Vengeance Road by Erin Bowman

Erin Bowman gets down to the nitty gritty!

 

Kate Thompson is out for blood and vengeance when a gang kills her father, and she's not afraid to pull the trigger. Along the way she picks up a motley crew each seeking their own goals, but she learns a little from all of them along the way.

I'm just going to start out by saying how much I love Kate! She is a gun slinging badass. This girl has a mean shot and she doesn't let anything stop her! Don't expect much humor in this book, it's definitely on the darker side as a book with vengeance and gold should be. I enjoyed the romantic aspect of the book, it wasn't too overdone, and I didn't see the plot twist coming. It's a bit of a doozy, let me tell you.

I really enjoyed this book, there's no time for lagging in this one. The cover art is amazing, too! I hope to see more great books coming for Bowman!

5 stars

Queen of Shadows by Sarah J. Maas

My current favorite book of this series!!

(fourth installment after Heir of Fire)

Time to get down ladies and gents. Things don't take too long to progress in this book because everyone is currently at war. Celaena seeks to help her Kingdom by taking down it's evil King but now a new threat stands in her way; her once ally and now possessed enemy, Prince Dorian. Torn between the mercy of saving and the mercy of killing, she must face truths and find ways to think ahead of her enemies! So much drama to be had! Past enemies become friends, past romances become reluctant allies, current romances become steamier. (Helloooo bathroom scene!) More intense battle scenes and dangerous foe!

Things really take a big step in this book, a lot of the old history in the series is also brought forth to be dealt with so make sure you know about the back stories! Plenty of drama and action to keep readers strung along, I dare not reveal a single morsel in fear I shall spoil the delight of this book for you. What I liked least about this book was again, the POV of the witches, though I found it more tolerable than before since a new character is introduced and we get some more back stories. Eventually these two worlds collide, definitely making it more interesting so I'm intrigued to what will happen next!

 5 stars

 

Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones

Absolutely magical! As enjoyable as the movie!

Howl's Moving Castle is one of my favorite Miyazaki films so when I found out that there was a book that it originated from, I was super excited and decided to pick it up. Diana Wynne Jones does a great job of making this book exciting and unpredictable. Her characters are quirky in their own ways and have character flaws which makes them all the more endearing. In some ways the book is similar to the movie, but in most ways it's different but not in a bad way!

Howl is just as vain as in the movie, and Sophie just a stubborn, but even more so in the book. They also tend to squabble a lot more in the book which is highly entertaining. We also get to hear more of Howl's record of heart breaking in this book, and the main force of conflict is between Howl and the Witch of the Waste. The King merely seeks his aid in the search for his lost brother Prince Justin, and his court magician Sulliman. (Who is a man!)

This was a fun book, and truly magical. Destined to be a classic for all ages!

 

5 stars

 

Visions by Kelley Armstrong

 Ugh, I am so torn!!!

(sequel to Omens)

I absolutely loved this book, just like the first! While Olivia managed to clear her parent's names of two murders of the eight, there are still plenty of mystery ahead. Such being what about the other four murders and what secrets does Cainsville contain?

Gabriel and Olivia continue their partnership, despite some hitches along the way, and Ricky has made a more prominent place in the story this time around which leads to my internal conflict. Ricky is such a charming character being a dashing and caring man. We can't help but like him, but seeing as I am Team Gabriel, I found myself not exactly thrilled by Ricky's presence. But at the same time, how can one hate some good steamy romance?! What is a girl to do?

 

Despite the blossoming romance, we also get to know the secrets of Cainsville, and to what exactly Olivia is. Cainsville is definitely not all that it seems... prepare yourself! There's plenty of mystery, murder, and omens ahead! Tread carefully, fellow readers!  

 

Lauren - 4 stars

Heir of Fire by Sarah J. Maas

  Wow, Wow, WOW!!! Sooo much better! 
                           (third installment after Crown of Midnight)




I was agonizing over the first two books. It would be so good one second then so angsty, dramatic, and cheesy. This one started out with a little angst with Celaena being in a new country with no allies, but it progressively got better.

