RBD Review #25 | Ice Massacre (Mermaids of Eriana Kwai #1) by Tiana Warner

**I was given a digital copy of this book by NetGalley in return for an honest review.** I also want to mention that I did purchase this book after the fact, from Amazon for my Kindle as well as a physical copy, because I want to support the author.

Book info:
Ice Massacre (Mermaids of Eriana Kwai #1) by Tiana Warner | 375 pages | Published September 2014 by Rogue Cannon Publishing | YA, Fantasy, LGBTQA+ > Lesbian

Summary:
The Massacre is supposed to bring peace to Eriana Kwai. Every year, the island sends its warriors to battle these hostile sea demons. Every year, the warriors fail to return. Desperate for survival, the island must decide on a new strategy. Now, the fate of Eriana Kwai lies in the hands of twenty battle-trained girls and their resistance to a mermaid’s allure.

Eighteen-year-old Meela has already lost her brother to the Massacre, and she has lived with a secret that’s haunted her since childhood. For any hope of survival, she must overcome the demons of her past and become a ruthless mermaid killer.

For the first time, Eriana Kwai’s Massacre warriors are female, and Meela must fight for her people’s freedom on the Pacific Ocean’s deadliest battleground.

My thoughts:
Original read July 19-21, 2016 | 4.75 stars

RBD Review #22 | Linger (The Wolves of Mercy Falls #2) by Maggie Stiefvater

Book info:
Linger (The Wolves of Mercy Falls #2) by Maggie Stiefvater | 360 pages/10h 40m | Published July 2010 by Scholastic Press | YA Fantasy

Summary:
Once Grace and Sam have found each other, they know they must fight to stay together. For Sam, this means a reckoning with his werewolf past. For Grace, it means facing a future that is less and less certain.

the loss.

Into their world comes a new wolf named Cole, whose past is full of hurt and danger. He is wrestling with his own demons, embracing the life of a wolf while denying the ties of being a human.

the linger.

For Grace, Sam, and Cole, life a constant struggle between two forces--wolf and human--with love baring its two sides as well. It is harrowing and euphoric, freeing and entrapping, enticing and alarming. As their world falls apart, love is what lingers. But will it be enough?

My thoughts:
Read May 31-June 6, 2016 | 3.5 stars (3 on GR)

RBD Review #21 | The Raven King (The Raven Cycle #4) by Maggie Stiefvater

Book info:
The Raven King (The Raven Cycle #4) by Maggie Stiefvater | 439 pages | Published April 2016 by Scholastic Press | YA Fantasy (external image)

Summary:
For years, Gansey has been on a quest to find a lost king. One by one, he’s drawn others into this quest: Ronan, who steals from dreams; Adam, whose life is no longer his own; Noah, whose life is no longer a lie; and Blue, who loves Gansey… and is certain she is destined to kill him.

Now the endgame has begun. Dreams and nightmares are converging. Love and loss are inseparable. And the quest refuses to be pinned to a path (courtesy of Goodreads).

My thoughts:

Read May 19-27, 2016 | 5-Stars

RDB Review #20 | Shiver (The Wolves of Mercy Falls #1) by Maggie Stiefvater

Book info:
Shiver (The Wolves of Mercy Falls #1) by Maggie Stiefvater | 390 pages/10h 45m | Published August 2009 by Scholastic | Teen fantasy, romance (external image)

Summary:
For years, Grace has watched the wolves in the woods behind her house. One yellow-eyed wolf—her wolf—is a chilling presence she can't seem to live without.

Meanwhile, Sam has lived two lives: In winter, the frozen woods, the protection of the pack, and the silent company of a fearless girl. In summer, a few precious months of being human… until the cold makes him shift back again.

Now, Grace meets a yellow-eyed boy whose familiarity takes her breath away. It's her wolf. It has to be. But as winter nears, Sam must fight to stay human—or risk losing himself, and Grace, forever.

My thoughts:
Read May 24-31, 2016 | 4-stars

RBD Review #12 | The Martian by Andy Weir

Book info:
The Martian by Andy Weir | 435 pages | Published 2011 | Adult, Sci Fi

Summary:
Six days ago, astronaut Mark Watney became one of the first people to walk on Mars. Now, he's sure he'll be the first person to die there. After a dust storm nearly kills him and forces his crew to evacuate while thinking him dead, Mark finds himself stranded and completely alone with no way to even signal Earth that he’s alive — and even if he could get word out, his supplies would be gone long before a rescue could arrive. Chances are, though, he won't have time to starve to death. The damaged machinery, unforgiving environment or plain-old "human error" are much more likely to kill him first. But Mark isn't ready to give up yet. Drawing on his ingenuity, his engineering skills — and a relentless, dogged refusal to quit — he steadfastly confronts one seemingly insurmountable obstacle after the next. Will his resourcefulness be enough to overcome the impossible odds against him? (courtesy of Goodreads)

My thoughts:
Read April 6-14, 2016 | 5 stars

RBD Review #9 | Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children (Miss Peregrine's #1) by Ransom Riggs

Book info:
Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children (Miss Peregrine's #1) by Ransom Riggs | 352 pages | Published 2013 by Quirk Books | Teen, Paranormal, Fantasy (external image)

Summary:

A mysterious island. An abandoned orphanage. A strange collection of curious photographs.

