Review: Unhinged (Splintered #2)

Reviewer: Kelsey
Author: A. G. Howard
Format: Hardcover
Pages: 400 (not enough)
Rating: 10 out of 10 

** Spoiler Alert: This is the second in this series. The review for Splintered is HERE **

Summary (without Goodreads, I'd be Unhinged): Alyssa Gardner has been down the rabbit hole and faced the bandersnatch. She saved the life of Jeb, the guy she loves, and escaped the machinations of the disturbingly seductive Morpheus and the vindictive Queen Red. Now all she has to do is graduate high school and make it through prom so she can attend the prestigious art school in London she's always dreamed of.

That would be easier without her mother, freshly released from an asylum, acting overly protective and suspicious. And it would be much simpler if the mysterious Morpheus didn’t show up for school one day to tempt her with another dangerous quest in the dark, challenging Wonderland—where she (partly) belongs.

As prom and graduation creep closer, Alyssa juggles Morpheus’s unsettling presence in her real world with trying to tell Jeb the truth about a past he’s forgotten. Glimpses of Wonderland start to bleed through her art and into her world in very disturbing ways, and Morpheus warns that Queen Red won’t be far behind.

If Alyssa stays in the human realm, she could endanger Jeb, her parents, and everyone she loves. But if she steps through the rabbit hole again, she'll face a deadly battle that could cost more than just her head.

My Thoughts: I was so excited for this novel to come out. When it finally did, I was out of cash and couldn't get it right away. I cannot explain to you how sad I was to be forced to read everyone else's reviews for this novel while I waiting to get it. It was the most heart breaking thing I've ever been through. Just kidding...this novel was the most heart breaking thing I've ever been through.

I love this series. I don't know why. Alyssa is nothing like me. Usually, I fall in love with characters that I can see myself in but this time I love that she's so different. She's unique. I've definitely never read a novel where the main character dresses like she does. I'll admit that my brain can hardly imagine what she really looks like. I guarantee that the author's vision of her is very different than my own. I know I tone her down a lot more than I ever have with a character. I can't help it. Yet, I love her so much still. I feel so bad for her. Her life kind of sucks most of the time. She really can't escape when her stupid ancestors caused. 

Now, as for this love shenanigans...this series just drives me crazy. I love both love interests but I also hate both love interests. Morpheus is the most annoying and amazing character I've ever had the horrible luck to read about. He makes me so mad. I hate him so much. I really do. Sadly, I am also madly in love with him. Can't he just be nice and stop lying and stop plotting and scheming and ruining Alyssa's life. Yet, he also saves her life and pulls out her true self. I'm so conflicted. It's so painful. Like I said, it's the most heart breaking thing ever. Then there is Jeb, he's nice enough. He's smart. He's a good match for Alyssa, except for the fact that she spends a great deal of this novel lying to him because he doesn't remember Wonderland. That is painful too. She can't fully be herself around him. He's a bit more distant in this novel too which makes her upset. Both love interests make me crazy. I'm so conflicted. I ship her with both of them and I want them both to be endgame. 

I feel bad for Alyssa's father. I hope that whole issue gets resolved in the next novel. 

This author is amazing. They paint a wonderful picture of the world and of their characters. I see it all so clearly in my head. It's amazing and I love it. The author has this amazing ability to make me feel the character's pain. I've never seen anything like this. I've never felt anything like this. I could read this author for forever. I hope she keeps writing. She could easier be my favourite author. I've never been so conflicted with characters or plot points. It's...I can't even describe my feelings to you. I sound like an idiot I'm sure.

The end of this novel is a total killer. I warned you. You read it right there. I damn near threw my book. Kristen constantly puts novels in "time out" when she can't handle the plot. I've never had to do this with any novel. This is the closest I've ever come. I swore quite a lot upon reading the ending. It hurt so bad. It's just not far. I can't even tell you. No seriously...

