Waiting on Wednesday - July 4, 2012

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme from Jill at Breaking the Spine. To join in, share the book or books that you are currently drooling over as you await their release and report back to Breaking the Spine with the link to your post. The gorgeous badge above is brought to us by Lindsay at The Violet Hour!

Sacrifice by Cayla Kluver

Paperback

Expected publication:  October 23, 2012 by Harlequin Teen

The much anticipated conclusion to the Legacy trilogy by Cayla Kluver! The first book only gets you into the story and the second latches onto you for dear life.
See my reviews of Legacy and Allegiance.

Review: Allegiance by Cayla Kluver

Allegiance by Cayla Kluver

Paperback, 490 pages

Published February 28th 2012 by Harlequin Teen
Source: NetGalley, ARC
Buy the book:  Amazon : B&N : Goodreads

From Goodreads:

Only I saw Narian for who he truly was: a young man with courage and an independent mind, and made to pay for what was outside his control. He couldn't help his past any more than he could help the way those intense, deep-blue eyes pierced me and held me captive.

An eighteen-year-old queen in love with the enemy as their countries pass the point of no return...

Bound to a man she cannot love, Queen Alera of Hytanica must forget Narian, the young man who holds her heart. For Narian is destined to conquer Hytanica at the behest of his master, the powerful magic-user known as the Overlord. Alera doesn't truly believe Narian will fight against Hytanica-until Cokyrian troops attack with Narian commanding the charge.

Faced with the greatest betrayal a heart can know, Alera must set aside personal feelings and lead her kingdom through its darkest time. And when all hope, will and courage seem lost, she must find strength and remember that even the blackest night must have a dawn....

Ok, I didn't have as much love for Legacy as I thought I would. So, when I was about to start Allegiance I was really afraid it would suffer "Second Book Syndrome" and be worse. Good thing I did take a chance on this one. It turned out to be one of the rare cases that the second book greatly surpassed the first!

The book picks up shortly after the end of Legacy. If you haven't read it, don't read this one until you do. The amount of details you will not know will be monumental.
The plot and minor story lines really pick up in this book. Real drama, intrigue, and mystery made this installment a treat to read compared to the first. The story slows down in several parts, but I can understand why to a point. It is necessary to see a peek of such young queens thoughts and actions, but some routine things should be cut. Secrets become prevalent, but it greatly adds that little something that the plot needed. Now there is more wonder, excitement, and tough decisions for the characters. The results of their choices were probably not what they had hoped, but it does set up for a wonderful third book. 
This book does a great job at really letting us see the characters from a different perspective and more in-depth within their personalities. An excellent example of this is Steldor. I really disliked him in the first book, but I get to see a new him in this book. Be prepared, I actually liked the man by the end of the book and I never thought I would say that. Narian only makes slight appearances here and there, but those instances really make a difference. The one that really intrigues me in this book is London. He's holding a lot of information back I believe. I think I know where a lot of these secrets and "lost" information is heading. Unfortunately, I will have to wait for third book to find out. I see an amazing conclusion to this series in the works if Kluver's writing continues to grow and improve like this. :)

Review: Legacy by Cayla Kluver

Legacy by Cayla Kluver

Paperback, 496 pages

Published June 28th 2011 by HarlequinTeen
Source: Purchased
Buy the book: Amazon : B&N : Goodreads

From Goodreads:

I noticed his eyes. They were blue, sharp and intense. Despite the youthful glows of his suntanned face, his eyes were cold and unfriendly, suggesting he had great experience in the world and was now expecting the worst.
In her seventeenth year, Princess Alera of Hytanica faces one duty: to marry the man who will be king. But her father's choice of suitor fills her with despair.
When the palace guard captures and intruder— a boy her age with steel-blue eyes, hailing from her kingdom's greatest enemy— Alera is alarmed… and intrigued. But she could not have guessed that their clandestine meetings would unveil the dark legacy shadowing both their lands.
In this mystical world of court conspiracies and blood magic, loyalties will be tested. Courage won't be enough. And as the battle begins for everything Alera holds dear, love may be the downfall of a kingdom.

