Nemesis - Brendan Reichs - Review

Book: Nemesis
Author: Brendan Reichs
Publisher: Macmillan Childrens
ISBN: 9781509860302
Rating: A+

It’s been happening since Min was eight. Every two years, on her birthday, a strange man finds her and murders her in cold blood. But hours later, she wakes up in a clearing just outside her tiny Idaho hometown—alone, unhurt, and with all evidence of the horrifying crime erased.Across the valley, Noah just wants to be like everyone else. But he’s not. Nightmares of murder and death plague him, though he does his best to hide the signs. But when the world around him begins to spiral toward panic and destruction, Noah discovers that people have been lying to him his whole life. Everything changes in an eye blink.For the planet has a bigger problem. The Anvil, an enormous asteroid threatening all life on Earth, leaves little room for two troubled teens. Yet on her sixteenth birthday, as she cowers in her bedroom, hoping not to die for the fifth time, Min has had enough. She vows to discover what is happening in Fire Lake and uncovers a lifetime of lies: a vast conspiracy involving the sixty-four students of her sophomore class, one that may be even more sinister than the murders. 

Well damn. This book blew me away. It was so incredibly good, and even now I can't stop thinking about it. Before we even get started, let me tell you, this book doesn't just take you for a fun ride. It takes you on a freaking rollercoaster.

Let's start with the premise and story. There's been a lot of buzz about this novel and trust me when I say it's for good reason. This book draws you in before you even begin reading. Just the blurb had me hooked, and the story itself completely lived up to my expectations, satisfying me and giving me everything I wanted. The novel is a mystery thriller and follows Min, who keeps getting murdered - over and over again. I don't want to give away too much because it really is one of those novels where the less you know = the better, but it follows Min and Noah trying to figure out why this happens to her and getting to the bottom of Project Nemesis. I'll say no more - go and read it to find out what happens.
As a thriller, this book really is thrilling. The story is very cleverly crafted, secrets, mystery and questions all woven together expertly. It really creates the perfect combination to keep you both hooked and on the edge of your seat, or in my case the edge of my bed. I rarely find a book that wills me to forgo my sleep to finish it, yet Nemesis did just that. Reichs has spun a story that kept me utterly thrilled and turning pages, through the night, unable to set this book down. That's when you know a story is well done.

The writing also made this story perfect. A massive part of thrillers is showing and not telling, but also knowing how much (or little) to show. Reich's nailed this. The writing was exectued so masterfully. The prose created solid and rich descriptions that really pulled me into the world and made me feel like a part of the story. This, for me, is a must in experiencing a novel and staying hooked, and Reich's managed to capture me entirely. I also felt the balance of dialogue with description was on point. The right balance meant I never felt bored and the book never became too slow, the writing allowing for a really good pace. For Nemesis this translated into a fast pace, but that's exactly what I needed and wanted, with this being a thriller.  Having plenty of questions and secrets being thrown at you, the book needs to be able to keep up with your desire for answers, and Nemsis does that very well.

I think something that really worked for me in this novel is that the thrill factor was held as paramount. Yes, there were emotional scenes and yes there was a touch of romance, but Reichs made the correct decsion to keep this mininmal and focus on the mystery aspect, which I felt really propelled the story forwards and kept me engaged. The romance was kept minor and the suspense kept a max, making the focus and purpose of the story clear and effective. The book was able to thrill fully, and thrill it defitniely did.

Charcaters I kind of have mixed feeling on, but ultimately I think it works. Noah was where it kind of started to go a little astray for me. It's kind of weird in the sense that I can see a lot of similarities between both Noah and Min's personalities and voices, yet at the same time I can also define key differences, and I found myself prefering Min. For me I found Noah just a little too angsty - a little too willing to contribute an endless string of complaining, sometimes coming out with stuff that doesn't really add much to the story. However, Min managed to save this, in her logic and practicality. She's the character you're looking for a in a thriller; practical and quick thinking, she helps to move the story along quickly, and efficiently raise the questions needed to develop the mystery and genereate the thrill. I also felt I was able to really connect with Min, which helped to me have a genuine interest in following her and trying to figure out what was going on with her deaths and project Nemesis. All of the characters were well buillt and given enough depth for me to care about them, but Min, being the main character, had the most to her and I really did feel invested in her journey.

