Matched by Ally Condie

Matched (Matched #1) by Ally Condie
Release Date: June 2nd 2011
Publisher: Penguin
Add it: Goodreads
Overall: ♥♥♥

Normally I find it so easy to give a longer, more detailed summary of a novel than the synopsis on the back, however I think the words on the back of Matched tells the reader what it's about perfectly .
"On her seventeenth birthday, Cassia meets her match. Society dictates he is her perfect partner for life. EXCEPT HE'S NOT." Yeah. That's it. That's basically a perfect sum up of the entire plot.

Now, I don't have a major problem with the writing, or the premise or anything like that because that's what so many Dystopians are like these days, that hell, I'm used to it now. But looking back, I think I have the same problem with Matched as I did with Delirium by Lauren Oliver; it was nice and easy to read but nothing happened.

I hate reading books where I know something is going to happen - the character experiences a minor conflict that you just KNOW is going to turn into a really predictable shitstorm for them, but this didn't even happen! When I thought some shit was finally going to go down, it just didn't. I would have preferred a predictable shitstorm to boring. I admit though, it kept me interested enough to keep reading (and I have been TRYING to finish Fifty Shades of Shit, but I just can't, it's giving me a headache, so this was a wonderful break) and I found myself getting fairly emotional in some parts. I think the major problem was the overall plot - girl falls in love with boy who she isn't supposed to fall in love with. This whole concept to me is just kind of, "meh" and I love plots that aren't soley driven my romance, I like a bit of action, mystery or suspense thrown in there somewhere too. Although I must say, I thoroughly enjoyed the last 30 or so pages, I nearly even shed a tear :(

The characters were likable and I loved seeing how much Cassia grew throughout the novel. As a heroine, she isn't one I've fallen in love with but I have a feeling that as the series progresses, she'll get more badass and just overall awesome. One thing I loved about Cassia's character was how her sensitivity was written. Too often, we see MCs written as sensitive but in a whiny, bitchy and annoying way but Cassia was perfect for me as I found I could relate to her. Her conflicting emotions, her love for her family and friends and how she handled situations with calm but had something completely different going on inside her head was something I adored.
As for Xander and Ky, I don't have much of an opinion on them at the moment but I must say, Ky's family breaks my heart into pieces. **spoilers on Goodreads**. I am looking forward to see how these two characters are further developed in Crossed :)

This is probably also a bit twisted of me, but one of my favourite characters was CASSIA'S OFFICIAL. OMG. I LOVED her characterisation.

The writing wasn't absolutely OHMYGODTHISISFUCKINGBEAUTIFUL but it was very well written and I loved the fact that Cassia got to the point and that there were no huge info dumps or unescessary scenes! It was nice to read about things that were necessary to the plot (what I thought there was anyway) rather than dribble about how some insignificant character's hair was the colour of chestnuts. (Seriously, THIS WAS AWESOME!)

It could be that I recently read it, but I couldn't help but compare this to Juno of Taris. It's the same sort of Dystopian, where EVERYTHING is controlled; from the food they eat to the activities they do in their spare time. But I feel that Matched could have been a little more engaging and have more of a solid story (like Juno of Taris, oh you should read that!) and I would have liked Cassia to have a stronger voice - there was *too* much focus on romance for me.

Okay, let me leave you with two quotes that just broke my heart into a million pieces because god, they are *so* true... *cries*

"It is one thing to make a choice and it is another thing to never have the chance"

"Is falling in love with someone's story the same thing as falling in love with the person himself"

Don't forget to check out my Stacking the Shelves post :) Let me know what books you got this week!

Katana by Cole Gibsen

Katana by Cole Gibsen
Release Date: March 8th 2012
Publisher: Flux
Add it: Goodreads
Overall: ♥♥♥

Katana has been on my to-read list for a long time and I think it's easy to say that this was one of those books that I was disappointed in, but still thoroughly enjoyed. Whilst there was SO much potential for this to be a fantastic read; reincarnation, samurais, fighting, a little romance... It was delivered unsuccessfully.

