Day 329 - Hush, Hush [ARC Review]

Hush, Hush

Becca Fitzpatrick

Series or Stand Alone: Book one, in a planned duology

Release Date: October 2009

Publisher: Simon & Schuster

Pages: 400 (Hardcover)

Author Site: http://beccafitzpatrick.com/index.html

My Rating: 2.75/5

Source: ARC won from a giveaway

Synopsis [from simonandschuster.com]:

Romance was not part of Nora Grey's plan. She's never been particularly attracted to the boys at her school, no matter how hard her best friend, Vee, pushes them at her. Not until Patch comes along. With his easy smile and eyes that seem to see inside her, Patch draws Nora to him against her better judgment.

But after a series of terrifying encounters, Nora's not sure whom to trust. Patch seems to be everywhere she is and seems to know more about her than her closest friends. She can't decide whether she should fall into his arms or run and hide. And when she tries to seek some answers, she finds herself near a truth that is way more unsettling than anything Patch makes her feel.
For she is right in the middle of an ancient battle between the immortal and those who have fallen -- and, when it comes to choosing sides, the wrong choice will cost Nora her life.

Review:

I was SOO excited when I found out I won Jacqueline's giveaway a while back. The cover is true eye candy! The dark colors, the cover model, the mood all just beg people to pick the book up But I don't really know how I feel about HUSH, HUSH. I liked it enough to want to read Becca's next installment, CRESCENDO, which comes out sometime in 2010. But I was disappointment with my lack of interest in the novel. I really wanted to love it... but most of the time I felt like I was missing something. Now keep in mind that I read the ARC of HUSH, HUSH and I do know that the finished hardcover has a different ending, but how different can the meat of the story really be? I know I got the gist of the story just fine with my ARC...

One thing I do want to point out before we get to my thoughts on the book - I can see barely any similarities between TWILIGHT and HUSH, HUSH. To me the characters and flow of each story is completely different from each other. I liked TWILIGHT, a lot, but I never really liked the hype the books created in the media. While I can understand why some people think the two books are closely related I myself don't really think so. Except maybe for the fact that Nora and Patch met in Biology class... I mean there are other subjects in school... =) But I understand why Becca chose Biology because of the material they were going over in class (sex-ed), it makes sense!

I liked Nora. But she was sort of a bland character. Even now, maybe 2 or 3 days from closing the book I can hardly recall her. She never really jumped out at me, and I really didn't feel a connection to her. Her relationship with Patch was entertaining with a few sparks flying here and there but I don't think I really cared whether or not she ended up with Patch. Nora was smart, I give her that. And I got a sense of her independence. With her mother constantly traveling for her job and the recent loss of her father, Nora was on her own. Literally. She only has Vee to keep her company. Vee's Nora's best friend. And you know, I loved Vee in the beginning. Not for her lack of best friend skills (because frankly I'd hate to have her as a bestie) but for her hilarious snide remarks; especially in the beginning of the book.

And then there's Patch, who I've read is supposed to be PRETTY amazing. Yeah, he seemed like a hottie. Yeah, he was a jerk. Yeah, he had bad boy tendencies. But so what? I certainly didn't fall in love with him as a character. I fully and happily admit that if I were in Nora's position in some of those scenes with him I'd be a little indimated and attracted to him at the same time. But those feelings were scarce and far in between. I didn't find him creepy though, I've read some people found him to be a stalker creepy guy. And while I definitely see the stalker part of him coming out every now and again I still didn't really find him creepy. I didn't hate him though... I was just kinda "Eh, Patch...that's nice."

That's kind of my reaction to the book as a whole. Like my ratings on the sidebar say... 2 stars for me is "Eh, it's okay." And I put it closer to 3 stars because there were times I did like HUSH, HUSH. I thought the ending was entertaining, though a little unrealistic. The relationship between Patch and Nora never bloomed in my eyes. All I got was strained and sexually charged meetings between the two. And then at the end, I'm supposed to grasp there love for each other... mmmm, the way I see it there was no room for love to grow between the two. Like I said in the beginning of my review, I honestly felt I was missing something. Not that I feel Becca can't write a novel. I enjoyed her writing very much. I think it's a wonderful debut to an interesting world filled with so many possibilites. Fallen Angels? Yes please! But I do know that as I read the book I kept shaking my head going, "Huh? Did I skip some pages or something?" I felt there were pieces missing from the story, from Nora and Patch's developing relationship, or maybe just my brain lol.

I can see HUSH, HUSH gaining a very loyal and large fan base. And as I said before, I will most likely be reading CRESCENDO when it comes out. For those who haven't read this yet, I'm super interested to hear your thoughts. I'll be giving away my ARC copy soon, I hope to see you there.

Day 148 - Step Into Darkness

Step Into Darkness

Naomi Bellis

Series or Stand Alone: Stand Alone

Synopsis: [from back cover]

At the height of the French Revolution, a viscount's daughter enlists the help of a man who turns out to be a perilous threat to her family...

Sarah Leaford is desperate to rescue her father from the dungeons of Paris, and it seems that her success depends on one man: Gentleman Jack, the greatest thief in all of London. What she doesn't know is that Jack is already well acquainted with her father...

Years ago, Lord Carleigh framed Jack for murder, leaving him a ruined man destined for the gallows. Now Jack has a chance for revenge - but to take it, he must resist falling for the beautiful noblewoman and her mysterious, untamed magic.

Drawn together by a dangerous mission, they must not surrender to the passion that flares between them. Sarah and Jack are not simply a maiden and a thief, and more lives than theirs are in peril. So much is at risk that even the dead take notice...

