Me on Enchantment Lake

Title: Enchantment Lake
Author: Margi Preus
Release Date: March 15, 2015
Publisher: University of Minnesota Press

A disturbing call from her great aunts Astrid and Jeannette sends seventeen-year-old Francie far from her new home in New York into a tangle of mysteries. Ditching an audition in a Manhattan theater, Francie travels to a remote lake in the northwoods where her aunts' neighbors are "dropping like flies" from strange accidents. But are they accidents? On the shores of Enchantment Lake in the woods of northern Minnesota, something ominous is afoot, and as Francie begins to investigate, the mysteries multiply: a poisoned hot dish, a puzzling confession, eerie noises in the bog, and a legendary treasure that is said to be under enchantment—or is that under Enchantment, as in under the lake? At the center of everything is a suddenly booming business in cabin sales and a road not everyone wants built. To a somewhat reluctant northwoods Nancy Drew, the intrigue proves irresistible, especially when it draws her closer to the mysteries at the heart of her own life: What happened to her father? Who and where is her mother? Who is she, and where does her heart lie—in the bustle of New York City or the deep woods of Minnesota?

Enchantment Lake is mysterious and fast-paced, where danger lurks and no one is sure about what's going on or who might die next.

Francie isn't a detective, but she did once play one on TV. She's keen on being an actor. It's what she wants to do. But that doesn't stop her from asking questions and getting to the bottom of things around Enchantment Lake. She's rather practical, everything needs to have an answer or a solution, and I think that's why she sticks around and 'pretends' at being a detective.

The mystery is intriguing, anchored by a mysterious lake, a clever heroine, and a town full of eccentric residents. The small town and the people make the mystery. Their oddities, their personalities, their laissez-faire attitude about certain things like murder.

The book moves along rather quickly. I think this comes from it being more plot driven than character driven. There were times when I expected a bit of Francie's internal monologue to pop up, to see the directions she was thinking in, but instead the story continued. It feels like it's so much more about the mystery than Francie. But the secrets in her past, I wanted to know more about those. If her father's death really was an accident. Where her mother is. What caused the rift between her and her brother, someone mentioned for only a few pages. It seems to read like a young YA, so it could work for readers transitioning from middle grade. There are deaths, but nothing so serious or graphic that it would frighten younger readers.

(I received an e-galley of this title to review from the University of Minnesota Press through NetGalley.)

Me on Goddess Interrupted

Title: Goddess Interrupted
Author: Aimée Carter
Release Date: March 27, 2012
Publisher: HarlequinTeen

Kate Winters has returned to Eden after six months away. She's won immortality, but apparently, she'll have to fight for a life with Henry, also called Hades, the Ruler of the Underworld. In the midst of her coronation, Henry is abducted by the only being powerful enough to kill him: the King of the Titans. As the other Gods prepare for war, Kate ventures deep into the caves of the Underworld, enlisting the one person she believes to be the greatest threat to her future with Henry: his first wife, Persephone.

Aimée Carter once again sends us on a journey with Kate, although this one is far more perilous than the first. More mysterious, more dangerous, and with so much more at stake. There is less getting to know characters, which was good (if you've read the first book), and more struggle. Yet another struggle for survival, for love, and for the chance for Kate to spend eternity with Henry.

Along with the search for Henry and the mission to find a way to defeat the King of the Titans is Kate learning what she's capable of. Along with her immortality comes certain abilities, ones she didn't know she'd end up with. Mixed with her journey is a lot of self-exploration, learning her gifts, her new strengths and weaknesses. And once again, things don't necessarily work the way she wants them to. She has to trust that Henry loves her, that he wants to be with her just as much as she wants to be with him, but it doesn't help when he's not that open with his feelings. Henry's far too closed off for his own good. In the third book, what would be nice is Kate yanking a bit more, pulling his emotions out into the open.

Then comes the wrench that is Persephone. She doesn't ruin the book, but she semi-ruin's Kate. Who really wants to include their husband's first wife in a battle to save his life? A woman who, in her eyes, is far more experienced and beautiful and knowledgeable.

Goddess Interrupted raises the stakes for Kate and Henry. There's more evil and even more danger than the first book, but it's still romantic and heart-breaking with an ending that will leave you breathless, gasping for more, wishing the final page wasn't the final page.

