The Kiss of Deception by Mary E. Pearson

The Kiss of Deception by Mary E. Pearson

Published by Macmillan

Available Now

Reviewed by YA Sisterhood's Mom

The Sister's Say:  Wonderful and Exciting

A princess must find her place in a reborn world.

She flees on her wedding day.

She steals ancient documents from the Chancellor's secret collection.

She is pursued by bounty hunters sent by her own father.

She is Princess Lia, seventeen, First Daughter of the House of Morrighan.

The Kingdom of Morrighan is steeped in tradition and the stories of a bygone world, but some traditions Lia can't abide. Like having to marry someone she's never met to secure a political alliance.

Fed up and ready for a new life, Lia flees to a distant village on the morning of her wedding. She settles in among the common folk, intrigued when two mysterious and handsome strangers arrive—and unaware that one is the jilted prince and the other an assassin sent to kill her. Deceptions swirl and Lia finds herself on the brink of unlocking perilous secrets—secrets that may unravel her world—even as she feels herself falling in love.

Two young men—the Assassin and the Prince. Both are chasing Lia—the prince because she injured his pride by fleeing their arranged marriage and the assassin to make sure she doesn’t return. When Lia meets them in her new life, she is attracted to both. Of course, the exciting part is that she knows who neither is. The excitement is doubled when neither man can follow through with their vengeance against Lia, but instead finds himself falling in love.

What a wonderful search for what love is! I was a little leery of the comments I had read about the love triangle, but I think these readers totally missed the truth of the relationships in this book.  It is so much more than a love triangle, but more about the friendship of those who loved and were tossed aside and those who have never loved at all. The enlightenment is that love isn’t always perfect, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t real love.

Pearson describes this journey to discovery with beautiful language, and she has created a blend of the past and future into a fantasy world made up of three powerful nations: Venda, Dalbreck, and Morrighan. Among these nations she draws together a native of each, who share a cultural hatred of each other, yet they are drawn together as friends. The war between attraction and hatred makes for a wonderful page turner.

Amid these colorful characters and fantastic plot, Pearson shares some poignant truths about life: “It can take years to mold a dream.  It takes only a fraction of a second for it to be shattered.”

I am also stealing her beautiful bedtime prayer (altered it just a bit): “May God grant you a still heart, heavy eyes, and angels guarding your door.”

And if you aren’t hooked with all these things, the beautiful ending will blow you away. I don’t want to reveal any spoilers, but let me just say that I know the most perfect words to melt a woman’s heart are “In the farthest corner…I will find you.” (Swallow, swallow, tear, tear, heart thump)

Now I am sitting here waiting for the next book of their journey, and when it makes its way to the shelves, wherever it is…in the farthest corner…I will find it!

Death Sworn Blog Tour Review: Review and Giveaway

Death Sworn by Leah Cypess

Available Now

Published by Harper Teen

Reviewed by:  Middle Sis Jenn

The Sisters Say:  Unique setting, yummy alpha male, but slow paced at times

When Ileni lost her magic, she lost everything: her place in society, her purpose in life, and the man she had expected to spend her life with. So when the Elders sent her to be magic tutor to a secret sect of assassins, she went willingly, even though the last two tutors had died under mysterious circumstances.

But beneath the assassins’ caves, Ileni will discover a new place and a new purpose… and a new and dangerous love. She will struggle to keep her lost magic a secret while teaching it to her deadly students, and to find out what happened to the two tutors who preceded her. But what she discovers will change not only her future, but the future of her people, the assassins… and possibly the entire world.

It seems that High Fantasy is the new big thing in ya literature lately, so, like many other readers, I have jumped on the bandwagon.  I will admit, I’m not usually a huge fan of high fantasy, but there are some worlds that really catch my eye.  Leah’s world (at least the part of it we see) is unique and suspenseful, and while it lacked in the romance (cries), it was still a fun and quick read.

I liked that the story dives right in from the first sentence, no dull and drawn out world building.  Now many of you might complain about this, but so many high fantasies just seem to drone on and on and on about the world and the setting.  Leah doesn’t waste her time with this and jumps right in to the good stuff.  Now, at the same time, I do wish we could have seen a little more of the world.  The entire book takes place inside a mountain.  It’s dank, dark, and deliciously scary—but at the same time, I wanted to see a little bit more.

