Sweet Legacy by Tera Lynn Childs

Series: Medusa Girls (bk. 3)

Genera: Paranormal Romance/Urban Fantasy

Subjects: supernatural, Greek Mythology, gods and goddesses, mythology, magic, gorgons, love, monsters, San Francisco, California, sisters

Age/Grade Level: Teen

Length: 376 pgs.

HC/PB: Hardcover

List Price: $17.99

Publisher: HaperTeen: Katherine Tegen

Summary/ product description: “The stunning conclusion of Tera Lynn Childs's Greek mythology–based Sweet Venom trilogy is perfect for teen fans of Rick Riordan's Percy Jackson series.

The girls cannot hesitate as they seek the location of the lost door between the realms, even as monsters and the gods of Olympus descend on San Francisco in battle-ready droves.

Greer must use her second sight to step up and prevent anything from stopping her sisters' mission, even though a god is playing with her mind. Grace wants to trust her adopted brother, Thane; but will his secret put the girls in even more danger? And Gretchen has trained her sisters to stop the monsters, but her role as a huntress comes with more responsibility than she ever imagined. What will the girls' immortal legacy be? Three teenage descendants of Medusa must unite to restore balance to the world in this action-packed series with plenty of romance.”

My Review: Final books are always hard to read, and even harder to review. Especially when they’re in one of your favorite series. I love the Medusa Girls series. They’re like a cross between Charmed (the TV show) and the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series. Three triplet sisters, living in San Francisco, battling monsters and gods of myth, and part of a prophecy. It was awesome from start to finish.

The character voices are all very distinct and well developed. They all grow in their own way. I’d say that Greer changed the most. She started out a prim and preppy girl so focused on her social life. She becomes loyal and brave, and accepts her destiny. She also had a romance start with Grace foster brother, which was totally awesome.

 Gretchen also changed. She was so closed and angry and hated monsters in the beginning. She realized not all the monsters of the abyss are bad. She befriended Sillus, a talking monkey-like creature. She also started to fall in love with Nick. Grace became more brave and less shy. She’s probably the character I relate to the most. I’m not a computer genius (but I use computers a lot), I just have her kind of personality. Shy and geeky. Her relationship with Milo developed.

The three guys are also very different. We never get their perspectives. I hope we get a novella of either Thane or Nick. Nick is very charming. Thane is an introvert and a bit secretive. Milo’s an athlete and a normal guy. I love all the characters. They are definitely lovable, and I wish they were real people, because I’d want to be friends.  I really wish Sweet Venom was an ABC or CW TV show because it’d be perfect (and not just a Charmed knock-off!).

Sweet legacy did have it’s surprises and wow moments. There were a few cliché things, but the story itself was so good that I didn’t care. This series is a real escape and just as good as Percy Jackson (but more girly). I got the feels for the romance. I really want to gush about it, but I don’t want to spoil everything. This finale is true to the nature of the series. It’s fun, romantic, and written in a very fast-paced, readable way. The ending was epic and satisfying, but left me feeling like there’s more to the story. This trilogy may be over, but who’s to say that there won’t be a novella or a spin-off? I’m missing the characters already.

Cover Art Review: It’s a nice photo, but not very unique, except for the title. But it fits well with the series.

Linked by Imogen Howson

Series: Linked (bk. 1)

Genera: Sci-Fi/Dystopian

Subjects: outer space, space travel, psychic ability, twins, sisters, love

Age/Grade Level: Teen

Length: 359 pgs.

HC/PB: Hardcover

List Price: $16.99

Publisher: Simon & Schuster

Summary/ product description: “Elissa used to have it all: looks, popularity, and a bright future. But for the last three years, she’s been struggling with terrifying visions, phantom pains, and mysterious bruises that appear out of nowhere.
Finally, she’s promised a cure: minor surgery to burn out the overactive area of her brain. But on the eve of the procedure, she discovers the shocking truth behind her hallucinations: she’s been seeing the world through another girl’s eyes.
Elissa follows her visions, and finds a battered, broken girl on the run. A girl—Lin—who looks exactly like Elissa, down to the matching bruises. The twin sister she never knew existed.
Now, Elissa and Lin are on the run from a government who will stop at nothing to reclaim Lin and protect the dangerous secrets she could expose—secrets that would shake the very foundation of their world.
Riveting, thought-provoking and utterly compelling, Linked will make you question what it really means to be human.”

