Book Review: Heartless - Sara Shepard

HEARTLESS by Sara Shepard:

Published: January 19, 2010

Publisher: HarperTeen 

Format: Hardcover

Page Count: 274 pages

Source: McKay's Bookstore 

In picturesque Rosewood, Pennsylvania, neighbors gossip over picket fences, and gleaming SUVs sit in every crushed granite driveway. But recently, friendly smiles have been replaced with suspicious glares and accusatory whispers and it's all because Hanna, Aria, Emily and Spencer just can't keep their mouth shut...

First, they claimed they saw a dead body in the woods behind Spencer's house, only to have it vanished without a trace. Then when the same woods went up in flames, they swore they saw someone who's supposed to be dead rise from the ashes. And even after all that, the pretty little liars are still playing with fire.

Hanna's trading her Dior trench for a straightjacket. Aria's trying to contact the dead. Emily's dumped her boyfriend and is skipping town... again. And Spencer thinks that someone in her family has gotten away with murder.

The friends insist they're telling the truth about what they saw, but all of Rosewood thinks they're simply out for attention and nobody likes a girl who cries wolf. So when the big, bad killer comes after the girls, will anyone believe them... or will they be the next to disappear? 

"In the seventh installment in the utterly addictive series by mastermind Sara Shepard, Heartless was intriguing, captivating, and phenomenal. A masterpiece in the making."

PLL is one of my favorite series of all time. It's so addicting and wonderful, it's impossible to resist! 

We're back in Rosewood with our four, now-called "Pretty Little Liars", protagonists with the mysterious A sending them messages. 

Hanna is now moving into a mental hospital to get away from the press. She has her new roommate, Iris, with her, helping her and telling her that everybody makes in through this place. But another girl named Tara has warned Hanna to watch out about Iris, because she could be fatal.

Aria has decided that Ali could be trying to message them from beyond the grave. She contacts a woman to talk to Ali's spirit and get her to reveal her message. 

Spencer has found out even more secrets about her family's history. And she fears that it could be linked to some dangerous events that happened in the past.

A is helping Emily by leading her to the Amish Country, claiming that it will help her figure out who is Ali's killer. And of course, Emily will do anything to find out what happened to Ali. But not everybody who has been close to Emily and her three former best friends are who they say they are. And this time, they might make sure to get rid of the four of them.

HEARTLESS was an epic book. It's the seventh novel in the ever-addicting novel, and usually around this time in a long series, the books start to drag and repeat themselves. That's not the case with this series! They're all so fresh and mysterious and awesome, I can't help but love every single novel.

Sara Shepard's world is so real-like, it's almost unbelievable. The way that "New" A is messaging the girls of how to figure out Ali's murderer's identity is just so incredible and fast-paced. 

With this novel, it was hard to put down and it was always on my mind. My eyes were glued to the pages and the mystery of the books kept me up at night, wondering how the story will end. All the events that happened in this book were just so... mind-blowing. I was shouting at the book, telling the characters things they should have done or shouldn't have done. And usually, that's a good thing for me to do. 

The characters in this story were so mysterious, that I was thinking of the events that were going to happen next as I rotated back and forth from character to character. And to be honest, I love getting to see every character within every four chapters.

Overall, Sara Shepard's incredible seventh novel, Heartless, was one of the best books in the series. I'm very impressed so far and I can't wait to see where the series goes from here.

Book Review: Dreaming Awake - Gwen Hayes

DREAMING AWAKE:

Published: January 3, 2012

Publisher: NAL Trade

Format: Paperback

Page Count: 336 Pages

Source: Amazon.com

Series: Second book in the Falling Under series

She fell for him in a nighttime world. But the time for dreaming is past—and the here-and-now can be just as fragile their love… 

When Theia Alderson first encountered a mysterious, handsome boy in her dreams, she never imagined how finding Haden Black—and falling in love—could change her life. To save Haden, Theia sacrificed everything. And the dangerous bargain she made could have lasting repercussions. 

Now Theia has returned to Serendipity Falls, and she finds herself struggling with the same deadly hungers that have tortured Haden. When students at their high school fall prey to a mysterious illness, Theia can’t help but wonder if Haden’s control is slipping—and how much longer she’ll have a grip on her own. 

And still the nightmare realm of Under won’t let them go. Someone from Haden’s past is determined to destroy Theia from the inside out, starting with those closest to her, forcing Theia to choose between family and friends and a love that may have been doomed from the start…

"Gwen Hayes' sophomore novel did not disappoint and is sure to be one of the hottest books of 2012."

Gwen Hayes is a very talented writer. I read Falling Under last year in 2011, and I absolutely loved it. But with Dreaming Awake, I just adore this series even more.


