#Saturday Review - The Body Market by Donna Freitas (YA, Science Fiction>Dystopia

Series: The Wired # 2
Format: E-Galley, 432 pages
Release Date: March 28, 2017
Publisher: HarperTeen
Source: Publisher
Genre: YA, Science Fiction/Dystopia

In the tradition of M. T. Anderson’s Feed and Scott Westerfeld’s Uglies, this heart-pounding sequel to Unplugged continues the series that Kass Morgan, New York Times bestselling author of The 100, called “chilling and addictive.”  Skylar Cruz found her sister in the Real World—only to learn that her sister has betrayed her and put everyone in the App World in danger. The Body Market is now open for business and everyone still plugged into the App World is for sale. Shaken by the betrayal of everyone she trusted, Skylar is through being a pawn. She may be the only one who can stop what her family started. And she has to do it before the App World runs out of time.

The Body Market is the second installment in author Donna Freitas' The Wired series. Freitas has created a world where humanity split into App World, and the Real World. Skylar Cruz's family sent her to App world to give her a chance at a better life. In App World, you could be anyone, or go anywhere you like by downloading a certain app. But, in App World, she was considered to be a Single because none of her family followed her into App World. She eagerly looked forward to the day she turned (17) when she could be reunited with her sister and her mother.  

But, things quickly changed when the border between App world and the Real world was closed, and unplugging & plugging in came to an end. Skye found a way back to the real world and found that nothing is as she expected it to be. Her sister is part of a group with big plans of their own, and Skylar just happens to be at the center of it all. If you've read Unplugged, you know that there were a whole lot of consequences, and betrayal that forced Skylar to rethink who she can trust. Now, thanks to her sister Jude, there is a huge bounty on her head, and Jude's Body Market is close to opening for business. (Think of the Body Market as legalized human trafficking.) 

One could say that because of her actions, two of her friends, Inara and Sylvia, find themselves set to be sold to the highest bidder unless Sky and her allies can stop it from going forward. But, let's also not forget that there were others who could have changed the course of this story and Skylar's path to stopping Jude had they just opened up their mouth and told the truth about who is involved, who she can really trust, and why Skylar is so damned important. The Body Market is told in alternating POV's. Yes, we get Skylar's POV, but we also get Rain Holt's and a newcomer to this series Kit, who is also a bounty hunter who Sky spends a great deal of time with. 

With Skylar spending so much time with Kit, and Rain walking around like dead man walking, things kind of grind to a halt. Especially when Sky finds that she kind of likes the boy who kidnapped her, and is supposed to trade her for someone he cares about. I am not a fan of any sort of love triangles. I am not a fan of Lacy's, but I can respect her feelings when it comes to trying to make Rain get off his ass and choose. The issue still remains that Rain betrayed Sky. He knows things that have been kept from her, and expects that Sky would fall head over heels in love with him and ignore all the crap that has led to Sky being a pawn in a much larger game. 

The Body Market exposes some twisted secrets that had been hinted at previously, but not yet uncovered. Now that readers know the other key players in this world conspiracy, it will be interesting to see where the story heads from here. I did read the little teaser that is featured in the back of the book. I am curious if that means that other characters will be just as important to the overall series as Sky and her new found structure. I am a bit disappointed with this story because the secondary character were more extraneous, and they basically did nothing but let Sky, Rain, Kit, Lacy, and Trader have all the fun.

In the end, I am not a huge fan of starting series and then giving up on them because one book may have let me down. So, yes I will continue to the third installment called The Mind Virus and hope for a sound resolution and wrap up. I can't say that I am a fan of any romance between Rain and Sky, but whatever happens, I'll approach it with my eyes wide open, and my mouth shut.

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#Friday Review - Vigilante by Kady Cross #YALit #Contemporary #Social Issues @AlterKates @HarlequinTEEN

Series: Standalone
Format: Hardcover, 352 pages
Release Date: March 28, 2017
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Source: Publisher
Genre: YA, Contemporary

A brutally honest, uncompromising story about a teen girl who decides to take matters into her own hands.

