The Elite by Kiera Cass
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Avg rating: 4.01

Goodreads Summary:
The Selection began with thirty-five girls. Now, with the group narrowed down to the Elite, the competition to win Prince Maxon's heart is fiercer than ever--and America is still struggling to decide where her own heart truly lies. Is it with Maxon, who could make her life a fairy tale? Or with her first love, Aspen, who she always thought was the one?

America is desperate for more time. But the rest of the Elite know exactly what they want--and America's chance to choose is about to slip away.

Actual Rating: 5.0

I'm really bad at writing reviews because by the time I finish the book I forget about all the amazing parts in it. My review could either look like "aldskfhalksdhflas OMG SO GOOD!" or it could look like a buncha quotes of my fave parts.. So I choose that one:

"That was so typical of him, always trying to be my hero" (oh Aspen)

"It's the most wonderful and terrible thing that can ever happen to you. You know that you've found something amazing, and you want to hold on to it forever; and every second after you have it, you fear the moment you might lose it" (Maid, Lucy, on Love)

"I've been looking for a suitable alternative, but the truth is... there's only you" (Maxon on America)

"How did I, America Singer- a Five, a nobody- fall for Maxon Schreave- a One, THE One?" (Kiera Cass being sneaky and the first insight into the third book titled The One)

"You've always been beautiful; you've always been talented. And now I know that your moral compass is perfectly aligned, that you see clearly when things are wrong, and you do everything you can to stop it" (America's father.. This sums up everything I feel about America. I am so proud of who she has become and I couldn't be more attached to a main character as I am to her)

"Aspen's generosity was harder to see because it wasn't as grand as Maxon's, but the heart behind what he gave was so much bigger"

Okay that's all for now... But I can't forget Marlee.. I love Marlee so much and I KNEW there was something going on with someone else in the palace for a long time and I'm so sad about the consequences they had to endure BUT! The compassion Maxon showed them was the sweetest thing. I can't even express how much TEAM MAXON I am.

I love America and I love Maxon and I can't wait for them to be together.. Sorry Aspen.

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City of Bones by Cassandra Clare
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Avg rating: 4.12

Goodreads Summary:

When fifteen-year-old Clary Fray heads out to the Pandemonium Club in New York City, she hardly expects to witness a murder― much less a murder committed by three teenagers covered with strange tattoos and brandishing bizarre weapons. Then the body disappears into thin air. It's hard to call the police when the murderers are invisible to everyone else and when there is nothing―not even a smear of blood―to show that a boy has died. Or was he a boy?

This is Clary's first meeting with the Shadowhunters, warriors dedicated to ridding the earth of demons. It's also her first encounter with Jace, a Shadowhunter who looks a little like an angel and acts a lot like a jerk. Within twenty-four hours Clary is pulled into Jace's world with a vengeance, when her mother disappears and Clary herself is attacked by a demon. But why would demons be interested in ordinary mundanes like Clary and her mother? And how did Clary suddenly get the Sight? The Shadowhunters would like to know... 

Exotic and gritty, exhilarating and utterly gripping, Cassandra Clare's ferociously entertaining fantasy takes readers on a wild ride that they will never want to end. 

Actual Rating: 4.8

Seriously this is not my kind of book... I don't like mythical creatures and demons and angels and stuff.

BUT!!!

I was convinced to read it by some friends who know what kinda books I DO like and they swore I would like this one too. And they were right. As hard as it is for me to get my imagination wrapped around some of the creatures in this book all the other aspects grabbed me and pulled me right in.

I was confused many times throughout this novel. I feel like the author could have done a better job giving us information about this foreign world throughout the book. I had to resort to twitter a few times to ask wait... who is this? what do these do? But my faithful followers helped me out and I was able to get through it..

**SPOILER**

I must say this tho.....

I don't believe Valentine AT ALL. Jace is NOT Jonathon and Jace & Clary are not related.. And that sexy awkward couple with all that pent up sexual frustration BETTER end up together. And I'd like a sex scene maybe? K thanks ;)

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Forbidden by Syrie James
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Avg rating: 3.88

Goodreads Summary:
She should not exist.