A horrific family tragedy sets sixteen-year-old Jacob journeying to a remote island off the coast of Wales, where he discovers the crumbling ruins of Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children. As Jacob explores its abandoned bedrooms and hallways, it becomes clear that the children were more than just peculiar. They may have been dangerous. They may have been quarantined on a deserted island for good reason. And somehow—impossible though it seems—they may still be alive.

A spine-tingling fantasy illustrated with haunting vintage photography (courtsey of Goodreads).

My thoughts:

Read March 18-23, 2016 | 3 stars

RBD Review #7 | Winter (The Lunar Chronicles #4) by Marissa Meyer

Book info:
Winter (The Lunar Chronicles #4) by Marissa Meyer | 824 pages | Published 2015 Rampion Books | Teen Sci Fi/Fantasy (external image)

Summary:
Princess Winter is admired by the Lunar people for her grace and kindness, and despite the scars that mar her face, her beauty is said to be even more breathtaking than that of her stepmother, Queen Levana.

Winter despises her stepmother, and knows Levana won’t approve of her feelings for her childhood friend—the handsome palace guard, Jacin. But Winter isn’t as weak as Levana believes her to be and she’s been undermining her stepmother’s wishes for years. Together with the cyborg mechanic, Cinder, and her allies, Winter might even have the power to launch a revolution and win a war that’s been raging for far too long.

Can Cinder, Scarlet, Cress, and Winter defeat Levana and find their happily ever afters? (ourtesy of Goodreads)

My thoughts (minor spoilers):
Read February 22-March 02, 2016 | 5 stars

Oh my stars. It’s over. It’s all over. How am I supposed to go on now? I guess I have Stars Above left, but I don’t know if that’s going to help.

RBD Review #6 | Fairest (The Lunar Chronicles #3.5) by Marissa Meyer

Book info:
Fairest (The Lunar Chronicles #3.5) by Marissa Meyer | 220 pages | Published 2015 by Feiwel & Friends | Teen SciFi/Fantasy (external image)

Summary:
In this stunning bridge book between Cress and Winter in the bestselling Lunar Chronicles, Queen Levana’s story is finally told.

Mirror, mirror on the wall,
Who is the fairest of them all?

Fans of the Lunar Chronicles know Queen Levana as a ruler who uses her “glamour” to gain power. But long before she crossed paths with Cinder, Scarlet, and Cress, Levana lived a very different story – a story that has never been told . . . until now.

Marissa Meyer spins yet another unforgettable tale about love and war, deceit and death. This extraordinary book includes full-color art and an excerpt from Winter, the next book in the Lunar Chronicles series (courtesy of Goodreads).

My thoughts:
Read February 21-22, 2016, 5 stars

RBD Review #5 | Cress (The Lunar Chronicles #3) by Marissa Meyer

Book info:
Cress (The Lunar Chronicles #3) by Marissa Meyer | 552 pages | Published 2014 by Feiwel & Friends | Teen SciFi/Fantasy

Summary:
Even in the future. there are damsels in distress...

In the third installment of the Lunar chronicles, Cress, having risked everything to warn Cinder of Queen Levana's evil plan, has a slight problem. She's been imprisoned on a satellite since childhood and has only ever had her netscreens as company. All that screen time has made Cress a great hacker. Unfortunately, she's just received orders from Levana to track down Cinder and her handsome accomplice.

When a daring rescue of Cress involving Cinder, Captain Thorne, Scarlet, and Wolf goes awry, the group is separated. Cress finally has her freedom, but it comes as a high price. Meanwhile, Levana will let nothing prevent her marriage to emperor Kai. Cress, Scarlet and Cinder may not have signed up to save the world, but they may be the only hope the world has (courtesy of Goodreads).

My thoughts:
Read February 19-21, 2016, 5 stars

*NEW* RBD Review #28 | The New Hunger (Warm Bodies #2) by Isaac Marion

Book info:
The New Hunger (Warm Bodies #2) by Isaac Marion | 170 pages | Published October 2015 by Atria/Emily Bestler Books | Horror, Zombies, YA, SciFi, Dystopia
Summary:
The end of the world didn’t happen overnight.

After years of societal breakdowns, wars and quakes and rising tides, humanity was already near the edge. Then came a final blow no one could have expected: all the world’s corpses rising up to make more.

Born into this bleak and bloody landscape, twelve-year-old Julie struggles to hold on to hope as she and her parents drive across the wastelands of America, a nightmarish road trip in search of a new home.

Hungry, lost, and scared, sixteen-year-old Nora finds herself her brother’s sole guardian after her parents abandon them in the not-quite-empty ruins of Seattle.