It's senior year, and Hadley and her best friend, Magda, should be starting the year together. Instead, Magda is dead and Hadley is alone. Raped at a party the year before and humiliated, Magda was driven to take her own life and Hadley is forced to see her friend's attackers in the classroom every day. Devastated, enraged and needing an outlet for her grief, Hadley decides to get a little justice of her own. 

Donning a pink ski mask and fueled by anger, Hadley goes after each of the guys one by one, planning to strip them of their dignity and social status the way they did to Magda. As the legend of the pink-masked Vigilante begins to take on a life of its own, Hadley's revenge takes a turn for the dangerous. Could her need for vengeance lead her down a path she can't turn back from?

Vigilante, by Steampunk Chronicles author Kady Cross, is a standalone contemporary thriller that centers on a girls desire for revenge. Hadley White is a senior at Carter High School. She's facing the school year alone after her best friend Magda chose to take her own life. Magda was raped and had pictures of her posted to the internet. If that weren't enough, everyone from parents, to teachers, to students, blamed Magda for allowing herself to be in that position in the first place. It literally destroyed her heart and soul. 

Message: It's the girls fault she wore that outfit. It's the girls fault she was drinking. She's underage! Why was she drinking! It's the girls fault that she trusted too easily. She should have tried harder to not get raped! 

No one stood up for Magda in her time of need except for her brother Gabriel, and Hadley. Even Hadley let Magda down at the most inopportune time. While Hadley & Gabriel were supportive mostly, when you make a reference, or commentary that could be construed as inflammatory, then you need to understand how that feels to a person who has just had her world shattered beyond repair. In Magda's case, yes I did feel for her. I would never take such as drastic step, but I will ever slam someone over the choices they make. One could say that Hadley's desire for revenge is due in large part because the system failed Magda spectacularly. 

It also comes from the idea that she could have done more to help Magda. This guilt and grief sends Hadley into a dark place where the only way out is to find a way to make those boys pay for what they did. So, when opportunity knocks on the door, Hadley, who is trained in martial arts, makes the choice to pay each of the boys back for what they did to Magda. Hadley becomes the Pink Vigilante which leads her down the rabbit hole into even more dangerous situations. Her decision causes quite the stir, and a tidal wave of support from other girls and women. But, not everyone loves a Vigilante.

Hadley finds that she has the support of some surprising girls from her school, and her Do Jo where she and others train to fight back against potential attacks and rapists. For Hadley to take on the persona of a vigilante, a choice has to be made to put your own safety behind everything else. You have to ignore the police, and your parents, and those who are not as understanding as to the reasoning behind putting yourself that close to evil beings who care not who they hurt, as long as they are having fun. You have to also understand that if you get caught, you will probably go to prison quicker than you can imagine.

There is a factual element that says if you are rich, and with means, or have the ear of major players in law enforcement, then you can pretty much get away with anything. That isn't the case of Detective Diane Davies who stands in the forefront of finding justice for Magda. Nor do I believe that all judges, lawyers, or juries in real life are absolutely corrupt. I don't think that all cops are bad either. As a rape survivor of 20 years now, I had no desire to become Hadley who chooses to become a vigilante. 

I did not find it necessary to blame others for what happened to me. I didn't blame the cops for not having enough officers on the streets at the time of my rape. I didn't blame society who is obsessed with blaming men for every single one of their issues. I blamed the rapists. Period. The RAPIST chose to break the law. The RAPIST chose to take something from me I can never get back. One of the preachier aspects of this story is when the narrator states that "the best way to prevent sexual assault or rape is to not assault or rape anyone." Yes, that is true. However, let's stop saying that All men are potential rapists. They're not. Let's discourage authors and movie producers from using rape scenes on TV, Movies, and in young adult novels where kids may be swayed into doing things like raping young girls, and yes, even boys.