My Review: I am so utterly disappointed in this book. It had such a great premise, wonderful world building, but the way it’s written is just so boring. The characters are boring. The dialogue is boring, and possibly British sounding. This has been such an awful let down. The cover is beautiful, but the book in it sucks.

But the fact that it’s set on a distant planet is very unique (to me). I’ve only read a few books set in outer space, but none on made up planets.This planet has a city with shelf apartments and slidewalks and so many cool unique things that are very different from the world todays. I pretty much pictured the city in the Total Recall remake (such cool CGI). It’s so highly futuristic, set 1000s of years in the future after terraforming a bunch of exo-planets. Yet, there’s some still familiar stuff, like clothing: hoodies.

This book could have been better if it was 1^st person perspective, switching between Elissa and Lin so we could see both points of view. Also if the characters had actual defining characteristic in their personality. Caden was the only well-defined character in my opinion. Elissa is uninteresting. The book could have been better from Lin’s POV.

The plot is kind of slow, despite being on the run from the government. I honestly felt like there was no plot. I basically skimmed the whole book, except for the world building stuff, even if it was info-dumping. I feel like Elissa’s kind of dumb, like she doesn’t think about what she’s saying, and when there’s a thought, it’s too long.

There’s no quirky fun dialogue or banter. Lissa and Lin get into arguments that are about stupid stuff. There’s a lot of obvious stuff. A lot of stuff that the author didn’t need. I was like: Way to state the obvious. I was pretty sick of reading it, but I had to stick with it.

The only other interesting thing was a twist at the end. We find out what Lin was supposed to be used for. The space travel stuff was okay too, but I’m not a Star Treck fan like my mom, so I felt like the author was just copying that stuff.

I recommend this book to fans of Star Treck/Starship Academy, Battlestar Galatica, Star Gate, Firefly, Across the Universe series, Glow (Amy Kathleen Ryan), Black Hole Sun, or space operas. But beware; you may get bored pretty quickly. I’m not even sure if I want to read the second book after such a dysto-fail.

Cover Art Review: I love this cover. The way the photo is cut up is really cool and the type being linked. The NK put together. But the cover is very deceiving. The book’s about a society on the distant planet and psychic twins, so where’s the space stuff? And the book wasn’t good, but the package was pretty.

 

 

The Originals by Cat Patrick

Series: Standalone

Genera: Contemporary Sci-fi, Romance

Subjects: Clones, high school, sisters, love, individuality, California

Age/Grade Level: Teen

Length: 296 pgs.

HC/PB: Hardcover

List Price: $18.00

Publisher: Little, Brown

Summary/ product description: “A riveting new story from Cat Patrick, author of Forgotten and Revived.
17-year-olds Lizzie, Ella, and Betsey Best grew up as identical triplets... until they discovered a shocking family secret. They're actually closer than sisters, they're clones. Hiding from a government agency that would expose them, the Best family appears to consist of a single mother with one daughter named Elizabeth. Lizzie, Ella, and Betsey take turns going to school, attending social engagements, and a group mindset has always been a de facto part of life...
Then Lizzie meets Sean Kelly, a guy who seems to see into her very soul. As their relationship develops, Lizzie realizes that she's not a carbon copy of her sisters; she's an individual with unique dreams and desires, and digging deeper into her background, Lizzie begins to dismantle the delicate balance of an unusual family that only science could have created.”

