Rift by Andrea Cremer

Publisher’s summary: Chronicling the rise of the Keepers, this is the stunning prequel to Andrea Cremer's internationally bestselling Nightshade trilogy!

Sixteen-year-old Ember Morrow is promised to a group called Conatus after one of their healers saves her mother's life. Once she arrives, Ember finds joy in wielding swords, learning magic, and fighting the encroaching darkness loose in the world. She also finds herself falling in love with her mentor, the dashing, brooding, and powerful Barrow Hess. When the knights realize Eira, one of their leaders, is dabbling in dark magic, Ember and Barrow must choose whether to follow Eira into the nether realm or to pledge their lives to destroying her and her kind.

With action, adventure, magic, and tantalizing sensuality, this book is as fast-paced and breathtaking as the Nightshade novels.

My take: Loved it!!! Yep…all I need are those two words! For a while now, I’ve been in a little bit of a reading/blogging funk, and Rift was just the book to pull me out of it! When I first picked up Rift, it did take me a while to get into the story, but I think it was mostly because I needed to allow myself to get connected with the time era of the story. But once I got myself there…I didn’t put it down until I finished it, and that is not an exaggeration. Even when I walked around my house to do something, Rift never left my hand.

What I loved most about this book was the main character, Ember. She grew up in a time era when women were only used for looking pretty, getting married and having children…where the daughters of rich men usually arranged for their own daughters to get married, just so they could acquire more power or land. Ember’s dream her whole life was to fight like a warrior, but her dad had other plans for her. Luckily for Ember, her father owed someone big time…and, as payback, they came to collect Ember literally in the beginning of the book.

I knew this book was a spin-off from the Nightshade trilogy, so I was more than thrilled to see what this story was all about. But when I first started reading it, I was concerned that there might not be any paranormal elements to it. But, as always, I was wrong! What I loved about this book is that we get to read about how magic was being used properly, but then how evil was unleashed into the world with evil magic as well. We actually read about the first wraith entering earth! It’s awesome!!! Now that I’ve read this one, it makes me want to go back and read the Nightshade trilogy again to see if there are any cool links.

I think the characters were all pretty predictable for me. I had natural instincts about each of the characters in this book, and I ended up being right about all of them. There were no surprises, but that could have been Andrea Cremer’s intention, but I couldn’t really tell you if that was her intent. There is one particular character early on that I thought was a prick…but then I’ve come to realize that he’s either a complete idiot, or he’s pure evil! I guess I’ll have to find out in the next book, and it’s going to drive me insane having to wait for it.

The only thing I was a little disappointed about in Rift is that I only got a very small piece of the romance in the end. But I can see how it was not really possible to put the romance in the majority of the book because, unfortunately, to make the romance work, it would have had to be an extremely long work-up. But other than that, the whole story was amazing, the ending was awesome, and the romance in the end was intense but cut very short. I can’t wait to see what the next book brings me!

Balthazar by Claudia Gray

Publisher's Summary: For hundreds of years, the vampire Balthazar has been alone—without allies, without love.

When Balthazar agrees to help Skye Tierney, a human girl who once attended Evernight Academy, he has no idea how dangerous it will be. Skye’s newfound psychic powers have caught the attention of Redgrave, the cruel, seductive master vampire responsible for murdering Balthazar and his family four centuries ago. Now Redgrave plans to use Skye’s powers for his own evil purposes.

Balthazar will do whatever it takes to stop Redgrave and exact his long-awaited revenge against his killer. As Skye and Balthazar stand together to fight him, they grow closer—first unwillingly, then undeniably. Balthazar realizes his lonely world could finally be changed by her. . . .

In a story filled with forbidden love and dark suspense, one of the most beloved characters in Claudia Gray’s New York Times bestselling Evernight series will captivate readers with his battle to overcome his past and follow his heart.

My Take: This book is exactly what I needed after reading the Evernight series. I grew a serious attachment and had the major hots for Balthazar. With Balthazar’s story left open-ended in Evernight, I craved for more of him and that is exactly what I got. Duh…that’s why the book is named Balthazar. LoL

This book reminded me of how much I love Balthazar! He’s so freakin’ yummy! I will admit that there were moments in the Evernight series when he would bug the living crap out of me because of his crazy obsession with trying to save his sister Charity from being an utterly and totally evil vampire. I wanted to yell at him, “Would you please give up already? She’s not going to change! She actually likes being a crazy psychotic killer!” In fact, when I read Evernight I would have been thrilled if someone would have accomplished killing her! But now that I know Balthazar’s backstory, I now understand that it would have killed him if something had happened to her.

