Review: Liberty - The Spy Who (Kind of) Liked Me by Andrea Portes

Liberty - The Spy Who (Kind of) Liked Me

Author: Andrea Portes

Publisher: HarperTeen

Release date: 6^th June 2017

Pages: 400

Source: Edelweiss ARC

Synopsis (Goodreads): What is a hero? Paige Nolan knows.

Edward Raynes, the young man who exposed America’s unconstitutional spying techniques, is a hero, even if half the dum-dums in the country think he’s a traitor. Or her parents, journalists who were captured by terrorists while telling stories of the endangered and oppressed. They were heroes, too. Were. . . or are—no one has ever told Paige if they’re still alive, or dead.

Not heroes? Anyone in the government who abandoned her parents, letting them rot somewhere halfway across the world. And certainly not Paige herself, who despite her fluency in five languages and mastery of several obscure martial arts (thanks, Mom!) could do nothing to save them.

Couldn’t, that is, until she’s approached by Madden Carter, an undercover operative who gives her a mission—fly to Russia, find Raynes, and discover what other government secrets he’s stockpiled. In exchange, he’ll reopen the case on her missing parents. She’s given a code name and a cover as a foreign exchange student.

Who is a hero? Not Paige Nolan, but maybe, just maybe, Liberty is.

Review: 3 ½ out of 5 stars

I absolutely adore these types of books, light-hearted, witty and a thoroughly entertaining read with a wonderful, likeable heroine.

Our MC, Paige Nolan is the daughter to high profile journalists who are missing presumed dead. When Paige is recruited by a spy to find someone she idolises she is hesitant but will do anything possible to find her parents.

Paige is the sort of character I really enjoy, opinionated, witty, sarcastic and kick butt fabulous; she certainly kept things entertaining.

Madden Carter is an undercover operative from an operational intelligence agency known as RAITH who makes a deal with Paige, she gets to fly to Moscow with a cover as a foreign exchange student; find a person of interest, Sean Raynes and in exchange he’ll reopen her parents case. I thought Madden was great! I didn’t know whether or not he could be trusted or not but I did like his character and I loved the banter that he shared with Paige.

The premise was wonderful, I enjoyed the spy and secret mission aspect but I admit I initially thought that this book would be a little silly and at times it definitely was, you do have to suspend belief on occasion but I was hooked right from the beginning and despite it being told in second person POV which is not my favourite it was written well.

I didn’t completely love the ending and I did feel at times the case of Paige’s missing parents case was forgotten but overall it was written very well and kept me thoroughly entertained. I hope this is made in to a series, I’d definitely like to read more.

Thank you to HarperTeen via Edelweiss for the opportunity to read and review Liberty - The Spy Who (Kind of) Liked Me.

About the author:  Andrea Portes is a bestselling American novelist. 

Her novels include HICK, BURY THIS, ANATOMY OF A MISFIT, and THE FALL OF BUTTERFLIES. Portes is also the author of the upcoming LIBERTY book series and the upcoming HENRY & EVA book series. She also published the SUPER RAD graphic novel series for Dark Matter Comics.

Portes was raised in rural Nebraska, outside of Lincoln. She attended Bryn Mawr College on full scholarship and later received her MFA from University of California, San Diego. After graduation, Portes moved to the neighborhood of Echo Park in Los Angeles.

In 2007, Portes published her debut novel HICK that was an instant bestseller. After the book's huge success, the movie adaptation of HICK went into production in 2011. The film, starring Chloë Grace Moretz, Alec Baldwin, Eddie Redmayne, Juliette Lewis, and Blake Lively premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2011.

Portes's second novel, BURY THIS, was published in January 2014 by Counterpoint Press's imprint Soft Skull Press to critical acclaim.

In 2012, she wrote SUPER RAD, a sci-fi series for Dark Matter Press.

Portes' third novel, ANATOMY OF A MISFIT, was published in September 2014 by HarperCollins. In July 2014, the book was optioned in a pre-emptive deal by Paramount Pictures, with Allison Shearmur (THE HUNGER GAMES, CINDERELLA) producing.

