The Host by Stephenie Meyer | Book Review

The Host by Stephenie Meyer

N/A

First Published: 2008

Paperback

Young Adult, Sci-Fi

Rating:

Melanie Stryder refuses to fade away. The earth has been invaded by a species that take over the minds of human hosts while leaving their bodies intact. Wanderer, the invading "soul" who has been given Melanie's body, didn't expect to find its former tenant refusing to relinquish possession of her mind.
As Melanie fills Wanderer's thoughts with visions of Jared, a human who still lives in hiding, Wanderer begins to yearn for a man she's never met. Reluctant allies, Wanderer and Melanie set off to search for the man they both love.

The Host is by far my most favorite of Meyer's novels, and one of my favorite books in general. Every time I re-read it, which I do about once a year, I am filled with the same emotions I did the very first time I looked between those pages.*

The premise of this book is like nothing I've read before. Aliens have been used and used again, but how many times do the authors make the aliens better than the humans? Make them a race that has barely any violent tendencies, that treats everyone as equals. A race that has no such concepts as thievery or crime in it. 

You must be wondering what kind of conflict could exist in such a perfect world. Well, mix in some human rebels, an alien who sympathizes with them and two people living in one body and things get a lot more interesting. 

Now, before starting the real review I would like to address the first 100 pages of the book, because some will find it very hard to get past them. Like my mother. Well, get past them. They are absolutely necessary to the plot, and from the second reading on I understood the real beauty and perfection of them, but they are admittedly slow. Don't give up. Read on. You won't regret it! 

Now that we've got that out of the way, my absolute favorite character in this novel is Wanda, the alien main character. Wanda is a pacifist who protects who she loves fiercely and always puts them first. Even if it might have disastrous ramifications to herself. I don't always love self-sacrifice, but here it was done perfect.

The dynamics between her and Melanie were very interesting, especially because through Melanie's memories Wanda learns to love those Mel does. So while Melanie is the complete opposite of Wanda in many ways, they can both agree that their family and loved ones come first, which makes them fit like a glove despite their differences and work together. 

Now, it wouldn't be a Stephenie Meyer novel without some romance in it, right? Well, there is that in this book. And I loved how it played out. At first I was very scared I will hate it because it presents itself as a very complicated love triangle at first glance, but it's not. It never was, as you come to understand at the end of this perfect novel.  

Jared, Melanie's boyfriend, is one of those love interests. To summarize him - he's a jerk. Maybe not to everyone, but certainly to Wanda. Does he have an acceptable good reason? sure. but Wanda has been nothing but a doll the entire time so I really couldn't learn to like him. Especially when the only times he was nice to Wanda, it was for Melanie and no one else.  

There there is Ian. 

the guy is major swoon!

He reigns at the top of my Book Boyfriend List. As the story goes on, this character develops into one of the most wonderful, loving and kind guys I've ever read of. The guy's freaking awesome! Honestly, he is the first of the rebels to open himself to the possibility Wanda isn't bad and from then on I was in love. 

Two other noteworthy characters are Jamie, Melanie's adorable brother and Jeb, the Dumbledore of this book. Wise, mysterious and eccentric, he gives Wanda the change to earn her place among the rebels and has earned my eternal love for it. 

And the ending... 

it so beautiful *sniff*

Everything about that ending was beautiful. From what Wanda chose to do to the proof of how much the rebels became her family - and she theirs. It was heartbreaking and courageous and stunning and sad and I can't even with this ending.

*Re-visiting this review made me unable not to re-read the book again. So... I did. 

Glory in Death by J.D. Robb | Book Review

Glory in Death by J.D. Robb

In Death #2

First Published: 1995

Paperback

Adult, Mystery

Rating:

It is 2058, New York City. In a world where technology can reveal the darkest of secrets, there's only one place to hide a crime of passion-in the heart.
Even in the mid-twenty-first century, during a time when genetic testing usually weeds out any violent hereditary traits before they can take over, murder still happens. The first victim is found lying on a sidewalk in the rain. The second is murdered in her own apartment building. Police Lieutenant Eve Dallas has no problem finding connections between the two crimes. Both victims were beautiful and highly successful women. Their glamorous lives and loves were the talk of the city. And their intimate relations with men of great power and wealth provide Eve with a long list of suspects -- including her own lover, Roarke.

