#Review - Analiese Rising by Brenda Drake #YALit #Paranormal

Series: Unknown
Format: E-Book, 350 pages
Release Date: January 8, 2019
Publisher: Entangled: Teen
Source: Publisher
Genre: Young Adult / Paranormal

Half-Blood meets the Antigoddess in this new series from NY Times bestselling author Brenda Drake.

After a dying man gives Analiese Jordan a list of names and hers is one of the few names not crossed off, she agrees to go with the man’s grandson, Micah, to find the other people on the list and unlock the secrets behind the clues in the man’s satchel.

Unbeknownst to Analiese, she and the others on the list are descendants of the Gods of Death. They have the power to raise the dead and control them, but those raised become strong and evil, with a tendency of decaying and losing limbs.

During their search, they discover Micah’s grandfather belonged to a group, pledged to save and protect the Death Risers from two groups of gods and their descendants. One wants to control them and use the Raised for an army, and the other wants to destroy them.

If Analiese and Micah don’t decipher the clues to finding out the truth about her and whom she should trust, Analiese could end up being a puppet to the wrong set of gods and become the destroyer of humankind as we know it.

 

Brenda Drake's Analiese Rising is a magical realism action novel that follows 17-year old Analiese Jordan. When she was younger, Analiese lost her parents. She was taken in by her uncle, who has also since passed, and her aunt who Analiese doesn't get along with all that well. The only one she does get along with, is her cousin Dalton who is more like a brother than her cousin. Strange things happen almost immediately in this book. 

A frog comes to life, Analiese sees death moths, and a man, Adam Conte, ends up dying in front of her. But, before he dies, he tells her by name that he needs to take his belongings to his grandson Marek. Analiese learns that some names have been crossed out and the list holds the secrets to a world she doesn’t know exists. The dying man also told her she was in grave danger. Even more strangeness? Analiese's name is among others in this strange mans book that haven't been crossed out. Why? What does it all mean? 

Putting aside all rationality and fear for her aunt's wrath when she discovers she has taken off to places unknown, Analiese meets Marek Conte, Adam's grandson who is up to his ears in secrets.  As Analiese and Marek dig deeper into Adam's past, and the Easter Eggs that he has apparently left behind for Marek to follow. the two end up flying from Philadelphia, to Rome, and later to a few other stops as they try to uncover & solve the ciphers left by his grandfather that forever change their perceptions of the world while also hiding from people who seem to be following them where ever they go.

Analiese is surprised to learn that there is a war ongoing between Gods, and she is stuck right in the middle of it all since she is a descendant of people call Risers who are able to bring back the dead. In the time of before, people actually worshiped other gods and goddesses. A select few families rose up to protect the world from immortals wrath. Analiese and Marek's descendants kept a balance between mortals and immortals, but a whole lot of people have been turning up dead. 

This book reminds me, in part, to Dan Brown's The Di Vinci Code. Here are two people are running around various cities of the world uncovering secrets, and solving ciphers to get to the next part of the puzzle hoping to stop some world event from destroying the world. To be honest, I was expecting more from the ending of this book. I felt as though things wrapped up way too quickly. I absolutely believe the author and publisher should work together to put out another installment from the point where Ana, Marek, and their allies face off against Gods like Ares. I think wrapping up this story and not allowing for any further extension of the series, would be a huge mistake. After all, there's a whole undertow to the story that was left dangling like chads during the 2000 election in Florida.

Drake is also the author of such series as Library Jumpers and The Fated. 

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Tuesday #Review - Assassin of Truths by Brenda Drake #YALit #Fantasy

Series: Library Jumpers (#3)
Format: E-Book, 403 pages
Release Date: February 6, 2018
Publisher: Entangled: Teen
Source: Publisher
Genre: Young Adult / Magical Realism

A fantastic ending to the Library Jumpers series from NY Times bestselling author Brenda Drake, about a girl who discovers a different realm hidden inside the world's most beautiful libraries.

The gateways linking the great libraries are no longer safe. Now the human world is experiencing violent attacks by unknown creatures as Conemar, with a compelled Nick by his side, readies his crazed army to rise against the Wizard Council and the Mystik League to take over both the Mystik and human worlds.

