Tris and Izzie by Mette Ivie Harrison

Book:  Tris and Izzie

Author:  Mette Ivie Harrison

Publisher:  EgmontUSA

Date:  October 11, 2011

Source:  Egmont and netgalley.com

My grade:  C-

A modern retelling of the German fairy tale "Tristan and Isolde," Tris and Izzie is about a young witch named Izzie who is dating Mark King, the captain of the basketball team and thinks her life is going swimmingly well. Until -- she makes a love potion for her best friend Brangane and then ends up taking it herself accidentally, and falling in love with Tristan, the new guy at school.

My Review

I have never been so disappointed in a book in my entire life.  For reals.

I love Arthurian retellings.  I mean really love them.  As in, it was Howard Pyle’s “King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table” that made me a book lover when I was just a wee little thing.  Then, in college I picked up Marion Zimmer Bradley’s “The Mists of Avalon” and I have never been the same since.  Really.

I have read so many Arthurian retellings, I don’t even know where to begin with listing them.  I have also read other retellings of the Tristan and Isolde myth.  I was so, so, so excited when I saw that this was a modern day twist on the story of Tristan and Isolde.  I kept imagining that maybe this book would do for that legend what Meg Cabot had done in “Avalon High”.

This book was sooooooooo not Meg Cabot.

Where do I even begin?  Izzie was vapid and trite.  I hated her.  Tristan was flat and uninteresting.  The whole magic premise probably could have worked, but it felt like there was no world-building for it.  In the original legend, both Tristan and Isolde are so torn apart by their forbidden love and they fear hurting Mark, whom they both love.  Here, it was all very middle-school drama.  It felt fake.

And please tell me how a giant can attack a school and then one person, who is supposed to not be so powerful anyway is able to erase everyone’s memory of it???  Really?

It was impossible to suspend my disbelief in this novel.  Much like half-vampire mutant babies in a book that shall remain nameless, there was no set-up here for the reader to be able to buy into the magic.  An author has to carefully craft supernatural fiction and this one was not carefully crafted.

Obviously, I finished the book, so there was enough of a plot to keep me going, which is the only reason this book is getting a C-.  But it’s a very bottom C-.  And I’m really being generous with that rating.  I kept reading and reading, hoping that I could find some sort of redeeming quality in this book.  I hate to give bad reviews, but I just couldn’t find anything I liked about this one. 

Maybe 7^th grade girls who don’t know anything about the legends of King Arthur will like this book.  But high school girls who are used to having a little more substance to the plotlines would do better to pick up “Avalon High”. 

Misfit by Jon Skovron

Book:  Misfit

Author:  Jon Skovron

Publisher:  Amulet Books

Date:  August, 2011

Source:  netgalley.com and Amulet Books

My grade:  B+

Jael has always felt like a freak. She’s never kissed a boy, she never knew her mom, and her dad’s always been superstrict—but that’s probably because her mom was a demon, which makes Jael half demon and most definitely not a normal sophomore girl. On her sixteenth birthday, a mysterious present unlocks her family’s dangerous history and Jael’s untapped potential. What was merely an embarrassing secret before becomes a terrifying reality. Jael must learn to master her demon side in order to take on a vindictive Duke of Hell while also dealing with a twisted priest, best-friend drama, and a spacey blond skater boy who may have hidden depths.

Author Jon Skovron takes on the dark side of human nature with his signature funny, heartfelt prose.


My Review

I liked this book.  I didn’t love it to death, it didn’t change my life and I won’t be running out to read any Misfit fanfiction, but I did like it really well.

This book had an interesting take on demons which I found rather intriguing.  I never thought I’d see a book where demons were not necessarily bad guys, but this book took that stance and made it work.

I liked Jael as a character.  She is strong, yet still a teenaged girl and she didn’t give off that “badass” vibe that so many authors try to give to strong female characters.  I really appreciated that.

The plot was action-packed and even though there was a little romance, it was heavier on the side of action and the conflict between Jael and her father or Jael and the priests.  In fact, I would say that all the relationships in the book were treated with equal importance.  I also liked the flashbacks into her father’s life and her very early life with her mother.  I found that I didn’t really want to put this book down.  I could have but I didn’t want to.

