Stealing Heaven [BOOK REVIEW]

Title: Stealing Heaven
By: Elizabeth Scott
Published: June 1st, 2008
Published By: Harper Teen
Rating: 3.5/5 Stars

Summary: Dani has been trained as a thief by the best - her mother. Together, they move from town to town, targeting wealthy homes and making a living by stealing antique silver. They never stay in one place long enough to make real connections, real friends - a real life. In the beach town of Heaven, through, everything changes. For the first time, Dani starts to feel at home. She's making friends and has even met a guy. But these people can never know the real Dani - because of who she is. When it turns out that her new friend lives in the house they've targeted for their next job and the cute guy is a cop, Dani must question where her loyalties lie: with the life she's always known - or the one she's always wanted.

I was quite surprised with this book. It is actually pretty good and a refreshing read from all the adventure and fantasy books I have been reading. The characters in this book are pretty relatable if you don't count the thief part. Dani's a pretty loyal person to her mom because she knows that's all she will have. She tried not to do some of the things that she's not supposed to but she still does it. I also like how Greg, the cop, is such a sweet guy. Its not something you would expect from a cop. And her friend Allison is really nice. I think shes the type of girl anyone can be friends with.

The plot was unexpected. When I read the summary, I really was not expecting what would happen because of the choices that she has to make. I'm kinda glad with how it turned out because it's different from how I imagined it would go and also if I was in her position, I probably would not know what I would have done but in the end, she made her choices based on her heart and that's good.

I would recommend this to anyone looking for a super cute romance read mixed with lies and deception. That sounds evil, but it's not. (:

The Iron Knight [BOOK REVIEW]

Title: The Iron Knight
By: Julie Kagawa
Published: October 26, 2011
Published By: Harlequin Teen
Rating: 4/5 Stars

Summary: To cold faery prince Ash, love was a weakness for mortals and fools. His own love had died a horrible death, killing any gentler feelings the Winter prince might have had. Or so he thought. Then Meghan Chas - a half human, half fey slip of a girl - smashed through his barricades, binding him to her irrevocably with his oath to be her knight. And when all of Faery nearly fell to the Iron fey, she severed their bond to save his life. Meghan is now the Iron Queen, ruler of a realm where no Winter or Summer Fey can survive. With the unwelcome company of his archrival, Summer Court prankster Puck, and the infuriating cait sith Grimalkin, Ash begins a journey he is bound to see through to it's end - a quest to find a way to honor his vow to stand by Meghan's side. To survive in the Iron Realm, Ash must have a could and a mortal body. But the tests he must face to earn these things are impossible. And along the way Ash learns something that changes everything. A truth that challenges his darkest beliefs and shows him that, sometimes, it takes more than courage to make the ultimate sacrifice.

The characters in this story were great. It was just Ash, Puck, and Grimalkin and a couple of other "friends" that they meet along the way. Of course after hearing the other stories from Meghan's point of view, it is definitely a change to hear it from Ash. Puck is still the comic relief which is great because sometimes, this book is taken way too seriously. I also love Grimalkin. Even though he seemed evil in the first book, he has definitely grown on me and I'm kinda used to him now. Kinda reminds me of the Cheshire cat for some reason.

The plot is also great, there are quite a lot of trials and tests that Ash has to face and get through to reach his goal and I am kinda surprised that he survived because if I was in his situation I probably would have failed by the third test. I did not like that test one bit. Ash has a lot of challenges that he basically has to win in order to succeed and its cool to watch and see him through it.

Even though this book had a great plot with awesome characters, I probably would not recommend this book. I'm not saying that I hate this book, but I would have been satisfied with the ending of the Iron Queen as it was. I did not like this book that much actually. But if you do want to see another ending, then I would recommend this book.

