Blog Tour: The Mark of Noba

Title: The Mark of Noba

Author: G.L. Tomas

Genre: YA Fantasy

Release Date: August 25th, 2015
Publisher: Rebellious Valkyrie Press

Goodreads Blurb:

Sterling Wayfairer has one goal for his senior year: make his mark. He's been slipping into the background his whole high school career - distracted by his mother's mental health, unsettled by the vivid dreams that haunt him at night, and overshadowed by the athletic accomplishments of his popular best friends. But this year is going to be different. He's going to break a few rules, have some fun, and maybe even work up the nerve to ask his crush out on a date.

But things don't go exactly as planned. Students are disappearing. Sterling starts losing time, and it all seems to center around Tetra, a girl no one else seems to notice but him. When he finally tracks her down for answers, they aren't what he expects: He and Tetra hail from a world called Noba, and they're being hunted by a Naga, a malevolent shapeshifter that's marked them for destruction.

Tetra and Sterling have distinct abilities that can help them fight back, but their power depends heavily on the strength of their bond, a connection that transcends friendship, transcends romance. Years apart have left their bond weak. Jumpstarting it will require Sterling to open his heart and his mind and put his full trust in the mysterious Tetra.

If he doesn't, neither will survive.

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Excerpt: 
     The morning announcements were centered on the kid that went missing from our school. He was a sophomore so I didn't know him, but I still felt horrible. My tablemate Rebel Lee scribbled down an array of unintelligible notes, probably both profound and meaningful. Rebel was someone I knew since junior high, and even though we were pals, he didn't talk much. Which was odd because he seemed to be understood by everyone. Correction. Everyone except for Grey. 
     I witnessed a sea of sorrow amongst my classmates. No one was in the state of mind to be here, and the cheerless announcements added to our already despondent moods. man, I hoped they found this kid. 
     The teachers opened up the floor to talk about it, prolonging any collection of homework assignments that I didn't do. The more others talked about it, the lower our spirits got. It bothered me that we didn't have any more information on what had happened. Was it connected the other boy who disappeared? Did they run away? Were they abducted? Were they going to be all right? Thinking back to what my mom said earlier, I was lucky to be sitting here. I listened, but didn't contribute. i had so much on my mind. 
     My attention drifted across the room until I settled on someone I hadn't noticed at the beginning o class. She wore her hair in a high, messy bun and had on gray sneakers with three blue stripes. She felt familiar. Did I say felt familiar? I meant looked familiar. Looked ... familiar. Because how does someone feel familiar. 
     A Type 5, she had this flawless dark brown skin that made me question how no one else seemed to notice her. If I judged her off her face alone, she was one of the prettier girls at school. she didn't seem interested in the discussion we were having in class, and she, like me, faded into the background. I'd never given it much thought before but ... I always kind of looked for her. There was just something about her that ... Y'know what? Never mind. 

About the Author
Guinevere and Libertad go by many superhero aliases. Wheter you know them by G.L. Tomas, the Twinjas, or the Rebellious Valkyries, their mission is always the same: spreading aware of diversity in books. Oh, and trying to figure out the use of pocketless pants!

They host other allies and champions of diversity in their secret lair in Connecticut.

Author Links:

Website│Goodreads│Twitter│Facebook

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Book Review: Seeker by Arwen Elys Dayton (2.5/5)

Title: Seeker

Author: Arwen Elys Dayton

Publisher: Random House

Pages: 448

Genres: Young Adult, Fantasy, Romance

Rating: 2.5/5

Source: Netgalley

Goodreads Blurb:

Quin Kincaid has been put through years of brutal training for what she thinks is the noble purpose of becoming a revered ‘Seeker’.

Only when it’s too late does she discover she will be using her new-found knowledge and training to become an assassin. Quin’s new role will take her around the globe, from a remote estate in Scotland to a bustling, futuristic Hong Kong where the past she thought she had escaped will finally catch up with her.

This book was disappointing. After reading the Goodreads Blurb (posted above) I had really high hopes. Hopes, that sadly, this book didn’t meet. This book seemed dysfunctional. It had a somewhat strong start – it looked kind of promising. But then as it progressed everything got extremely confusing. There wasn’t any rhyme or reason to what was occurring – it was kind of like What in the world is going on ???