My grade for this book is a B+.  I think it stands out from the crowd a bit in the overpopulated world of supernatural fiction, but it’s not one of those books that totally blew me away.  If he wrote a sequel though, I’d definitely read it.

The Mephisto Covenant by Trinity Faegen

Book:  The Mephisto Covenant

Author:  Trinity Faegen

Publisher:  Egmont USA

Date:  September 27, 2011

My grade:  A+

Sasha is desperate to find out who murdered her father. When getting the answer means pledging her soul to Eryx, she unlocks a secret that puts her in grave danger—Sasha is Anabo, a daughter of Eve, and Eryx’s biggest threat.

A son of Hell, immortal, and bound to Earth forever, Jax looks for redemption in the Mephisto Covenant—God’s promise he will find peace in the love of an Anabo. After a thousand years, he’s finally found the girl he’s been searching for: Sasha.

With the threat of Eryx looming, Jax has to keep Sasha safe and win her over. But can he? Will Sasha love him and give up her mortal life?

My Review

Holy hot sons of Hell!  The Mephisto Covenant was an incredible read!

Now, I have seen some pretty bad reviews of this book, but I just don’t get it.  I loved every single word of this book.  Yes, it’s true that the whole Edward “I’m so bad for you, but I love you and can’t stay away from you” vibe was going on here, but Sasha and Jax were not like Edward and Bella.  They were different and they were great!  To me, there was more of a Beauty and the Beast feel to the story.

I got pulled into this book within about 4 pages and did not want to put it down.  In fact, even though I love my Nook, I was wishing that I had a Kindle so that the device could read the book to me while I was driving!  I’ve had to put it down in order to do things like work, feed my children, shower and sleep, but I didn’t want to.  I have been able to do nothing but think about this book since I started it.

I cannot wait to read the next one.  I have no idea where this is going to lead and I’m really excited to see what happens next.  I want to see a lot more of Sasha and Jax.  For an evil guy, I really love Jax.

The action was non-stop in this book.  I also loved the way the lost souls were described.  I also felt that the religious overtone of the book was sort of refreshing.  There was a lot of God-talk, but it wasn’t preachy.  It did incorporate a lot of Biblical mythology and that was very interesting to me.

Of course, I was a little shocked at the rather graphic sex scene in the novel, especially next to all the religious stuff!  Readers who are uncomfortable with that should be forewarned!  This is not a Twilight fade-to-black scene!  Oh no!  For this reason, I would definitely recommend this book to older teens.  This is not a book you want sitting on the middle school library shelf.  Plus, I think that it deals with some rather deep topics:  immortality, free will, human selfishness……it runs the gamut.  This is a book that will be better enjoyed by those with a little maturity.

I tried to look at this book with the critical eye that I saw in many reviews, but I keep coming up empty handed.  I couldn’t think of one thing I didn’t like about this book.  It has suspense, romance, bad guys, fighting evil, a house full of hot guys (ok, they are sort of demons, but who cares?  They fight people who are more evil than they are!)  I like the message it sends about our choices.

My grade for this book is an A+.  I feel certain that I will be thinking about this book for weeks to come and as soon as the sequel is announced, I will be adding it immediately to my TBR list.  And possibly stalking the author for an ARC.

Great big thanks to netgalley and to Egmont USA for allowing me to read and review this one.

The Juliet Spell by Douglas Rees

Book:  The Juliet Spell

Author:  Douglas Rees

Publication Date:  September 27, 2011

Publisher:  Harlequin Teen

Source:  Netgalley and Harlequin Teen

Grade:  A

I wanted the role of Juliet more than anything. I studied hard. I gave a great reading for it—even with Bobby checking me out the whole time. I deserved the part.

I didn't get it. So I decided to level the playing field, though I actually might have leveled the whole play. You see, since there aren't any Success in Getting to Be Juliet in Your High School Play spells, I thought I'd cast the next best—a Fame spell. Good idea, right?

Yeah. Instead of bringing me a little fame, it brought me someone a little famous. Shakespeare. Well, Edmund Shakespeare. William's younger brother.

Good thing he's sweet and enthusiastic about helping me with the play...and—ahem—maybe a little bit hot. But he's from the past. Way past. Cars amaze him—cars! And cell phones? Ugh.

Still, there's something about him that's making my eyes go star-crossed....