From the previous series I learned that Balthazar had a crazy past and I wanted to know more about it, but at the same time I was hoping for him to have an amazingly happy future. So I wasn’t sure what I truly wanted from this book. But guess what? We get both! Throughout the book there are a lot of flashbacks of Balthazar’s past but, at the same time, the majority of the story takes place in the present. In the present, Balthazar gives himself the job of protecting a human friend that he met at Evernight Academy, a girl named Skye. She’s in danger because some really powerful vampires are hunting her, and Balthazar is determined to keep her safe.

I don’t remember much about Skye in Afterlife, only that Bianca was jealous of her and Lucas’ friendship. So I really liked learning more about her character in Balthazar. Claudia Gray did an amazing job with Skye’s character, and I think what I loved most was how truly human she is. I now understand why Lucas liked her so much.

This book has action, suspense and an amazing romance. If you liked Evernight, then you will for sure love Balthazar!

Quote to share!

“Balthazar was the kind of guy who used totally correct spelling and punctuation even when texting, which was sort of bizarrely hot. She was in serious trouble if commas could get her going.”

Buy it here:
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Bloodrose by Andrea Cremer

Publisher's Summary: The third and final installment of the international bestselling Nightshade trilogy!

Calla has always welcomed war. But now that the final battle is upon her, there's more at stake than fighting. There's saving Ren, even if it incurs Shay's wrath. There's keeping Ansel safe, even if he's been branded a traitor. There's proving herself as the pack's alpha, facing unnamable horrors, and ridding the world of the Keepers' magic once and for all. And then there's deciding what to do when the war ends. If Calla makes it out alive, that is. In this remarkable final installment of the Nightshade trilogy, international bestselling author Andrea Cremer crafts a dynamic novel with twists and turns that will keep you breathless until its final pages.

My Take: First of all I have to say that the last book to the Nightshade trilogy was Fan-Freakin-Tastic!!! There are soooo many things I loved about Bloodrose…well not just Bloodrose, the WHOLE series! I’ve read other wolf books before and the majority of them I thought were just…Meh! But I have a serious obsession with the Nightshade series and I’ve had this passion right from the very beginning. It is so bad that I was majorly determined to get my hands on an ARC of Wolfsbane and then on an ARC of Bloodrose. And my determination paid off nicely. In Bloodrose, the only time I was thinking, “What? Seriously? Is that supposed to be a happily-ever-after???”…was at the VERY end of the book! It’s literally the last few pages. And it’s not an exaggeration that I was thinking, “Huh?” And then I was doing several checks to see if maybe there is an alternate ending. You know?! Like how some movies have a Director’s Cut and Theatrical Version? Well, I want an alternate ending!!! Please??? You will have to read it to find out what I’m saying! And no, I'm not talking about the Ren vs. Shay thingy! So, when you read it, come back and talk with me about it…cause I’m determined to find out what others think.

Bloodrose started right where Wolfsbane left off where Calla and Adne go to try and rescue Ren. So right from the very beginning, the story moves very quickly and there is something continuously going on every minute. There is hardly a moment for Calla to sit and think things over…let alone shower and sleep. They have a mission to destroy the evil Keepers right? What comes first, taking a shower or destroying the Keepers? Personally, I’d pick slaughtering Emile…just saying.

While reading this one I just KNEW that based off of what happened in Wolfsbane, and then with them heading to a war in Bloodrose, they were destined to have tragedy. So while reading I kept thinking about all the characters and how much I grew attached to them. And I REALLY grew attached to each-and-every character, particularly in this book!!! So I kept thinking, “Who could I let go without being unbearably heartbroken?” Oh-My-Gosh!!! There is not a single character that I could spare! Now that I think about it, I couldn’t even pinpoint my favorite character! How could you not love a book that has more than a few characters that you admire? Well, just as I thought, there is a horrifying tragedy…and it had me bawling so bad that my shirt was soaked in tears.

I can’t decide which book I like best in the trilogy because I love them all equally in different ways, but overall, Bloodrose was written perfectly to end the series...even with it leaving me perplexed by the end! I can hardly wait to see what everyone else thinks!

And for all you other obsessive Nightshade fans...I know you are reading this because you want to know who Calla ends up with! Well, I'm not giving any spoilers so you will have to read it and find out for yourself!

Goodbye and farewell, Nightshade…you will be missed!

>

Received review copy from an extremely kind guy with Penguin at the NCIBA Trade Show!

