Review of Savannah Grey by Cliff McNish

Release Date: April 1, 2011
Publisher: Lerner Publishing Group
Pages: 272 pages
Author Website: http://www.cliffmcnish.com/
Genre: Science Fiction, Horror, Suspense
Rating: 3 stars
Source: ARC from the Publisher through NetGalley

Goodreads Summary: 15 year old Savannah Grey has never felt she's belonged. She keeps her distance, so she's surprised by her attraction to the new boy Reece. Then strange things begin to happen: nature, it seems, is exerting an overpowering force on the world. Birds behave strangely; gusts of wind blow leaves so fiercely they seem to lure people away. And Savannah learns she has supernatural powers. Nature has a purpose for Savannah and her friends. For they are on course to meet the vile and evil Ocrassa, who wants to destroy the world by corrupting nature. And it wants Savannah Grey to help realize its savage intent.

Review: Savannah Grey is one of the most unique stories I have ever read. The main character, Savannah, has paranormal abilities unlike anything I have come across in other YA novels and I found it refreshing.

This is a very quick read and Savannah is only briefly introduced before the action starts. She is a foster child who never feels comfortable being in one place too long so she changes families frequently but she is well behaved, smart and gets good grades. She knows there is something different about her but not what it is. Savannah is a strong, likable character who is faithful to her foster family and friends. When she is fully realizes what nature has been preparing her for, she handles the situation with a lot of courage, but not with the most well thought out plans.

Reece is Savannah’s love interest and the first boy that Savannah has ever been interested in. Her feelings for him develop quickly, but everything happens very fast in this story. In addition to her emotions, her abilities develop rapidly and instinctively, she always knows exactly what is going on with her body and the situations around her. I would have liked for a bit more story development there and for the action to be shown more than told. On the bright side, there is a great plot twist in the story that I did not see coming.

I also thought he villains, the Ocrassa and its minions, were very interesting and the portions of the book told from their perspective to be quite fascinating.

The book ends rather abruptly and while there is a resolution, I would have liked another chapter or an epilogue to really be satisfied.

Content: Some violence

Follow My Blog Friday - 4/8/11

Happy Friday everyone! The Follow My Book Blog Friday is hosted at Parajunkee's View. If you're a new follower, please leave a link to your blog in the comments so that I can visit your blog.

This week's question is: Do you judge a book by its cover?

Yes! I’m a sucker for a book with a pretty cover and even though I read the summary and take recommendations from fellow bloggers, if I am on the fence about a book, I am very often swayed by the cover. Most times my cover love results in a great book, but once in a while I end up with a bad one.

Library Thursday – 4/7/11

Library Thursday is a weekly blog hop hosted by Lazy Girl Reads to:
1. Encourage people to support their libraries when they can
2. Meet new bloggy friends and grow your following

For the first time, I got a video game from the library, Michael Jackson The Experience for Wii. It was soooo much fun! I think we may have to buy this one! I also got a lot of great books for myself:

Clarity by Kim Harrington; Desires of the Dead by Kimberly Derting; Timeless by Alexandra Monir and The Iron Queen by Julie Kagawa.

For my husband, I got him the following audiobooks: Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi and The Red Pyramid by Rick Riordan

For my four-year-old I got: Ladybugs by Cheryl Coughlan; Sea Anemones by Lola Schaefer; Tarantulas by Helen Frost and From Seed to Pumpkin by Wendy Pfeffer

What did you get from your library?

Waiting on Wednesday – Eve by Anna Carey

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event hosted by Breaking the Spine, and specifically spotlights upcoming novels we can't wait to read. This week’s choice is:

Title: Eve (The Eve Trilogy #1)
Author: Anna Carey
Publisher: HarperTeen
Publish Date: Oct. 4, 2011
Genre: Dystopia

Summary: The year is 2032, sixteen years after a deadly virus—and the vaccine intended to protect against it—wiped out most of the earth’s population. The night before eighteen-year-old Eve’s graduation from her all-girls school she discovers what really happens to new graduates, and the horrifying fate that awaits her.

Fleeing the only home she’s ever known, Eve sets off on a long, treacherous journey, searching for a place she can survive. Along the way she encounters Caleb, a rough, rebellious boy living in the wild. Separated from men her whole life, Eve has been taught to fear them, but Caleb slowly wins her trust...and her heart. He promises to protect her, but when soldiers begin hunting them, Eve must choose between true love and her life.

I love dystopia and this year has yielded a bounty of fantastic dystopian novels. Eve has a gorgeous cover and an intriguing summary. This is another one I can’t wait to read!

What books are you waiting on?

Giveaway Winner!

The winner of the Fool For Books Giveaway Hop, chosen by Random.org, is Tran Nguyen! Tran has been contacted and has 48 hours to claim her book.

Thank you to everyone who participated, you guys are awesome! I will be doing another giveaway on April 20 for the Hoppy Easter Eggstavaganza so make sure you enter!

