plot, it's driven by character and situation. And yet, somehow, even though there isn't a lot of action or many memorable plot points through most of it, I was absorbed by it. I particularly loved Lochan as a character. He's such an unusual guy — shy, tentative, introspective, and closed off from the outside world due to an extreme case of social anxiety. Yet he allows himself to open up around Maya, and she gets to see the real Lochan. More generally, I just enjoyed all of them as a family, desperately trying to stick together and survive.

Plus, this book made me cry. I was tearing up at one point while reading, and then afterwards when I was trying to record my thoughts I honestly just started bawling. I don't cry often over books, so that immediately puts it up a few notches in my estimation.

The incest angle: the incestuous nature of Maya and Lochan's relationship is not ignored or pushed aside by any means. They struggle with it, just as the reader will, as their heads war against their hearts and bodies. In some scenes it's easy to forget they're related, but in others it's brought up as an altogether too painful and wrenching reminder. It might squick you out a few times when you actually think about it (I don't have a brother, but I can imagine that would have made it even more uncomfortable for me as a reader) but it's impossible not to root for them all the same. They depend on each other so much, and are so fiercely loyal and protective of one another, that it just seems right for them to be together — even though, as Lochan points out, "How can something so wrong feel so right?" I really appreciated that Suzuma showed us how they could have gotten to this point; how, over time, after years of acting as a stand-in "mom" and "dad" to their younger siblings, and trusting no one outside of their family, they would turn to each other for romantic love as well. To them, it's natural to want each other, and their deepening relationship is both a blessing and a curse. It's the one bright spot in their lives and in this book — and yet it's what will surely be their downfall.

If I could change something... Before I read Forbidden I saw reviews criticize it for not having the most authentic teen boy's perspective, and for being rather melodramatic. And while I do see their points, neither of those criticisms weigh that much with me compared to everything else Forbidden has going for it. Yes, there is a lot of angst going on here (and I did think Maya reacts over-the-top in one part in particular), but if any couple deserves to exhibit some angst, it's these two. And fine, you're probably never going to meet a teenage guy as sensitive and thoughtful as Lochan, but I think the tough life he's had so far is at least partly an explanation for his unusual maturity.

I actually don't have much I would change in this one. There are a few points at which the drama is overstated and could be toned down to feel more real, and some of it feels a bit repetitive. Also, this is a tiny quibble, but I didn't like the pet name "my love" Lochan and Maya used for each other — it seemed out of place with the rest of the dialogue, too old-fashioned to be authentic for teens. But overall, I wouldn't tinker with it much at all (which is quite rare for me!)

In five words or less: painful, depressing, thought-provoking and amazing.

Quote:



I know that whatever the reasons for our feelings, however much I try to justify them, it doesn't change anything: Lochan cannot be my boyfriend. Out of the millions and millions of people that inhabit this planet, he is one of the tiny few I can never have. And this is something I must accept—even if, like acid on metal, it is slowly corroding me inside.

Read if: you're looking for a unique book that will make you hurt for the characters and what they're up against. But prepare to feel sucker-punched by the end.

Final verdict: 5 shooting stars. Suzuma gets major points just for having the guts to write a story about a topic most YA authors wouldn't dare touch. But the fact that it's a story with such a powerful emotional impact makes it worthy of 5 stars — and your reading time.

Note: I would only recommend this for older YA readers, as there is mature content (including explicit sexual content), themes, and language.

Ruby Red: In A Nutshell

 Goodreads' description:

"Gwyneth Shepherd's sophisticated, beautiful cousin Charlotte has been prepared her entire life for traveling through time. But unexpectedly, it is Gwyneth, who in the middle of class takes a sudden spin to a different era! Gwyneth must now unearth the mystery of why her mother would lie about her birth date to ward off suspicion about her ability, brush up on her history, and work with Gideon, the time traveler from a similarly gifted family that passes the gene through its male line, and whose presence becomes, in time, less insufferable and more essential. Together, Gwyneth and Gideon journey through time to discover who, in the 18th century and in contemporary London, they can trust."

Ruby Red by Kerstin Gier

My reaction: It didn't take me long to get caught up in the fun that is this book! I noticed right away that it has a British touch to it which is handled quite nicely — I'm not sure if that's the translator's doing or the author's, but either way it managed to use enough British expressions to keep the reader grounded in the setting without overloading them with so much jargon as to make it incomprehensible. (Plus, I learned that skipping a class is called "bunking off," which just sounds so much more awesome.)

The tone of this novel is light and charming, and it's easy to breeze through (I read it in about a day's time). Generally the writing has a bit of an old-fashioned feel, even during the modern-day sections. The dialogue for the teens isn't always the most authentic (they're all very polite and well-behaved for the most part),  and yet — perhaps because of the London setting — this didn't really bother me much. (Maybe British teens really do talk like that, what do I know?) There is plenty of mystery, lots of hints at secrets and such, but it always maintains an entertaining vibe, never taking itself too seriously.

