Icons by Margaret Stohl

Release Date: Out now!

Publisher: Little Brown

Pages: 428pgs

The Story

Your heart beats only with their permission.

Everything changed on The Day. The day the windows shattered. The day the power stopped. The day Dol's family dropped dead. The day Earth lost a war it didn't know it was fighting.

Since then, Dol has lived a simple life in the countryside -- safe from the shadow of the Icon and its terrifying power. Hiding from the one truth she can't avoid.

She's different. She survived. Why?

When Dol and her best friend, Ro, are captured and taken to the Embassy, off the coast of the sprawling metropolis once known as the City of Angels, they find only more questions. While Ro and fellow hostage Tima rage against their captors, Dol finds herself drawn to Lucas, the Ambassador's privileged son. But the four teens are more alike than they might think, and the timing of their meeting isn't a coincidence. It's a conspiracy.

Within the Icon's reach, Dol, Ro, Tima, and Lucas discover that their uncontrollable emotions -- which they've always thought to be their greatest weaknesses -- may actually be their greatest strengths.

The Review

After already being a fan of the Beautiful Creatures series, it was a nice change to see how Margaret Stohl writes for herself and how she will branch out into her own story rather than being known as a co-author of a book series. For her own debut of sorts, ICONS, I thought it was the type of read where I wasn't sure what to expect from it at first since the genre is quite a popular one, but in the end I'm really glad that I decided to read it anyway despite the average reviews it's been receiving lately because this book actually surprised me in many ways and I really enjoyed it. Loved it even.

Now from what I've just read of the book, the author is such a splendid storyteller and knows how to take on her own original ideas and make them interesting. Or rather make them pop out to the reader. While Stohl's world-building wasn't necessarily her strongest suit as I still had so many questions about the origins of the 'aliens' that have invaded the Earth (because from what I understand of the series it had many things to do with aliens and yet we saw none at all which was a shame really considering I love aliens and all) but what made this story flow, exciting and fast-paced was the characters that we were soon introduced to. They, in my opinion, made the story for what it is and I loved them all in their own special way. Especially Dol, Ro and Lucas. Those three were one of the most interesting characters in the entire book and I can't wait to see how they will develop in the future books of the series.

Overall, ICONS is a wonderful start to a YA series and for what it's worth I think it was a great sci-fi book with plenty to love about it so I'm looking forward to the sequel now!

The Rating

4/5 stars

Beautiful Redemption by Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl

Release Date: Out now!

Publisher: Razorbill

Pages: 352pgs

The Story

Is death the end . . . or only the beginning?

Ethan Wate always dreamed of leaving the stifling Southern town of Gatlin.

But he never dreamt that finding love with Lena Duchannes would drive him away. Lena is a Caster girl whose supernatural powers unveiled a secretive and cursed side of Gatlin, so powerful it forced him to make a terrible sacrifice.

Now Ethan must find a way to return to Lena - and Gatlin - as she vows to do whatever it takes to get him back. Even if it means trusting old enemies or risking their loved ones' lives.

Can Ethan and Lena rewrite their fate and their spellbinding love story in this stunning finale to the Beautiful Creatures series?

The Review

Having been with the Beautiful Creatures series from the very beginning, like with all beloved book series it's sad to see yet another one come to an end. But moving past that sad matter, I was still so excited to read the final installment of this series, especially since what happened in the previous book, Beautiful Chaos, and to Ethan Wate himself. While I will admit the second and third installments didn't quite charm me as much as the first book did in a second, but with that said, BEAUTIFUL REDEMPTION still manages to deliver a great ending to the series and was the kind of book you just HAD to keep reading in order to find out more about some of your favourite characters!

Split into three major sections, BEAUTIFUL REDEMPTION is mostly told through Ethan's point of view but the most exciting part of the second section of the book was finally getting to see inside Lena's head - that's right folks, we finally get to read the world through Lena's eyes! Yes! Even when I was a little surprised by Lena's perspective being added (okay I was really surprised) and while I was a little worried about it as well since I was so immersed with Ethan's character alone that I couldn't possibly read from another's persons head, but I had actually loved Lena's perspective and it made this book stronger in a way, especially when you consider that she used to be my favourite girl character in the series (sorry Lena, the favourite character Liv kind of stole your place in that department), so it was pretty awesome to read about. But all in all, Ethan and Lena were great as main characters and continued to be those great characters throughout this book.