Vigilante isn't necessarily for everyone. I would rate this book as PG for its dark content, its focus on rape. There are scenes in the book that may be too violent for younger readers. One of the aspects of this story I did like, was when Hadley realizes that while Magda is gone, she isn't alone. First, there is Zoe who breaks through Hadley's shield, then there is Detective Davies who could have stopped Hadley. Davies really is a wonderful character. As for Hadley's mom, I had some issues with her, but that ended up being resolved in a heart warming manner.  

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#Thursday Review - The Awakening by @AmandaStevensTX #Fantasy #Horror @HarlequinBooks

Series: Graveyard Queen # 6
Format: Paperback, 416 pages
Release Date: March 28, 2017
Publisher: Mira
Source: Publisher
Genre: Mystery, Paranormal, Fantasy

Shush…lest she awaken… 

My name is Amelia Gray, a cemetery restorer who lives with the dead. An anonymous donor has hired me to restore Woodbine Cemetery, a place where the rich and powerful bury their secrets. Forty years ago, a child disappeared without a trace and now her ghost has awakened, demanding that I find out the truth about her death. Only I know that she was murdered. Only I can bring her killer to justice. But the clues that I follow—a haunting melody and an unnamed baby's grave—lead me to a series of disturbing suspects. 

For generations, The Devlins have been members of Charleston's elite. John Devlin once turned his back on the traditions and expectations that came with his birthright, but now he has seemingly accepted his rightful place. His family's secrets make him a questionable ally. When my investigation brings me to the gates of his family's palatial home, I have to wonder if he is about to become my mortal enemy. 

The Awakening is the sixth and final installment in author Amanda Stevens Graveyard Queen. It has been a rather long road for protagonist Amelia Gray since she first appeared in The Restorer. She has gone from having a list of things not to do while in a cemetery, to accepting that there is more to her than meets the eye test. In this story, Amelia finds herself once again deep in suspicion, intrigue, the paranormal, while also facing a secretive sect she learned about in The Sinner.

They may have finally caught up to what she is capable of. But, what part in all of this does her former beau John Devlin play & why did he really leave Amelia behind? How will Stevens sort out the relationship between Amelia and Devlin who has his own baggage and family history to figure out? Let's start with Amelia taking a restoration job at Woodbine Cemetery in Charleston, South Carolina where she discovers a children's section. Eerie? Hell yes. 

Readers of this series already know that Amelia is a very unique & special individual. We know that she has pretty much ignored all of the warnings her father told her while growing up. We know that because of how she came into this world. We know this because she is a ghost seer, a Death Walker, and a detective for the unquiet. She also has a light inside of her that attracts earthbound entities. We also know that there are malevolent entities who have not only invaded her world, but set their sights on bringing Amelia back to the other side.

I am going to say this to readers who have not yet read this book. Be prepared for anything. I was literally flipping the pages as quickly as I could to find out what happens next. I found myself getting goosebumps and my heart was racing because Stevens doesn't hold back on the horror, or the malevolence that Amelia is forced to encounter throughout this story. I must say that I have always been a fan of this series setting. While I have not been to Charleston since I was in college, I have always wanted to learn more about the historical background of the city, its people, and the paranormal aspects that have long been sought out by ghost hunters, and historians alike.

When all is said and done, and the final page is turned, I am kind of sad that the series is over, but understanding that all good things must eventually come to an end. Stevens is a bloody fantastic writer who will always be on my top # 10 list of authors to follow. Amelia's story may be over, for now, but that ending leaves me with a whole lot of curiosity. I mean really Amanda! How could you leave us like that?!?!  I have read that Stevens may have plans to spin-off this series, or come back to Amelia sometime in the future. If I am alive, and God is wiling, I will definitely add it to my collection.

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#Wednesday Review - Hunted by Meagan Spooner #YALit #Fantasy #Retelling @MeaganSpooner @harperteen

Series: Standalone
Format: Hardcover, 384 pages
Release Date: March 14, 2017
Publisher: HarperTeen
Source: Edelweiss/Publisher
Genre: YA, Fantasy, Retelling

Beauty knows the Beast’s forest in her bones—and in her blood. Though she grew up with the city’s highest aristocrats, far from her father’s old lodge, she knows that the forest holds secrets and that her father is the only hunter who’s ever come close to discovering them.