Celaena takes on the name she was born with, Aelin, and with this change she morphs into womanhood, becoming more comfortable with herself, her powers, heritage, and her role as Queen. She aims for change, and keeps a promise made to her dead friend in her heart. But it was moving to see her make personal progress with the troubles of her life and past. Not to mention, we get to meet Rowan.

Aelin's strict, battle harden, elven teacher. Yum. Team Rowan, please!
Besides the delicious side dish we are introduced to, we get to follow a new character line of blood thirsty witches. I found their story to be a tad distracting when I was more enamored with Aelin's, but I suppose it will lead to something important...eventually.

It does give hints as to what Dorian's father is up to, (nothing good, obviously). There is also some personal progression with Dorian and Chaol. We're left with a giant, frustrating cliffhanger, alas but I was quite thrilled with where Maas is taking her tale!

Lauren - 5 stars

My review for Queen of Shadows! 

Uprooted by Naomi Novik

Easily the best book this year!!

How does one describe a book so magical and captivating that you will stay up until 6am to read it?

 (Guilty as charged.)

Uprooted was sexy, intriguing, honest, and just all out well written and constructed.
Like a drink of cold water when one is thirsty for something more, I was enraptured and satisfied by this book.

What will you get when you buy said book? 

A delicious cover, an adventure, unique world building, complex and wonderful characters, and best of all an unforgettable experience.

Nieshka is a wild, headstrong, nature loving girl who is whisked away into a world of magic. Counter that with the Dragon: an uptight, magician who adores beauty and perfection, and prepare yourself to be amused as they pair up to counter an evil, living forest that contains terrible horrors within.

 Novik doesn't keep the book PG by any means, which helps make the book feel more real. She composes her literature to unfold naturally with smooth progression, making it easy to fall into pace and become one with Nieshka's world. I dare not reveal more and ruin any surprises for you, but I must insist if you are a lover of reading, give this one a try. I do not think you will regret it.

Lauren - 5 stars

Dearest by Alethea Kontis

 Endearing and sweet! 

 (third book after Hero)

 Just like that the magical trilogy of an oddball family is over. *sniff* It was nice while it lasted though.

Finally, it is Friday's chance for romance! Things get interesting when she stumbles upon seven slumbering men in a tall tower. She must help them turn back into humans permanently before it is too late for there is a Kingdom at risk, and truths to be revealed.

This story plays on the Wild Swans and Goosegirl tale that Kontis cleverly combines into a heartwarming and tragic sibling tale. The magic was enchanting, the romantic cliches adorable, and some of the harsh realities were eye opening since not everyone can have a perfect happily ever after. Dearest was definitely a good end, for our sweet Friday finally finds love and grows into her unique gifts. Alas, I couldn't help but feel that so many questions of the series were left entirely unanswered. 

Luckily though, I recently discovered that release of Trix's tale! I'll have to read that soon and figure out what happened to our playful, adopted fairy child!

All in all though, Kontis did a fun twist on the usual mish mash of fairy tales, and I was thoroughly entertained. I hope to see more from Kontis in the future!

Lauren - 4 stars

Blue Lily, Lily Blue by Maggie Stiefvater

 Once again, I've devoured this series...

(sequel to The Dream Thieves)

As usual, Stiefvater leaves me craving more with each book. I feel like this series is like a crime, and I only get clues piece by piece and its so deliciously frustrating!

 We pick up where our group left off; with a lot of drama. Blue's mother is missing, Blue and Adam's relationship has been injured, while Blue and Gansey's relationship becomes more desirable and forbidden. Noah's ghost status is still unstable and unpredictable, and Adam and Ronan's relationship is still left in question as they both struggle to understand their new found abilities.

Whew. Take a second to absorb all that.