The atmosphere, overall, really worked for me also, having the right amount of edge and darkness, whilst still maintaing itself as something that is not 'adult'. Writing a thriller is something that requires all aspects to be on point; investable characters, a quick story, expert writing, showing not telling etc. Reichs absoultely nails it, prodcuing an enaging and fast paced rollercaster that will have you on the edge of your seat. The layers of the story peel away one by one and will keep yout turning the pages well into the night.
As for the ending, it struck just the right balance. It satisifed me in asnwering what I wanted to know - I didn't feel like I had wasted anything in reading the book. I'd got what I wanted from the ending, but also more. It's set up perfectly for the next installment and has left just enough of a cliffhanger to make me hungry to read it.

Overall Reichs has created an asbsolute rollercoaster of a novel that is both suspenseful and riveting. In all seriousness, you won't be able to put this down. Already, this is one of my favoruite novels of the year and I encourage to pick this up and give it a go. I promse you won't regret it.

City of Saints and Thieves - Natalie Anderson - Review

Book: City of Saints and Thieves
Author: Natalie Anderson
Publisher: Oneworld
ISBN: 9781786072290
Rating: A

Street-thief Tina breaks in to the luxurious house where her mother was killed to steal from Mr. Greyhill and nail him for her mother’s murder. She is caught red-handed.Saved by Mr. Greyhill’s gorgeous son, Michael, the pair set in motion a cascade of dangerous events that lead them deeper into the mystery, and reveal dark and shocking secrets from Tina’s past.Tina and her mother fled the Congo years ago as refugees, trading the uncertain danger of their besieged village for a new, safer life in the bustling Kenyan metropolis. The corruption and politics of the Congo, and the gangster world of Sangui City, are behind Tina’s mother’s downfall. Is Tina tough enough to find the truth and bring the killer to justice?

This was one of the reads that I was most anticipating this year, for a number of reasons, and let me start by telling you that it did not disappoint.

Let's begin with the premise; it's definitely not something usually read, and yet it was what made it so different that made me so interested in it. It's a mystery, filled with gang fare and secrets, but minus any of the typical paranormalcy that usually accompanies those things in YA. Instead, it manages to translate these themes into a riveting and fast-paced novel that grounds itself in the real world. Another part of what intrigued me with this novel was the fact that it was set in modern day Africa. It's both a setting and culture that we rarely see in YA books, and that, for me, was enough to make we want to read it - and again, it didn't disappoint. Anderson gives us this beautiful and descriptive insight into modern Africa, what it is like, and helps us to understand just how different the lives of those living there are to ours. The way she crafted the African setting was both rich and vivid, so much so that I really felt like I was there.

I think part of what made this world so real, and really made me appreciate the life I have and how different it is in England, is how brutally honest this book is. It touched upon dark themes, which are ones that need to be spoken about. It highlights the prevalence of rape and torture in African society, but tackles them artfully, weaving them into the story in a way that isn't too aggressive or 'too much.' I think part of this was what made me love the story even more - because there really was no sugar coating to make it 'teen-friendly' or PC. It was brutal and real, which for me is a winner. This book makes you feel something, and if a book makes you feel something you know it's doing something right.

This, in turn, meant that the story flowed beautifully. Supported by Anderson's masterful writing, the story managed to give me just enough information to keep me interested, but at the same, keep enough secrets to keep me reading. Honestly, I found it hard to put this one down. Anderson's prose was absolutely stunning, and the dedication that has gone into crafting this plot is apparent. She's crafted this absolutely wonderful mystery, with so many different layers; each answer gives you more questions and makes you totally unable to put this novel down.