So when her father loses his fortune and moves Yeva and her sisters back to the outskirts of town, Yeva is secretly relieved. Out in the wilderness, there’s no pressure to make idle chatter with vapid baronessas…or to submit to marrying a wealthy gentleman. But Yeva’s father’s misfortune may have cost him his mind, and when he goes missing in the woods, Yeva sets her sights on one prey: the creature he’d been obsessively tracking just before his disappearance. 

Deaf to her sisters’ protests, Yeva hunts this strange Beast back into his own territory—a cursed valley, a ruined castle, and a world of creatures that Yeva’s only heard about in fairy tales. A world that can bring her ruin or salvation. Who will survive: the Beauty, or the Beast?

Hunted, by author Meagan Spooner, is a retelling of Beauty and the Beast, but has nothing to do with the current reincarnation that is currently being played at the box office. Trust me. This is way better. What makes this retelling even more special & entertaining, is that the author has created her own world, her own characters, and much of the story is based on Russia folklore with Ivan, Firebird, and the Gray Wolf being at the center of her story. 

This is a story about Yeva whose father Tvertko calls her beauty. After Yeva's father loses everything by putting all his eggs, fortune, into one basket, the family is forced to sell almost everything they own and flee to a small cottage on the edge of the woods. As a very distraught father begins to fray at the mind, it is Yeva who becomes the one to provide for her two older sisters Asanka & Lena. It is Yeva who puts food on the table since neither sister has any of her training. That is until her father disappears, and she is captured by a Beastly incarnation while trying to find him.  

As the time wanes by, Yeva and Beast come to a mutual non destructive agreement. Beast wants something from Yeva, while Yeva knows that her sisters aren't as good in the woods as she is. In fact, Yeva takes to the woods like dogs do to bones. She's a really wonderful character who, as I said before, doesn't resemble the newest incarnation of Beauty that Disney has managed to scrap up. No. This Yeva is strong, she's wild and yes, even stubborn. She has loyalty to her family that brings everything she does to a spotlight. Plus, she is a wonderful story teller who tames the Beast.

What's really interesting is that Spooner has bits of Beasts point of view sorted throughout the novel. It where we get a rather interesting look at the Beasts struggles, and it is where we learn that the Beast has laid his entire hopes on the feet of one special girl who stumbled into his life while looking for her father. Beast is one of those characters, that readers will soon come to sympathize with. This is like a story within a story really. We get a deeper understanding about why the Beast needs someone like Yeva who is not only strong willed, but has a beautiful heart as well. I'm not normally a dog person, but I adore Doe-Eyes. He stays with Yeva throughout her time with the Beast, and is her support mechanism while away from her sisters.

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#Tuesday Review - Gauntlet by Holly Jennings #YALit #Science Fiction @HollyN_Jennings @AceRocBooks.

Series: Arena # 2
Format: Paperback, 336 pages
Release Date: April 4, 2017
Publisher: ACE
Source: Publisher
Genre: YA, Science Fiction

Plug back into the dangerous world of virtual gaming, in the next thrilling novel from the author of Arena.

Kali Ling isn’t afraid of dying. She’s been killed hundreds of times in hundreds of different ways. And she knows there are things much more terrifying than death…

There’s a new game in town. A brutal, winner-takes-all, international video game tournament between the world’s most elite players, promising fame, prestige, and unbelievable fortune. But there’s a catch. The game uses new VR pods guaranteed to push digital warriors to their physical and psychological brink—adapting every time a gamer makes a move.

As the first female captain and youngest team owner in VGL history, Kali is used to defying the odds. But as the all-star tournament heats up, her determination begins to waver and the pressures of media, sponsors, and the game itself begin to put cracks in her hard-set convictions.

