Earthrise by Aprilynne Pike

Publication Date: Sept 1, 2015

Series: Earthbound (bk. 3)

Genera(s): Paranormal Romance

Subjects: mystery, supernatural, abilities, love, mythology, gods and goddesses, past lives, memory

Setting: Phoenix, AZ, and various places around the world

POV/Tense: 1st person POV, present tense: Tavia Michaels

Age/Grade Level: Teen

Length: 356 pgs.

HC/PB: Paperback (On Amazon)/E-Book

List Price: $9.99/$5.99

Publisher: Imaginary Properties LLC (NOT Penguin: Razorbill)

Summary/ product description: “Even with the power to create and destroy at will, Tavia Michaels couldn't save her parents. She couldn't save the boy she's loved for countless lifetimes. She barely managed to save herself from the treachery of supposed friends. So how can she save the world from a deadly plague--and the immortals spreading it? As the events of EARTHBOUND and EARTHQUAKE reach their thrilling conclusion, no one is safe--Tavia least of all!”

My Review:  As the final book of the Earthbound Trilogy, Earthrise is an awesome, romantic finish. I couldn’t have asked for a better ending to this series. Now I’m just sad it’s over. I love Aprilynne Pike’s books, though I’ve only read this series and the Wings series. She write really interesting, compelling characters. She does a great job of creating a world or society within the real world.

To recap, In Earthbound, Tavia suddenly has the ability to create things out of nothing, but they only last temporarily. She is living with an aunt and uncle after her parents died in a plane crash. Tavia was injured in the plane crash too and had to under go brain surgery. Some people are out to kill her and a guy named Benson, who works at the local library, helps her. She’s seeing this blond guy, which turns out to be Quinn, her lover in a past life. At the end of the book she meets Quinn’s current incarnation, Logan. She also finds out she’s a goddess, an earthmaker. In Earthquake Tavia tries to convince Logan of what he is, and then his house explodes and they are both captured by the Rediciates and taken to their facility. Logan later receives his memories when they are taken to the Curatoria facility in the Death Valley area. Their powers resurge, but Tavia still only has memories from her past lives as Rebecca and as Sonya. The Rediciata creates a virus that can not only kill people, but Earthbounds too, permanently.

At the beginning of Earthrise, Tavia’s mission to create and distribute vaccines to the world and involves help from a doctor and her friends. She travels to different country, trying to avoid the Reduciata Earthbounds Daniel and Mariana. Tavia exhausts herself and has to create high-caloric foods just to keep her energized enough to create vaccines. Some Earthbounds are dying and catastrophes are occurring. The Rediciata gets of the their tale and tries to discredit the vaccine. Bad stuff happens, but the ending wrap ups nicely.

Also, Tavia is back with Benson. I love Benson. Logan is okay, but Benson is just a regular guy who’s father is an Earthbound and they got caught up in everything. Benson really cares for Tavia. He’s smart, funny and sweet. Logan seems a bit arrogant in believing that Tavia has to love him. They’ve had so many lives together, many of which Tavia’s unable to remember. I think she and Benson deserve a chance to be together for their life.

I recommend this series to fans of: Fallen by Lauren Kate, The Immortal series by Alyson Noel, Halo by Alexandra Adornetto, Starcrossed by Josephine Angelini, any books with mythology, gods and goddesses, angels, demon, magic or abilities. Paranormal Romance in general. Try this book. Also if you liked any Aprilynne Pike books, such as Wings, Spells, Illusions, Destined, Life After Theft or Sleep No More, read Earthbound.

Cover Art Review: Saundra Mitchell designed this cover? The author of the Vespertine? Really? Why wouldn’t Penguin publish this final book?

Ember & Ashes by T. M. Goeglein

Series: Cold Fury (bk. 3)

Genera: Action-Adventure Thriller/Sci-fi

Subjects: mafia/mob, mystery, missing persons, abilities

Setting: Chicago, Illinois

POV/Tense: 1^st person POV, past tense: Sara Jane Rispoli

Age/Grade Level: Teen 12+

Length: 321 pgs.

HC/PB: Hardcover

List Price: $17.99

Publisher: Penguin: Putnam

Summary/ product description: “Sara Jane Rispoli is on the wrong side of the Russian mob, but closer to finding her family than ever. And she's willing to do whatever it takes to finally end this terrible journey even if the price is her own life.

The very cold fury that has seen her through the worst of her troubles is now killing her; she knows the cure, but she can't sacrifice the deadly electricity until she's rescued her family. But when she finally does rescue them, it's not the happy reunion she pictured. And the torment doesn't stop there, not even when she finally discovers Ultimate Power. Only destroying the Outfit completely can end this terrible nightmare.

Old enemies return to seek vengeance, double-crosses abound, and even more mysteries are uncovered as we rocket toward an end no one saw coming.”

My Review:  Flicker and Burn is the finale to the Cold Fury trilogy. This series is action packed and show cases the city I am closet to: Chicago. This series is unlike any I’ve ever read. It’s a crime thriller, but has a paranormal/sci-fi element.