Review of Cryer’s Cross by Lisa McMann

Release Date: Feb. 8, 2011
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Pages: 233 pages
Author Website: http://lisamcmann.com
Genre: Horror, Mystery
Rating: 2.5 stars
Source: Library

Goodreads Summary: The community of Cryer’s Cross, Montana (population 212) is distraught when high school freshman Tiffany disappears without a trace. Already off-balance due to her OCD, 16-year-old Kendall is freaked out seeing Tiffany’s empty desk in the one-room school house, but somehow life goes on... until Kendall's boyfriend Nico also disappears, and also without a trace.

Now the town is in a panic. Alone in her depression and with her OCD at an all-time high, Kendall notices something that connects Nico and Tiffany: they both sat at the same desk. She knows it's crazy, but Kendall finds herself drawn to the desk, dreaming of Nico and wondering if maybe she, too, will disappear...and whether that would be so bad.

Then she begins receiving graffiti messages on the desk from someone who can only be Nico. Can he possibly be alive somewhere? Where is he? And how can Kendall help him? The only person who believes her is Jacian, the new guy she finds irritating...and attractive. As Kendall and Jacian grow closer, Kendall digs deeper into Nico's mysterious disappearance only to stumble upon some ugly—and deadly—local history. Kendall is about to find out just how far the townspeople will go to keep their secrets buried.

Review: When I was a teenager, I loved reading horror. As I got older, those same books that I used to enjoy began really scaring me. This is the first horror novel I have read in a really long time and I am happy to say I was not overly creeped out. Cryer’s Cross is a mildly scary read, however, the mystery behind the disappearances overshadows the creepiness and adds to the suspense.

Kendall’s character was interesting. I don’t think I ever read a book where the main character has OCD. Jacian is the silent, brooding type which I usually like, but he is just too brooding and comes across as an angry jerk for a good portion of the book. Without giving away any spoilers, there is sort of a love triangle and I don’t like how it was handled. It bothered me for the majority of the book. I also think the resolution to the romance/love triangle is a cop-out.

Cryer’s Cross is a quick read and if you like suspense but really don’t care one way or the other about the romance, you may like this book. It also appears to be a standalone novel which is a great thing for you if you don’t want to wait year after year to find out what happens.

Content:  Language (including multiple uses of the F-bomb), some violence

Review of Haven by Kristi Cook

Release Date: Feb. 22, 2011
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Pages: 416 pages
Author Website: http://kristi-cook.com/
Genre: Fantasy, Paranormal Romance
Rating: 4 stars
Source: Library

Goodreads Summary: One month into her junior year, sixteen-year-old Violet McKenna transfers to the Winterhaven School in New York’s Hudson Valley, inexplicably drawn to the boarding school with high hopes. Leaving Atlanta behind, she’s looking forward to a fresh start--a new school, and new classmates who will not know her deepest, darkest secret, the one she’s tried to hide all her life: strange, foreboding visions of the future.

But Winterhaven has secrets of its own, secrets that run far deeper than Violet’s. Everyone there--every student, every teacher--has psychic abilities, 'gifts and talents,' they like to call them. Once the initial shock of discovery wears off, Violet realizes that the school is a safe haven for people like her. Soon, Violet has a new circle of friends, a new life, and maybe even a boyfriend--Aidan Gray, perhaps the smartest, hottest guy at Winterhaven.

Only there’s more to Aidan than meets the eye--much, much more. And once she learns the horrible truth, there’s no turning back from her destiny. Their destiny. Together, Violet and Aidan must face a common enemy--if only they can do so without destroying each other first.

Review: I have read a few paranormal books set in boarding school and even though I have liked most of them, they all sort of morph together because the setting and often the plot are so similar. I was expecting Haven to join the rest of the boarding school set, but I am happy to say that I was wrong. It does have similarities of other books out there, but it has enough other elements to make it memorable on its own.

Violet is the new girl at a posh boarding school who feels out of place and insecure. She also has a secret, an extrasensory ability that causes unusual episodes that she is ashamed of, and is hoping to make a new start where nobody has seen her act like a ‘freak.’ At Winterhaven, she meets awesome friends who embrace her and are supportive. She learns that she is not a freak and that other people at Winterhaven also have interesting talents, some of which I have not seen in other YA books. Violet starts out with some room for growth, and she does throughout the book.

There is a lot of tension between Violet and Aidan, sexual and otherwise. They argue quite a bit and have a hot and cold relationship, something I was not crazy about, but I understood the reason for the conflict. I loved Aidan’s character. I have stated before that I love the silent, brooding type and Aidan is that. What I really like is that he is not perfect like many other YA guys. He has flaws and makes some less than optimal decisions but he has a purpose, a good one that goes beyond just getting the girl and making out happily ever after.

Haven is a great debut for Kristi Cook. The plot is filled with conflict, mystery, romance and a nice mix of science and paranormal. Ms. Cook’s website says there will be a sequel to Haven and I am looking forward to more of Aidan, Violet and all their friends.

Content: Language (including the F-bomb), some violence, lots of sexual tension between Violet and Aidan