Dash & Lily's Book of Dares [BOOK REVIEW]

Title: Dash & Lily's Book of Dares
By: Rachel Cohn & David Levithan
Published: December 26th, 2010
Published By: Knopf Books
Rating: 3.5/5 Stars

Summary: Lily has left a red notebook full of challenges on a favorite bookstore shelf, waiting for just the right guy to come along and accept its dares. But is Dash that right guy? or are Dash and Lily only destined to trade dares, dreams, and desires in the notebook they pass back and forth at locations across New York? Could their in-person selves possibly connect as well as their notebook versions? or will they be a comic mismatch of disastrous proportions?

The characters in this book were great. They were all different and special in their own way and it seems like they can be your normal everyday family that you see on the street, what with the parents always away on work. The characters have a very unique sense of personality that sometimes I don't get but that doesn't mean that I don't like the book. A lot of people say they could feel this tension between the two main characters but to be honest, I didn't really feel it. It was kinda confusing in my opinion.

The plot was also very interesting because this is the first time that I've read a book like this and it was really fun. I wish that this book was longer and that the dares to Lily could have been more interesting. Sometimes, I would get confused with what is actually going on and I think that's because I don't really get what some of the characters are trying to convey when they are thinking their own thoughts. I get the conversations though so that's good.

Still I would recommend this book to anyone looking for a good holiday type read because its a realistic type of young adult fiction with a twist of romance in there.

The Iron Queen [BOOK REVIEW]

Title: The Iron Queen
By: Julie Kagawa
Published: January 25th, 2011
Published By: Harlequin Teen
Rating: 5/5 Stars

Summary: I thought it was over. That my time with the fey, the impossible choices I had to make, the sacrifices of those I loved, was behind me. But a storm is approaching, an army of Iron Fey that will drag me away from the banished prince who's sworn to stand by my side. Drag me into the core of conflict so powerful, I'm not sure anyone can survive it.

I was literally so excited for this book even though I didn't have to wait for it to come out. But I loved the plot of this book A LOT. Even though the ending was something probably not a lot of people would have wanted, to me, it was a satisfying, happy ending. Sort of. But there was a lot going on in this book. There were conflicts and problems between the Summer and Winter Fey. And there was going to be a war and stuff. It just had a lot of things going on and I was super satisfied with how the whole story played out.

The characters were great in this book. Compared to the Iron Daughter, Meghan did not piss me off in this book which was good because this was probably my favorite one out of the three books currently. I felt kinda sorry for Ash in the end and I am really interested into seeing what Ash's plans are. And Puck was also awesome. Even though he likes playing tricks and stuff, he is definitely the comic relief of the entire story. I always laughed at what he had to say and he said some funny stuff.

So I would definitely recommend this book to just anyone because it's got everything in there practically, adventure, action, romance, and I wouldn't call it tragedy. Hahas.

The Iron Daughter [BOOK REVIEW]

Title: The Iron Daughter
By: Julie Kagawa
Published: August 1st, 2010
Published By: Harlequin Teen
Rating: 4.5/5 Stars

Summary: Half summer faery princess, half human, Meghan has never fit in anywhere. Deserted by the Winter prince she though lover her, she is prisoner to the Winter faery queen. As war looms between summer and Winter, Meghan knows that the real danger comes from the Iron fey - iron bound faeries that only she and her absent prince have seen. But no one believes her. Worse, Meghan's own fey powers have been cut off. She's stuck in Faery with only her wits for help. Trusting anyone would be foolish. Trusting a seeming traitor could be deadly. But even as she grows a backbone of iron, Meghan can't help but hear the whispers of longing in her all-too-human heart.

Ok, so the characters in this book were great, all except for Meghan. Throughout the story, she really pissed me off. I mean in the first book and the short story, it kinda explains what would happen and why it will happen but even though we know it, it seems like Meghan just doesn't get it and everything was explained smack right in front of her face. She also got really whiny in my opinion. But the good thing was that this only happened in the beginning half of the book. I really loved the end half of the book because the characters were great there.