Review:

The year is 1793, and Lady Sarah Leaford will do anything to save her father, Lord Carleigh, from a Paris prison. With some encouragement from her deceased mother, Sarah finds herself requesting the help from Gentleman Jack, London's most notorious thief. Jack declines for a couple of reasons. Even though he wants to help the alluring Sarah, he has prior engagements that keep him tied to London. He also knows Sarah's father, and has a huge grudge against him. Why should he save one of his enemies?

Sarah turns elsewhere determined to find someone who can help her. Stephen Layton comes from a rich and well-to-do family and he graciously offers to help rescue the viscount if Sarah will agree to marry him. Sarah accepts the offer despite the fact that she doesn't love Layton. She'll do anything to save her father.

Meanwhile, Jack's sub-consceience of a friend, Gabriel d’Aubrigny, tries to talk Jack into reconsidering Sarah's request. Years ago, Jack was falsely accused of killing Sarah's grandfather and Lord Carleigh refused to help clear his name. Jack spent some time in a prison called Newgate and the memory still haunts him. After thinking it over, Jack decides this is the perfect opportunity to uncover who really set him up. After informing Sarah that he has changed his mind, Jack finds himself propelled into his mission that Sarah ends up joining herself.

As a passion builds between the two, the story unravels to show just how intertwined their lives are. Secrets are revealed, the danger is paramount, and the attraction is hot. Step Into Darkness was a fun and quick-paced adventure that involved a tiny bit of magic with a decent storyline. I was a little disappointed with the amount of "paranormal spice" that was sprinkled into the story. I was hoping for a bit more but I wasn't that upset with it.

As the characters go, I both liked and disliked them. At the beginning of the book I felt Jack was this tough and gung-ho kind of guy. But as he fought with Layton in the beginning, he seemed clumsy and not nearly as precise in his actions. It was like he too wasn't confident with his abilities. As the story progressed and his emotions took over he finally showed some spirit and he became the tough guy I was looking for. I enjoyed Sarah, she was a perfect lady but had a spunk about her that I loved. Watching her develop was a real treat. Gabriel had to have been my favorite character. Everytime the frenchman popped in a scene I found myself smiling. The smaller, secondary characters (Desmartines and the Master) were well put together and I found myself really enjoying them.

I enjoyed the story enough to definitely pick up the other two books by Bellis, Draw Down the Darkness and Theft of Shadows. These novels are in the same world as Step Into Darkness but I don't think the books are an actual series.

Day 84 - Bad Blood

Bad Blood

L.A. Banks

Stand Alone or Series: Crimson Moon Series, book one

Synopsis: [from back cover]

Sasha Trudeau knows all about working beneath the shadows, back-alley deals, and things that go bump in the night. She also knows that the world is unaware of the existence of the paranormal - and that the government would like to keep it that way.

As a highly trained Special Ops soldier, Sasha and her team are an elite group of individuals who are survivors of werewolf attacks, now trained to be loyal to only each other and their government. But when she returns from a solo mission, she finds that her team was mysteriously gone missing. Shocking government conspiracies, double-dealing vampires, and a host of stunning revelations about who - and what - she really is are only just the beginning...

Review:

I'm such a fan of L.A. Banks and her Vampire Huntress books! With the final book, The Thirteenth having been released earlier this month. So I was super excited to hear that she was starting a new series - about werewolves, yay! Bad Blood was published last year so just bear with me since I'm a little on the slow side of getting my hands on books I want to read.

Sasha Trudeau (I'm so curious as to how correctly pronounce her last name) and her teammates have a unique bond that holds them together and keeps them loyal to each other and the government they work for; they are all survivors of werewolf attacks. As long as they take the medicine provided by Dr. Xavier Holland they will be safe from turning, or so they thought. When Sasha is sent on a solo mission in Korea she briefly worries about being separated from her team but follows through with the orders without question. The rest of her team is sent on a separate mission that results in a terrible tragedy and few survivors. Government secrets and betrayals weigh heavily on Sasha and the dwindling number of her team as they find out who they really are and how they came to be.

I love the characters. It was great getting to know Sasha and getting introduced to Max Hunter was fun. Silver Hawk, Max's grandfather was also a strong character that provides a lot of background information on the Shadow wolves. And the mysterious Shogun was an interesting character. Something I really loved about the book and continue to love about L.A. Banks' writing is the earth-shattering attraction and passion of her couples. Max and Sasha have such a strong connection that I instantly became jealous. But I must add that the two don't get along all the time. But no matter how often they bicker and argue they are continually pulled to each other with such a great force.

I had a really hard time visualizing the "shadow-jumping" that the couple does along with all other Shadow wolves. Basically they can disappear in whatever casts shadows both in daylight and at night. And in one scene Max and Sasha are shadow jumping very quickly through the forest and onto the highway. I just didn't really grasp the concept well.

I have to admit I was terribly confused while reading the book. While the concepts were original and exciting, I felt that most of the storytelling and information was rushed through too quickly. Pretty much every paranormal anomaly exists in this book and they were tossed into it very haphazardly; from dragons and psychics to vampires and fae entities, with a number of different councils that governed all that is paranormal. It didn't sit well with me. And it wasn't until the very end of the book (and with a visit to the book's website) that I sort of understood the differences between a Shadow wolf, a werewolf, and a demon-infected werewolf. I still don't have a firm grip on it yet. But the second book is helping.

The characters really made me enjoy the book enough to overlook the (way too) fast paced action scenes and the back story that was sort of jammed together. I'd say give this book a try, maybe by borrowing at the library. Visit the book's website here for some reference while reading and it will really help. I know that's a lot of trouble to go through for a paranormal romance but I think this series has potential to become a fan favorite.