This Goodreads Blurb is absolutely and utterly hyped. ‘Seeker’ is focused and told from the points of view of the 4(main) characters Quin, Shinobu, John and Maud. Shinobu and Maud seemed saner than Quin and John, mainly because more insight is provided for these specific characters. Quin and John were just two completely confused entities. To begin with, let’s talk about Quin.  After figuring out what her father was shaping her to be and then escaping, Quin led a normal life. As a healer she helped others – an admirable trait. But as her past starts to catch up with her (in the shape of John) Quin is forced to remember what she wanted to forget – that she was a Seeker. But honestly, in this stage of the book Quin seemed exceedingly stupid. She didn’t remember a single thing about her past – she was absolutely clueless. This was extremely aggravating. Having to see the heroine in such a weak fashion and completely ignorant of her past was just a ridiculous thing to have to read about. Having to read about how utterly clueless Quin was made me feel like there was no point reading about such a lost character. I was really tempted to just DNF the book.

Then there was John. Before Quin escaped, she and John were in a relationship. They were “in love”. And through the a good first half of the book, John just preaches about how much he loves Quin. But wow, do his actions contradict him. After leaving Quin he set out on his goal, a goal he didn’t share with anybody else. John was exceedingly driven – he needed to reach his goal. But the actions he was willing to take made him the villain of this book. And sure, this might have been what Ms. Dayton was trying to get out but she could have done it in a more concise fashion. Throughout the beginning of the book I was just confused – What is John going to do? Is he the antagonist? What in the world is wrong with him? There was just too much about him that was confusing to actually enjoy this book.

On to the romance plot: it was really messed up. It was incredibly difficult to get a read on how Quin, John and Shinobu felt for each other. This was because it seemed as if they could never really make up their mind – one day they were in love, the next they weren’t. But beyond that, this love story was so ordinary. There was nothing special or unique about it.

The part that irked me the most about this book was the writing. It was just so simplistic. The author spelled everything out instead of letting me read between the lines. There were loads of mindless details that were absolutely pointless to the story. The whole book could be a lot shorter if she hadn’t included these unnecessary details.

Thankfully, the ending is much better than the beginning or middle. Things begin to pick up and the characters actually start to act sane.

This book is really not worth anyone’s time. I’ve read so many good things about this book, but after reading it I was incredibly disappointed. The only bright side would be the ending, and that would be just a few pages of good writing after reading a good 440 pages of bad.

Book Review: Angelfall by Susan Ee (3.5/5)

Title: Angelfall

Author: Susan Ee

Publisher: Feral Dream

Pages: 283

Genre: Young Adult, Paranormal, Dystopian, Romance, Fantasy

Rating: 3.5/5

It has been 6 weeks since the angels have taken over. 6 weeks of living in constant danger.

Penryn Young’s whole life has changed. Instead of planning for college years, she’s desperately protecting her family from the dark creatures that have taken over her world. But things haven’t stabilized yet: her life is tossed once again into confusion when she witnesses a fight between angels which results in an injured angel left behind and her sister, Paige, kidnapped. Now the only thing Penryn can do is help the wingless angel in hopes that he’ll be able to help rescue Paige.

Raffe was always the strongest of the angels. But when he finds himself on the verge of death, he can do nothing but accept a strange girl’s help. Now Penryn and Raffe have one thing in mind – attack the angel headquarters. But even though they share the same goal, they both have different motives. With Penryn aching for her sister and Raffe yearning for his wings, the two must fight together if they have any chance of succeeding – or even surviving. 

Even though the whole story was centered on Penryn’s travels, Raffe was my favorite character. For one, he was kind and caring. In the beginning it seemed as if he had a hard outer shell but as the book progressed, I was able to learn more about Raffe. Another thing is, though this might sound cheesy,  Raffe is a hero. Plain and simple. Rescuing Paige and saving her from harm really helped build up his character. I’m all for a girl fighting for herself, but good ol’ fashioned gallantry never gets old and is quite charming. And to top it off, it doesn’t really hurt that Raffe’s gorgeous. He’s tall, handsome and has wings – or is trying to get them back anyways. With all these characteristics and more, Raffe was definitely a character I had fun reading about.  