It does take a bit to get going (the prologue will confuse you entirely, but it becomes clearer after you read some more) and the faster-paced sections were the parts where they traveled back in time. The modern scenes were a bit slower, as they mostly involved information being revealed (in fact, there was one chapter that I felt was a rather heavy "info-dump"). I did find it somewhat irritating that a lot of knowledge is withheld from Gwyneth, and thus from the reader, without a good explanation as to why. Secrets are kept from her (and then gradually revealed) by characters who appear to be on her side and really don't have a sound reason for not telling her sooner about matters that involve her.

Gwyneth's voice was a bit inconsistent for me, as I found that she sounded a little younger or a little older than sixteen at various times. I had a few problems with her character (discussed below) but her heart is in the right place, and she does have a good sense of humour. Indeed, I found myself laughing out loud at various lines throughout the novel. There are many side characters to swell out the cast, and while it might be a bit difficult to keep them straight at first, several of them are quite memorable and distinct. Great-aunt Maddy is particularly hilarious, and Madame Rossini is spot-on in her role as the almost caricature-ish French fashion designer.

I enjoyed the back-and-forth between Gideon and Gwyneth as they attempt to annoy each other. Gwyneth's attraction to Gideon is believable; he may be arrogant (okay, there's really no "may" about it) but he understands his responsibilities and does his best to keep Gwyneth safe. I was less convinced of the interest on his side, since for most of it he appears to think very little of her (more than once making it obvious he believes her to be shallow and a burden on the mission) and I think his opinion changed a bit too suddenly for my liking. Still, I did think they were awfully cute together and I'm certainly looking forward to seeing their relationship develop further in the next one.

Best aspect: I found the background created for the Guardians — things like the significance of the number 12 and the connection to the philosopher's stone — delightfully intriguing. I also really enjoyed the scenes where they traveled back in time; there was usually bound to be some action happening whenever they did! It was fun to imagine Gwyneth and Gideon in their old-fashioned costumes. Actually, the whole time-travel gene set-up was quite creative. Interestingly, the gene makes it necessary to travel back in time a certain amount (and if you don't time-travel under your own control, using a chronograph, then your body will make the decision for you — and then who knows where you might end up?!)

If I could change something... To be honest, certain aspects of Gwyneth's character annoyed me. Just about all of her relatives seem to think she's not very bright, and she appears to accept this as part of who she is. She doesn't seem to care about improving her knowledge, even of the time travel matters she's been caught up in, instead leaving the research (which mostly means Google searches) to her friend Lesley. It was this apparent apathy, more than her lack of book-learning prowess, that frustrated me. I did sometimes have to agree with her relatives, since Gwyneth was on a few occasions slow to catch on to things I'm sure the reader could follow just fine (and even worse, she has no qualms about pointing it out). She takes affront at Gideon's implications that she's ditzy/shallow/ignorant, and yet she doesn't try very hard to disprove them. However, I felt like at other times she was selling herself short in the intelligence department.  There seems to be a bit of character growth starting towards the end, so I'm hoping that continues in the sequel. I'd like to see her mature, becoming less self-focused and embracing her time-travel ability (she sometimes comes off as a bit whiny about it). I'm hoping she'll be more active in the next book, taking the initiative rather than letting things happen to her and others decide.

Also, a warning right now — the ending will leave you hanging completely! If you're like me you'll have a ton of questions that aren't answered. Unfortunately it does leave it feeling like an uncompleted story arc — it just sort of ends in the middle of all the build-up. But I suppose to a certain degree the tactic worked, because it also left me wanting to get my hands on the next one to find out what happens and how everything ties together.

In five words or less: a rollicking time-travel romp!

Quote:



"You'd think that would have been forgotten long ago. But no, no sooner has a little grass grown over it than some clumsy camel comes along and rakes it all up again."

Caroline giggled. She was probably imagining Aunt Glenda as a camel.

"This is not a TV series, Maddy," said Lady Arista sharply.

"Thank goodness, no, it isn't," said Great-aunt Maddy. "If it were, I'd have lost track of the plot ages ago."

Read if you liked: Once a Witch by Carolyn MacCullough

Final verdict: 4 shooting stars. Who doesn't want to imagine dressing in fancy gowns, traveling back in time, witnessing sword fights and talking to your now-dead relatives? Just be prepared for an abrupt ending that leaves you with plenty of questions.

And if you haven't seen the trailer, check it out:



Disclaimer: I received a copy of Ruby Red from the publisher for review.

Something Deadly This Way Comes: In A Nutshell

Goodreads' description:

I'm Madison Avery, in charge of heaven's hit squad . . . and fighting it all the way.

When Madison died the night of her prom, she knew her life would never be the same. Now she has a powerful amulet, a team of rogue angels by her side, and the ability to flash forward into the future to see the shape of destiny. And of course, now she's finally with Josh—a perfect boyfriend who doesn't even mind that she's dead.

