Tag: Reading

Posted in Book Review Blog

The Prey Book Review

Posted on by H. J. Ortiz

The Prey

by Tom Isbell

To purchase this novel or to find more information, you can visit Amazon.

Amazon Prices:

Paperback: $9.99

Hardcover: $17.99

Kindle: $9.99 (Not available on Kindle Unlimited)

Audible: $27.99 (Not available on Kindle Unlimited)

Before Reading Facts:

The Prey by Tom Isbell was published in 2015 by HarperTeen.

Page Count: 432 pages (paperback) 416 (hardcover) 417 (Kindle)

Audiobook length: 09 hrs 20 mins

Chapters: 53

Languages: English 

Summary of Book:

“With the country in ruins, the new government declared it the Republic of the True America, imposed martial law, and separated all survivors into settlement camps. Now, twenty years later, three sixteen-year-olds uncover the dark truth: All this time they’ve been labeled Less Thans. Feared by society, they’re being raised to be hunted for sport. Their only hope for survival is to escape with their friends . . . or risk certain death. Together they search for the fabled new territory in a heart-pounding flight to freedom, with sadistic hunters and the government’s soldiers hot on their trial. Led by the unlikely Book and fearless Hope, these orphaned teens seek a better life, finding the best in themselves to fight the worst in their enemies” HarperTeen

Author Biography:

“Tom Isbell is an actor-author-professor: A graduate of the Yale School of Drama, he has acted in theater, film, and TV, working opposite Robert De Niro, Ed Harris, Sarah Jessica Parker, and others. Currently a theater professor at the University of Minnesota Duluth, he has had three of his plays produced by the Theater for Young Audiences at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, including Teddy Roosevelt and the Treasure of Ursa Major, which was adapted into a book with then-First Lady Laura Bush penning the foreword. Tom and his wife, Pat, live in Duluth, Minnesota. You can visit him online at www.tomisbell.com. ” -HarperTeen

Book Review:

Overall Book Rating: ★★★★★ / ★★★★★

The Prey is an exciting novel! I loved the action and adventure throughout the entire story. I could not get enough. I was legitimately invested in this story and wanted to know the fate of the characters. The characters drew me in from the start. I could not put the book down because I just wanted these characters to get justice and the happiness they deserved. This is an excellent read for younger readers!

Though this story is for a young audience, there is so much to enjoy that I did not mind reading it. Usually stories for younger audiences poor me due to the lack of relation to its characters or the story line not being action-packed and adventurous enough. However, this story defies all of that. The Prey gives all the action and adventure one would expect in a YA novel with a slightly more censored taste. Nonetheless, the reader is too invested in the story to really care who the intended audience was.

The first thing that drew me into wanting to check his series out was the adventurous looking book cover. When I read this book, I was looking for a story similar to what I am writing. This story is for a younger audience than what I am currently writing, but nevertheless, The Prey did not disappoint. I not only loved the cover but also the story and the characters. I could not help myself, so I had to buy the next book and see what the fate of these characters was.

Audible Review:

Narration Rating: ★★★★★ / ★★★★★

Narration by Christian Barillas and Ariana Delawari

Barillas and Delawari doe an excellent job narrating this story. Their narration draw listeners in and make the listening experience very enjoyable at a 1.0 speed. For those of us who like to multitask and listen on the go, I recommend listening at a 1.5 speed, so one does not miss anything. This speed is also my favorite speed to listen to this story. It is not too fast nor to slow. For those who are listening while reading the book and want to listen at a faster pace, I found 2.0 and 2.5 speed to be the best speeds. 3.0 was too fast for me, and I was missing a lot of what the narrator was saying and had to eventually slow down the narrator’s reading speed. 

Other works by this Author:

The Prey Series

  • The Prey
  • The Capture
  • The Release
Posted in Book Review Blog

Tabula Rasa (The Amber group Book 1) Book Review

Posted on by H. J. Ortiz

Tabula Rasa (The Amber group Book 1)

by Filip Forsberg

To purchase this novel or to find more information, you can visit Amazon.

Amazon Prices:

Paperback: $14.00

Hardcover: N/A

Kindle: $2.99 (Available on Kindle Unlimited)

Audible: N/A

Before Reading Facts:

Tabula Rasa by Filip Forsberg was published in 2018 by Filip Forsberg.

Page Count: 424 pages (paperback) 426 (Kindle)

Audiobook length: N/A

Chapters: N/A (Book is not divided into numbered chapters)

Languages: English and Swedish

Summary of Book:

“In a dystopian future, earth is under strain due to natural disasters and accelerating pollution of the environment. On the coast of Madagascar, a ruthless corporate leader creates his own vision of the future in the shape of Tabula Rasa, a mega complex inhabited by over a million people. Jonathan Jarl, a rookie agent for the Amber group, is on his first assignment and is assigned to retrieve the famous Nebra Sky disc that has been stolen. During the mission, he is faced with some of Tabula Rasas darkest secrets. Meanwhile, in orbit around the moon, a discovery is made that has potential implications for the entire human race but Tabula Rasa is doing everything in its powers to keep the discovery secret. In a lab within Tabula Rasa, an idealistic scientist decides to share the discovery with the world. She takes a fateful decision that puts her life on the line. Jonathan is thrown into a breakneck race for time and Tabula Rasa is the first thrilling installment about Jonathan Jarl and the Amber group.” -Amazon

Author Biography:

“Filip Forsberg is the author of the science-fiction thriller series about Jonathan Jarl and Amber Group.” –Author Website

Book Review:

Overall Book Rating: ★★★★★ / ★★★★★

I won a Kindle copy of Tabular Rasa in a Goodreads giveaway. I was excited to read something new that was not already on my TBR list. I wanted to explore what else was out there and allowed the Goodreads gods to select my new discovery. That lead me to Filip Forsberg’s Tabula Rasa (The Amber group Book 1). I was very interested in reading this book as its cover was very interesting, and it made me wonder what kind of journey this book would take me on.