Ileni is our main character, and while she didn’t bug me, she didn’t really wow me either.  I liked her confidence and her determination to not let the all the assassin students get the best of her.  She stands her ground and even though her magic is fading, she manages to hold her own.   Then we have Soren, supposedly the best of the assassins.  He comes off as ill-tempered, but there is just something sexy about his alpha tendencies.  If only there was more romance!!!  This is my major complaint with ALL high fantasies—romance takes a back seat.  Romance is my absolute favorite part of ya, so I seem to have a difficult time with the lack thereof.

Most of the book is written in 3^rd person limited, where we just see Ileni’s pov.  However, we get brief glimpses into the “Master.”  Let’s just say, those brief glimpses will make you want to rear back and knee him straight in his magic place.  He’s just so cruel, and he makes it a point that everyone in the cave sees him as the ultimate power.  As far as villains go, he’s pretty good.

Overall, this is an interesting read, although lacking in a few key places.  Still, if you are a high fantasy fan, you should definitely check it out.

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Tour Schedule and Buy Links:

Week One:

2/24/2014- Two Chicks on Books- Original Content

2/25/2014- Mundie Moms-Original Content

2/26/2014- Bookish- Original content

2/27/2014- Fiktshun- Original Content

2/28/2014- Magical Urban Fantasy Reads-Review or Original Content

Week Two:

3/3/2014- Supernatural Snark- Original content

3/4/2014- Page Turners - Original Content

3/5/2014- Tales of a Ravenous Reader- Original content

3/6/2014- YA Sisterhood- Review

3/7/2014- A Backwards Story- Original content      

DEATH SWORN

Author: Leah Cypess

Release Date: March 4, 2014

Pages: 352

Publisher: Greenwillow Books

Goodreads/Amazon/Barnes & Noble

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Defy by Sara B. Larson

Defy by Sara B. Larson
Published by Scholastic
Available Now
Reviewed by YA Sisterhood's Mom
The Sisters (and Mom) say:  Fantastic, A Must Read!

A lush and gorgeously written debut, packed with action, intrigue, and a thrilling love triangle.

Alexa Hollen is a fighter. Forced to disguise herself as a boy and serve in the king's army, Alex uses her quick wit and fierce sword-fighting skills to earn a spot on the elite prince's guard. But when a powerful sorcerer sneaks into the palace in the dead of night, even Alex, who is virtually unbeatable, can't prevent him from abducting her, her fellow guard and friend Rylan, and Prince Damian, taking them through the treacherous wilds of the jungle and deep into enemy territory.

The longer Alex is held captive with both Rylan and the prince, the more she realizes that she is not the only one who has been keeping dangerous secrets. And suddenly, after her own secret is revealed, Alex finds herself confronted with two men vying for her heart: the safe and steady Rylan, who has always cared for her, and the dark, intriguing Damian. With hidden foes lurking around every corner, is Alex strong enough to save herself and the kingdom she's sworn to protect?

I DEFY you to read the first ten pages of Sara B. Larson’s DEFY and not be totally hooked! I definitely am! This is Larson’s debut novel and WOW does she know how to enter the literary world with style!

First, she has created a plot that literally magnetizes readers of YA. Alexa and her twin brother Marcel are children when they are taken captive by the King. Knowing that the fate of male captives in this kingdom is to be forced into the army and female captives to serve as breeders to increase the size of the King’s army, Marcel chops off Alexa’s hair and she becomes “Alex.” Now it is four years later and both seventeen-year-old Marcel and Alex, through extensive training, are members of the Prince’s Royal Guard. In fact, Alex has proven to be the best fighter in the guard and after an assassination attempt on  Damian, the Prince, Alex must guard him night and day. Alex begins to notice that the twenty-three-year- old Prince puts on the appearance of an apathetic, spoiled son of the King, but she alone finds that it is simply that—an appearance. But in a kingdom where to defy the king is a mortal mistake, can she trust Damian? Should she keep his secrets? And even more frightening, will he keep hers?