The only negatives I could honestly say about this last installment was three things: the confusing moments in the book, the pacing and the lack of appearances from some of my favourite characters in the series. With the confusing moments I had experienced in BEAUTIFUL REDEMPTION it mostly had to do with certain events that happened in the book, ones that made me re-readings certain sections to understand what exactly just happened. But in that case, I got over that pretty quickly so it wasn't the biggest problem for me. But the major things were the pacing side of things and while I do understand that a final book needs to lead up to something huge and eventually come to the ultimate ending climax, but it just was so . . . incredibility slow. It dragged so many times, especially in the first section of Ethan's perspective, so it was quite a struggle to get through the book but it did improve here and there, and it did manage to pick up the pace . . . eventually.

And finally, as for the lack of character appearances which a total letdown for me, it was the supporting characters where I was most disappointed with. While we do see plenty of Link, Ethan's best friend, and some other smaller appearances from others characters like Amma and Macon, but it's really sad when you hardly get to see some of your favourites who have a much little role to play in the storyline, in particular with my favourite characters John Breed and Olivia (Liv). Now I adore John and Liv together - completely - as they are now an official couple and as awful as it is to say it but . . . all I cared about was THEM! I know I'm terrible to say it. Haha. I just LOVED those two and they were so compelling and yet they hardly had any appearances in this book - especially Liv! *Le sigh* Ah well . . . guess that's how it was meant to be as Ethan and Lena were the story not the supporting characters.

Overall, BEAUTIFUL REDEMPTION certainly made up for my lack of connection with the other two previous installments before it and while we lose a few characters here and there (not too many anyway), the final book delivers a very satisfying conclusion for all and ties up the book very nicely indeed!

The Rating

4/5 stars

Foretold: 14 Stories of Prophecy & Prediction by Various Authors

Release Date: Out now!

Publisher: Delacorte Books

Pages: 368pgs

The Story

Richelle Mead, Lisa McMann, Michael Grant, Meg Cabot, Laini Taylor, and nine more of the hottest YA authors to hit the shelves explore the concepts of prophecy and prediction in this story collection edited by NYT bestselling author of The Forest of Hands and Teeth, Carrie Ryan.

Have you ever been tempted to look into the future? To challenge predictions? To question fate? It's human nature to wonder about life's twists and turns. But is the future already written - or do you have the power to alter it?

From fantastical prophecies to predictions of how the future will transpire, Foretold is a collection of stories about our universal fascination with life's unknowns and of what is yet to come as interpreted by 14 of young adult fiction's brightest stars.

The Review

From the reviews I've read online lately I know I won't be the first reader to admit this . . . but I mostly read this book of short stories (well I mostly took more notice of one particular short story over the rest of them and I know it's sad but I don't care) because of Richelle Mead's Vampire Academy short story featuring the one and only favourite heroine, Rose Hathaway, and her sexy russian mentor-now-turned "lover", Dimitri Belikov, and trust me here folks . . . it was well worth the excruciating, EXCRUCIATING wait!

In the short story of HOMECOMING we are reunited with Rose and Dimitri, where they decide to go back to Dimitri's home country in Russia to visit his family. Now for all those who have actually read the Vampire Academy series, you would already know that Dimitri's family haven't seen him in AGES not since he was turned Strigoi, and even with Rose . . . his own family haven't seen her for a while either, not since the events of the fourth VA book, Blood Promise, so for all of those eager fans out there, we do finally get to see Dimitri proving to his family that he's back to his original self and boy was it beautiful to witness. Cutting down to the chase here (I don't want to ruin this precious little gem for you), I can say quickly that Rose was pretty awesome in this short story and it was really great to see her again. Dimitri, on the other hand, now he was such a super hunk in this story as well and he was completely adorable all the way through it, and even though it was a very SHORT the story but . . . having Dimitri's grandmother crack a few jokes here and there about the future . . . yeah . . . it was definitely a great short story and I have a lot of love for it too!

Overall, when all of you Vampire Academy fans (I know you're out there somewhere in the world) finish this short story you'll be raising your fists in the air with pride because really . . . who doesn't want more of Rose and Dimitri in their lives? I mean, come on people . . . we will always want more of them whether it is in a full length book form or not. And, as for the other short stories, while they were all well and good and interesting in their own ways, but this Rose and Dimitri short story beats them all out!