(I received an e-galley from Harlequin through NetGalley.)

Me on Friends with Boys

Title: Friends with Boys
Author/Illustrator: Faith Erin Hicks
Release Date: February 28, 2012
Publisher: First Second Books (Macmillan imprint)

Maggie hardly knows what to do with herself. After an idyllic childhood of homeschooling with her mom and hanging out with her brothers, it's time for her to face the outside world. High school. But it also means solving the mystery of the ghost that's followed her for years. Maybe it means making a new friend, someone who isn't her brother.

This book was a sweet coming of age story. It kept me reading through a mix of compelling characters, interesting plot points and twists, and amazing artwork. I found myself overwhelmed, in a good way, by the realism and the believability of this story, even with the ghost. Maggie's introduction to high school took me back to my own, which made me connect with her so much more than I expected to. Of course, I didn't have three older brothers there to help me out.

Away from the homeschooling, out in the real world with other teenagers and the weird way they act, Maggie's left struggling to find her place, to connect with them. She doesn't know them, they don't act like her brothers. How's she supposed to make friends right off the bat?

I loved the relationship between Maggie and her brothers, she wanted to be with them, to hang out with them, but they'd grown up on her. Grown up, maybe a little grown apart, and so Maggie's alone and floundering.

Until Lucy and Alistair. I adored Lucy and Alistair. Maggie doesn't really find them, more like they find her, and while they're a bit odd and different, they're still her new potential friends.

The ghost that Maggie sees only adds to the story, adds a sense of otherworldly mystique and intrigue, a little bit of horror in a small town. Small towns always have some kind of ghost story, always have some kind of connection.

This book kept reminding me of Hope Larson's Mercury, but I enjoyed Friends with Boys far more. Funny and heartfelt, a coming of age for a smart but semi-lost girl looking to find her own little niche in the massive world that is high school. The story was clear, not hidden in the graphic art but working along with it to give the reader something to enjoy. I hope it's not wrong to unabashedly wish for more.

(I received an e-galley of this book to review through NetGalley from First Second Books.)

Me on Someone Else's Life

Title: Someone Else's Life
Author: Katie Dale
Release Date: February 14, 2012
Publisher: Doubleday Canada (Random House Canada imprint)

When Rosie's mum dies of Huntington's disease, she's even more uspet by the fact that she has a fifty percent chance of inheriting the disease herself. Rosie plans to get tested, but that's when her mum's friend, Sarah, tells her that her mum wasn't really her mum, that she was swapped with a premature baby destined to die. Devastated and confused, Rosie heads to America to find her birth mother, but as she discovers more deeply buried secrets and lies, she's left with an agonizing decision, one that will be the most heart-breaking of all.

Unique and heartfelt, Katie Dale has written an emotional story about a girl who's life falls away from her and her search to find the one she was supposed to live. The plot was interesting, the pacing was good. Fans of emotional books might enjoy this, loyal readers of Jodi Picoult and Lurlene McDaniel. Perhaps even Lisa Schroeder fans.

But those aren't the sort of books I usually read and so I was torn while reading this. I'm not saying I didn't like the book, which I did, or that the writing is bad, which it isn't. I just wasn't what I'd expected.

I wish this book was a little more upbeat, I wish Rosie could've been more decisive at times. Sometimes I wished the book had been shorter, it was more like two books in one.

There's more I could say, about certain characters and plot twists, but that would give away some of the magic of this book, this search for place and family, this discovery of self. Instead, I'll say that this book is a journey, not just Rosie's but lots of peoples', and at the end, this was a book about an 18-year-old girl searching for a family and a place of her own.

(I received an e-galley of this book from Random House Canada through NetGalley.)

Me on The Taming

Title: The Taming
Authors: Teresa Toten & Eric Walters
Release Date: January 24, 2012
Publisher: Doubleday Canada (Random House Canada imprint)

Katie likes to believe she's invisible. It's much safer than being seen as who she is - shy, awkward, poor. Getting up on stage to play the lead in The Taming of the Shrew should be torture, but it's not. Something completely unexpected happens and she's transformed from invisible Katie to visible Katharina. Evan's another story. He knows what it takes to get noticed, and uses every one of those skills. Okay, sure, it might be an abuse of the power the comes with money and privilege. But is his romance with Katie another version of the same thing, or is it real?