First, the writing style. Beautiful. The way that she has crafted this world and the way she sees things just blows my mind. I hope to return to Serendipity Falls soon! The entire concept of Dreaming Awake with all of the nightmare realm of Under to the mysterious stranger wanting to destroy Theia is just amazing to read about. This series is sure to be a hot new trend.


The characters in DREAMING AWAKE are some of my favorite characters in the YA genre. To me, they're very believable. I can feel the raw emotions that they feel, and I'm always pleasantly surprised when it happens. Theia faces more challenges in this novel, and I was grateful to see Gwen Hayes add that to this wonderful story.


Next, the pacing. THE. PACING. It's non-stop with vivid descriptions and actions and it literally kept me up all night to see what in the world was going to happen to Theia and Haden. Then when the illness came, I was like: OH, HECK YEAH. The story took off even more from there. I was glad to see that the realm of the Under was introduced back into the story (even though I knew it would be). 


Finally, the covers. The covers represent the books so well for me, and just look at them! They're unbelievable! 


Gwen Hayes' Dreaming Awake is a novel not to be passed up in 2012. I cannot wait for the third novel!

My Rating:

Book Review: Darkness Becomes Her - Kelly Keaton

DARKNESS BECOMES HER:

Published: February 22, 2011

Publisher: Simon Pulse

Format: Hardcover

Page Count: 273 pages

Source: Borrowed

Ari can’t help feeling lost and alone. With teal eyes and freakish silver hair that can’t be changed or destroyed, Ari has always stood out. And after growing up in foster care, she longs for some understanding of where she came from and who she is.

Her search for answers uncovers a message from her long dead mother: Run. Ari can sense that someone, or something, is getting closer than they should. But it’s impossible to protect herself when she doesn’t know what she’s running from or why she is being pursued.

She knows only one thing: she must return to her birthplace of New 2, the lush rebuilt city of New Orleans. Upon arriving, she discovers that New 2 is very...different. Here, Ari is seemingly normal. But every creature she encounters, no matter how deadly or horrifying, is afraid of her.

Ari won’t stop until she knows why. But some truths are too haunting, too terrifying, to ever be revealed.

Going into DARKNESS BECOMES HER, the first chapter really swept me off of my feet. Our protagonist, Ari, goes to a Mental Institution to find where her mother has been for Ari's entire life. She then finds out that her mother committed suicide six months after she gave up Aria. But she committed suicide because she was imagining snakes trying to crawl into her head.

Ari then finds a box in the Institution that belonged to her mother. There was a note inside the box telling Ari that she is very different and that she needs to run. And also, never to trust anybody. So now in a place called New 2 (which was once New Orleans), we follow Ari in a house with other strange kids.

To be honest, DARKNESS BECOMES HER was a very big disappointment. I thought it would be action packed and just a kick-butt novel. It did have some action scenes, but for some reason, I felt that it dragged on and on. 

Kelly Keaton's writing style just made me want to step away from the novel. I'm okay with curse words in books, but when there is at least ten cuss words in each chapter, we need to step back and take a breather, okay? 

The characters honestly bugged the crap out of me. I honestly thought Ari was super whiny at times, like when something happened, I never heard the end of it from Ari. I just don't like her character. And then Sebastian was very bipolar. One minute, he hated Ari and wanted nothing to do with her, and then the next minute, he wants to help and save her? No. That is not how it works. Stick to one mood and one mood only Mr. Change-Up. 

I thought that some stuff in DARKNESS BECOMES HER could have been removed and something a little bit better could have been added here and there. Some points in the book, it was really fasted paced and I loved it, and then the next three chapters would have absolutely no purpose to the story. I'm sorry, but this was a huge disappointment for me.

Overall, Kelly Keaton's DARKNESS BECOMES HER really let me down. It was a good novel, but it wasn't the best I've ever read. I'm not sure whether or not I'll be picking up A BEAUTIFUL EVIL.

My Rating:   

Read at your own risk.    

YA Novels Coming Out This Week: January 3

Every Tuesday, I'll be showing you books coming out on Tuesdays (I'll also leave their Goodreads and Amazon link)!

Bloodrose - Andrea Cremer

The third book in the Nightshade trilogy

Goodreads | Amazon

Cinder - Marissa Meyer

Debut Novel

The first book in the Lunar Chronicles

Goodreads | Amazon

Dreaming Awake - Gwen Hayes

The second book in the Falling Under series

Goodreads | Amazon

Don't Breathe a Word - Holly Cupala 

Goodreads | Amazon

Under the Never Sky - Veronica Rossi

Debut Novel

The first book in the Under the Never Sky series

Goodreads | Amazon

The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight - Jennifer E. Smith

Goodreads | Amazon

Bittersweet - Sarah Ockler

Goodreads | Amazon

Unraveling Isobel - Eileen Cook

Goodreads | Amazon

Pretty Little Secrets: A Pretty Little Liars Collection - Sara Shepard

A collection of short stories that takes place in between the 4th and 5th novels in the Pretty Little Liars series

Goodreads | Amazon

Switched - Amanda Hocking

Book One in the Trylle Trilogy

Goodreads | Amazon

Are you planning to read any of these? Let me know in the comments!

