Impulse

August 26, 2015August 26, 2015 brittanymariereads4 Comments

Impulse

Published By: Margaret K. McElderry Books

Read: August 20, 2015

Rating: ♥♥♥♥♥

Goodreads Synopsis

Sometimes you don’t wake up. But if you happen to, you know things will never be the same.

Three lives, three different paths to the same destination: Aspen Springs, a psychiatric hospital for those who have attempted the ultimate act — suicide.

Vanessa is beautiful and smart, but her secrets keep her answering the call of the blade.

Tony, after suffering a painful childhood, can only find peace through pills.

And Conner, outwardly, has the perfect life. But dig a little deeper and find a boy who is in constant battle with his parents, his life, himself.

In one instant each of these young people decided enough was enough. They grabbed the blade, the bottle, the gun — and tried to end it all. Now they have a second chance, and just maybe, with each other’s help, they can find their way to a better life — but only if they’re strong and can fight the demons that brought them here in the first place.

I read several of Ellen Hopkins books in junior high/high school and I remember absolutely loving them. It has been almost ten years since I have read any of her books so I wasn’t sure if I would enjoy them like I used to. I was not disappointed and was so happy to find that I still think her books are just amazing.

Ellen Hopkin’s books are dark, they are not the type of book you pick up if you are looking for a light read. She discusses hard topics like drug use, sexual abuse, mental illness and suicide. She does it in such a wonderful way using a unique writing style. Her writing is written like poetry but reads like prose. It is a different style from anything else that I have read. The writing style makes the book fly by. Once I picked it up, I couldn’t put it down.

Vanessa, Tony and Conner all end up at Aspen Springs when they attempt to commit suicide. Each of their paths are very different but each led to a suicide attempt. As the point of view changes between each of the main characters we are able to learn about their pasts and take steps towards a happier future. This book was an honest and realistic account of depression and suicide. It was heartbreaking at times and full of hope at others. I highly recommend reading any of Ellen Hopkin’s books.

2015 Reading Challenge- A Book From An Author You Love That You Haven’t Read Yet

Recommended for Fans of: Realistic Fiction, Young Adult, and Poetry

Suggested to Read Next: Impulse

Hunter

August 23, 2015August 17, 2015 brittanymariereads4 Comments

Hunter

Written By: Mercedes Lackey

Published By: Disney-Hyperion

Read: August 8-9, 2015

Rating: ♥♥♥

Goodreads Synopsis

Centuries ago, the barriers between our world and the Otherworld were slashed open allowing hideous fantastical monsters to wreak havoc; destroying entire cities in their wake. Now, people must live in enclosed communities, behind walls that keep them safe from the evil creatures constantly trying to break in. Only the corps of teen Hunters with lightning reflexes and magical abilities can protect the populace from the daily attacks.

Joyeaux Charmand is a mountain girl from a close knit village who comes to the big city to join the Hunters. Joy thinks she is only there to perform her civic duty and protect the capitol Cits, or civilians, but as cameras follow her every move, she soon learns that the more successful she is in her hunts, the more famous she becomes.

With millions of fans watching her on reality TV, Joy begins to realize that Apex is not all it seems. She is forced to question everything she grew up believing about the legendary Hunters and the very world she lives in. Soon she finds that her fame may be part of a deep conspiracy that threatens to upend the protective structure built to keep dark magic out. The monsters are getting in and it is up to Joy to find out why.

When I received Hunter from NetGalley I looked through some of the reviews on Goodreads and they made me so nervous to read it. There were some good reviews here and there but most of them were at best mediocre. Now here I am writing my review and I am torn. I am giving this book a three out of five simply because my feelings on it are so mixed.

I actually really enjoyed the story. I thought that it was a fun new take on the often over played Dystopian genre. When the Diseray occurred, which is their apocalyptic event that changed the world, it opened up our world to creatures from the Otherside. The Othersiders are based on pretty much every mythological creature that you can think of. I thought this was really fun and it leaves endless possibilities for the rest of the series. At times it was a little overwhelming trying to keep track of all of the different characters and creatures but overall I really liked the story. I will definitely read the rest of the series.

As much as I enjoyed the story, the writing was very mediocre. The descriptions were lacking and at times repetitive. There were a few times when the poor word choice really detracted from the story. I think that I would have rated this book higher if there were some small improvements on the writing.

