suspense – Page 22 – Down the Rabbit Hole

Review: Ice Kissed by Amanda Hocking

June 2, 2015 Andge @ Down the Rabbit Hole

Series: Kanin Chronicles #2

In the majestic halls of a crystal palace lies a secret that could destroy an entire kingdom…

Bryn Aven refuses to give up on her dream of serving the kingdom she loves. It’s a dream that brings her to a whole new realm…and the glittering palace of the Skojare.

The Skojare people need protection from the same brutal enemy that’s been threatening the Kanin, and Bryn is there to help. Being half Skojare herself, it’s also a chance for her to learn more about her lost heritage. Her boss, Ridley Dresden, is overseeing her mission, but as their undeniable attraction heats up, their relationship is about to reach a whole new level—one neither of them is prepared for.

As they delve deeper into the Skojare world, they begin to unravel a long-hidden secret. The dark truth about her own beloved Kanin kingdom is about to come to light, and it will change her place in it forever…and threaten everyone she loves.

4 Drink Me Potions

Following the aftermath of events in Frostfire, Amanda Hocking didn’t disappoint me with any middle book syndrome. I found Ice Kissed rather compelling and intriguing.

As I mentioned when I reviewed Frostfire, the whole premise of this strange, almost fantastical world set WITHIN our every day world is very unique. It definitely intrigues me more than say, if this was a whole new and separate world of its own. This second installment didn’t go out into the human world but the land of the Skojare tribe (of trolls) was nicely explored.

With the Skojare Queen still missing, Bryn feels like she failed at her duties and mission to bring her back. Many questions were thrown about. What happened to her? If they found her, was she a part of whatever weird conspiracy that was going on with the Kanin tribe’s most wanted criminals? I loved that there were always things to wonder about, never quite making the story boring even when the pacing wasn’t terrible fast or anything.

I was scared that there was going to be some horrid love triangle in this series, but I’m happy to say that I may have read the implications wrong. Ridley is still his amazing self, and as their relationship gets more complicated after crossing that line past friendship in the previous novel, Bryn can’t seem to hide even to herself just what he means to her. Although I like that their growing attraction is developing, I’m very pleased that it wasn’t the centre of the story. Trying to figure out what is going on with the Skojare and how it may relate to the Kanin’s current problems was definitely the highlight, and it made the whole story more enjoyable.

My one complaint would be that I wished the story was a little longer, or at least held some more substance. There are questions, but there are few answers given. The Kanin are preparing for war, and Bryn has no idea who she can trust anymore. Maybe the bad guy Konstantin Black isn’t all that bad after all. Everyone’s motives are so hard to predict. It’s awesome – and frustrating at the same time. I’ll be impatiently waiting to figure out the answers in Crystal Kingdom when it comes out.

Overall Recommendation:
Following Frostfire, this second installment, Ice Kissed was pleasantly enjoyable while still carrying on some of the intrigue from the previous book. Ideas of conspiracies are afloat and Bryn isn’t sure who she should trust. All the while, the steady but complicated relationship with her boss Ridley is ever present. Their growing attraction has to be dealt with, and it is the only promise for something good in a future that only seems to hold bleak events. War is looming and Bryn has no idea who her allies are. With a great set up for the final conclusion, Ice Kissed was entertaining in itself as a novel, but definitely added to the greater picture.

Review: The Body in the Woods by April Henry

March 3, 2015May 25, 2015 Andge @ Down the Rabbit Hole

Series: Point Last Seen #1

In this new series told from multiple perspectives, teen members of a search and rescue team discover a dead body in the woods.

Alexis, Nick, and Ruby have very different backgrounds: Alexis has spent her life covering for her mom’s mental illness, Nick’s bravado hides his fear of not being good enough, and Ruby just wants to pursue her eccentric interests in a world that doesn’t understand her. When the three teens join Portland County Sheriff’s Search and Rescue, they are teamed up to search for a autistic man lost in the woods. What they find instead is a dead body. In a friendship that will be forged in danger, fear, and courage, the three team up to find the girl’s killer—before he can strike one of their own.

This first book in April Henry’s Point Last Seen YA mystery series is full of riveting suspense, putting readers in the middle of harrowing rescues and crime scene investigations.

1.5 Drink Me Potions

I wasn’t expecting too much when I started The Body in the Woods. Yet, I still found myself wanting to stop reading every here and there. Let me dive into the exact reason why I didn’t necessarily enjoy it too much.

