Review: Inhale

Inhale by Kendall Grey (Just Breath #1)

GOODREADS

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Content
Strangers in reality, inseparable in dreams…

After years of suffocating under her boss’s scrutiny, whale biologist Zoe Morgan finally lands a job as director of a tagging project in Hervey Bay, Australia. Success Down Under all but guarantees her the promotion of a lifetime, and Zoe won’t let anything—or anyone—stand in her way. Not the whale voices she suddenly hears in her head, not the ex who won’t take no for an answer, and especially not the gorgeous figment of her imagination who keeps saving her from the fiery hell of her dreams.

Gavin Cassidy hasn’t been called to help a human Wyldling in over a year, which is fine by him. Still blaming himself for the death of his partner, he keeps the guilt at bay by indulging in every excess his rock star persona affords. That is, until he’s summoned to protect Zoe from hungry Fyre Elementals and learns his new charge is the key to restoring order in the dying Dreaming. He never expects to fall for the feisty Dr. Morgan…nor does he realize he may have to sacrifice the woman he loves to save an entire country.


Thoughts

I am impressed. I found this little gem for under an Euro at amazon and I can definitely recommend it. Oh and all the earning go towards a good cause, so: save the whales! :P First of all full disclosure: I read book 1 and 2 already so my review might be colored by my feelings of book two. But that shouldn't be a problem, because both were equally good. (What a surprise, many sequels suck.) But the first one was a bit more impressing.

Inhale is build around the four elements, which look like humans but , well, aren't. Humans have all four elements inside them and the Sentinels, who are responsible for keeping the balance and keeping elementals out of humanities dreams, are capable of using these elements. The reason elements are not allowed into our dreams are, that they (even if they have only good intentions) are dangerous and can influence humans through their dreams so much we could go crazy or even die.

I was a bit frustrated with Zoe not realising her dreams are real-ish and not just her unconscious trying to tell her things - but how many of us would think our dreams are real and not feel like we go cray-zay? Also, I loved the dynamic between her real self and her dream self. She let's herself go in her own mind, but her career-oriented mind and social conventions make her act differently in real life. This was good, it made me believe in her and the story. Perfect was simply perfect. I'm in love. I got a thing for tattoos and tats that move and glow and whirl would be a-w-e-s-o-m-e!

Whats-her-face, the fire elemental who is stalking our Mr.Perfect is a maniac, but a believable one. As believable as Manson or a suicide bomber. You know they exist, you just never meet one before. (Hopefully) Gosh I can't wait for her to get dipped into the river styx and see her sizzle out of existence. (Wow, I like that sentence.)

So, what are you waiting for? Buy that book!

Review: Hold Me Closer, Necromancer

Hold Me Closer, Necromancer by Lish McBride (Necromancer #1)

Henry Holt and Company, 343 pages
GOODREADS


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" “Sam, honey, you look filthier than a hot tub in a brothel.”
“That’s kind of gross, Mrs. W,” I said.
She eyed Ramon and Frank behind me, her finger waggingbetween them. 

Your little boyfriends didn’t beat you up, did they?” she said. “Sam’s a nice boy, and if he won’t call the cops on you two, I will.”
“I’m grateful,” I said. “I really am, but I’m neither gay nor a victim of domestic violence.”
Mrs. Winalski dug around in her purse for her keys and made a harrumphing noise. “You worry me, Sam. I’m seventy, and I get a hell of a lot more action than you, boy. You’re young—take advantage.” "

Content

Sam leads a pretty normal life. He may not have the most exciting job in the world, but he’s doing all right—until a fast food prank brings him to the attention of Douglas, a creepy guy with an intense violent streak.

Turns out Douglas is a necromancer who raises the dead for cash and sees potential in Sam. Then Sam discovers he’s a necromancer too, but with strangely latent powers. And his worst nightmare wants to join forces . . . or else.

