Legend series by Marie Lu (Awesome)

I'm going to do a mini series review of the Legend series by Marie Lu.  I loved the series and read the entire trilogy in about a week.  It was fantastic, and I loved it and think you will too!  (All of the reviews were from my thoughts as soon as I finished and were not at all influenced by the books afterwards.)

Legend:

The Cover:

The cover simply has the Republic's seal marking it.  The Legend it mentions is Day, of course.

Official Description:

What was once the western United States is now home to the Republic, a nation perpetually at war with its neighbors. Born into an elite family in one of the Republic's wealthiest districts, fifteen-year-old June is a prodigy being groomed for success in the Republic's highest military circles. Born into the slums, fifteen-year-old Day is the country's most wanted criminal. But his motives may not be as malicious as they seem. 
From very different worlds, June and Day have no reason to cross paths - until the day June's brother, Metias, is murdered and Day becomes the prime suspect. Caught in the ultimate game of cat and mouse, Day is in a race for his family's survival, while June seeks to avenge Metias's death. But in a shocking turn of events, the two uncover the truth of what has really brought them together, and the sinister lengths their country will go to keep its secrets. 
Full of nonstop action, suspense, and romance, this novel is sure to move readers as much as it thrills. 

My Review:

All of the reviews I've seen of Legend rather supported the-best-book-I've-ever-read cause or the-worst-book-ever-why-on-earth-do-people-like-it side. 
That said, I've been waiting on hold in the library for Legend for about two months now. Well, before that I requested it from the library and got it almost immediately, only to find it was in Swedish instead of English... I had to return that one and get a readable copy, of course. There was so much excitement and disappointment is trying to read Legend. I was so excited when I got it and for good reason! Legend was fantastic! I loved the way the story was put together and the characters and basically everything! It was a great book. 
Of course as soon as I finished, I started the next challenge: finding book two. (Why my library has the first and the third, without the second, I have no idea.)

Prodigy:

The Cover:

I'm not entirely sure what is on the cover... (If you have an idea, tell me in comments.)  But the prodigy mentioned is June.

Official Description:

Injured and on the run, it has been seven days since June and Day barely escaped Los Angeles and the Republic with their lives. Day is believed dead having lost his own brother to an execution squad who thought they were assassinating him. June is now the Republic's most wanted traitor. Desperate for help, they turn to the Patriots - a vigilante rebel group sworn to bring down the Republic. But can they trust them or have they unwittingly become pawns in the most terrifying of political games?

My Review:

4.5 stars
Prodigy wasn't nearly as fantastic as Legend was, but it was still a good book. Quite a bit of the book felt like filler/ fluff. A good deal of the book was focused on Day/June's love story, which I didn't care nearly enough about, considering how much airtime it got. 
On the other hand, I really do care about the characters. While the storyline is a bit repetitive (the classic Book 1: terrible stuff is happening, Book 2: main character is the face of the rebellion, Book 3 (probably): they change the government system and the main characters love each other), I still enjoyed the story. Marie Lu had a slightly altered take on the story. Also, based on the very end of this book, she will most likely veer even further away from the classic YA Dystopian novel (Hunger Games, Delirium, Matched, etc.). 
I'm looking forward to read the next book because whether or not it's original, Marie Lu can WRITE!

*Update: This was also the book where June started to get on my nerves.

Champion:

The Cover:

I think the cover shows a rose on fire, just like Day's dream had in the beginning of the book.  The champion who is mentioned... Well, I don't know if anyone won.  Maybe it references the winner of the Republic/ Colonies war.

Official Description:

He is a Legend.
She is a Prodigy.
Who will be Champion? 
June and Day have sacrificed so much for the people of the Republic—and each other—and now their country is on the brink of a new existence. June is back in the good graces of the Republic, working within the government’s elite circles as Princeps-Elect, while Day has been assigned a high-level military position. 
But neither could have predicted the circumstances that will reunite them: just when a peace treaty is imminent, a plague outbreak causes panic in the Colonies, and war threatens the Republic’s border cities. This new strain of plague is deadlier than ever, and June is the only one who knows the key to her country’s defense. But saving the lives of thousands will mean asking the one she loves to give up everything. 
With heart-pounding action and suspense, Marie Lu’s bestselling trilogy draws to a stunning conclusion

My Review:

Champion was a wonderful book with a wonderful conclusion. It was on par with Legend while being better than Prodigy. I can't believe the series is over. I want more! To tell the truth, I can't even tell if I hated the ending of Champion or loved it... I am deeply satisfied either way though, so it doesn't really matter! A great, great book. I can understand why this series is so popular. Marie Lu is a truly talented author, and I hope she writes much more!