Then there was Penryn. She did have her moments, but most of the time I was annoyed with her. Some of the decisions she made just seemed so infuriatingly stupid. As in, nobody in their right mind would actually make those decisions. And it isn’t as if it’s only this heroine who makes these stupid mistakes. No, Penryn is just one of those ditzy girls who makes stupid choices. But despite this flaw, she was a well-built character: she had a great backstory, had a (somewhat working) ability to differentiate between the right and wrong thing to do, and her cunning wit, or lack of, was absolutely hilarious to read. But, in the end, Susan Ee could have definitely made Penryn’s character pop a bit more.

Now on to the actual book. So, when I first read the summary I wasn’t that excited. Sure, a bit of me was intrigued, but there was an overwhelming groan of disappointment: there didn’t seem to be anything special about this book!! Yet, as I continued to read, I was continuously surprised by how exceptional the plot and writing was. There was a captivating adventure, romance, and (as described above) interesting characters.

Reading about Raffe and Penryn’s ventures was quite interesting. The 283 pages in this book were chock filled with different activities the two did. Seeing how the two travelled to their final destination and how much they had changed in the short amount of time was astounding. But there was more than one lull in the book where I had to skip a few pages because I was completely and utterly bored. The problem was that the author kept going on and on about the most pointless of details. There was a lot of futile information, which could have been replaced with more relevant details.

But on the other hand, I loved the romance plot. Sure it was more than a bit clichéd, but I thought it worked pretty well that Raffe was unable to get involved with Penryn because she was a “Daughter of Man”. Besides that, the two of them had a great chemistry. One part of the romance plot that I greatly enjoyed was that it never stopped building. In fact the climax of the love story was at the end, which created an amazing cliffhanger for what was to happen in the next book.

All in all, ‘Angelfall’ was a read I won’t regret. Filled with adventure, romance and wings, this book is definitely one of the more interesting ones I’ve read in a while. I recommend this book for teenagers 14+ mainly because of the gore and romance in this book. If you like young adult, romance or any dystopian novels, this is one you will want to try out. Don’t miss the second book ‘World After’ and the third book in this series which is expected to be released in 2015. 

Book Review: A Thousand Pieces of You by Claudia Gray (5/5)

Title: A Thousand Pieces of You (Firebird #1)

Author:  Claudia Gray

Publisher: Harper Teen

Pages: 368

Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy, Time Travel, Romance, Science Fiction

Rating: 5/5

Goodreads Blurb:

Marguerite Caine’s physicist parents are known for their radical scientific achievements. Their most astonishing invention: the Firebird, which allows users to jump into parallel universes, some vastly altered from our own. But when Marguerite’s father is murdered, the killer—her parent’s handsome and enigmatic assistant Paul—escapes into another dimension before the law can touch him.

Marguerite can’t let the man who destroyed her family go free, and she races after Paul through different universes, where their lives entangle in increasingly familiar ways. With each encounter she begins to question Paul’s guilt—and her own heart. Soon she discovers the truth behind her father’s death is more sinister than she ever could have imagined.

A Thousand Pieces of You explores a reality where we witness the countless other lives we might lead in an amazingly intricate multiverse, and ask whether, amid infinite possibilities, one love can endure.

I’m taking the risk of sounding like a ditzy fangirl when I say this, but this book is FANTASTIC. Easily one of the best books of 2014. It had everything: the adventure, the suspense, the romance. And the fact that it has the whole dimension traveling aspect definitely makes it seem better in my eyes.

To begin with, let me first describe the protagonist, Marguerite Caine. She’s one of the most strong-willed, obstinate, talented protagonists I’ve read about. Being born in a family of science geniuses left Marguerite the odd one out when she wanted to pursue arts. She was the only person in this book who had a regular person’s point of view. This was exceedingly helpful in describing the book, as I’ll describe later. Another thing I liked about Marguerite is her character. She’s a kind, nice girl who’s a touch shy. Sure, she sounds like someone who will stand back meekly, but read the book and you’ll figure out how passionate she can get over what she feels strongly about.

Now onto the adventure part of the book. As stated in the Goodreads Blurb, Marguerite has gone back in time to avenge her father. She, along with her friend, Theo, journey back hoping to kill Paul. The best thing I liked about the adventures was that the action was nonstop. The adventures that Marguerite, Theo and Paul go on are back to back to back. There wasn’t an overly large pause where I was bored and had to flip the pages to remain engaged in the book. No, everything was smooth and seamless.