Wolfsbane by Andrea Cremer

Publisher's Summary: This thrilling sequel to the much-talked-about Nightshade begins just where it ended-Calla Tor wakes up in the lair of the Searchers, her sworn enemy, and she's certain her days are numbered. But then the Searchers make her an offer-one that gives her the chance to destroy her former masters and save the pack-and the man-she left behind. Is Ren worth the price of her freedom? And will Shay stand by her side no matter what? Now in control of her own destiny, Calla must decide which battles are worth fighting and how many trials true love can endure and still survive.



My Take: Yay! OMG…OMG…OH-MY-GOSH!!! I was finally able to read the book that I have been waiting to read for about 4 months now! This is the actual book that started my determination to get into blogging. It's a long story, so I may blog about it at a later date.

This book was fabulous! The whole storyline was phenomenal! I stand by my statement from when I reviewed Nightshade and say that this series is truly a new fave of mine. I haven’t the slightest idea of how I am going to write this review and prevent spoilers but I am going to try.

I cried like a little baby over and over again throughout the entire book because there is so much shock, heartbreak and despair. “Calla, come over here so we can hug and cry together. You need it more than I do but we can comfort each other. Or, I can come there! I wouldn’t mind taking a look at that academy.” Yeah, that’s me talking to a fictional character (not a quote) but this is what fabulous books do to me. LoL

Holee calla! There were so many intense parts in this book! I was probably looking pretty crazy reading on the edge of my seat, gripping it for dear life, while my eyes were bugging out of my head! Every-Single-Time Calla started feeling that something was not right, I thought to myself, “Oh…my… gosh! WoooSahhh!!!…Here we go again!” My heart, yet again, would rise to its peak and, when everything was over, it would end in another blubber fest.

Obviously, I grew VERY attached to the characters in this book. I particularly grew attached to the new characters who were introduced. There is one really surprising thing I have to say that anyone who has read or is reading Wolfsbane might find shocking; and that is, the male character who actually won me over in this book was Ethan! Team Ethan? Shocking right?! There is one part in the book where he really made my heart melt like a popsicle on a hot day. Most of all, I grew a deep sympathy and attachment to Calla. My heart aches for her! All of the things she had to endure in this book just broke my heart. As Julie from http://www.tableforseven-julie.blogspot.com/ would say, “TEAM CALLA!”

I am still on the fence about the whole Shay vs. Ren thingy. Why????? It’s driving me nuts! The storyline feels like Andrea Cremer is always leaning toward Shay (for Calla).  But why do “I” always lean in the direction of Ren? I really would have liked Ren to play a bigger role in this book.  And the very small role he did play in…TOTALLY SUCKED! I will say that, near the end of Nightshade, I completely fell for Ren, but I don’t know what to think about the whole thing. I am really struggling with this one.

And then there is the cliffhanger! “Andrea, could you have just given me one more chapter! If not, maybe even just a few more pages? Why there?!” Yeah, I get it! To make everyone feel the way I’m feeling right now. Booooo!!!! Do we really have to wait until February to read Bloadrose?

If you are reading this and you haven’t yet read Nightshade, read it now before reading Wolfsbane! And, if you HAVE read Nightshade, make sure you preorder Wolfsbane so you can get it the day it is released! You won’t regret it.

Want to see my review of other books from this series? Click on the pic here:

Afterlife by Claudia Gray

Goodreads Book Summary - The fourth book in this electrifying vampire series has all the romance, suspense, and page-turning drama that have made Claudia Gray's Evernight books runaway successes.

Having become what they feared most, Bianca and Lucas face a terrifying new reality. They must return to Evernight Academy, Lucas as a vampire and Bianca as a wraith. But Lucas is haunted by demons, both personal and supernatural. Bianca must help him fight the evil inside him, combat the forces determined to drive them apart—and find the power to claim her destiny at last.

Readers have fallen in love with Bianca and Lucas, and they will be thrilled to read this exciting conclusion to their romantic adventure.

My Take - The ending to the amazing series created by Claudia Gray was exactly the ending I was looking for. From the first book in this series, Evernight, I prepared myself to expect the unexpected, and I got that and more! Everything in this book was bewildering.

The ending to Hourglass (book #3) was horrible and shocking, but at the same time, a marvelous cliffhanger. Bianca, Lucas and their families’ worst nightmares had come true. Bianca is now a wraith and Lucas is now a vampire; will the people they love accept them? Can they even accept what they’ve become?

This remarkable book is all about how every character (and I truly mean EVERY character) learns to face their fears and how some, through extraordinarily difficult obstacles, learn to discover who should be trusted.
And throughout all of this, Claudia Gray still delivers an enticing story. She had me in shock and in awe throughout the whole book!