The Taming was a unique re-telling or re-imagining, or at the very least a unique 'drawing on Shakespeare as source material.' There were realistic characters and setting and plot, plus humourous dialogue at odds with a story that slowly turns dark and subtly dangerous. I couldn't help but continue reading, I needed to know how the book ended.

There are two sides to this book, Katie coming out of her shell and Evan attempting to start over in a new place. When they come together, it's not necessarily surprising, but the path they take certainly was. So much of the plot was unexpected.

Katie slowly comes out of her shell by becoming Katharina and sees a new world over the one she's lived for years, one when she's invisible, wounded, walked over and put down by her mother. I kept waiting for that moment when she would spread her wings and fly.

Evan is flawed, entitled because of his father's money but hating him all the while because he's been forced to change schools. Seeing Katie act wakes him up, but he becomes overwhelmed to turn her into the perfect girlfriend, to make her Katharina instead of Katie. He's blinded by what she becomes on stage.

To me, Evan was the handsome but wicked prince, trying to turn Katie the innocent princess into something she's not, and it's up to her to fight her way free and find herself again before she completely loses herself.

As unexpected as this book was in terms of the plot twists and and darkness, it was still enjoyable, still a great story told by two great authors. I feel the need to push this book into the hands of every teenager I can find, boy or girl, visible or invisible, lost or found.

(I received an e-galley to review through NetGalley from Random House Canada.)

Me on Tempest

Title: Tempest
Authors: Julie Cross
Release Date: January 17, 2012
Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin (Macmillan imprint)

In 2009, Jackson Meyer is a normal guy. He's in college, he has a girlfriend, and he can travel back in time. Nothing big, though. Nothing changes when he makes these jumps. It's just for fun. But one day two strange men burst in on Jackson and Holly, and in the struggle, Holly is shot. Then Jackson jumps back two years to 2007, but it's different this time. Now he's stuck, and he has to learn how to actually use his ability before the "Enemies of Time" appear to recruit him. Or kill him. Piecing together clues about his father, the Enemies of Time, and himself, Jackson has to decide how far he's willing to save Holly, and possibly the entire world.

First, I have to say how refreshing it is to find a book written in a male point of view that's convincing (see also Mindi Scott's Freefall and Marie Lu's Legend). Jackson sounds like a guy. He's totally freaking about about being chucked back to 2007, he's trying to work it out logically in a guy sort of way, and all he can focus on is getting back and finding Holly. Which is sweet.

The time travel is a little complicated, like time travel often is, but it's not packed with loads of science info dumping. Instead it's Jackson and his friend Adam's definition of time travel. So much like guys, winging it as they go along. So many questions, so much speculation. Less physics, more other areas of scientific fields, fairly easy to understand.

You spend most of the book rooting for Jackson, hoping he can figure out why he can travel through time, what his dad really does, and if he actually saves Holly in the end. His life has suddenly been turned all around and backwards, and he's trying desperately to put it all back together.

An interesting story, Tempest reminds me of a spy or action movie involving teenagers with some family drama and time travel mixed in. I'll admit, I think it loses some of the action and suspense with it being a book, but I can see how it would translate to the big screen (lots of actions scenes and special effects). This book will interest readers looking for more modern-day (in a way) suspense mixed in with their time travel plus some romance thrown in.

(I received an e-galley of this book through NetGalley from Macmillan.)

Me on Cinder

Title: Cinder
Author: Marissa Meyer
Release Date: January 3, 2012
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends (Macmillan imprint)

Cinder, while being a gifted mechanic, is a cyborg. A second-class citizen with a mysterious past, she's reviled by her stepmother and blames for her stepsister's illness. But when her life suddenly becomes intertwined with Prince Kai's, she finds herself at the centre of an intergalactic struggle and a forbidden attraction. Caught between duty and freedom, loyalty and betrayal, she must uncover secrets about her past in order to protect the world's future.

A futuristic re-telling of the classic Cinderella tale, Cinder is both magical and intriguing, perhaps a little creepy in a futuristic way. There were times when it felt cold or harsh, unwilling to comfort Cinder when she needed help, but it was still like a fairy tale.