Series Phrase:

If you do that, you will have a revolution on your hands. 

Swarm by Alex South (Good)

*Note: This book was given to me by the author in exchange for an honest review*

I am usually up for a well-written zombie apocalypse novel and Swarm did not disappoint.  Some people don't read books about zombies simply because they believe the entire category to be overdone, but I do not believe that is the case.  In fact, the well-covered topic forces authors to do something original with the general premise.  Zombie novels are great because they are all so different and unique.   Alex South created his own niche in the zombie world.

The cover:

The cover:

There really isn't much to say about the cover.  It looks like zombies, which is exactly what it is.  The only comment I feel needs to be said is that Swarm isn't a comic book/ graphic novel.  It's a legit book.  For some reason, this cover makes it seem otherwise to me.  

Official Description:

John has a dead-end job, doesn't see enough of his friends, and struggles to find meaning in his life. These everyday concerns vanish on the night he’s jerked awake by screams. 
Frenzied figures roam the streets. A helpless onlooker, John tells himself that this isn't like the films. This is real life, with real people. 
He and his neighbours band together over a small supply of food. Tensions brew, and a difficult choice arises. Risk starvation, or attempt escape? Conflicted over the cause and scope of the apocalypse, the group struggles to work together. 
At first John clings to logic. The zombies do not drink or eat. Organic matter cannot sustain itself under these conditions, but things grow more complicated as the behaviour of the infected makes a drastic and inexplicable change.

My review:

In one word, I would describe this book as contemplative.  It focused less on the zombies and more of John's thoughts about the entire situation.  The entire book took on a bit of a philosophical tone, but it did not overwhelm the plot line of the story at all.  Alex South struck the perfect balance between being thoughtful and being exciting.  

My thoughts on the characters, however, were conflicting.  On one hand, I loved their relationships to each other.  Laura and John were in love and understood that their love was more of a reaction to their situation than a result of true compatibility   I thought that realization in particular was so rare to have in a novel.  Also, Mary and Tyler had a very realistic relationship to each other, and both of their characters offset the other to make them more complex and interesting, as a result. However, I did have an issue.  I was a bit unsatisfied by how much we knew about any of the characters.  Their backstories rather didn't exist or only appeared when convenient to the plot.  Even John, the main character, had an underdeveloped backstory.  It's understandable why that happened.  I can see that, perhaps, the point was that the zombie epidemic created a rift between the characters' past lives and current lives.  A life with zombies and one without.  But it caused me to have trouble imagining the characters throughout the first half of the book.  Eventually, all of their personalities became distinct and it wasn't an issue anymore, but I still wished I knew a little bit more about them.

All of that said, Alex South did a great job of distinguishing the characters' patterns of speech.  They didn't all sound the same.  They had different quirks on how they spoke, which added to the book.

I would recommend Swarm if you typically like zombie apocalypse books.  If you can't stand them, Swarm is probably not the book for you.  If you can, it is a entertaining, speculative read that you will most likely enjoy.  

Overall, I would give Swarm by Alex South a 4/5 rating.

*Note: This was the first book in a series.*

Phrase:  This is real life.  It can't be like the films.  

Misery by Stephen King (Amazing)

A week or two ago, I went into a used bookstore, and my dad bought me a copy of Misery because he had seen the movie and thought it was my kind of thing.  He was very, very right.  I found myself reading Misery from when I came home to 2:30am and then sleeping, only to begin reading again as soon as I awoke.  I had been looking forward to reading it since I brought it home, but I couldn't because I had this huge stack of library books that had "priority".  Anyways, I started reading it one night.  I planned to read a page or two to introduce myself to the characters and all that before I would officially begin reading it.  From my experience with Stephen King books (mainly The Shining and Pet Sematary), the first hundred pages or so go very slowly, so I figured it wouldn't make a difference.  I was wrong.  I ended up reading almost fifty pages before I forced myself away.  One thing you can say about this book is that it starts quickly, and without knowing it, you get sucked into this world.  This particular world that Stephen King makes is not supernatural in the least.  One hundred percent of it could have happened.  In a way, that makes the entire story more harrowing.
But I am getting ahead of myself.  Here are two versions of the cover; the one I read from and my favorite one.

