Review: Blood Red Road by Moira Young

Title: Blood Red Road

Author: Moira Young

Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books (Imprint of Simon & Schuster)

Published: June 7, 2011

Pages: 459

My Rating: 3.5/5

Misc.: First in trilogy

 Saba has spent her whole life in Silverlake, a dried-up wasteland ravaged by constant sandstorms. The Wrecker civilization has long been destroyed, leaving only landfills for Saba and her family to scavenge from. That's fine by her, as long as her beloved twin brother Lugh is around. But when a monster sandstorm arrives, along with four cloaked horsemen, Saba's world is shattered. Lugh is captured, and Saba embarks on an epic quest to get him back.

Suddenly thrown into the lawless, ugly reality of the world outside of desolate Silverlake, Saba is lost without Lugh to guide her. So perhaps the most surprising thing of all is what Saba learns about herself: she's a fierce fighter, an unbeatable survivor, and a cunning opponent. And she has the power to take down a corrupt society from the inside. Teamed up with a handsome daredevil named Jack and a gang of girl revolutionaries called the Free Hawks, Saba stages a showdown that will change the course of her own civilization.

Blood Red Road has a searing pace, a poetically minimal writing style, violent action, and an epic love story. Moira Young is one of the most promising and startling new voices in teen fiction.

Synopsis taken from goodreads.

My Review:

I am going to start off by saying that I did not like the beginning of this book.  There's just something about books where the main character is alone and on a long journey that my brain just does not like. I guess it's the lack of contact with other people. Hmm. Maybe. Anyways, I was tempted to just stop reading at one point. But I'm glad I didn't.

The writing style is... different... in this book. While that may bother some people, I actually had no problem with it. I thought it added more to the story. The narrator, Saba, is telling the story as if she were speaking regularly. This means that throughout the book, words are spelled how Saba would pronounce them and sentences are often grammatically incorrect. However, this gave Saba a powerful voice.

Okay, that aside, Saba was a strong character. Which I loved. What I did not love, however, was how she treated other people, like her sister. I kept hoping that at some point in the story, she would actually be nice to someone. I was happy to see her character progress throughout the story. As I said before, I didn't like the beginning of the book. That was partially because of Saba's attitude. But again, I'm glad I kept reading because then I wouldn't have met all the other awesome characters in this book. In all, pretty much every character was kick-ass and tough and just awesome.

What saved the book for me was the action in the second half of the book. This again, was partially due to the kick-ass characters Saba meets. Which includes the dangerous Free Hawks and Jack, who is sarcastic, witty, tough, and just brilliant. I like how the book played out. It didn't end on a cliffhanger, but it definitely left room for a sequel. I'd be willing to check out the sequel and get more of Saba, Jack, and whatever they get themselves into.

Follow Friday

I decided to do this meme. Why not, right?




Question: Name 3 authors that you would love to sit down and spend an hour or a meal with just talking about either their books or get advice on writing from.

Hmm. Okay.

1) John Green. The man is a literary genius. Looking for Alaska is easily one of my favorite books and the book that got me into reading in the first place. After reading that, I immediately wanted to read more of his work. So I did. Plus, his youtube channel with his brother is amazing. DFTBA. 

2) JK Rowling. She is the creater of Harry Potter. What else do I need to say? That's my entire childhood right there. Hogwarts will always be there to welcome me home. <3

3) Richelle Mead. I had to think about this, but in the end, I would love to meet her. Vampire Academy is one of the few series I actually finished and enjoyed every bit of it. Plus, I'd just love to talk to her about the amazing world she created and how she's gonna continue with it in Bloodlines. Ahh I can't wait to read that.

So that's pretty much it for me. What about you? What authors would you like to meet?

Review: Wildefire by Karsten Knight

Title: Wildefire

Author: Karsten Knight
Publisher: Simon & Schuster

Published: July 26, 2011

Pages: 400

My Rating: 3.9/5

Misc.: First in trilogy

 Every flame begins with a spark.