I just love the idea of this series so much. It takes something that so many people know about and builds it up. I've read Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass. I can't imagine the research that Howard put into this series. I can't imagine how many times she read the Wonderland books. I wish I could have her imagination. I have a pretty good imagination but I'm so jealous. This world is an incredible one. It's real to me like almost no other novel is. I can't tell you enough how good this series is. It surprised me. I picked Splintered up because it was on sale! It may have been the best buy of my entire life.

Go right now and buy this series. Buy both books. I promise you won't regret it. If you do, tell me why so I can argue with you. These novels are amazing.

If I could do one thing, I would thank that author for giving me a world to run away to. She offers a place to escape too. It's dark but also beautiful. Thanks, A. G. Howard and keep writing. I wish I could tell them myself. I aspire to write like they do.

Final Thoughts: I WANT THE NEXT NOVEL SO MUCH, YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND. I NEED IT! You should read this series. It's so much better than I thought it would be and this author is amazing. I hope this novel catches on big. I wish the author/publisher would send me the next one. HEAR THAT HOWARD AND AMULET AND ABRAMS? I WILL LOVE YOU FOREVER IF YOU DO!


Stop reading here to avoid a spoiler


The novel makes it so they both can be endgame which I think is equal parts brilliant and a cop out on the side of the author. Yet, if it doesn't happen I will hate my life. I want it to happen. I want it so bad. I can't wait for the next novel.

Wither (The Chemical Garden #1)

Reviewer: Kelsey
Author: Lauren DeStefano
Format: Paperback
Pages: 358
Rating: 8 out of 10

Summary (via Goodreads): By age sixteen, Rhine Ellery has four years left to live. She can thank modern science for this genetic time bomb. A botched effort to create a perfect race has left all males with a lifespan of 25 years, and females with a lifespan of 20 years. Geneticists are seeking a miracle antidote to restore the human race, desperate orphans crowd the population, crime and poverty have skyrocketed, and young girls are being kidnapped and sold as polygamous brides to bear more children. When Rhine is kidnapped and sold as a bride, she vows to do all she can to escape. Her husband, Linden, is hopelessly in love with her, and Rhine can’t bring herself to hate him as much as she’d like to. He opens her to a magical world of wealth and illusion she never thought existed, and it almost makes it possible to ignore the clock ticking away her short life. But Rhine quickly learns that not everything in her new husband’s strange world is what it seems. Her father-in-law, an eccentric doctor bent on finding the antidote, is hoarding corpses in the basement. Her fellow sister wives are to be trusted one day and feared the next, and Rhine is desperate to communicate to her twin brother that she is safe and alive. Will Rhine be able to escape--before her time runs out?

Together with one of Linden's servants, Gabriel, Rhine attempts to escape just before her seventeenth birthday. But in a world that continues to spiral into anarchy, is there any hope for freedom?

My Thoughts: I was originally told that this was an awful book but, for some strange reason, I felt that I needed to read it anyway. I went against what this person told me and bought the book. This was partly because Kristen wouldn't let me leave the store without a book and partly because I hate waited so long to read this book that it was just time to buy it. I wasn't disappointing with my choice. I'm so glad that I did it.

This novel jumps right into the action. It doesn't throw the reader so far into the story that the reader cannot catch up with what is going on. Everything was explained clearly, thank goodness! 

I found myself caring deeply for Rhine. Whenever she made a choice to do or not do something, I was freaking out! Then I had this massively inner turmoil whenever it came to Linden and/or Gabriel. I couldn't choose what I wanted. I didn't understand how she could know. I had to remind myself that I was not her. I'm not sure how I ever got myself confused that I was since I would have given up for sure but Rhine never did.

I also found that this book was really good for using a variety of words. There wasn't the same word over and over. That drives me nuts!

Final Thoughts: I would recommend this novel to anybody who likes YA romance or dystopian. I found that I could figure things out in advance so if that bothers you, beware. Don't worry, there are still some surprises! Check this book out and let me know what you think!

The Wolves of Mercy Falls

Reviewer: Kelsey
Author: Maggie Stiefvater
Rating Overall: 9 out of 10

I loved this book. It was one of the best introductions to characters I have read. By the end of the novel, I cared so much for the main characters. I ordered the second one from Bookdepository.uk.co right away. I hated the wait. I found that the book flew by. I had just started it but it was already done. I would have read it if it had been 700 pages. Also, I might be in love with Sam...just saying. Then again, who am I to break up these two?

