Showing posts with label 2 Stars. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 2 Stars. Show all posts
{ARC Review} This Shattered World by Amie Kaufman & Meagan Spooner
Labels:
2 Stars,
5 Stars,
Amie Kaufman,
ARC,
Book Review,
Meagan Spooner,
Sci,
Young Adult
·
Series: Starbound #2
Author: Amie Kaufman & Meagan Spooner
Published: 1st Dec 2014
Age Group: Young Adult
Genre: Sci-fi
Source: Paperback ARC provided by Allen & Unwin for fair & honest review
Rating: 5/5
BLURB:
The second installment in the epic Starbound trilogy introduces a new pair of star-crossed lovers on two sides of a bloody war.
Jubilee Chase and Flynn Cormac should never have met.
Lee is captain of the forces sent to Avon to crush the terraformed planet's rebellious colonists, but she has her own reasons for hating the insurgents.
Rebellion is in Flynn's blood. Terraforming corporations make their fortune by recruiting colonists to make the inhospitable planets liveable, with the promise of a better life for their children. But they never fulfilled their promise on Avon, and decades later, Flynn is leading the rebellion.
Desperate for any advantage in a bloody and unrelentingly war, Flynn does the only thing that makes sense when he and Lee cross paths: he returns to base with her as prisoner. But as his fellow rebels prepare to execute this tough-talking girl with nerves of steel, Flynn makes another choice that will change him forever. He and Lee escape the rebel base together, caught between two sides of a senseless war.
The stunning second novel in the Starbound trilogy is an unforgettable story of love and forgiveness in a world torn apart by war.
A Sophisticated Sci-fi With Intelligent Plot & Culturally Diverse Characters!!
REVIEW:
The story:
Jubilee Chase is a military captain serving on Avon to help protect the people of this young planet. Flynn Cormac, in charge of the rebel movement, he doesn't want to see his home torn apart by violence and war. But most importantly he wants answers as to why Avon's tera-forming is not progressing as it should. Jubilee and Flynn are on opposite sides of the war on Avon, but as they are forced to work together, they start to realise that there may be another common enemy that is the real reason Avon is crumbling.
This Shattered World was a surprising read for me. It was quite different to These Broken Stars, not just in the actual story but also the overall feel. While TBS was a story of survival and romance, TSW is primarily focussed on war and conspiracy theories revolving around the strange things occurring on the plant Avon. The story revolves around the complexities of human nature.
I was excited to see the 'whispers' were back, raising more questions about these mysterious creatures and their place in the universe. This was such a thrilling and facilitating story, and while TBS is still my favourite book of the series,TSW does not disappoint!
The characters:
Let's just take a moment and applaud Kaufman & Spooner for the amazing character diversity is this book!
Jubilee is part Chinese, and her cultural background is referenced throughout the story. I loved her spirit and strength. She has fiery attitude - she's fierce and determined. It was excellent to see Jubilee making her own decisions, she never blindly believed anyone, instead she looked at the situation in front of her and make up her own mind as to what needed to be done.
Flynn is Irish, I could actually hear the lilt of his accent in the dialogue. Flynn is such a sweet character, especially for someone who's a rebel. He doesn't want war and distraction and is set on finding a peaceful outcome for everyone. He's passionate and dedicated to protecting his home and it's people.
I actually squealed when Lilac & Tarver made an appearance! All the feels from TBS came flooding back. They both have an interesting part to play in this story - but that's all I'm going to say...
The romance:
I'll be honest, there wasn't much romance in this book, and certainly less than there was in These Broken Stars. But for this particular story, it seemed natural that the romance would take a back seat. The connection between Flynn and Jubilee was always there in the background, slowly building, and never never forced. You could feel the attraction growing despite them both fighting what they believed could never happen. The few romantic moments that do occur were so heartfelt and poignant.
The writing:
Kaufman & Spooner write with such expressive language, it's simply sensational. Scenes are described in such vivid detail, I would spell the earthy scent of the swamp water, see the 'will o wisps' floating through the air - it made this books so real, it felt like I had been sucked into their world.