2015 Reading Challenge- A Book With Magic

Recommended for Fans of: Fantasy, Science Fiction, Adventure and Young Adult

Suggested to Read Next: Enclave

Penryn and the End of Days

August 20, 2015August 20, 2015 brittanymariereads2 Comments

Angelfall & World After & End of Days

Written By: Susan Ee

Published By: Hodder and Stoughton and Skyscape

Read: August 10-15, 2015

Rating: ♥♥♥

Goodreads Synopsis- Angelfall

It’s been six weeks since angels of the apocalypse descended to demolish the modern world. Street gangs rule the day while fear and superstition rule the night. When warrior angels fly away with a helpless little girl, her seventeen-year-old sister Penryn will do anything to get her back.

Anything, including making a deal with an enemy angel.

Raffe is a warrior who lies broken and wingless on the street. After eons of fighting his own battles, he finds himself being rescued from a desperate situation by a half-starved teenage girl.

Traveling through a dark and twisted Northern California, they have only each other to rely on for survival. Together, they journey toward the angels’ stronghold in San Francisco where she’ll risk everything to rescue her sister and he’ll put himself at the mercy of his greatest enemies for the chance to be made whole again.

Goodreads Synopsis- World’s End

In this sequel to the bestselling fantasy thriller, Angelfall, the survivors of the angel apocalypse begin to scrape back together what’s left of the modern world.

When a group of people capture Penryn’s sister Paige, thinking she’s a monster, the situation ends in a massacre. Paige disappears. Humans are terrified. Mom is heartbroken.

Penryn drives through the streets of San Francisco looking for Paige. Why are the streets so empty? Where is everybody? Her search leads her into the heart of the angels’ secret plans where she catches a glimpse of their motivations, and learns the horrifying extent to which the angels are willing to go.

Meanwhile, Raffe hunts for his wings. Without them, he can’t rejoin the angels, can’t take his rightful place as one of their leaders. When faced with recapturing his wings or helping Penryn survive, which will he choose?

Goodreads Synopsis- End of Days

End of Days is the explosive conclusion to Susan Ee’s bestselling Penryn & the End of Days trilogy.

After a daring escape from the angels, Penryn and Raffe are on the run. They’re both desperate to find a doctor who can reverse the twisted changes inflicted by the angels on Raffe and Penryn’s sister. As they set off in search of answers, a startling revelation about Raffe’s past unleashes dark forces that threaten them all.

When the angels release an apocalyptic nightmare onto humans, both sides are set on a path toward war. As unlikely alliances form and strategies shift, who will emerge victorious? Forced to pick sides in the fight for control of the earthly realm, Raffe and Penryn must choose: Their own kind, or each other?

This is the first time that I have ever reviewed an entire series in one post. I flew through the series in less than a week and I decided that instead of posting three separate reviews I would just smush it all into one post. My actual rating of each individual book is the same for each one, which I would say is about 3.5/5.

The series as a whole was a very easy read. The writing isn’t going to blow your mind, but the story will pull you in and keep you interested from the first page to the last. I was constantly surprised with the direction that the story was taking. The story was just so creative and even though it was full of angels, it never became overly religious.

The absolute best part of this story was the unique cast of characters. Penryn and her family were so much fun to read about. Rarely do we read about people with mental or physical disabilities in dystopian novels. It is just assumed that they don’t survive, but Penryn’s family is full of fighters. There were so many different dimensions to each of the characters. Susan Ee is a master of character development.

If you haven’t read this series I recommend that you do. It is a fast and fun read!

2015 Reading Challenge- A Book With Non-Human Characters

Recommended for Fans of: Fantasy, Dystopia, Romance and Young Adult

Suggested to Read Next: Daughter of Smoke & Bone

Three Months

August 17, 2015August 17, 2015 brittanymariereads16 Comments

brittanymariereads is three months old!

The past three months have been such a learning experience. At times it has been a struggle trying to balance everything that comes with blogging. I want to be able to give you guys new content as often as possible but not at the sake of reading. Reading is what I love and why I blog, so I am working on better managing my time. So bear with me until I get a better handle on things. As always I appreciate you guys and all of your support!