Review: The Eternity Cure by Julie Kagawa

The Eternity Cure
(Blood of Eden #2)
by Julie Kagawa

Publication Date: April 30th, 2013
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Pages: 446
ISBN: 9780373210695
From Netgalley/Publisher for Review

Barnes & Noble | Amazon | Goodreads

Allison Sekemoto has vowed to rescue her creator, Kanin, who is being held hostage and tortured by the psychotic vampire Sarren. The call of blood leads her back to the beginning—New Covington and the Fringe, and a vampire prince who wants her dead yet may become her wary ally.

Even as Allie faces shocking revelations and heartbreak like she’s never known, a new strain of the Red Lung virus that decimated humanity is rising to threaten human and vampire alike. (Goodreads)

The Eternity Cure is the second book in the Blood of Eden series by Julie Kagawa. Last year, I read and loved The Immortal Rules, so I had extremely high expectations when I started reading The Eternity Cure. Julie Kagawa definitely did not disappoint.  This novel was a brilliant addition to an already wonderful series.

I’m attempting to keep this review as spoiler free as possible, but there may be a few things mentioned that happened in the previous book. If you haven’t started this series yet; read at your own risk!

The Eternity Cure picks up right where The Immortal Rules leaves off. Allie is on a mission to find her sire, Kanin, who is being tortured by the crazy psycho vamp that we met in the previous book. With the help of some very unlikely sources along the way, it’s up to Allie to rescue Kanin, and to also find a cure for the virus that is killing both humans and vampires alike.

I must say, I have loved Allie since I first met her in The Immortal Rules. She is such an amazingly strong and determined character. She is definitely one of my all time favorite heroines!  I don’t want to go much into the secondary characters, but I will just say that we get to see quite a few of the characters that we met in the previous book. I’m not telling who, though!

The storyline for the book was, as always, completely engrossing.  When I had time to read, I could barely tear my eyes off the page. The world building and detailed descriptions gave me such a clear image of the world that Julie created.  The one thing that really got me about the book was the ending. MAJOR CLIFFHANGER!  Seriously, I actually thought the book was going to end and the series would be over, but obviously I was wrong. Now I am DYING to get my hands on the next book to see if any of the theories that my dear fellow blogger Kathy and I have discussed will be put into play.

Overall, if you have haven’t’ read this series yet, you should definitely check it out. While it’s a lot darker than Julie’s Iron Fey series, it’s still an amazing series to read. Check it out as soon as you can!

Happy Reading!

Weekly Book Haul #25

Bought:
The Rising - Kelley Armstrong
Clockwork Princess - Cassandra Clare
Rise - Anna Carey
(I have Rise in hardback copy, but lent it to my friend.)

Gifted:
Walking Disaster - Jamie McGuire
(Courtesy the wonderful Kathy at A Glass of Wine! She totally spoils me.)

e-Galley's:
School Spirits - Rachel Hawkins
The Chaos of Stars - Kiersten White

Review:
The awesome people at KOBO sent me their newest e-reader,
The Kobo Aura HD to review!
I am so excited. I can't wait to check it out. :)

Bought:
Soft Kitty Bookmark


Hey guys!
I think I need to change this to my MONTHLY book haul,
because I never seem to remember to post what I get throughout the week.
Sigh.

I have lots of cool things this week.
The books above are what I've bought throughout the past month,
as well as my special gift from the awesome Kathy. :)

I can't wait started on my e-galley's.
I LOVE Rachel Hawkins, and I'm dying to get started on School Spirit. Sqeeeee!
Same goes for Kiersten White

The Kobo is so neat, from the short amount of time that I have had to play with it.
I look forward to filling you all in on how awesome it is. :)

And lastly, I adore the Soft Kitty bookmark. Found at Books-A-Million!

That's all for me this week. :)

What new books did you get???