I love how Bianca starts out in the series as a young naive girl and ends up as a strong heroine. I was a little concerned because I thought the book was leading her character into becoming an annoyingly jealous girlfriend. Did she really question if Mrs. Bethany was hitting on Lucas? That was totally weird. But, once again, I was wrong. Expect the unexpected with Claudia Gray.

I am really looking forward to reading Balthazar’s book. I sure love that guy; hopefully, the book will include more of Vic and Ranulf. They are some of my favorite characters. Ranulf cracks me up because he is this ancient vampire who talks like he’s from an era hundreds of years prior, but he still tries to include current day slang in his proper speech.

Here is a paragraph in the book that had me LOL! “Vic brightened. “Yeah, and with the rest of the humans in town on the Friday trip, less chance of us getting found out, right? Oh, man, I just called people humans.””  Ha!ha!ha!ha!  I can see why Maxie has stuck around to watch over Vic. But one question wasn’t answered, are Maxie and Vic in love? Up until the end of the book, I only saw Maxie as someone who looks out and cares for Vic. Huh?

Buy on Amazon Here:
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Stargazer by Claudia Gray

Goodreads Summary: Evernight Academy: an exclusive boarding school for the most beautiful, dangerous students of all—vampires. Bianca, born to two vampires, has always been told her destiny is to become one of them.

But Bianca fell in love with Lucas—a vampire hunter sworn to destroy her kind. They were torn apart when his true identity was revealed, forcing him to flee the school.

Although they may be separated, Bianca and Lucas will not give each other up. She will risk anything for the chance to see him again, even if it means coming face-to-face with the vampire hunters of Black Cross—or deceiving the powerful vampires of Evernight. Bianca's secrets will force her to live a life of lies.

Yet Bianca isn't the only one keeping secrets. When Evernight is attacked by an evil force that seems to target her, she discovers the truth she thought she knew is only the beginning....

My Take: After I devoured Evernight, I was thrilled when this book was available for pickup at the library. And guess what? I loved it! I think I liked this one better than the first! Even though the twists were not as shocking as the first book, I couldn't take my hands off this one (unless I was biting my nails) until I was finished. I am going to have to buy these books when the next one comes out in a few weeks.

One thing I have to say is...I always find really good books by browsing through this site and reading reviews. One thing I always look for is the average rating and I am never disappointed!

Evernight by Claudia Gray

Goodreads Summary: She's been uprooted from her small hometown and enrolled at Evernight Academy, an eerie Gothic boarding school where the students are somehow too perfect: smart, sleek, and almost predatory. Bianca knows she doesn't fit in.

Then she meets Lucas. He's not the "Evernight type" either, and he likes it that way. Lucas ignores the rules, stands up to the snobs, and warns Bianca to be careful—even when it comes to caring about him.

"I couldn't stand it if they took it out on you," he tells Bianca, "and eventually they would."

But the connection between Bianca and Lucas can't be denied. Bianca will risk anything to be with Lucas, but dark secrets are fated to tear them apart . . . and to make Bianca question everything she's ever believed.


My Take: Once again another vampire book I really liked and couldn't put down. As I am in a trance reading this book; all the sudden there is a shocking revelation and I'm thinking, "What the heck! Did that just really happen?" And then I am in a trance again and boom! Another twist! And of course I ♥ a good romance fantasy.

Hourglass by Claudia Gray

Goodreads Summary: After escaping from Evernight Academy, the vampire boarding school where they met, Bianca and Lucas take refuge with Black Cross, a fanatical group of vampire hunters. Bianca must hide her supernatural heritage or risk certain death at its hands. But when Black Cross captures her friend—the vampire Balthazar—hiding is no longer an option. Soon Bianca and Lucas are on the run again, pursued not only by Black Cross, but by the powerful leaders of Evernight. Yet no matter how far they travel, Bianca can't escape her destiny. Bianca has always believed their love could survive anything...but can it survive what's to come?

My Take: Wow! This book was so good. I was enthralled from the time I picked up this book until I was finished. Claudia Gray is such an amazing writer. I really had no idea where she was going to go with this book and I was really caught by surprise.

What I really love about the Evernight series is they are they extremely intese throughout and Claudia Gray doesn’t take the happily ever after approach that you would expect. There was something mind-blowing that happens in the book that I saw coming but I was in denial (I was really hoping it was going to be prevented).

This book ends with the type of cliffhanger I am getting from a lot of books lately but it didn’t spoil the book for me.

I would have to say Evernight is definitely one of my favorite series.