Now, I know I gave this book a low rating, but I do not intend it to be hurtful or negative. On the contrary, I want to encourage the author to keep it up! I really wanted to enjoy this book, and I am not entirely sure, but I think he translated this book from Swedish to English himself. Like I said, I am not sure. If he did, I am amazed! Some of us cannot even write a book in our native language, much less translate it to a different one. If that is that case, I commend the author for his work. Writing a book is hard enough; I cannot imaging how hard it must be to translate it. Again, I am not fully sure on how factual the translation comment is, but I did visit the author’s website on Goodreads, and it is in a language unfamiliar to me. It appears to be Swedish according to the Google translate I did on the website.

With that being said, I did find a good number of grammar-related mistakes. I would like to remain optimistic and say that this is due to English possibly not being the author’s first language. The mistakes did add up, but they did not keep me from reading more. The phrasing was also a bit confusing at times, so I found myself having to re-read. Taht made me stop more than the simpler grammar mistakes. Most of the grammar mistakes I found were missing commas, so they could easily be overlooked. Nonetheless, continual grammar mistakes cause me to shift from reading mode to editing mode, and I found myself editing the manuscript instead of simply sitting down an enjoy reading it.

The story progresses in an interesting way. There is promise in the story and its characters; they just need to be flushed out more. I found myself confused at some point. Perhaps, that is a result of not having read similar stories as this one. I also found that there is a lot of “telling” throughout and would have loved if the author allowed the reader to “show” more of the world he created. I got through about sixteen percent of the book before having asked, “where is this going?” I wanted more of the plot to move quicker. It seemed that, at times, characters would linger in a scene too long. I also found myself asking which characters I should care about. I wanted to connect with someone in the story but did not find that connection. The lack of connection to the character inevitably led me to giving up on the story and adding this title to my DNF list.

I do hope that in a future time, I find the time to give this story another go and perhaps even get through the whole thing. However, at the moment, other TBR books were calling to me and eventually drew me away from this title. I with the author luck in his future projects and would advise him to find someone who will provide a thorough and excellent proofreading and editing of his future projects.

Audible Review:

Narration Rating: N/A

No Audible Available.

Other works by this Author:

Novels:

  • Seek allt som behvs (Swedish Edition)

Amber group Series

  • Tabula Rasa
  • Genesis
Posted in Book Review Blog

Seafire Book Review

Posted on by H. J. Ortiz

Seafire

by Natalie C. Parker

To purchase this novel or to find more information, you can visit Amazon.

Amazon Prices:

Paperback: $10.99

Hardcover: $18.99

Kindle: $10.99 (Not available on Kindle Unlimited)

Audible: $26.95 (Not available on Kindle Unlimited)

Before Reading Facts:

Seafire by Natalie C. Parker was published in 2018 by Razorbill.

Page Count: 400 pages (paperback) 384 (hardcover) 384 (Kindle)

Audiobook length: 10 hrs 30 mins

Chapters: 43

Languages: English 

Summary of Book:

“The first in a heart-stopping trilogy that recalls the undeniable feminine power of Wonder Woman and the powder-keg action of Mad Max: Fury Road, Seafire follows the captain of an all-female ship intent on taking down a vicious warlord’s powerful fleet.

After her family is killed by corrupt warlord Aric Athair and his bloodthirsty army of Bullets, Caledonia Styx is left to chart her own course on the dangerous and deadly seas. She captains her ship, the Mors Navis, with a crew of girls and women just like her, who have lost their families and homes because of Aric and his men. The crew has one mission: stay alive, and take down Aric’s armed and armored fleet.

But when Caledonia’s best friend and second-in-command barely survives an attack thanks to help from a Bullet looking to defect, Caledonia finds herself questioning whether to let him join their crew. Is this boy the key to taking down Aric Athair once and for all . . . or will he threaten everything the women of the Mors Navis have worked for?” -Razorbill

Author Biography:

“Natalie C. Parker is the author of the Beware the Wild duology and the Seafire trilogy and the editor of The Sides of a Heart. She earned her BA in English literature from the University of Southern Mississippi and her MA in gender studies from the University of Cincinnati. She grew up in a Navy family, finding home in coastal cities from Virginia to Japan. Now she lives surprisingly far from any ocean on the Kansas prairie, where she runs Madcap Retreats with her wife. You can find Natalie on Instagram @ncparker.” -Razorbill

Book Review:

Overall Book Rating: ★★★★★ / ★★★★★

I was hesitant about reading this novel when I first picked it up. The dust cover caught my attention, but I was not sure if the story would hold my attention. I’m not one for sea stories, pirate stories, or anything in that regard. Perhaps, that is because I had to recently study Moby Dick, and I was not a huge fan. However, the synopsis of the novel did provide an interesting description of the story and so I decided to give this novel a try.

I was not immediately draw in as a result of all the sailing and ship-related descriptions. Again, I’m not one for boats and sea stories. But I decided to continue, because there was something in the characters that held my attention. Their story was more important to me than my not liking ships/sea stories. I wanted to know their history and what Parker had in store for these characters.

I found myself drawn in by the action taking place in the novel. Parker does a magnificent job navigating this tale full of discovery, fighting, and the hunt for vengeance. I quickly found myself rooting for Captain Caledonia and her crew. I was drawn in and felt the tension, excitement, and fear the characters endured throughout. In the end, I was satisfied with the ending to this first part of the trilogy and cannot wait to see what is in store for the Mors Navis, for Caledonia, and for the crew.