But being dead has its disadvantages, too. Madison feels caught between the light and the dark, and between her real life and her timekeeper status. When Madison has the opportunity to get her body back—to be alive again—she faces her most difficult decision yet. If she claims it, she could return to being a normal girl—and have a chance at a real relationship with Josh. But would having the one thing she wants most in the world also mean giving up everything she's worked so hard for?

Something Deadly This Way Comes by Kim Harrison

If you'd like to see my review of the first two in this series, go here. There may be some spoilers here for the previous novels if you have not yet read them.

One sentence sum-up: reapers and black wings and seraphs, oh my!

My reaction: I found this final book in the Madison Avery series to be quite entertaining for most of the way through. The intricate celestial system of seraphs, guardian angels, reapers and the like has really been solidified by this point, and I appreciated the amount of thought that went into creating such a system of roles. We're also able to see Madison having truly grown into her title of dark timekeeper, as compared to the more uncertain Madison we saw in book 1, who was still getting used to being, well, dead. Although it seems remarkably easy for Madison to discover how to wield her dark timekeeper powers (spoiler, highlight to read: she changes someone's resonance, finds her human body, and stops time all in a single day, without any instruction), it was still awfully fun to watch her do it.

However, I was disappointed by the ending of this one – it just seemed really easy for Madison to get everything she wanted, and thus very anti-climactic. There's a lot of build-up: will Madison be forced to give up the amulet and the job of dark timekeeper if she wants to keep her human body? Will she be able to save Tammy, a girl whose soul seems doomed to die? And can Madison convince the seraphs to give her method a chance? But the follow-through just wasn't there in the same tension-building, exciting way. Instead, the obstacles Madison was originally presented with turn out to not really be obstacles at all. There isn't a specific villain in this one, as much as a more general uncertainty of Madison's future, and it gets resolved without much work on her part. I don't mind happy endings, but I like the characters to have to risk more in order to get there.

Also, I had some difficulty understanding how Madison's intervention with Tammy was supposed to work. Spoilery bit: if Madison and Tammy exchange a bit of soul in the future, how does that give Madison a claim on Tammy in the present? That future won't come to pass anyway (or so it seems, because Tammy looks like she's going to change) so...how does that work?

In terms of characters, as always Madison's distinctive voice rang through the writing, and both Barnabas and Nakita were charming. I do wish we had seen a bit more of Grace in this one; her character was such a fun one in the previous novel, but this time she seemed a bit more subdued, her limericks not as humorous and altogether she just wasn't in the storyline as much. I was glad to see Paul make an appearance, as Madison must rely on him at one point and there was a nice balance in bringing the dark timekeeper and the light timekeeper-to-be to work together.

Best aspect: I enjoyed the set-up of dark versus light reapers, and the philosophical implications of each side's perspective. Harrison makes it clear that both of them compromise something important to attain their end goal – the light reapers put the soul in jeopardy to save the body, and the dark reapers sacrifice the body to ensure the life of the soul. Madison wants to go beyond this black-and-white thinking, to see the bigger picture and do her utmost to save both. 

If I could change something... Besides upping the ante on the climactic scenes, her romance with Josh just wasn't there for me. I hadn't felt it in the first two books, and I wasn't feeling the chemistry in this one either. I was actually cheering for her to get together with a different character, but sadly that didn't happen. I think part of the problem wasn't just their relationship, but the fact that Josh comes off as a very flat, boring character (and he really isn't integral to the storyline in this book at all).

Also, we do get a few glimpses of Tammy's story through Madison's abilities, but I wanted more – why she was so determined to run away, and what had caused her apparent depression – to flesh her out and move her from stereotype to full-fledged character.

And this is a nitpicky thing, but I did think the book could have stood being copyedited/proofread one more time, as there were a few errors or inconsistencies that I picked up on. (For instance, Josh is referred to once as "the dark timekeeper's girlfriend" when we know he is of the male persuasion.)

Read if you liked: the Mediator series by Meg Cabot, The Ghost and the Goth by Stacey Kade

Quote:




"She doesn't understand about human choice and the fragility of your dreams and the strength that lies in your hopes and faith. Angels see everything in black and white, and the earth was made to be colorful. Think about what you're asking her to do. She is all about the soul, Madison. Life is secondary to her. Life is transient, and you're asking her to risk someone's soul for an extension of something that to her is a blink of an eye."


"But all we have is that blink," I said miserably.


Final verdict: 3 shooting stars. I was wavering between 3 and 3.5 stars, but I took the half off because it is the last in the series (as far as I know) and I was expecting something a bit more epic.

Author's website: http://www.kimharrison.net/

Disclaimer: I received this for review from the publisher.

Divergent: In A Nutshell (and Canadian Giveaway!)

