The Passionate Bookworm

Sunday, May 5, 2013

Dance of Shadows by Yelena Black ( Mini Review )

Dance of Shadows (Dance of Shadows #1)

by Yelena Black

Hardcover, 447 pages

Published February 12th 2013 by Bloomsbury USA Children's Books

Dancing with someone is an act of trust. Elegant and intimate; you're close enough to kiss, close enough to feel your partner's heartbeat. But for Vanessa, dance is deadly – and she must be very careful who she trusts . . .

Vanessa Adler attends an elite ballet school – the same one her older sister, Margaret, attended before she disappeared. Vanessa feels she can never live up to her sister's shining reputation. But Vanessa, with her glorious red hair and fair skin, has a kind of power when she dances – she loses herself in the music, breathes different air, and the world around her turns to flames . . .

Soon she attracts the attention of three men: gorgeous Zep, mysterious Justin, and the great, enigmatic choreographer Josef Zhalkovsky. When Josef asks Vanessa to dance the lead in the Firebird, she has little idea of the danger that lies ahead – and the burning forces about to be unleashed . . .

While I did enjoy some parts of this story.. overall I felt like I had to force myself to keep reading, alot. It felt almost never ending. Not a great sign for someone who likes big books. I feel like it was trying to hard to be mysterious.. I like to be kept guessing, but it was just too much in this one. It also threw in the supernatural element way too late in the story. It really needed to be worked up to more in my opinion. It was dark, and hauntingly beautiful at times, But simply fell flat and left me wanting to just close it and walk away.

I will say that I really did love the dancing scenes. Yelena Black had a way of writing descriptively in a way that had me completely immersed. Moments like those kept me reading.

I am interested in seeing what this author does next. I liked her writing style too much too say I wouldn't try another of her books. This story as a whole though, for me, was overshadowed by the beautiful dancing scenes, and destroyed with too many sudden twists.

Rating: 2/5 stars

Saturday, May 4, 2013

The Sunday Post

The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kimba the Caffeinated Book Reviewer ~ It's a chance to share news~ A post to recap the past week on your blog, showcase books and things we have received and share news about what is coming up on our blog for the week ahead.

* Quick and Dirty Version due to my extreme procrastination! *

***All Images are "Clickable" and will take you to the books goodreads page***

Courtesy of Spencer Hill Press

Courtesy of St. Martins Press

Friday, May 3, 2013

Cover Lover (1) : Some Quiet Place

A meme where.. well... the name kinda says it all doesn't it?

Cover Lover and proud!

I can’t weep. I can’t fear. I’ve grown talented at pretending.

Elizabeth Caldwell doesn’t feel emotions . . . she sees them. Longing, Shame, and Courage materialize around her classmates. Fury and Resentment appear in her dysfunctional home. They’ve all given up on Elizabeth because she doesn’t succumb to their touch. All, that is, save one—Fear. He’s intrigued by her, as desperate to understand the accident that changed Elizabeth’s life as she is herself.

Elizabeth and Fear both sense that the key to her past is hidden in the dream paintings she hides in the family barn. But a shadowy menace has begun to stalk her, and try as she might, Elizabeth can barely avoid the brutality of her life long enough to uncover the truth about herself. When it matters most, will she be able to rely on Fear to save her?

Paperback, 350 pages

Expected publication: July 8th 2013 by Flux

I mean come on. That is freaking gorgeous! I love how some cover artists make it just that. ART. Hauntingly beautiful!

Share your thoughts in the comments!

Thursday, May 2, 2013

Infinite Days by Rebecca Maizel

Infinite Days (Vampire Queen #1)

by Rebecca Maizel (Goodreads Author)

Paperback, 336 pages

Published August 3rd 2010 by St. Martin's Griffin

* A copy of this book was provided to me by st. Martin's Griffin in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.*

“Throughout all my histories, I found no one I loved more than you... no one.”

Those were some of Rhode’s last words to me. The last time he would pronounce his love. The last time I would see his face.

It was the first time in 592 years I could take a breath. Lay in the sun. Taste.

Rhode sacrificed himself so I, Lenah Beaudonte, could be human again. So I could stop the blood lust.

I never expected to fall in love with someone else that wasn’t Rhode.

But Justin was... daring. Exciting. More beautiful than I could dream.

I never expected to be sixteen again... then again, I never expected my past to come back and haunt me...

Infinite days was entirely refreshing. It takes readers back to the days when vampires are EVIL. They may love...and yearn for the human existence, but overall their thirst for blood and mayhem overcomes. Unless they actually do become human again that is...

To be honest, I was a bit wary when I started reading the story. A nearly 600 year old vampire pulling off returning to modern day highschool? It seemed overdone, and I awaited *facepalm* moments to be revealed. However, the way Rebecca Maizel tells this tale makes it feel much more heartfelt and real than I would have expected.