Another thing I really liked about this book was the world building. And I know. It comes to my attention that for a time-travel (or in this case dimension-travel) book to be good the author has to be exemplary at world building. But I still can’t stress enough how phenomenal the world building in this book was. The main reason I liked the multiple dimensions, which was described through the creative words used to describe the world, was because of the details provided: Marguerite is as much of an outsider to these strange new dimensions as we, the readers, are. Because of this (as well as Marguerite’s artistic eye) not a single detail flies by unnoticed and readers will be able to truly appreciate it.

I also liked the suspense in this book. In the beginning of the book, the reader (as well as Marguerite) is lead to believe that Paul is the murderer. But as the book progresses, both parties realize that Paul is not the murderer. Indeed, something much more horrible and atrocious is afoot. And this is where the suspense comes in. Ms. Gray is able to skilfully weave a tale where the reader is left guessing to the very end. No one is sure who’s killed the father, but as the book continues there are quite a few moments when it feels like the mystery is about to end. These delicate moments of intrigue just made the book so much better. These were the pages that I paid the most attention to, the pages that were the most crucial.

And then there was the romance plot. If you’ve been reading lately, you most probably have noticed that love triangles are EVERYWHERE. At first, I didn’t have a problem with it. But as more and more love triangles started to pop up in books read, I got quite fed up. When I figured out that this book had a love triangle, I actually debated whether or not to read. I’m really glad, though, that I didn’t let the love triangle bit stop me, because this love triangle is one of the best I’ve ever read about. It is truly brilliant.

Now, the thing in this book that I loved the most in the book would be the Firebird. When I say Firebird, I mean the actual value of the Firebird, as in, how important it is in the book and how deeply complex it is. First of all, Ms. Gray does a great job describing the Firebird. She truly makes it sound like a piece of technology that is evolved and is immensely important to the future of the human race. But beyond that, I just liked reading about the Firebird. All those tiny, seemingly unimportant things the Firebird could do were fascinating. All the parts of the book that seemed slightly geeky with all the technology and physics – those were some of the moments that caught my attention – the moments of the book that were quite intriguing.

I have no complaints with this book. None. Not one. Great adventure, suspense, and romance. I definitely recommend this to anybody who likes young adult, romance, time travel, science fiction, or suspenseful books. Keep an eye out for the next book in this series which is to release sometime towards the end of the year (late 2015).

Book Review: Loop by Karen Akins

Title: Loop (Loop #1)

Author: Karen Akins

Publisher: St. Martin’s Griffin

Pages: 336

Genre: Science Fiction, Time Travel, Young Adult, Romance, Fantasy

Rating: 4.5/5

Goodreads Blurb:

At a school where Quantum Paradox 101 is a required course and history field trips are literal, sixteen year-old time traveler Bree Bennis excels…at screwing up.

After Bree botches a solo midterm to the 21st century by accidentally taking a boy hostage (a teensy snafu), she stands to lose her scholarship. But when Bree sneaks back to talk the kid into keeping his yap shut, she doesn’t go back far enough. The boy, Finn, now three years older and hot as a solar flare, is convinced he’s in love with Bree, or rather, a future version of her that doesn’t think he’s a complete pain in the arse. To make matters worse, she inadvertently transports him back to the 23rd century with her.

Once home, Bree discovers that a recent rash of accidents at her school are anything but accidental. Someone is attacking time travelers. As Bree and her temporal tagalong uncover seemingly unconnected clues—a broken bracelet, a missing data file, the art heist of the millennium—that lead to the person responsible, she alone has the knowledge to piece the puzzle together. Knowledge only one other person has. Her future self.

But when those closest to her become the next victims, Bree realizes the attacker is willing to do anything to stop her. In the past, present, or future. 

First off, wow. This book was great. To begin with, the pros of the book. 1, it was incredibly interesting. Just after reading the Goodreads Blurb. And even though I know that my love of time travel influenced this feeling, I would still recommend this book to people who don’t like time travel. It was that good.