From Goodreads:

In Beatrice Prior's dystopian Chicago, society is divided into five factions, each dedicated to the cultivation of a particular virtue—Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent). On an appointed day of every year, all sixteen-year-olds must select the faction to which they will devote the rest of their lives. For Beatrice, the decision is between staying with her family and being who she really is—she can't have both. So she makes a choice that surprises everyone, including herself.

 During the highly competitive initiation that follows, Beatrice renames herself Tris and struggles to determine who her friends really are—and where, exactly, a romance with a sometimes fascinating, sometimes infuriating boy fits into the life she's chosen. But Tris also has a secret, one she's kept hidden from everyone because she's been warned it can mean death. And as she discovers a growing conflict that threatens to unravel her seemingly perfect society, she also learns that her secret might help her save those she loves . . . or it might destroy her.

Divergent by Veronica Roth

My reaction: Divergent is such an adrenaline rush of a read. It will get your heart pounding and your breath quickening as you experience the highs and lows along with the protagonist Tris. I liked the concept of a society divided into factions based on personality traits before I even started reading the book. Roth does a fantastic job of demonstrating how even qualities normally seen as positive – selflessness, for instance, or bravery – can be destructive when taken to extremes.

I do still have a lot of questions about how these factions developed over time, and why they seem to be set up as mutually exclusive. In our world, humans don't normally display only one of these five traits, but rather varying levels of several. So in Divergent, do they basically hone a particular trait through, for a lack of a better word, inbreeding within the faction? Has courage, for instance, eventually become genetically manifested in only those of the Dauntless group? I'd love to know more about how the aptitude test was designed and is supposed to function as well.

Tris is a complex, multi-layered character; often I found that I didn't agree with the course of action she was taking, but at the same time I found myself still cheering for her. There is an interesting internal battle of wills that Tris fights, with her instinct for self-preservation warring with her desire to be selfless. Still, the ruthless, occasionally bordering on sadistic, tendency that Tris shows sometimes is unsettling – but she's not the only one. Several of her peers display schadenfreude far more frequently, which adds to the readers' sense that the system is clearly not working.

After Tris, my next favourite character was probably Four, and for the most part I enjoyed the development of their relationship, which didn't overpower or slow down the plot but was still definitely central to the storyline. He's a bit of a mystery to Tris, and about the closest thing she's got to a protector in her situation. (Sidenote: I so totally guessed the revelation about Four long before we find out! I'm usually terrible at that.) But even Four has his flaws, and there were a couple instances that were troubling to me in his treatment of Tris. Spoilery bit, highlight to read: Okay, was it just me, or did the scene where he tells her his instinct is to push till she breaks give anyone else the 'this is not a healthy relationship' red flag? By the end, however, we see a greater level of trust and openness between the two of them.

There are a lot of side characters in this novel, and I had some trouble keeping track of all of them and which faction they were originally from. Since there are so many, they are not all equally dynamic and fleshed-out, although perhaps some of them will get more screen time in the sequels.

Best aspect: I really enjoyed that we get to see so much of Tris' daily life in training, with the focus being on her experience rather than pushing the dystopian aspects of the society at the reader. Instead, they are reflected in the worrisome behaviour of more than one faction, signaling that despite initial outward appearances, a society based on division that pits one group against another is dangerous. 

Also, the theme of fear is central to the story, and this really affects the reading experience: the journey we are taken on is intense, gripping, and anxiety-producing. If this book doesn't get your heart racing, blood pumping, and palms sweating, you might be clinically dead.

If I could change something... I didn't find one of the most important antagonists particularly frightening, frankly. Also, I had some qualms about the ending; the villainous threat seemed to happen with too little warning or lead-up. BIG spoilers: the serum is mentioned a couple times throughout, but the Erudite control of the majority of the Dauntless, essentially turning them into robots, just happened so suddenly and easily that it was a little unbelievable. I really wanted to know more about how both the regular serum and the special "Divergent" serum worked, because clearly they were different from the serum the Dauntless initiates were injected with to stimulate their fears.

Also, it probably won't come as a shock that some characters in this book die. Not going to spoil who, of course, but as a reader I found that for most of the deaths I wasn't strongly impacted emotionally, perhaps because we – along with Tris – aren't given much time to process them before the next action scene happens. I'm not sure that some of the deaths were really necessary for the storyline.

Hopes for the sequel? I am really hoping that we are introduced to the Amity and Candor areas of the city, and that we get to meet more characters from these two factions. I'm interested to see if there will be a 'dark side' displayed in these as well.

Read if you like: The Hunger Games, Uglies, Enclave, The Giver

Final verdict: 4.5 shooting stars.

Author's website: http://veronicarothbooks.blogspot.com/

Note: Because there is a substantial amount of violence and brutality in this one, I'd recommend it more for the older set of YA readers.

Disclaimer: I received a Divergent ARC from the publisher for review for A Cornucopia of Dystopia.

And now, I'll be giving away that ARC, so here are the guidelines...

