Warcross (Warcross #1) by Marie Lu (4/5 stars)

Hey, guys! Sorry that posting has been a little less consistent. I've just started college and have much less time to read!

Anyways, after reading Marie Lu's earlier books (Legend series and The Young Elites series), I was excited to hear that she was writing another series, Warcross!

The Cover:

The Cover:
It shows the title of the book forming a virtual cage of some sort. It shows both the technology side of Warcross as well as how not everything is as pretty as it seems, that danger lurks. It's a fun cover that can relate to the book if you stretch it a little. A- cover

Official Description:
For the millions who log in every day, Warcross isn’t just a game—it’s a way of life. The obsession started ten years ago and its fan base now spans the globe, some eager to escape from reality and others hoping to make a profit. Struggling to make ends meet, teenage hacker Emika Chen works as a bounty hunter, tracking down players who bet on the game illegally. But the bounty hunting world is a competitive one, and survival has not been easy. Needing to make some quick cash, Emika takes a risk and hacks into the opening game of the international Warcross Championships—only to accidentally glitch herself into the action and become an overnight sensation.

Convinced she’s going to be arrested, Emika is shocked when instead she gets a call from the game’s creator, the elusive young billionaire Hideo Tanaka, with an irresistible offer. He needs a spy on the inside of this year’s tournament in order to uncover a security problem . . . and he wants Emika for the job. With no time to lose, Emika’s whisked off to Tokyo and thrust into a world of fame and fortune that she’s only dreamed of. But soon her investigation uncovers a sinister plot, with major consequences for the entire Warcross empire.

My Review:
Warcross was an interesting book. The writing was great, typical for what I expect of Marie Lu. The main characters were complex. The plot started out great. Then, it took a plot twist that, honestly, it would have been better to leave out. More on that later.

The writing style was captivating. It mapped out the scenes beautifully, and, as a result, Warcross was very easy to get sucked into. The writing itself was the best part of this book.

The characters were also interesting. You have Emika, the main character, who makes her own path and retains her independence. Then, you have Hideo, a successful businessman at a young age and with an air of mystery to him, who may end up being the bachelor Emika doesn't even know she wants yet! In all seriousness, Hideo is a very well formed character with his own thoughts and ambitions. The rest of the characters in the book were indistinguishable from one another. These characters really weren't that important, so I doubt it mattered that I could barely tell them apart.

Now, the plot. It was a bit of a mixed bag. I'm a sucker for virtual reality books (see list of my favorites at the end of this post). And, Warcross just doesn't stand out from the other VR books I've read. The only real difference was that Emika was a bounty hunter. 

However, I was starting to get really into the plot. I was ready to see more of the competition to win Warcross. Instead, right as I was really starting to love this book, it took a complete 180. I'm not going to spoil it, but a plot twist occurs which just derailed the book I wanted to read. Instead of a winner of the game being announced, Marie Lu decided to start an apocalypse plot. It was such a questionable decision. It felt like Warcross was meant to be a single book, but someone decided to merge it with a different series to continue to make profit. 

Overall, Warcross was a good, but not great, virtual reality book. I'd recommend reading it if you like more of the bounty-hunting side of the description than the VR side. The writing was good, but some of the plot was a little haphazard.

Warcross comes out September 12, 2017.

Phrase:
My father's artwork

*Note: I received a pre-release copy of this book from edelweiss in exchange for an honest review*

Favorite Virtual Reality Books:
Ready Player One
The Reality Bug (Pendragon #4)
More Than This
The Eye of Minds
BZRK

If you're looking for a good book, check out my Suggestions Page!

Happy Reading!

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The Midnight Star (The Young Elites #3) by Marie Lu 4/5 stars

Hey, guys! After reading The Young Elites and The Rose Society, I was excited to read the third, and final, book in the Young Elites series. I had forgotten a lot of the details though, and one thing this series isn't good about is refreshing you on the last books. If you don't remember very much, maybe try to refresh yourself first!