Audible Review:

Narration Rating: ★★★★★ / ★★★★★

Narration by Rebecca Soler

Soler does really good job narrating. Her narration at a 1.0 speed, is perfect for captivating the tale. It does not seem too slow or boring as I have experienced with some Audible narrations in the past. I listened at a 1.75 speed the whole time while I was multitasking. That speed was the fastest I would go. 2.0 speed was too fast to listen to while multitasking. However, for those who are listening while reading the book, I found 2.0 and 2.5 speed to be the best speeds. 3.0 was too fast for me, and I was missing a lot of what the narrator was saying and had to eventually slow down the narrator’s reading speed. 

Other works by this Author:

Beware the Wild duology:

  • Beware the Wild
  • Behold the Bones

Seafire Series

  • Seafire
Posted in Book Review Blog

A Very Large Expanse of Sea Book Review

Posted on by H. J. Ortiz

A Very Large Expanse of Sea

by Tahereh Mafi

To purchase this novel or to find more information, you can visit Amazon.

Amazon Prices:

Paperback: $11.96

Hardcover: $18.99

Kindle: $18.99 (Not available on Kindle Unlimited)

Audible: $22.95 (Not available on Kindle Unlimited)

Before Reading Facts:

A Very Large Expanse of Sea by Tahereh Mafi was published in 2018 by HarperCollins.

Page Count: 320 pages (paperback) 320 (hardcover) 307 (Kindle)

Audiobook length: 06 hrs 43 mins

Chapters: 38

Languages: English 

Summary of Book:

“It’s 2002, a year after 9/11, and Shirin has just started at yet another school. It’s an extremely turbulent time for the world, but also for someone like Shirin, a sixteen-year-old Muslim girl who’s tired of being stereotyped.

Shirin is never surprised by how horrible people can be. But she’s tired of the rude stares, the degrading comments–even the physical violence–she endures as a result of her race, her religion, and the hijab she wears every day. She decided long ago not to trust anyone anymore, and she doesn’t expect, or even try, to fit in anywhere or let anyone close enough to hurt her. Instead, she drowns her frustrations in music and spends her afternoons breakdancing with her brother.

But then she meets Ocean James. He’s the first person in forever who really seems to want to get to know Shirin. It terrifies her–they seem t come from two irreconcilable worlds–and Shirin has had her guard up for so long that she’s not sure she’ll ever be able to let it down.

Tahereh Mafi, bestselling author of the Shatter Me series, returns with a gorgeous and heartrending new novel inspired by her own experiences with first love, breakdancing, and the devastating impact of prejudice” -HarperCollins

Author Biography:

“Tahereh Mafi is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of the Shatter Me series, Furthermore, and Whichwood. She can usually be found overcaffinated and stuck in a book” -HarperCollins

Book Review:

Overall Book Rating: ★★★★★ / ★★★★★

A Very Large Expanse of Sea was a novel I picked up after reading the Shatter Me series. After reading the amazing series, I decided to read more of Tahereh Mafi’s work, and this novel did not disappoint. It is such a powerful story, one that opens up to the public to reveal the story of a struggling teen during turbulent times. The struggles this novel portrays captivates its readers and brings awareness to the prejudices a young, innocent girl received as a result of her culture and religion.

The story portrays the struggles Shirin ensures and how prejudice takes a hold of her life for so long that she closes herself off to the world. The story takes the reader on a journey of discovery and is full of emotion, anger, sadness, and raw insight into the life of a young Muslim girl who struggles to find herself in a world that sees her in such a negative manner. Shirin manages to find passion and a love for breakdancing and music and as a result discovers who she is as a result.

A Very Large Expanse of Sea is a beautifully written story. I enjoyed it and found it to be extremely enlightening. After reading so much science fiction and fantasy, it was so different to pick up a novel that places me back into the ‘real world’ and make me aware of the events that inspired so many authors. This novel is Tahereh Mafi’s testimony of hard times and how she managed to find love and happiness in music and breakdancing.

Audible Review:

Narration Rating: ★★★★★ / ★★★★★

Narration by Priya Ayyar

Ayyar’s narration captivate the emotions in such a way that bring the story to life for listeners. The narration allows readers to keep listening and latches on to the frustration Shirin displays and her battle against prejudice. I extremely enjoyed listening to the story at a 1.50 speed. For those of us who like to multitask and listen on the go, I recommend listening at a 1.75 speed, so one does not miss anything. For those who are listening while reading the book, I found  2.5 speed and 3.0 speed to be the best speeds. 3.5 was too fast for me, and I was missing a lot of what the narrator was saying and had to eventually slow down the narrator’s reading speed.  

Other works by this Author:

Novels

Furthermore

Whichwood

Shatter Me Series

  • Shatter Me
  • Unravel Me
  • Ignite Me
  • Restore Me

Novellas

  • Destroy Me
  • Fracture Me

Novella Collection

  • Unite Me
Posted in Book Review Blog

Where’d You Go, Bernadette Book Review

Posted on by H. J. Ortiz

Where’d You Go, Bernadette

by Maria Semple

To purchase this novel or to find more information, you can visit Amazon.

Amazon Prices:

Paperback: $16.99

Hardcover: $31.99

Kindle: $7.99 (Not available on Kindle Unlimited)

Audible: $11.96 (Not available on Kindle Unlimited)

Before Reading Facts:

Where’d You Go, Bernadette by Maria Semple was published in 2012 by Back Bay Books.