**This post was inspired by In My Mailbox by TheStorySiren, in order to share books received each week.**

Review: Hysteria by Megan Miranda

Hysteria
by Megan Miranda

Publication Date: February 5th 2013
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Pages: 336
ISBN: 9780802723109
From Publisher for Review/Blog Tour

Barnes & Noble | Amazon | Goodreads

Mallory killed her boyfriend, Brian. She can't remember the details of that night but everyone knows it was self-defense, so she isn't charged. But Mallory still feels Brian's presence in her life. Is it all in her head? Or is it something more? In desperate need of a fresh start, Mallory is sent to Monroe, a fancy prep school where no one knows her . . . or anything about her past.But the feeling follows her, as do her secrets. Then, one of her new classmates turns up dead. As suspicion falls on Mallory, she must find a way to remember the details of both deadly nights so she can prove her innocence-to herself and others.

In another riveting tale of life and death, Megan Miranda's masterful storytelling brings readers along for a ride to the edge of sanity and back again. (Goodreads)

Last year I read, and enjoyed, Fracture by Megan Miranda. I was so excited to get my hands on a copy of her newest book, Hysteria! It is a wonderfully creepy read that will keep you guessing right up to the end!

The main character in the story is Mallory. Poor Mallory has been through a lot in her young life.  Her boyfriend is dead—killed by none other than herself in self defense. Her life will never be the same. So she moves to a private school in hopes of starting over. But that isn’t exactly what happens for Mallory. Instead things get worse for her, to the point where the hallucinations start to intrude more and more on her life. But Mallory is a fighter, thank goodness. (I don’t think I could have handled it if she was a weak willed girl!) She believed in herself, even during the confusion and doubt. I admire that about her, and I found her to be a very likeable character.

My most favorite character in the book would have to be Reid.  I found him to be insanely adorable, and the perfect person to handle Mallory. Even though he has a past of his own, you could tell that he really cared for Mallory, and that would support her no matter what. He was definitely swoon-worthy, in my opinion.

There are definitely some characters in the book that you are going to love to hate—Jason and Krista to name a few.  But what good is a creepy book if it doesn’t have creepy villains to tie in with it. The storyline for the book was very in-depth, and it kept me guessing as I turned the pages. I had no idea what to expect when I got to the end of the book, but I think it closed up nicely.

Overall, If you like creepy reads, you should definitely check out Hysteria. This book even had me looking over my shoulder to see if something was coming! It was definitely an enjoyable read. I can’t wait to check out more of Ms. Miranda’s books in the future!

Waiting on Wednesday #102 - 3:59 by Gretchen McNeil

3:59
by Gretchen McNeil

Publication Date: September 17th 2013
Publisher: Balzer & Bray

Josie Byrne's life is spiraling out of control. Her parents are divorcing, her boyfriend Nick has grown distant, and her physics teacher has it in for her. When she's betrayed by the two people she trusts most, Josie thinks things can't get worse.

Until she starts having dreams about a girl named Jo. Every night at the same time—3:59 a.m.

Jo's life is everything Josie wants: she's popular, her parents are happily married, and Nick adores her. It all seems real, but they're just dreams, right? Josie thinks so, until she wakes one night to a shadowy image of herself in the bedroom mirror – Jo.

Josie and Jo realize that they are doppelgängers living in parallel universes that overlap every twelve hours at exactly 3:59. Fascinated by Jo's perfect world, Josie jumps at the chance to jump through the portal and switch places for a day.

But Jo’s world is far from perfect. Not only is Nick not Jo's boyfriend, he hates her. Jo's mom is missing, possibly insane. And at night, shadowy creatures feed on human flesh.

By the end of the day, Josie is desperate to return to her own life. But there’s a problem: Jo has sealed the portal, trapping Josie in this dangerous world. Can she figure out a way home before it’s too late?

From master of suspense Gretchen McNeil comes a riveting and deliciously eerie story about the lives we wish we had – and how they just might kill you. (Goodreads)

I must admit... I have never read anything by Gretchen McNeil.
Gasp!
Hanging head in shame.

However, I am SUPER intrigued by her books.
They sound so amazingly creepy!