As a person who loves the idea of reincarnation, having the same soul and encountering the same souls in every lifetime, this was awesome. Rileigh starts having dreams of her old life as Senshi-a female samurai after she completely kicks the arses of three guys who try to mug her. Now, females weren't allowed to be samurais but apparently Senshi had major potential (Oh, and everytime I read senshi-I thought of Sailor Moon: "Warrior"-haha) and had some pretty cool abilities, okay cool, whatever. She ends up on the news and captures the attention of an old enemy and her soulmate.

Whilst I really enjoyed the fighting aspect and the reincarnation aspect, I feel the story was somewhat predictable and that it fell flat in areas. As it turns out, I got the villain completely wrong, but I was happy with who it turned out to be because:
1. I didn't correctly guess who it was
2. I would've given this book a lower rating if it turned out that way

It read like a lot of other YA novels (Fallen, Hush Hush etc) in that the writing was very simple and the plot was sort of 'meh'. The other characters were also a bit irritating. Whitley just freaked me out and whilst he was the "hottie", I found him to be a bit creepy :S. Quentin, oh dear god. Rileigh's gay best friend. At first I thought, "oh yay, he isn't being stereotyped like say, Damien from the House of Night series", but he is basically just Rileigh's sidekick and has no real purpose apart from supporting his 'BFF'. I thought Kim was kinda hot at first, but then the ending ruined him for me - I felt cheated! Here is this hot samurai guy who gives the chick he loves her space and tells her what she needs to know (MOST of the time), but then he turns into some over-protective, lovey-dovey guy. Dude, seriously? As for Rileigh's mother, she needs to be hit in the face with a chair - she is not a mother, she is a nasty, selfish person.

Despite this, I found some things to be funny. For example: 
'Whitley had more of that "I play polo and go yachting on the weekends" look.'

And as it turns out, apparently AC/DC is the music that bikies love. I mean, The Angels are pretty cool too right (har-har)?

Overall, Katana had an original, fascinating premise with a poorly executed outcome. What would've been an amazing story, turned out to be flat and predictable. The reason I'm giving this three stars is because I LOVED the actual story so much, it was just the execution that ruined it.

Fallen in Love by Lauren Kate

Fallen In Love (Fallen 3.5) by Lauren Kate
Release Date: January 24th 2012
Publisher: Random House
Add it: Goodreads
Overall: ♥♥♥


I've done a mini-review for each story :)

*drools over cover*

Love Where You Least Expect It: The Valentine of Shelby and Miles
Rating: 1 star

Alrighty, first things first, I don't care about Shelby and Miles at all. Throughout the series so far, I think their both rather flat and boring. Miles sounds like every other guy with no personality and Shelby sounds like every other chick with no personality.

I don't think I have to explain these stories to you - they're pretty straightforward Valentine Day stories... I was hoping that this short story would make me care about Shelby and Miles more, but unfortunately it didn't. I felt like I was reading from Luce and Daniel's perspective again and so far, the two still haven't stood apart from any of the other characters. I felt it could've had the potential as it's stated that Miles is protective about his hat and Shleby wonders whether there is any sentimental meaning behind it - this doesn't get expanded on, and I feel it would have shaped Miles' character a lot more.

As for the writing so far - it's still pretty satisfactory.
"Lucinda hadn't even noticed - that was how lost in sadness she was"

"One of his long golden-black dreadlocks came loose from its elastic and tumbled from the recesses of his helmet"

That first example is a perfect case of telling rather than showing. There wasn't any need for the "lost in sadness" part, the reader gets it - she didn't notice something she should have, so she's clearly out of it, or sad (which had been mentioned multiple times beforehand).
As for the second example, I don't even understand that :|. I read that and had to do a double-take. If anyone can tell me how you have golden-black dreadlocks, feel free :)

I must admit, one part did make me laugh - there is a cute part where Shelby goes to swap something and in order to get the item, she says that it's a mark of the devil and gets really theatrical about it. That made me laugh!!

Overall, I was unimpressed, I didn't see a build in character or personality for either and would've liked to see that *something* that seperates them from the others in the Fallen series.

Love Lessons: The Valentine of Roland
Rating: 2 stars

Okay, I guess I sort of felt for Roland more, and I definitely enjoyed his story more than Shelby and Miles'. I don't have a hell of a lot to say about Roland's story because whilst I was more interested in it than the former, the writing still wasn't that great and the story was only marginally better!