We get to meet some new characters in this book, which really changes the game play this time around. Readers also get to discover more about the Raven King, but also more about another mysterious entity similar to the Raven King but much more ominous and evil who should remain unawakened. To add to the already building tension of this series, Stiefvater leaves this book with a cliffhanger that will leave you feeling robbed. 

Lauren - 5 stars

 

I am absolutely craving the next book! Bring on The Raven King! 

Trial By Fire by Josephine Angelini

Alternate universes and witches? 

Sign me up!

I found Trial by Fire to be interesting and intriguing with it's tale of alternate universes with a twist of magic. As we all know, our heroine Lily ends up in a different universe where there is another version of her, who is powerful and supposedly cruel. This part of the book is where the story gets interesting. At first though, as much as I hate to say it, Lily is completely and 100% a pathetic Mary Jane. Sick and weakly, and hung up romantically on an obviously douche-y best friend, when Lily finally left her universe I could only hope that she would get it together and woman up!

It took a little time, and some 'woe is me' moments, but I was happy to see Lily start to come into her own, and become open to her unique powers. There were a couple typical things that I felt could've been more refined, for example Lily discovers that she can speak to her sister in this new universe through her mind. Guess what they call it? Mind-speak. Surely there could be a better name for it?
 

Despite this though this new world is fascinating, with it's magical willstones that define their owners and become such a part of them, that it's painful and/or intimate to touch another's stone. Other unique points were that their ideals were different from ours as in nudity does not faze them, and their world has monsters that are disgusting, terrifying, and carnivorous.

There are sisterly bonds of love, dark secrets, possible universes linking together, an ominous and ongoing war, and of course a sexy love interest, Rowan. Who could ask for more? The ending left me feeling slightly confused, nervous, and yet still somewhat excited. I can only hope that Angelini will introduce more of this magical world and an even stronger more independent heroine in her sequel!

Lauren - 4 stars

Coming this September! 

The Nightmare Dilemma by Mindee Arnett

Girly, badass, and full of trouble!

 (sequel to The Nightmare Affair)

Dusty and Eli are back! Be prepared for more mystery and more whodunnit fun! Tensions are rising in Arkwell Academy with the magical restrictions being gone, and a student found assaulted with fingers pointing every which way. Telling apart friend and foe becomes difficult, and magic kind starts taking sides against each other. Drama arises for our duo when they find out Dusty's ex is being released and is returning to the Academy.

While the book was fun and the mystery good, we sisters cannot help but have raised eyebrows (and not in a good way) at the part where the adults entrusted the super secret, ultra-important mission to the teenaged girl. “It’s all on you now. We can’t trust anybody else, young teenaged girl with impulse control issues.”

Not to mention the super cliched cop-out that Arnett pulled near the end. It made one of us want to vomit, it made the other want to put a bullet in one's head, it made both of us want to punch someone in the face...the point is it was terrible. It was a PUH-LEASSSE moment and we can't help but wonder why, oh why, Arnett does this to her poor readers.This hexy twist lowered our ratings. 

(P.S. It's getting harder to forgive you of these cruelities. *sniff*)

Dominique - 4 stars

Lauren - 3.5 stars

Coming out in 2015!

The Nightmare Affair by Mindee Arnett

This is our very first review as Two Sister's, Two Cents! Thank you for reading and for your patience! We'll be editing the other reviews as we go along. ;)

Fun, fast paced, and interesting!

  

 It's a well written book that is similar to Hex Hall, or Harry Potter meets Vampire Academy, with the main scenery being based on a school for mythical creatures. Destiny, or preferably Dusty, is our main heroine in a story filled with awkward chest feedings, typical attractive and annoying female rivals, unpopularity, strange occurrences, and duh, duh, DUHHHH....murder.