My Review
This book was absolutely precious!  Honestly, the story pulled me in from the beginning and I had a hard time putting it down.  I couldn’t wait to see what would happen next with poor Edmund!
I loved all the characters.  Miri was very realistic and Edmund was the cutest thing ever!  I may have fallen for him a little myself.  I liked Drew and even Bobby.  

This book was a very quick read and it’s very light.  There is no great message here.  It’s just a fun story that’s a “what if this happened” sort of book.  It was fun to see the way that Shakespeare was worked in and the end was just a little bit of tragedy as well since Rees created his own pair of star-crossed lovers within the book.  Of course, nothing as heavy as Romeo and Juliet, but it still left me just a little sad.

In fact, the ending was the only part I didn’t like.  That is only because I could not have my purely selfish fantasy ending that would never be possible anyway. : )  Rees actually ended the book the way it needed to end, just not the way I wanted it to end!

I give this book a solid A.  If you are looking for something light and fun, this is a great book to pick up.  Nothing life-changing, but there’s nothing wrong with just enjoying a sweet now and then.

In the Forests of the Night by Kersten Hamilton

Book:  In the Forests of the Night

Author:  Kersten Hamilton

Publisher:  Clarion

Date:  November 22, 2011

My grade:  A+

Teagan, Finn, and Aiden have made it out of Mag Mell alive, but the Dark Man's forces are hot on their heels. Back in Chicago, Tea’s goblin cousins show up at her school, sure she will come back to Mag Mell, as goblin blood is never passive once awoken. Soon she will belong to Fear Doirich and join them. In the meantime, they are happy to entertain themselves by trying to seduce, kidnap, or kill Tea’s family and friends.
Teagan knows she doesn’t have much time left, and she refuses to leave Finn or her family to be tortured and killed. A wild Stormrider, born to rule and reign, is growing stronger inside her. But as long as she can hold on, she’s still Teagan Wylltson, who plans to be a veterinarian and who heals the sick and hurting. The disease that’s destroying her—that’s destroying them all—has a name: Fear Doirich.
And Teagan Wylltson is not going to let him win.

My Review

God bless Kersten Hamilton.  First of all, she contacted me this summer after noticing that this book was one of my “impatiently waiting for” books on my blog.  She offered to send me an ARC if I wanted it.  Of course I wanted it!!!  So, with wee bit of Irish luck, I got my fix of Finn (sigh!) about 2 months early!

Second, she has written a killer second book in this series!  Of course, now it just means that I’m impatiently waiting for Book 3!  Still, Kersten, I thank you from the bottom of my Irish heart for sending me this book!

What a glorious book it was.  It has lots of Finn, of course.  One of the best things is that it jumps right back into the story.  I hate it when books give me a lot of background from the previous book.  If you’re dumb enough to pick up a book in the middle of the series, you don’t deserve to understand what’s going on.  Harsh, but true. : )

We really got to know some of the secondary characters a little better in this book also.  I am interested in Thomas and Raynor and their past.  Also, Joe, the new character is very intriguing.  Abby and her mafia wannabe family were great for a bit of comic relief.  Aiden was not as prominent, but we really got a good look at Teagan in this book.  I really like her.  She is a nice, strong female lead.  I mean, here she has a sexy beast Irish warrior at her beck and call, but she wants to just see what happens and plan on following her own plans.  Alright, maybe she’s crazy also, but seriously, it’s a breath of fresh air to not see the lead girl fawning all over the hot boy just because he’s hot and has a great accent.

Finn, of course, is still swoon-worthy and the lines that come out of that boy’s mouth will turn you into a big puddle of goo.  In fact, if Teagan wants to go off to school, I’ll be glad to keep him entertained while she’s gone. : )

Like all good second books, it’s a bit of a cliffhanger.  I enjoyed another look at Mag Mell and the surprises there and I’m really looking forward to seeing how this whole thing plays out.

My grade for this book is an A+.  This book was just as engaging as the first book, the characters continued to grow and build and the story had plenty of interesting twists and turns.  And there’s also the hot Irish guy with the accent that launched a thousand ships.  If you haven’t read “Tyger, Tyger” yet, run get that one so that you’ll be ready to read “In the Forests of the Night” when it releases in November.  You can read my review of that book here.