Page Count: 352 pages (paperback) 487 (hardcover) 335 (Kindle)

Audiobook length: 09 hours 35 minutes

Chapters: N/A (Book is not divided into numbered chapters)

Languages: English (also available in the following translation: Spanish) 

Summary of Book:

“When fifteen-year-old Bee claims a family trip to Antarctica as a reward for perfect grades, her fiercely intelligent but agoraphobic mother, Bernadette, throws herself into preparations for the trip. Worn down by years of trying to live the Seattle life she never wanted, Bernadette is on the brink of a meltdown. As disaster follows disaster, she disappears, leaving her family to pick up the pieces. Which is exactly what Bee does, weaving together emails, invoices, and school memos to reveal the secret past that Bernadette has been hiding for decades. Where’d You Go, Bernadette is an ingeniously entertaining novel about a family coming to terms with who they are, and the power of a daughter’s love for their imperfect mother.” -Back Bay Books

Author Biography:

“Maria Semple is the author of the novels This One Is Mine; Where’d You Go, Bernadette, which has been translated into eighteen languages; and Today Will Be Different. She lives in Seattle.” -Back Bay Books

Book Review:

Overall Book Rating: ★★★★★ / ★★★★★

I read this book for the Livre D’Amour book club. I was fairly open to reading something different, and this book seemed like it would be that something. I read the book summary before diving in and was interested in the story. I didn’t know much about the novel or what others were saying before reading because I did not want what others thought to sway my reading experience. After getting through about half of the novel, I could kind of guess that this is one of those books where people either loved or hated. I, myself, was on the fence. I kept myself judgement-free for as long as possible.

Once I started reading this novel, I realized the setup was new to me. The way Semple portrayed this story was very interesting. The story relies a lot on email conversations and interactions between multiple characters. This was not a novel I could listen to while doing something else as I have a tendency to do. I had to maintain my attention on the story or else I would get lost. However, I did not have trouble with the story’s layout. I actually really enjoyed it. I enjoyed Semple’s interesting story-telling and was really happy I got to see a different way of writing a novel.

I guess one negative thing I have to say about this novel is the whole “where’d you go” part of the title. Even in the book summary, the whole “Bernadette disappeared” originally caught my attention, and I wanted to know about her disappearance and if the main character figures out what happened to her. However, I was fairy disappointed that this novel was not much of a mystery as I had originally thought. Bernadette was present for about sixty-five percent of the novel that I just had to question when she would indeed disappear. By the time she did, I had already lost interest and simply read the story to contribute to the book club. This is not a bad story. I think the fact that I thought this was going to be more of a mystery gave me false expectations, and since it did not go as I thought, I quickly lost interest in what was going on.

Audible Review:

Narration Rating: ★★★★★ / ★★★★★

Narration by Kathleen Wilhoite

Wilhoite does an amazing job capturing the sarcasm and sassyness of the characters. Her narration made the story interesting. I have not read many novels written in the way this one was written in, but the way Wilhoite applies a different voice for each character allowed me to follow this story with ease. I did have to read at more than a 1.25 speed. 1.0 speed was too slow for me. At 1.25 speed, Wilhoite’s narration is about the speed I read, and is about normal conversational speech speed. For those of us who like to multitask and listen on the go, I recommend listening at a 1.75 speed, so one does not miss anything. For those who are listening while reading the book, I found 2.0 and 2.5 speed to be the best speeds. 3.0 and 3.5 speed was too fast for me, and I was missing a lot of what the narrator was saying and had to eventually slow down the narrator’s reading speed. 

Other works by this Author:

Novels

  • This One Is Mine
  • Today Will Be Different
Posted in Book Review Blog

The Rose Society Book Review

Posted on by H. J. Ortiz

The Rose Society

by Marie Lu

To purchase this novel or to find more information, you can visit Amazon.

Amazon Prices:

Paperback: $10.99

Hardcover: $18.99

Kindle: $10.99 (Not available on Kindle Unlimited)

Audible: $24.50 (Not available on Kindle Unlimited)

Before Reading Facts:

The Rose Society by Marie Lu was published in 2015 by SPEAK.

Page Count: 395 pages (paperback) 416 (hardcover) 412 (Kindle)

Audiobook length: 11 hrs 07 mins

Chapters: N/A (Not separated by numbered chapters) 

Languages: English (also available in the follow translations: Spanish, French, and German)

Summary of Book:

“Now Adelina Amouteru is turning down the bitter path of revenge. Knowing and feared as the White Wolf, she searches for other Young Elites to build up her own army. Her goal: strike down the Inquisition Axis who nearly killed her.

But make no mistake–Adelina is no heroine. Her powers are growing beyond her control and she trusts no one.

Adelina struggles to cling to the good within her.

But now can she be good when her very existence depends on darkness?” -SPEAK

Author Biography:

“Marie Lu is the author of the#1 New York Times bestselling series the Young Elites, the blockbuster bestselling Legend series, and Warcross. She graduated from the University of Southern California and jumped into the video game industry as an artist. Now a full-time writer, she spends her spare time reading, drawing, playing games, and getting stuck in traffic. She lives in Los Angeles, California, with her husband, one Chihuahua mix, and two Pembroke Welsh corgis” -SPEAK

Book Review:

Overall Book Rating: ★★★★★ / ★★★★★

I was very excited to read this novel. After reading The Young Elites, I could not wait to jump into the second book in the series. I could not wait to see what was in store fore Adelina at the end of the first novel. I could tell something big was going to happen to Adelina in The Rose Society. The ending of The Young Elites signaled the beginning of Adelina’s revenge and journey to discover her power to become the powerful leader lurking inside.

Lu once more takes the reader into Adelina’s dark mind as she forms new alliances to take on the forces against her. There is an interesting twist in the story that I will not discuss to avoid any spoilers, but all I can say is that it took by surprise. I was not expecting that to happen in the novel.

I’ve stressed my fascination with Marie Lu’s writing before. This novel did not disappoint. However, I did find myself having conflicting emotions. I did not know how to feel in the end toward the fate of Adelina at the end of the novel and am fairly worried to see what happens in the third novel, The Midnight Star.

