The Iron Traitor by Julie Kagawa

The Iron Traitor by Julie Kagawa(Cover picture courtesy of Goodreads.)

In the real world, when you vanish into thin air for a week, people tend to notice.

After his unexpected journey into the lands of the fey, Ethan Chase just wants to get back to normal. Well, as normal as you can be when you see faeries every day of your life. Suddenly the former loner with the bad reputation has someone to try for; his girlfriend, Kenzie. Never mind that he’s forbidden to see her again.

But when your name is Ethan Chase and your sister is one of the most powerful faeries in the Nevernever, normal simply isn’t to be. For Ethan’s nephew, Keirran, is missing, and may be on the verge of doing something unthinkable in the name of saving his own love. Something that will fracture the human and faery worlds forever, and give rise to the dangerous fey known as the Forgotten. As Ethan’s and Keirran’s fates entwine and Keirran slips further into darkness, Ethan’s next choice may decide the fate of them all.

[Full disclosure: I received a free ebook copy through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.]

The Iron Traitor is the second book in Iron Fey: The Call of the Forgotten and it releases on October 29, but I already can’t wait for the last book.  It seems that Julie Kagawa’s writing is still improving because I felt much more connected to the characters, more involved with the story and I felt like I was there.  The descriptions were even more vivid than before and yet they don’t veer into boring territory because they’re just the right length.

I love how Ethan is developing as a character.  In The Lost Prince he was the moody, tortured stereotypical bad boy but now that he has Kenzie and knows her awful secret he’s become a much better person.  He still fears getting close to other humans because of the faeries’ vengeance but he’s actually starting to warm up to the idea he can be sort of normal.  That it’s okay to love someone and that it’s hard to admit you’re in love.  Kenzie also has a lot more depth now that we know the reason for all her actions and stubbornness in the last book.  It makes her motivations a lot more believable and her love for Ethan is undeniable.

As for the plot, I had a really hard time putting The Iron Traitor down.  With Keirran missing in search of a cure for Annwyl before she fades, there’s an even greater air of urgency to the whole thing.  Does Keirran have an ulterior motive here?  Why did Ash and Megan keep Keirran and Ethan separate for so long?  Are the Forgotten really going to return to the real world now?  There are so many questions and many of them are answered by the end, but new questions pop up then as well.  The ending is just plain cruel, but is part of the reason why I can’t wait for the next book!  Julie Kagawa really knows how to hook her readers, that’s for sure.

So here we have a fast-paced plot, awesome characters and even more world-building.  I can’t ask for anything more in the second book of a trilogy.

I give this book 5/5 stars.

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Silent Echo by Elisa Freilich

Silent Echo by Elisa Freilich

(Cover picture courtesy of Diversion Books.)

Haunted by silence, a mute teenage girl is mysteriously given back her voice … and it is divine.

Rendered mute at birth, Portia Griffin has been silent for 16 years. Music is her constant companion, along with Felix, her deaf best friend who couldn’t care less whether or not she can speak. If only he were as nonchalant about her newfound interest in the musically gifted Max Hunter.

But Portia’s silence is about to be broken with the abrupt discovery of her voice, unparalleled in its purity and the power it affords to control those around her. Able to persuade, seduce and destroy using only her voice, Portia embarks on a search for answers about who she really is, and what she is destined to become.

Inspired by Homer’s Odyssey, SILENT ECHO: A Siren’s Tale is an epic story filled with fantasy, romance and original music.

[Full disclosure: I signed up to review this book as part of a blog tour and was provided a free ebook copy in exchange for an honest review.]

After a lot of thought, I’ve decided that my feelings for Silent Echo are pretty much mixed.  On one hand, Portia was a decent enough character even if she did have some ‘moments’ and on the other hand, I wasn’t very impressed with where the plot went.

So let’s talk about Portia first.  She’s completely mute and has been since birth and she has a best friend named Felix who is deaf.  I found their communication through sign language a refreshing change from the usually horrible dialogue in YA novels.  So once Portia regains her voice because the siren part of her is manifesting, it certainly throws things for a loop.  And of course her Siren part manifesting brings on the evil manipulation of the other two Sirens, who are long-dead spirits that can still influence her.  I know Portia’s downward spiral into evil, manipulative witch isn’t for everyone but considering the circumstances I found it quite believable and in line with what Elisa Freilich was going for with the story.

The plot was all over the place, to be honest.  I found some elements to be completely unbelievable like the fact that Sirens have power over the gods, even Zeus!  Somehow I don’t think the Sirens of Greek myth had that power.  As for why Portia is even a Siren there’s a pretty flimsy explanation given at the end of the book that doesn’t really ring true for me.  I mean, if it was true than a lot more people would be manifesting as Sirens.  As for Max’s hot and cold attitude toward Portia as he slips in and out of her spell, I found it slightly unbelievable.  I mean, is there a particular reason why he was able to resist at some times?  Not really.

As for the actual pacing, the plot isn’t badly paced.  Sometimes the song scenes drag the plot down but overall it wasn’t like I was falling asleep while reading Silent Echo.  If more elements of the plot were explained adequately, this could have been one of the best books I’ve read this year.  However, I felt that the execution of my first ever Siren book was lacking.

I give this book 2.5/5 stars.

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Elisa FreillichAbout Elisa Freilich:

Raised in rural Monsey, New York, Elisa spent her days reading whatever crossed her path and developing a keen appreciation for the ever-present music in her home – from classical to rock.

