Blog Tour: Legacy of the Clockwork Key by Kristin Bailey

February 28, 2013 by 4 Comments

I’m participating in the blog tour for Kristin Bailey’s debut novel, Legacy of the Clockwork Key. Be sure to check out the giveaway at the end of the post!

Legacy of the Clockwork Key by Kristin Bailey Legacy of the Clockwork Key by Kristin Bailey
Release Date: March 5, 2013
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Source: Galley for blog tour
Rating: ★★★☆☆ 
Buy It: Amazon | Book Depository

A teen girl unravels the mysteries of a secret society and their most dangerous invention in this adventure-swept romance set in Victorian London.

When a fire consumes Meg’s home, killing her parents and destroying both her fortune and her future, all she has left is the tarnished pocket watch she rescued from the ashes. But this is no ordinary timepiece. The clock turns out to be a mechanical key—a key that only Meg can use—that unlocks a series of deadly secrets and intricate clues that Meg is compelled to follow.

Meg has uncovered evidence of an elite secret society and a dangerous invention that some will stop at nothing to protect—and that Meg alone can destroy. Together with the handsome stable hand she barely knows but hopes she can trust, Meg is swept into a hidden world of deception, betrayal, and revenge. The clockwork key has unlocked her destiny in this captivating start to a trilogy. – Goodreads

Review:
Prior to Kristin Bailey’s Legacy of the Clockwork Key, I think there was only one other book that I had read that had steampunk elements. I had several issues with that book — so much that it got to the point that whenever I thought of picking up another book in the genre I was like, “Nope!” because I was reminded of how much I disliked it. It’s quite some time later now and I’m glad I finally gave steampunk another try because I think Kristin Bailey’s debut novel was a solid re-introduction.

While, yes, there are different inventions and technology in Legacy of the Clockwork Key, I felt that Kristin Bailey made it all very accessible. I wasn’t overwhelmed by details and instead found myself going, “Okay, that’s pretty cool.” Descriptions of these types of things usually go right over my head, but I actually found myself trying to understand the mechanics and look forward to what would be introduced next.

As far as the main character, I have mixed feelings about Meg. On one hand, I wanted more growth from her throughout the book and I wish I had been able to feel the loss of her family and status. She was very stubborn, and during some of the more intense scenes, spent too much time wondering what Will, her love interest, thought of her. That said, she’s young and I know how consuming those feelings can be so I think Kristin Bailey wrote that realistically. Her stubbornness was also a highlight in some ways because persistence and determination are always great qualities to have and, considering all the circumstances of the situation, I would be motivated to uncover all the secrets, too. Though Meg’s infatuation-filled thoughts did get annoying at times, the romance between her and Will was actually really nicely paced and had some great buildup along the way.

Legacy of the Clockwork Key has secret societies, a great setting in Victorian London, really interesting gadgets and technology, and a romantic storyline I’m sure many will enjoy. If this had been the first steampunk book I had read, I think I would have been a lot more open to the genre a long time ago.

Playlist

Here are four songs I listened to while reading Legacy of the Clockwork Key! I wouldn’t say the songs lyrically apply to the book, but parts of their sound really reminded of the steampunk elements and how I imagined them (if that makes any sense!).
La Roux – Reflections Are Protection
Bloc Party – Halo (We Have Band Dub)
The Knife – We Share Our Mother’s Health (Ratatat Remix)
Santigold – The Riot’s Gone

Kristin Bailey About the Author
Kristin Bailey grew up in the middle of the San Joaquin Valley in California. As a kid she enjoyed visiting the beach, camping and skiing with her two brothers. Now she is a military wife and mother of two young children. She is also terrible about spoiling her pets. She has one fluffy mutt, two cats who think they own the world, and a fish tank with a quartet of fat fish, and two secretive striped ninja-assassin snails. In the course of her adventures, she has worked as a zookeeper, balloon artist, and substitute teacher. Now she enjoys writing books for teens who enjoy mystery and adventure as much as she does.
www.kristinbailey.com | @KBaileyBooks

Giveaway

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Book Review: Sever by Lauren DeStefano

February 11, 2013 by 6 Comments

Sever by Lauren DeStefano Sever by Lauren DeStefano
Release Date: February 12, 2013
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books For Young Readers
Source: Borrowed ARC from Lindsey (thanks!)
Rating: ★★★½☆ 
Buy It: Amazon | Book Depository

With the clock ticking until the virus takes its toll, Rhine is desperate for answers. After enduring Vaughn’s worst, Rhine finds an unlikely ally in his brother, an eccentric inventor named Reed. She takes refuge in his dilapidated house, though the people she left behind refuse to stay in the past. While Gabriel haunts Rhine’s memories, Cecily is determined to be at Rhine’s side, even if Linden’s feelings are still caught between them.