One thing that I really liked about the book was how Bree brought Finn back with her (or more accurately, brought him forward, if that makes sense) to the 23^rd century. I know it says she does this in the blurb, but I was still surprised. It was so different from what usually happens in other time travel books (the heroine has to stay back in the past, fix the problem, and then leaves). I was flabbergasted by this twist. But even when you put that aside, when Bree brought Finn forward, watching how amazed he was by the future was hilarious and insightful. When looking through just Bree’s point of view all the high tech gadgets you can’t get a clear insight of how cool they are because she’s used to all of it. But toss in Finn’s questions – some hilarious, some serious – and the reader is provided insight from a person who is a just a stranger to the futuristic world as the reader is. This definitely allowed me to truly appreciate the world that Karen Akins created.

This leads me to the second thing I really liked about this book: how great the world-building was. Everything’s changed, as one might expect buy jumping 200 years into the future. Just figuring out about all the cool techy gadgets and how they worked was mind-blowing. Like the grappling hook that Bree and Finn used– it seems like something totally boring, but the science has evolved to a point that once you read the book it seems so amazing. And this is just one of the neat devices that are used/described. Ms. Akins definitely did a fantastic job of building a new, cool world. And this may sound cheesy, but I definitely hope our future gadgets will match the ones described in the book.

Secondly, the plot. The adventures that Bree and Finn go on – heart stopping. The whole book was filled to the brim with action and adventure. How could it not be? The two of them have to figure out who’s the person who has been pulling the strings, and why. This one person who hurt Bree’s mom, who has every bit of information laid out at their feet, the person who is willing to kill to stop Bree from piecing it altogether – this person will stop at nothing. One thing about the plot that I had a problem with was the speed. Though this only happen a few times there were moments in the book where it was too rushed and the information was being thrown at the reader. Not only was this annoying, but it was extremely inconvenient. I had to go back and reread sections of the book to pick up on information that I hadn’t noticed at first.

A third thing I liked about the book were the emotions. Not the romance plot, I’ll discuss that later, but just the emotions that Bree felt as she was trying to figure out what her future self had to do with this entire mystery. And god, the moments when only Future Bree knew what was going on – the frustration that both Bree and I were feeling. Like, wow. Ms. Akins was playing with my emotions. Everything I felt was so sharp and so real. There were barely any moments when I had to guess at what Bree was feeling – her emotions were my emotions. There’s no simpler way to state it.

Now to the downsides of the book. One thing that I didn’t really like was the romance plot. The romance throughout the beginning and middle of the book was good. There were touching scenes and Bree was falling in love with Finn. It was sweet. But towards the end of the book where the romance plot reaches its climax, Ms. Alkins drops the ball and the romance is practically gone. It was incredibly disappointing. The whole book was extraordinary. It was fantastic, all except for the one part of the romance plot that matters the most – when Bree and Finn discuss how they feel. The romance plot was building up throughout the book – it was really good before the ending - and then it fell flat on its face. That was just a terrible, terrible thing to witness in such a good book. The other problem I had with this book also had to do with the ending. Basically as Ms. Akins wraps up the book her writing was being incredibly rushed. Some of what she said didn’t make sense or didn’t seem relevant – it was like a last minute scramble. She hadn’t drawn out the ending and hadn’t put in the details that were critical to explain how Bree and Finn figured out who was the culprit then the ending.

Basic things to keep in mind: this book is phenomenal in the beginning and middle. Once you get to the ending, the book basically dies. I had really high hopes for “Loop” and the conclusion just didn’t meet them. But besides the sad conclusion, the rest of the book was really good. I definitely recommend it to people who love time-travel or young adult. Keep an eye out for the next book in the series “Twist” which releases March 31^st, 2015.

Book Review: Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas

Title: Throne of Glass

Author: Sarah J. Maas

Publisher: Bloomsbury USA Children’s

Pages: 404

Genre: Fantasy, Magic, Mystery, Young Adult

Rating: 4.5/5

After slaving in the salt mines of Endovier for her crimes, young assassin Celaena Sardothien is offered an opportunity she can’t resist. She will have to fight as the Crown Prince’s champion in a competition to determine who will be the King’s assassin, the person who will handle all of the King’s dirty work. If she wins the competition, and serves as assassin for 4 years, she will be free. If she fails, she will be sent to Endovier – with no hope of living through another year.

She will be competing against thieves, murderers, assassins and warriors from across the country – 24 in all, and only one can win. As she assumes a new identity – a lady in the King’s court – she is practically in a new dimension. But things are not what they seem when a competitor is found dead, his innards ripped from his body. And then another competitor followed days later. Celaena will have to figure out who this murderer is, before she is the next one to go.