It isn't easy being a creature who feeds on people's dreams, and Dusty really struggles in life as her Nightmare kind are ostracized as evil and manipulative. It becomes especially complicated when it is discovered that when paired up, she and Eli (human turned dream buddy) can see prophetic dreams. This ends up being handy when it comes to solving the mystery and discovering 'whodunnit' rests upon her and Eli's shoulders. 

We must applaud Arnett for bringing together high school and high stakes into a highly entertaining read. Arnett's concept on Nightmares was unique and interesting, and there were some fun twists thrown in as well! We may have waited the whole book for some romantic progression between certain someones, but sometimes good things are worth waiting for. (Although waiting is annoying. P.S. We forgive you.)   

 Dominique - 4 stars            

 Lauren - 3.5 stars

Follow our review for The Nightmare Dilemma!

Never Fade by Alexandra Bracken

5 stars

(sequel to The Darkest Minds)

Such an amazing sequel, I want to kick myself for putting it off for so long!

We pick up where we left off in the previous book but some time has passed. Ruby is now an official member of the Children's League, and has become much more comfortable with her powers compared to how out of control she was before.

She works for the League doing a variety of tasks, mostly unpleasant. Whether its missions to help attain goods for the League, or questioning prisoners aggressively, Ruby does what she needs to do though Liam and friends are a constant on her mind.

We get to meet a few new people, mostly people from Ruby's team. We have the sweet and loveable Jude though he can be annoying, to the rather bitchy but stunning beauty, Vida. We also get to meet Liam's older brother but with his arrival comes bad news: Liam is unknowingly carrying information that is important to his brother, and possibly vital to the League, which puts Ruby in a situation since she sacrificed everything to protect him. 

Things become especially complicated when Ruby finds that there are untrustworthy members of the League that have no problem killing children or any one who gets in their way of their higher goals. The story once again takes on an on the run theme, as Ruby seeks the information Liam carries in order to protect him while keeping out of the reach of the dangerous clutches of the rogue League members. 

Readers unite with old friends, meet new enemies, and encounter old ones as well. The ending of the book leaves off in a triumphant and dangerous cliffhanger that was absolutely brilliant. The third book, In the Afterlight, should be released this year!

Heaven's Queen by Rachel Bach

5 stars

(trilogy for Honor's Knight)

What an ending.

It was honestly a whammy of a finisher, and with this final book the Paradox trilogy has earned it's way to keeper on my bookshelf.

The action and spunk continues as Devi seeks justice for the daughters, a cure for herself, and aims to solve the dilemma and mystery of the phantoms.  She is on the run from nearly everyone, but this time she is not so alone. This book was more pleasing in the romantic aspect, and even has an eye-watering moment. 

The action follows up not too far after and we even get a bit of a drama bomb near the beginning of the book. 

The most intense battle and flee scene in my opinion was near the end involving nearly all important and hard-core characters! I dare not reveal a single moment so I don't ruin it but the fight even involves the phantoms, and Maat so look forward to that!

Rachel Bach has written an awesome trilogy full of passion, action, and girl power. (Hell yeah!) So what's not to love?

Honor's Knight by Rachel Bach

5 stars

(sequel to Fortune's Pawn)

Applause for Rachel Bach for such an action packed series! The sequel was made to not disappoint as we continue where we left off but with more questions and more drama!

Now that Devi is missing her memories, she finds herself frequently confused. If not by why her memory is suddenly blank, then her unexplained disgust for Rupert the cook, what happened for her to have such a huge gap in her mind and why she is seeing little glowing creatures.

Besides our heroine's internal struggle, there is the constant threat of the Fool's trouble attracting reputation that keeps her on her toes and in constant motion and along the way Devi begins to discover new information about the enemy. The more she learns the more the Fool and it's crew grow in suspicion and appear to be more than they seem...

I feel readers only scratched the surface with Fortune's Pawn, we gain more information about the mysterious phantoms, what is up with the Captain's quiet and unusual daughter, and just what is going on underneath the surface of the Fool? Be ready because you will be blown away. I can only fall on my knees in silent thanks that Rachel Bach is a kind author who released the third book a month later.