Meanwhile, Rowan’s growing involvement in an underground resistance compels Rhine to reach him before he does something that cannot be undone. But what she discovers along the way has alarming implications for her future—and about the past her parents never had the chance to explain.

In this breathtaking conclusion to Lauren DeStefano’s Chemical Garden trilogy, everything Rhine knows to be true will be irrevocably shattered. – Goodreads

Review:
It’s always hard to write reviews for the final book in a series because I want to SCREAM about specific things, but I obviously can’t do that without ruining things for others. As such, this review will probably be a short one. Here’s what you need to know:

As you may or may not recall, Fever was not my type of book. Like, at all. Lauren DeStefano’s prose was beautiful, but I felt that the plot itself lacked direction and I was definitely disappointed by it since I had loved Wither so much. I can’t say that I enjoyed Sever as much as the first book, but it picked up steam in a major way and the entire time I was reading it I was like, “Yes, HERE is the emotion that I missed from book two.”

Because, for better or for worse, there was plenty of emotion to be had in Sever. Lauren DeStefano reminded me of the strength between the sister wives: how far their bond went and their place in each other’s lives. I was able to get back into Rhine’s mindset and feel her determination to reunite with her brother. Lauren DeStefano allowed me to have a better grasp on several characters: to understand their motivations, their fears, and their realizations about the world. I was left staring at the book in shock when certain developments arose and, right now, days after having turned the last page, I’m still remembering the “Noooooooo” moment I had. I HAVE A LOT OF FEELINGS ABOUT THAT MOMENT.

There are a few issues I had with Sever, namely that one particular character remained too underdeveloped for my liking and that ending could have been expanded on, but I definitely feel that this book made up for what I felt was lacking in Fever. Lauren DeStefano filled in the gaps, allowed her characters to grow and, overall, delivered a satisfying conclusion. I’m looking forward to getting to know the characters in her next series.

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Book Review: Sweet Evil by Wendy Higgins

February 1, 2013 by 6 Comments

Title by Author Sweet Evil by Wendy Higgins
Release Date: May 1, 2012
Publisher: HarperTeen
Source: LAPL
Rating: ★★★☆☆ 
Buy It: Amazon | Book Depository

What if there were teens whose lives literally depended on being bad influences?

This is the reality for sons and daughters of fallen angels.

Tenderhearted Southern girl Anna Whitt was born with the sixth sense to see and feel emotions of other people. She’s aware of a struggle within herself, an inexplicable pull toward danger, but Anna, the ultimate good girl, has always had the advantage of her angel side to balance the darkness within. It isn’t until she turns sixteen and meets the alluring Kaidan Rowe that she discovers her terrifying heritage and her willpower is put to the test. He’s the boy your daddy warned you about. If only someone had warned Anna.

Forced to face her destiny, will Anna embrace her halo or her horns? – Goodreads

Review:
With very few exceptions (Unearthly, Angelfall), angel books are usually a big miss with me, but Wendy Higgins’ Sweet Evil was middle of the road.

I’ll start off with what I did like:
• The addictive quality of the book. Seriously, this book was like candy and I read it in one sitting which is pretty rare for me nowadays.
• The angel mythology. It’s so different from other YA angel books so thumbs up for originality!
• Wendy Higgins wasn’t afraid of making her world dark. Perhaps I’m just too used to the fluff and such, but I was really surprised by some of the themes and actions of Nephilim in Sweet Evil. They made sense for the world she created, though, so I’m glad she didn’t shy away from that.
• The chemistry between Anna and Kaiden was pretty good. I did have some issues, but the UST was definitely there.

My dislikes are a little difficult to put into words because, yes, I did enjoy reading the book quite a bit, but I didn’t love it.
• I found the characters to be grating at times — especially Anna who was annoyingly naive and suffered from the always eyeroll inducing “I’m beautiful but I don’t know it” character flaw.
• Kaiden is a typical bad boy (he even has a British accent!), and I’m not too into those personally, but at least his “badness” had a reason. So, not all that much to DISLIKE here, really, I just wasn’t super into him.
• Patti, Anna’s mother, is a trip and I really don’t understand what was going on in her head. At all.
• The other side characters had interesting backstories, but as characters themselves, I found them to be flat. That sounds really odd, I know, but I guess I liked their larger roles in the angel mythology more than I liked them as individuals? We’ll stick with that.

I will read the next book because this one was so addictive, but I do wish the character development had been expanded. I’ll be curious to see how Wendy Higgins handles that in the next installment.