Ashline Wilde is having a rough sophomore year. She’s struggling to find her place as the only Polynesian girl in school, her boyfriend just cheated on her, and now her runaway sister, Eve, has decided to barge back into her life. When Eve’s violent behavior escalates and she does the unthinkable, Ash transfers to a remote private school nestled in California’s redwoods, hoping to put the tragedy behind her. But her fresh start at Blackwood Academy doesn’t go as planned. Just as Ash is beginning to enjoy the perks of her new school—being captain of the tennis team, a steamy romance with a hot, local park ranger—Ash discovers that a group of gods and goddesses have mysteriously enrolled at Blackwood…and she’s one of them. To make matters worse, Eve has resurfaced to haunt Ash, and she’s got some strange abilities of her own. With a war between the gods looming over campus, Ash must master the new fire smoldering within before she clashes with her sister one more time… And when warm and cold fronts collide, there’s guaranteed to be a storm.

Synopsis taken from goodreads.

My Review:

This book was a pleasant surprise. I'll admit the last book based on mythology I've read was the first Percy Jackson book when I was in seventh grade, so I don't really have that much to compare this book too. However Wildefire had most of the elements I'm looking for in a good book; a strong kick-ass main character, action, and an intense back story.

After reading the first two pages, it was clear that Ash was not someone you wanted to cross. She has a temper, and she's independent. Yes, she is violent at times. Yes, she swears and drinks, as do other characters. Will that bother some people? Probably. But in my opinion, these things are not that uncommon in teenage lives as people would like to believe. Karsten Knight didn't go overboard with the violence/swearing/drinking in Wildefire. I think he created pretty realistic teenagers--uhh, aside from the whole gods/goddesses aspect. Anyways, it was nice to have a strong minded female main character instead of a whiny girl. Besides Ash's kick-ass-ness, I was also happy to see that the 'side' characters, if you can call them that, were crucial to the story. Ash's friends were not only diverse in ethnicity, which is not something I find in books a lot nowadays, but they each had their own unique personalities. And where I loved the main characters, I loved to hate the villians. Eve and Ash's backstory made for some twisted family dynamics. Where Ash was violent at times, but she had morals. Eve was just... well, not so much. 

Though I loved all of that, I just had two problems with this book. First, the beginning of the book was kinda slow for me. It wasn't until about 100 pages in that things really started to pick up. Second, the romance. I just couldn't find it believable. It felt a little too much like instalove, and honestly, a bit creepy in the beginning. I felt like I missed the spark that ignited their relationship.

But those things aside, I really did enjoy this book. I'd recommend this book to anyone interested in a good mythology read, or anyone who just loves a little action in their book. I'll definitely pick up my own copy of this book and the sequel when it comes out.

Review: Across the Universe by Beth Revis

Title: Across the Universe

Author: Beth Revis
Publisher: Razorbill

Published: January 11, 2011

Pages: 398

My Rating: 4.5/5

Misc.: Hardcover

 Seventeen-year-old Amy joins her parents as frozen cargo aboard the vast spaceship Godspeed and expects to awaken on a new planet, three hundred years in the future. Never could she have known that her frozen slumber would come to an end fifty years too soon and that she would be thrust into the brave new world of a spaceship that lives by its own rules.

Amy quickly realizes that her awakening was no mere computer malfunction. Someone - one of the few thousand inhabitants of the spaceship - tried to kill her. And if Amy doesn't do something soon, her parents will be next.

Now, Amy must race to unlock Godspeed's hidden secrets. But out of her list of murder suspects, there's only one who matters: Elder, the future leader of the ship and the love she could never have seen coming.


Synopsis taken from GoodReads.