If Kali’s Team Defiance is to survive, they’ll have to find a way to be stronger than ever before. But battling the system may prove too difficult for even the most hardened of fighters…

Gauntlet is the second installment in author Holly Jennings Arena series. Several months ago, Kali Ling's dream of becoming the first female captain to lead a team to virtual glory came true. Now, she is on a mission to erase the corruption and drug abuse stigma that infects both players and owners in pro-gaming by becoming the youngest team owner ever. Kali is world renowned as the Warrior in Virtual Gaming Rage Tournaments. She is, pure & simple, a badass with skills to back up what she brings to the gaming world. But, she also has more than her fair share of enemies who would do anything to see her fail.

After getting a surprise invitation to visit "The Wall" where new technology is being developed, Kali and her Defiance teammates Derek, Hannah, Lily, & James Rooke are offered the last spot in a tourney that will feature 32 of the best gaming teams in the world. Teams from South Korea, where gaming was birthed, to Sweden, and to a team lead by Jessica Salt, the best female fighter in the world. Dare I say I loved the hell out of Jessica? Not only because of her sound advice she gives Kali, but the way she encourages Kali to become the person she can become by fighting harder, and continuing to stand for what she believes. Can you understand how powerful this message is?

"If you have a dream, then you just have to do it. You can't let money, or experience, or anything else become an obstacle. Never bow down to the world. Always make it bow down to you." Jessica Salt

Kali puts her reputation, her integrity, & her future on the line in this book. She doesn't have the money to throw around like other more settled owners do. But, she is an owner who is a stickler for following the rules. Even when someone has a brief, albeit, untimely failed drug test. She has sponsors who want blood from Kali, and unless she delivers what they want, she could be in jeopardy of falling hard and taking her friends with her. Thankfully, Kali has a core group who are not only her teammates but also her family. She relies on the fact that her teammates stand by her shoulder to shoulder against an increasingly powerful enemy that wants to make Kali pay for what she did in the previous installment. But, Kali isn't going to lie down and rollover for anyone either. 

In the end, Gauntlet once again rises above my expectations, and doesn't lay a golden egg like other sophomoric releases. The action is intense, the characters are challenges from the beginning to end, and there is a pretty wacked out ending to the story which I am definitely eager to see what happens next. Jennings is a helluva writer, but she is also diabolical. There are things that Kali, Derek, Hannah, Lily, and Rooke go through that really pushes them all to the mental and physical limits. There are still challenges to come, but I will say that if you haven't read the first book in the series, you really should do so. Especially if you are a geek who loves video games, or just watching them being played out like me. These are realistic characters, with realistic problems, and realistic dreams for the future.

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#Monday Review - Empress of a Thousand Skies by Rhoda Belleza #YALit #Science #Fiction @rhodabee @RazorbillBooks

Series: Empress of a Thousand Skies # 1
Format: Hardcover, 314 pages
Release Date: February 7, 2017
Publisher: Razorbill
Source: Library
Genre: YA, Science Fiction

CROWN PRINCESS RHIANNON TA'AN WANTS VENGEANCE.

The only surviving heir to an ancient Kalusian dynasty, RHEE has spent her life training to destroy the people who killed her family. Now, on the eve of her coronation, the time has finally come for Rhee to claim her throne - and her revenge.

ALYOSHA is a Wraetan who has risen above his war refugee origins to find fame as the dashing star of a DroneVision show. Despite his popularity, Aly struggles with anti-Wraetan prejudices and the pressure of being perfect in the public eye.

Their paths collide with one brutal act of violence: Rhee is attacked, barely escaping with her life. Aly is blamed for her presumed murder.

The princess and her accused killer are forced to go into hiding - even as a war between planets is waged in Rhee's name. But soon, Rhee and Aly discover that the assassination attempt is just one part of a sinister plot. Bound together by an evil that only they can stop, the two fugitives must join forces to save the galaxy.

In this exhilarating debut for fans of Marissa Meyer's Lunar Chronicles and Pierce Brown's Red Rising trilogy, RHODA BELLEZA crafts a powerful saga of vengeance, warfare, and the true meaning of legacy.

