Review – Arena by Holly Jennings

Arena
By: Holly Jennings
Release Date: April 5, 2016
Publisher: Ace
Series: Arena Book 1
Received From: Publisher
(All reviews are our own, honest opinions.)
Rating:


Arena by Holly Jennings is the first book in a new science fiction series set in a near future where e-sports are now dominated by fully immersive virtual reality games. The story is told from Kali’s point of view – a twenty year old half American half Chinese woman who is making history as the first female team captain in the tournament bracket. Then her world starts to fall apart – her teammate dies of an overdose, she’s fighting an addiction herself, and corporate sponsors along with their team owner wants to sweep Nathan’s death under the rug.

Review: Nearly Gone

Nearly Gone
By: Elle Cosimano
Website: http://nearlygonebooks.com/
Release Date: March 25th 2014
Publisher: Kathy Dawson Books
Series: Nearly Gone #1
Award: 2015 Edgar Award Nominee
Rating:


What draws you to a book? Is it the cover artwork? The title? The cover tagline? The synopsis on the back of the book? For me this time around it was all to do with the cover. The art was intriguing, showing only a portion of our main character Nearly Boswell’s face and, while her lips are on the cover it isn’t explicitly sensual. I tend to grow tired of the covers with beautiful girls in beautiful clothes in a beautiful scene somewhere. We all know that for most of those books the beautiful, idyllic cover is a lie. This time around, the haunting cover tells you everything you need to know, that nothing is okay and you’re in for an intense ride. 

Let me also state that this book has a very Pretty Little Liars feel to it in that teenagers are solving crimes and, in the process, getting themselves into trouble/making matters worse. Now that that’s out of the way let’s talk about the book itself. 

Review – The Zodiac Legacy Vol 1 by Stuart Moore

The Zodiac Legacy Vol 1
By: Stuart Moore, Stan Lee, P. H. Marcondes
Release Date: August 2, 2016
Publisher: Papercutz
Series: The Zodiac Legacy, Book #1. Based on The Zodiac Legacy novel series
Received From: Publisher
(All reviews are our own, honest opinions.)
Rating:


The Zodiac Legacy #1 is a graphic novel by Stuart Moore, Stan Lee, and P. H. Marcondes based on a series of young adult novels of the same title. This is the first in a series of graphic novels involving characters with superpowers based on the Chinese zodiac.

Review: Champion by Marie Lu

Champion
By: Marie Lu
Release Date: November 5, 2013
Publisher: Putnam Juvenile
Series: Legend, Book #3
Rating:


Again, this time I didn’t tear through Champion. I was anxious to read this book and finish the series so once I got past the second chapter I went through it fairly quickly.

We open with Day and June apart, Day working within the military and June as the Princeps-Elect. As the Republic struggles towards a peace treaty with the Colonies a biohazard plague starts ripping through the Colonies.

Review – Cure for the Common Universe by Christian McKay Heidicker

Cure for the Common Universe
By: Christian McKay Heidicker
Release Date: June 14, 2016
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Rating:


I stumbled upon Cure for the Common Universe by Christian McKay Heidicker completely on accident, and boy am I happy I did. I was at the bookstore and there it was – all bright reds and oranges popping off a background of blues and greens and whites. It even had an interesting sounding title. So I put it on top of my already too-big stack of books and wanted to love it instantly. And boy howdy, I was not disappointed.

Review: Legend by Marie Lu

Legend
By: Marie Lu @marielubooks
Website: http://marielu.org/books.html
Release Date: November 29th, 2011
Publisher: Putnam Juvenile
Series: Legend, Book #1
Rating:


I freely admit that sometimes I try to avoid new series. Not because I don’t love series (let’s face it, I adore series) but sometimes you aren’t ready to commit to a new series just yet. Every time I’d gone into Barnes and Noble I’d look at Legend by Marie Lu. I’d read the book jacket, the quotes from the New York Times review and other authors and I’d read a few lines on the first page. I just couldn’t commit to the series yet.

The fact is, I’m mad I waited to read this series! I know I’m a bit behind in joining the Legend fandom and if you’re waiting to join in and read the series please don’t wait much longer.

Review – Red Queen by Christina Henry

Red Queen
By: Christina Henry
Website: http://www.christinahenry.net/
Release Date: July 12, 2016
Publisher: Ace
Series: The Chronicles of Alice, Book #2
Received From: Publisher
(All reviews are our own, honest opinions.)
Rating:


I really enjoyed Red Queen by Christina Henry. This is the second book in a series, and I hadn’t read the first one yet when I received an arc. However, it is very easily read without the first. Enough of the first book is conveyed to get a general feel of the world and Alice’s past. The majority of this is run through in the prologue. Don’t skip this if you’d like a refresher on the series. This book, too, is quite easily read as a standalone novel.

Review: Prodigy by Marie Lu

Prodigy
By: Marie Lu
Website: http://marielu.org/books.html
Release Date: January 29, 2013
Publisher: Putnam Juvenile
Series: Legend, Book #2
Rating:


I will admit, right away, that I didn’t tear through Prodigy as fast as I did Legend. I’m willing to bet it’s more due to the circumstances of when I was reading this than the quality of the book. (There was a family emergency, and the book was put aside so that I could focus on helping. But enough about my life.)

We return to the alternating points of view of Day and June and, this time, the book starts off with our hero and heroine together. However, they don’t stay together for long as they are pulled apart by circumstance, as you would expect from any good novel.

Review – Risuko: A Kunoichi Tale by David Kudler

Risuko: A Kunoichi Tale
By: David Kudler
Release Date: June 15, 2016
Publisher: Stillpoint Digital Press
Series: Seasons of the Sword, Book #1
Award: BAIPA Great Reads Award - Best in Class
Received From: Publisher
(All reviews are our own, honest opinions.)
Rating:


Risuko: A Kunoichi Tale by David Kudler is a tale about a young girl, nicknamed Risuko, living in Japan in the age of the samurai. Her father died several years earlier, and she lives in relative poverty with her sister and mother. When the story opens, Risuko is sold to a rich women, with the intent of becoming a kunoichi – something she hasn’t necessarily heard of and doesn’t, at first, understand.