Beauty Queens by Libba Bray

Book:  Beauty Queens

Author:  Libba Bray

Publisher:  Scholastic

Year:  2011

Grade:  A+

The fifty contestants in the Miss Teen Dream pageant thought this was going to be a fun trip to the beach, where they could parade in their state-appropriate costumes and compete in front of the cameras. But sadly, their airplane had another idea crashing on a desert island and leaving the survivors stranded with little food, little water, and practically no eyeliner.

What's a beauty queen to do? Continue to practice for the talent portion of the program--or wrestle snakes to the ground? Get a perfect tan--or learn to run wild? And what should happen when the sexy pirates show up?

Welcome to the heart of non-exfoliated darkness. Your tour guide? None other than Libba Bray, the hilarious, sensational, Printz Award-winning author of A Great and Terrible Beauty and Going Bovine. The result is a novel that will make you laugh, make you think, and make you never see beauty the same way again.

My Review

It took me a long while to read this book.  That is not an indication that it is not good.  To the contrary, this book is brilliant.  This book has a lot of heavy messages all wrapped up in snark and tongue-in-cheek humor.  Libba Bray is a genius.

For one thing, the school year started up again and I have been inundated with work from Real Life.  Sometimes Real Life sucks!  But also, I really needed time to digest with this book.  It is so much more than a story.  This book is a statement.  I loved thinking about the whole idea of women in the world.  I hope that every teen girl, (as well as not-so-teen-anymore girls), reads this book.

This book was snarky, silly and completely absurd.  Yet, when all the absurd is pulled back, there’s a good strong message to girls about defining oneself and not letting society pull you from your dreams because you’re “just a girl”.  I love “Girl Power” stuff and this may be the ultimate Girl Power book!

The best thing about this book, though, is that I think it’s not just a book for girls.  It’s so much fun and so funny that I think guys would get a kick out of it as well.  This is a book that I plan to start recommending to even random strangers on the street.

My grade for this book is A+.  Any book that manages to pull off social statement while channeling Saturday Night Live, all without smearing its lip gloss, is totally win in my book!

Matched by Ally Condie

Book:  Matched

Author:  Ally Condie

Publisher:  Dutton Juvenile

Date:  November, 2010

My grade:  B+

Cassia has always trusted the Society to make the right choices for her: what to read, what to watch, what to believe. So when Xander's face appears on-screen at her Matching ceremony, Cassia knows with complete certainty that he is her ideal mate . . . until she sees Ky Markham's face flash for an instant before the screen fades to black.

The Society tells her it's a glitch, a rare malfunction, and that she should focus on the happy life she's destined to lead with Xander. But Cassia can't stop thinking about Ky, and as they slowly fall in love, Cassia begins to doubt the Society's infallibility and is faced with an impossible choice: between Xander and Ky, between the only life she's known and a path that no one else has dared to follow.

My Review

I liked this book.  I liked this story.  I did not really like Cassia.

Now, I have read a lot of raving reviews of this book, and I really did like the story.  I like the set-up for it and the whole idea of the Society.  I think that as far as dystopian worlds go, this one is fantastic, because it is so believable!

I did not really care for Cassia.  I thought she was whiny and superficial.  I did really like Xander, and herein lies the problem.  Because of my love for Xander, I couldn’t stand to see him get hurt.  And honestly, I had a really hard time buying Cassia's love for Ky.  I think it was only a teenage infatuation and so it really bugs me that she made these tremendous life-changing decisions based on some puppy love.

I definitely want to read the next book because I’m really sucked in to the story.  I can’t wait to see what will happen next and I’m hoping that a revolution is brewing.  But I’m also hoping that Cassia will come to her senses and realize just how wonderful and special Xander is.

I think that this opinion may be caused by the fact that I’m an adult reading YA lit.  I wonder if a teen girl would have the same reaction that I do.  After all, at 42 (yikes!), I’m well aware that a marriage based on friendship first has a much better chance of succeeding than one based on passion and physical attraction. 

I also now find myself sympathizing with the Jacob lovers of the world!  I think that I may be in the minority here by pulling for Team Xander.  If anyone else out there is a Team Xander fan, please let me know!

I would recommend this book to people who like dystopians, because I think it’s an excellent example.  I’m just keeping my fingers crossed that things will go my way in the next 2 installments.

My grade for this book is a B+.  The world is great and the story is intriguing, so if she would just make Cassia more likeable, this book would have everything it needs.