Review: Succubus on Top

“His eyes, I’d long since discovered, could be as eloquent and expressive as his pen. The messages they sent me now hardly seemed decent for a public setting.” 

Succubus on Top (Georgina Kincaid #2) by Richelle Mead is an excellent follow up to Succubus Blues, and the cover is phenomenal compared to Succubus Blues. 

Love hurts, and no one knows it better than Georgina Kincaid. If she so much as kisses Seth Mortensen, the shy, sexy writer she's been dating, she'll drain his life force. Admittedly, the shape shifting and immortality perks of a succubus are terrific, but it's completely unfair that a she-demon whose purpose is seduction can't get down with the one mortal who accepts her for who she is. . .
It's not just her personal life that's in chaos. Doug, Georgina's co-worker at a local bookstore, has been exhibiting bizarre behavior, and Georgina suspects something far more demonic than double espressos. She could use an assist from Bastien, an irresistibly charming incubus and her best immortal friend, but he's giving Georgina some highly distracting come-hither vibes. Georgina is going to have to work solo on this one--and fast, because soon, Doug's life won't be the only one on the line. . .
     Bastien, the incubus, was an interesting addition to Georgina Kincaid World. I liked that Bastien was Haitian it added a great deal to the already diverse group. As far as the main plot, the god giving humans ambrosia that turned them essentially into drug addicts, I'm not so sure it was as interesting as the subplot, Bastien trying to woo Dana, the organizer of a pro Christian family values group. 
     Georgina's semi-aloof personality is starting to wear on me. I knew within the first few chapters that some god/higher demon was in town and that Doug had sold his soul to some new Imp or had done something similar to become so popular and talented. The god date raping humans was a bit much. Oh, I also new that Dana was a lesbian. She was just way too interested in Bastien's "sister." 

Overall this series is very formulaic and is turning into a junk food read for me. With that being said I did enjoy the read, but I'm also glade Richelle Mead had enough common sense to not pull an Anita Blake or Stephanie Plum and turn this into an extremely long and predictable series. 

Really 3.5 out of 5

Review/Teen Tuesday #5: Gone (DNF)

"Welcome to Perdido beach, where our motto is: Radiation, what radiation?" 

Gone by Michael Grant isn't a horrible book if you are wondering why I didn't finish it (DNF). I'm just not into third person point of view books, and everyone in the book is under 15 years old, which shouldn't be a big deal considering it's in the premise, but it bothers me. I picked this book out because I have never read a post-apocalyptic novel, even though I'm a big fan of movies from the same genre (e.g. The Road, Waterworld, and The Book Of Eli). *Wait, I actually think I need to amend that last statement. I've read The Host by Stephanie Meyer, which I think counts as a post-apocalyptic novel.

In the blink of an eye, everyone disappears. Gone. Except for the young.

There are teens, but not one single adult. Just as suddenly, there are no phones, no internet, no television. No way to get help. And no way to figure out what's happened. 

Hunger threatens. Bullies rule. A sinister creature lurks. Animals are mutating. And the teens themselves are changing, developing new talents—unimaginable, dangerous, deadly powers—that grow stronger by the day. It's a terrifying new world. Sides are being chosen, a fight is shaping up. Townies against rich kids. Bullies against the weak. Powerful against powerless. And time is running out: On your birthday, you disappear just like everyone else...

I would recommend this book to actual young adults around the ages of the characters and also to people who enjoyed Lord Of The Flies. This series does have a supernatural flare though so if that bothers you I would steer clear.

Is it fair for me to rate this book, since I didn't finish it? I'm not sure but there's my rating anyway.

Review: Succubus Blues

“How do you know if a demon is lying? His lips are moving.” 

Succubus Blues Georgina Kincaid #1) by Richelle Mead is a must read for paranormal romance fans. I don't give a lot of books four cupcakes or more but this one has earned it.

When it comes to jobs in hell, being a succubus seems pretty glamorous. A girl can be anything she wants, the wardrobe is killer, and mortal men will do anything just for a touch. Granted, they often pay with their souls, but why get technical? 

But Seattle succubus Georgina Kincaid's life is far less exotic. At least there's her day job at a local bookstore--free books; all the white chocolate mochas she can drink; and easy access to bestselling, sexy writer, Seth Mortensen, aka He Whom She Would Give Anything to Touch but Can't.

But dreaming about Seth will have to wait. Something wicked is at work in Seattle's demon underground. And for once, all of her hot charms and drop-dead one-liners won't help because Georgina's about to discover there are some creatures out there that both heaven and hell want to deny.

As I've said in my previous reviews, I don't normally like protagonists. They generally have some weird quirk, an uncreative nickname, or are too aloof for my tastes. But lately I've been on a winning streak (knock on wood). Georgina is a well written character who doesn't stay in the dark too long concerning the mysteries around her. The book also has a nice supporting cast including an imp, an angel, and vampires. (I didn't even know the book had vampires in it. But don't worry they aren't like Twilight vampires if that's not your thing.) The only real problem I had with this book was the horrible cover. I've looked at all the versions, and I'm just not impressed. Also, the sex scenes could have been steamier and less clinical. With all of that being said READ Succubus Blues.

