The Ruby Circle by Richelle Mead

Series: Bloodlines #6
Publication Date: February 10th, 2015
Publisher: Razorbill
Genre: YA, Fantasy, Action
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Synopsis: The epic conclusion to Richelle Mead's New York Times bestselling Bloodlines series is finally here...

Sydney Sage is an Alchemist, one of a group of humans who dabble in magic and serve to bridge the worlds of humans and vampires. They protect vampire secrets—and human lives.

After their secret romance is exposed, Sydney and Adrian find themselves facing the wrath of both the Alchemists and the Moroi in this electrifying conclusion to Richelle Mead’s New York Times bestselling Bloodlines series. When the life of someone they both love is put on the line, Sydney risks everything to hunt down a deadly former nemesis. Meanwhile, Adrian becomes enmeshed in a puzzle that could hold the key to a shocking secret about spirit magic, a secret that could shake the entire Moroi world. 

My Rating: 5/5 stars

My Review: “I told you before, we’re the center,” she said. “And the center will hold.” 

The Ruby Circle is the perfect finale to the Bloodlines series. As Sydney and Adrian try to solve the mystery to find the missing Jill, they have to put their love to the test and solve the mystery as a couple. 

This book is just as perfect as the rest of the series. I highly recommend reading the Vampire Academy books, and then starting my personal favourite, the Bloodlines series. 

This book ties up all lose ends between the Bloodlines and Vampire Academy Series. We get to finally see how our main characters end up, but not before their final last battle.

Now that Sydney and Adrian are married, I expected their relationship to slow down more and be more boring. Yet Richelle wrote such a fantastic romance between the two characters, that their love is so strong it never takes a boring aspect to it. I loved reading about it as much as I loved it in the first three books. 

Sydney has been one of my favourite characters since we first met her in the Vampire Academy books. She has honestly changed so much over 8 or 9 books that I am amazed. Yet she still remains my favourite character because she always knows what the right thing to do. Even as she grows up, she still stays true to herself and becomes such a beautiful character. 

I don't want to say too much about the plot, because I feel like most of you have read the previous books to this series, and will get very mad at me if I spoil something. But I will say that the action and adventure in this book is still as amazing as the other books. I could not put it down. Even though I wanted to read it very slow because I didn't want this series to end, I ended up finishing the book in two days. It was so good I could not put it down.

If you have not started the series yet, you have to do so now. I am very sad to see one of my favourite series come to an end. If the author decides to write more in this world I will definitely be on it and keep reading. 

Happy Reading,
- Aneta

Mortal Heart by Robin LaFevers

Series: His Fair Assassin #3
Publication Date: November 4, 2014
Publisher: HMH Books For Young Readers
Genre: YA, Adventure, Romance
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Synopsis: Annith has watched her gifted sisters at the convent come and go, carrying out their dark dealings in the name of St. Mortain, patiently awaiting her own turn to serve Death. But her worst fears are realized when she discovers she is being groomed by the abbess as a Seeress, to be forever sequestered in the rock and stone womb of the convent. Feeling sorely betrayed, Annith decides to strike out on her own.

She has spent her whole life training to be an assassin. Just because the convent has changed its mind doesn't mean she has.

My Rating: 5/5 stars

My Review: “I am beginning to think that love itself is never wrong. It is what love can drive people to do that is the problem.” 

Mortal Heart is the perfect ending to the His Fair Assassin trilogy. It is the perfect finale not only for Annith, but the other characters as well. I am sad to see this series come to an end, but I can't be any happier with how this series ended.

Annith has watched her sisters come and go, but when she is told that she is in line to become a Seeress, she can't take it anymore and decides to leave the compound. As Annith embarks on an adventure out of the compound of Saint Mortain, she must put her knowledge to the test if she wants to survive. 

This whole book took me by surprise. I've heard of some people not liking Annith as much as the other characters in the series, so going in to the book I had pretty low expectations for Annith. Yet when I read the book, some of her actions took me by surprise and I ended up falling in love with Annith just like I did with the other characters. As the story continued I fell in love with her more and more, with her fearless attitude and her perseverance to keep going when nothing is going right really intrigued me and I couldn't put the book down.

Balthazaar is Annith's love interest in this story. I can honestly tell you that out of all the couples in the previous books, Annith and Balthazaar are by far my favourite. Their love is something 'different' than what you have seen in the other books, but it is just so much better than the rest. I feel like this was one of the main reasons that made me love the book so much. I don't want to spoil the book and tell you more about the romance in this book, but I will tell you that it takes you by surprise. Don't worry its a good surprise, that will make you love Annith even more.

The world-building, and the action packed plot have not changed much since the first book. Ever since the first book Robin's world-building has been extremely creative and fun to read about. I loved how she included fictional characters in past historical events and made them fit in so well. Her descriptions are absolutely perfect and make the images pop out of the pages while you read them. 
The plot is filled with tons of action that keeps you on your toes and guess what's going to happen next. There isn't a boring point in the book because there's always something happening. 

