Book Review: Incarnate by Jodi Meadows

INCARNATE:

Published: January 31, 2012

Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books

Format: Hardcover

Page Count: 384 pages

Source: Amazon.com

Series: Book One in the Newsoul Trilogy

New Soul.

Ana is new. For thousands of years in Range, a million souls have been reincarnated over and over, keeping their memories and experiences from previous lifetimes. When Ana was born, another soul vanished, and no one knows why.

No Soul.

Even Ana's own mother thinks she's a no soul, an omen of worse things to come, and has kept her away from society. To escape her seclusion and learn whether she'll be reincarnated, Ana travels to the city of Heart, but its citizens are afraid of what her presence means. When dragons and sylph attack the city, is Ana to blame?

Heart

Sam believes Ana's new soul is good and worthwhile. When he stands up for her, their relationship blooms. But can he love someone who may live only once, and will Ana's enemies -- human and creature alike -- let them be together? Ana needs to uncover the mistake that gave her someone else' life, but will her quest threaten the peace of Heart and destroy the promise of reincarnation for all?

"Incarnate was beautiful and thought-provoking. Jodi Meadows is a master storyteller that crafted a gorgeous debut novel that leaves me begging for the sequel."

I've been wanting needing Incarnate since August 2011. When January 31 came around the corner and the UPS woman brought it to my door, I was beyond excited. When I started it and finished it only one day later, I knew that this review was going to be possibly my most positive review ever.

For thousands of years in the mysterious country of Range, souls have been reincarnated over and over, each soul living hundreds of lives. All peace was in balance until one day that a soul disappeared, and a new soul appeared. The new soul was Ana. Fast forward 18 years: Ana's guardian Li is kicking her out. Ana doesn't mind because she's wanted to escape Li for 18 years. When Ana gets attacked by sylph in the forest and saved by a peculiar boy named Sam, Ana is now convinced to find out why she was born and why Ciana, the soul that disappeared, vanished. The only place to go find out why is Heart, a large capitol with a library that could tell her why she was born. Sam will take Ana to Heart under his care to help her. But when dragons and sylph begin to attack Heart, people begin to want Ana to leave in fear that she is bringing this to Heart because she has never been reincarnated -- she's a nosoul. But Sam and Ana will stick by each other forever, but what if the problems surrounding them close in on them too much?

Incarnate was a beautiful story that made me stay up until midnight to read the entire book. And when I turned the last page, I think my heart shattered. This book leaves the reader breathless and dying for the sequel.

First, the writing style. Absolutely and utterly brilliant. I will admit that this book had some slow parts, but this book is one of the only books that makes me love the slow parts because either the beautiful writing style is distracting me, or the story, characters and writing style are just so wonderful, I don't care! Jodi Meadows is a wonderful writer, and she's a debut author. She's got talent.

Next, the characters. Ana is a strong character who does have her flaws, and she does depend on other characters (Sam), but she doesn't only depend on Sam. I'm going to have say that Sam was my favorite character. He was strong, quirky, and just so nice to Ana, and I couldn't help but enjoy reading about his character. Li is a horrible character. I hate her. I can't stand to even read about her! That's how talented Jodi Meadows is. She made one of her wicked characters slip into my mind and flip my mind upside down when I was reading about her. And I loved every second of it. Wonderful!

Then, we have the setting of Heart. I loooove the city of Heart! There's a huge white wall, and it has a heartbeat. How awesome is that?! And here comes back to Jodi Meadows' writing style: just the description of everything in the book, whether it be sylph, Heart, or Sam and Ana walking down a cobblestone road, I was mesmerized each time. This novel is pure gold.

Overall, Jodi Meadows' debut novel did not disappoint whatsoever, and now has become one of my favorite books of this year -- and of all time! I highly recommend you go get this novel!

My Rating:

In My Mailbox #4

Here's what I got in my mailbox this week!:

Books Mentioned:

Everneath - Brodi Ashton

Pretty Little Secrets - Sara Shepard

Wings of the Wicked - Courtney Allison Moulton

Bittersweet - Sarah Ockler

Vesper - Jeff Sampson

Havoc - Jeff Sampson

Unraveling Isobel - Eileen Cook

Catching Jordan - Miranda Kenneally 

Cracked - K.M. Walton

Bewitching - Alex Flinn *ARC* *Thanks Melina! :D*

Incarnate - Jodi Meadows

The Wood Queen - Karen Mahoney

Why We Broke Up - Daniel Handler

Leave me your link to your IMM so I can check it out! 

:D

-Brad

Book Review: The Mockingbirds - Daisy Whitney

THE MOCKINGBIRDS:

Published: January 2, 2012 (first published November 2, 2010)

Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

Format: Paperback

Page Count: 339 pages

Source: Amazon.com

Some schools have honor codes. Others have handbooks. Themis Academy has the Mockingbirds. 