HOWEVER, Roland's story helped clear up a plot hole-y type thing I picked up on in Passion. When Luce gives Daniel tattoos, why does he not have them in every other life? Turns out that angels can change their looks as they please and Daniel does it pretty much every lifetime (this may have been mentioned in Fallen or Torment but I can't remember), so yeah. I was happy about that.

Then there's the cheesy love references...
"At first, he was cautious in his ascent, but even in the creaky metal armor, he soon felt nimble again with light memories of love" AWWWW.

And we learn more about Cam, sort of. Kinda. Which was cool :)

Yeah. That's about all I have to say about this one :|

Burning Love: The Valentine of Arriane
Rating: 4 stars

NOW THIS ONE WAS COOL.

Firstly Arriane's true love was a woman. A woman. I couldn't get over it. I initially thought that I read it wrong and they were just friends, but it seems I've underestimated Lauren Kate and she actually had the guts to write a gay character. I am so impressed!

But you know what the saddest thing is? That I automatically assumed I read it wrong. We don't see enough gay characters in YA. Off the top of my head, I can think of Lola's parents (Dads) from Lola and the Boy Next Door, and now Arriane. And YA is my preference of genre!

I thought Kate did Arriane's love story really well and I loved that this story had so much more happen than the others, there was actual drama, action and hurt. As the story develops, I was *this* close to shedding a tear for Arriane because I felt so sorry for her.

As for the writing in this story, I thought it was definitely an improvement in comparison to the others (apart from the typos I found) and I was pleased to see another confirmation of how angel's bodies function.
"Except for their wing scars, every other ink mark or wound or scar in time would fade away"

Overall, I loved Arriane's story and I would have been extremely happy if this book just focused on her experiences.

Endless Love: The Valentine of Daniel and Lucinda
Rating: 2 stars

This is 2 stars because I enjoy their story in general. But this was nothing new. It was the usual "I love Daniel", "If only Daniel were here..." "He had blonde hair (blah blah blah), but *insert long dramatic pause* he wasn't Daniel. *insert so called cliffhanger*.

Yeah.

Overall
I loved learning Arriane's background and Roland's background (but mostly Arriane's!) and it was a nice, easy read. However, I really wish I actually cared about Shelby and Miles, and I'm really hoping to see more of them in Rapture. And the excerpt of Rapture was actually pretty interesting so I can say I'm somewhat looking forward to the last installment (AND GOD. I WANT TO KNOW WHY the curse has affected them, WHAT is so great about Luce? WHY does Lucifer wanna go all psycho and stuff-apart from the fact he is Lucifer and wants to destroy the world etc etc).  

Whilst I received this from NetGalley, this has in no way affected my review

Don't forget to check out my 100 follower giveaway!! and and and Taryn Browning's Dark Seeker giveaway! 

Under the Never Sky by Veronica Rossi

Under the Never Sky by Veronica Rossi
Release Date: January 3rd 2012
Publisher: Harper Collins
Add it: Goodreads
Overall: ♥♥♥

Under the Never Sky tells the story of Aria and Perry. Aria has grown up in a place called the Reverie her whole life - a place in which you can look through an eyepiece called a "Smarteye" and basically think yourself anywhere and doing anything! Perry is an "outsider", he lives outside of the Reverie where there there is an "aether sky", cannibals and a whole lot more scary stuff!

I'd like to say, I didn't really view this as a dystopian, I thought it had more sci-fi elements rather than dystopian, but who am I to define genres :)

Firstly, I really appreciated the detail of Rossi's worldbuilding, I loved how much there was to know and I loved the mystery behind it all. However, I think it could have been executed better. For the first 50-100 pages I had no idea what was going on because I didn't understand why only 6000 people lived in the Reverie, why there were outsiders, why the Aether is there. Is it some sort of sick experiment gone wrong from the government? Were they trying to create the "perfect race" ala Hitler? So many questions but this is a series so I can wait patiently for answers :) My main problem was not knowing what any of the words meant for a long time (I know this sounds stupid but yeah..), like I had no idea what "Tides" were until Perry said it was his tribe and I had no idea what the Reverie was until further on in the story.