My Review: Almost as good as Revived and definitely better than Forgotten, The Originals was just as original as both. Cat Patrick makes yet another unique, contemporary, sci-fi-lite romance. I love sci-fi books with genetic engineering, and cloning is pretty interesting too. If you ever read Double Identity by Margaret Peterson Haddix, you’ll know that the main character (Bethany) in that book was a clone of a girl named Elizabeth. In this book there a three clones living together, basically triplets, but only one identity named Elizabeth. Elizabeth is a name with about a million nick-names. The clones are named Lizzie, Betsy and Ella (but if there were more, maybe Beth, Lissa, Liza, Bethany, Bethie, Izzy, could all work.).

Lizzie is the narrator. I was expecting alternating POV, but it’s only Lizzie. The three of them definitely have different personalities. Lizzie is funny and creative. Betsy felt like an older sister for some reason. She likes country music and singing. She nice and caring. Ella scowls a lot apparently. She’s very type-A, overachiever. They each are out for a quarter of the day, taking only some of the classes and going home to switch with each other. The somehow manage to make it through the day without anyone noticing a change of personality. Until Lizzie meets Sean. Dating’s hard when you sisters have to share your identity. 

Sean is you average teenage hottie. He’s funny, smart and basically awesome. He’s also trustworthy and caring. I’m glad that Cat Patrick makes realistic love interests. And no insta-love or love triangles. (Can’t count as a love triangle if Ella likes David and Lizzie like Sean, but Ella and Lizzie have to both be Elizabeth.)

This book didn’t have the best plot in the world. It was lacking action and slow at times. But it had a lot of romance and drama. I loved the funny, romantic scenes between Lizzie and Sean. Like dancing in the bathroom. Sean’s such a sweet guy. I loved that the character made you care about them. They were well developed and distinct. There was a theme of individuality and what it means to be unique and not just a carbon copy. It was a good book. Short and sweet.

I recommend this book if you like high school, romance and sci-fi together. If you like books about cloning. If you enjoyed Double Identity, or Shadow Girl (Jennifer Archer). If you liked any other Cat Patrick books, this is a must-read. I loved Revived.

Cover Art Review: Very cool broken glass image with the three sisters/clones on the cover. This cover is perfect for this book.

Impostor by Jill Hathaway

Series: Slide (bk. 2)

Genera: Murder Mystery/Paranormal Romance

Subjects: Supernatural, psychic ability, narcolepsy, murder, sisters, secrets, Iowa

Age/Grade Level: Teen

Length: 260 pgs.

HC/PB: Hardcover

List Price: $17.99

Publisher: HarperTeen: Balzer & Bray

Summary/ product description: “What if a killer took control of you?
Vee Bell’s gift (or curse) of “sliding”—slipping into the mind of another person and experiencing life, briefly, through his or her eyes—has been somewhat under control since she unwillingly witnessed the horrific deaths of her classmates six months ago.
But just as things are getting back to normal, Vee has a very bizarre experience: she loses consciousness and finds herself in a deserted area, at the edge of a cliff, with the broken body of the boy who took advantage of her on the rocks below.
As Vee finds herself in stranger and stranger situations with no memory of getting there, she begins to suspect that someone she knows has the ability to slide—and that this “slider” is using Vee to exact revenge on his or her enemies.”

My Rating: êêêê1/4

My Review: I only finished Slide the day before and it took me way less time to read Impostor. I liked it even better than Slide. It kept on turning the pages, not stopping. I’m really getting into this series. Wonder if there will be a 3^rd book. It seems like each book is complete in itself. There are no cliffhangers. Everything wraps up perfectly. I still like the characters.

Vee is a very likable and believable heroine. She has her flaws. What she had to go through in this book is terrible. She tried to get her revenge on Scott, but she didn’t mean to hurt him. She slid into him and someone one else was in her body and she doesn’t know what happened. And then her long lost aunt showing up was pretty suspicious. She suspected that her aunt could slide and was sliding into her.

Vee and Rollins are finally starting a relationship beyond friendship, and there this girl Anna that’s getting in the way. Vee become a bit jealous, but it’s clear that Rollins love Vee. I really like them together.