Empress of a Thousand Skies is the first installment in author Rhoda Belleza's Empress of a Thousand Skies series. I would put this story into the category of science fiction space opera. This is a story that actually features dual characters in Crown Princess Rhiannon "Rhee" Ta'an and Alyosha Myraz who serves at the pleasure of the Kalusian military. Each of character struggles with their own personal demons. Rhee wants revenge on the man she believes had a hand in her family's deaths, while Aly is just trying to survive in an universe that doesn't care for those with different skin colors.

Rhee is the apparent heir to the Ta'an Dynasty. She has spent the past (9) years away asking herself how she survived when her parents and sister did not. She's spent time focusing on getting her revenge and believes beyond a shadow of a doubt who is to blame. On the day of her sixteenth birthday, Rhee, who is supposed be attending her coronation, finds that she's been betrayed, & her world tossed up in the air by an attempted assassination. Rhee is rescued by a strange man in Dahlen who suggests that Rhee go into hiding since everyone now believes she is dead. He also believes that she is the key to saving the universe from yet another bloody war. 

Meanwhile, Aly finds himself being accused of assassinating Rhee after he and his partner chase down an unknown ship. He is a scapegoat pure and simple because of his skin coloring. This is a universe that does see skin color as a deal breaker. I know that's not necessarily the word that I wanted to use. But, in Aly's case he and his partner Vincent are stars of a hit show called Revolutionary Boys. Who better to put the blame on assassinating Rhee than on someone from the planet of Wraeton? Someone expendable? Someone from a planet that was devastated by war? Like Rhee, Aly finds himself in the company of a surprising character named Kara who really ends up throwing this entire series into question.

Both characters are absolutely brilliant, and author Belleza does a remarkable job with building each characters struggles, heart breaks, as well as plenty of ups and downs and twists. This is a story that features a power struggles and the threats of yet another war that will once again affect a large portion of the known world. I think what made this book fun for me, is that I waited until my library made a purchase. In the front of said book, there is an impressive map mapping out each place the characters visit, as well as what quadrants said planets are in. The bad thing is the minor hiccup in the synopsis. Aly and Rhee never do end up together. Each is separated, in some cases, by large distances. 

I am in shock at the ending. I dare say that whenever an author starts to introduce other characters to the story line, you better sit up and take notes, or pay real close attention to what she is trying to tell you. The world that Belleza creates is one with many different planets, with so much happening that you really have to look forward to what she comes up with next. It is a universe where everyone has what's being called a cube. These cubes are implanted so that you can story your memories. The only thing wrong with these cubes, is that they can also be used to track you. Empress of a Thousand Skies is the authors debut novel. It was an impressive read. I do hope that her follow-up is just as good.

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#Stacking the Shelves / Bought, Borrowed, & Bagged # 57 April Fool's Weekend

Stacking The Shelves is all about sharing the books you are adding to your shelves, may it be physical or virtual. This means you can include books you buy in physical store or online, books you borrow from friends or the library, review books, gifts and of course ebooks!

Bought Borrowed and Bagged is all about the latest additions to your library – virtual or actual, with books that are  bought, borrowed, won or ARCs  you will be reading soon. Bought Borrowed and Bagged is a homage to to Barron’s Books and Baubles from Karen Marie Moning’s amazing Fever series, and is hosted by Braine over at Talk Supe. 

Thanks for Shopping by! 

Welcome to the first weekend of April, &  my official 

entrance into being a so called Senior Citizen! YAY?

Have a great weekend!

Shelley

This Weeks Reviews: 

Monday - 100 Hours by Rachel Vincent (YA, Thriller)

Tuesday - Midnight Blue-Light Special by Seanan McGuire (UF)

Wednesday - Insidious by Dawn Metcalf (YA, Paranormal)

Chaos Choreography by Seanan McGuire (UF) Talk Supe Blog

Thursday - Pyromantic by Lish McBride (YA, UF)

Friday - Never Let You Go by Chevy Stevens (Mystery) 

Saturday - A Crown of Wishes by Roshani Chokski (YA, Fantasy)

*Received from NetGalley*

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