Audible Review:

Narration Rating: ★★★★★ / ★★★★★

Narration by Carla Corvo and Lannon Killea

Corvo and Killea do an amazing job in the second part of The Rose Society series. I enjoyed their first collaboration for The Young Elites and was excited to find out that the same narrators would be narrating this one as well. As with the first novel, I was completely satisfied with their narration of the second book in the series. For those of us who like to multitask and listen on the go, I recommend listening at a 1.75 speed, so one does not miss anything. For those who are listening while reading the book, I found  2.5 speed to be the best speeds. 3.0 was too fast for me, and I was missing a lot of what the narrator was saying and had to eventually slow down the narrator’s reading speed. 

Other works by this Author:

Novels

Batman: Nightwalker

Legend Series

  • Legend
  • Prodigy
  • Champion

The Young Elites Series

  • The Young Elites 
  • The Rose Society
  • The Midnight Star

Warcross Duology

  • Warcross
  • Wildcard
Posted in Book Review Blog

Frost Like Night Book Review

Posted on by H. J. Ortiz

Frost Like Night

by Sara Raasch

To purchase this novel or to find more information, you can visit Amazon.

Amazon Prices:

Paperback: $9.99

Hardcover: $17.99

Kindle: $9.99 (Not available on Kindle Unlimited)

Audible: $27.95 (Not available on Kindle Unlimited)

Before Reading Facts:

Frost Like Night by Sara Raasch was published in 2016 by Balzer + Bray.

Page Count: 512 pages (paperback) 496 (hardcover) 491 (Kindle)

Audiobook length: 12 hrs 23 mins

Chapters: 39

Languages: English (also available in the follow translation: German)

Summary of Book:

“Meira will do anything to save her world from the threat of Angra’s Decay. So when the leader of a mysterious order from Paisly offers to teach her how to master her magic, Meira jumps at the chance. But the true solution to stopping the Decay lies in a labyrinth deep beneath the Season Kingdoms. To defeat Angra, Meira will have to enter the labyrinth, destroy the magic she’s learning to control–and make the biggest sacrifice of all.

Mather will do anything to save his queen. But with a plan of attack that leaves no kingdom unscathed and betrayal within his team’s ranks, winning the war–and protecting Meira–slips farther and farther out of reach.

Ceridwen will do anything to save her people. Angra had her brother killed, stole her kingdom, and made her a prisoner. But when she’s freed by an unexpected ally, Ceridwen must take action to save her true love and her kingdom, even if it costs her what little she has left.

As Angra unleashes the Decay on the world, Meira, Mather, and Ceridwen must bring the kingdoms of Primoria together . . . or lose everything” -Balzer + Bray

Author Biography:

“Sara Raasch has known she was destined for bookish things since the age of five, when her friends had a lemonade stand and she tagged along to sell her hand-drawn picture books too. Not much has changed since then: her friends still cock concerned eyebrows when she attempts to draw things, and her enthusiasm for the written word still drives her to extreme measures. She is also the New York Times bestselling author of Snow Like Ashes and Ice Like Fire. You can visit her online at http://www.sararaasch.tumblr.com and on Twitter at @seesarawrite” -Balzer + Bray

Book Review:

Overall Book Rating: ★★★★★ / ★★★★★

Frost Like Night did not fail in finalizing the fate of the Winterians. This novel brought the Snow Like Ashes series to an end in a satisfying way. I let out a long sight of relief at the finale. There was a heart-breaking moment in the novel that moved me to near-tears, but I had to hold myself together.

I was nervous throughout the entire time. Like many times I read, I could not help but wonder, “who will the author kill off?” That constant anxiety kept me reading more. I will not reveal any details about whether Raasch did so or not. I will let you figure that out on your own. Just note, that like the previous two novels, the author does an amazing job!

In all, this entire series was amazing, and I cannot wait to read more of Raasch future works. I know she has another novel out, The Rebel Waves, so I will have to check that one out as well. I extremely enjoyed Raasch writing and the way she captivated my attention with her Snow Like Ashes series.

Audible Review:

Narration Rating: ★★★★★ / ★★★★★

Narration by Kate Rudd, Nick Podehl, and Eileen Stevens

Rudd and Podehl returns to narrate the final part of this series and does an excellent job. They are joined by a third narrator, Eileen Stevens, and this change in narration from the first and second novels  gives the listening experience a fresh flavor each time. I extremely enjoyed listening to the entire series. For those of us who like to multitask and listen on the go, I recommend listening at a 1.5 speed, so one does not miss anything. For those who are listening while reading the book, I found 2.0 and 2.5 speed to be the best speeds. 3.0 was too fast for me, and I was missing a lot of what the narrator was saying and had to eventually slow down the narrator’s reading speed.

Other works by this Author:

Novels:

  • These Rebel Waves

Snow Like Ashes Series

  • Snow Like Ashes
  • Ice Like Fire
  • Frost Like Night
Posted in Book Review Blog

Wildcard Book Review

Posted on by H. J. Ortiz

Wildcard

by Marie Lu

To purchase this novel or to find more information, you can visit Amazon.

Amazon Prices:

Paperback: $13.48

Hardcover: $18.99

Kindle: $18.99 (Not available on Kindle Unlimited)

Audible: $32.99 (Not available on Kindle Unlimited)

Before Reading Facts:

Wildcard by Marie Lu was published in 2018 by G. P. Putnam’s Sons.

Page Count: 352 pages (paperback) 352 (hardcover) 352 (Kindle)

Audiobook length: 10 hrs 51 mins

Chapters: 35

Languages: English 

Summary of Book:

“Emika Chen barely made it out of the Warcross Championships alive. Now that she knows the truth behind Hideo’s new NeuroLink algorithm, she can no longer trust the one person she’s always looked up to, who she once thought was on her side.

Determined to put a stop to Hideo’s grim plans, Emika and the Phoenix Riders band together, only to find a new threat lurking on the neon-lit streets of Tokyo. Someone’s put a bounty on Emika’s head, and her sole chance for survival lies with Zero and the Blackcoats, his ruthless crew. But Emika soon learns that Zero isn’t all that he seems-and his protection comes at a price.