Original Shiver Review



I think that, of the three in this series, the second was my favourite. It was full of emotions of every kind. It is told from the perspectives of four different people so I was worried that it would become hard to follow but it didn't. I also found that the green print didn't bother me at all. By the end of the book, you can't even tell that it is green. I would swear to you that it was black print. Anyway, back to emotions. I felt what the characters felt. I felt the love that was shared. I could feel the character's pain. I even cried at the end when... kidding, I refuse to give spoilers. Let's just say that I had a total melt down and made my friend take me to buy the third. I couldn't even wait for it to come in the mail this time!


I was quite happy with the ending to this trilogy. I admit, I was horribly sad to let them all go and at one point I put the book down and refused to finish reading it because I was so upset by something that happened. I almost threw the book across the room. I fell in love with characters that had once driven me mad. Some of them, I still hated. It's okay though because they needed to be hated. The red ink turned black just like it had for the green ink. I was alright with the final ending though I wish I could have gotten something a little more concrete. I'll live. I really did enjoy this trilogy. I'm definitely going to be reading them again, soon. I think that they are worth your time.You should check them out.


Reviewers Note: I decided to only give a partial review because I hate reviewing all the novels in a series. I have this horrible fear of spoilers. I feel I should avoid them at all costs. With this series, however, I feel the need to say goodbye to characters and story line in a proper way. So anyway, clearly, I loved these...

  

Beautiful Disaster

Reviewer: Kristen 
Author: Jamie McGuire 
Pages: 437 (give or take)
Format: Paperback
My Rating: 9 out of 10

Summary (Goodreads, you da best!): Abby Abernathy is a good girl. She doesn’t drink or swear, and she has the appropriate number of cardigans in her wardrobe. Abby believes she has enough distance from the darkness of her past, but when she arrives at college with her best friend, her path to a new beginning is quickly challenged by Eastern University’s Walking One-Night Stand.

Travis Maddox, lean, cut, and covered in tattoos, is exactly what Abby wants—and needs—to avoid. He spends his nights winning money in a floating fight ring, and his days as the ultimate college campus charmer. Intrigued by Abby’s resistance to his appeal, Travis tricks her into his daily life with a simple bet. If he loses, he must remain abstinent for a month. If Abby loses, she must live in Travis’s apartment for the same amount of time. Either way, Travis has no idea that he has met his match.

My Thoughts: I quite literally just finished this book, and I wanted to write this while the ideas were still fresh in my mind! I was so excited when I finally got this in the mail, because I've seen so so so many good things being said about this book. So, when I was finished, I was thrilled when everything I had heard lived up to the book completely! I loved the characters, especially Travis. Move over Edward Cullen, I'll take Travis Maddox instead. Though he does occasionally get a little crazy, (he is a fighter after all!) he redeems himself, and Jamie McGuire makes you feel so strongly for all the characters involved. I loved how Abby was developed and I love that secondary characters aren't forgotten about half way though the story. That happens way too often, and I like to know what's happening with everyone! I literally couldn't put this down though. There were some inconsistencies that drove me a little bonkers, but it was easy to look over in the grand scheme of things. (For example, sometimes I'd think they're in class, but suddenly they're back to the apartment. So you just kinda missed the walk.) I got it yesterday, and started reading it before I went to bed. I should have known that I would literally have to force myself to put it down! Even once I had, I had to employ some serious self control to not get right  back into and figure out what happens! I dreamt about the book, I can't stop thinking about the book, and I cannot wait until the companion (Walking Disaster) is dropped in April! 

Final Thoughts: I had read a few reviews that said Jamie McGuire glorified an obsessive relationship, but I disagree! I think this was written tastefully, and it left me wanting more.  I really enjoyed this book! I anxiously await the day I can get my hands on Walking Disaster! Do yourself a favor, and pick this up.... now!