In Winter 2015, Portes spy thriller series LIBERTY was bought in a three-book deal by HarperCollins. Twentieth Century Fox-Fox 2000 acquired the rights to LIBERTY and will be producing the series with Wyck Godfrey (TWILIGHT, THE FAULT IN OUR STARS).

Her fourth book, THE FALL OF BUTTERFLIES will be out in May 2016 published by HarperCollins.

Portes also chose HarperCollins to publish HENRY & EVA AND THE CASTLE ON THE CLIFF, the first in a middle reader series of HENRY & EVA books. The second release in the series will be HENRY & EVA AND THE FAMOUS PEOPLE GHOSTS.

Portes is currently working on THEY WERE LIKE WOLVES, a work of literary fiction. 

Review: Things we know by Heart by Jess Kirby

Things we know by Heart

Author: Jess Kirby

Series: -

Pages: 304

Publisher: HarperTeen

Release date: 21^st April 2015

Amazon – TBD

Synopsis: (Goodreads)

When Quinn Sullivan meets the recipient of her boyfriend’s donated heart, the two form an unexpected connection.

After Quinn loses her boyfriend, Trent, in an accident their junior year, she reaches out to the recipients of his donated organs in hopes of picking up the pieces of her now-unrecognizable life. She hears back from some of them, but the person who received Trent’s heart has remained silent. The essence of a person, she has always believed, is in the heart. If she finds Trent’s, then maybe she can have peace once and for all. 

Risking everything in order to finally lay her memories to rest, Quinn goes outside the system to track down nineteen-year-old Colton Thomas—a guy whose life has been forever changed by this priceless gift. But what starts as an accidental run-in quickly develops into more, sparking an undeniable attraction. She doesn't want to give in to it—especially since he has no idea how they're connected—but their time together has made Quinn feel alive again. No matter how hard she’s falling for Colton, each beat of his heart reminds her of all she’s lost…and all that remains at stake.

Review: 4 out of 5 stars

When Quinn lost her boyfriend Trent in a tragic accident she thought her way to move forward was to contact each of the recipients who had received his organs; she heard from everyone except for nineteen-year-old Colton Thomas, the received of his heart.

Things we know by Heart is a heart-breaking read, I honestly didn’t think there would be a HEA in this book which I'm always hoping for because how can someone move on from love and heartache with the person who now owns her deceased boyfriends heart? But it was written well, was believable and showed that love can still be found after such a tragedy.

Quinn was a great character, I did feel she acted on impulse and without thinking but I also feel she did it with the best of intentions. Colt was a wonderfully sweet, caring guy who just wanted to live a healthy and happy life since a lot of it was spent inside of a hospital, I loved the relationship he came to have with Quinn, it was realistic and sweet and wasn’t without struggle and guilt on Quinn’s part.

With newfound happiness also comes drama when there is one party keeping a big secret so throughout the book you are just anticipating the reveal and I have to admit I did cringe when it came up but it was dealt with in a way that was realistic in the reactions.

Jess Kirby’s writing is beautifully lyrical and kept me engaged from the first page, it was a wonderfully endearing book filled with great characters, an engaging yet heart-wrenching storyline and it certainly bought out all the emotions. Highly recommended.

Thank you to HarperTeen via Edelweiss for the opportunity to read and review Things we know by Heart.

About the author: 

Jessi Kirby is a former English teacher and librarian. She lives in Orange County, CA with her husband and two kids, where she writes stories and runs the beach every day. Well, almost every day. 

You can contact Jessi at jessi@jessikirby.com

Review: Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard

Red Queen

Author: Victoria Aveyard

Series: Red Queen

Pages: 320

Publisher: Harper Teen

Release date: 10^th February 2015

Amazon – TBD

Synopsis: (Goodreads)

A thrilling new fantasy trilogy for fans of DIVERGENT and THE HUNGER GAMES.

The poverty stricken Reds are commoners, living under the rule of the Silvers, elite warriors with god-like powers.