And it seems like they just get creepier and creepier.
I can't wait to check out 3:59, as well as McNeils other books!

What are you Waiting for this week???

**"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill at Breaking The Spine,
that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.**

Waiting on Wednesday #101 - The Burning Sky by Sherry Thomas

The Burning Sky
(The Elemental Trilogy #1)
by Sherry Thomas

Publication Date: September 17th, 2013
Publisher: Balzer + Bray

It all began with a ruined elixir and an accidental bolt of lightning…

Iolanthe Seabourne is the greatest elemental mage of her generation—or so she's being told. The one prophesied for years to be the savior of The Realm. It is her duty and destiny to face and defeat the Bane, the greatest mage tyrant the world has ever known. A suicide task for anyone let alone a sixteen-year-old girl with no training, facing a prophecy that foretells a fiery clash to the death.

Prince Titus of Elberon has sworn to protect Iolanthe at all costs but he's also a powerful mage committed to obliterating the Bane to revenge the death of his family—even if he must sacrifice both Iolanthe and himself to achieve his goal.

But Titus makes the terrifying mistake of falling in love with the girl who should have been only a means to an end. Now, with the servants of the Bane closing in, he must choose between his mission and her life. (Goodreads)

Not only does this book have an amazingly awesome cover, the story itself sounds
Pretty Freaking Sweet!
I've never read a book by Sherry Thomas, but I am super excited to check this out.
Can't Wait!
What are you Waiting for this week???

**"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill at Breaking The Spine,
that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.**

Review: Walking Disaster by Jamie McGuire

Walking Disaster
(Beautiful #2)
by Jamie McGuire

Publication Date: April 2nd, 2013
Publisher: Atria Books
Pages: 448
ISBN: 9781476712987
Via Netgalley for Review

Barnes & Noble | Amazon | Goodreads

Finally, the highly anticipated follow-up to the New York Times bestseller Beautiful Disaster. Can you love someone too much?
Travis Maddox learned two things from his mother before she died: Love hard. Fight harder.

In Walking Disaster, the life of Travis is full of fast women, underground gambling, and violence. But just when he thinks he is invincible, Abby Abernathy brings him to his knees.

Every story has two sides. In Beautiful Disaster, Abby had her say. Now it’s time to see the story through Travis’s eyes. (Goodreads)

I was so thrilled to receive an early e-galley of Walking Disaster. While I had a few issues with the first book, Beautiful Disaster, I still found it to be an engrossing read.  I can honestly say I love Walking Disaster just as much, if not more, than the previous book in the series.

Walking Disaster is the story of Beautiful Disaster, only told from Travis’s point of view. Travis Maddox is a mess of a man that I can’t help but love. He has many, many issues. One of the main issues is his disrespect for women. Of course, all that changes when Abby enters his life, and we get to watch Travis become a completely different person. Watching him go through all the emotions and feelings that come along with falling in love with that one special person, it was intense to read.

Having now read both books, and seeing the new perspective from Walking Disaster, I can see why things happened the way they did between Travis and Abby. Yes, I still do believe that at times this was an extremely unhealthy and co-dependent relationship, but I still can’t help from loving Travis. And now that I have a better understanding of him, I love him even more. Reading his story, it will completely break your heart and reduce you to a blubbering mess of tears. (Well, that’s what happened in my case, anyways.)

One thing that I really loved about Walking Disaster was that we get an epilogue at the end of the book. I LOVED that the author decided to add this onto the book. Had there been one on the first book, I probably would have loved the book more than I originally did.  Another thing that I really loved is that although the book is the same story that we read from Beautiful Disaster, the author worded it so that it seemed like a whole new book to me. I enjoyed getting to see things from Travis’s perspective.

Overall; If you loved Beautiful Disaster, you are definitely going to enjoy reading Walking Disaster from Travis’ point of view. It’s such a great read, one that I will definitely re-read over and over again.

Happy Reading!

Books in this series:
 
Beautiful Disaster                         Walking Disaster