Following Tina was something I also really enjoyed, as I felt she was a strong and likeable protagonist. She's been crafted in such a way that you really connect with her and understand her emotions, as well as fully understanding, and supporting, the decisions she takes. I also felt like Anderson succeeded in manifesting a really fleshed out and grounded character; there was no vapidity and I definitely felt like I knew Tina enough to be fully invested in her story. This, in turn, makes the novel so much more lifelike, in the sense that I really was pulled in. The others characters, such as Kiki, Boyboy and Michael, all added so well to the novel, making it absolutely perfect. Most characters complemented each other in all the right ways, leading to a world of characters that I felt I both knew and wanted to follow.

Overall I can say that I really enjoyed this book and the journey it took me on. Yes, the journey was hard sometimes, in that it was a lot to handle emotionally and in terms of the acts that were happening, but at the same, the story was absolutely riveting. Filled with strong characters and deep secrets, City of Saints and Thieves will have you captured from the first page.

SLATED - TERI TERRY - REVIEW

Book: Slated
Author: Teri Terry
Publisher: Hodder Children's
ISBN: 9781408319468
Rating: A

Kyla's memory has been erased, her personality wiped blank, her memories lost for ever. She's been Slated. The government claims she was a terrorist, and that they are giving her a second chance - as long as she plays by their rules. But echoes of the past whisper in Kyla's mind. Someone is lying to her, and nothing is as it seems. Who can she trust in her search for the truth?
This book has been sitting on my bookshelf for just over a year and with a little gap with nothing that had to be read by a deadline I thought I'd pick up Slated. Recently I'm really feeling the dystopian vibe and this just seemed really fitting. Also I heard nothing but good about this and it was just something I knew I was going to enjoy.

The story follows Kyla, a girl in a future world in which young criminals are 'Slated' This means their minds are wiped and they get a fresh start. However Kyle is pretty different, she starts having memories come back to her and she starts to discover who she was. So there's actually a lot more packed into this book but I don't want to give anything away. One thing I love about this book, well actually something I love when any book does it, is that this idea was so unique and hasn't been done in any way before. Sure it's dystopian, but that's just a genre. the overall idea is so brilliant and so well crafted you are gripped for page one. As well as a pounding story it has a good solid backstory and all the science and theories behind make sense and this gives it the realism that makes the book work for me. I feel like Terry has explained this in such a way it seems as thought it could almost happen and the overall storyline and plot is amazing.

The story is set int the future, which always provides for an interesting backdrop but setting was full of surprises. Firstly it was set in England which was a lovely bonus and secondly the future world wasn't actually too different from our current one. I really loved the way that Terry played on the role of terrorism and economical parts of out current society and weaved into this brilliant novel. It definitely left me both satisfied and hungry for more.

The writing was good but nothing about it stood out. I really did like it, I just don't feel like Terry has a distinctive style that would pinpoint her out. The words flowed well and the scenes built us well in my mind but I definitely felt the advantage and bast part of this novel was the idea and story, however the writing did what it was meant to do and I did still enjoy reading it.

The characters. The characters were all really strong and what struck me about Kyla is that whilst she was strong and a good protagonist she still had this kind of weakness and innocence about her witch really brought her humanness, which was nice to see. In fact I loved Terry's character building because I felt like all of her characters balanced each other out with personalties and a few even had hidden agendas/ surprises. I liked how all the couples were almost opposites and yet fitted so well together and Kyla and Ben were just perfect. A characters I feel I still don't much about (and that I feel there is a lot to know about) is Kyla's Dad. With his shed and secrets I want to know what he's really up to.