With only a week to figure things out, Sam needs all the help he can get. Luckily he lives in Seattle, which has nearly as many paranormal types as it does coffee places. But even with newfound friends, will Sam be able to save his skin?

Thoughts

Oh, what a joy ride. The snappish comments, the sarcasm, the hysteria!

No teenage angst and whining and no weird love triangle where what made this different for me. The humor was what made this so perfect for me. 

This was so much fun, I'm looking forward to book 2 already.

I read this as part of the Zombie Challenge and I'm grateful I picked this one up.

It seemed to be a good first book to get into the whole zombie thing. Borderline Zombie, so to say.

The main character Sam was refreshingly normal, even for a necromancer with unspeakable powers. After all, nobody ever told him. His friends where awesome! How many of your friends would try to run over somebody with a car to save you? Not many, I'd gather. I really liked Frank, he seemed so cute you just want to cuddle him all the time.

The changing of POV was a surprise but it worked. It changed between Douglas (our villain) , Brid and Sam and once went into Tia's POV (Sam's mom). I think that was it, I'm not sure, but it definitely was cool to see how everybody ticked.

The zombies weren't that dominant in the story line. Not like a zombie apocalypse book or anything, they where one of many different paranormal beings in this book, so it felt more like an urban fantasy than a zombie book. Borderline Zombie, as I mentioned. We had witches and necromancers and harbingers (of death, duh) and werewolves. 

We also had a mysterious council (oooooh) and a pack leader (aaaah) and a talking sever head (eeeeh?). Well it IS a zombie book , people.

Sadly it was a short ride and over way too soon, so I'm pining for book two to be released soon.

(Hah, and I just did my waiting on wednesday with other books. *rolls-eyes* Typical.)

Review: Everneath

Everneath by Brodi Ashton
(Everneath #1)

Harper Collins / Balzer + Bray, 370 pages
GOODREADS

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In the dark, dank world of the Tunnels, I would call upon this memory. And there would be a flicker of candlelight. If only for a moment. I closed my eyes, as if my eyelids were the levers of a printing press, etching the fibers into my mind. Memories were outside Cole’s reach. As long as I held them, memories were mine and mine alone.


Content
Last spring, Nikki Beckett vanished, sucked into an underworld known as the Everneath, where immortals Feed on the emotions of despairing humans. Now she’s returned—to her old life, her family, her friends—before being banished back to the underworld... this time forever.


Thoughts
First of all, Everneath was a fantastic read. The pace was just right and the going back and forth between the two timelines (before the Everneath, after the Everneath) build up enough tension to make me wanna scream and skip ahead. But I paced myself. Deeeeep breaths, deeeep breaths. Slow and steady wins the race. The world was build upon our own and all the details needed where given. Slowly we learned more about the Everneath and Everliving, but also about the Mark Nikki recieved when she left the Everneath. But the world wasn’t what made this book good (though that’s of course important!) – the characters were. Even though Nikki didn’t feel anything at the beginning, she slowly gained her feelings back and the angst that manifestet in myself reading about her apathy became less and less. It was like some kind of scale that was tipped between me and her. The balance never tipped towards her being overly emotional in situations that didn’t call for it. Though overally I felt a bit angsty. There where some moments between Cole and Nikki I felt where too much. I get he’s either totally in love with her or holds another kind of emotion that he can feel as strongly. Maybe it’s ambition? But I’d say it’s the bad kind of love. He wasn’t even the real bad guy in this story! He was the knife wielded by the bad guy – Nikki. Because, face it girl, you reap what you sow. Her boyfriend Jack was (luckily) no jock stereotype, phew, but he felt more like a silent poet/prince charming mix to me (not that he ever recited any poems). The one who knows thy heart. Or something. He was all nice and a little brawl didn’t make him feel less kngiht-in-shining-armor. I’d loved to see his side of the story, from when she was away. Not just a few sentenced talked about, but a real view into his mind. I’m looking forward to Book 2!