Larson’s characterization of the protagonist is AMAZING! Creating a character who must believably blend a male role as Alex and female as Alexa is quite challenging. Larson builds suspense not only through the life and death conflicts she faces but also in the situations in which Alexa is placed, where the reader just knows she can never pull off the charade of being Alex. However, Larson’s twisting of the plot creatively does so successfully.

I do have to admit that the breeding houses were disturbing, but I applaud Larson for handling it tastefully. You have to admit that just to mention young girls imprisoned for this is horrific, but the lesson it teaches to teens far outweighs the uncomfortable subject. Does it need to be in the book? Definitely, yes! We have to understand from what atrocity Alexa’s masquerade is saving her. And, finally, Alexa shows us that no matter the reach of evil into a country, everyone has a responsibility to fight that corruption.

The ending was so powerful! Even though it is set up for a series, it actually has a conclusion and doesn’t leave you with a heart rending cliffhanger for which you have to wait for months, yet you are still ready to read more about amazing Alexa. So I am hopping on the Larson Locomotive, definitely a fan, and I DEFY you to resist coming aboard, too!

The Burning Sky by Sherry Thomas

The Burning Sky by Sherry Thomas

eARC received from Harper Teen via Edelweiss

Release Date:  9-17-2013

Reviewed by:  Middle Sis Jenn

The Sisters Say:  Okay, but didn’t live up to its hype

It all began with a ruined elixir and an accidental bolt of lightning…

Iolanthe Seabourne is the greatest elemental mage of her generation—or so she's being told. The one prophesied for years to be the savior of The Realm. It is her duty and destiny to face and defeat the Bane, the greatest mage tyrant the world has ever known. A suicide task for anyone let alone a sixteen-year-old girl with no training, facing a prophecy that foretells a fiery clash to the death.

Prince Titus of Elberon has sworn to protect Iolanthe at all costs but he's also a powerful mage committed to obliterating the Bane to avenge the death of his family—even if he must sacrifice both Iolanthe and himself to achieve his goal.

But Titus makes the terrifying mistake of falling in love with the girl who should have been only a means to an end. Now, with the servants of the Bane closing in, he must choose between his mission and her life.

I was looking forward to reading this one because I had heard that it was great.  Unfortunately, while many other reviewers loved it; this just wasn’t the book for me. 

My biggest problem was that the action was very slow up until the midway point.  I think I was over 200 pages into it before I became truly interested.  On more than one occasion, I thought about putting it to the side.  However, I wanted to finish it to see what everyone was talking about.  Overall, there was just too much down time in the plot.  I could have done with 100 less pages; I think it was have blotted out the dull moments and gave more emphasis to the important relationship being built.

Please don’t take this review as entirely negative because it is not.  I would give this book 3 stars because my interest level did pick up once I got to see more of the world that Sherry Thomas was trying to build.  The characters were fun, and while there was nothing special about them, I didn’t find myself not caring about their destinies.  I actually read the last part of the book rather quickly since the action picked up, and I found myself my interested in the outcome.

The two main characters are Iola (also known as Fairfax) and Prince Titus.  They were enjoyable characters, but they didn’t really stand out.  One good thing is they didn’t read as false, so I was never annoyed by them; I just didn’t really take to them all that much.  Iola was strong and stubborn, but I felt like we didn’t really get to know her that well.  Her emotions were not shown very often.  We get to see much more of Prince Titus’s emotions, and as a result, I did like him much more that Iola.  While trained in lies and deceit, he seemed much more real than any of the other characters.  I could see his fear and uncertainty, and for that, I enjoyed him.

While I was somewhat entertained with the plot, I was sadly disappointed in the weak ending.  It seemed like there were 350 pages of build-up, where there was going to be this epic battle.  Then, when the time came for said battle, it was over in a few pages.  There wasn’t much detail in it, and Iola’s break throughs were not a focus.  She is supposed to be this great mage, and yet, she wasn’t the focus at all.  It felt completely flat, and I was extremely disappointed.