The Cover:

The Cover:

It shows the night sky above a mountain range, the setting for the final battle of the series. It fits the theme of the first few covers, which I appreciate. But, while dramatic, the cover isn't very relevant. B- cover

Official Description:

There was once a time when darkness shrouded the world, and the darkness had a queen.
Adelina Amouteru is done suffering. She’s turned her back on those who have betrayed her and achieved the ultimate revenge: victory. Her reign as the White Wolf has been a triumphant one, but with each conquest her cruelty only grows. The darkness within her has begun to spiral out of control, threatening to destroy all she’s gained.
When a new danger appears, Adelina’s forced to revisit old wounds, putting not only herself at risk, but every Elite. In order to preserve her empire, Adelina and her Roses must join the Daggers on a perilous quest—though this uneasy alliance may prove to be the real danger.

My Review:

I love the idea of this book. The premise is to follow a character as they slowly become corrupted by power. You are rooting for Adelina, but should you be? It's a neat idea that is very well executed. The Midnight Star starts with Adelina as a harsh dictator, ruling by fear. She kills without mercy, her only goal to continue to conquer.

The character development is the strong point of the series. You can see these characters grow and become corrupted or maybe more pure as events shape them. While I wouldn't go as far as to say I liked any of the characters, I can appreciate them.

The plot of The Midnight Star was the weakest of the three books. The first third was Adelina with her army, the second third was filler, and the last third was a weird storyline that involved travelling to appeal to the gods. The last section seemed to come from nowhere. It wasn't really relevant and detracted from the story in my opinion. It didn't fit with the theme of self-reliance and felt like a hurried way to wrap up the series. 

I was happy with the overall ending to the book, but the way that ending was achieved was sub-par at best. 

Overall, I'd recommend The Midnight Star if you enjoyed the previous books and still remember them well. If it's been a year, or more, like it was with me, you may want to refresh yourself. While I didn't enjoy it as much as the earlier books, it was still interesting to read and worthwhile.

Phrase:

An illusion of pain

If You Liked This Book, You May Also Like:
Red Queen
The Young Elites / The Rose Society
The Wrath and the Dawn

The Legend series (also by Marie Lu)

If you're looking for a good book, check out my Suggestions Page!

Happy Reading!

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The Rose Society (The Young Elites #2) by Marie Lu 4.5/5 stars

Hey, guys! I just finished The Rose Society by Marie Lu.  It was great... once I figured out what was happening.  It had been about a year since I read The Young Elites (click for review of book one!) so I had forgotten quite a bit of the book, including the entire ending.  If you are reading this review and you don't remember, do yourself a favor and reread the last fifteen pages of book one.  The Rose Society will only explain it at page 250 or so.

The Cover:

The cover shows Adelina's codename (the White Wolf) looking over some water.  I'm not impressed with the image, but it's okay.  The name of the book, The Rose Society, is the same thing that Adelina names her secret society.

Official Description:
Once upon a time, a girl had a father, a prince, a society of friends. Then they betrayed her, and she destroyed them all.

Adelina Amouteru’s heart has suffered at the hands of both family and friends, turning her down the bitter path of revenge. Now known and feared as the White Wolf, she flees Kenettra with her sister to find other Young Elites in the hopes of building her own army of allies. Her goal: to strike down the Inquisition Axis, the white-cloaked soldiers who nearly killed her.

But Adelina is no heroine. Her powers, fed only by fear and hate, have started to grow beyond her control. She does not trust her newfound Elite friends. Teren Santoro, leader of the Inquisition, wants her dead. And her former friends, Raffaele and the Dagger Society, want to stop her thirst for vengeance. Adelina struggles to cling to the good within her. But how can someone be good when her very existence depends on darkness?

My (Super-Simplified) Description:
Adelina got kicked out of Raffaele's secret society, so she decides to make her own secret society.  All's fine, except her secret society is a lot bloodier and not opposed to fighting Raffaele's society.

My Review:
The purpose of this series is to watch Adelina slowly become the villain of the story, which is great.  She is not high and mighty, her sister is mildly afraid of her, and she takes what she wants without regard to consequences.  It's an interesting premise and is executed wonderfully.  