Overall, I found this book to be just as good as the others in the series, except that the romance is far better. I highly recommend this series to every I talk to. If you love action, assassins and romance this is the book for you. I do recommend you read the first two books in the series before picking this one up though.

Happy Reading,
-Aneta

Waiting on Wednesday: A Magic Dark and Bright by Jenny Adams Perinovic

Waiting On Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we’re eagerly anticipating.

A Magic Dark and Bright by Jenny Adams Perinovic 
Series: The Asylum Saga #1
Publication Date: April 28th, 2015
Publisher: Bookish Girl Press
Genre: YA, Paranormal, Fantasy 
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Synopsis: She meant to help a ghost...not unleash a curse.

Amelia Dupree hasn’t seen the Woman in White since the night her brother died.

The ghost seems to have disappeared from the woods surrounding Asylum, Pennsylvania—that is, until Charlie Blue moves into the creepy old MacAllister House next door. Amelia can’t help liking him, even though she spent her childhood thinking his grandmother was a witch. And she definitely can’t ignore the connection between his arrival and the Woman in White’s return.

Then Amelia learns that the Woman in White is a prisoner, trapped between the worlds of the living and the dead. Devastated by the idea that her brother could be suffering a similar fate, Amelia decides to do whatever it takes to help the Woman in White find peace--and Charlie agrees to help her.

But when Amelia’s classmates start to drown in the Susquehanna River, one right after another, rumors swirl as people begin to connect the timing of Charlie’s arrival with the unexplained deaths. As Charlie and Amelia uncover the dark history of Asylum, they realize they may have unleashed an unspeakable evil. One they have to stop before everything they love is destroyed. 

The Madman's Daughter by Megan Shepherd

Series: The Madman's Daughter #1
Publication Date: January 29, 2013
Publisher: Balzer + Bray
Genre: YA, Fantasy, Mystery 
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Synopsis: Sixteen-year-old Juliet Moreau has built a life for herself in London—working as a maid, attending church on Sundays, and trying not to think about the scandal that ruined her life. After all, no one ever proved the rumors about her father's gruesome experiments. But when she learns he is alive and continuing his work on a remote tropical island, she is determined to find out if the accusations are true.

Accompanied by her father's handsome young assistant, Montgomery, and an enigmatic castaway, Edward—both of whom she is deeply drawn to—Juliet travels to the island, only to discover the depths of her father's madness: He has experimented on animals so that they resemble, speak, and behave as humans. And worse, one of the creatures has turned violent and is killing the island's inhabitants. Torn between horror and scientific curiosity, Juliet knows she must end her father's dangerous experiments and escape her jungle prison before it's too late. Yet as the island falls into chaos, she discovers the extent of her father's genius—and madness—in her own blood.

Inspired by H. G. Wells's classic The Island of Dr. Moreau, The Madman's Daughter is a dark and breathless Gothic thriller about the secrets we'll do anything to know and the truths we'll go to any lengths to protect.

My Rating: 5/5 stars

My Review: “Dead flesh and sharpened scalpels didn't bother me. I was my father's daughter, after all. My nightmares were made of darker things.” 

The Madman's Daughter is dark, twisted, and captivating. It is the perfect book for any mystery and science fans. The characters are all intriguing, there was constant action and mystery and the world that Megan Shepherd created is so mesmerizing you can't help but fall in love with it. In my opinion, this book was perfect.

Juliet works as a maid at a University in London, trying to stay out of poverty ever since there was a giant scandal with her fathers research, causing her father to leave London and abandon Juliet. When she finds Montgomery, her father's assistant, she decides to flee London and travel to a remote island where her father is said to be continuing his research. The island is filled with her fathers strange creations, with Montgomery and castaway Edward by her side, not even Juliet can be safe from the murdered trapped on the same island.

I am so impressed with how this book turned out. I wasn't expecting it to be as captivating as it was. I feel like most of that was due to the incredible and unreal characters. 
Juliet is honestly one of my favourite characters right now. She reminds me a lot of Tessa from Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare, they both share that passion of knowledge and deeper understanding, even though it wasn't proper for woman to do so in that time. I love how Juliet has a thirst for knowledge and loves to solve mysteries, this made her so much more relatable and made me love her even more.
I wasn't too impressed with the love triangle in this story. It was good in the fact that I couldn't decide between which boy I liked better, but that was mostly because I didn't really like either of them that much. While I thought Montgomery was really handsome and smart, I didn't think he was really into Juliet. He seemed really distant and more interested in other things than Juliet.
I loved Edwards devotion to Juliet, but he seemed really needy and sometimes kind of annoying. 
I found myself cheering for one of them at one point, and then near the end I started cheering for the other one. Then by the last chapter I was like "To hell with you both, single forever!"
Don't get me wrong, the love triangle is still very interesting and I feel like it would make the book more enjoyable if you liked one of the boys, but I just couldn't get into it.
The other islanders was what captivated me the most. They were the characters I was most looking forward to reading about. I loved how they were all so unique and different, and how they all had their own personalities and everything. What really allured me to them was the science behind it. As a scientist myself the whole process and the possibility of such creatures was really mesmerizing to me and I found myself wanting to read more of how her father created them.

