Alice LaPlante: Turn of Mind

Caragh M. O'Brien: Prized

Wow.
Now THIS is what a book 2 should be.

I avoided reviews before reading this (thankfully), but just read this review and was slightly irked.  But then I saw her reading list, and that she rated The Perks of Being a Wallflower only ONE star, and I realized that a book that goes against traditional, super-religious thinking may not be received with open-minded love.

Are there issues with the book? Heck yes.  Does Gaia irritate me? Several times in the novel.
But is the journey worthwhile?

Super-Heck YES!

I love that O'Brien delved into controversial issues (assisted miscarriage, love triangles/quadrangles, matriarchal society, autopsies, genetic and reproductive issues, etc.), and I love the overall tone of this book. It is rife with agonizing decisions that Gaia is forced to make.  It is peppered with frustrations that the reader and the characters must grapple with.

If a book 3 never comes, I won't be sad.  This was a highly satisfying, very exciting, super intense, awesome read.  Done in one day.  Love, love, love, LOVED this book.

Anne Osterlund: Exile

I won't lie.  I have had this book all summer long.  I have been avoiding reading this, just like Harry Potter 6 & 7 and just like A Conspiracy of Kings.  It's what I seem to do when I find I don't want an awesome saga to end.  I haven't finished HP6 because I know book 7 is the end.  I know that there will be at least one more book from Whalen-Turner, but who knows when she'll get around to it.  And because I thought this was a sequel, I didn't want Aurelia's story to end.  And now I've discovered the little #2 in parenthesis on Goodreads, and who knows when/if another book will be on its way?! 

GRRRRRRR....because, THIS ONE WAS AMAZING.  I finally started it last night, and finished it today at noon.  It was emotion-filled, heart-wrenching, and satisfying and mortifying and frustrating all at once.    Aurelia develops her strength through her journey in this book.  Initially, as I was reading, I was turned off by the heavy emphasis on the developing love story, but towards the end and looking back on the text, I know that there was strong reasons behind the focal points of the book.  

I won't lie, the writing is also what makes the lovey-dovey stuff more tolerable.  Osterlund is really adept at pulling the reader into the emotions of the situation with the skill of her craft.  I cried and teared up several times.  Though I don't think I smiled or laughed as much as I think I remember from the first book.  The slight shifts in perspectives (Aurelia's and Robert's) without the voices blurring together (unlike Crossed) add an interesting dimension to the text, and had I not been rushing to get through it, I think I would have been even more impressed with the technique.  

I will say that Osterlund is not on my "nice" list for some of the serious losses Aurelia endures, but I will not be too irked and will give her a chance to rectify things in the *potentially* culminating story.  :)

While I am glad I finally read it, I am NOT glad that I will have to wait to see if Aurelia and Robert's story will culminate in a truly satisfying ending or if this wide-open "use your imagination" is all readers will get!  Loved. This. Book!

Ally Condie: Crossed

Disappointed.  Book 2s aren't supposed to be the absolute best in the series, but this book really doesn't go anywhere.  The descriptions are mediocre, but I wondered why so much time was spent on descriptions that ultimately didn't matter.  The characters and the Society was what was intriguing in book 1, even if the writing was less than stellar.  I am still hooked by Ky and Cassia's stories, but am less eager to see what happens in book 3 because this book left me so irritated.

It's irritating that such a good premise (and cover art) is being wasted on mediocre writing and such amazing characters were lost in this attempt at a bridge book.  Ky's voice alternates with Cassia's, and neither of them say anything.  I felt empty after this book, not hungering for more as I did with Catching Fire.

Karen Mahoney: The Iron Witch

Grrrrr.  I should have known not to read this!! Another trilogy that won't be completed until 2013!! Book 2 won't even be done until next year!  And it isn't even that good! So many questions have been left unanswered. Again, great premise, but poorly executed within a teenage love story with some fantasy elements.

This could be easily sold to Twilight fans because the love story between Xan and Donna.  Her best friend Navin is also interesting, and he becomes the reason for the action. 

I will have to read the next book, but it if is anything like my experience with Twilight, I won't even finish it.

Lesley Hauge: Nomansland

Underwhelmed.
AWESOME premise, and an interesting heroine (Keller) with such promise, but overall, a let down at the conclusion, and the events leading to the climax were wishy-washy at best.  Post-apocalyptic and a culture where women are the only beings in their created society--Foundland.  
Even as I type this I am irritated at all the places that this book could have gone, but didn't.  I actually only gave it two stars on goodreads.  That is RARE for me!

Caragh M. O'Brien: Birthmarked

Wow.  I started this without knowing that it was a trilogy book.
This is book one, with books two and three not due for the next two years!

Post-apocalyptic but an interesting perspective--the controlling faction (and upper class) aren't as happy or satisfied as the outsiders are taught to believe.

This is a more thought-provoking text, one with action and good characters and a moving plot, but it isn't a typical no-thinking escape.  There will be a specific reader to recommend this book to, but I am just not sure who that would be.  There is a medical/scientific aspect, a possible romance, and I am interested to know if anything more will come to fruition with Gaia's brothers.  Namely, will the older brother be evil, will Leon find Gaia, and how the heck is Gaia going to keep Maya fed???

:) I don't think I gave too much away!

Lauren Oliver: Delirium

Liked this book.  It was candy, and flew by.  Not happy about the end, but hopefully book 2 clears things up.  Similar to Hunger Games and Matched in the post-apocalyptic, government-controlled higher-class vs. lower class, but different in the sense that Lena (and the rest of society) WANTS the control...well, sort of.  I wish more was done with Hana's friendship (again, I hope that it is addressed in book 2), but the romantic tryst of the two central characters will appeal to the teen factions who devour Twilight.

Marissa Doyle: Betraying Season

 This was a fun read. The characters were good, the story was good, and the resolution was VERY satisfying.  I'm not sure about the "risque" mentions of sex--considering the time period--but this might be because it was the first quasi-realistic portrayal of Victorian late-teenage life. While many claim that this is the sequel to Bewitching Season, I read this first, and while I didn't know Pen's sister Persy, I like the inside cover's claim that this book is a COMPANION to Bewitching Season.  I might pick it up at some point, but I'm not in a rush.  I loved the Irish magic elements, and I actually hope there is a final book with both magical sisters equally represented in one final adventure. We'll see.

Sarah MacLean: The Season

 

Part Nancy Drew, part Sweet Valley High (in so much as romance is concerned), part Emma, all wrapped into a neat Victorian setting results in The Season.   I love this time period, and this book, while fluffy in some aspects, was a fun read. The three female characters are strong, intelligent, witty, and entertaining.  The mystery is interesting, and ,the resolution is satisfying.