While Glory in Death is the second book in the fantastic In Death series, it is the first I'm writing a review for. Because, reasons.

“In their eyes, Eve saw the wolf gleam. The story was the prey, ratings the trophy.”

The story is set in 2058 - but even in the future, with all the gadgets and advanced knowledge, murder happens, and it's Eve Dallas's job to figure out by whom and bring them to justice. Eve is a strong, dedicated woman who is constantly hard on herself. She takes it on herself to protect and serve those who have been robbed of their life and can no longer be heard.

She is such an inspirational, human character! But she can be a bit hard to deal with on a personal level.

Luckily for her, her soulmate is the powerful, dangerously sexy, multimillionaire, Roarke, who pretty much sees into her soul, and is willing to do anything to make her his in every way, shape or form. He challenges her and makes it his job to take care of Eve when she's too consumed by the dead.

Roarke is seriously one of my biggest book crushes ever. I want one of him.

The romance between these two is not a fairy-tale romance--because it's not perfect, but it's completely real. It has it's ups and downs but ultimately, you never once question the rightness of these two. That they're meant to be. You root for them even when you know it's not necessary because there is just no way there will ever be anyone else for them. No one less demanding could force himself into Eve's heart, and no one less good will be able to convince Roarke to change his path to a more lawful one.

A le sigh.

The only "lacking" part of this story was the murderer. As this is a mystery novel, the frame plot revolves around these atrocious murders. But the villain was easy to spot from the moment he walked onto the page because he was just so suspicious. And he pissed me off big time. 

So, thank you J.D. Robb. I felt very satisfied with what happened to him, in an evil, wicked kind of way *slow clap*

For a noticeable scene from Glory in Death, click HERE!

Book Review: Graceling by Kristin Cashore

Graceling by Kristin Cashore

Graceling Realm #1
First Published: 2008
Paperback
Young Adult, High Fantasy
Rating:

In a world where people born with an exceptional skill, knows as Grace, are both feared and exploited, Katsa carries the burden of a skill even she despises: the Grace of killing.
Feared by the court and shunned by those her own age, the darkness of her Grace casts a heavy shadow over Katsa's life. Yet she remains defiant; when the King of Lienid's father is kidnapped she investigates, and stumbles across a mystery. Who would want to kidnap the old man, and why? And who was the extraordinary Graced man whose fighting abilities rivaled her own?
The only thing Katsa is sure of is that she no longer wants to kill. The intrigue around this kidnapping offers her a way out - but little does she realize, when she takes it, that something insidious and dark lurks behind the mystery. Something spreading from the shadowy figure of a one-eyed king...

I really cannot even describe the amount of love I have for this book. Can you shout BLEW MY MIND AWAY loud enough?!

This book came to me in the midst of a reading slump. All the books I read seemed to be alright, but none of them were great. They were interesting, but they didn't hold my interest. I didn't hate them, but I didn't love them either. I was starting to despair.

And then came Graceling, a book I've been thinking of reading for a while. I found it in my local bookstore to my great surprise, and with such a beautiful cover I couldn't resist getting it (and its sequel).

What I found when I opened this book is an amazing, incredible adventure like nothing I've read before. One that sucks you in so deeply that you cannot put it away, because it is as if your life hangs in the balance.

Tired of main characters who are just plain useless? who are pathetic and petty and exist only in their tiny little worlds? Whose biggest concern is which guy to chose - Sweet A or Bad Boy B? Well, you're in luck, because Katsa is nothing like that. 

Katsa is, in one word, phenomenal. It's important you understand this. She is strong. She is brave. She is goodhearted and kind. She tortures herself because of her abilities and powers. She is afraid of her own anger and keeps a tight leash on it. And she is very, very human. And, to me, very beautiful.

Quite frankly, Katsa is the kind of character that makes me proud to be a woman. 

Next to such an incredible woman has to be an equally incredible man. And Po is just that. It's been almost four years since I read this book (and I desperately want to re-read it), and the guy is still at the top of my top-ten-book-boyfriend list. 

He is kind. He is good. He is strong. He is brave. And... he's not without his share of dark secrets. Everything about Po drew me in - from the way he converses, to the way he stand, sits, walks, laughs... It was the first time (since Harry Potter) a book made me see a character so clearly in my head, like he was right there in front of me.

