A Fractured Light by Jocelyn Davies

Release Date: Out now!

Publisher: HarperTeen

Pages: 352pgs

The Story

When she wakes up in unfamiliar surroundings, Skye knows something terrible has happened to her. It's not until she hears Asher, the dark, rebellious angel she fell in love with, that the memories come flooding back. She tries to put the past behind her, but she knows she'll be forever haunted by the ruthless betrayal that almost took her life.

Skye returns home, but with the knowledge of who she really is, nothing can ever be the same. As she tests the limits of her newfound powers, Skye discovers that she's capable of far more than anyone could have imagined. Both the Order and the Rebellion want her for their side as war between the factions looms. She can't forget the terrifying truth she now knows about the Order, but something holds her back from embracing the Rebellion.

The Review

Now I wasn't exactly a huge huge fan of Jocelyn Davies's debut novel, A Beautiful Dark, and for the most part it was because of the love triangle and what had occurred towards the end of that book. But despite what I thought at that specific time, I still wanted to give the sequel another chance to prove me wrong and I'm glad I did because to my own surprise the book, A FRACTURED LIGHT, was a much better book compared to the first in the series and while it did contain that annoying back-and-forth love triangle, which I still didn't like, but on a whole I thought it was a much more pleasurable book to read and a very entertaining one at that.

I don't want to give anything away for obvious reasons so I'm going to be pretty vague here, but what occurs within in this book had really kept my interest in from the very beginning and that's because, like what the main character Sky had experience, I too had no idea who to trust in this book, especially with Sky's two love interests, Asher and that other-whats-his-name guy I didn't care too much about anymore. Hehe. Trust, at least what I found in this sequel, was the main focus of the book this time round and it was very interesting to see how things would eventually play out because of this trust issue if you get my meaning. It was very interesting indeed. The ending in particular was not at all how I pictured it to be like, so in the end I was pretty happy with that part because it was - ultimately - the right thing to do in Sky's case. So whether something bigger will happen as a consequence of that final action and decision in the last installment of the series who knows, but I guess we will have to wait and see and hope for the best in the final book.

Overall, A FRACTURED LIGHT was such a bigger improvement compared to the first book in the series and I'm now really looking forward to reading the next book!

The Rating

4/5 stars

A Beautiful Dark by Jocelyn Davies

Release Date: 27th September, 2011

Publisher: HarperTeen

Pages: 320pgs

The Story

On the night of Skye's seventeenthb birthday, she meets two enigmatic strangers. Complete opposites - like fire and ice - Asher is dark and wild, while Devin is fair and aloof. Their sudden appearance sends Skye's life into a tailspin. She has no idea what they want, or why they seem to follow her every move - only that their presence coincides with a flurry of strange events. Soon she begins to doubt not just the identity of the two boys, but also the truth of her own past.

In the dead of a bitingly cold Colorado winter, Skye finds herself coming to terms with the impossible secret that threatens to shatter her world. Torn between Asher, who can't help falling for her, and Devin, who she can't stay away from, the consequences of Skye's choices will reach further than the three of them could ever imagine.

The Review

A BEAUTIFUL DARK came in a beautiful package - it had angels, a promised love triangle, a shrouded mystery and a haunting standout-ish cover that just made you want to buy it. To be honest with you here, I didn't have a lot of high expectations for this book because I'm no longer a fan of love triangles unless it's absolutely necessary for the storyline and unless it's built strongly, and also because it was about the whole dark vs light angel world, which tends to be unoriginal nowadays in young adult literature. Personally for me, I found this book had a great idea and it was entertaining to a certain point, but a lot of elements of the book could've been developed and/or improved on more.

On a whole I liked Skye as the main female heroine. I thought her relationship with her family and friends was written well and she seemed like the kind of girl who was sweet, innocent, easy to get along with and as a reader I could see how genuine she was without being too annoying. However, the major problem for this book was the guys, which will be a killer for 'us' fangirls wanting to pine for another fictional boy. So in this first installment of a trilogy, we have two guys vying for Skye's affections - the Ice King (best nickname I could come up with at this present time) Devin and the Fiery rebel-without-a-cause, Asher. Both guys certainly had their moments where I really liked them, but most of the time I just couldn't like like them. More so with Devin - I mean, REALLY? What was the point of you being there to disappoint us in the end? I think what contributed to me not liking them so much as potential love interests was for three reasons and three reasons only: 1) they disappeared all the time and I hate that horrible Houdini act, 2) they supposedly 'cared' about Skye but contradicted themselves with confusing actions that they'd undertaken, and 3) both guys really didn't know what they're doing and I think they need to get a proper job before they consider looking after a teenage girl whom is younger than they are. Anyway, that's all I'll say on the matter except that readers will find Asher far more appealing than Devin could ever be.

So as I raced through the book and putting aside my comments on the hottie guys, while the plot may have been predictable and too "let's go here - oh wait, let's go here" if you get my meaning, I still found the book a nice read to have on your book shelf. There was interesting mythology and while I've seen it occuring a lot in books . . . but Davies added her own personal touch to it that you'll love. And for readers who are concerned about the way I feel about the boys, you will still find Skye a great character and if I was in her situation (being bamboozled into thinking she has some destiny-hidden-power and being constantly surrounded by two hot guys who continue to mix up her feelings for God knows why) I too would be confused on how I feel.

Look, on a whole I would call A BEAUTIFUL DARK the 'Yo-Yo Factor Book' because you have your ups-and-down moments and it's up to reader to decide if it's their kind of book or not. Whether I like this one or not, I'm still on the fence. This, of course, isn't necessarily a bad thing because a series has enough time to step-up on its game and improve, which I hope will happen in the sequel considering the cliffhanger we were left on. A killer mind you.

Overall, I thought Jocelyn Davies presented an easy to follow script that picked up the pace soon after the halfway mark of the book. So I recommend A BEAUTIFUL DARK to readers who loved Unearthly, Hush Hush and Fallen. If you loved those titles, than you'll definitely love this one too!

The Rating

3 1/2 / 5 stars