This book is filled with a lot of mystery, and it works perfectly well with this book. Since this book is very dark and somewhat scary, the mystery aspect of this story worked perfectly. Usually when I guess who the bad guy is in the story, I'm usually right, but this time I was completely wrong. The author did an amazing job making you guess and then completely surprising you in the end.

Overall, I found this book to be absolutely perfect. I can't wait to continue on with this series. I highly recommend this book to all fantasy, mystery and science fans. It will captivate you, and you will fall in love with the series.

Happy Reading,
-Aneta

Waiting on Wednesday: Kissing Ted Callahan (and other guys) by Amy Spalding

Waiting On Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we’re eagerly anticipating.

Kissing Ted Callahan (and other guys) by Amy Spalding
Publication Date: April 14th, 2015
Publisher: Poppy 
Genre: YA, Contemporary, Romance
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Synopsis: Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist meets Easy A in this hilariously realistic story of sneaking out, making out, and playing in a band.

After catching their bandmates in a compromising position, sixteen-year-old Los Angelenos Riley and Reid become painfully aware of the romance missing from their own lives. And so a pact is formed: they'll both try to make something happen with their respective crushes and document the experiences in a shared notebook.

While Reid struggles with the moral dilemma of adopting a dog to win over someone's heart, Riley tries to make progress with Ted Callahan, who she's been obsessed with forever-His floppy hair! His undeniable intelligence! But suddenly cute guys are popping up everywhere. How did she never notice them before?! With their love lives going from 0 to 60 in the blink of an eye, Riley and Reid realize the results of their pact may be more than they bargained for. 

Second Star by Alyssa B. Sheinmel

Publication Date: May 13, 2014
Publisher: Farrar
Genre: YA, Contemporary 
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Synopsis: A twisty story about love, loss, and lies, this contemporary oceanside adventure is tinged with a touch of dark magic as it follows seventeen-year-old Wendy Darling on a search for her missing surfer brothers. Wendy’s journey leads her to a mysterious hidden cove inhabited by a tribe of young renegade surfers, most of them runaways like her brothers. Wendy is instantly drawn to the cove’s charismatic leader, Pete, but her search also points her toward Pete's nemesis, the drug-dealing Jas. Enigmatic, dangerous, and handsome, Jas pulls Wendy in even as she's falling hard for Pete. A radical reinvention of a classic, Second Star is an irresistible summer romance about two young men who have yet to grow up--and the troubled beauty trapped between them. 

My Rating: 3/5 stars

My Review: Second Star is about a young girl named Wendy Darling who goes in search for her lost brothers. What she finds is a bunch of teen surfers who live in an abandoned house. As Wendy runs away from home, she does her best to find out what happened to her brothers, and if they're still alive.

I had a really hard time rating this book. In my personal opinion, I didn't like it much. It reminded me of Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger, and even though its a classic, I hated that book. This type of book is the type of contemporary that I don't enjoy. Yet I feel like this book would be a hit or miss with people and you either love it or hate it.

This book a retelling of Peter Pain in the present. Honestly I love the story of Peter Pan, but I couldn't really make the connection to this book. I know that Pete is portrayed as Peter Pan in this story, but other than that I couldn't catch many connection between the two stories. I mostly chose to ignore this aspect of the book.

I found this book to be really confusing at most times. There was a lot of unanswered questions and the ending still makes me confused when I think about it. It sort of has a similar ending to the book as Catcher in the Rye where you find out the character's problem and that they're doing better but we don't get any details as to the how, and why that happened to change their mind, or what happens next. 

The thing that made me like this book was the romance. While everything else felt very unrealistic or silly, I found that the romance was fairly realistic and reasonable. I'm not talking bout running away with a boy or living with a complete stranger. What I liked was the part where Wendy was heartbroken after Pete broke her heart, but instead of being dramatic or stupid, she ends up having a rebound and falling in love all over again. This doesn't happen in many books and I was really happy to see it occur in this novel.

While I found the characters mostly boring and annoying. The way the author described surfing was really wonderful, or at least it was to a person who's never surfed before. Her words made me wish that I was by the water surfing along the characters. Her world-building is absolutely fantastic and you feel like you could step right into each scene.

Overall, while I loved the world-building and some aspects of the romance, this book really wasn't for me, and I did not like it much. I would only recommend this book to people who love books like Catcher in the Rye, or at least that type of contemporary, and even then I would warn them that this book is most likely a hit or miss.

Happy Reading,
-Aneta