Overall, yes I loved this. It's that perfect unique dystopian you need to quench your thirst; filled with action, suspense and cliffhangers I'm ready for Fractured. It has a unique story and it ended on such a massive cliffhanger I genuinely think I'm going to enjoy this series which is nice because most series's I follow are drawing to end now so this will be on my list of fresh new series's to start. A killer novel.

THE BONE SEASON - SAMANTHA SHANNON - REVIEW

Book: The Bone Season
Author: Samantha Shannon
Publisher: Bloomsbury
ISBN: 9781408836422
Rating: A

The year is 2059. Nineteen-year-old Paige Mahoney is working in the criminal underworld of Scion London, based at Seven Dials, employed by a man named Jaxon Hall. Her job: to scout for information by breaking into people's minds. For Paige is a dreamwalker, a clairvoyant and, in the world of Scion, she commits treason simply by breathing. It is raining the day her life changes for ever. Attacked, drugged and kidnapped, Paige is transported to Oxford - a city kept secret for two hundred years, controlled by a powerful, otherworldly race. Paige is assigned to Warden, a Rephaite with mysterious motives. He is her master. Her trainer. Her natural enemy. But if Paige wants to regain her freedom she must allow herself to be nurtured in this prison where she is meant to die. The Bone Season introduces a compelling heroine and also introduces an extraordinary young writer, with huge ambition and a teeming imagination. Samantha Shannon has created a bold new reality in this riveting debut.

Phenomenal.

I got the email about this book and even though it was New Adult I knew I had to read it. The story idea itself had me gripped and just reading some of the glowing praises left me hungry for this. I admit when It popped though the letterbox I was a teeny bit daunted by the size of it but I do not regret reading it. It's such a quick, amazing novel you'll barely notice time fly by as you're sucked into Shannon's stunning world.

The plot of this is so unique and such a killer story that not once will you be bored. We follow Paige Mahoney, through a dystopian world in which Clairvoyants exist in society and are shunned. She find out she is a Clairvoyant, but unlike typical YA she's known for a while. anyway she get's taken to a place called Sheol - not going to talk about this part because there are too many spoilers - and she falls in love {though romance plays a pretty low key in this) and they uprise and leave you on a cliffhanger, thirsty for book 2. What I loved about this is whilst maintaining the main theme of Fantasy, the novel wove in some many other genre's like Romance, Dystopia and even a little Sci-fi.
The plot really was unique. The whole story covered everything you want to know and although it's a series It hast left me with any major unexplained questions apart from what happens next. The whole story flowed extremely nicely and all made sense, and like I said it contained all the memories and thoughts you needed for all the answers to explained, whilst still keeping you interested. The separate parts of the story were seamlessly interwoven and every chapter has so much actions and mystery there wasn't a day that went by when I wouldn't stay up to read this.

The setting of this was quite unusual. The inner cities I've found fairly normal as far as future Dystopian cities go but Sheol, the main fantasy location - and where the majority of the novel was based - was built up on an already existing places so it was interesting to see how Oxford was transformed into this new eccentric and fantastical setting. even iconic location like Port Meadow were completely redesigned and I think the use of current locations with twists really helps to build up he we see the settings because we already have a basic idea of what the lace should look like.
Beyond that though I think it's fait to Say Shannon has mastered the art of World Building. This way she creates the new world, the way the whole style of the Sheol builds up is perfection. I liked how instead of taking key design features from time periods Shannon created her own and her new world was truly her own. Every idea and concept was perfectly drawn from Shannon's imagination and pushed into ours and it just worked perfectly.

The writing of this was on a whole other level. I'm not sure I can even quite describe it. Whilst keeping very neutral and very balanced it still had that certain type of personality that marked it as Shannon's. Shannon s definitely a very skilled writer and looking at her background - she studied English Language at Oxford - I wouldn't expect any less. The writing was a pleasure to read. The words were well crafted and the story flowed, one chapter leading on from another. She used the perfect words in both description and dialogue and the way the images and scenes built in my mind were just glorious. This whole novel is just dripping with talent.