Caught in a web of betrayal, with the future of free will at risk, just how far will Emika go to take down the man she loves?

In this explosive sequel to the New York Times bestselling Warcross, Marie Lu delivers an addictive finale that will hold you captive till the very last page” -G. P. Putnam’s Sons

Author Biography:

“Marie Lu is the author of the#1 New York Times bestselling series The Young Elites, as well as the blockbuster bestselling Legend series. She graduated from the University of Southern California and jumped into the video game industry as an artist. Now a full-time writer, she spends her spare time reading, drawing, playing games, and getting stuck in traffic. She lives in Los Angeles, California, with her illustrator/author husband, Promo Gallanosa, and their dogs” -G. P. Putnam’s Sons

Book Review:

Overall Book Rating: ★★★★★ / ★★★★★

Wildcard was a novel I anticipated to read after having read Warcross. After the amazing first part to Emica’s story, I was interested to see what Lu would do next for this character and how she would utilize her video game technology in this novel. The novel was full of interesting and unexpected revelations, and i was intrigued to know more and more about the characters and the fate Lu had for them.

I read this novel in a hurry, as I did with Warcross, in order to have enough of the novel read for Marie Lu’s author signing event. I got through over half of the novel in the span of three days. I did not want to stop and wanted to continue listening to this story on Audible. I did not finish this novel until after the signing event but was surprised near the end. This novel gave an ending to the characters’ story in a way that the reader/listen does not expect a third novel. It may not be a satisfying ending for some, but I found it to be just right.

Both Warcross and Wildcard were novels that I extremely enjoyed and will be revisiting them and re-reading both of them when I have more time and I am not in graduate school. I want to re-visit both these novels and spend more time with these characters. I want to relive the adventure these characters have to offer. Once more, I recommend both these novels to anyone interested in novels that incorporate video gaming technology.

Audible Review:

Narration Rating: ★★★★★ / ★★★★★

Narration by Nancy Wu

Like Warcross, Wilcard is narrated by Nancy Wu who does an excellent job in portraying the second part of Emika’s story. Wu’s narration captivates the characters and their encounters very well, and I am eager to re-listen to both novels one after the other to get the full adventure all at once. For those of us who like to multitask and listen on the go, I recommend listening at a 1.75 speed, so one does not miss anything. For those who are listening while reading the book, I found  2.5 speed to be the best speeds. 3.0 was too fast for me, and I was missing a lot of what the narrator was saying and had to eventually slow down the narrator’s reading speed. 

Other works by this Author:

Novels

Batman: Nightwalker

Legend Series

  • Legend
  • Prodigy
  • Champion

The Young Elites Series

  • The Young Elites 
  • The Rose Society
  • The Midnight Star

Warcross Duology

  • Warcross
  • Wildcard
Posted in Book Review Blog

Stoneway Book Review

Posted on by H. J. Ortiz

Stoneway

by Christopher Francis

To purchase this novel or to find more information, you can visit Amazon.

Amazon Prices:

Paperback: $16.95

Hardcover: N/A

Kindle: $4.99

Audible: N/A

Before Reading Facts:

Stoneway by Christopher Francis was published in 2018 by Black Rose Writing.

Page Count: 204 pages (paperback) 204 (kindle) 

Audiobook length: N/A

Chapters: 34

Languages: English 

Summary of Book:

“Haunted by a boy named Riley Grayson, twelve-year-old Bentley is suddenly confronted by three things he fears the most in life: Love, Bullying, and Ghosts. While on an eighth-grade camping trip at Lake Stoneway, Bentley struggles with his fears, trying to find ways to get the attention of Michelle Heartly while stopping his best friend from picking on a new boy named Simon.” -Amazon

Author Biography:

“I am an Australian born, junior/intermediate grade school teacher with a passion for writing and illustrating children’s picture books, middle-grade and young adult novels. Growing up in Canada, I studied Classical Animation at Sheridan College before earning a Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Education at McMaster and York University.” -Amazon

Book Review:

Overall Book Rating: ★★★★★ / ★★★★★

I won a kindle version of this book in a Goodreads giveaway, and I was excited to read it. The description of the book and the cover drew me in, and I knew I was about to read something that would resonate with me. For the most part, I enjoyed this book. It is a quick read and one can get through it easily enough.

I will admit that there was one part that kind of threw me off. I was reading through it very comfortably until a new character was introduced. This character’s dialog threw me off a bit. I could read it and understood everything just fine, but I will admit that I had to slow down when I reached that character’s dialog. I also noted several mistakes, but they were so minor that I just read past them without any struggles.

Now, I did have so many conflicting emotions about this story. Perhaps that is what the author was going for. If so, Francis did a magnificent job! He created characters that I absolutely hated, but that was their role. I could not stand them, so I praise the author for doing an excellent job in getting the reader to hate those characters. In addition, the conflicts, both internal and external, the narrator goes through are so raw and relatable! Overall, I enjoyed this read!

Audible Review:

Narration Rating: N/A

 

Other works by this Author:

  • Alex was Here
  • Solving Damian Dermite
  • Remembering Kaylee Cooper (Plight of Timpleville Book 3)
  • Respecting Mr. Ravi (Plight of Timpleville Book 2)
  • How to Sneak your Monster into School
  • I don’t want to go to Sleep!
  • Meeting Henry Greenfield 
  • The Whispering Tree
Posted in Book Review Blog

Ice Like Fire Book Review

Posted on by H. J. Ortiz

Ice Like Fire

by Sara Raasch

To purchase this novel or to find more information, you can visit Amazon.

Amazon Prices:

Paperback: $9.99

Hardcover: $17.99

Kindle: $9.99 (Not available on Kindle Unlimited)

Audible: $30.99 (Not available on Kindle Unlimited)

Before Reading Facts:

Ice Like Fire by Sara Raasch was published in 2015 by Balzer + Bray.