By mixing the fairy tale with such a disturbing and different time than the one we live it, it added another layer to the story. A horrific disease, medical experimentation, implanting machine parts in human beings, people living on the moon. Is this what the world will become in 100 years? Maybe 500 or 1000 years? Will we still be human then, or will we be something else?

Cinder was quite possibly my favourite part of the book. As the heroine of a YA novel, you expect her to be flawed, to be different than others, to be relatable as a girl with family problems, unsure of who she is or what she's capable of, and has a crush on an unattainable guy. Most, if not all, teenage readers will have something in common with Cinder. What I liked about her so much was that she was so strong, no pun intended concerning her cyborg parts. Consistently beaten down, she still found a way to climb back up, to keep on going even when things were at their hardest.

Finding a book that has a third person point of view is so refreshing. Yes, it can limit how in depth we can go into the character, but it also gives insight into more than just one person. The chapters that focused on Prince Kai and included Queen Levana hinted at the other sides of the story, the sides that Cinder couldn't see and was unaware of.

This was a storyline that kept shifting and changing, always surprising. It kept me reading right to the end when I wanted to demand to know what happened next. I'm gladly looking forward to the next book, the rest of the series, and anything else Marissa Meyer might write.

(I received an e-galley to review from Macmillan through NetGalley.)

Me on On a Dark Wing

Title: On a Dark Wing
Author: Jordan Dane
Release Date: December 27, 2011
Publisher: Harlequin Teen

Five years ago, Abbey cheated Death. She survived a horrific car accident, but at the expense of her mother's life. After she crossed paths with death, by taking the hand of a boy made of clouds and sky, her life would never be the same. Now, on a trip with her still mourning father, she's being courted by mysterious ravens. Apparently, Death doesn't forget.

On a Dark Wing was haunting, emotional, and chilling. It cuts deep to the heart of the story, the story of a young girl and her brushes with Death, of some people around her, and of Death's unfinished business with her. I did not expect the journey this book took me on, into the depths of Abbey's raw and troubled soul, but I was glad to be there.

Abbey reminded me of a teenage girl shunned by most of her peers. She seems depressed after the accident that took her mother, she has body issues (like almost every teen girl), she hides junk food, she's been bullied and tossed aside by her classmates, and she and her friend Tanner suffered from harsh and degrading cyber-bullying. Life for Abbey is bleak, pointless except for Tanner and the crush she has on Nate. She has Death on one side and high school on the other, both of them chipping away at what little self-esteem and hope she has left. But she won't talk about it, even with Tanner. It's all bottled up inside, eating away at her like a horrible disease.

The alternating points of view gives us multiple sides of the story, not just Abbey's. There's Nate's, with his about survival and his own brush with death. There's Tanner, with his own less than perfect life but his need to help keep Abbey from the edge, his need to make things better for her. The characterization was wonderfully crafted, everyone felt so real, even Death and his fascination with both Abbey and with humans in general.

This is the story of Abbey finding herself, of Abbey pulling herself away from the edge. Death happens, and it is tragic, but we can't waste our lives waiting for it to catch us and take us. Life doesn't have to be brutal and painful, we can fill it with friends and family and happy memories after tragic events. This book doesn't sugar-coat anything. Life as a teenager often sucks just like Abbey's does, but there's always something to live for.

(I received an e-galley of this book to review through NetGalley from Harlequin.)

Me on Every Other Day

Title: Every Other Day
Author: Jennifer Lynn Barnes
Release Date: December 27, 2011
Publisher: Egmont USA

Every other day, Kali is a normal sixteen-year-old girl. She goes to high school. She attends pep rallies (even though she tries to stay invisible). She's human. But every day in between... she's something else entirely. Though she looks the same, predatory instincts take over and Kali becomes a feared demon hunter with the urge to hunt, trap, and kill zombies, hellhounds, and other creatures. She doesn't know why she's the way she is, but she gives into instinct anyways. Even though the government considers it environmental terrorism. When Kali notices a mark on a popular girl at school, she knows the girl is marked for death. She's got 24 hours to save the girl, and she has to do it as a human. With the help of a few new friends, Kali takes a risk her human body might not survive... and learns the secrets of her mysterious condition.

Intriguing and fast-paced, Jennifer Lynn Barnes presents us with Kali, a shy part-time teenager part-time demon hunter with a hero complex, needing to protect everyone and hunt monsters on her demon days and hiding as much as she can from the monsters on her human days. When her world turns upside-down, she learns the reason why she's not like other girls, and that she's not alone.

