The One

The One (The Selection #3)

by Kiera Cass

3.5 stars

323 pages
Published June 5, 2014 by HarperCollins Children's Books  
 
I'm glad this series is over. It ended well, too, which was nice. It even had an epilogue! I love epilogues.

I'm not sure there is much depth to this series, but if you want a mindless, entertaining beach read, this is a great choice.

Graduation Day

Graduation Day (The Testing #3)

by Joelle Charbonneau

3 stars

304 pages 

Published June 17, 2014 by HMH Books for Young Readers

 

Meh. Not great. Too many questions in the prose: "Should I do this?", "How can I do this?", "Who can I trust?", etc. Too distracting.

I'm just glad this trilogy is over. It wasn't stellar - more of a Hunger Games meets whiny girl meets Rage Against the Machine. If I had to do it again, I probably wouldn't waste my time.

Champion

I've been out of town for a week - hence the lag in posting. But I'm back!

Champion (Legend #3)

by Marie Lu

4.5 stars

369 pages

Published Nov. 5, 2013 by Putnam Juvenile

I was sad when this series ended, because overall it was a well-written, exciting dive into a post-apocalyptic, dystopian society. I was happy though, that most, if not all the loose ends were tied up nicely - if a bit too abruptly. But I can't complain too loudly when an author doesn't neglect her duty to satisfy readers' needs for closure.

The ending was happy, with a touch of sadness - lots of room for hope and healing. I enjoyed that very much.

No swearing, but one slightly glossed over sex scene.

I'd love to see a spin-off of this series set in the world of Antarctica. That place was intriguing.

Good job, Marie Lu, I like your style!

Prodigy

Prodigy (Legend #2)

by Marie Lu

3.5 stars

371 pages

Published Jan. 29, 2013 by Putnam Juvenile

An exciting sequel to Legend. It has everything I love - survival, anti-government rebellion, a good love story with "issues," so it's not too boring.

I also appreciate how the main characters don't know who to trust, but ultimately decide to trust each other. I will read the last in the trilogy to see how it all plays out.

Little to no swearing, and no sex. A bit of violence, but it's mostly glossed over. Nothing like the first book where it was glorified and reveled in and described in minute detail.

Legend

Legend (Legend #1)

by Marie Lu

4 stars

320 pages

Published Nov. 29, 2011 by Putnam Juvenile

This was just the book that I needed to get over a super crappy book I had just previously read. (See post below.)

Marie Lu really knows how to write an exciting, intriguing story - complete with decent character development, evil bad guys and a bit of computer hacking! I loved it.

I did think the torture scenes were a little too gleefully gratuitous, hence the one star docking. And I didn't like some of the characters doing a complete 180 - first they hate, now they don't. Or conversely, nice guy turns uber-evil. It was a bit jarring.

But overall, I deem it a fantastic book. No swearing, yay!

I've added #2 and #3 to my to-read list. Thankfully the last in the trilogy was just published, so no having to wait for the next one to come out!!

I can recommend to all!

Bitterblue

Bitterblue (Graceling Realm #3)

by Kristin Cashore

3 stars

563 pages

Published May 1, 2012 by Dial

The title of the book is perfect, because after I read the thing I was left feeling Bitter and Blue. Bitter, because I'm going to have to wait for the NEXT book to come out; and Blue, because this book is pretty dark, twisty and depressing. It's all about the effects that one person can have on so many other people. One person's choices can hurt many, many people - even after that person is gone.

I couldn't get this book out of my head for a few days - it really is that dark. I usually don't finish these types of books because I hate feeling depressed. The reason I stuck with it was because of the main character, Queen Bitterblue. She was a strong, good, decent person trying to rectify the wrongs of her evil father. She was trying to give hope to those who were deeply affected by her father's atrocities. So that glimmer of hope gave me the wherewithal to keep slogging through to the end.

Another great theme of this book is the importance of friendship. Bitterblue relies heavily on her friends and their loyalty. Surrounding yourself with good, decent people who are trying to do what's right will help you be and do better.

The reason for the three stars is that the story was convoluted and hard to follow. And some of the characters were pretty flat. I especially disliked how Bitterblue's love interest had such a reverse of feelings - it was love, hate, love. Bam, bam, bam. Very disorienting. AND the book was soo flippin' long! Edit, please!

Anyway, not bad, but not great. I'll read the next in line, but I may not go further if that one is anything like this one. I don't need any depression in my life.

Broken Stone

Broken Stone (Souls of the Stones, #3)

by Kelly Walker 

3.5 stars

 
Published by Kelly Walker and All Night Reads (first published May 31, 2013)

 I was a bit sad when this trilogy ended, which I read in its recently published Souls of the Stones Omnibus form. I was fully intrigued and invested in the lives of Emariya and Torian, along with their faithful and loyal friends.

Right from the start, I was launched into a plot filled with good pacing, quick action and political intrigue. The bad guys get what they deserve (although it would have been cool if those scenes were drawn out a little more); and the good guys prevail. A happy ending - my favorite.

I also appreciated the epilogue. I love epilogues and this one was especially good. It outlined where everyone was 15 years later. So, thank you Kelly Walker!

There is some mild swearing and very glossed-over married sex.

Thank you NetGalley.com and All Night Reads for allowing me to review this book.