Overall, I think fans of high fantasy will enjoy it, although there are many better high fantasy novels out there.  I don’t know if I will pick up the sequel to this one when it comes out.  I just finished the book about 30 minutes ago, so right now I think I’m a bit too close to my disappointment.  So, I’ll wait a bit and decide if it is something I care to try again in the future.

Poison by Bridget Zinn

Poison by Bridget Zinn

ARC received from Disney Hyperion

Release Date:  3-12-2013

Reviewed by:  Middle Sis Jenn

The Sisters Say:  Enchanting, Enigmatic, and Endearing

Sixteen-year-old Kyra, a highly-skilled potions master, is the only one who knows her kingdom is on the verge of destruction—which means she’s the only one who can save it. Faced with no other choice, Kyra decides to do what she does best: poison the kingdom’s future ruler, who also happens to be her former best friend.

But, for the first time ever, her poisoned dart . . . misses.

Now a fugitive instead of a hero, Kyra is caught in a game of hide-and-seek with the king’s army and her potioner ex-boyfriend, Hal. At least she’s not alone. She’s armed with her vital potions, a too-cute pig, and Fred, the charming adventurer she can’t stop thinking about. Kyra is determined to get herself a second chance (at murder), but will she be able to find and defeat the princess before Hal and the army find her?

Kyra is not your typical murderer, and she’s certainly no damsel-in-distress—she’s the lovable and quick-witted hero of this romantic novel that has all the right ingredients to make teen girls swoon.

From the first look at Poison, I really didn’t know what to expect.  The blurb bore a striking resemblance to my favorite childhood cartoon, The Black Cauldron, though, and I just had to read it to see if it was similar.  I mean, both have the enchanted pig, the riffraff guy, and the beautiful girl.  After reading Poison, I will say that I loved it!  It was very similar to my fave cartoon in some aspects, but there were parts of the story, like Kyra herself, that was all Bridget’s imagination.  I’m so sorry that Bridget passed away before getting the chance to write a second novel in this world.

Bridget’s world was delightful—full of intrigue, deception, and romance.  I loved the “kind of” magic that blanketed the world.  What do I mean by that?  I mean that the world wasn’t so full of magic like your Harry Potter’s or the like, but it had touches of it here and there.  Kyra’s potions were the most interesting—she had potions for everything—from ones that open doors to ones that turn people into wooden statues.  It was fascinating to see Kyra work and create new and old combinations.

Now, let’s get to the fun part—Fred.  I liked him the moment he first entered the story—which was hilarious by the way.  I had to stop a few times to let myself catch my breath because the picture that Bridget painted was so alive and over the top.  It’s been a while since I have read this book, and I can still picture Kyra (in her undies) and Fred’s reaction to them.  The romance in this book was so sweet and innocent, which makes this book perfect for MG readers, but also YA readers who enjoy the high fantasy world.  It was a nice change of pace, and I admire Bridget for keeping the romance enjoyable yet clean. 

Fred was such a fun character—he was rough and tough, and he didn’t let anyone push him around.  He provided some comic relief from Kyra’s circumstances, and he really helped to liven up the storyline.  There was just something about him, and I can’t quite put my finger on it, but he was just the kind of guy everyone likes.

Kyra was such a great heroine, and that’s a big thing for me to say, because if you follow my reviews, you know it’s hard to impress me with a great heroine.  But Kyra did it!  She’s the super kick-butt assassin who knows that her best friend (the future ruler) must die or the kingdom will pretty much die a slow and agonizing death.  So, she has to make a brutally difficult decision.  I admire that she was strong enough to make that decision, but at the same time, she wouldn’t just push aside her guilt.  I felt every emotion along with her, and I really felt like I knew Kyra by the end of the novel.

Bridget Zinn’s debut novel is thrilling and passionate.  Based in a world where magic looms around every corner, where truth and deceit are separated by a thin line, and where love might be the only thing that can conquer evil, Bridget’s book will open your eyes to a new kind of fantasy.  There are plenty of plot twists and turns (some predictable, some not so much), and there’s a little something for everyone in this wonderful tale of murder and truth.