Happy reading!

:-)

~Brad

 

Book Review: Killer - Sara Shepard

KILLER:

Published: January 5, 2010 (first published July 1, 2009)

Publisher: HarperTeen

Format: Paperback

Page Count: 321 pages

Source: Amazon.com 

In picture-perfect Rosewood, Pennsylvania, ash-blond highlights gleam in the winter sun and frozen lakes sparkle like Swarovski crystals. But pictures often lie—and so do Rosewood's four prettiest girls.

Hanna, Aria, Spencer, and Emily have been lying ever since they became friends with beautiful Alison DiLaurentis. Ali made them do terrible things—things they had to keep secret for years. And even though Ali was killed at the end of seventh grade, their bad-girl ways didn't die with her.

Hanna's on a mission to corrupt Rosewood's youth, starting with a very attractive sophomore. Aria's snooping into her boyfriend's past. Spencer's stealing—from her family. And pure little Emily's abstaining from abstinence.

The girls should be careful, though. They thought they were safe when Ali's killer was arrested and A's true identity was finally revealed. But now there's a new A in town turning up the heat. And this time Rosewood is going to burn.

"Sara Shepard never ever disappoints with her novels. KILLER was an exciting and fast paced novel that made me never want to set it down. Absolutely stunning." 

In the sixth Pretty Little Liars novel, I expected a lot from it because of the ending of the fifth book, Wicked.  And believe me, it did not disappoint in any shape, way or form.

There's trouble brewing between Hanna and Kate. Hanna is sick and tired of Kate sucking up to her Dad so Hanna's dad will picture Kate as the 'good girl' in the house. So, Hanna goes after the person that Kate likes the most -- Aria's younger brother, Mike. 

Aria has found somebody to talk to about the death of Ali -- Ali's brother, Jason. But while rock climbing one day, something strikes a chord in Jason that makes him hate Aria. She then finds out some secrets about Jason that may not be the best secrets to reveal.

Emily's new boyfriend, Isaac, has a mom that absolutely hates her. And his mom might just be planning to do some very harsh things to Emily.

Spencer has found of some super deep secrets about her past. Secrets that her parents have built up on her and has made her question her entire family.

As always, Sara Shepard's novel are one of the best around. They're upbeat, current, mysterious and overall,  just simply amazing. They captivate me into the story, toss me around, and then when the ending comes, throws me back onto the ground and leaves me begging for the next installment. 

I love the four main girls in Sara Shepard's PLL novels. They all have their story, and most of all, they're not bipolar. You know, they don't switch back and forth their moods. And Sara Shepard's writing style is just awesome. Yeah, it may be immature at times, but of course, it's written about teens. She keeps the story very current and fast paced throughout the entire novel.

But then, I did have some problems. I notice that the girls like to stammer and stutter a lot. "H-hi." "W-what are you doing here?" "I-I don't know what to say." And then Mike was just a total jerk about the whole I-have-two-girls-lusting-over-me thing.

Overall, this sixth installment was my favorite by far in the series and I can't wait to see where Sara Shepard takes the story in the next book, HEARTLESS.

My Rating:

My New Year's Resolutions

Happy New Year's!

This New Year's I want to accomplish two goals in my reading.

This year, I read 210+ books. When I saw that my face was like: :-O

I've having surgery done soon (I have a post set all about the surgery), and I'll be home a lot from school. I'll be on Homebound, where the teachers come to me and give me homework. So, I'll only be focused on a few things for the majority of 2012: my blog, homework, and reading.

But, I want to keep it very simple this year. I want to read 100 books this year. If I can get more than 100, cheers to me! But, I felt under pressure this year to finish books. I don't know why though. So this year, I'm keeping it simple.

Finally, I want do a lot more with my blog. I'm talking a lot. I can't wait for 2012 to be here so I can share all my ideas with you!

I hope everybody has a very happy 2012 year! 

YA Books Coming Out in January 2012

At the beginning of every year, I'll be doing a blog post about the YA books coming out in that month that I'm anticipating! Let's go!

Incarnate by Jodi Meadows (Goodreads | Amazon)

January 31, 2012

Cinder by Marissa Meyer (Goodreads | Amazon)

January 3, 2012

Everneath by Brodi Ashton (Goodreads | Amazon)

January 24, 2012

A Million Suns by Beth Revis (Goodreads | Amazon)

January 10, 2012

Hallowed by Cynthia Hand (Goodreads | Amazon)

January 17, 2012

What books are you excited for in January? Let me know! 

:-)

~Brad