And the romance between these two... *dreamy sigh*. Let's just say it's befitting to two such incredible people. 

Next to Katsa and Po are a wide range of characters, all wonderful (even the villain is wonderfully atrocious and evil). I feel like every supporting character could easily have their own story--and I'm sure I would gobble it up.

The one I feel compelled to mention though is Bitterblue, a young princess at the age of ten. She was so adorable, and strong beyond her years. In a way, she was both like a child to Po and Katsa and a mother to them as well. 

This intense novel has, to me, a perfect ending. It's not a completely happy one, and it definitely leaves you with a taste for more. But at the same time, you know all you really need to know. And the choices which were made were 100% fitting and right for the characters, even if personally I would like something different for them.

And at the end of the day, all you can really ask from an author is to be true to the character he or she created. #IApprove

Book Review: Unearthly by Cynthia Hand (Favorites Extravaganza: Day #13)

2015 Favorites Extravaganza: Day #13

Unearthly by Cynthia Hand
Unearthly #1
First Published: 2011
Kindle Edition
Young Adult, Fantasy
Rating:

In the beginning, there's a boy standing in the trees . . .
Clara Gardner has recently learned that she's part angel. Having angel blood run through her veins not only makes her smarter, stronger, and faster than humans (a word, she realizes, that no longer applies to her), but it means she has a purpose, something she was put on this earth to do. Figuring out what that is, though, isn't easy.
Her visions of a raging forest fire and an alluring stranger lead her to a new school in a new town. When she meets Christian, who turns out to be the boy of her dreams (literally), everything seems to fall into place and out of place at the same time. Because there's another guy, Tucker, who appeals to Clara's less angelic side.
As Clara tries to find her way in a world she no longer understands, she encounters unseen dangers and choices she never thought she'd have to make between honesty and deceit, love and duty, good and evil. When the fire from her vision finally ignites, will Clara be ready to face her destiny?
Unearthly is a moving tale of love and fate, and the struggle between following the rules and following your heart.

I wrote and re-wrote this review about three times. Maybe more. It took me about a month to finally post it at all, and I wasn't sure I was ever going to get there. For once, it's not because I don't have what to say. It's because I have too much and I just don't know how to put it down in writing or what to focus on and it's driving me nuts.

It's been a long, long time since I've read such a solid and well balanced contemporary YA fantasy. Especially one that's an angel book. And, to be honest, I really wasn't expecting this to be this good; this well rounded; to have all the elements I'm looking for in a story.

First of all, the whole concept here is refreshing and well thought out. It's obvious the author knew exactly what she was going for and not only that - knew what she wanted to develop it into. We don't learn everything in this book. Far from it. We're given enough so we understand everything that's happening, while making it clear a lot of vital information is still missing from this puzzle and will be unraveled in the future. I love that.

I loved Clara, the main character. Geez, when was the last time I read of a YA heroine who is level headed, logical, rational and real. Who fights for what she wants and for her life. Who is willing to listen. Who doesn't give up. Who is actively working on her life and not just... waiting for something to happen--Especially when the whole plot actually revolves around waiting for a certain event to happen?

This was so precious to me. I was 100% behind Clara and with her.

And then, the romance? My god. I was so afraid of the romance because the synopsis seems to tease Insta love and I am happy to inform the synopsis is lying! No insta love for this book, thank god. Just a case of insta attraction which is a-okay with me. Instead, we've got delicious, slow burn built up between two people who I think are meant to be together and asdfghjkl so many feels.

Is there a love triangle? Kinda. We do have two boys.

The first is Christian, the guy who Clara uprooted her whole family for. He's sweet, nice, kind of removed... but I didn't feel much towards him. He's, to me, not appealing. There isn't too much to him, and even when he was nice to Clara it never felt like he was really invested in her.

The second? Love of my life, light of my soul, what else could a girl want when she's got the sweet and layered rancher Tucker Avery in her life (romantically wise, anyways)? He starts off as the guy who teases and makes fun of Clara, in a rather fun manner. Then he grows to be more, showing her around the place and being sweet af and just... I can't with this guy.

Don't need to tell you which team shirt I'm gonna buy, is there?