Themis Academy is a quiet boarding school with an exceptional student body that the administration trusts to always behave the honorable way -- the Themis way. So when Alex Patrick is date-raped during her junior year, she has two options: Stay silent and hope someone helps, or enlist the aid of the Mockingbirds -- a secret society of students dedicating to righting the wrongs of the student body.

In this account of a teenage girl's search for her voice and the courage to use it, Daisy Whitney reminds readers that standing up for someone, especially yourself, is worth the fight.

"I had high hopes for The Mockingbirds, but I was let down in the end due to poor character development."

The Mockingbirds was a book that I was really hoping to like. Unfortunately, I didn't get my way.

Themis Academy is home to a large student body that is expected to behave in a respectful way. But after a concert, Alex Patrick finds herself in a student's room by the name of Carson. Apparently, they had a "fun" night together. But, Alex vaguely remembers what happens. She thens finds out she could have been forced and not had an option or say to give herself to Carson like she did. So, she turns to the Mockingbirds, a secret organization dedicated to bringing innocent students to justice, and bringing guilty students to their knees. 

The Mockingbirds was very unique and very original, and I absolutely loved the ending. But the only problem I had with the book was a MAJOR one that I just couldn't shrug off.

First, the writing style. Fantastic. I loved hearing Daisy Whitney express her imagination through description. Although the characters did bug me for the majority of the book (read the next step for more details), they're voices were sometimes good, but Whitney's descriptions of objects or places were a lot (and I mean a lot) better! Daisy Whitney did a great job with the writing part of The Mockingbirds.

Secondly, the characters. Ugh. I didn't connect with Alex any. I tried so hard, but I found her annoying and very demanding sometimes. I'm not sure why, but I didn't like reading about Alex at all. My favorite character was Martin. He was kind and friendly, and what's even better -- he's on the Mockingbirds! But whenever the characters spoke, I never connected with it or, to be honest, even liked it. 

Then, we have the Mockingbirds. The Mockingbirds were the best part of the book! I loved the idea of a group hidden away in secrecy in a huge academy that bring people to justice. I hate bullying, so to see bullies and horrible people getting what they deserve (what goes around comes back around), it makes me smile. That was the absolute best part of this book. 

Before I wrap this all up, can we talk about the cover change? I'm glad I didn't own this in hardcover, because if I was getting the sequel The Rivals, they wouldn't match! That is my biggest pet peeve EVER. I love my books so much, I want them to match! Publishers and photography teams, can we please just stop this nonsense?

Finally, the novel itself. While The Mockingbirds had some very excellent points, I just can't look the other way about the characters. I really wanted to love this book, but unfortunately, it was a disappointment. 

My Rating:

Book Review: The Iron Witch - Karen Mahoney

THE IRON WITCH:

Published: February 8, 2011

Publisher: Flux

Format: Paperback

Page Count: 289 pages

Source: Amazon.com 

Freak. That's what her classmates call seventeen-year-old Donna Underwood. When she was seven, a horrific fey attack killed her father and drove her mother mad. Donna's own nearly fatal injuries from the assault were fixed my magic -- the iron tattoos branding her hands and arms. The child of alchemists, Donna feels cursed by her magical heritage that destroyed her parents and any chance she had for a normal life. The only thing that keeps her sane and grounded is her relationship with her best friend, Navin Sharma.

When the darkest outcasts of Faerie -- the vicious wood elves -- abduct Navin, Donna has to finally accept her role in the centuries old war between humans and the fey. Assisted by Xan, a gorgeous half-fey dropout with secrets of his own, Donna races to save her friend -- even if it means betraying everything her parents and the alchemist community fought to the death to protect. 

"The Iron Witch was a marvelous fey novel with twists and turns that left me breathless. Karen Mahoney's debut has left an imprint on my mind that has yet to go away!" 

With The Iron Witch, I heard some reviews with people saying that it was "boring" or "underwhelming", and of course, I wanted to find out my opinion. And when I finished this novel, I knew that this fey novel was excellent.

Enter the world of The Iron Witch. Donna Underwood's father died ten years ago fighting to protect his daughter from wood elves. This tragedy drove her mother insane and ultimately led her to being put into an asylum. Fast forward ten years later: Donna wears gloves to hide the iron tattoos that a Wood Monster put into her skin. It's bad enough that all of her classmates call her freak, just imagined what they'd do if they would see iron in her arms, running all the way down to the tips of her fingertips. When Donna and her best friend Navin go to a party, she meets mysterious Xan. She and Xan then start to hang out some, and she finds out that he is half-fey. Then, of all things, Navin is abducted by wood elves. Now, Donna and Xan must find a treasure that the elves' Queen is wanting to have for the safe return of Navin. But will she destroy her family's legacy along the way?

This book was creative and epic. I'm a huge lover of Fey novels (in fact, Need by Carrie Jones is the book that got me into reading again!), and I knew that I would love this book.