Like TBS, there are mini chapters between each POV chapter. I will admit they made no sense to me what so ever, and I didn't get the meaning of them until quite late in the book. But once I did - wow.
FINAL WORD:
With an exciting & intelligent plot and culturally diverse characters, This Shattered World is a breathtaking sequel in this epic and sophisticated sci-fi series!
CONTENT:
Sexuality: mild / some kissing and very minor references to 'hooking up'
Violence: medium-strong / military based violence, guns, deaths, descriptions of bodies
Language: mild
Drugs & alcohol: mild / some 'underage' drinking which is allowed in this world
Review: The Impact Of You (Kendall Ryan)
Labels:
2 Stars,
Book Review,
The Impact Of You
·
Author: Kendall Ryan
Published: June 7th 2013
Genre: NA Contemporary Romance
Rating: 2.5/5
BLURB:
Needing an escape from her past, Avery chooses a college where no one knows her. Keeping a low profile was the plan, falling for the intense frat boy, Jase wasn’t. Yet she can’t deny how alive she feels when he’s near. Even as common sense implores her to stay away, her body begs her to get closer.
Jase, numb from his own family drama, has grown bored with weekends fueled by nameless girls and countless bottles when he meets Avery. Helping her cope with her past is better than dealing with the bullshit his own life’s served up. Determined to drive away the painful secret she’s guarding, he appoints himself her life coach, and challenges her to new experiences. Getting close to her and being the one to make her smile are simply perks of the job.
But when Avery’s past boldly saunters in, refusing to be forgotten, can Jase live with the truth about the girl he’s fallen for?
REVIEW:
The story:
The beginning was promising, but this book turned out to be so short that it fell a little flat for me in the end. There was an interesting storyline of Avery searching for her birthmother, as she was adopted by her dads. However it's extremely underdeveloped and things get tied up so quickly in a neat little bow that it was just so anti-climactic.
I also had an issue with how the entire story revolved around Avery and Jase's sex life, and not in a good way. Even when they are in class, they both take Human Sexuality class and are paired up to talk about orgasms & self pleasure!? Seriously?? There are other less obvious ways to allow characters to express their sexuality and attraction, but this just felt forced and killed any sexual tension for me.
The characters:
Sadly I felt very little connection with Avery. She lacked any real personality (even quiet reserved characters need personalty). We know that something happened in her past for her to not trust people and she stays away from parties, but that's basically it.
And don't get me started on Jace and his hypocritical douchbagery! He claims to be a reformed player, and although he says many times that nothing will change the way he feels about Avery, the moment he finds out what her big secret is - he bails on her. He then makes a huge mistake that I personally would not have forgiven him for - and certainly not as easily as Avery does. He just lost all my respect in that scene and so did Avery for forgiving him so easily.
I would also liked to of seen more from the secondary characters. We have the cliche perky BFF & gay best friend, but nothing really set them apart from the rest out there in this genre.
The romance:
Avery & Jase's relationship could have done with a lot more development, it just happened way too quickly and unrealistically. I love a good sexy romance, but sometimes there needs to be scenes that show the progression of a relationship on a emotional level. There were times where Avery needed someone to talk to & instead of being there for her Jase would try to feel her up. I just wish there had been a few more scenes where they just talked or something to show there connection went further than just on a physical level.
Speaking of the physical stuff - it was a bit hit & miss for me, some of the scenes were steamy, while others were lacking any real heat:
"I'm not even nervous as Jase removes my jeans and panties. I pull my top over my head, and he unclasps my bra. After we're each undressed, we slide under the sheets and continue kissing."
Where are all the adjectives!? How did he remove her jeans, how did he undo her bra? This scene could have been sexy, sweet, sensual, romantic, passionate, fiery…or just something, but I just wasn't feeling it.
FINAL WORD:
Perhaps if some of the scenes had been extended to allow for more character development it could have been a little more memorable. With so many stories with such similar topics, this doesn't really stand apart from the crowd. Despite my issues with this book it was a quick read and I'm sure there will be some people who will enjoy it.
CONTENT:
Sexuality: medium / sex scenes
Violence: mild
Language: medium / several f*ck
Drugs & alcohol: medium / drinking at parties
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