Another thing I appreciated was that this was in third person! Oh how I've missed reading in third person and I've come across alot more recently in YA (YAY!). What was interesting though, is that it was in third person from both Aria and Perry's perspective, which was great. I thought this was well-written and that Rossi distinguished both voices perfectly! I must say, I'm not the biggest fan of Aria, I thought she was a bit flat until the end which is where she really grew (and I liked her more) but I am a fan of Perry! I loved how Rossi didn't sugarcoat anything. Perry was a really complex character and learning about the different Senses was awesome! I want to know more about the Senses!!

I know your wondering "But, Taneika! Your only praising this book! Why did you only give it three stars?" Well, as I said above, I didn't understand what was going on for the longest time, but I guess this book was just missing that *spark* for me. I enjoyed it, but it did take me a while to get into and I just could not connect with anything the way I would've liked. I enjoyed learning about the world, but I couldn't connect with it, I enjoyed the characters and their flaws, but I couldn't connect with them and I enjoyed the book overall, I just couldn't connect with it.

I'm really disappointed, because I was SO incredibly excited to read this but I personally don't think it lived up to the hype. Now I just REALLY want to know where Book 2 will take us!!

Don't forget to check out my 100 follower giveaway :)

Forever by Maggie Steifvater

Forever by Maggie Stiefvater
Release Date: July 12th 2011
Publisher: Scholastic Inc
Add it: Goodreads
Overall:  ♥♥♥

This is going to be an incredibly difficult review.

Shiver had me interested, however it wasn't my favourite, Linger was even better and again, Maggie had me a snivelling wreck throughout the book. As for Forever? Oh, I wanted to love it, I really really did. There were bits I loved but honestly, my emotions were ALL OVER THE PLACE whilst reading that I just can't love it the way I loved Linger especially.

Forever explores Isabel's and Cole's relationship, this really pleased me because Isabel and Cole are two of my favourite literary characters ever. They're both just so messed up in the head and real that I can't help but want the two to hurry up and be in a relationship. I was once again impressed with Isabel's character, due to the fact that she actually gave a shit that her brother died. In alot of YA novels, a character's family member or friend may die, and said character then finds true love and forgets all about their lost loved one. This seriously pisses me off and I'm so so glad that even though Isabel's feelings for Cole were blossoming, she didn't forget the fact that she just happened to lose her brother a few months earlier. Her inner dialogue really made me sympathise with her because in reality, which Wolves of Mercy Falls manages to portray, this very real depression happens.

As for Cole, I really grew to love Cole. His presence sort of annoyed me in Linger because I didn't know why he was even in the story and I thought that he was just added as a balm for Isabel's pain. However, Cole proved to be extremely intelligent and emotional in this installment and reminded me of many guys I know - not the whole rockstar thing, but the hiding the true emotion thing.

In regards to Grace and Sam's relationship. I was disappointed. If you happened to turn into a wolf and hadn't seen your love for months on end, would you not be DESPERATE to find them? I mean, I know Grace was a wolf and wolves forget their human memories and feelings and all that jazz but AFTER SHE TURNS BACK INTO A HUMAN, she FORGETS his name. WTF. She redeemed herself in my eyes when she finally went off her face at her dimwitted parents - her father in particular. As for Sam, well, if you've read my reviews of Shiver or Linger on Goodreads (or in the review archive) you will know how much of a Sam fangirl I am. That hasn't changed.

This installment took me an incredible amount of time to get into, I was over halfway the book when last night, I decided I was going to finished this series and because I found myself more invested in the book then I had the last couple of days. I  stayed up until 3 AM. The ball finally started rolling and I finally started to really get into this installment. When the ball started rolling, the tears started to flow. **SPOILER**Beck and Sam's conversation was heartbreaking and this quote undone me... "And it that split second, as Beck's face turned toward the ceiling, his eyes unchanging, I saw my own face". Really, this entire scene had me in tears, but that last sentence made me BAWL. **SPOILER ENDED**. At one point, after Cole was done waiting for the wolves to come and when he saw Sam and Shelby, I went crazy. These last few chapters had my emotions swinging one way to the other and I had emotional whiplash. One minute I was crying, then I was happy, the next minute I was angry at Maggie for ONE particular scene involving Cole, Shelby and Beck. After said particular scene, I felt numb and angry. I didn't even cry when I normally would have because I was in shock. THEN Maggie pulls another stunt, which made me happy again.