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Book Review: Crewel by Gennifer Albin

January 21, 2013 by 4 Comments

Title by Author Crewel by Gennifer Albin
Release Date: October 16, 2012
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR)
Source: BEA 2012
Rating: ★★★☆☆ 
Buy It: Amazon | Book Depository

Enter a tangled world of secrets and intrigue where a girl is in charge of other’s destinies, but not her own.

Sixteen-year-old Adelice Lewys has always been special. When her parents discover her gift—the ability to weave the very fabric of reality—they train her to hide it. For good reason, they don’t want her to become a Spinster — one of the elite, beautiful, and deadly women who determine what people eat, where they live, how many children they have, and even when they die.

Thrust into the opulent Western Coventry, Adelice will be tried, tested and tempted as she navigates the deadly politics at play behind its walls. Now caught in a web of lies and forbidden romance, she must unravel the sinister truth behind her own unspeakable power. Her world is hanging by a thread, and Adelice, alone, can decide to save it — or destroy it. – Goodreads

Review:
Like many others, I was so eager to dive into Crewel because it sounded unlike anything else in YA. The ability to weave time with matter? Embroider the fabric of life? Yes, please! I was all for learning about a new world, especially with the main character, Adelice, in a position of power as a Spinster. Although I was somewhat confused about what everything meant, I was definitely pulled into the story when Adelice endured a lot in the first few pages. I enjoyed finding out what being a Spinster entailed, finding out who the major players were, and discovering how Adelice fit into the bigger picture. Unfortunately, the book lagged in the middle for me and I think it sort of fell into the contrived plot lines of many other YA dystopian novels.

If you hate love triangles, well, Crewel does have one and I felt pretty blah about it. I feel that Adelice and her main guy rushed too quickly into their feelings. Gennifer Albin didn’t quite develop them and I was definitely left puzzled when they were proclaiming their love for another; it didn’t add up for me.

Adelice herself was fairly likable. I do think she settled too quickly into her new life, and that she didn’t properly mourn for all that she lost, but I did admire her feistiness. I do wish I had been able to better understand her motivations, though, as I felt a lot of that was just told instead of shown.

While perhaps not the read I was hoping it would be, Gennifer Albin’s Crewel offers plenty for other readers to enjoy in its premise.

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Book Review: The Assassin’s Curse by Cassandra Rose Clarke

November 5, 2012 by 3 Comments

The Assassin's Curse by Cassandra Rose Clarke The Assassin’s Curse by Cassandra Rose Clarke
Release Date: October 2, 2012
Publisher: Strange Chemistry
Source: Purchased
Rating: ★★★☆☆ 
Buy It: Amazon | Book Depository

Ananna of the Tanarau abandons ship when her parents try to marry her off to an allying pirate clan: she wants to captain her own boat, not serve as second-in-command to her handsome yet clueless fiance. But her escape has dire consequences when she learns the scorned clan has sent an assassin after her.

And when the assassin, Naji, finally catches up with her, things get even worse. Ananna inadvertently triggers a nasty curse — with a life-altering result. Now Ananna and Naji are forced to become uneasy allies as they work together to break the curse and return their lives back to normal. Or at least as normal as the lives of a pirate and an assassin can be. – Goodreads

Review:
Oh man, after all of the glowing reviews for Cassandra Rose Clarke’s The Assassin’s Curse I was really excited to read it because it sounded like my type of read. Feisty girl pirate, an assassin, a curse, and a reluctant alliance between them? I was sure there would be hearts in my eyes for this book. It looks like I set my expectations a bit too high, though, because The Assassin’s Curse only turned out to be an okay read for me.

First, there was so much going on and yet I never felt truly invested in Ananna and Naji’s journey. There was a lack of urgency, and despite their ups and downs along the way, and the attacks they encountered, I didn’t feel the danger. I also didn’t feel any romantic chemistry between Ananna and Naji. Friendship? Sure, but I expected more unresolved sexual tension. Instead I only encountered Ananna’s growing feelings — which didn’t make too much sense to me — while Naji was just…there. Speaking of, I wish I had gotten a better grasp on his character. I’m all for the mysterious type, but he lacked development to truly make me care for him. Maybe next time.

I did, however, like Ananna, the main character. I loved her vibrancy, her intelligence, and her determination. She refused to let her future be controlled and I admired her independence. The inclusion of magic and pirates was also great. I was totally into discovering more about the mythology of Ananna’s world and I’m glad Cassandra Rose Clarke spent a good amount of time with those elements.

While I didn’t quite love The Assassin’s Curse, I think the last few pages are setting up for an excellent sequel and I definitely plan on returning to read it. There’s so much potential and I’m curious to see where Cassandra Rose Clarke takes Ananna’s story next.

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