The characters
I understand that these days all protagonists seem rather monotonous. “They’re all so unoriginal”, people would say. And yes, I do agree that sometimes, changing the name of the protagonist of one book to the name of another girl in a second book would show that their personalities are almost hilariously identical. BUT, I think there’s a fine line to how far authors can change the protagonist’s attitudes to something so original and unique before they become unrelatable/unlikeable.

There are 3 protagonists in The Body in the Woods and here is what I thought of them.

Nick wants the attention of others. He wants to be a hero, like his deceased war hero father. He seems to be attracted to every single girl at his darn school, and when he gets the slightest inkling that others think Alexis might be into him, he’s suddenly all gung-ho on her possible attraction to him as well (which is just a no, if you ask me). Yeah, I get that he’s not perfect, but it’s just unattractive to want to gain some attention as the “guy who found a dead girl in the woods”, dropping hints to his classmates to talk about his part in the case. Some respect for the poor girl, dude. No need for the attention to be on YOU.

And Alexis? She was the most enjoyable character of the 3, in my opinion. She’s terrified of others finding out that her mom has a mental illness. I guess that’s understandable, but that makes her distrust anyone who tries to get too close. Sometimes I just want to shake her and tell her to LET SOMEONE HELP YOU, or at least trust them with this burden.

…And that leaves Ruby. Where do I start with Ruby? She’s…a gem of a character. Found a dead girl in the woods? Pfft, let’s go examine it and recall what every crime show CSIs do when inspecting a crime scene. She also adopts different personas for different occasions to benefit her situation. For example, she feels she needs to “get close” with her fellow SAR friend, Alexis, so she adopts her “Best Friend” role which she gathered information from watching shows or observing other people. If she wants to get out of trouble from her parents, it’s the “Good Daughter” role. It’s a little eerie, to be honest. Sure, she may have Asperger’s syndrome or something like it (which by the way, the author never explicitly mentions) but this is borderline stereotypical “I can’t feel or empathize with a single person or thing in this world”. Saying she’s eccentric is by far an understatement .

Her love of random things is kind of quirky, I’ll admit. It’s interesting the way she describes how society builds these “boxes” or “unspoken rules” that supposedly everyone should know and stay within, but she apparently is clueless about them.

And there were so many rules….
Don’t stand too close.
Don’t stare.
Take turns.
Don’t assume everyone is interested in the same things you are, even if those things are fascinating.
Don’t talk about sex.
Don’t talk about surgery.
Don’t talk about anything that happens in the bathroom.
But the biggest taboo was death.

She is arrogant though for assuming that what she knows/has to say/her interests are more important than others. It was terribly annoying hearing her ask the cops so many things and seemingly implying that she knew more of what she was doing than they do. It may not be her fault being as she is, but it doesn’t DO anything to lessen my annoyance.

Now onto what was enjoyable about it
Because the protagonists are how we as the readers view the story, it’s hard to enjoy it when we’re limited to their views and attitudes. The mystery wasn’t all that original either. Come on, a dead girl in the woods. Cool. Now what? Maybe I’m just expecting too much as I absolutely ADORE mysteries. I grew up on them. And now I even watch crime shows to death. So it’s hard to match up to some very well-written mysteries.

I will say that I did have to guess for a while for the culprit. I feel that Henry wrote too many scenes from the culprit’s POV (point of view) that really made the identity guessable by the middle of the book. Of course, it was interesting to figure out the WHY so at least something kept me going.

I won’t go on much longer. I think I’ve ranted enough. Apparently there will be more in this series, starring all 3 protagonists still. Yay….(not quite sure if I can stand reading more of their POVs). Who knows? I may give it a try, but if you just want a mundane mystery and don’t mind annoying characters, go for it. The Body in the Woods wasn’t terrible but even with lowered expectations it wasn’t en par.

Overall Recommendation:
With a cast of protagonists that bugged me endlessly and an unoriginal mystery that didn’t keep me guessing for long, The Body in the Woods could’ve been better in a lot of areas. Personally, I’m an avid mystery reader so I guess lower expectations are still somewhat high. It might just be a “it’s me and not so much the book” kind of thing. Who knows? If the protagonists don’t make you want to hit them over the head at some point within the first 40 pages, then this may be a decent read for you.

Review: Wake by Amanda Hocking

February 8, 2015May 26, 2015 Andge @ Down the Rabbit Hole

Series: The Watersong Quartet #1

Fall under the spell of Wake—the first book in an achingly beautiful new series by celebrated author Amanda Hocking—and lose yourself to the Watersong.