To Mare Barrow, a 17-year-old Red girl from The Stilts, it looks like nothing will ever change.

Mare finds herself working in the Silver Palace, at the centre of
those she hates the most. She quickly discovers that, despite her red blood, she possesses a deadly power of her own. One that threatens to destroy Silver control.

But power is a dangerous game. And in this world divided by blood, who will win?

Review: 4 out of 5 stars

The few reviews I had seen for Red Queen prior to reading it were high in praise so I started this one expecting greatness and I’m pleased to say it didn’t fail to disappoint.

Our MC is Mare Barrow who lives in a world divided by blood – silver and red; she is from a family of poorly reds who are destined to serve the elite silvers that are differentiated by their supernatural abilities. The concept is extremely unique and I liked the details we are given about the different classes.

Mare is a skilled thief and an extremely likeable heroine, she was strong and determined with a cunning and stubborn personality; when her best friend is conscripted into the army she does everything she can to win his freedom, but when her own unusual ability is discovered it brings out a whole new saga and a plan by the royals to arrange a marriage between Mare and their son so the knowledge that reds have powers isn’t revealed – she becomes a lost silver princess, her time at the palace is also an opportunity for Mare to secretly plot with the Scarlet Guard who lead the red rebellion.

There are a number of mind blowing plot twists and turns I never expected, there were secrets, political conspiracies and betrayals and it all came together nicely, the world-building is beautifully imagined with an ending that left me gaping. The action had me sitting on the edge of my seat and the smidgeon of romance was well written but certainly wasn’t at the forefront of the story.

All of the characters are fascinating and written to perfection; each played a pivotal role in the overall story, I had no idea who could be trusted and in the end I was spot on. Cal and Maven had me intrigued!

Red Queen is a fabulously thrilling YA Fantasy, it all came together perfectly and I’m more than eager to read the next book in the series.

Thank you to Harper Teen via Edelweiss for the opportunity to read and review Red Queen.

About the author: I'm a screenwriter/YA author who likes books and lists. This site is the nexus of my universe.

My book RED QUEEN will be published Winter 2015 from HarperTeen at HarperCollins. I'm repped by the incomparable Suzie Townsend at New Leaf Literary & Media, Inc. 

The genres I'm into include YA, Fantasy, Historical, Adventure, Apocalyptic - if people are dying, I'm buying.

ARC Review: Don't Touch by Rachel M. Wilson

Don’t Touch

Author: Rachel M. Wilson

Series: -

Pages: 432

Publisher: HarperTeen

Amazon

Release date: 2^nd September 2014

Synopsis:

A powerful story of a girl who is afraid to touch another person’s skin, until the boy auditioning for Hamlet opposite her Ophelia gives her a reason to overcome her fears.

Step on a crack, break your mother’s back. Touch another person’s skin, and Dad’s gone for good.

Caddie can’t stop thinking that if she keeps from touching another person’s skin, her parents might get back together…which is why she wears full-length gloves to school and covers every inch of her skin.

It seems harmless at first, but Caddie’s obsession soon threatens her ambitions as an actress. She desperately wants to play Ophelia in her school’s production of Hamlet. But that would mean touching Peter, who’s auditioning for the title role—and kissing him. Part of Caddie would love nothing more than to kiss Peter—but the other part isn't sure she's brave enough to let herself fall.

Perfect for fans of Laurie Halse Anderson, this debut novel from Rachel M. Wilson is a moving story of a talented girl who's fighting an increasingly severe anxiety disorder, and the friends and family who stand by her.

Includes back matter from the author.

Review: 3 ½ out of 5 stars

Don’t Touch is a story about a young girl named Caddie who has ambitions to be an actress but suffers from severe anxiety and has a fear about touching anyone. She created ‘games’ such as Touch another person’s skin, and Dad’s gone for good as a way to justify why she doesn’t touch.

The characters Caddie was an MC I unfortunately found lacklustre, I definitely felt sorry for the way she suffered but she wasn’t honest or forthcoming with anyone at all, especially with her family and her childhood best-friend Mandy who I thought was a wonderful support and Peter who despite his own personal struggles was fabulous; she was surrounded by a great group of new friends at the academy who were all developed well and likable.