A very interesting premise. Kali is still the same person, still has the same thoughts and does the same things, but on those days when she's a demon hunter she's a little more reckless, possibly because she's invincible, and as she puts it, bulletproof.

I was surprised as how quickly the book moves along. Barnes wasted no time getting right into the story, right into Kali hunting hellhounds, right into her normal day at a pep rally, right into seeing the mark that could kill one of the popular girls. No fuss, no muss, which is awesome. No unnecessary info-dumping at the beginning and no walking in blind. Just the right mix of showing and telling, of Kali's internal perceptions of the world around her and classmates being totally not what she expected.

I'm noticing a trend of strong teen girl characters, ones who know how to fight and take a punch and carry knifes hidden in boots or clothes or even hair. Look at Tera Lynn Childs' Sweet Venom (Gretchen), Moira Young's Blood Red Road (Saba, sort of, she does know how to fight and how to survive), Richelle Mead's Vampire Academy (Rose), and my personal favourite, Lili St. Crow's Strange Angels (Dru, I have so much love for Dru). This isn't bad, we need to empower girls at a young age to make them strong, as strong as boys, possibly stronger, but demon hunting doesn't often pop up in real life.

And Kali was unique, both strong but also meek, so knowledgeable about zombies and hellhounds but needing to keep to the edge of everything, to stay unnoticed.

Fans of Jennifer Lynn Barnes' Raised by Wolves series will reach for this book with open arms and happily devour it, relishing the thought of another strong teen girl character attempting to navigate a very complex world.

(I received this book through NetGalley from EgmontUSA.)

Me on In My Mailbox (36)

In My Mailbox is a bunch of weekly fun hosted by Kristi over at The Story Siren. :)

Slow book week. I've hit a lull. Didn't browse at the library when I went, maybe I should've. I want to yell at Chapters for not having Gretchen McNeil's Possess in stores. WANT SO MUCH.

The Summer Book Giveaway winners have received their signed books. Yay. I'll be hosting another giveaway soon to coincide with 2 signings I'm going to in October. Choice of a signed book by 1 of 10 authors and random swag I can get. Maybe next time I'll use a spreadsheet or Rafflecopter (do people like Rafflecopter?? I signed up for an invite).

Review checklist: Wolfsbane, Tanpopo Volume 2 & 3 (do you want to see reviews of these?), First Kill (reading it now but not sure, tell me if you'd be interested in reading a review), The Mephisto Covenant, Past Perfect, Crave, The Pledge, and Every Other Day.

Requested on NetGalley:
Crave by Melissa Darnell

Found on Kobo website:
Impulse Control by Susan Bischoff (free)
Hush Money by Susan Bischoff (free because I used the $1 off coupon code)

And it's not books but I got the first season of the UK show Misfits (think Skins plus X-Men) off iTunes. So good. :)

Me on In My Mailbox (35)

In My Mailbox is a bunch of fun hosted every week by Kristi over at The Story Siren. :)

I finally mailed the books out to my giveaway winners. Sorry it took so long to send them. ;) Odds are, you'll get them Monday or Tuesday, Friday at the very very very latest.

From the S&S Galley Grab newsletter:
Past Perfect by Leila Sales

Found on Kobo website for free:
Haunting the Night by Mara Purnhagen (e-book)

From NetGalley:
Every Other Day by Jennifer Lynn Barnes (it seems to me that whatever Egmont puts on NetGalley is automatically available for people to read and review, which is nice because I've been waiting weeks to hear back on The Way We Fall) (also sorry for the fuzzy picture, it's from Goodreads and is kinda tiny)

I felt a little bad, looking through the Galley Grab newsletter this past week and not finding anything I wanted to read or didn't already have or could read because it was the next in the series and I'd already read the first or first and second in the series.

I started this last week and you guys kind of like it, so here's a list of books I currently plan on reviewing (with release dates because if they're not out yet my review won't be posted until about a week before): Wolfsbane (out), Tanpopo Volume 2 & 3 (out), First Kill (Sept 20), The Mephisto Covenant (Sept 27), Past Perfect (Oct 4), The Pledge (Nov 15), and Every Other Day (Dec 27 but my time to read it runs out on Sept 16).