The Rating

4/5 stars

Beautiful Chaos by Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl

Release Date: 18th October, 2011

Publisher: Puffin

Pages: 516pgs

The Story

Ethan Wate thought he was getting used to the strange, impossible events happening in Gatlin, his small Southern town. But now that Ethan and Lena have returned home, strange and impossible have taken on new meanings. Swarms of locusts, record-breaking heat, and devastating storms ravage Gatlin as Ethan and Lena struggle to understand the impact of Lena's Claiming. Even Lena's family of powerful Supernaturals is affected - and their abilities begin to dangerously misfire. As time passes, one question becomes clear: What - or who - will need to be sacrificed to save Gatlin?

For Ethan, the chaos is a frightening but welcome distraction. He's being haunted in his dreams again, but this time it isn't by Lena - and whatever is haunting him is following him out of his dreams and into his everyday life. Even worse, Ethan is gradually losing pieces of himself - forgetting names, phone numbers, even memories. He doesn't know why, and most days he's too afraid to ask.

Sometimes there isn't just one answer or one choice. Sometimes there's no going back. And this time there won't be a happy ending.

The Review

I had a profound love for the author's first book, Beautiful Creatures. There's no denying about that well-known fact. It was adventurous, dark, gritty, magical and a powerful book of words written by two very awesome lady authors. They definitely had a winner there. However despite my confessed love of the first book, the sequel Beautiful Darkness (if you haven't read my review you can read it here) was pretty disappointing and it didn't live up to the much hyped-up debut novel that I loved so, so much. While BEAUTIFUL CHAOS is still in the same boat for me, however I enjoyed it a little bit more than the sequel and there were certain scenes and character lines that were beyond hilarious and it was much darker compared to the first two books which suited my taste in gothic-like literature just fine. And of course, this will please many fans of this young adult series.

Let's just get this straight . . . After the events of the seventeenth moon in Beautiful Darkness, combined with the crazy ordeal Lena had to face concerning the Mortal and Caster worlds, the title of BEAUTIFUL CHAOS suits it perfectly. With the town Gatlin suffering from mass destruction, heat, and deaths with little explaination, not to mention with Lena claiming herself as both light and dark, you can definitely say that chaos is how you would describe this book in one word because as you can see there's a lot going on this time round for the characters. But there's still a question that needs to be answered: How can Ethan, the main character, stop this destruction hitting his town? And trust me, the question that lies here will be answered by the time you finish this book.

Like in the previous two novels, Ethan Wate remains a fantastic protagonist. He continues to face down consequences caused by himself and his troublesome girlfriend, Lena, and he tends to cares about the people around him despite the many things that stand in his way of achieving particular things. If I had a boyfriend of any kind . . . it would be Ethan all the way and no one shall challenge me otherwise! He is perfection compared to most fictional boys I've read in young adult books. Mainly because he can do no wrong. Literally. Lena on the other hand, I loved her in the first book but my heart was stomped on several times in the sequel. She was going off the plot during that time (though I don't blame her because her mummy is evil to the bone and perhaps a little crazy than others) but she made me dislike her in many ways. She was acting weird, she was trusting the wrong people, she didn't care about Ethan nor appreciated him . . . you get what I mean. But surprisingly her character was really likeable in this third installment and a lot of her comments were pretty hilarious, especially when it came to Olivia - a girl you met previously in Beautiful Darkness.

Okay I hate to admit this to you all but I don't care about Lena in the way I care about Liv's (Olivia) character because she possesses the many qualities that every girl heroine should have in them. She's super smart, snarky with enough comebacks to throw out to you that will have you in happy tears and she often cares about people - strangers even - as much Ethan does in terms of wanting to protect them. So my heart is all for Liv and she's one of the few characters I wanted on the scene. Like . . . All. The. Time. Same goes with the character John Breed, the bad boy of the town and one you'd met in the sequel also. John Breed wasn't 'my boy' at first and I didn't particularly like him. But after this book he is one of my boys and it was great to see his character shine in a different light - in a more likeable light I mean. Without revealing too much, let's just say Liv has an unexpected love interest on her horizons and while I didn't agree with Ethan getting jealous over the fact of someone actually being interested in Liv (he has no right to get jealous by the way considering he didn't get with Liv like I wanted him to that bad, bad boy), but I'm sure readers will be giving the green light on Liv's new romance. I certainly have!