The plot was interesting and relatively slow paced as we watch Caddie face her fears, yearn for touch, play Ophelia in her favourite play, grow close to her peers and find love – Caddie had not only her OCD to deal with but also moving to a new school and her parents separation. I liked seeing the progress Caddie would make; the author wrote her issues and reactions perfectly and with kindness,

Rachel M. Wilson’s writing is engaging and sympathetic, she knew her subject matter extremely well and wrote with compassion; as a sufferer of anxiety myself I found myself nodding along to Caddie’s reactions on numerous occasions - her writing is personal and gets right inside the MC’s mind. It is a wonderful debut.

What I liked:

• Don’t Touch is a standalone! We need more of these.
• The romance was done very well and wasn’t at the forefront of the story.
• The acting and Shakespeare scenes.
• I want a best friend like Mandy!
• I liked that Caddie was seeking professional help to deal with her problem; it wasn’t brushed off and ignored.
• The authors note at the end.

What I wasn’t a huge fan of:

• The MC came across as flat, her anxiety was the main focus and her passion for acting I didn’t feel was fully portrayed in her actions, I would have liked to have seen more of her personality shine through.

Overall, despite struggling with the main character, I did enjoy Don’t Touch and the overall storyline which I feel the author wrote extremely well.

Thank-you kindly to HarperTeen for the opportunity to read and review Don’t Touch.

 

About the author: Rachel M. Wilson is the author of the contemporary YA, DON'T TOUCH, forthcoming from HarperTeen, Sep. 2, 2014. 

She graduated from Northwestern University and holds an MFA in Writing for Children & Young Adults from Vermont College of Fine Arts. Rachel grew up in Birmingham, AL, and she currently writes, acts, and teaches in Chicago, IL.

Rachel's all over the Interwebs: 
On Twitter @byRachelMWilson
On Instagram: @byRachelMWilson
On Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/rachelwilson...
On Tumblr:http://rachelmwilson.tumblr.com/

ARC Review: Feral by Holly Schindler

Feral

Author: Holly Schindler

Series: -

Pages: 432

Publisher: HarperTeen

Amazon

Release date: 26/08/2014

Synopsis. (Goodreads)

The Lovely Bones meets Black Swan in this haunting psychological thriller with twists and turns that will make you question everything you think you know.

It’s too late for you. You’re dead. Those words continue to haunt Claire Cain months after she barely survived a brutal beating in Chicago. So when her father is offered a job in another state, Claire is hopeful that getting out will offer her a way to start anew.

But when she arrives in Peculiar, Missouri, Claire feels an overwhelming sense of danger, and her fears are confirmed when she discovers the body of a popular high school student in the icy woods behind the school, surrounded by the town’s feral cats. While everyone is quick to say it was an accident, Claire knows there’s more to it, and vows to learn the truth about what happened. 

But the closer she gets to uncovering the mystery, the closer she also gets to realizing a frightening reality about herself and the damage she truly sustained in that Chicago alley….

Holly Schindler’s gripping story is filled with heart-stopping twists and turns that will keep readers guessing until the very last page.

Review: 4 out of 5 stars

Feral by Holly Schindler was such a freaky read! It hand my mind reeling from the very first page, I had absolutely no idea what was going on and I loved every moment of it.

Claire and her father have moved to small town Peculiar, strange things begin to happen and Claire is convinced the ghost of Serena Sims is haunting her so she makes it her mission to solve the mystery of her death which was brutally detailed in the first chapter. It was gruesome, thrilling, and suspenseful and to be honest I was baffled by what was going on; it was an edge of your seat angst-filled book that had me glued to the pages.

The characters were written well but not all of them were likeable, Claire was a broken character after a brutal attack left her for dead; with unresolved, big issues you could certainly understand her fears and reactions. Her father was an amazing support as was Rich who became a great friend. Becca’s actions were questionable and forced, she was guilt-ridden and I spent the book wondering if there was more to it, her interactions with the other characters gave me the feeling she was hiding something.