The favorite:

The original:

The covers: 

The first cover is really neat.  It shows Paul's typewriter with the broken "n" key stranded in the snow.

The second cover shows Annie Wilkes's house in the middle of nowhere with the snow falling down, isolating those in the house from all others.

Description: 

Paul Sheldon is a bestselling writer.  After a crippling car crash, he is saved by Annie Wilkes, his number one fan.  Annie becomes his nurse and takes care of him in her house.  She asks for one thing from Paul in repayment for her services.  He must write a book for her, his best yet.  And if he doesn't... Let's just say that Annie has a huge temper, and no neighbors live close enough to hear his screams.  

Review: 

Misery was absolutely amazing.  Fantastic.  It completely occupied my thoughts for both of the days I was reading it, nonstop.  It had constant action and suspense.  It was absolutely impossible to put down.  The characters were super realistic in their own way.  I've never met a person like Annie Wilkes, but I could still see how she was thinking and understand her, even if it was in a twisted way. And Paul.  Paul was an amazingly complex character with so many different levels.  I felt pain for him, basically throughout the entire book.  

My only problem with the entire book was the segments of Paul's novel that were put in.  I couldn't quite get excited by the aspects of the book within the book.  But there were not many of those segments, and they did relate to what was happening between Paul and Annie. 

I loved Misery! However, I would both recommend it to everyone and to no one.  To clarify, I think it was such an amazing book that everyone who hasn't read it is missing out on a crucial part of life. And yet, it got pretty graphic and, basically, just not meant for delicate eyes and weak hearts.  I would feel terrible if I recommended Misery to someone and they couldn't sleep anymore, but it is such a good book!  You might be able to understand the issue here...

Either way, I was more involved with Misery than any other book I've read in a long time.  It wasn't awesome.  That word is too mundane to describe a book like Misery.  It was amazing, fantastic, heart-stopping.  It was so much more than awesome.  I highly, highly, highly, recomend Misery to all who can handle reading about a little misery.

Phrase:

so vivid!

The Infernal Devices series by Cassandra Clare (Awesome)

I'm going to do a group mini review for The Infernal Devices series.  I loved the series so much!  To be fair, I started the series off with an incorrect idea of what it was about.  For some reason, I thought the series was basically just Magnus's backstory.  I was terribly wrong, but I loved the series all the more for its unexpected plot line!
(The reviews were all written right after I read whichever book I'm mentioning. )

CLOCKWORK ANGEL:

The cover:

To tell the truth, I'm not sure which character is on the cover.  I am about 90% sure that it's Will Herondale, but it could be a completely different character.  Above the series title, Tessa's clockwork angel flies.  

Official Description:

In a time when Shadowhunters are barely winning the fight against the forces of darkness, one battle will change the course of history forever. Welcome to the Infernal Devices trilogy, a stunning and dangerous prequel to the New York Times bestselling Mortal Instruments series.
The year is 1878. Tessa Gray descends into London’s dark supernatural underworld in search of her missing brother. She soon discovers that her only allies are the demon-slaying Shadowhunters—including Will and Jem, the mysterious boys she is attracted to. Soon they find themselves up against the Pandemonium Club, a secret organization of vampires, demons, warlocks, and humans. Equipped with a magical army of unstoppable clockwork creatures, the Club is out to rule the British Empire, and only Tessa and her allies can stop them....

My review:

I really liked Clockwork Angel.  It was such a great book.  I had forgotten how much I loved Cassandra Clare's writing.  She is truly a fantastic author.

I read the first five books in the Mortal Instruments series before I read Clockwork Angel. I would NOT suggest this to readers. Read Clockwork Angel, at least, right after City of Glass and before continuing the series. My ordering of the books caused me to be about 99% certain that I know what Will's hiding. It kind of built a sense of dramatic irony around it, instead of curiosity, which is what I am sure was intended. 

(*Note: You can actually read them in whatever order.  I still suggest the above ordering, but it turned out that I was wrong about Will's secret...)
All of this doesn't even mention how GREAT the book was. I had high hopes because Cassandra Clare is an amazingly talented writer, but I was afraid that working with different characters might not go as well. This was not the case, by any means! The storyline was completely engaging and exciting. The characters were very well written and the plot complex. All in all, a fantastic book! I am going to find (and read) the sequel as soon as I can!