In the safety of a hideout in Ireland, Gia prepares herself for the great battle. With Arik and the other Sentinels’ help, she locates the rest of the Chiavi within the libraries and sets out to destroy the Tetrad. The journey is harrowing, and Arik tries to reconnect with Gia, but her conscience stops her from betraying Bastien, even though her heart screams for Arik. When Conemar and his men catch up to them, Gia must fight Nick to the death or give up both worlds and everyone she loves.

Assassin of Truths is the third and final installment in author Brenda Drake's Library Jumpers trilogy. Let's start from the top. Assassin picks up two months after the ending of Guardian of Secrets. Gia Kearns and her group of Sentinels is lying low in Ireland after the loss of key friends and allies to their nemesis. If you haven't already caught on to this series, this is about a group of Sentinels who are magical knights who protect the libraries of the world and humans from the dangers of those who want to rule both worlds. 

Protagonist Gia Kearns has been searching for the 7 keys called the Chiavi that can unlock a being called Tetrad. She has thus far found 5, and is close to uncovering the locations of the final 2. If Gia can get to them first, she may have a way to defeat it and save the world. If not, there will be a war that will engulf both the human and mystic worlds. Gia has become proficient in her ability to jump from library to library all over the world. 

She is also a curious sort of Sentinel, one that isn't supposed to exist. Unlike Gia, the rest of her allies have grown up learning how to handle the magical balls which are tied to key elements like water, fire, wind, and air. Gia's ability to create magical balls has grown leaps and bounds to the point where she is pretty good at keeping her head attached. She is definitely at the top of the most wanted list for her enemies, and those who have been lured to the dark side. This includes one powerful magician by the name of Conemar.

Gia has seen many ups and downs since her story began with the accidental jumping from a library in Boston, to one in the Vatican. She has lost friends, she has gained allies, she has become the fated savior of the planet, and she is more than just a silly prediction handed down generations ago. She is the Assassin of Truths. She is also a human with feelings. A human who has had her heart shattered, and then healed by another. If you are asking me about the 3-way love triangle that I didn't much care for in the first installment, that is definitely sorted out in a way that made me happy.

I will say that this is a perfectly paced story with an ending that left me satisfied. There's plenty of action and suspense. There's just enough romance that doesn't smother the story. There's Gia's growth as a character and a leader. There's Bastian who really made me glad that there was at least someone standing by Gia's side and didn't betray her trust and feelings. One last thing I do have to say about Gia. Nope, she's not perfect. She makes mistakes, especially when it comes to not trusting others to have her back. She goes solo enough times to say that she really can handle herself. Sometimes, she even over analyzes the situation. She also tried hard to remain true to who she is, and not change so much that you don't recognize her. She has tough choices to make in this book. But, I wouldn't have it any other way.

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#Review - Guardian of Secrets by Brenda Drake #YALit #Fantasy @brendadrake @EntangledTeen

Series: Library Jumpers # 2
Format: E-Galley, 400 pages
Release Date: February 7th 2017 
Publisher: Entangled: Teen
Source: Publisher
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy

Being a Sentinel isn’t all fairy tales and secret gardens. 

Sure, jumping through books into the world’s most beautiful libraries to protect humans from mystical creatures is awesome. No one knows that better than Gia Kearns, but she could do without the part where people are always trying to kill her. Oh, and the fact that Pop and her had to move away from her friends and life as she knew it.

And if that isn’t enough, her boyfriend, Arik, is acting strangely. Like, maybe she should be calling him “ex,” since he’s so into another girl. But she doesn’t have time to be mad or even jealous, because someone has to save the world from the upcoming apocalypse, and it looks like that’s going to be Gia.

Maybe. If she survives.

Guardian of Secrets is the second installment in author Brenda Drake's Library Jumpers series. This is a story that is filled with action, heartbreak, library jumping, a return of a major villain, and enough secrets to keep even the most stubborn reader entertained right to the very end. Protagonist Gia Kearns and her friends have gone into hiding after their encounter with Conemar. Gia is a sentinel, aka a magical knight, who was introduced to an entirely new world after being pulled into a magical portal in Thief of Lies. 

