Endless

Endless (The Violet Eden Chapters #4)

by Jessica Shirvington

3 stars

446 pages

Published Aug. 28, 2012 by Hachette

Can I just say that if this was the last book in this series, I would have seriously had to hurt someone. The ending TOTALLY sucked. I was so bummed the entire rest of the day, because for some reason I thought that this was the end. Luckily I got on Goodreads to check. Whew. Disaster averted!

As it is, I still have mixed feelings about this installment in the Violet Eden series. Some good things happened. Some bad things happened. There still was all the violence and sexual tension that appear in the previous books. And some significant things happened and knowledge shared. But what's next?

I suppose the "financier" will have something to do with the next book - obviously. There was a huge fat question mark floating above his head at the end of the book.

I'm just happy that there is another book. Although, I'm hoping Number 5 is the last. There's only so much I can take, you know?

Everbound

Everbound (Everneath #2)

by Brodi Ashton

2 stars

358 pages
Published Jan. 22, 2013 by Balzer + Bray
 
I so wanted to love this book. I used to live near Park City, Utah, which is where the book is set, so I know the places mentioned in the book. That eased visualization a bit. But in the end that "plus" just wasn't enough for me.

The first book in this series, "Everneath," had such great potential. Teenage angst, which is usually annoying to me, was dealt with in a "See what can happen if you act rashly, not rationally!" Yeah, you get sucked underground and your life force is bled from you. Delightful. I loved it.

But this second book ... I felt like half of it was getting to the place where something actually happens. And it was SO dark. Dark and depressing. It was like I was in the Tunnels getting my life force sucked out. I need to watch a light, funny romantic comedy to counteract all the happiness suckage.

My favorite part was the very end. You gotta give Cole props. Nice one, mister.

I'm not sure if I'll read the next in the series. I kinda don't really care what happens next. We'll see.

Everneath

Everneath (Everneath #1)

by Brodi Ashton

4 stars

370 pages
Published Jan. 24, 2012 by Balzer + Bray

I liked this book pretty well, mostly because I've been a lot of the places where the story was set. The writing was good, the plot clicked along at a nice pace and the characters weren't too flat. I will definitely be picking up #2 when it comes out.

Beautiful Chaos

Beautiful Chaos (Caster Chronicles #3)

by Kami Garcia, Margaret Stohl

2.5 stars

516 pages

Published Oct. 18, 2011 by Little, Brown and Company

I don't know why I continue to slog through this series. The books are too long, where nothing happens, and I don't really care about the (way too many to count) characters.

And to add to my dismay, this book ends with the cheesiest cliff-hanger ending ever. It's as if the authors knew that the rest of their book was boring and bland, so they decided to try and force the readers into actually caring about what happens next. I'm all for subtle manipulation, but this ventures into the realm of anvil-over-the head maneuvering.

The pacing of the story is dawdling and uneven. There are many chapters where nothing of importance is said or done. I'm a huge proponent of a good editor. I've said it before - USE one who is unafraid of the delete key! And if that shrinks the length of your book - fabulous. Trim the fat! 500+ page books are only as good as the writing. Condense and omit. It will make a better, more entertaining book.

I do appreciate the general lack of swearing and sex, though. That is a positive.

But we'll see if I get to the last book. It's not looking good.

Beautiful Darkness

Beautiful Darkness (Caster Chronicles #2)

by Kami Garcia, Margaret Stohl

3 stars

503 pages

Published Oct. 12, 2010 by Little, Brown and Company

The second book in the "Beautiful Creatures" series was ... well, gothic, dark, depressing, sad and at time really confusing. But it was also pretty thick on plot and character development - yay! I thought it was well done, mostly. There were problems with a few things: 1) Pacing was molasses at times, especially at the beginning. I almost quit the book 40 pages in, I was so bored. There's only so much self-loathing I can take from a character. 2) The book was so flippin' looooong. I mean, 500 pages?? The book definitely could have used an editor who ain't shy with her "delete" key.
That being said, it wasn't unreadable. It WAS entertaining and clever; it just wasn't a stay-up-all-night page-turner.
Some new baddies are introduced in this book - ones with strange superpowers and abilities that defy "the order of things." And that helped move things along.
I wonder if I'll read Number 3. I've actually got it already. Let's see if it grabs me.

Cursed

Cursed

by Jennifer L. Armentrout

2.5 stars

304 pages

Published Sept. 18, 2012, by Spencer Hill Press

Not too bad. It's the classic star-crossed lovers who can never be together for some reason or another. This time, it's The Touch of Death. Nice.
Totally transparent bad guy, though, which was a downer. I saw him coming a mile away.
It will be interesting to see why Olivia and Emmie are so sought after, so I'll definitely read the next in the series.
(Just discovered that this is a stand-alone book. Whaaat?? Way too many loose ends for me to consider it that. So I'm knocking it down a half star for lack of a satisfying ending.)
There is some language - and one f-bomb. That sucked.

Spellcaster

Spellcaster (Spellbound #2)

by Cara Lynn Shultz

3.5 stars

371 pages

Published Mar. 27, 2012 by Harlequin Teen

A solid sequel to the book Spellbound.
The evil just keeps on coming for Emma and Brendan. This time in the form of a jealous, unbalanced teenage witch. If you thought regular teenage girls are catty, they've got nothing on this crazy witch. She's so evil, it's funny.
But Emma finally grows a spine and decides she's going to deal with the crazy, and not hide behind Brendan and his hero complex.
Pacing is quick. Writing is engaging. One thing that bugged me, though, was that in the first book, there was little, if any, animosity between Brendan and Angelique. In this book, there suddenly appears this disgust with one another. Where did that come from?
It's not a huge inconsistency, just annoying.
I'll probably read the next in the series.

Spellbound (Spellbound #1)

Spellbound (Spellbound #1)

by Cara Lynn Shultz

4 stars

341 pages

 

Ah, yes, another teen romance/fairy tale. At least this one was pretty good. Although I have to admit that I am a sucker for star-crossed love and all that sap.

But besides the good plot, the writing was surprisingly good. Pacing was OK - though slow at times. And I got pretty tired of "those emerald eyes" being obsessed over. There is a smattering of swear words, too.

Great climax, too. I love a good fight scene. And then the book ended. It seems rare nowadays to read a book that is self-contained in one volume. It's all trilogies and such. This book basically tied up all loose ends, but left room for a sequel if so desired. But not at all necessary. Though I believe there is another one coming out. But I don't feel compelled to read it, though I probably will because I enjoyed the first one so much.
All in all, an entertaining read.