This book was entertaining and thrilling. It has an even bigger mystery and huge secret behind it. I never ever would have guessed what was going to happen. The author definitely tricked us into thinking we knew she the killer was. There’s a huge twist near the end when we find out who’s been sliding into Vee, and another big twist about who the killer is.

I recommend this series to people who enjoyed The Body Finder series by Kimberly Derting and the Clarity series by Kim Harrington. Maybe Pretty Little Liars too.

Cover Art Review: Not as good as Slide’s cover. Pink like Vee’s hair was in Slide, but not metallic sadly. I like the color but not the girl photo.

 

~Haley G

Slide by Jill Hathaway

Series: Slide (bk. 1)

Genera: Murder Mystery/Paranormal Romance

Subjects: Supernatural, psychic ability, narcolepsy, murder, sisters, secrets, Iowa

Age/Grade Level: Teen

Length: 250 pgs.

HC/PB: Hardcover

List Price: $17.99

Publisher: HarperTeen: Balzer & Bray

Summary/ product description: “Vee Bell is certain of one irrefutable truth--her sister's friend Sophie didn't kill herself. She was murdered.
Vee knows this because she was there. Everyone believes Vee is narcoleptic, but she doesn't actually fall asleep during these episodes: When she passes out, she slides into somebody else's mind and experiences the world through that person's eyes. She's slid into her sister as she cheated on a math test, into a teacher sneaking a drink before class. She learned the worst about a supposed "friend" when she slid into her during a school dance. But nothing could have prepared Vee for what happens one October night when she slides into the mind of someone holding a bloody knife, standing over Sophie's slashed body.
Vee desperately wishes she could share her secret, but who would believe her? It sounds so crazy that she can't bring herself to tell her best friend, Rollins, let alone the police. Even if she could confide in Rollins, he has been acting distant lately, especially now that she's been spending more time with Zane.
Enmeshed in a terrifying web of secrets, lies, and danger and with no one to turn to, Vee must find a way to unmask the killer before he or she strikes again.”

My Rating: êêêê

My Review: After waiting over a year to read this, I feel bad I didn’t read it sooner. It was very good. It reminded me of the Body Finder in a way, even though it’s completely different in the way it was written. But since they’re both about a girl with a unique ability trying to solve a murder, they are similar. So if you loved the Body Finder, you’ll like this.

Vee is very unique. She has pink hair, used to be a cheerleader and friends with the popular crowd. Vee likes astronomy. She has a younger sister, Mattie, who’s a cheerleader. Her dad is a surgeon who operates on kids. Her mom died of cancer. And also, she has narcolepsy, but when she falls asleep, she tends to slide into the head of the people who imprinted on objects she’s touching at the time.

So when Sophie is murdered, and she’s the only one who knows it because she slid into the killer, she tries to find out who the killer is. She has her suspects: a teacher, a football player named Scotch and a cheerleader who may have been jealous. There’s a huge mystery behind who the killer is, and I kept on guessing.

There’s the best guy-friend, Rollins, who Vee has been friends with for over a year. He’s cool even if he smoke pot sometimes, but he’s not a super druggie, just a deep thinker who likes music and makes a zine about school issues. And then there’s the love interest, Zane. He seems like an awesome, hot guy in the beginning. He is the new guy and he didn’t know Sophie. He couldn’t possibly be a suspect. Or could he? I went back to the House at The End of the Street idea, except in reverse (because Vee wasn’t the one who just moved in, Zane was).

This book wasn’t horror, though. It was mystery. It wasn’t gory or super scary. It was thrilling toward the end. I enjoyed it all the way through. The high school drama may have been cliché, but the plot wasn’t. It was unique and surprising.

Cover Art Review: I loved this cover since the moment I set eyes on it. It’s metallic, so even better. It’s purple, which is awesome. I love the colors and the use of light. It seems very blurred or posturized. And I love the title treatment.

 

~Haley G

Sweet Shadows by Tera Lynn Childs

Series: Medusa Girls (bk. 2)

Genera: Paranormal Romance

Subjects: Greek mythology, Medusa, sisters, triplets, magic, supernatural, San Francisco, monsters, destiny

Age/Grade Level: Teen

Length: 328 pgs.