CLOCKWORK PRINCE:

The cover:

This cover also shows whom I believe to be Will starting with a torch.

Official Description:

In the magical underworld of Victorian London, Tessa Gray has at last found safety with the Shadowhunters. But that safety proves fleeting when rogue forces in the Clave plot to see her protector, Charlotte, replaced as head of the Institute. If Charlotte loses her position, Tessa will be out on the street—and easy prey for the mysterious Magister, who wants to use Tessa’s powers for his own dark ends.
With the help of the handsome, self-destructive Will and the fiercely devoted Jem, Tessa discovers that the Magister’s war on the Shadowhunters is deeply personal. He blames them for a long-ago tragedy that shattered his life. To unravel the secrets of the past, the trio journeys from mist-shrouded Yorkshire to a manor house that holds untold horrors, from the slums of London to an enchanted ballroom where Tessa discovers that the truth of her parentage is more sinister than she had imagined. When they encounter a clockwork demon bearing a warning for Will, they realize that the Magister himself knows their every move—and that one of their own has betrayed them.
Tessa finds her heart drawn more and more to Jem, but her longing for Will, despite his dark moods, continues to unsettle her. But something is changing in Will—the wall he has built around himself is crumbling. Could finding the Magister free Will from his secrets and give Tessa the answers about who she is and what she was born to do?
As their dangerous search for the Magister and the truth leads the friends into peril, Tessa learns that when love and lies are mixed, they can corrupt even the purest heart.

My Review:

I don't think I've been as frustrated by any other book more than I was with this book. It made me want to let loose a grutal scream as many as twenty times throughout the book. (Some of those times, it actually happened.)
However, unlike the normal frustrating books, Clockwork Prince tackled the problems in the correct ways. A character would do something and the effects would be terrible, but I could find no fault with how they handled the situation. 
I LOVED this book. Thinking back on it, while the book was super fast-paced and plot driven, there was not very much that happened in regard to the villain of the story. This, surprisingly, had no effect what-so-ever on the way I enjoyed the book. 
I had a slight issue with Tessa at one point. She would be making some commentary on some event, and I could only think of one thing, "Please, please do not make this a love triangle." Then, as the book progressed it morphed more into, "She's going to make this a love triangle, isn't she?" And then, finally, "She went and make this a huge love triangle." For me, anyway, love triangles just make unnessary tension, an unneeded hatred between the guys, and disappointment in about half the readers at the end of the series. 
Besides the love triangle, I loved watching all of the character's relationships evolve and shift. They are all fully developed characters with their own habits and personalities. Together, you could never know how they would behave. 
A lot of Clockwork Prince simply tugged at my heart strings. As Will's secret was slowly revealed, I couldn't help but feel heartbroken for him. 
All in all, Clockwork Prince was a worthy sequel to Clockwork Angel, and I can't wait to read Clockwork Princess. (In fact, I couldn't and went ahead and started reading it!)

CLOCKWORK PRINCESS:

The cover:

It shows Tessa, like she always is, reading a book.  The bridge (significant with Jem!) is in the background, and she wears her clockwork angel necklace.

Official Description:

Tessa Gray should be happy—aren't all brides happy? Yet as she prepares for her wedding, a net of shadows begins to tighten around the Shadowhunters of the London Institute. A new demon appears, one linked by blood and secrecy to Mortmain, the man who plans to use his army of pitiless automatons, the Infernal Devices, to destroy the Shadowhunters. Mortmain needs only one last item to complete his plan. He needs Tessa. And Jem and Will, the boys who lay equal claim to Tessa's heart, will do anything to save her.

My Review:

I imagined this series's end many times. None of them came even close to the majesty of this book. Clockwork Prince was easily the best book in the Infernal devices series, which really says something when you think of all the other great books included.

Cassandra Clare easily solved the issue of the love triangle with such elegance that I believe that all writers should take heed of.  

In a show of how much I loved all of the characters, I had to fight tears while reading the epilogue.  Thinking about epilogues, Clockwork Princess had one of the only truly good and necessary epilogues that I've ever read.  It was perfect.  This book was perfect.  This series was perfect.

Series-long Phrase:  Demon Pox!