• Open to Canadian mailing addresses only.
• Entrants must be 13 years or older.
• One entry per person (tweeting and following are not required, but are certainly appreciated)
• Ends April 30 at 11:59 pm EST
• Winner will be selected randomly and contacted by e-mail

This contest is now closed.

Enclave: In A Nutshell

Goodreads' description:

New York City has been decimated by war and plague, and most of civilization has migrated to underground enclaves, where life expectancy is no more than the early 20's. When Deuce turns 15, she takes on her role as a Huntress, and is paired with Fade, a teenage Hunter who lived Topside as a young boy. When she and Fade discover that the neighboring enclave has been decimated by the tunnel monsters—or Freaks—who seem to be growing more organized, the elders refuse to listen to warnings. And when Deuce and Fade are exiled from the enclave, the girl born in darkness must survive in daylight, in the ruins of a city whose population has dwindled to a few dangerous gangs. As the two are guided by Fade’s long-ago memories, they face dangers, and feelings, unlike any they’ve ever known.

Enclave by Ann Aguirre

One sentence sum-up: a story of survival in a world where each day is a struggle to live another day.

My reaction: I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed Enclave. The main character Deuce is an appealing heroine to root for – one who is physically and mentally tough-as-nails, and one to match Katniss of The Hunger Games for determination. I loved that Deuce revels so much in the joy she receives from the actual physical experience of fighting. She is not without flaws, though. Seeing her grow emotionally, learning to welcome vulnerability and view her feelings as a strength rather than a weakness, was fabulous. Her companion Fade is a little more difficult to get to know, but that is part of his personality as well; he's not one to open up to just anybody, instead holding himself at a distance. I definitely enjoyed the progression of the relationship between them, as they start out wary of each other, and learn to trust one another as hunting partners before anything romantic happens.

The combination of the dystopian society of the underground enclave and the post-apocalyptic setting of the world above in Topside worked really well, and I was glad that we get a chance to see both. I do have quite a few lingering questions about both how the enclave functions and what happened to bring about the post-apocalyptic state of Topside, but this is only the first of a series so I'm betting I'll get some of those questions answered in the next novels.

While the stakes are certainly raised high at the climax, I did find that the resolution to it was a little too convenient for my taste. Spoilery bit, highlight to read: yes, Deuce does keep the fire going (although I'm not sure a dream/hallucination of Silk was really necessary for that), but Longshot stopping by and leading them to safety struck me as taking away some of the companions' independence in forging their own path, and making it rather easy for them all of a sudden.

Best aspect: Aguirre manages quite successfully to write a book that is the first in a series and yet maintains an internal story arc. So often books that start off a series, especially when world-building is key (as it is in dystopian books), spend most of the time setting things up for the next few books. This is not the case with Enclave – there is enough resolution to leave the reader feeling satisfied, but still plenty more questions to be explored in sequels. Plus, Aguirre doesn't compromise the speed of the plot in order to give us world-building. There is plenty of action happening here!

I also appreciated the importance that relics from the past play in Enclave, especially given that the past is our present. Books and other written materials are treasured in Deuce's community, so much so that the role of Wordkeeper comes with a lot of power. Indeed, "hoarding" ancient items is punishable by exile. Weaving the tale of The Day Boy and the Night Girl by George Macdonald (which I wasn't actually familiar with before) throughout was a particularly nice literary touch.

And one specific point: I thought Deuce's reaction to Topside after she'd been living underground her whole life was portrayed very accurately. Her fear and anxiety over the openness of the world and the vastness of the sky was extremely believable, especially since Deuce prefers to conquer fears with fighting, and this was one she could not simply punch or club or slash out of existence.

If I could change something... I wanted to see more of the other enclave, Nassau. We don't really get much description of it when Deuce and Fade peek in, and I thought they should have done a bit more reconnaissance. Perhaps there's a reason for this, and we'll find out more about what was happening there in the sequel, though?

Also, while I got a good feel for most of the characters, I couldn't really picture Tegan that well. Maybe it's because she didn't have a strong personality like Deuce, and so in comparison she felt a little diminished, but she just didn't quite come alive for me. Plus, there was one plot point involving her that stretched my credulity. Spoiler, highlight to read: if the Wolves don't trust Tegan, then why do they assign only her to guard Deuce? I didn't buy that they would be so thoughtless as to leave those two completely unattended.

Hopes for the sequel? More of the Fade-Deuce romance! They were constantly on the run in this one so I'll admit romantic interludes were not altogether that practical. But the ones we do see are adorable and I would welcome more in the next book.  


In ten words or less: an engrossing read that will keep you flipping the pages.

Final verdict: 4.5 shooting stars.

Author's website: www.annaguirre.com

Disclaimer: I received an Enclave ARC from the publisher for review for A Cornucopia of Dystopia.