Really 4.5 out of 5

Review/Teen Tuesday #4: Fallen

"We meet. We always meet, somehow we're always thrown together, no matter where I go, no matter how I try to distance myself from you. It never matters. You always find me." 

Fallen by Lauren Kate is the story of Lucinda Price a teenaged girl who lands herself in an alternative school for the accidental fiery death of her love interest. Luce proclaims her innocence, but no one believes her especially since she has a history of seeing menacing shadows, which is perceived to be mental illness.

As the tale unravels Luce learns the reasons behind the shadows and that she's a lot closer to the battle between good and evil than she could have ever imagined.  Luckily Luce’s path to discovering her past is paved by two very hot angels (of course the bad one is brunette and the good one is blond). *Rolls eyes*

I would first like to start off the review portion of this post by addressing the most commonly held belief about this book. That belief would be that Fallen is the ugly stepsister of the Twilight Saga, which couldn’t be further from the truth, and one read of the book will illustrate this. Actually having to read the book to know what it's about leads me to my next point. I've noticed a nasty little trend by some of the most popular reviewers on Goodreads: they tend to only read the sample of a book, the synopsis, or possibly even just other people's comments and then write a review blasting or praising a book.

Now you may be wondering how do you know? Well, I always read the reviews of books on GR's before I make the final decision to add a book to my to-read list, and I've realized that a lot of the things these popular book reviewers say happen in the books don't actually happen that way or they'll say something key about the plot that is completely wrong. This has happened on more than one occasion and Fallen is unfortunately one of the books these lazy reviewers have chosen to misrepresent.

I suppose you might like more proof. Well, one reviewer in particular mentions that Lucinda and her love interest (I won't tell you which hot angel) fall in love in two days, which I thought too was ludicrous of the author. Until I actually read the book and realized said love doesn't occur until about 80% (I read on Kindle).  I say all of this to remind everyone that books just like ice cream flavors are subjective. Odds are pretty good that when someone really hates a book, but I thought the premise was pretty interesting, I end up loving it or at least not hating it. Of course there are exceptions to every rule but in the event that I don't like a book I generally don't write a review. I just add it to my did-not-finish list. You catch more flies with sugar than vinegar.

Any who let's get into Fallen. I enjoyed the book, contrary to the popular opinion on Goodreads. I doubt this series is going to become my favorite, but it's a nice in-between-book-releases read. I usually hate the protagonist in most books I read, but Luce wasn't horrible. She wasn't as stupid and naïve as everyone made her out to be. I mean of course she's going to be confused when everyone around her knows more about the mysteries surrounding her life than she does. It was a nice break from know-it-all Anita Blake and baffled damsel-in-distress Stephanie Plum. The love plot was normal teen novel material with a bit of Time Traveller's Wife thrown in.

But let's get on to what I didn't like about the book, which is what most of you are here for anyways.  By the way THIS SECTION CONTAINS SPOILERS.

I didn't like that the angels couldn’t kill each other. I know it's a teen book and all but death adds drama and raises the stakes of the story. Granted we didn't know that they couldn't kill each other till the very end, but it frustrated me that Kate was gearing up to write several books about the same thing (the good vs. evil battle).

I also didn't care for the obscurity behind Luce's constant death every time she found out about Daniel's real identity. (Sorry, I know this is confusing if you haven't read the book). I don't feel like this novel really cleared up any of the mystery. It basically feels like this novel didn't start until about 60%-70%.

Overall, I thought Fallen was an acceptable young adult read.

Review/Teen Tuesday #3: Wintergirls

"Who wants to recover? It took me years to get that tiny. I wasn't sick; I was strong." 

Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson is a very chilling read. Lia, protagonist, is an anorexic young adult. Her obsession with her weight began at a very young age with her best friend of nine years, Cassie. Lia's preferred method for staying thin is restriction while Cassie is bulimic. The story kicks into high gear when the duo stop being friends after Lia blacks out while driving them to take the SAT's. They both are admitted for their illnesses, but when Lia emerges from treatment Cassie has proclaimed that Lia is the root of all of her problems and no longer wants to be friends. Lia eventually learns to live without Cassie, but her world is once again rocked when Cassie is found dead in a seedy motel room. Lia, simultaneously, is  haunted by Cassie's ghost and is pushing herself toward an all time weight loss goal. Lia has to decide whether to let Cassie's ghost drag her down or if she's finally ready to live like a "real girl."

Overall, I was impressed with the research Anderson did into the world of eating disorders including the websites devoted to thinness and "thinspiraton." I was however disappointed with the lack of a romantic interest in the novel. I think romance and the attraction to the opposite/same sex is a dominate part of adolescence and the fact that Lia doesn't have a romantic interest and the one guy she does talk to she labels ugly is an oversight. Especially since Elijah, Lia's non love interest, essentially saves her life by abandoning her and telling her to face her demons. I would have enjoyed some reconciliation between them in the future, maybe he should have come to visit her at the hospital...

"I am angry that I starved my brain and that I sat shivering in my bed at night instead of dancing or reading poetry or eating ice cream or kissing a boy..." 

In respect to the young adult audience and the sensitive topic, I think this book is a must read for young adults and for a select few adults. I would recommend this read to adults who are familiar with  Anderson's other books, Speak and The Impossible Knife of Memory, and possibly fans of Thirteen Reasons Why.