(Review for Heaven's Queen)

The Shadow Throne by Jennifer A. Nielsen

4 stars
(Trilogy to The Runaway King)

An amazing conclusion to this trilogy!

And it was all done in classic Jaron style! I was rather impressed with how Jaron managed to work his way out of some tough situations, especially with his still injured leg, and how his friends were there for him in his most dire times of need and were extremely loyal.

Jaron is facing several enemies and finds himself quite short of the army he needs in order to face them. What else is there to be done if you're lacking brawn, except to outsmart with brains!

We get to see some fine strategy on Jaron's behalf, and losses too.

Most of all I was touched by the journey of this series. I watched a young rebellious boy go from the streets, to a Prince in an unwelcoming Kingdom, to a King defending his Throne, loyal subjects, and the people he considers family.

It was a delightfully strategic book with plenty of struggle and although I felt that this final book was missing just a touch of Jaron's clever pizzazz, it was still thoroughly enjoyable and I cannot wait for another book from Nielsen.

Rebel Belle by Rachel Hawkins

 

4 stars

Such a fun and adorable book!

I was nervous for this one for several reasons, one being that our main character was a Southern belle, and I was waiting to see if Harper Price would be anything like Sophie Mercer from Rachel Hawkin's previous series, Hex Hall. To my delight, our heroine was one of a kind.

Harper Price is the definition of perfection down to her petite and bright sounding name. She is the kind of girl that most girls either admired, hated, or both as she is highly successful, a perfectionist, and has a hand in every club, event, and is without a doubt Homecoming Queen. 

Harper's almost perfect world is turned upside down when she ends up at the wrong place at the wrong time, and inherits Paladin guardian/warrior powers. She also finds out that as her job as Paladin, she is forced to protect the one person she despises most; David Stark.

It seems David is more involved than even he knows, and the action and mystery get intense, let me tell you! It took me a bit to adjust to Harper's do good attitude, but I found myself growing fond of her fierce spirit, and occasional sarcasm in her attitude. David is especially lovable with his wit and eccentric dressing style! The two together make for several laughs, and heartwarming moments. 

Red Rising by Pierce Brown

4.5 stars

I was a serious sucker for this cover. Dramatic wings? Yes, please!

A book that actually surprised me!

As mentioned on the cover, This book is a nearly perfect mix between Hunger Games and Ender's Game. Except people are classified as colors. 

Be warned, it takes a little bit for the story to pick up, so hang in there, because you won't regret it!

Darrow is a hero that you can't help but admire as he climbs the ranks in this tragic tale. His back story is one of hardship right from the beginning as he is a poor, hungry miner among his fellow people who are also suffering from the short end of the stick. Believing that some day their sacrifice will help make Mars habitable for future colonies you can imagine his anger when he discovers it is all for naught as they are considered merely slaves for the "upper classes," and that Mars has been lived on for quite a long time.

Darrow seeks revenge with the help of a rebel group, by taking on the disguise of a Gold, the highest rank of color in society, in order to earn the power he needs to complete his goals. 

I honestly expected something boring when I learned that Darrow was to enter a Gold's school. Classrooms, government, history, all that boring political stuff, right?  Imagine my surprise when he is forced to kill a fellow student with his bare hands in order to move on into a bloodier arena; a battlefield of strategic warfare.

The story itself was constantly exciting and yet horrifying, as we uncover secrets, experimentation, and how far humanity will go before they're simply monsters instead of men. There is an element of rape in here, so be warned. Nothing to horribly graphic, but it's there. 

I'm dying for next step of Darrow's story, because I'm honestly not sure what will happen next! 

Tune in, readers!

The Unbound by Victoria Schwab

5 stars

Love the matching theme cover, I must say!

(sequel to The Archived)

No sequel trauma here! What a knockout!!