Then we've got the surrounding relationships in the book which were all wonderful. The siblings in this novel love each other. They are also a pain in each other's butts, but when they need each other they are there for them. It's so realistic and heartwarming and I loved it.

Then we have the parental relationship between Clara and her Mom which was a big part of the story. I loved their relationship, even as we watched it begin to fracture underneath the weight of secrets and lies and destiny. But their love was never in question. 

And everyone in this story are such good friends to one another. Good, real, healthy friendships. You've no idea how much I miss those in literature sometimes. 

I highly recommend this novel to everyone who love YA and fantasy, and I will most definitely read the sequels! 

Book Review: Heart-Shaped Hack by Tracey Garvis Graves (Favorites Extravaganza: Day #10)

2015 Favorites Extravaganza: Day #10

Heart Shaped Hack by Tracey Garvis Graves
Kate and Ian #1
First Published: 2015
Kindle Edition
Adult, Contemporary Romance
Rating:

When Kate Watts abandoned her law career to open a food pantry in Northeast Minneapolis, she never dreamed it would be this difficult. Facing the heartbreaking prospect of turning hungry people away, she is grateful for the anonymous donations that begin appearing at the end of each month. Determined to identify and thank her secret benefactor, she launches a plan and catches Ian —a charismatic hacker with a Robin Hood complex—in the act.

Ian intrigues Kate in a way no man ever has. But after learning he’s snooped around on her personal computer, she demands retribution. Impressed with her tolerance and captivated by her spirit, he complies and begins to slowly charm his way past her defenses. Time spent with Ian is never boring, and Kate soon finds herself falling for the mysterious hacker.

But Ian has enemies and they’re growing restless. In the hacking world, exploiting a target’s weakness is paramount, and no price is too high to stop an attack. And when Kate learns exactly how much Ian has paid, she’ll discover just how strong her love is for the man who has hacked his way into her heart.

Before I start this review, I need you to understand that I find this book absolutely perfect. I started it and just could not stop. It was captivating without ever needing to sprinkle DRAMA everywhere, sweet without it ever being so much your teeth ache with it, heartwarming while not being cheesy.

It far suppressed everything I hoped it will be.

If you're looking for a strong, fearless, real main female character, look no farther than Kate, who is all of these things and more. I never failed to be amazed at this woman and her outlook on life. I sometimes felt like she was sitting right next to me. 

If you love male characters who are confident and cocky but in the most effing charming manner, main characters who, despite their sure attitude, treat their women like queens and will never, ever want to hurt them, then I've got just the guy for you in Ian Smith Merrick Bradshaw. I mean, seriously, the guy is total swoon. I would fall for him.

And the romance? Well, if you like romances you believe in, romances that suck you in, romances that make your heart beat like crazy and make you wish for a similar experience... than yes, this book is for you. Because the romance does all that. Repeatedly. 

This book doesn't have much in the action department, because it doesn't need it to spice things up and consume you. There isn't much drama for the exact same reason (which I am eternally grateful for). It's fast paced but still makes you feel like the characters have known each other for years instead of weeks. It's that good. 

Ultimately, what you're experiencing in this book is the forming of love. And it's not a hard love - it's an effortless, swift, right love. It comes easily but doesn't let go even in the toughest of storms. It's... perfect, while being imperfect. 

And really, what else are you looking for in a romance? 

“So you want a nice guy, but you don’t want him to be boring.”
“Yes. Nice and not boring and not into threesomes and no cocaine. I mean, is that too much to ask?”
“No, although I feel compelled to point out that the threesome thing is pretty universal.”
“Oh for God’s sake,” she muttered.
“That doesn’t mean we’re all going to try to convince you to participate in one. It’s just that very few guys would be like, ‘Go away, extra girl,’ should one happen to climb into our bed when you’re already in it. That’s all I’m saying.”

Bonus: 

Tracey actually responded to my tweet with the review in the following way:

.@NitzanSchwarz Thank you! This is truly one of my FAVORITE reviews of Heart-Shaped Hack! You've made my entire day. Hugs & kisses to you!

— Tracey Garvis Graves (@tgarvisgraves) January 21, 2016

Putting it here because this just honestly made my day to have an author I adore say this, and some days I need the reminder.