My Review:
From all of the hype going around about this book, my expectations were high. I'm happy to say that the book did not disappoint. Beth Revis created  a wonderful novel about the future and what is in store for us humans. In her book, important people are being frozen and loaded onto a spaceship that is set to land 300 years in the future on a new planet. That being said, something goes wrong when our main character Amy gets unplugged 50 years early. The book is set on Godspeed, the spaceship.

What I loved about this book is just how carefully the plot was planned out. There were twists, turns, secrets, and shocking revelations, but by the end of the book, everything fit together perfectly. The world that Beth Revis created was so unique, down to its inhabitants. The people living on the ship at first shocked me because they're so different from people today, but then I realized, we're completely different from people 250 years ago too. Learning about the culture and the Elder/Eldest system was one of the things that kept me hooked.

However, I felt that the characters kept me from giving this book a 5/5 rating. I didn't really see the connection between Amy and Elder. Also, it didn't seem like being frozen for 250 years affected Amy that much. I thought there should have been at least a little bit to show for that. Although, it was nice to see Elder grow as a character throughout the book. Also, it was nice to see that this book was one of those books where the side characters were more than just side characters. Harley, Elder's best friend, played a big role. Though I liked the characters, I would have liked to see a little more sparks between them, you know?

Overall, I thought this book was great read. It was unique and definitely unlike anything I've read before. I would recommend it to readers who love dystopian or sci-fy, or even romance. I can't believe we have to wait all the way until January 2012 for A Million Suns though D:

Review: Divergent by Veronica Roth

Title: Divergent

Author: Veronica Roth
Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books
Published: May 3, 2011
Pages: 487
My Rating: 5/5
Misc.: Hardcover, first in trilogy

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. 

Debut author Veronica Roth bursts onto the literary scene with the first book in the Divergent series—dystopian thrillers filled with electrifying decisions, heartbreaking betrayals, stunning consequences, and unexpected romance.

Synopsis taken from GoodReads.  

My Review:
First off, I would like to say that this was probably one of my favorite reads of 2011, if not my favorite. That being said, lets get into the review.


Divergent has everything I look for in a book: strong characters, well developed setting, a good plot, and nice pacing. There was plenty of action, mystery, and even some romance. The first thing the grabbed my attention about this book was the world, and how it was divided into five different factions. I thought that there was no way a government like that would work, and for that reason I decided to continue reading to see how Veronica Roth would play this out. And I am so glad I did. Once the world is introduced to the readers, the story is propelled forward and we are thrust into Beatrice's thoughts, worries, and life. 


Which leads me to the characters. Each character in the book was so well developed that they all had their own distinct personalities. I felt that each character mentioned was important to the story, even if they are only briefly mentioned. Now, if I love the minor characters this much, let me express how much I love the main characters. I thought that Tris and her love interest (not gonna mention who because that would be kind of spoilery) were PERFECT. Nothing was rushed and everything developed naturally between them. One thing I loved the most was that her love interest had flaws, just as a normal person would. He was not a fairy-tale prince. He had his own problems to deal with and a past that came along with them. He was real. Not something I come across very often in books lately. And Tris, the main character, was such a strong female lead. I felt as if her problems were my own, and I wanted her to succeed. I found myself caring about what happened to these fictional characters. I love it when an author can make the reader connect with the characters like that.


Along with the characters, the plot was also very well-developed. I felt as if the book were a puzzle, and with every new twist, a piece fell into place as something new was discovered. The mystery of why Tris was in danger pushed the curious part of me to read on while the action pushed the anxious-to-know-what-will-happen part of me to do the same. I felt as if there was a balance between the mystery, action, and romance in this book that allowed it to fall together so nicely. It allowed for an amazing read, and I cannot wait until the sequel comes out.


I also wanted to mention how this book has been compared to The Hunger Games a lot. However, I don't think that the two really can be compared. They're completely different stories. The one similarity between them, in my opinion, is that they are both set in a dystopian world. Other than that, the stories are two completely different works. Both books were amazing, but I don't see how they can be compared.