He should not love her.

Claire Brennan has been attending Emerson Academy for two years now (the longest she and her mom have remained anywhere) and she’s desperate to stay put for the rest of high school. So there’s no way she’s going to tell her mom about the psychic visions she’s been having or the creepy warnings that she’s in danger.

Alec MacKenzie is fed up with his duties to watch and, when necessary, eliminate the descendants of his angelic forefathers. He chose Emerson as the ideal hiding place where he could be normal for once. He hadn’t factored Claire into his plans. . . .

Their love is forbidden, going against everything Alec has been taught to believe. But when the reason behind Claire’s unusual powers is revealed and the threat to her life becomes clear, how far will Alec go to protect her?

Actual Rating: 3.8

***SPOILER***

I liked this book however it was very.... hmm what's the word... Twilighty.

Girl meets boy
Boy is "immortal"
They fall in love which is "Forbidden"
Boy leaves girl for her "saftey"
Girl starts to fall for someone else
Boy comes back to save girl
Girl saves boy by figuring out how to push her power onto boy

Like come on... Who doesn't see the similarities?

And I thought this book was a series... I had no idea it was just gonna end like that.

So by now you're probably wondering why I gave it 4 stars.. well lets just say it's a good thing I love Twilight

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Everbound by Brodi Ashton
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Avg rating: 4.11

Goodreads Summary:
Nikki Beckett could only watch as her boyfriend, Jack, sacrificed himself to save her, taking her place in the Tunnels of the Everneath for eternity — a debt that should’ve been hers. She’s living a borrowed life, and she doesn’t know what to do with the guilt. And every night Jack appears in her dreams, lost and confused and wasting away.

Desperate for answers, Nikki turns to Cole, the immortal bad boy who wants to make her his queen — and the one person least likely to help. But his heart has been touched by everything about Nikki, and he agrees to assist her in the only way he can: by taking her to the Everneath himself.

Nikki and Cole descend into the Everneath, only to discover that their journey will be more difficult than they’d anticipated — and more deadly. But Nikki vows to stop at nothing to save Jack — even if it means making an incredible sacrifice of her own.

In this enthralling sequel to Everneath, Brodi Ashton tests the bonds of destiny and explores the lengths we’ll go to for the ones we love.

Actual Rating: 5.0

Wow... Just wow... First of all I'm 100% team Cole

It's been a long time since I've been this completely engrossed in a book. We're talking, reading at red lights in my car good.

This book (and the first one) are SO out of my normal range of genres but boy am I glad I didn't let that stop me from reading. Everything about this book is amazing. The story, the characters, the IMAGINATION.

Brodi Ashton is a wonderful author and I am crossing my fingers for a movie deal on this book. Although the movie would of never live up to the greatness of the book, I'd still be interested in watching it play out.

I'll continue fan girl-ing over this book until the series is complete... And then I won't know what to do with myself. Oh the joys of reading

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Fallout by Ellen Hopkins
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Avg rating: 4.30

Goodreads Summary:
The riveting final chapter of the Crank trilogy, from #1 New York Times bestselling author Ellen Hopkins.

Hunter, Autumn, and Summer--three of Kristina Snow's five children--live in different homes, with different guardians and different last names. They share only a predisposition for addiction and a host of troubled feelings toward the mother who barely knows them, a mother who has been riding with the monster, crank, for twenty years.

As each teen searches for real love and true family, they find themselves pulled toward the one person who links them together--Kristina, Bree, mother, addict. But it is in each other, and in themselves, that they find the trust, the courage, the hope to break the cycle.

Told in three voices and punctuated by news articles chronicling the family's story, Fallout is the stunning conclusion to the trilogy begun by Crank and Glass, and a testament to the harsh reality that addiction is never just one person's problem.

Actual Rating: 5.0

WOW.... So good. I feel like a totally different person after reading this trilogy.. I fell in love with these characters in more ways than one. It was unlike any other book. By the end of it I felt like I was part of the family.

Fallout was my favorite book of the 3, written in the perspective of the children of Kristina, the addicted meth user.