Overall, after skimming some boring parts of the book, I was quite pleased on how the events of BEAUTIFUL CHAOS had turned out. And don't get me started on the cliffhanger - one I saw coming but didn't want to actually happen but it kind of did kind of cliffhanger. Anyway, I highly recommend this book to readers who have already read this series so far. While the book had a slow beginning and while it never beats my love for the first book, Beautiful Creatures, but this third installment will entertain readers on all sorts of levels and perhaps will make you cry and laugh a little. Mostly laugh because there's these hilarious comeback scenes between Lena and Liv that was so awesome and they said things to each other that was so true as well and - well wait a second, you'll have to find out for yourselves. *smirks*

The Rating

4/5 stars

Beautiful Darkness by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl

Release Day: 12th October, 2010

Publisher: Little Brown/Razorbill

Pages: 503pgs

The Story

Ethan used to think of Gatlin, the small southern town he had always called home, as a place where nothing ever changed. Then he met mysterious newcomer Lena Duchannes, who revealed a secret world that has been hidden in plain sight all along. A Gatlin that harbored ancient secrets beneath its moss-covered oaks and cracked sidewalks. A Gatlin where a curse has marked Lena's family of powerful Supernaturals for generations. A Gatlin where impossible, magical, life-altering events happen.

Sometimes life-ending.

Together they can face anything Gatlin throws at them, but after suffering tragic loss, Lena starts to pull away, keeping secrets that test their relationship. And now that Ethan's eyes have been opened to the darker side of Gatlin, there's no going back. Haunted by strange visions only he can see, Ethan is pulled deeper into his town's tangled history and finds himself caught up in the dangerous network of undeground passageways endlessly crisscrossing the South, where nothing is as it seems.

The Review

Shamefully I had this book on the shelf for quite some time since the release of BEAUTIFUL DARKNESS but I never had the chance to read it. You know, since I have and own soooooo many books nowadays. But thankfully, I had some time to settle down and read it. In the first book of the Caster Chronicles series, Beautiful Creatures, I remember how much I loved it and it had become one of my favourite paranormal books in the young adult book department! However, in this sequel, I was very disappointed . . . not in the writing but more so in the way the events unfolded. There were some moments that definitely surprised me, but there were others that left me going, "Oh, come on!"

BEAUTIFUL DARKNESS was quite hard to get into and the only time I felt myself engaged with the book was after the half of the book was read . . . that's when the real action happens. Without spoiling the events in this sequel, I'll just give you a run down what I loved and hated about the book. Okay, what I loved? I loved Ethan's character and in this book he only proved himself to be a real worthy main character, and I love him for it! He remains strong throughout all the Hell-ish things that are thrown at him and he always impresses me in the way he handles things. As for Lena . . . well, I'll get to her later. But when it comes to Liv, a new character introduced to the book series, I just loved her to death! She's funny, a little quirky, and VERY smart! To be honest, I wanted her and Ethan to get together but since that seem beyond impossible . . . that's a reason why I didn't like the book so much. But Ridley earns herself some points! She maybe dark on the inside and a little annoying, but she definitely knows how to make you laugh! Same goes with Link!

Moving on, let's talk about what I didn't like about BEAUTIFUL DARKNESS. First off, LENA! Now in the first book, I loved Lena's character and I could relate to her . . . but in this sequel I lost track of what I loved about her from the beginning because not only does she annoy me, but she depresses me. She has her reasons, of course. Still . . . I was tired of hearing her complain about her choice in turning Dark or Light, and most importantly . . . I hated the way she treated her suppose "boyfriend", pushing Ethan away to "protect him". But if this was "true love" as they say it to be, then I don't believe in it. Another thing I didn't like was John Breed (cause I expected a total badass and got nothing great) and I hated the way things turned out at the ending pages . . . *sighs* MAJOR LET DOWN! I wished I could go into further details about the book but since that would spoil it for those who haven't had a chance to pick this big baby up . . . I won't say another word!

Overall, BEAUTIFUL DARKNESS was still a very entertaining book though I have to warn you: stuff doesn't really happen until you pass the middle half of the book. Despite my dislikes of events here and there, there is certainly a lot of twists and little surprises along the way, some that really surprised me and others that just make me shake my head and sigh. So, if you've read Beautiful Creatures, expect this book to have a very different vibe . . . it's a bit darker and a bit crazier!

The Rating

3 1/2 / 5 stars