HC/PB: Hardcover

List Price: $17.99

Publisher: HarperTeen: Katherine Teagan

Summary/ product description: “Teen triplets Gretchen, Grace, and Greer, descendants of Medusa, continue to battle the monsters who walk the streets of San Francisco, unseen by humans, but realize they must enter the abyss if they are to protect their loved ones--and their world.

Gretchen may have known she was a descendant of Medusa long before her sisters—after all, she's spent her life fighting the monsters that escape the abyss—but that doesn't mean it will be easy to teach the other girls the ropes. Can she rely on Grace and Greer, or even trust herself to keep them safe? Greer has pressing social commitments on her plate and precious little time to train in her newfound powers. But that wretched second sight won't leave her alone, and her fabled heritage seems to be creeping into her fashionable life.

Grace has worries closer to home—like why her brother, Thane, has disappeared. He's hiding something. Could it possibly be related to the secret heritage the triplets share?

With the warring factions among the gods of Olympus coming for them, the creatures of the abyss pushing into their world, and the boys in their lives keeping secrets at every turn, the three girls must figure out where their fate will take them and how to embrace the shadows of their legacy.”

My Rating: êêêêê

My Review: I only read Sweet Venom a little over a month ago and really enjoyed it. Reading the second book I have even more to enjoy. Some of my predictions from the first book came true in the sequel. And I still think that this series is very similar to Charmed, the TV show (because of 3 sisters with powers and it’s set in San Francisco). I wanna go comparing each sister to a Charmed one. It bet the author loves Charmed. But it’s also very different because it’s Greek Mythology, not witches. My favorite of the sisters in this series is Grace. She’s the most relatable personality wise, but I’m not an eco-geek computer genius, just an art geek. And now Greer is learning to deal with all this monster stuff. She still wants to do her normal stuff. She changes a lot from the first book. I like how Nick and Gretchen are. They’re relationship is crazy funny. She always threatens him. She starts to trust him, though.

And, not to spoil anything, it was interesting what kind of creatures Gretchen found in the abyss. You’ll have to read to see it, but now she sees the reason why the door should be unsealed.  There’s 3 sides to this war, and 2 want the sisters dead. I really like how the plot’s coming along. There are still some questions not answered, so I will be eagerly anticipating Sweet Legacy. Like, who is Thane? (Is he a demi-god or something?)

If you liked the Charmed show, Percy Jackson series, or just love funny mythology stories in general, that I recommend this series. It’s both girly and tough at the same time. There’s humor, action, romance and monsters! Kick-butt triplet heroines with magic powers. Sounds awesome, right? It is. Also check out Tera Lynn Child other series: Oh.My.Gods. and Forgive My Fins.

Cover Art Review: Similar to the first, no braid, girl facing forward. Looks like Greer, while the first book looked like Gretchen. Unless it’s Grace. I still like the title type face. I wish the cover was matte/dull and not glossy and flat. The inside cover is embossed with the title.

 

~Haley G

Fathomless by Jackson Pearce

Series: Fairytale Retellings (bk. 3)

Genera: Paranormal Romance/Fantasy

Subjects: Mermaids, fairy tales, supernatural, love, magic, sisters

Age/Grade Level: Teen

Length: 291 pgs.

HC/PB: Hardcover

List Price: $17.99

Publisher: Little, Brown

Summary/ product description: “Celia Reynolds is the youngest in a set of triplets and the one with the least valuable power. Anne can see the future, and Jane can see the present, but all Celia can see is the past. And the past seems so insignificant -- until Celia meets Lo.
Lo doesn't know who she is. Or who she was. Once a human, she is now almost entirely a creature of the sea -- a nymph, an ocean girl, a mermaid -- all terms too pretty for the soulless monster she knows she's becoming. Lo clings to shreds of her former self, fighting to remember her past, even as she's tempted to embrace her dark immortality.
When a handsome boy named Jude falls off a pier and into the ocean, Celia and Lo work together to rescue him from the waves. The two form a friendship, but soon they find themselves competing for Jude's affection. Lo wants more than that, though. According to the ocean girls, there's only one way for Lo to earn back her humanity. She must persuade a mortal to love her . . . and steal his soul.”