The Characters. Well what makes this interesting in it's own way is that within the set of characters there were different species, and yet again Shannon has managed another amazing feat in this novel. She has successfully and believably created her special (Rephaim) and created them in such a way there is nothing to question. One things I loved about this book is that although there was a lot of supernatural elements these elements were all explained and had reason which made them more real to me. More real than a book where the author says there is no explanation, it's magic because it is. Another interesting aspect of this was that although there were only a small set of main characters is that the set of main characters changed as the novel progressed, always with Paige at the front though.
The characters were all explained, history and all revealed, though I still feel like Shannon will hit us with more surprises and new secrets in book 2. The characters were formed well in our minds and the emotional connection were there but like with any book 2 I think we'll see everyone's true colours in the sequel which is something I'm raring for.

So this is one of those book that there are so many words to describe it with but even then they're not enough. Because quite honestly The Bone Season left me speechless.

Phenomenal.

FIRELIGHT - SOPHIE JORDAN - REVIEW

Book: Firelight

Author: Sophie Jordan

Publisher: Oxford University Press

ISBN: 9780192756503

Rating: B

"Marked as special at an early age, Jacinda knows her every move is watched. She longs for the freedom to make her own choices, but when she breaks the 'no flying' rule, she nearly pays with her life. Until a beautiful stranger saves her. A stranger who was sent to hunt those like her. For Jacinda is a draki, a descendant of dragons whose greatest defence is her secret ability to shift into human form. And her rare ability to breathe fire makes her desirable, and important, to the survival of the draki. Forced to flee into the mortal world with her family, Jacinda struggles to adapt to her new surroundings. There she meets gorgeous, elusive Will who stirs her inner draki to life. Although she is irresistibly drawn to him, Jacinda knows Will's dark secret: he and his family are hunters. She should avoid him at all costs. But her inner draki is slipping away, and if it dies she will be left as a human forever. She'll do anything to prevent that. Even if it means getting closer to her most dangerous enemy."

I had been wanting to read this book since its release, so when I finally got a copy, I read it within 3 hours and absolutely loved it to the core. From the first page I was spellbound. I have to say this book is so wonderful I find it hard to put into words. It’s also so very unique. I can’t say I’ve ever read a book quite like it, or should I say with the creatures within it quite like it. I mean to invent a whole new race of creature is amazing. I mean Draki’s seem pretty cool! I just want to know what an Enkros is.

The book basically follows, Jacinda, the only Fire breathing Draki in generations, who has been pledged to the son of the tribe alpha. Her mother doesn’t like it so they move away, and her mother tries to kill of her Draki. But then she meets Will, and he (mind the pun) relights her fire. Slowly they draw closer, but Jacinda knows that his family hunt her kind. Then it sort of gets out and it’s a big fight for their love.

The book is written pretty well, in 1^st person, but I think it may have benefited from character changes. Other than that though I liked it. I felt it was a nice, fast paced novel. It didn’t drone on, it got to the point. I think if it wasn’t for the Supernatural take on the story it would have been a very boring, but with the twist it was an action packed, romance novel that kept you enticed every step of the way.

The plot was a simple, clichéd, supernatural creature, human forbidden love one, but I felt that it worked very well with Firelight, and unlike with some other books, it didn’t felt overused. I don’t know if it was because of the unique-ity of it but I like it.

My favourite character would have to be surprisingly, Azure with Jacinda in second place. I know she was a very minor character but I felt she could be interesting to read about and that we didn’t get enough of her. I would love to see what life in the tribe was like and what sort of powers a water draki has. Jacinda takes second place for the whole Fire breathing thing. Speaking of powers, I don’t think they got used enough. These Draki have powers. Use them! I would have loved to see some characters a bit more action involved.

Overly the book was a very simple, light, quick read but I did like it a lot. Now I am literally dying to read Vanish, so bad, so maybe I’ll get a copy.