Wither: In A Nutshell (A Cornucopia of Dystopia Review)

Imagine you live in a world where death comes early. If you're a man, you're lucky – you'll live to 25. If you're a woman, you'll only live to 20.


Imagine that people are becoming desperate to keep the human race going by any means necessary. Genetic experimentation is rampant and men have several wives. Gatherers haunt the streets looking for young girls to capture and marry off.

Imagine you are one of those girls, trapped in a life you never wanted.

Now meet Rhine. She doesn't have to imagine any of this. Why?

Because she's living it.

Wither by Lauren DeStefano

My reaction: Honestly, I had a very mixed reaction to Wither. The premise really stands out amongst the dystopian YA fare, partly because it is just so bizarre. The closest comparisons I could make are to the adult dystopian reads The Handmaid's Tale and to a lesser extent Brave New World. I found Rhine's life as a sister wife, both imprisoned and pampered, incredibly unsettling at first; DeStefano does a marvelous job of portraying life in a "gilded cage." The atmosphere of this world is disturbing and frankly kind of creeped me out (intentionally, I'm sure.) Dystopian novels aren't meant to be happy reads, obviously, but the majority of Wither was surprisingly depressing. I think this was partly because the morbid and bleak mood instilled by the nature of the world wasn't leavened by much action through most of the storyline.

The dilemma DeStefano poses with this world is not answered easily, and I welcomed the shades of grey introduced; there is no easy, simplistic message driven home to the reader, but rather just more thought-provoking questions asked. Lauren DeStefano's "point," if any, is delightfully ambiguous. The society she's created is caught between a rock and a hard place: the pro-naturalism side wants to let the human race die out, and the pro-science side is willing to go to any lengths to find a genetic cure for the virus. It's difficult to know which group to cheer for.

I did find the writing style very distancing; Rhine speaks about the events unfolding in an almost clinical, detached way. Perhaps this was intentional, to give the reader a sense of how closed-off she was from others and even from herself, but it had the effect of making it much harder to form a connection with her. Even when she did experience strong emotion, it was described in an almost 3rd-person style (despite the fact that it's written in 1st-person present).

Also, I had some issues with the last few pages. While I liked the unexpected resolution to the climax, I still thought it was too quick and easy. *Big* spoilery details, highlight to read: I thought the use of Cecily in aiding Linden and Rhine's escape was a nice twist and made Cecily's character more complex. And I really enjoyed the idea of holograms providing a way of confusing the inhabitants and keeping them trapped. However, the escape did feel simple and it's hard to believe they would be able to just slip away like that without getting caught.

Best aspect: The creativity and development of the "sister wives" premise. The dynamic between Rhine, Jenna and Cecily that develops is complex, as is each of their relationships with their husband Linden. This also added a bit of a twist to the stereotypical love triangle set-up. Although I wasn't that keen on Rhine, Linden and Cecily both caught my attention as complex and sometimes unpredictable characters. Cecily starts out as a stereotypical whiny brat, but her situation becomes all the more complicated when she becomes pregnant. Her youth and immaturity contrast sharply with her role as an expecting mother. Linden, meanwhile, is frustratingly naive about how the society operates and his father's role in everything, yet he has no problem having a sexual relationship with more than one woman. To make his character even more difficult to pinpoint, he actually seems to care about at least two of his wives. Much as the reader might want to label him as another one of the 'bad guys,' DeStefano makes that impossible.

Another aspect I enjoyed was the way DeStefano's evocative imagery paints a vivid picture in the reader's mind. Her symbolism is handled subtly, with a deft hand.

If I could change something... I wanted to like Rhine more than I actually did. The servants supposedly all like her, but I didn't find her to be that sympathetic a heroine. Certainly her situation is deplorable, but I didn't warm to her voice and she struck me as being a lot of dramatic talk but little action (spoiler, highlight to read: she continually claimed she was going to try to escape but then often passed up chances. Linden takes her into the city on more than one occasion – why doesn't she try to make a run for it then? Why doesn't she try harder to figure out the security system at the mansion? This results in almost the entire book taking place at the mansion, which limits opportunities for exciting action.)

Also, a few of the characters came off as rather flat. Gabriel's character just didn't come alive for me; he seemed too perfect and boring. (Spoilery bit: Rhine may have fallen for him, but I didn't. Their romance happens rather quickly, and I wasn't feeling any chemistry between them, so the relationship seemed forced.) The children who work at the mansion, serving the wives, all seemed to have the same sweet and eager-to-please personality, with no unique qualities to distinguish one from the other. I also thought that villainous Vaughn wasn't fleshed-out enough to separate him from stereotype. Seeing more interaction between him and his son would have brought him to life a bit more.

Hopes for the sequel? I'm thinking we're going to be seeing something of Rhine's twin brother in this next one, so I'm hoping we get a better understanding of their relationship. I'd also like to see the bigger, holistic picture in terms of how the world got to this point. And I wouldn't mind some more Linden, too!