And in the darkness of a forest, a dead man opens his eyes. Who is he? What is he? With no clues beyond a red tie and the letter “R,” he must unravel the grim mystery of his existence—right after he learns how to think, how to walk, and how to satisfy the monster howling in his belly. The New Hunger is a glimpse of the past and a path to an astonishing future… (Goodreads)

My thoughts:
Read September 16-19, 2016 | 5 stars

RBD Review #4 | Scarlet (The Lunar Chronicles #2) by Marissa Meyer

Book info:
Scarlet by Marissa Meyer | 454 pages | Published 2013 by Feiwel & Friends | Teen SciFi/Fantasy

Summary:
Cinder, the cyborg mechanic, returns in the second thrilling installment of the bestselling Lunar Chronicles. She’s trying to break out of prison—even though if she succeeds, she’ll be the Commonwealth’s most wanted fugitive.

Halfway around the world, Scarlet Benoit’s grandmother is missing. It turns out there are many things Scarlet doesn’t know about her grandmother or the grave danger she has lived in her whole life. When Scarlet encounters Wolf, a street fighter who may have information as to her grandmother’s whereabouts, she is loath to trust this stranger, but is inexplicably drawn to him, and he to her. As Scarlet and Wolf unravel one mystery, they encounter another when they meet Cinder. Now, all of them must stay one step ahead of the vicious Lunar Queen Levana, who will do anything for the handsome Prince Kai to become her husband, her king, her prisoner (Goodreads).

My thoughts:
Read February 18-19, 2016, 4/5 stars

RBD Review #3 | Cinder (The Lunar Chronicles #1) by Marissa Meyer

Book info:

Cinder by Marissa Meyer | Published January 3, 2012 | 390 pages | Teen Science Fiction/Fantasy (external image)
Summary:
Humans and androids crowd the raucous streets of New Beijing. A deadly plague ravages the population. From space, a ruthless lunar people watch, waiting to make their move. No one knows that Earth’s fate hinges on one girl. Cinder, a gifted mechanic, is a cyborg. She’s a second-class citizen with a mysterious past, reviled by her stepmother and blamed for her stepsister’s illness. But when her life becomes intertwined with the handsome Prince Kai’s, she suddenly finds herself at the center of an intergalactic struggle, and a forbidden attraction. Caught between duty and freedom, loyalty and betrayal, she must uncover secrets about her past in order to protect her world’s future. (Goodreads)

My thoughts:

Read February 16-17, 2016 | 4 1/2 stars
I AM IN LOVE! It’s been so long since I’ve fallen for a teen series. Not including The Hunger Games, it must have been the Great and Terrible Beauty Trilogy by Libba Bray back in 2003. The first few notes I made are simple: set in New Beijing, easy to read/get into, a little confused about the Moon people (or Lunars, if you prefer), but the more I read, the deeper I got and I suddenly realized I had read 100 pages. I loved all the references to the classic tale: the foot, the car, no human friends... Since I’m reading this after the rest of the series is out, I’m aware of the titles and can guess who they represent, and I really appreciated the subtle and not so subtle hints about how they will all tie together. I think it’s really important to do early on in a series with so many characters. This is such an easy read, and I don’t mean that like the writing is simple, it just flows so well; like it’s a third-person stream of consciousness. So easy to fall in without knowing it.

Other than the fact that I could call the plot twists/surprises, I’m really looking forward to the rest of the series. I hope they keep me wanting more.

4 1/2 stars from me! (I’m leaving room for the others!!)

Scarlet | Cress | Fairest | Winter

Find it:
Goodreads | Amazon | Books-A-Million | Barnes & Noble | The Book Depository

*NEW* RBD Review #27 | The Alienation of Courtney Hoffman by Brady Stefani

Book info:
The Alienation of Courtney Hoffman by Brady Stefani | 282 pages | Published June 2016 by Spark Press | YA , Sci Fi, Coming of Age

Summary:
Fifteen year old Courtney wants to be normal like her friends. But there’s something frighteningly different about her—and it’s not just the mysterious tattoo her conspiracy-obsessed grandfather marked her with before he disappeared. She's being visited in her bedroom at night by aliens claiming to have shared an alliance with her grandfather. And imaginary or not, they're starting to to take over her mind. “Mental illness is a slippery slope,” her mother warns her.

The last thing Courtney wants to do is end up crazy and dead like her grandfather did. But what about the tattoo? And the aliens trying to recruit her? With her new alien-savvy friend Agatha and her apocalyptic visions, Courtney begins connecting the dots between the past, present and future—of her bloodline, and the ancient history that surrounds it. Is she going insane, like her family claims her grandfather did, or is she actually a "chosen one" with ancestral connections to another world? Either way, Courtney has a mission: untangle her past, discover the truth, and stop the apocalypse before it's too late for everyone.

My thoughts:
Read July 28-September 12, 2016 (DNF at 20%) | 1.5 stars (2 on Goodreads)
---I was given a digital copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review---

I was not into this book. I don't really know how I made it to chapter 14 because it frustrated me to no end.

I don't know what I thought when I decided to request this book. I think the summary is quite appealing, but I don't think that came across in the writing. In all of my notes, I don't have much that's a true, positive comment. I have lots of thoughts about where I think it might be heading, but that's really it.

I see that the rating on Goodreads is quite high. I think that this may just be a case of "not for me," but I'm going to explain what I saw wrong with it and what I didn't like.