Gorgeous. Fearless. Dangerous. They’re the kind of girls you envy; the kind of girls you want to hate. Strangers in town for the summer, Penn, Lexi and Thea have caught everyone’s attention—but it’s Gemma who’s attracted theirs. She’s the one they’ve chosen to be part of their group.

Gemma seems to have it all—she’s carefree, pretty, and falling in love with Alex, the boy next door. He’s always been just a friend, but this summer they’ve taken their relationship to the next level, and now there’s no going back. Then one night, Gemma’s ordinary life changes forever. She’s taking a late night swim under the stars when she finds Penn, Lexi and Thea partying on the cove. They invite her to join them, and the next morning she wakes up on the beach feeling groggy and sick, knowing something is different.

Suddenly Gemma is stronger, faster, and more beautiful than ever. But her new powers come with a terrifying price. And as she uncovers the truth, she’s is forced to choose between staying with those she loves—or entering a new world brimming with dark hungers and unimaginable secrets.

3.5 Drink Me Potions

Wake was a very easy read. I personally haven’t read too many books diving into the story of the sirens. Sure, other parts of Greek mythology have been overdone, but the aspects of sirens in Homer’s Odyssey is intriguing.

The mythology itself
I really enjoyed how Hocking incorporated sirens and their Greek history into this story. From the blurb, it’s quite obvious that the sirens were going to make Gemma as one of their own. However, there was quite an amount of suspense in the anticipation of when it would happen, and why they do what they do. Right smack in the prologue, the air of suspense starts building as bodies are dropping in the small seafront town of Capri.

It was nice to have a clear and straightforward description of the mythology so it wasn’t like I had to piece together what had happened to the sirens in the past that made them who they were. Of course, hearing their story really added to the intrigue of what the gang of main characters were going to do to help Gemma out of this situation.

The characters
It sometimes is annoying when there are more than one protagonist’s POV to switch back and forth from. I’m waiting anxiously to see what happens to one person, then I turn the page and it’s….the next chapter with someone else’s POV happening elsewhere.

BUT, this didn’t make me as annoyed in Wake.

First off, this story is written in 3rd person perspective, which is a rather rare thing these days in the YA genre. It made it easier to understand what more than one character was feeling at a time. What got me through the switching of POVs was the fact that Gemma and her sister Harper are both such great characters.

Gemma is impulsive sometimes, but she feels the call of the ocean even before becoming a siren. She works hard to be the best swimmer, and she’s pretty without feeling cocky and boastful of it. Harper, on the other hand, is the older sister and acts bossy sometimes. But she has the heart to love anyone, even a rugged older guy living on a boat.

This brings me to say…

The “romance” aspect
I loved that this series doesn’t focus on just one couple, but on two . I felt that Alex and Gemma’s relationship happened rather fast. Like, I understand that he’s the boy next door and there were simmering feelings going on for like the last while. It just didn’t build up as nicely as I would’ve liked it to, but there were still very touching moments between the two.

Harper’s not the kind of girl who feels there’s time for a relationship in her life. With a mom who acts more like a teenage-obsessed fan of Justin Bieber’s, a father who forgets his lunch I swear all the time, and a younger sister who she feels responsible for, there are a lot of things on her plate. So her deliciously crazy attraction towards Daniel was very enjoyable from the start. He was the opposite of her in so many ways. He was more relaxed, living out of his grandfather’s boat while looking for odd handyman jobs to do. Harper was college-bound and here was this “slob” who kept trying to flirt and appease her after their rather awkward first meeting. This potential relationship kept me very interested in seeing more of it later on.

Concluding remarks
Although I highlighted the things I enjoyed in Wake, it just wasn’t quite 4 stars or even 5 stars material. The pacing was a little slow at times, especially when the sirens kept taunting Gemma and Harper but didn’t do anything just yet . Alex and Gemma’s romantic chemistry was a little off for me in this one. I kind of wished there were more moments that made me say “Ah, I can see why they’re falling so hard for each other”. That’s not to say I didn’t enjoy the two of them together, but I’m just being nit-picky.

Anyway, it’s definitely worth the read, especially as the first of a series.

Overall Recommendation:
Wake was a different read, in the sense that it focused on a part of Greek mythology that was darker and not necessarily as popular. Sirens were loose in Capri, wrecking havoc and leaving bodies in their wake. And Gemma has caught their eyes. The level of suspense builds as Gemma and her sister Harper finds themselves caught in a curse from over two thousand years ago.

With budding romance in the horizon for both sisters and a mild-pacing of the story, Wake should be given a try and maybe it would get you sucked into the world of the Watersong series.