Back with our independent heroine Mac, we start off with a new beginning, a new territory: school. Mackenzie is trying to cope with the trauma she experienced in the previous book with Owen, while attempting to take control of her life. Easier said than done in her case.

She finds it of course difficult since she suffers from morbid night terrors involving Owen that start to bleed into her waking life making her wonder if she's slowly going insane. What's especially difficult is that she can't show weaknesses right now since her job as a Keeper has been put on the line. 

To add to the mystery and chaos of it all people are disappearing and their only connection is to Mackenzie. 

Dun, dun, dunnn!

The Unbound round house kicked me in the face with awesomeness. We get more character development, more action, more mystery, and more layers of the "Archive" onion peeled away to reveal that there is more to this library of the dead than we could have ever hoped for...

For fellow Mac and Wes fans, I'm pleased to announce that they grow much closer in this book! (Finally!) 

Once again, I'm left dying for the next in the series, because everything was raw and intense. You feel Mac's pain, anxiety, and terror throughout the book and the ending leaves such promise for the third.

Fragile Spirits by Mary Lindsey

3.5 stars

Such a unique cover!

(companion to Shattered Souls)

It felt so good to be back in Mary Lindsey's world of ghosts, Speaker's, and Protector's!

Such a unique little world that I, as well as other readers, got to be a part of. I admit that I longed to see more of the council but alas.

This was a really great companion, and it doesn't take long for things to get started. We begin in the book meeting Paul, a Protector. Fans of Alden and Lenzi from the previous book, will be pleased to hear that we get to see them quite frequently since Paul has been acting as their back up. 

It isn't too far into the book that we find out Smith is still at large, and that Paul will be finally be pairing up with a Speaker. To his shock he gets a rather prickly Vivienne. 

She is completely goth, from her black nails, bright pink hair, and torn stockings and yet everyone just cannot help but love her. I especially loved her simply for being goth! It was a lovely twist and made Vivienne appealing since she sounded dangerous and exotic. I also began to appreciate her Speaker method which was a mix between playing it cool, even though she was scared at times, and taking no shit even from Malevolent spirits. 

Here is where I felt a little like the book fell into the insta-romance department. Their relationship as Protector and Speaker is rocky since Paul tends to follow the rule book and Vivienne breaks said rules. But after one day of working together to take care of a border-line Malevolent, there's suddenly this connection they didn't have before. Trust I could understand, but it wasn't just that but this instant attraction and strong emotions for both of them towards each other.

More development! More character building! 

I need more than one day on the job and Paul covering her ass when shit goes down! In defense, I did find they meshed well together and the action scenes of the book were really good. 

The final showdown involving Smith was climatic, but it felt a bit too easy at the same time.

There were some serious topics at play in the book, like abuse and poverty. Learning to let go and open your heart to others despite your fears, and also that revenge isn't always as sweet as it seems. 

All this combined really made for a great book, and I cannot wait for more from Mary Lindsey!

Dark Road to Darjeeling by Deanna Raybourn

4 stars

(quartet to Silent on the Moor)

Oh, what a tug on the heartstrings this one was...

We join Julia, Brisbane, Portia, and Plum as they head down to India to see Portia's lover Jane, who had left her in the last book in order to have children.

She is pregnant and suspects that her late husband was murdered. It is here that we get to meet some distant cousins of Julia and their unique tea plantation. 

More secrets are revealed about a lot of characters, including Brisbane, as we delve into the mystery and meet unique characters, get to read about the India traditions, hunt for a man killing tiger, and a murderer.

As usual there is plenty of drama regarding inheritance of the tea plantation, affairs, and more. Julia and Brisbane are both adorable and frustrating as they work somewhat together in their relationship. We also get to see Jane and Portia make amends and reunite with some of Julia's cousin's from the second installment, Silent in the Sanctuary.

Things get really dark in this one, lots of action, and as always, a few twists as well! With the way this one ended I cannot wait to see Julia and Brisbane work together in the field for the next mystery to come!