Quote:




He smiles at me, and I can't read what it means. I think, for just a second there, he looked up and saw heterochromatic me. Not a dead girl. Not even a ghost.


He brings his hand to my face, and I feel his fingertips brushing my jaw, his fingers uncurling like something coming to bloom. He looks serious and soft. He's closer than he was a second ago, and I feel myself being pulled into his gravity, and for some reason I feel like I want to trust him. I'm in his house-building hands, and I want to trust him. My lower lip goes slack, waiting for his to catch it.
 

Final verdict: 3.5 shooting stars. I kind of have a love-hate relationship with this book. The premise is original and complex, and the atmosphere feels just wrong enough to unsettle the reader, but the characters aren't the easiest to root for, and I did have a few issues with the plot.

Author's website: www.laurendestefano.com 

Disclaimer: I received Wither from the publisher for review.

Mistwood: In A Nutshell

The Shifter is a being of legend. Wild, powerful, and able to take on any shape it chooses... and its purpose is to protect Samornian royalty. But for years now the Shifter has been gone, vanished into the wilds of Mistwood, and some have begun to believe it was indeed only a creature of myth.


That is, until the Samornian prince Rokan brings her back with him to the castle. Isabel has few memories of anything before the here and now, but she knows that as the Shifter it is her duty to guard Rokan from attack. But he's hiding something from her, and the more Isabel unravels of the truth, the more she begins to wonder if she should be protecting him at all...

Mistwood by Leah Cypess

One sentence sum-up: a tale of magic, past wrongs, revenge, and what it means to be human.
 

My reaction: I'd heard about this book for a while before I actually ordered it from the library, mostly because I thought it looked like a fairly standard traditional YA fantasy read, nothing too out of the ordinary. But then I kept seeing really positive reviews so I put it on hold.

And I'm so glad I did! Yes, Mistwood is in the style of traditional fantasy, but it reminded me of exactly why I love this genre so much. A strong but complex female protagonist? Check. A castle full of secrets? Check. A prince trying to hide the past? Check. Assassination attempts? Check. All combining to make one extremely impressive debut novel.

It did take me a few chapters to connect with both the main character Isabel and the story. The beginning is confusing, as Isabel's memories are clouded and so too is the reader's understanding. This, coupled with Isabel's tendency to lie (sometimes without the reader being informed she is doing so) results in something similar to the 'unreliable narrator' effect, though it is written in third-person. However, soon enough I was swept up in all of the drama and I began to care about Isabel and Rokan; indeed, I gobbled this book up in a single evening, staying up late at night to finish! The plot had me flipping the pages eagerly, and I appreciated the obvious attention to detail, as everything ties up very nicely with few (if any) loose ends.

Best aspect: The mystery surrounding Isabel's history. Cypess keeps the reader guessing as Isabel gains piece after piece of a complicated puzzle. There are several revelations along the way, many of which I did not see coming (including the climactic one, at which point I went, 'Duh! How could I not have guessed that?' in my head). Much as I loved the gripping intrigue and action-filled scenes (and this book is chock-full of that, since no one trusts anyone else), perhaps even more enjoyable was seeing the more personal side of the story, as Isabel learns about who she truly is and what life she desires to lead. She starts out being cool, distancing, and clinical in a way, and then as the novel progresses she begins to experience human emotions she doesn't understand. Isabel is not the most sympathetic heroine from the get-go, but she won me over as she struggled with self-doubt and came to better understand her abilities and limitations.
 
If I could change something... I would have liked to see a bit more of the romance that develops, and also a clearer portrayal of Isabel's need to protect Samornian royalty. Spoiler, highlight to read: Because of Isabel's Shifter nature, she does not show or share emotions often. Her relationship with Rokan is subtle and develops very gradually, and while I was certainly cheering them on to get together, a bit more chemistry between them would have been welcome. I must say I didn't ever feel the bond between Isabel and Kaer, despite the fact we get told about their connection and her duty to protect him. This may have been deliberate, however, both as a means of showing that Isabel herself wasn't convinced and also to encourage the reader to dislike Kaer.

The out-and-out villains were not terribly complex, unfortunately, and I would have enjoyed seeing some more layers to their personalities and motives. However, there was one character (not saying who!) that was very tricky and continually surprised me, which added to the unpredictability of the storyline.


In five words or less: captivating, mystical and thoroughly enchanting.

Quote:




She had learned to pay attention to the variations in Rokan's smiles. There was the sideways half-smile when he found something amusing; the slow, contented smile that appeared only rarely these days; and the wide, dazzling, unrestrained smile she had so far seen only twice, when he first came for her in the Mistwood and when they watched the hawk soar against the sky. And then there was this one, the reason for her watchfulness: the impish grin that meant he wanted to do something he knew was stupid and was going to do it anyhow.


Read if you liked: Brightly Woven by Alexandra Bracken, Summers at Castle Auburn by Sharon Shinn, The Seer and the Sword by Victoria Hanley

Final verdict: 4.5 shooting stars. 

