Fury by: Elizabeth Miles

Fury by: Elizabeth Miles
Publication Date: August 30, 2011
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Format: Nook Book
Genre: Contemporary, Mythology
Series: #1 in The Fury Trilogy
Author Website: Elizabeth Miles
Buy the Book: Barnes and Noble, Amazon

Summary from Goodreads:

It’s winter break in Ascension, Maine. The snow is falling and everything looks pristine and peaceful. But all is not as it seems... Em is thrilled that the guy she’s been into for months is finally noticing her. But if she starts things with him, there’s no turning back. Because his girlfriend is Em’s best friend. And on the other side of town, Chase’s social life is unraveling and the stress of his home life is starting to take its toll. But that’s nothing compared to what’s really haunting him. Chase has done something cruel....And it’s only a matter of time before he’s exposed. In Ascension, mistakes can be deadly. There are three girls—three beautiful, mysterious girls—to choose who will pay. Em and Chase have been chosen.

 

Teaser:

“Sometimes sorry isn’t enough. She didn’t know what the note meant. Not really. But she could tell by the cold, black feeling deep in the put of her stomach that it was true.”

 

My Review:

Whenever I see a book that is remotely related to Greek mythology in YA, I cannot resist picking it up! The same was the case with Fury. While it didn’t have as many mythological elements in it, I think it made for a good mix of contemporary and mythology.

The story follows Emily Winters and Chase Singer, switching perspectives. They are both normal high school students. When three gorgeous new girls arrive in their town of Ascension, Maine, things start to get strange. Immediately, I knew that the girls, Ty, Meg, and Ali, had to be the Furies of Greek mythology. I loved how there is no aspect of myth in the story until the Furies arrive and that Chase and Em have no idea what’s going on behind the curtain, so to speak.

Em and Chase both have a dirty secret, hence the Furies arriving in town. Em’s best friend, Gabby is dating the guy that Em has been secretly crushing on for months. Finally, she has a chance to be with him while Gabby is away for winter break. Em thinks that as long as Zach breaks up with Gabby the minute she returns, everything will be alright. This kind of bothered me a bit; how hopelessly naïve Em is that she thinks her friend will forgive her for getting together with her boyfriend while she was away. Still, it was a big mistake, but not big enough to suffer the Furies wrath over.

Chase has a secret of his own, which I spent a good portion of the book anticipating. One of the Furies, Ty, latches onto Chase and he practically melts in her presence. Little does he know, he is being lured into a trap!

The Furies of Greek myths are hideous female creatures, determined to mete out justice in the manor they see fit. In Fury, they attain the perfect disguise, beautiful girls. While Chase falls head over heels for Ty, Em is not to easily fooled. The girls keep leaving red flowers in their wake, as a sort of warning sign. Ty, Ali, and Meg are very mysterious girls, even in their disguises.

I cannot wait for the sequel, Envy, to come out!

 

 

Pandemonium by: Lauren Oliver

Pandemonium by: Lauren Oliver
Publisher: HarperTeen
Publication Date: February 28, 2013
Genre: Dystopian, Romance
Page Count: 375
Author Blog: Lauren Oliver
Buy the Book: Amazon, Barnes and Noble

Summary from Goodreads:

I'm pushing aside the memory of my nightmare,
pushing aside thoughts of Alex,
pushing aside thoughts of Hana and my old school,
push,
push,
push,
like Raven taught me to do.
The old life is dead.
But the old Lena is dead too.
I buried her.
I left her beyond a fence,
behind a wall of smoke and flame.

Lauren Oliver delivers an electrifying follow-up to her acclaimed New York Times bestseller, Delirium. This riveting, brilliant novel crackles with the fire of fierce defiance, forbidden romance, and the sparks of a revolution about to ignite.

Teaser:

“ If you take, we will take back. Steal from us, and we will rob you blind. When you squeeze, we will hit.

This is the way the world is made now.”

My Review:

Pandemonium is a poetic story of resilience and what someone is willing to go through to stand up for what’s right. In a world under a horrible illusion, Lena is one of the few who has seen the truth, but not without a cost.

Lena is one of the most resilient characters I have ever seen in YA. She comes from a regular family in Portland, where she lived well and had sufficient means. She goes from that lifestyle to living underground with the Uncureds, never sure if they have enough food to get by and having to work all day. Lena and all of the people around her are against the deliria. They are roughing the wilderness because they won’t succumb to the government’s horrid procedure that each citizen is required to receive.

Pandemonium switches Lena’s perspective from her in present day to her half a year (or so) ago. I wasn’t sure if I’d like this at first, but then found that it was kind of essential in getting the whole story out and a very clever thing for Lauren to do.

Undercover, Lena is working with Raven, the woman who rescued her following the events of Delirium, and Tack, a member of their group. Together,they are just like any other family living in New York City, only they are wearing deep masks.

Mourning the loss of Alex, Lena struggles at times to make it through, but she always prevails, always finds a way to move forward. She meets Julian seemingly by chance and starts to believe that there is more than meets the eye for the poster-boy of Deliria Free America, an organization Lena Morgan Jones is a member of. He is afraid of the procedure and if he will survive it. Once he gets to know Lena, he begins to realize that not all Uncureds are hostile and what his father has been teaching him all his life is a lie.

I loved reading conversations between Julian and Lena. I think they have amazing chemistry. Fair warning, Pandemonium has a wicked cliffhanger, so prepare yourself for jaw-dropping, yelping, and other declarations of blissful frustration.

I cannot wait to read Requiem in 2013!

Other books by Lauren Oliver:

 

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Spark (Sky Chasers #2) by: Amy Kathleen Ryan - 7/17/12

Before You Go by: James Preller - 7/17/12

The Unquiet by: Jeannine Garsee - 7/17/12

Holding On to Zoe by: George Ella Lyon - 7/17/12

       

A World Away by: Nancy Grossman - 7/17/12

The Girl with Borrowed Wings by: Rinsai Rossetti -  7/19/12

Small Damages by: Beth Kephart - 7/19/12

Wicked Jealous: A Love Story by: Robin Palmer - 7/19/12

Authors at the Decatur Book Festival 2012

Up until September, when the Festival begins, I will be featuring several different authors on my blog that will appear at panels and signings at the Decatur Book Festival in Atlanta. I will be doing interviews and guest posts about the authors and their books to let you all get to know them better! I am looking forward to the DBF this year! So many wonderful authors will be attending! If you live in Georgia or are attending the DBF, please feel free to let me know in an email or comment or tweet, etc.If you have any requests for guest posts or things you would like to see in this blog series, email me at throughthelookingglassreviews@hotmail.com For more information on the Festival schedule, authors that will be appearing there, and more, visit decaturbookfestival.com.

 

 

Discussion: Insta-Love in YA

If you are at all familiar with the Young Adult genre, then you know have heard of this. Insta-love. I don’t know if that’s what everyone calls it but it seems to describe it pretty well for me. While I haven’t read many books out of the YA genre, I know that insta-love is a lot less present in adult fiction/literary fiction, etc. I’d just like to say that even with this discussion, YA remains my favorite genre of books. But what’s up with insta-love?!

Just last week, my friend Allie, who sometimes posts on this blog, and I were browsing the shelves at her local Barnes and Noble. We were discussing what books she’s read and I want to read and so on. There were several times that I saw books that I would recommend, but I know Allie shares my dislike of insta-love, and there were so many books that had it! Even she told me I might not like some because of that. And then we got into a conversation about the irritating goblin that is insta-love, and how it sneaks its way into books that would otherwise be four or five star-worthy.

Maybe it’s just me, but I think insta-love is somehow becoming more apparent. These past few weeks, I have been careful to evaluate books before I read them to see if they have it in them, it irritates me so. What I don’t understand is why the author can’t just take their time and let a relationship grow gradually? Especially if the book is a series. As a writer myself, I can kind of understand the urgency to write down the love you know your characters will have. I always tell myself that the story will turn out amazingly better if I let the relationship between two characters grow slowly.

Insta-love, when I see it in books, always costs the book one or sometimes even two stars in the rating. I hate to do that because, in some cases, the book would be wonderful in every other way than that. I feel like in reviews, I should warn readers with big and bold text, saying “BEWARE THE INSTA-LOVE”.

The more I think about it, the more ridiculous it sounds that two people can fall in love so quickly. Sometimes I’m even taken aback by it. I was, definitely, when I finished reading Romeo and Juliet, and I found myself thinking  “Why do people think this is the best love story in history?”. It was terrible! How could they die for each other after only knowing themselves for a week or so?! How could they call that even a remotely good love story? The worst case of insta-love I’ve read so far and I hope I don’t come across anything worse.

While I know we all love reading about blossoming love in YA, why does insta-love have to happen so much?

What are your thoughts on insta-love? I would love to hear them in the comments!

 

 

Reading Road Trip Giveaway 2012: Georgia!

Hello, everyone! Today I have the pleasure of featuring the state I live in, Georgia, on the 2012 Reading Road Trip, hosted by Britta at I Like These Books and Hafsah at Icey Books.  Before I get start on the fabulous giveaway, I am going to show you some fun things to do in Georgia that I have either done or want to do.



Amicalola Falls
I've been here a few times and it is always wondrous and beautiful. A wonderful place to go hiking, have brunch at the lodge, go camping, or simply enjoy the view.

Georgia Aquarium

I've been here many times and it is always awe striking how big everything is. They have the largest viewing window in North America and a tunnel you can walk through with a gigantic tank as its walls.

 

Decatur Book Festival

I've been here once and it blew me away. I heard somewhere that it is the largest book festival in the South or US. There are always some of my favorite authors there. I saw Cassandra Clare there when I went. The author I am featuring in this giveaway, Jackson Pearce, was also at the same signing. She was dressed as Magnus Bane! It was hilarious and absolutely the best bookish time I've had. Here is the link to the DBF website. 

And now time for the giveaway!

I dedicated my giveaway to Jackson Pearce. She lives in Atlanta and writes fairytale retellings and contemporary. My giveaway is of two of her books! Her Fairytale Retellings books are getting new paperback covers but I'm not sure when those release. If you want one please specify when you win and I will see what I can do.  Good luck!

  

   

GUIDELINES:

- 2 winners ( 1 book per winner)

- US only

- Must be 12 or older to enter

-  You may choose any of her published books ( all listed here)

- Have fun!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Choke by: Diana Lopez - 7/1/12

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Once (Eve #2) by: Anna Carey - 7/4/12

Team Human by: Justine Larbalestier and Sarah Rees Brennan - 7/3/12

The White Glove War (Magnolia League #2) by: Katie Crouch and Grady Hendrix - 7/3/12

  

The Girl is Trouble (Girl is Murder #2) by: Kathryn Miller Haines - 7/3/12

For What It's Worth by: Janet Tashjian - 7/3/12

52 Reasons to Hate My Father by: Jessica Brody - 7/3/12

   

Tiger Lily by: Jodi Lynn Anderson - 7/3/12

The Best Night of Your (Pathetic) Life by: Tara Altebrando - 7/5/12

Soulbound (Legacy of Tril #1) by: Heather Brewer - 7/5/12

    

Amelia Anne is Dead and Gone by: Kat Rosenfield - 7/5/12

Just for Fins (Fins #3) by: Tera Lynn Childs - 7/3/12

A Witch in Love (Winter Trilogy #2) by: Ruth Warburton - 7/5/12

Dark Destiny (Dark Mirror #3) by: M.J. Putney - 7/7/12