I may not relate to the characters who have all lived through a quite dramatic upbringing but I didn't need to. The writing style never faltered. It was beautiful, poetic, and intense.

Ellen Hopkins is my new favorite author and I will be reading every one of her books. I highly highly recommend this book. It took me on an emotional roller coaster and when it was over I was quite sad.

I love books that make me feel feelings I don't normally feel in every day life... Go read it, be it, love it.

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Crank by Ellen Hopkins
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Avg rating: 4.15

Goodreads Summary:
In Crank, Ellen Hopkins chronicles the turbulent and often disturbing relationship between Kristina, a character based on her own daughter, and the "monster," the highly addictive drug crystal meth, or "crank." Kristina is introduced to the drug while visiting her largely absent and ne'er-do-well father. While under the influence of the monster, Kristina discovers her sexy alter-ego, Bree: "there is no perfect daughter, / no gifted high school junior, / no Kristina Georgia Snow. / There is only Bree." Bree will do all the things good girl Kristina won't, including attracting the attention of dangerous boys who can provide her with a steady flow of crank.

Actual Rating: 5.0

Such an eye opener! Life changing..

I grew up completely sheltered to the life style that evolves around drugs and drug addicts. My eyes were recently opened when two of my best friends slowly became strangers. I watched them turn from people I spent every waking moment with to people I didn't even WANT to know any more. I removed myself from their lives in fear of falling into the same trap they had. I knew I had too much to lose.

I resented them. I was hurt, broken, in need of a friend and they were too busy getting high, staying up for days, coloring nonsense pictures and having sex with random guys twice their age. But as the years past (2 years now) I began to open my eyes to the disease that is addiction. This book helped tons in that sense. Made me understand, a little. Made me think to myself "Oh.... It all makes sense."

At first I was a little weary of the writing style. Didn't understand why it was written the way it was.. lyrically, poetically, all over the page... But by the end of the book I was obsessed. So beautiful, so well written. So few words but such big meanings. I felt every wave of emotion while reading this book. I learned so much about so many different things. I'm thankful for the author for putting it all down on paper.

I will definitely be reading the next one.. And possibly other books about addiction. It helps me understand, helps me cope, helps soften my heart to those who have hurt me. Because I know it's not their intention... It's simply a result of the monster.

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Gone by Michael Grant
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Avg rating: 3.86

Goodreads Summary:
The first in New York Times bestselling author Michael Grant's breathtaking dystopian, sci-fi saga, Gone is a page-turning thriller that invokes the classic The Lord of the Flies along with the horror of Stephen King.

In the blink of an eye, everyone disappears. Gone. Except for the young.

There are teens, but not one single adult. Just as suddenly, there are no phones, no internet, no television. No way to get help. And no way to figure out what's happened.

Hunger threatens. Bullies rule. A sinister creature lurks. Animals are mutating. And the teens themselves are changing, developing new talents—unimaginable, dangerous, deadly powers—that grow stronger by the day. It's a terrifying new world. Sides are being chosen, a fight is shaping up. Townies against rich kids. Bullies against the weak. Powerful against powerless. And time is running out: On your birthday, you disappear just like everyone else...

Michael Grant's Gone as been praised for its compelling storytelling, multidimensional characters, and multiple points of view.

Supports the Common Core State Standards

Actual Rating: 3.2

I had high hopes for this book.. It started out good, really pulled me in. Then it slowed down a lot.. Spent a lot of time going into detail on unnecessary items, in my opinion.

There's something weird about the writing style that I can't quite put my finger on. I like how the author switches story perspectives multiple times in each chapter. And I liked how it counts down the hours until the "poof" and then the book ends..

To be honest I didn't end this book dying to read book two so that's a definite downfall. In a series of 3 (or is it 4?) books, I think there has to be a lot of unanswered questions to ensure the desire to read on and figure out the answer to these questions. But in this book, a lot of the questions are answered in the last chapter and then it's like "ughhh do I really want to read a new one with all these 14 year-olds and under kids as characters?"

So anyways... I doubt I'll continue on with this series, but the book is still worthy of 3 stars.

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