The murder/mystery aspect was done well, everyone to me was s suspect but there was a certain someone who did stand out and in the end I was right in accusing them. I won’t reveal too much to avoid spoilers but everything came together nicely, there were surprising twists and turns along the way that kept things interesting.

Holly Schindlers writing drew me in from the first page with her chilling, descriptive storytelling, the psychological aspect was done well as was the characterisations; even her imagery of the feral overpopulation of the cats was freaky! There were small parts of the story that did become quite sluggish but needing to know what was going on kept me powering through it.

What surprised me was the uncertain feeling this book has – there were no conclusive answers initially which left me confused but also intrigued by what was actually happening, the mental and emotional aspects were compelling, I was absorbed by the mystery and left saddened by the believability of the subject matter; it’s a story which makes you think and the overall message is heartbreaking.

Overall, Feral is a great psychological thriller with an intriguing mystery; it’s a book which is dark and gritty and held my attention throughout wanting to know more about Claire and what was going on with her, with feral cats, a freaky ghost, wonderful writing and an interesting cast of characters – Feral was a book that had me mesmerised and the outcome certainly surprised me.

 

About the author: (Goodreads) My debut YA novel, A Blue So Dark, earned a starred review in Booklist, was named one of Booklist's Top 10 First Novels for Youth, received a silver medal from the ForeWord Reviews Book of the Year Awards, and won a gold medal in the IPPYs. Playing Hurt, my first romance, released in 2011. My first MG, The Junction of Sunshine and Lucky, released in 2014.

My next YA, Feral, will release August 26, 2014.

I can be found online at hollyschindler.com, and at my blog, Novel Anecdotes (hollyschindler.blogspot.com).

ARC Review: (Don’t You) Forget About Me by Kate Karyus Quinn

(Don’t You) Forget About Me

Author: Kate Karyus Quinn

Series: -

Pages: 336

Publisher: Harper Teen

Amazon

Release date: 10^th June 2014

Synopsis. (Goodreads)

Welcome to Gardnerville.

A place where no one gets sick. And no one ever dies.

Except...
There’s a price to pay for paradise. Every fourth year, the strange power that fuels the town exacts its payment by infecting teens with deadly urges. In a normal year in Gardnerville, teens might stop talking to their best friends. In a fourth year, they’d kill them.

Four years ago, Skylar’s sister, Piper, was locked away after leading sixteen of her classmates to a watery grave. Since then, Skylar has lived in a numb haze, struggling to forget her past and dull the pain of losing her sister. But the secrets and memories Piper left behind keep taunting Skylar—whispering that the only way to get her sister back is to stop Gardnerville’s murderous cycle once and for all.

Review: 2 out of 5 stars

I had no idea what to expect when I first started (Don’t You) Forget About Me (I can’t get the song out of my head every time I say or write it), the concept seemed unique but unfortunately despite its differences to other books in the genre, I was confused for a majority of it and bored at other times; it just wasn’t for me.

Our MC Skylar’s sister Piper was locked away after she supposedly led sixteen of her classmates to their grave. Skylar now lives off a forget-me-not drug to numb her pain and to forget her past and as the story progresses small pieces of information are slowly revealed about what she is trying so hard to block out & it definitely wasn’t what I was expecting! Sklyar wasn’t a character I could relate to unfortunately and I think this is what ultimately led to me not being so invested in the story, she was lacklustre and her narrative voice didn’t hold my interest.

The plot was interesting but also quite complex; the mystical town of Gardnerville is a place where no one gets sick and no one ever dies but every fourth year, teens are tainted with lethal impulses, an original premise and quite intriguing but unfortunately for a majority of the book I was questioning what was going on and was quite underwhelmed and really confused. The last third of the book was where a lot of answers were given and it definitely wasn’t what I had expected but by this stage my attention had tapered off and I was ready for something else.

The mystery surrounding the town is what held my interest as well as what had happened to Skylar’s sister Piper, I never quite knew what was going on, what she had done or who the key player/s were so this aspect was one I enjoyed.