The entire second half of this installment had me going nuts with emotion and then, it just ended. Just like that. I was so so incredibly disappointed and I was extremely upset with the way it ended, because it didn't leave me with any closure, it just left me wondering if I had a dodgy copy and if pages were missing. I mean, I STAYED UP UNTIL 3AM FOR IT TO END LIKE THAT?. Due to that, and the slow beginning, it really pains me to give this a three star rating because if it ended differently, this series could have easily been up there with some of my other favourites. I'm afraid I can't say that anymore.

The Girl in the Steel Corset by Kady Cross

The Girl in the Steel Corset by Kady Cross

Release Date: May 24th 2011

Publisher: Harlequin Teen

Add it: Goodreads

Overall:  ♥♥♥

I've never read anything of the Steampunk genre before and I had to wiki it in order to get a rough idea of what I should expect. When I read the blurb on Goodreads I didn't know what to think. I mean, robots and American cowboys in Victorian England?  It sounded sort of strange to me, but I went into this with my head high thinking, "Maybe it's not so weird as it seems". Well, it took a bit to get my head around having robots in the late 19th century, but I eventually learned to enjoy it.   

This book revolves around a woman named Finley Jayne, she has both a dark side and a good side which exist completely seperately within her. When Finley's darker side emerges, she has heightened senses and super human strength - I loved this. I thought she was sooo freaking awesome simply because of the fact she can rip off the heads of robots and seriously injure or kill somebody if she really wanted to! We see Finley struggling to gain control over her dark side and after nearly killing somebody, she runs head first into the Duke of Greythorne, Griffin King. He basically takes her in, realises they may not be so different, and then tries to help her control her dark side. 

Griffin's friends live with him and they all have their own special abilities, just as Finley and Griffin do. They are trying to find and capture a villian who calls himself 'The Machinist' and find out what his (oooohhh) diabolical plans are! Whilst I loved the switching points of view between Finley, Griffin and Sam, I figured out who the Machinist was the minute he was introduced, which is a shame because if it hadn't have been so easy to figure out, it would have made the ending that much better.

Due to the different points of view, Ms Cross gives us rounded characters and gives them all a personality! Apart from the villian. But yeah.

I did enjoy this novel, although I preffered the first half to the second half, it was all amazing action and drama and then boom! Love triangle. Although, it was a pretty poor excuse of a love triangle if you ask me - you could tell there was one, but it wasn't overly dramatised like Twilight. This whole love triangle pissed me off a little, only because the book was so awesome, I finally got used to the whole machine/robot thing, then the love triangle happens and my face sort of looked like this.

In this love triangle, if I had to pick a "team", I'm Team Griffin, I thought he was strong but sweet and really respected Finley and wanted to help her. The only thing that annoyed me was this line. "Just relax, Finley. I'll be done soon, and if you're a good girl, I shall give you a biscuit." to which she replies, "Shortbread?". This annoyed me not only because it made her sound like a dog, but she accepted this and degraded herself. I guess this is how it was in the 19th century, but still. Ugh. That conversation took place in a tattooing scene which I found completely unneccessary, so the runes or whatever that Griffin is tattooing onto her are meant to help her two sides, but we don't get any evidence that this helped her further on in the book, it's not mentioned at all. Another part that irked me was the guy at the beginning getting killed (sorry, I don't really think this is a spoiler), Finley finds out she didn't kill him, then it's not mentioned again at all nor do we find out who actually killed him. This subplot was one of several that pissed me off a bit. Also, on a final note, I get why the book is titled so, but Finley wears her steel corset twice, and it is not mentioned to have helped her in any way, shape or form. So honestly, WTF was the point of it?

As an introduction to the Steampunk genre, it did well, as it didn't turn me off, however it didn't make me love it either. I will be reading the sequel to this book and more books of the Steampunk genre, just to further satisfy my curiosity :)