A world where Gia, like the rest of her sentinel teammates, is able to travel to different libraries around the world. But, the most important mission for Gina, is to find the remaining magical keys aka Chiavi. She's already collected several of them already. It has become Gina & Nick's mission to search for the remaining Chiavi since they seems to have the magical touch when doing the actual research and jumping from library to library. In between her Sentinel life, and the search for the Chiavi, she's is also expected to attend High School.

HS is where the twisted storyline, and intrigue comes from. 

HS is where Gina finds that her connection to Arik is severely tested thanks to a new character who really pushes Gina's buttons. I must say that this divisive behavior bothered me because there was no rhyme or reason for what happened. Yet, in the end, after everything that happens between Gia and Arik, I don't know where my loyalties like. I like Bastian, the wizard who is presumably betrothed to Mia and who apparently Gia also has feelings for. Yet, Arik was there first. 

Nick has become almost as important to this series as Gia. His father has twisted things so much, that he has a collection of Sentinels, Wizards, Hunters, and others following his direction. Nick's struggle with his new status, his parentage, and choices that he will have to make in the next installment, makes me eager to read the sequel. There are a whole lot of other interesting characters in this book, including The Red, has set this series to some amazing places, and I do believe, things will only get more twisted when all is said and done.

The ending of this book is emotional in many ways. A new chapter is being written for everyone close to Gia. The question that needs to be asked is whether or not everyone will survive to the last page of the last book.

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#Wednesday Review - Thief of Lies by Brenda Drake #YALit #Fantasy @brendadrake @EntangledTeen

Series: Library Jumpers # 1
Format: Kindle, 400 pages
Release Date: January 5, 2016
Publisher: Entangled Teen
Source: Publisher Invitation
Genre: YA, Fantasy


Gia Kearns would rather fight with boys than kiss them. That is, until Arik, a leather clad hottie in the Boston Athenaeum, suddenly disappears. While examining the book of world libraries he abandoned, Gia unwittingly speaks the key that sucks her and her friends into a photograph and transports them into a Paris library, where Arik and his Sentinels—magical knights charged with protecting humans from the creatures traveling across the gateway books—rescue them from a demonic hound.

Jumping into some of the world's most beautiful libraries would be a dream come true for Gia, if she weren’t busy resisting her heart or dodging an exiled wizard seeking revenge on both the Mystik and human worlds. Add a French flirt obsessed with Arik and a fling with a young wizard, and Gia must choose between her heart and her head, between Arik's world and her own, before both are destroyed.

Thief of Lies is the first installment in author Brenda Drake's Library Jumpers series. 16-year old Gianna Kearns and her friends Nick & Afton are visiting the Boston

Athenaeum Library when Gia notices a guy who apparently vanishes into thin air. Curious, Gia picks up the book the boy was reading, Libraries of the World. After uttering the words "Apire la porta" Gia, Nick, and Afton find themselves transported to The Bibliothèque nationale de France.

Gia and her friends encounter a demonic hound that is stopped thanks to the efforts of Arik, the boy who disappeared, and his fellow Sentinels Lei, Demos, Kale, & Jaran. Sentinels are magical knights who protect libraries. Arik states that humans can't jump, so why was Gia able to use the key word to travel through a wormhole from Boston to Paris? What does the crescent brand mean? Is Gia a witch, a warlock, or something different? What Gia fails to tell anyone, is that she once experience her own magic but was told to keep silent about it.

Gia is an interesting character in that she's into fencing, can speak fluent Italian, loves being around books, and is able to take care of herself without relying on others. She's also the daughter of two Sentinels which is unheard of. She is forced to deal with a whole lot of information in a quick manner. She finds herself taken away from the only family she knows, and transported to a realm where she will be taught how to be a Sentinel. Gia is also at the center of a pretty intriguing prophecy that drives the villains actions. 

The whole idea behind magical globes intrigues me, and I dare say Gia's ability to use them is too cool for school. 

Unfortunately the dreaded love triangle makes its ugly self known later in the story with the arrival of Bastian, who is a wizard and someone who puts Gia into a difficult situation in choosing between Arik, and Bastian. I do believe this story is truly unique in its world building, and the various characters that are introduced. I liked the introduction of laniars like Faith who are supposed to protect Gia, along with the various factions around the globe. One can hope that this continues in the sequel.

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