Celaena is a very fun character to read about. She is fun, witty, and brave, not to mention extremely talented. Facing a situation she would never have thought possible, she is very entertaining and funny. And this heroine is definitely not too ladylike to engage in activities other women would find improper, like sword-fighting and archery. As the story progresses, Celaena is described as a good friend and companion as well as a witty and interesting competitor. This character definitely shows that all men and women should be put at the same level – no matter what they look like.

I loved the idea of this story. First of all, the whole ‘King & Queen’ is a cool medieval look at things – brilliant, and isn’t being used that often nowadays. Now, the competition? Loved it!! The importance this competition had to Celaena’s life – to live or to die, is a common plot but was expressed in a way that it didn’t seem too cliché.

But my favorite part would be that the author didn’t stick with what would have been a predictable plot line – sticking with the competition. Instead, the author went above and beyond and introduced a whole other problem: a murder mystery!!! I really enjoyed that. Now, there were two things to look forward to – the competition and information about the murders.

The part I would have to say was my least favorite would be the love triangle. It just wasn’t portrayed clearly and just flopped. Also, to me it seemed as if it dictated some of the character’s decisions and they acted a bit odd.

Overall I really enjoyed this book and wholeheartedly recommend it to lovers of young adult magical books. This book is simply amazing. The second book of this series, Crown of Midnight just recently published, and I can’t wait to get my hands on it!

Book Review: Eragon by Christopher Paolini

Title: Eragon
Author: Christopher Paolini
Publisher: Knopf
Genre: Fantasy, Fiction
Pages: 497
Rating: 4.5/5

After a series of squeaks, a small dark head poked out of the hole, followed by a weirdly angled body…
  … Standing in front of him, licking off the membrane that encased it, was a dragon.

In the except above, Eragon, a poor farm boy, finds a stone in the Spine, which is a mountain range located near Eragon‘s house. After days of looking at the stone, Eragon realizes that the stone is actually a dragon egg.

This is the summary of the book: Before Eragon was born, there was a boy named Galbatorix. He becomes a dragon rider, which is somebody who tries to keep peace in the world. After going on many adventures, Galbatorix’s dragon dies, which causes him to go insane. Galbatorix takes over and rules over the lands. He kills people and becomes an enemy of the Varden, an organized group  of people who oppose Galbatorix. He kills or imprisons all of the riders, which causes a great need for new riders. This event leads to Eragon finding a bright, blue stone in the Spine. This stone is not an ordinary stone, it is a dragon egg. When the dragon hatches, it is the start of new riders. As Eragon learns more about the riders, he grows stronger. When Galbatorix hears about the new rider; he quickly tells his soldiers to kill Eragon. The soldiers kill all  of Eragon’s family. After Eragon sees what happened, he sets out to kill Galbatorix. Will Eragon be able to survive the threat of Galbatorix?

I liked Eragon for many reasons. My first reason was because Christopher Paolini really hooked me on with the prologue. It interested me. Second of all, Christopher Paolini added a lot of humor. I thought Saphira, Eragon’s dragon was the funniest. I liked when she was being sarcastic with Eragon. That made me laugh out loud. Last of all, I liked the book because it included pronunciations, a glossary, special scenes that were not mentioned in the book, and a sneak peek of Eldest.  My favorite part of the book was when Eragon was pursuing Galbatorix’s soldiers. It was the best part of the book because it included a lot of action and spying. That seemed cool to me. I can’t wait to read the next book, Eldest!

I recommend that you definitely read this book. I guarantee that you will enjoy it!

Eragon is the first book in the Inheritance series. Not only is Eragon a best selling book, it is a 2006 movie.

Book Review: Outpost by Ann Aguirre

Title: Outpost

Author: Ann Aguirre

Publisher: Feiwel & Friends

Pages: 317

Genre: Dystopian, Young Adult, Fantasy, Romance

Rating: 5/5

Deuce, along with her friends Fade, Stalker and Tegan have reached Salvation. They are safe. For now, anyways. But things are very different from how they were in the enclave, especially the way she is being treated by others.

Once thought of as an adult in the underground Enclave, here she is considered as  just another kid who needs to grow up. And it isn’t as if she’s going to fit in anytime soon with her unladylike manners. If that isn’t enough, things between her and Fade have changed. He’s more aloof and distant now, and Deuce just doesn’t know what happened between the two of them.