The plot was great. It was not something I would have thought of. It was filled with adventure and some major action and devious plans and such which made the fantasy seem more real. I loved how everything just keeps on coming and there is nothing that gets boring because each new chapter is kind of like a new plan or idea put into motion. You also don't have to wait a long time for it to be interesting because it does really quickly.

I would recommend this book to anyone if you can get through the first half because after that, it is totally worth it and if you are interested in adventure with action mixed with fantastical creatures.

Bloodmaiden [BOOK REVIEW]

Title: Bloodmaiden
By: Christine E. Schulze
Published: May 28, 2010
Published By: Old Line Publishing
Rating: 4/5 Stars

Summary: Zale, Gauthier, and Varden are three dynasties that live in harmony with dragons. However the forth dynasty, Tynan, is ruled by dragons. Due to tradition, the Quelda is chose as a sacrifice to the dragon. Crislin and Chalom decided to go against it and seek help from the other three dynasties even though they are rumored to not believe their own kind would inflict damage on the Quelda. Together with new friends, they must travel to the dynasties to gain access to the Shrines which hold the sacred Aria which can help rid Tynan of their evil. But to get help first, they first must find a way through the wall and out of Tynan.

The characters were great in this book although sometimes, they didn’t feel quite as real to me. I absolutely loved Pan’s character though with her ability to change depending on her environment. At first I felt kinda sorry for Brydon because of his past but it’s understandable. Chalom and Crisilin were also really great. I wish that I got to see more of their relationship though because it didn’t feel like it was deep enough in my opinion. But throughout the story, we get to learn more about their past and what they have to go through and what they eventually learn about each other.

I love the plot a lot. It definitely has a lot of adventure in it. There’s also a mix of romance here and there throughout the story. The characters go on this journey in order to expose the evil doings in Tynan, the fourth dynasty. This was probably a story I was not expecting because the plot has its own unique twist to it. It does have magical creatures like dragons and sprites and such. 

I would recommend this to anyone looking for a fantasy adventure type read because this books has just that.

Chain Reaction [BOOK REVIEW]

Title: Chain Reaction
By: Simone Elkeles
Published: August 16th, 2011
Published by: Walker Books
Rating: 4/5 Stars

Summary: Luis Fuentes has always been sheltered from the gang violence that nearly destroyed his brothers' lives. But that didn't stop him from taking risks - whether he's scaling a mountain in the Rockies or dreaming of a future as an astronaut, Luis can't stop looking for the next thrill. Nikki Cruz lives her life by three rules - boys lie to get their way, don't trust a boy who says "I love you," and never date a boy from the south side of Fairfield. Her parents may be from Mexico, but as a doctor's daughter she has more in common with her north-side neighbors than the Latino Blood at her school. Then she meets Luis at Alex's wedding, and suddenly, she's tempted to break all her rules. Getting Nikki to take a chance on a south sider is Luis's biggest challence, until he finds himself targeted by Chuy Soto, the new head of the Latino Blood. When Chuy reveeals a disturbing secret about Luis's family, the youngest Fuentes finds himself questioning everything he's ever believed to be true. Will his feelings for Nikki be enough to stop Luis from entering a dark and violent world and permanently living on the edge?

I absolutely loved the characters in this book because they felt very real and it seemed like you can find some kind of connection with all of them. Since Luis is the youngest of the Fuentes, he's also no different from Alex and Carlos because he does like to flirt around with other girls and he doesn't take relationships very seriously. I felt really bad for Nikki but sometimes she also pissed me off because it seemed like she couldn't trust anyone sometimes and that is also very understandable. And I hate the Latino Blood and Chuy. He is downright evil.

The plot was kind of a down for me because it's somehow always similar to the first two books. There was probably only a couple of things in there that was new. Other then that, I still did enjoy this book because I like the fact that its from different view points as well because that way it's easier to understand what the two characters are feeling and thinking.

I would recommend this book to anyone that likes the first two books in this series. Its kinda like a good girl meets bad boy concepts still. Out of all three of the books, Perfect Chemistry was my favorite.