In the world that Maizel created vampires' nerve endings are dead, one of the first things Lenah notices when she wakes up human is that she can actually FEEL the wood beneath her fingertips. It's texture. Unlike when she was a vampire and she could feel it's presence, but nothing more. Having not experienced things as a human for so long, it was fun to watch Lenah really LIVE. To experience things like they were firsts again. Who wouldn't want to relive some of their firsts? Food, love, even something so simple as feeling the sun on her skin.

It was amusing at times. Heartbreaking at others.

Infinite days does not always give the warm and fuzzy feelings. I mean there are plenty of those, but throughout the course of the book I honestly felt it all. I laughed, I got angry, I grinned from ear to ear and swooned.. and I Cried.

The flashbacks throughout the story were perfect. Showing readers how Lenah has truly changed over the ages. From Sweet and innocent human, to newbie vamp.. Then brutal and terrifying.. and then human again. Still carrying memories of her vampire self, but trying to be better. Trying to earn the second chance she has been given.

The characters were vibrant and varied, a wonderful blend:

Tony: Lenah's new best friend. Artsy and a bit on the quite/geeky side.

Justin: The popular guy vying for Lenah's attention. Drawn to her awkward innocence. I found myself torn when it came to Justin. Both enjoying what his character brought out in lenah, and being worried that he was just going to break her heart.

And then you have the " Triplets": Annoying, Preppy and pretty much seems like they have no mind of their own. Doing whatever seems " in". BUT is that all there is to them? Or is there more beneath that follower exterior?

Infinite days is rich, exciting and beautiful as well as dark. Giving a bit of a deeper look into vampires in YA.

This is not just a story for one " fandom". If you like Twilight- Great! Infinite days has romance and teenage angst. If you don't like Twilight and think and think all YA vampire stories nowadays are "fluff" Try infinite days and see if it proves you wrong.

- For those of you thinking " just stop comparing everything In YA to Twilight!" I get it. I'm simply referencing it because... well.. it's well known. It's easy for some readers to relate. I could also say - Anne Rice Vampires as modern day teens!

Basically. Just try it. It freaking rocked.

Rating: 5/5

Wednesday, May 1, 2013

Tankborn by Karen Sandler

Tankborn (Tankborn #1)

by Karen Sandler

* I received a copy of this book through Netgalley and Lee & Low Books in exchange for an honest review, all thoughts and opinions are my own.*

Best friends Kayla and Mishalla know they will be separated for their Assignments. They are GENs, Genetically Engineered Non-humans, and in their strict caste system, GENs are at the bottom rung of society. GENs are gestated in a tank and sent to work as slaves as soon as they reach age fifteen.

When Kayla is Assigned to care for Zul Manel, the patriarch of a trueborn family, she finds secrets and surprises; not least of which is her unexpected friendship with Zul's great-grandson. Meanwhile, the children that Mishalla is Assigned to care for are being stolen in the middle of the night.

After weeks of toiling in their Assignments, mystifying circumstances enable Kayla and Mishalla to reunite. Together they hatch a plan to save the disappearing children. Yet can GENs really trust humans? Both girls must put their lives and hearts at risk to crack open a sinister conspiracy, revealing secrets no one is ready to face.

While the idea of Genetically engineered humans is not completely original, author Karen Sandler added unique ideas to the story that kept me interested and wanting to learn more. This story attacks many tough topics; racism, caste systems and just - humanity in general. When is something considered human, and what crosses that line? Is it really our genetic makeup, or is it in our actions and the way we live our lives.

The tattoos on the GENS faces make it easy to identify them. The caste system however is a bit more complicated. Too dark of skin, or too light, and you are identified as the lower caste. the most desired skin color is a nice tan middle ground. However there can be pale, and dark skinned trueborns- and nice middle ground tanned lowborns- you can't always control skin color. This caste system seemed hard to follow at times... much of the time actually. I think that was one of the few things that really bothered me.

Overall I still really enjoyed the story and liked that it hit on some tough subjects that are not always talked about as much as they should be. The characters were great; both loveable, and hateable, well rounded and interesting. I never felt like any of the "main" characters were pointless. there was always a reason for them. I'm also not usually a fan of multiple storylines. But in Tankborn there were only two, and there was a real point to it. the lives of the characters are very different... but it will soon be revealed that there is a reason behind their placements! .. dun dun DUNNNNNNN!

It took me awhile to get into the story. The first few chapters were confusing, and at moments I felt bored. But I am so glad I stuck it out!

I'd love to hear your thoughts if you have read the story- it's a bit older so more of you my have read it than when I review newer books. If you haven't read it and it sounds interesting, give it a try!

Rating: 3.5/5