Overall, (Don’t You) Forget About Me is unlike anything I have read before; I can’t fault the writing which was fabulous but unfortunately this book just wasn’t for me.

 

About the author: Kate Karyus Quinn is an avid reader and menthol chapstick addict. She has lived in California and Tennessee, but recently made the move back to her hometown of Buffalo, New York, with her husband and two children in tow. She promised them wonderful people, amazing food, and weather that would... build character. Another Little Piece is her first novel.

ARC Review: PUSH (The Game #2) by Eve Silver

PUSH

Author: Eve Silver
Series: The Game
Pages: 352
Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books
Amazon
Release date: 10th June 2014

Synopsis. (Goodreads)

It’s either break the rules or die.

Miki Jones lives her life by her own strict set of rules, to keep control, to keep the gray fog of grief at bay. Then she’s pulled into the Game, where she—and her team—will die unless she follows a new set of rules: those set by the mysterious Committee.

But rules don’t mean answers, and without answers, it’s hard to trust. People are dying. The rules are unraveling. And Miki knows she’s being watched, uncertain if it’s the Drau or someone—something—else. Forced to make impossible choices and battling to save those she loves, Miki begins to see the Committee in a glaring new light.

And then the Game crosses a new boundary, pushes harder into Miki’s and her friends’ lives, and there’s nothing in the rules that can save them now.

Push is the sequel Rush fans will be screaming for.

Review: 4 ½ out of 5 stars

Contains possible spoilers from the first book

I loved the first book in this series, RUSH so I was super excited to read the sequel PUSH which really amped things up and left me on the edge of my seat throughout the book needing more. I really like the overall concept of this series and the dangerous world the author has created has left me anxious to read the next book.

In RUSH we find out the reasoning why Miki was bought in to the Game - a highs take real life game where humans are pulled from their normal life at any given time to fight against an alien species known as the Drau in order to protect earth and mankind but the rules seem to be constantly changing by the mysterious committee and the ability to stay alive is getting harder and harder.

Miki Jones is a fabulous heroine, things aren’t always easy for her and her emotions in PUSH were all over the place for very good reason and loyalties were questioned. Jackson is still as mysterious and gruff as ever but he opens himself up a little more in this book and shows his softer more protective side, especially when it came to Miki but I think he is still being quite cagey about what he knows.

Everything about PUSH was kicked up a notch – the action, danger, fear, mystery and the romance; I finished the book with more questions than answers which I hope will be cleared up in the next book, things are definitely getting exciting and I’m eager to see how it will all play out.

I love alternate reality situations and the premise for this series is incredibly unique with world-building that is fascinating and leaves you yearning for more. There was never a dull moment in PUSH, There are some amazing action scenes as well as plot twists and of course a great budding romance, the pacing was perfect for me and I have become really invested in all of the characters, secondary included.

PUSH is a great sequel with a wonderful blend of action, romance and suspense. The book is very well written, with a solid story-line and likeable characters. I love reading books that keep me guessing! Things are certainly getting more intense and complex. I'm definitely looking forward to the next installment, CRASH which has an anticipated 2015 release date.

Thank-you to Edelweiss and Katherine Tegen Books for providing me with a review copy of PUSH!

  

About the author:

National bestselling author Eve Silver has been praised for her “edgy, steamy, action-packed” books, darkly sexy heroes and take-charge heroines. Her work has garnered starred reviews from Publishers Weekly, Library Journal, and Quill and Quire, two RT Book Reviews Reviewers’ Choice Awards, Library Journal’s Best Genre Fiction Award, and she was nominated for the Romance Writers of America® RITA® Award. The first book in Eve’s new teen series, THE GAME: RUSH, is available now. Watch for PUSH, coming from Katherine Tegen Books, June 2014.

Eve lives with her husband, two sons, an energetic Airedale terrier and an exuberant border collie/shepherd. Contact Eve through her website at http://www.evesilver.net

Visit Eve on Twitterhttp://twitter.com/Eve_Silver