Rating ★★★★☆

Review: The Restorer

The Restorer by Amanda Stevens
(Graveyard Queen #1)

Mira, 376 pages
GOODREADS

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Through her wispy aura, her skin looked translucent, her hair a tangle of raven curls. She wore a sweet blue dress with a sprig of jasmine tucked into the waist, and I saw the sparkle of some tiny ring on her finger as she lifted her hand and pointed toward the window where I stood trembling. There was no mistaking her intent.
She knew I was there.
She knew I could see her.
And she was letting me know that she knew.


Content
My name is Amelia Gray. I’m a cemetery restorer who sees ghosts. In order to protect myself from the parasitic nature of the dead, I’ve always held fast to the rules passed down from my father. But now a haunted police detective has entered my world and everything is changing, including the rules that have always kept me safe.


Thoughts
The first thing that came to my mind seeing the cover was: Weeping Angles.

But the book had nothing to do with very scary angel statures that would kill you in a blink. (HA!) Being about ghosts i wasn’t sure what to expect – I normally read about angels and demons and vampires and witches – seldom about ghosts.


The overall atmosphere was a bit quiet and eerie. It wasn’t scary per se, but hauntingly, beautifully written. The romance was not as in-your-face as i would have thought (I’m too used to trashy novels) and I liked that we merely scratched the surface, took our time and focused on the solving the murder and getting to the bottom of Amelia’s growing knowledge and awareness of the otherworldly beings and what happens to and around her. (What a sentence …)


Sure, there was constant evaluation of her own feelings, but she never shows anything outwardly and i felt that made her so much more interesting than other kickass-damaged-angsty heroines I’ve read about before. She seems more grown up. Devlin is a lot like her, trying not to show his emotions. As he’s haunted (literally) by his dead wife and child, the relationship between them two just seems very doomed. He’s taboo, at least if she doesn’t want every ghost latching onto her because they realize she can see them … insanity here i come!


For me something new and fresh – if you read ghost stories often it might be different.


Rating ★★★★☆

Review: Suicide Notes

Suicide Notes by Michael Thomas Ford

HarperTeen, 295 pages
GOODREADS

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“How come someone always saves the people who try to kill themselves and then makes them tell everyone how sorry they are for ruining their evening? I keep feeling like everyone wants me to apologize for something. but I'm not going to. I don't have anything to apologize for. They're the ones who screwed everything up. Not me. I didn't ask to be saved.”


Content
Fifteen-year-old Jeff wakes up on New Year's Day to find himself in the hospital. Make that the psychiatric ward. With the nutjobs. Clearly, this is all a huge mistake. Forget about the bandages on his wrists and the notes on his chart. Forget about his problems with his best friend, Allie, and her boyfriend, Burke. Jeff's perfectly fine, perfectly normal, not like the other kids in the hospital with him. Now they've got problems. But a funny thing happens as his forty-five-day sentence drags on—the crazies start to seem less crazy.


Thoughts
This book was a bit intense. I sometimes felt my own wrists ache in response to whats going on. I have never tried to commit suicide but I know someone who has, so this book cut deep for me emotionally. But it was funny as hell too – Jeff is just so damn sarcastic! I loved that I somehow went to all the stations of the healing process with Jeff. In the beginning I thought “Yeah, he is not as crazy as the rest of them!” and then it felt more like the line between who was actually crazy and who wasn’t blurred. You get to know a little more about everyone, some people leave , some stay on after Jeff leaves. It felt a bit like a machinery that spit out healthy people. His psychiatrist grew on me a little. I loved how Jeff turned the game around, it made the doctor seem more human, more three dimensional. I had the feeling he learned from the patients as much as the patients learned from him. Also, Jeff didn’t realize it, but the doc definitly did his job, slowly and steadily with the help of the other patients in the group and his family. This is a very quick, fun and enlightened read. Totally recommended.


Rating ★★★★☆