My Rating: êêêê

My Review: As with all the books in this series, to are some connections between characters. Celia is one of the Reynolds. The youngest one. Lo is related to a character in the last book, Sweetly. You can guess who for yourself. And there are werewolves again, eventually, but the main focus is the ocean girls. Celia and her triplet sisters all have special powers, and it reminds me of the characters from Tera Lynn Childs’ book Sweet Venom. I really liked Celia and Jude. Jude is a musician and he’s pretty funny and cute. And Lo remind of Luce from Lost Voices by Sarah Porter. But these girl aren’t mermaids with tails. It’s not even clear why they’re underwater. It’s pretty mysterious. The plot is mainly about Celia using her past reading powers to help Lo remember who she was before. The book switched between their perspectives, and I find Celia’s perspective easier to read. Lo’s underwater world is very strange. She talks about “becoming angels” and that she would have kill a boy who falls in love with her to get her soul back. The story is pretty interesting over all, but I’ve having a hard time reviewing it. I liked Jackson’s other books. She’s really good a write retellings that are very different from the actually fairytale. This is no ordinary mermaid tale, so I do recommend it to those looking for something unique.

Cover Art Review: I love this cover! So shiny and metallic. I like the use of an object rather than a model. And the title is nicely customized on Illustrator (but could be refined even more). The author’s name is nicely done. I love the light effects that make it look under water. The pendant makes the bottom of the mermaid’s tail fin look like angel wings.

 

~Haley G

Texas Gothic by Rosemary Clement Moore

Genera: Paranormal Romance

Subjects: Witches, ghosts, farm life, ranches, sisters, love, magic, psychic ability, Texas

Length: 404 pgs.

HC/PB: Hardcover

Summary/ product description: “Amy Goodnight's family are far from normal. She comes from a long line of witches, and grew up surrounded by benevolent spirits and kitchen spells. All fairly harmless, but Amy can't wait to get to college and escape the "family business".

But things take a darker turn when she and her sister Phin spend the summer looking after Aunt Hyacinth's ranch. Amy is visited by a midnight specter who is clearly trying to send her a message. It seems that the discovery of an old grave on a neighbor’s land has been the catalyst for an apparent ghost uprising.

Aided by local friends and Ben, the handsome cowboy who just can't take his eyes off Amy, the sisters investigate. And they soon find that there's something strange and dangerous going on, deep in the heart of Texas…”

My Rating: ê ê ê ê

My Review: I’m so happy I found out about this book! I would have missed out on such an awesome story. This was the most creative witch & ghost story I’ve ever read. It’s mixed with western “gothic” and forensic anthropology like on Bones. I love the mix of magic and science. Amy’s sister Phin is a total paranormal science geek and genius. Talk about awesome supporting characters.

And there’s Ben, Mr. McCrankypants who really like Amy, but shows it by tensing her in really rude ways. If his teasing makes you furious, then it must be love, right? (Well, only if he’s also hot. My brother’s friend make’s me furious, but he’s a short, ugly, rude kid with mental issues)

The story had a great voice. Amy’s narration and character where perfect for the story, with southern/Texan sayings and all. I’m gonna miss it. I hope there’s a sequel, though I doubt there will be one because the story seems pretty wrapped up. I just feel like there wasn’t enough romance between Amy and Ben. Not enough kiss scenes. The second book would have to make up for that. And Ben will have to be less of a skeptic and more of a believer in magic. I recommend this book if you love Paranormal YA (and detective stories, and mystery).


Cover Art Review: Not the most creative cover, but it does it’s job. The font the title’s in is very gothic looking. It’s a creep cool cover and very YA.

~Haley G