The only thing Deuce can do to make herself feel at home again is to sign up for the summer patrols, to make sure the planters can grow crops without being attacked by the Freaks. But to everyone’s dismay, the Freaks have grown smarter and are changing their ways of life. Their goal of killing humans hasn’t changed though, and Salvation is on the brink of destruction. The town has almost given up hope, but a girl like Deuce may just reverse the tide of hopelessness.

My favorite thing about Deuce is that she isn’t some helpless damsel in distress. Instead, she’s a kick-butt Huntress who isn’t afraid to get her hands dirty. She’s strong, courageous, and selfless. Another thing I like about Deuce is that she isn’t one to let men/boys put her down because she’s a girl. She’s got a backbone, something that made it even more interesting to learn about things from her point of view.

I just want to point one thing out. I don’t usually rate books 5 out of 5 stars. And I have never rated both a book and its sequel 5 out of 5 stars. In my mind this book has made history. So just from that, you should be able to tell that this series is simply amazing.

I liked how the book was written. It wasn’t all what was happening right then and there. Instead, there were some flashbacks that helped express the emotions Deuce was feeling. It was an interesting way to convey emotions, one that isn’t seen often.

Now, to the other great thing about this book: the action. This book definitely isn’t one to just put in half of the details and just ignore the rest. No, this book gives all the details:  a 100%. And just from that, you are Deuce. Not that whole, you feel like you’re with Deuce or you feel like Deuce. This is the real thing, and is definitely something that most other books don’t have.

I know a lot of people don’t like having romance in the books they read, especially love triangles. Well, I’m here to tell you that if there is any book you have to read that has romance in it, read this one. The whole book isn’t stuffed with romance, which is a definite plus side, but there are parts that let you know there is a love plot.

Overall, I have to say I loved this book. It left me itching for the next book of this series. Outpost is definitely in my top 5 favorite books. This book is for people who love dystopian, young adult, or romance books. I recommend reading Outpost if you are 12+ years old. Other books in this series includes Enclave and Horde, which is releasing October, 2013.

Book Review: Enclave by Ann Aguirre

Title: Enclave

Author: Ann Aguirre

Publisher: Feiwel & Friends

Pages: 259

Genre: Dystopian, Young Adult, Fantasy, Romance

Rating: 5/5

Deuce lives underground, in the enclave  - a community where so few children make it to the age of 15, they are just called a number. It is a world where monsters called Freaks roam the underground tunnels, a place where when a child reaches the age of 15, they must decide if they want to be a Hunter, Breeder or Builder. Deuce always wanted to be a Huntress, and now, she is.

But, being a Huntress isn’t everything Deuce thought it would be. First of all, she’s paired up with a brooding Hunter, a social outcast who lived for years alone in the tunnels where the monsters called Freaks live. And second, she realizes that the people who lead her community might be lying about, well, everything. Deuce has to save her community, but is it too late to try?

I liked learning about the enclave from Deuce’s point of view. She isn’t like the others – hard and cold-hearted. A commendable quality of Deuce’s would be her selflessness: she’s the type of person who will help another, even if it is dangerous to do so. Besides that, Deuce is funny, dangerous and interesting to read about. As she realizes the truth of the twisted world she lives in, this heroine is quick to act and always thinks of others before herself.

To me, this story is definitely unique. Yeah, there are stories of people living underground or secluded from others. And, there are other books that have monstrous creatures that the main characters must fight off. But this one is different, because of how the story progressed.

There was no time to get used to the world in which Deuce lived; instead, the story immediately became action-packed and adventurous, instantly immersing me in the story, something that was a change from a bunch of other books I’ve recently read. But my favorite part would be the action scenes. These parts of the story were poetry. They were beautiful to read and were very entertaining.

And the love triangle was perfect too. Honestly, now days I’ve realized that some books would be absolutely perfect if they didn’t have a love triangle. Perfect. And that’s why this book is so amazing: because the love triangle didn’t make the book drag. In fact, it made the book even more interesting than it would have been without it.

Overall, I have to say I loved this book. Full of spunk, action and lots of danger, this book is definitely one of the all time greats. I definitely recommend this book to people who love dystopian books. Other books in this series include Outpost and the upcoming book Horde which is releasing in October, 2013.