Author's website: http://www.leahcypess.com/

Matched: In A Nutshell

Cassia is set to enjoy everything about her Match Banquet: her green silk dress, the delectable food, the excitement of it all. Her only worry is exactly who the Society will pair her with. When it turns out to be her best friend Xander, she couldn't be happier.


That is, until she inserts her microcard into her port to find out more about her Match...and there's a different boy's face on the screen. Someone she knows. Ky Markham.


Is it all a mistake? Or is there something else going on? Distraught, Cassia begins to question...and soon enough she has much more serious worries.

Matched by Ally Condie

One sentence sum-up: the story of a girl struggling to find her place in a society determined to find it for her.

My reaction: The hype around Matched was huge and I was definitely really excited for it. While it wasn't quite what I expected (what highly anticipated book ever is?), it was still a beautifully written novel. I was a little lost at the very beginning, but soon enough I started to get a feel for the Society and Cassia's life there. It is written all in present tense, which is not my favorite format, but Condie's prose is gorgeous and powerful, and you get the sense that she thought carefully about every single sentence she crafted. Even some of the smallest scenes are imbued with symbolic meaning.

At first I wasn't too sure how well I would connect with the main character, partly because the writing style is distancing; Cassia thinks about herself almost as though she's outside looking in. While normally this would make me say, "Show, don't tell," I realized that for a dystopian novel, this approach could work. It's like we can see the effect of being brought up in the Society through Cassia's style of contemplation. Her personality at the start is muted, her worries defined by the confines of the life she has always known. But she grows throughout the novel, her emotions awakening as her relationship with Ky blossoms and she starts to think more critically about everything she once took for granted.

I've heard some remarks that Matched was too close to The Giver, and certainly I can see some similarities. But that's to be expected with any dystopian, I think. Matched also made me think of Fahrenheit 451, Brave New World, 1984, and We (although not all at the same time!) So what? It's still its own story. I really enjoyed the fact that Condie creates a society that at first glance doesn't seem all that bad. Indeed, at one point I distinctly remember thinking, "Well, it kind of makes sense that they do it this way, what's so terrible about that?" The point is later driven home, however, that it's the very nature of such a society - controlling with the illusion of choice - that is so dangerous.

Best aspect: The romance. For more spoilery specifics, highlight the white text:

The sweetly illicit love between Cassia and Ky. Condie didn't need any steamy elements to create a relationship that feels true, and she conveys quite a lot with only glances and brief touches. I loved that Cassia and Ky connected intellectually and emotionally, that they had things in common: their enjoyment of hiking, their appreciation of poetry. It felt like a perfect fit. I really liked Ky's character. He nicely balanced strength and vulnerability, and he is the trigger for Cassia's growth. Plus, he managed to pull off remarkably romantic lines without sounding sappy. (Team Xander? What's that? In my mind there really wasn't any love triangle. You can tell from the beginning who Cassia is truly drawn to.)

Also, just generally the characters were very mature in this novel, which is a nice change. They're teens, but because of the way they've been brought up, they don't angst nearly so much as you find in many YA novels. (There is still some angst because of the uncertain nature of particular relationships, of course.) They have jobs and they're Matched at seventeen, so they seemed to understand responsibility more.

If I could change something... Well, I was expecting more action in Matched. For a dystopian novel, it grows gradually and subtly, and the end of the book is really only the beginning for Cassia. I'm sure there'll be lots more to come in Crossed, because I got the feeling that Condie has planned this series thoughtfully. She's laid all the groundwork in Matched for a bigger story, but Matched itself focuses more on the characters, their relationships and introducing readers to the Society than it does on plot. This being the case, a lot of time is spent on Cassia's budding awareness of her world and worry about her future, so that did get somewhat repetitive.

Also, some of the messages were a bit too obvious and overstated for me (though I might have noticed this less when I was a teen), and I thought Cassia came to a few of her realizations rather suddenly. Still, these are fairly minor quibbles.

Hopes for the sequel? More Ky! More action! Also, answers to lots of spoilery questions (highlight to read): What happened in the past that no one but Xander can remember? Who put Ky in the matching pool and why? Who is the "Enemy" and how did this war start?

Quote:

I could pull practically any line from this book and it would make a good quote. But here's one I quite liked:



For what is the point of having something lovely if you never share it?


It would be like having a poem, a beautiful wild poem that no one else has, and burning it.


After a moment, I open my eyes and glance over at Ky. He doesn't look back, but I know he knows I'm watching. The music is soft, slow. His chest rises and falls. His lashes are black, impossibly long, the exact color of his hair.


Ky is right. I will never hear this song the same way again.


Recommend for: anyone who falls for a tale of two people trying to be together despite the odds. Especially when the Society claims they can predict those odds.

Final verdict: 4.5 shooting stars.

Author's website: www.allysoncondie.com