The plot was not the focus of the book, but it was good and engaging.  There were numerous action scenes as well as character development scenes.  The book went by quickly.  There were two main storylines, what was going on with Adelina and what was going on with the Daggers.  At times, one was much more interesting than the other, making the book go by a little slower.

My only real complaint was that Adelina's inner monologue became repetitive at times.  I get that it was an important part of the book, but there was a lot of repetition going on.

Overall, I enjoyed The Rose Society and would recommend it.  Be sure to refresh yourself on The Young Elites before you start it though.  It doesn't warm you up at all.  

Phrase:
Why did you kill him?


Happy Reading!

If You Liked This Book, You May Also Like:
Red Queen
The Young Elites
The Wrath and the Dawn

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2015 A Year in Books

Hey, guys! As 2015 draws to a close, I thought I'd give you guys my top ten favorite books of the year (not that came out, but that I read).  Here's the list!

(Last Year's you can find here)

Challenger Deep

The Long Walk

Boo

Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist

Stand Off (Winger #2)

Five Stages of Andrew Brawley

The Young Elites

Red Queen

The Martian

Angelfall

Happy Reading!

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The Young Elites by Marie Lu 5/5 stars

Hey, guys!  So, I've been a big fan of the author of this book, Marie Lu, after reading her first series, Legend (which you should check out if you haven't already).  I was excited about reading The Young Elites, but ended up waiting a long time before I could get my hands on it.  Then, of course, I fell in love with the book and read it in a single day!

The Cover:

The Cover:

It shows a darkening sky with the title in front.  The sword in place of a "t" sets the stage for the medieval sort of warfare ever present in this book.  It's simple, but I like its simplicity.  A cover.

Official Description:

I am tired of being used, hurt, and cast aside.
Adelina Amouteru is a survivor of the blood fever. A decade ago, the deadly illness swept through her nation. Most of the infected perished, while many of the children who survived were left with strange markings. Adelina’s black hair turned silver, her lashes went pale, and now she has only a jagged scar where her left eye once was. Her cruel father believes she is a malfetto, an abomination, ruining their family’s good name and standing in the way of their fortune. But some of the fever’s survivors are rumored to possess more than just scars—they are believed to have mysterious and powerful gifts, and though their identities remain secret, they have come to be called the Young Elites.
Teren Santoro works for the king. As Leader of the Inquisition Axis, it is his job to seek out the Young Elites, to destroy them before they destroy the nation. He believes the Young Elites to be dangerous and vengeful, but it’s Teren who may possess the darkest secret of all.
Enzo Valenciano is a member of the Dagger Society. This secret sect of Young Elites seeks out others like them before the Inquisition Axis can. But when the Daggers find Adelina, they discover someone with powers like they’ve never seen.
Adelina wants to believe Enzo is on her side, and that Teren is the true enemy. But the lives of these three will collide in unexpected ways, as each fights a very different and personal battle. But of one thing they are all certain: Adelina has abilities that shouldn’t belong in this world. A vengeful blackness in her heart. And a desire to destroy all who dare to cross her.
It is my turn to use. My turn to hurt.

My Review:

I loved this book!  It was exciting and a really quick, enjoyable read.  Just as a warning to all of you Legend fans: this series is quite a bit darker.  It's not overly dark, but its main character is more a villain than a hero.  Also, before I started reading, I couldn't tell if it alternated point of views or not.  If you were also wondering, it is in first person from Adelina's point of view with maybe five chapters in third person about other characters for some background info.  

The plot moved very quickly and had plenty of twists and turns.  It was exciting and keep me hooked. 

The characters were also complex.  I loved Enzo, and Adelina was definitely a different sort of character.  They were unique, and I loved getting to know them throughout the course of the book.  

While I loved and would definitely recommend The Young Elites, I am worried that the second book, The Rose Society will not be as good because of the direction I think the series is about to take.  I look forward to reading it, though!

Phrase:

An alignment with fear, anger, and passion.  

Happy Reading!

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