I have to admit, the hype for this book got to me. That's why I snatched it up a week before its release when I found it at Books-A-Million. The premise really intrigued me, but it didn't really hold up to the hype.
The story itself I loved, but the author's attention to detail really slowed it down to barely a crawl. I like the fact that a lot of background history is given, but stating a character's every miniscule move is a bit too far. The reader does get true look at the people and society of this world, but for many this depth is detrimental. I found myself flipping through pages just to see when the next conversation started. If a lot of this had been cut out, I feel I would have enjoyed the characters more.
Alera is a strong-minded woman in a society era that extremely hinders such beings. This personality trait made her very easy to relate to for me. The men in her life? Now that is another non-interesting storyline to get into with this book. It should have taken a larger front and the book may have been better. It was not to be though and it felt really like "deejay-vu" due to the premise. The man she is supposed to marry is an a$$ and the man she wants is a member of opposite forces (yes, just a liiiittle cliche). Unfortunately, the only man that held any true interest for me was her bodyguard. He actually had depth and characteristics that I looked forward to. Well, he is not in a majority of the book and that made the wait between scenes horrid. Even worse, he has the most potential for Alera, but circumstances arise and that door is slammed shut. That is where this book lost me almost entirely. The book itself is something to be desired, but it did hold out long enough for me to want to read the second one. We'll see where that took me in my next review post!

Waiting on Wednesday - June 27, 2012

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme from Jill at Breaking the Spine. To join in, share the book or books that you are currently drooling over as you await their release and report back to Breaking the Spine with the link to your post. The gorgeous badge above is brought to us by Lindsay at The Violet Hour!

The Archived by Victoria Schwab

Hardcover, 336 pages

Expected publication: January 22nd 2013 by Hyperion

 From Goodreads:

Imagine a place where the dead rest on shelves like books.

Each body has a story to tell, a life seen in pictures that only Librarians can read. The dead are called Histories, and the vast realm in which they rest is the Archive.

Da first brought Mackenzie Bishop here four years ago, when she was twelve years old, frightened but determined to prove herself. Now Da is dead, and Mac has grown into what he once was, a ruthless Keeper, tasked with stopping often-violent Histories from waking up and getting out. Because of her job, she lies to the people she loves, and she knows fear for what it is: a useful tool for staying alive.

Being a Keeper isn't just dangerous—it's a constant reminder of those Mac has lost. Da's death was hard enough, but now her little brother is gone too. Mac starts to wonder about the boundary between living and dying, sleeping and waking. In the Archive, the dead must never be disturbed. And yet, someone is deliberately altering Histories, erasing essential chapters. Unless Mac can piece together what remains, the Archive itself might crumble and fall.

In this haunting, richly imagined novel, Victoria Schwab reveals the thin lines between past and present, love and pain, trust and deceit, unbearable loss and hard-won redemption.

 This one absolutely is right up my alley. First, it is written by Victoria Schwab who brought us the amazing writing prose of The Near Witch. Second, the premise of libraries and the dead...love. it. I can't wait to dive back into Victoria's amazing writing about two concepts that fascinate me. ;)

Review: The Wood Queen by Karen Mahoney

The Wood Queen by Karen Mahoney

Paperback, 321 pages

Published: February 8th 2012 by Flux
Source: Purchased
Buy the book:  Amazon : B&N : Goodreads

From Goodreads:

Donna Underwood is in deep trouble.An ancient alchemical order is holding her accountable for destroying the last precious drops of the elixar of life. Never mind the fact that Donna was acting to free her friend, Navin, from the dangerous clutches of the Wood Queen at the time. But what the alchemists have in store is nothing compared to the wrath of the fey. The Wood Queen has been tricked and Donna must pay. Get ready for all hell - quite literally - to break loose...

I couldn't wait for this book, but unfortunately by the time I looked up from my class books I realized I had already missed its release. Well, it was worth the wait and the guilt.

The story picks up exactly where The Iron Witch left off. I wouldn't recommend trying to read this book before it for that reason. Unfortunately, this installment doesn't see a better end for Donna in many ways. Secrets stack up on secrets and it eventually becomes too much even for Donna. The result: a quick road to Hell, in the truest sense possible. Of course, Donna is blamed, but if the other characters had given just a little faith it could have had better results all the way around. A couple of these indiscretions really caused the book to slow and that contributed to the minus one sticky.

Another contribution is the love-interest/relationship aspects of this book. I do love me some love triangle stuff, but this one gets a little silly at times. We get to see all of them grow up in this book, but there is still a lot left for them to do. I was also happy to finally get to know a couple of other key characters that only received cameos in the first book. To say much more would definitely give too much away and the only way to know what I am talking about is to read the books. It is a great series and I look forward to the finale!