Page Count: 512 pages (paperback) 496 (hardcover) 494 (Kindle)

Audiobook length: 12 hrs 48 mins

Chapters: 32

Languages: English (also available in the follow translation: German)

Summary of Book:

“It’s been three months since the Winterians were freed and Spring’s king, Angra, disappeared–thanks largely to the help of Cordell.

Miera just wants her people to be safe. When Cordellan debut forces the Winterians to dig their mines for payment, they unearth something powerful and possibly dangerous: Primoria’s lost chasm of magic. The last time the world had access to so much magic, it spawned the Decay. So when the king of Cordell orders Meira and Theron on a mission to discover the chasm’s secrets, Meira plans to use the trip to garner support to keep the chasm shut and Winter safe–even if it means clashing with Theron. But can she do so without endangering the people she loves?

Mather just wants to be free. The horrors inflicted on the Winterians hang fresh and raw in Jannuari–leaving Winter vulnerable to Cordell’s growing oppression. So when Meira leaves to search for allies, Mather decides to take Winter’s security into his own hands. Can he rebuild his broken kingdom and protect his people from new threats?

As the web of power and deception is woven tighter, Theron fights for magic, Mather fights for freedom–and Meira starts to wonder if she should be fighting not just for Winter but for the world” -Balzer + Bray

Author Biography:

“Sara Raasch has known she was destined for bookish things since the age of five, when her friends had a lemonade stand and she tagged along to sell her hand-drawn picture books too. Not much has changed since then: her friends still cock concerned eyebrows when she attempts to draw things, and her enthusiasm for the written word still drives her to extreme measures. She is also the author of Snow Like Ashes and Frost Like Night. Sara lives in Manassas, Virginia. She can be found on the web at http://www.sararaasch.tumblr.com and on Twitter at @seesarawrite” -Balzer + Bray

Book Review:

Overall Book Rating: ★★★★★ / ★★★★★

I had so many emotions brewing within me while reading this novel. It is an excellent continuation to Snow Like Ashes. In this novel, I was genuinely angered. I could not handle the injustice the Winterians were under. I wanted justice for Meira and her people. Those emotions and concern caused me to continue and learn more of Miera and the fate of her people.

I had concerns and felt that something was not going to go in Meira’s favor in the beginning of the novel. Meira wants her people to be safe. However, I knew that something was not going to go her way and she was going to run into some really bad obstacles. Raasch takes the reader on Meira’s journey for justice. I was fascinated with the journey and the descriptions of the kingdoms Meira visits.

By the end of this novel, I knew something big is coming in the third and final part in this series. The ending is satisfying enough but did not give me closer. The finale of Ice Like Fire left me wanting more, so I, of course, had to get the final part in this series, Frost Like Night. I am anxious to see what Raasch has in store for these characters!

Audible Review:

Narration Rating: ★★★★★ / ★★★★★

Narration by Kate Rudd and Nick Podehl

Rudd returns to narrate the second part of this series and does an excellent job. However in this novel, she is joined by Podehl, and the change from the first novel to this one gives the listening experience a new flavor. For those of us who like to multitask and listen on the go, I recommend listening at a 1.5 speed, so one does not miss anything. For those who are listening while reading the book, I found 2.0 and 2.5 speed to be the best speeds. 3.0 was too fast for me, and I was missing a lot of what the narrator was saying and had to eventually slow down the narrator’s reading speed. 

Other works by this Author:

Novels:

  • These Rebel Waves

Snow Like Ashes Series

  • Snow Like Ashes
  • Ice Like Fire
  • Frost Like Night
Posted in Book Review Blog

Warcross Book Review

Posted on by H. J. Ortiz

Warcross

by Marie Lu

To purchase this novel or to find more information, you can visit Amazon.

Amazon Prices:

Paperback: $10.99

Hardcover: $18.99

Kindle: $10.99 (Not available on Kindle Unlimited)

Audible: $15.51 (Not available on Kindle Unlimited)

Before Reading Facts:

Warcross by Marie Lu was published in 2017 by G. P. Putnam’s Sons.

Page Count: 416 pages (paperback) 368 (hardcover) 366 (Kindle)

Audiobook length: 12 hrs 30 mins

Chapters: 31

Languages: English (also available in the follow translations: Spanish and French)

Summary of Book:

“The obsession started ten years ago and its fan base now spans the globe, some eager to escape from reality and others hoping to make a profit. Struggling to make ends meet, teenage hacker Emika Chen works as a bounty hunter, tracking down Warcross players who bet on the game illegally. But the bounty-hunting world is a competitive one, and survival has not been easy. To make some quick cash, Emika takes a risk and hacks into the opening game of the international Warcross Championships–only to accidentally glitch herself into the action and become an overnight sensation.

Convinced she’s going to be arrested, Emika is shocked when instead she gets a call from the game’s creator, the elusive young billionaire Hideo Tanaka, with an irresistible offer. He needs a spy on the inside of this year’s tournament in order to uncover a security problem . . . and he wants Emika for the job. He needs a spy on the inside of this year’s tournament in order to uncover a security problem . . . and he wants Emika for the job. With no time to lose, Emika’s whisked off to Tokyo and thrust into a world of fame and fortune that she’s only dreamed of. But soon her investigation uncovers a sinister plot, with major consequences for the entire Warcross empire.

In this sci-fi thriller, #1 New York Times best selling author Marie Lu conjures an immersive, exhilarating world where choosing who to trust may be the biggest gamble of all” -G. P. Putnam’s Sons

Author Biography:

“Marie Lu is the author of the#1 New York Times bestselling series The Young Elites, as well as the blockbuster bestselling Legend series. She graduated from the University of Southern California and jumped into the video game industry as an artist. Now a full-time writer, she spends her spare time reading, drawing, playing games, and getting stuck in traffic. She lives in Los Angeles, California, with one husband, one Chihuahua mix, and one Pembroke Welsh corgi” -G. P. Putnam’s Sons

Book Review:

Overall Book Rating: ★★★★★ / ★★★★★

Warcross was a very interesting novel. I was fascinating with the way Lu portrays her video game background into her writing. This novel is full of futuristic video gaming technology and extremely resonated with me because it reminded me of an early writing project I did. This novel brought the video gaming industry to life in a way that made me want to revisit my own project and make something of it.