First, the writing. Karen Mahoney writes this book in third person, although there is some parts called "Donna Underwood's Journal", which is written in first person. Mahoney's writing style was beautiful. When talking about magical creatures/objects, I feel the need for the author to have a good writing style to actually make me think that these things can actually happen (even though it's fiction, of course). And Karen Mahoney succeeded big time! I loved reading the words off the page, and the writing style was just marvelous.

Next, the characters. This is the part that knocked the book down from a 5-star to a 4-star. My favorite character was Xan. He was sarcastic and quirky and I thought that he was just a really awesome character. Donna was a good character, but I found her a bit whiny at some times and she asks so many questions! When one character (mostly Xan) did one thing, Donna would usually question it. It is good to have a mind of curiosity, but when you ask a lot of questions, maybe you just wait and see what will come of it and be satisfied with it. Navin was a good character, but to be honest, I found him almost invisible sometimes. Like he wasn't part of the story.

Then, there's the setting. I'm not sure why, but with fey novels, I always love the settings! I like how they describe maybe the woods or there's a part where they're in a mansion. This is another part where Karen Mahoney's writing style shines.

Finally, the novel itself. Karen Mahoney's debut novel was a very intriguing story with a beautiful writing style, but unfortunately, it contained a very flawed protagonist.

My Rating:

January Rewind

JANUARY REWIND

This is a video of a look back of all the books I've read in January 2012 with a quick thumbs up, sideways thumb, or thumbs down!

:D

YA Novels Coming Out This Week: January 31

Wanna know what's coming out this week? Here's a list!: 

 Incarnate - Jodi Meadows

Book One in the Newsoul Trilogy

Goodreads | Amazon

 Article 5 - Kristen Simmons 

Book One in the Article 5 series

Goodreads | Amazon

 Lenobia's Vow - P.C. + Kristin Cast

Book Two in the House of Night novellas 

Goodreads | Amazon

 Wings of the Wicked - Courtney Allison Moulton

Book Two in the Angelfire Trilogy 

Goodreads | Amazon

 Destiny and Deception - Shannon Delany 

Book Four in the 13 to Life series

Goodreads | Amazon

 New Girl - Paige Harbison 

Goodreads | Amazon

Harbinger - Sara Wilson Etienne 

Goodreads | Amazon

Book Review: Everybody Sees the Ants - A.S. King

EVERYBODY SEES THE ANTS:

Published: October 3, 2011

Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

Format: Hardcover

Page Count: 282 pages

Source: Library

Lucky Linderman didn't ask for his life. He didn't ask his grandfather not to come home from the Vietnam War. He didn't ask for a father who never got over it. He didn't ask for a mother who keeps pretending their family is fine. And he certainly didn't ask to be the recipient of Nader McMillian's relentless bullying, which has finally gone too far.

Lucky has a secret -- one that helps him wade through the daily dysfunction of his life. Granddad Harry, trapped in the jungles of Laos, has been visiting Lucky in his dreams -- and the dreams just might be real: an alternate reality where he can be whoever he wants to be and his life might still be worth living. But how long can Lucky remain in hiding there before reality forces its way inside? 

"Everybody Sees the Ants was a dark and somewhat humorous story, although some parts did let me down."

All Lucky Linderman did was ask a stupid question. It was for a question survey for a class in school. The question? If you were going to commit suicide, which method would you choose? Now everybody thinks Lucky is suicidal, even though he's not. On top of that is the constant bullying that is being led by Nader McMillian towards him. Lucky describes his mom as a squid: she only stays in the water to stay away from her problems. His dad? He's a turtle: when he's scared, he hides away in his shell from the real world. And ever since he was eight, he travels into his dreams where he meets his Grandpa in the jungles of Laos and tries to bust him out of the jungle, only to fail each time. And now, he's seeing ants that can talk to him about whatever situations he's into. It's about time that Lucky makes his place in the world, before everything around him starts crashing down.

Starting out with Everybody Sees the Ants, I honestly didn't know what to expect. I found this book deal with a very dark, realistic topic of bullying along with a character who doesn't fit in to anywhere, whether it's with being bullied or people he loves turning away from him.

The first thing about this book were the characters. Lucky Linderman was a great character. I felt very sorry for him with all of his troubles, mainly because bullying is up there on my pet-peeve list. When Nader McMillian would bully him, I wanted to jump into the pages of the story, smack Lucky in the face, and tell him to start defending for himself. Our antagonist, Nader McMillian, was a horrible person.  He's so cruel and awful and he's just a horrible villain in the making. There's also another character in named Aunt Jodi who is crazy. Read about her and you'll see. :D

Next, the writing style. I think that this is where the book fell flat for me. I know that it's written from a teenage boy's perspective, but I know sometimes, she could have worked around some words and added some more details into some scenes. It's hard to describe in a blog post. And some language was used in this book that seriously wasn't necessary. You'll know what they are if you read it. I really don't want to put what some sentences were here.

Finally, the novel itself. Sometimes, it pulled at my heartstrings with the sadness and tragedy of bullying, and other times, it just honestly fell flat for me. Overall, A.S. King's junior novel was an good book that I would recommend.

My Rating: