Illusive (Mini Book Review)

Illusive (Illusive #1)
Emily Lloyd Jones

Hardcover, 416 pages

Published July 15th 2014 by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

 

When the MK virus swept across the planet, a vaccine was created to stop the epidemic, but it came with some unexpected side effects. A small percentage of the population developed superhero-like powers. Seventeen-year-old Ciere Giba has the handy ability to change her appearance at will. She's what's known as an illusionist...She's also a thief.

After a robbery goes awry, Ciere must team up with a group of fellow super-powered criminals on another job that most would consider too reckless. The formula for the vaccine that gave them their abilities was supposedly destroyed years ago. But what if it wasn't?

The lines between good and bad, us and them, and freedom and entrapment are blurred as Ciere and the rest of her crew become embroiled in a deadly race against the government that could cost them their lives.

 

Review:

 

The X-Men meets Ocean's Eleven in this edge-of-your-seat sci-fi adventure about a band of "super" criminals.

Captioned as X-Men meets Ocean's Eleven is SPOT ON! However I would also include Ally Carter's Heist Society series in the mix, as I believe if you loved that series you would love this book.

I discovered and read through this entire book in 24 hours. It was THAT GOOD!

Illusive is a book about a virus that sweeps across America, Scientists do come up with a vaccine for this virus, however, unfortunately, this vaccine has side effects that give some people rather peculiar abilities.

The main character, Ciere Giba, has the ability to illusion herself and her surroundings. (How cool is that!) BUT, (there is always a but in there isn't there) her ability also makes her a target. Both to the government, and other private installations that either want to lock her up, or use her has a weapon.

This (obviously) creates some problems for Ciere.


I would not call this book an amazing work of fiction, I wasn't super invested or emotionally attached to the characters. However, HEISTS AND SUPERPOWERS!!! This book is AWESOME!


Everything works. There wasn't anything in here that just absolutely did not make sense, the characters were well developed, and I had the pleasure of getting to the end of my e-book and finding out there is a sequel! Something that will most likely give me the emotional investment in the characters that I was missing in this first book.

I totally recommend this book!

Forget Me (Book Review)

Forget Me
K. A. Harrington

Hardcover, 288 pages

Published August 7th 2014 by Putnam Juvenile

An edge-of-your seat psychological thriller with a romantic twist

On the three-month anniversary of her boyfriend Flynn’s death, Morgan uploads her only photo of him to FriendShare to get some closure—but she’s shocked when the facial recognition software suggests she tag him as "Evan Murphy." She’s never heard of Evan, but a quick search tells her that he lives in a nearby town and looks exactly like Flynn. Only this boy is very much alive.

Digging through layers of secrets and lies, Morgan is left questioning everything she thought she knew about her boyfriend, her town, and even her parents' involvement in this massive web of lies.




Review:


The synopsis of this book sounds fantastic. The tag line "An edge-of-your seat psychological thriller with a romantic twist" sounds like just something I would LOVE.....But still, I was pretty unsure about it.

Morgan's character felt a bit undeveloped throughout Forget Me, her character is definitely not the strong point of the book. However, she is still a believable character with interesting characteristics (such as being a photographer). The romance in this book didn't feel too rushed like I worried it might be, I think that the build up to it was great.

The beginning of Forget Me moves very quickly (almost too quickly) but still enjoyable and with enough information to build a believable and interesting plot for the rest of the book. The writing in Forget Me reminded me of what I would find in a Nancy Drew or Hardy Boys book, simple, easy to understand, not too much "blah, blah, blah, that I tend to find in a lot of thrillers. So, if you like Nancy Drew books, I would definitely recommend Forget Me.

How to read books FOR FREE!

If you clicked on this blog post to find out ways and websites to illegally download pirated e-books for free, you are completely out of luck.

I am the kind of person that actually doesn't buy THAT many books. Sure, I have my favorite authors books. I just don't buy every single book I read. AND THAT IS OK!
I LOVE supporting authors (hence my blog) because authors are amazing. I just don't buy every single book.

SOOOOO I GIVE YOU............

Em's fool proof way to LEGALLY download, borrow, or otherwise obtain awesome books of all genres.

DIGITAL Library borrowing systems otherwise known as Overdrive.com
Overdrive is a system in which libraries can buy E-books, and lend them to their patrons for the low price of $0.  Overdrive boasts on their website that they serve 30,000 libraries in over 40 countries, so chances are they do serve your neighborhood library.
Also, if your library is on the top of their game. They may have pre-ordered the e-book. And, if so, you can get it THE SECOND it is released!!!

BORROW it from a friend. This may seem pretty obvious, but, if you are good with books I would definitely recommend asking a friend to borrow their copy! Chances are you know someone who has a copy of the book you DESPERATELY want to read. And, chances are, (if you promise to treat their book like a million dollars) they will share the love and let you borrow their copy.

Watch for Kindle/Nook/Kobo/WhateverDigitalReadingDeviceYouOwn sales and freebies.
I know that I acquired a copy of Jennifer L Armentrout's Obsidian FOR FREE through one of these, so just watch out for the books you really want to read and you may get lucky!


So there you go. 3 fool proof ways to get books completely free.

So, I am sure there are a lot of ways that I am missing, so PLEASE leave your recommendations for acquiring free books LEGALLY in the comments below!

Summer Reading with Melanie Dickerson

Melanie Dickerson writes some of my favorite Fairy Tale Retellings! (Seriously though, they are awesome and I recommend every single one of them!)

Today I have a post authored by Melanie exactly about (you guessed it) SUMMER READING!

Summer Reading

By Melanie Dickerson

 

When I was a kid in the 1970s and ‘80s, I loved to read, and I read a lot during the

summer—when I wasn’t climbing trees, building forts, or riding motorcycles with my

I grew up in a rural area of south Alabama about 50 miles from Harper Lee’s

hometown of Monroeville, the basis for the setting of To Kill a Mockingbird. The school

I attended had a very small library with mostly classics, many of them so old their pages

were yellowed, sometimes had a little mold on the edges, and a few holes where rats had

eaten them. That kind of thing didn’t bother me, as long as all the words were there.

In the summer, it was a little harder to get books. We were relatively poor, but I

would save up my allowance to buy books through the Scholastic order forms we got at

school. Then I would re-read the books over the summer. My mother did sometimes take

me to the library, not in our tiny hometown, which did not have a library, but in another

nearby town, Georgiana. It was also very small and was only open maybe three days a

After borrowing my school library’s copy of Gone With the Wind a few times, I

bought my own and re-read it every summer when I was a teenager. Since there were no

book stores in our area, I joined a mail order “book club” and started ordering books from

there. But I also started writing, and I can remember writing my first novel at the age of

13 in a notebook, then typing it on a typewriter, sitting at the kitchen table. I can

remember my thighs sweating on the fake leather chairs in the Alabama heat. But seeing

my stack of typewritten pages and knowing this was a story I had created was a

Summers were wonderful. I was free to lie around on the couch and read as much

as I wanted to—in between my chores of shelling peas, washing dishes, and hanging out

clothes on the clothesline. Reading could take me away from life and transport me

somewhere just a bit more exciting, like the high seas in Rafael Sabatini’s The Sea-Hawk,

or the French political intrigues and fight scenes of The Three Musketeers by Alexander

Dumas. As I grew older, I could imagine myself as an ordinary-young-woman-turned-

romance-heroine, like Lizzie Bennet in Pride and Prejudice or Anne in Anne of Green

Gables or Jo March in Little Women or Jane in Jane Eyre.

I grew up reading the classics. My own children these days don’t have much

patience for the outdated language and slower pace of these old classics, but I’m not sorry

that these were the staples of my library, and therefore, of my childhood reading.

 

Be sure to check out Melanie's books this summer if you haven't ever read them!

The Healers Apprentice is Sleeping Beauty, The Merchants Daughter is Beauty and the Beast, The Fairest Beauty is Snow White, The Captive Maiden in Cinderella and The Princess Spy is The Frog Prince. (And I did that by memory so if I am wrong please correct me in the comments below!)

I have not read The Huntress of Thornbeck Forest yet but I believe that it is a Swan Lake and Robin Hood retelling!

 

 

Out Now:

 

 

Coming Soon:

 

 

 

Summer Reading with Katie Cotugno

Summer Reading Extravaganza with Katie Cotugno

In case you don't know already,  Katie is the author of How to Love (which I have personally read and enjoyed) and 99 Days (which I have not read yet). 

 

Today I have an awesome interview with Katie!

 

-Did you participate in library summer reading programs?

I did, every summer when I was a kid! And then when I was in high school and college I worked in a library and helped run them. 

 

-Did you write any of your books over the summer?

 I wrote 99 DAYS in 99 days, as a matter of fact! But it was summer into fall. 

 

-Top 5 book recommendations for summer?

Barbara Kingsolver's Prodigal Summer, Sarah Dessen's The Truth About Forever, Nina LaCour's Everything Leads to You, Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird, Ann Brashares's Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants.

 

-Why do you write YA contemporary and not fantasy/paranormal/adult?

I do write some adult, actually! But the draw of realistic contemporary has always been that I'm interested in exploring problems or issues I've bumped up against in my own life, or that my readers bump up against in theirs. 

 

 

 

About Katie:

Katie Cotugno went to Catholic school for thirteen years which makes her, as an adult, both extremely superstitious and prone to crushes on boys wearing blazers. She routinely finds herself talking about the romantic endeavors of characters on TV shows as if they actually exist in the world.
Katie is a Pushcart Prize nominee whose work has appeared in The Iowa Review, The Broadkill Review, The Apalachee Review, and Argestes, as well as on Nerve.com. Her first novel, HOW TO LOVE, is out now from Balzer + Bray/HarperCollins. 99 DAYS will follow next spring.
The great loves of Katie's life include child's pose, her little sister, and mozzarella and honey sandwiches. She lives in Boston with her husband, Tom

 

Katie's Social Media Links:

 

Goodreads  Website  Twitter

 

 

Katie's Books:

 

 

Summer Reading Interview with Jennifer E Smith

Jennifer E Smith is one of my all-time favorite authors, and she also writes some of my favorite contemporary fiction. I am SO EXCITED to have an interview with her here on the blog about summer reading and writing contemporary books!

 

-Did you participate in library summer reading programs?

Are you kidding?  I was obsessed with the summer reading programs at my library when I was growing up. I remember one summer, there was a Wizard of Oz theme, and for every book you read, you got a construction paper footprint with your name and the title, and you got to stick it onto the giant yellow brick road that wound around the walls of the children's section. I can't even tell you how many footprints I added that year, but I'm sure the librarians were a bit overwhelmed by my enthusiasm!  

 

-Did you write any of your books over the summer?

Yes, I've written many of my books over the summer (which is probably why so many of them end up being set during that particular season).

 

-Top 5 book recommendations for summer?

Anything by Sarah Dessen, Stephanie Perkins, Jenny Han, John Green and Gayle Forman.

 

-Why do you write YA contemporary and not fantasy/paranormal/adult?

I love reading across all genres, but in terms of my own writing, I've always gravitated more toward realistic fiction. I'm not exactly sure why, to be honest.  Maybe it's because I read more of it when I was a kid.  I think it's a bit like being left or right handed.  There are a few lucky people who are able to do both, but for most of us, one or the other just comes more naturally.  And for me, it's always been contemporary.

 

 

If you have not read Jennifer's books then this summer is the perfect time to pick one up!

 

Available Now:

 

 

    

 

Coming Soon:

 

 

 

About Jennifer:

Jennifer E. Smith is the author of The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight, The Storm Makers, You Are Here, and The Comeback Season. She earned her master's degree in creative writing from the University of St. Andrews in Scotland, and currently works as an editor in New York City. Her writing has been translated into 28 languages.

 

Goodreads Twitter  Website

Summer Reading with Jodi Meadows

Summer Reading with Jodi Meadows

I have only read The Orphan Queen from Jodi Meadows, however, hopefully I will change that this summer as her Incarnate series is on my to-read list! The Orphan Queen is now one of my favorite fantasy books, and I am super excited to read The Mirror King coming next year!

Below you can read a post done by Jodi herself on how she came up with the names and titles in The Orphan Queen.

 

Naming Things

By Jodi Meadows

 

For me, naming things is a huge challenge. Unless something

comes with a name right away (and sometimes that happens!), it

can take days or weeks or months of searching for just the right

thing.

The Indigo Kingdom named itself. I was lucky there. So did Aecor. I

didn't really have to fight my brain for either of them, or Liadia and

Laurel­by­the­Sea (two other kingdoms in the world). (Though

Laurel­by­the­Sea was definitely named after my editor.)

Which brings me to . . . stealing names. Friends, family, and

strangers on the internet: no one is safe. Sometimes I ask if I'm

going to name a villain after a friend, but often they're pretty

surprised to find themselves there later. You'll find lots of friends on

the map in THE ORPHAN QUEEN. Hand River? Ashton River?

Bow River? Cynthia, Brodi, and Erin (Bowman) respectively. There

are tons of others hiding in the stories!

But I don't just steal from people. I also steal from places. The map

probably looks suspiciously like Virginia. (Shocking!) I pulled

several names from the Shenandoah National Park, like

Greenstone (a type of stone found there), Thornton, Hawksbill. . . .

I had Blackrock, but apparently I had a lot of things that were black

(Black Knife, Black Flag, and more . . .) and it was suggested that I

branch out to different colors.

Even naming the Ospreys was kind of stealing. I researched birds

of prey for that area, found ospreys, and declared it the national

bird of Aecor right then and there. And thus, the rag­tag gang of

orphaned nobles had a name.

Finally, there's the hard way. Flipping through baby name sites.

Writing lists of words that fit with the themes and symbols I'm trying

to show. General stressing. Harassing friends to name things for

me. Crying. Eating chocolate. Usually, when I'm really desperate

and thinking this thing shall remain nameless for the rest of its days

­­ that's when my brain provides something.

Brains can be so cruel.

Out Now:

 

 

Coming Soon:

 

 

About Jodi:

Jodi Meadows lives and writes in the Shenandoah Valley, Virginia, with her husband, a Kippy*, and an alarming number of ferrets. She is a confessed book addict, and has wanted to be a writer ever since she decided against becoming an astronaut. She is the author of the INCARNATE Trilogy and the forthcoming ORPHAN QUEEN Duology (HarperCollins/Katherine Tegen). Visit her at www.jodimeadows.com

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Social Media Links:

 

Goodreads  Website  Twitter