I read this novel in a hurry because I was working on finishing it before the release of Wildcard. I had no trouble getting through this novel and enjoyed every bit of it. Lu’s characters are carefully crafted and the chemistry between the characters adds on to the rising tension of the novel. I was nervous and and anxious of the outcome of these characters and shocked at the ending of this first part of their story.

I have mentioned my fascination with Marie Lu’s writing before, and nothing has changed. Al of her novels are amazing to me, and I really enjoyed seeing how different this novel is from The Young Elites series. Warcross is a must read for aspiring authors who want to write stories that incorporate video gaming technology. This story has allowed me to see how a bestselling author successfully did just that, and I recommend this to other writers going down the same track.

Audible Review:

Narration Rating: ★★★★★ / ★★★★★

Narration by Nancy Wu

Wu’s narration’s is really good if listened to at more 1.25 speed. Her narration at 1.0 speed sounds as if it is slowed down a bit. Wu narrates the novel effectively and in a way that really captivates the story.  I enjoy how Wu captures Emika’s sarcasm and snarky attitude. For those of us who like to multitask and listen on the go, I recommend listening at a 1.75 speed, so one does not miss anything. For those who are listening while reading the book, I found  2.5 speed to be the best speeds. 3.0 was too fast for me, and I was missing a lot of what the narrator was saying and had to eventually slow down the narrator’s reading speed. 

Other works by this Author:

Novels

Batman: Nightwalker

Legend Series

  • Legend
  • Prodigy
  • Champion

The Young Elites Series

  • The Young Elites 
  • The Rose Society
  • The Midnight Star

Warcross Duology

  • Warcross
  • Wildcard
Posted in Book Review Blog

Girls of Paper and Fire Book Review

Posted on by H. J. Ortiz

Girls of Paper and Fire

by Natasha Ngan

To purchase this novel or to find more information, you can visit Amazon.

Amazon Prices:

Paperback: $17.81

Hardcover: $18.99

Kindle: $18.99 (Not available on Kindle Unlimited)

Audible: $19.95 (Not available on Kindle Unlimited)

Before Reading Facts:

Girls of Paper and Fire by Natasha Ngan was published in 2018 by Jimmy Patterson Books.

Page Count: 400 pages (paperback) 400 (kindle) 400 (hardcover) 

Audiobook length: 14 hrs 23 mins

Chapters: 37

Languages: English 

Summary of Book:

“Lei is of the Paper castle, the lowest class in Ikhara. Even so, rumors of her golden eyes have piqued the King’s interest, and so she is ripped from her home and taken to the opulent palace, a gilded prison, her life now beholden to the Demon King’s every whim.

But as Lei dreams of escape, she does the unthinkable: she falls in love. Her forbidden romance, enmeshed with an explosive plot that threatens the King’s very reign, will force Lei to decide just how far she’s willing to go to fight for her freedom.

Lush, poetic, and utterly unforgettable, Girls of Paper and Fire is an extraordinary tale, reminding us that pure love and passion can transcend even the bleakest of fates.” -Jimmy Patterson Books

Author Biography:

“Natasha Ngan is a writer and yoga teacher. She grew up between Malaysia, where the Chinese side of her family is from, and the UK. This multicultural upbringing continues to influence her writing, and she is passionate about bringing diverse stories to teens. Natasha studied geography at the University of Cambridge before working as a social media consultant and fashion blogger. She recently moved to Paris, where she likes to imagine she drifts stylishly from brasserie to brasserie, notepad in one hand, wineglass in the other. In reality, she spends most of her time getting lost on the metro and confusing locals with her French.” -Jimmy Patterson Books

Book Review:

Overall Book Rating: ★★★★★ / ★★★★★

Before anything, I would like to admit that this book was not for me. I did not find myself getting too invested in the story. Now, let me first clarify that I am not saying this is a bad book. It just simply did not fit what I typically like to read. I will explain that in detail how I came about my high rating of the book.

Now, I do not let my taste for books weigh too much in my rating. I already admitted that I did not fall in love with this book, yet I still have it a really good rating. I did that because this is a beautifully written novel. I absolutely loved Ngan’s writing and the way she presents her characters and their world. I praise her writing and her novel for doing such a magnificent job in drawing readers into her world and taking them on a very distinct and unique journey.

Though this book is not one I picked up as soon as it came out, I was very impressed with Ngan. The way she colors her story is amazing and it kept me invested enough to read more. I do admit that I picked this book out after seeing it floating around multiple bookstagram accounts. I found it to look interested and decided to buy it. I would definitely recommend this to anyone who loves the telling of a rebellious love story.

Audible Review:

Narration Rating: ★★★★★ / ★★★★★

Narration by Allison Hiroto

Hiroto does an amazing work narrating this story! I had no problem getting into this story, and her narration made the novel all that much more enjoyable. I will say that I recommend listening to the narration at least at a 1.5 speed. The speeds slower than that are too slowed down for me. For those of us who like to multitask and listen on the go, I recommend listening at a 2.0 speed, so one does not miss anything. Normally, I listen to audiobooks at a 1.5 speed while multitasking, but I found that listening to this one at a 2.0 speed was just as good. For those who are listening while reading the book, I found 2.5 and 3.0 speed to be the best speeds. 3.0 was too fast for me, and I was missing a lot of what the narrator was saying and had to eventually slow down the narrator’s reading speed.