Sara Jane has an ability called cold fury. She can use it see a person’s deepest fear and make them see it too when she looks in their eye. She can use it to make them do what she tells them (compulsion). She also has electricity in her body because of some enzyme and the gold in her eyes. She can shock people with it, but it also hurts her. The author denied this was paranormal when I asked him. So, I’ll say its sci-fi.

I love the setting so much because I live in Chicagoland. I like picturing places I’m familiar with. There’s a part in the book where Sara Jane and some student take a field trip up to the sky deck on the Sears Tower (or now the Willis Tower). 103 stories up. I’ve never been on any of the sky decks downtown, but I can imagine it’s amazing. The photos I’ve seen are amazing. Also, lots of tunnels, trains and driving on streets in the story. I’ve been on the Blue Line and the Red Line trains only. Going under ground to board a train is kind of scary. Definitely had an easy time picturing the setting.

The character are great of course. Sara Jane is like Maximum Ride and Katniss Everdeen, except in the contemporary world and with a strange power instead of wings. Sara Jane is a boxer, so she can kick butt. She’s very tough and somewhat serious, but she uses sarcasm. She’s friend with Dough, who’s gay and used to be fat, but lost weigh because of some drugged icecream in the previous book. He’s awesome and obsessed with movies. He’s got a little more serious, mostly because the drug withdrawal. He stupidly takes up smoking even though Sara Jane keep telling him how bad it is.

There’s so much action and mystery in the story. I love the mystery of this “ultimate power.” Sara Jane has a note book and some clue and they have theories to. It’s a surprise what it is. There’s so many crazy events and plot twists. This book is such a mind-blowing finale. I don’t think I could’ve asked for more. The ending is perfect. I waited a year to read this. Should have read it sooner. I read both the first 2 books as ACRs, and met the author at a Pre-Pub event. He’s cool. All three books are signed. If Cold Fury wasn’t offered as an ARC at Anderson’s Bookshop in Naperville, I doubt I would have ever discovered this great series. I’m so happy I did.

Cover Art Review: Fits the subject. Like the Chicago photos.

Burn by Sarah Fine and Walter Jury

Series: Scan (bk. 2, finale)

Genera(s): Sci-fi Thriller

Subjects: aliens, adventure, science, secret societies, conspiracies

Setting: New York and various other places

POV/Tense: 1st person POV, present tense: Tate Archer

Age/Grade Level: Teen

Length: 329 pgs.

HC/PB: Hardcover

List Price: $17.99

Publisher: Penguin: Putnam Children’s

Summary/ product description: “"Car chases, explosions and action galore—awesome."—Kirkus Reviews on Scan

At the cliffhanger ending of Scan, Tate loses the very thing he was fighting to protect, what his father had called the key to human survival. Tate doesn't have much time to worry about it because he needs to get away, to ensure he and Christina are safe. His father left him one last thing that can do just that—a safehouse, which turns out to be a clue to what's really threatening the planet. As Tate follows the clues his father left behind, he starts to uncover the truth, realizing he's up against an enemy he's only beginning to understand.

A riveting, fast-paced "we are not alone" adventure, Burn thrills to the very end.”

My Review:  Burn is the finale to what started in Scan. I didn’t know this was a duology, or a two-book series. I guess sequel-finale are getting more popular. Anyways, I enjoyed Scan so much, I was hoping for more than two books. At least the sequel was awesome and it properly wraps up the story.

Our hero, Tate Archer, is an awesome narrator, and his girlfriend Christina is kickass too. They remind me of Gray and Bree from the Taken trilogy by Erin Bowman or Alex and Darla from Ashfall or any of those awesome sci-fi YA couples. Not so heavy on the romance though. Tate has a ridiculous amount of skills. Like the kind of skills that a secret agent/spy might have. His father taught him multiple languages, martial arts, chemistry and war strategy. And he also went to normal high school too. He’s too busy running from the Core to protect his father’s device to deal with school now.

This series is action packed. It’s like twice as action packed as many of the sci-fi books I’ve read recently. Sometimes I get overwhelmed with the action and become lost and confused, but I can picture it okay. I love all the sci-fi elements of this series. I feel like going on a alien-related series YA kick. These aliens aren’t scary like the ones in the Alien movie though. These aliens are pretty much genetically identical to Humans and they call themselves H2. When they breed with a human, their offspring is H2. That’s why now 2/3 of the population is H2, though most are unaware of their existence. Tate’s father made a device using alien tech to detect the different species. Blue for human, red for H2. The scanner scan someone as orange, so do they now have a 3^rd species hiding under their noses?

So much happens in this book! Allies are made between prior enemies. Discoveries are made. I’d hate to spoil the ending, so I guess you should read the book. If you have now read scan, you should. I recommend this to fans of The 5^th Wave by Rick Yancey, Maximum Ride, Divergent and other sci-fi/action books. I met the authors last year. Did you know Walter Jury (that’s a pen name) is a movie producer who worked on Divergent? That’s awesome! I didn’t know that when I met him. Sarah Fine also wrote Of Metal Wishes, which I want to read.

Cover Art Review: I love these new covers! The illustration/photo is amazing.