After her college years at Boston University, Elisa continued her creative pursuits, working as a junior VP of Marketing at a corporate graphic design agency and, later, as an interior decorator. Eventually, Elisa left the workforce to raise her family, in her now hometown of Englewood, NJ.

When Elisa is not writing, her creative outlets still abound. She is fierce with a set of knitting needles, a hot glue gun and any ingredients that can somehow be fashioned into a sinful and highly caloric babka.Silent Echo Blog Tour

The Best and Worst of September 2013

Overall, I’d have to say that September was a pretty good month for me.  Although my stats are down from last month because there was no author drama, I’m very happy with my 5,138 views, which is the highest number of views I’ve had in a non-drama month since January.  I’ve also welcomed 33 new followers this month and that makes me extremely happy; I pay more attention to follower statistics anyway.

So what were my top articles in September?

1.  The Hunger Games and Ancient Rome

2.  Why Girls Hate Game of Thrones—A Rebuttal

3.  The Outsiders by S. E. Hinton

4.  The Day an Author Suggested I Kill Myself

5.  How to Read 100 Pages in an Hour

Every single one of these except #5 has been on the list at least once before.  The fact that my article about speed reading is just now picking up steam is nice because I did put quite a bit of effort into writing it.  It’s nice to know that I can pass on a skill of mine to other people who read it.  The other articles, aside from the author drama one are popular simply because kids are back in school now or because it’s about a popular TV/book series.

So those were my five best articles.  What were my five worst?

1.  Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins

2.  Kaiulani: The People’s Princess by Ellen Emerson White

3.  The Skystone by Jack Whyte

4.  Looking for Alaska by John Green

5.  The Time Travelers by Linda Buckley-Archer

Nothing is really all that surprising on this list.  They’re all newcomers to the list and are either books that aren’t exactly popular or popular books that are much older.  People won’t show much interest in The Hunger Games until Catching Fire releases anyway, so I’m not going to lose any sleep over my review of Mockingjay getting so few views.

Parasite by Mira Grant

Parasite by Mira Grant(Cover picture courtesy of Orbit Books.)

A decade in the future, humanity thrives in the absence of sickness and disease.

We owe our good health to a humble parasite – a genetically engineered tapeworm developed by the pioneering SymboGen Corporation. When implanted, the Intestinal Bodyguard worm protects us from illness, boosts our immune system – even secretes designer drugs. It’s been successful beyond the scientists’ wildest dreams. Now, years on, almost every human being has a SymboGen tapeworm living within them. But these parasites are getting restless. They want their own lives . . . and will do anything to get them.

[Full disclosure: I received a free ARC ebook from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.]

I would have picked up this book for the cover alone, but when I saw it was by Mira Grant/Seanan McGuire I knew I just had to read it.  She did write one of my favourite trilogies ever, the Newsflesh Trilogy, after all.  But would Parasite live up to my expectations?

It did, but in a way I didn’t expect.  There wasn’t exactly the kick-butt awesomeness that made Feed an instant favourite with me, but Parasite channeled that same level of awesome in a different way.  The heroine, Sal, is nothing like George from Feed but she is also an amazing character.  Having almost died six years ago in a car crash, her parasitic implant from SymboGen saved her life—except that she remembers nothing from her own life and has become a completely different person.  Amnesia is difficult to write about in fiction because it’s used quite a bit, but Mira Grant did it in a believable and scientific way: Sal had to relearn everything she knew before, including how to breathe, walk and tie her own shoelaces.  Six years later she’s still learning the subtleties of human interaction, helped by her amazing boyfriend Nathan.

This book has been described as a medical thriller and that’s a pretty apt description.  There is a lot of scientific jargon in it and so many explanations in typical meticulous Mira Grant fashion.  Did I understand all of it?  No, science was never my strong point anyway.  But did Mira Grant explain it enough that normal people like myself can understand what’s going on?  Of course!  I’m sure the science in here can appeal to many different people on many different levels, depending upon their interest and knowledge of the subject at hand.

As always, there are incredible plot twists.  Some I saw coming from a mile away, others completely threw me off even if looking back on it they made complete sense.  The book doesn’t exactly start off with someone poking zombies with a stick, but I certainly wouldn’t call it boring as Mira Grant gradually ratchets up the tension over 500+ pages.  Believe me, you won’t be able to put Parasite down.  It’s just one of those fantastic books that you won’t put down for anything, including getting a proper night’s rest.  If you’re also worried that there’s the old Evil Corporation trope in here, don’t be.  If you’ve read Mira Grant’s books before, you’ll know she puts twists on all tropes like that and if you haven’t read her books before, prepare to be wowed.

Three dimensional characters, gross science and a fast-paced plot that throws lots of twists and turns makes Parasite one of my new favourite books.  It releases on October 29, so if you haven’t already pre-ordered it, do yourself a favour and go do that now.  You won’t regret it.

I give this book 5/5 stars.

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Your Shameless Blogging Self-Promotion Thread

Since I have a lot of blogging related things to do today (which include interviews, reviews and actually starting books I have a deadline to read) I’ve decided to turn over the site to you guys.  Basically, in the comments below tell us a little about your blog and leave a link to it, even if it’s already linked to in your profile. 

Your blog doesn’t have to be a book blog and I won’t be moderating this thread too heavily but obviously blogs with spammy or pornographic content aren’t acceptable.  That’s about the only rule aside from my regular be nice commenting policy.

So tell myself and everyone else reading this what your blog is about and why we should read it.  Go on!  Who can turn down a little self-promotion?