Emblaze by Jessica Shirvington

Title: Emblaze
Author: Jessica Shirvington
Publisher: Sourcebooks
Pages: 415
Rating: 4/5 Stars

I finished this book nearly two months ago and while the major reason for my tardiness in reviewing is simply my amazing ability to procrastinate, it actually has a lot to do with my very mixed feelings about Emblaze. 

The story is great and Shirvington does her usual amazing work at spinning a tale full of emotion and mythology as well as a healthy dose of ass-kicking action. Violet must once again risk life and limb to protect her fellow Grigori - as well as the entire human population, basically - in a race against Phoenix who wants to get his mother, Lilith, out of hell. This time, however, it's a lot more personal as her best friend Steph becomes a pawn in the game.

Shirvington took us to Jordan in Entice and this time around we get to check out Greece. I definitely enjoyed Greece more than Jordan - maybe because I was imagining beautiful mediterranean waters instead of miles and miles of sand and rock. There's apparently a Hellmouth in Greece - to use BtVS terms - and the Grigori want to keep it closed at all costs.

Which of course means, it opens.

I wouldn't have it any other way, of course.

New characters of note in this book - Josephine and her ninja-like bodyguards. Josephine is from the Assembly and she's super annoying, but impossible to truly hate because she IS one of the good guys.

Even if she really doesn't seem to like our heroine all that much.

Josephine is also dangerous and Violet has to be supremely on guard around her lest the secret of her evolving abilities gets out.

Irin, the Keeper, is a really shady, gross new bad guy who runs the island on which the Hellmouth exists. He has an agreement with Grigori in that if he keeps the local exile populace under control, they will stay away. I liked him because, well, I always like shady, gross characters who muddy up the waters.

Violet's dad makes an incredible nuisance of himself, finally deciding to actually parent his daughter. I'm sure that Shirvington wants to paint him in a sympathetic light, but I went from apathy to outright dislike when it comes to him.

I felt the same way about Buffy's mother Joyce, to be honest. Parents who only care to parent when their children are a problem.

Last but not least, we get to meet Violet's mother, Evelyn, risen from the mouth of hell along with Lilith. Violet's antagonistic attitude toward her surprised me, but Evelyn came across as pretty abrasive, so she can hold her own. As a reader I know more about Evelyn than Violet does, so I suppose I should cut her a little slack.

A little.

Basically, the story is great, like I said. I thoroughly enjoyed the twists and turns. My lack of enthusiasm in reviewing comes down to the issue I've made no secret about since book one and that's my dislike of Lincoln.

I still really, really dislike Lincoln.

I still see the way he loves Violet as a weakness - not the fact that he does love her, but in the way Shirvington has him express it. I'd dealt with his and Violet's nauseating relationship because I thought that the story was going to be a true triangle with Phoenix.

After reading this book, I'm no longer sure of that and I find it really disappointing.

What makes it worse is the fact that Phoenix gets his own POV chapter in Embrace and it's paragraph after paragraph of his true motivations and feelings for Violet - loving her, thinking of how she could have been the one to give him a place to belong, a family, made life worth living for him, etc. And there's SO much Violet doesn't know. So much truth she doesn't even have an inkling of when it comes to Phoenix. It's the stuff star-crossed lovers are made of, not this contrived nonsense between Violet and Lincoln.

But that said, all signs seem to be pointing toward Violet and Lincoln being the couple to root for which just confuses the hell out of me. I've never seen an author approach character or relationships like this. Phoenix and Violet get the character development while Lincoln is on the sidelines, typically brooding and unhappy.

It's just weird and not in a good way.

I intend to keep reading the series because three books in I'm invested in more than just the romance and I really do enjoy the characters - literally all of them except Lincoln - but I'm going to do my best to disengage from the romance.

I need to lower my expectations and hopes and just look forward to Phoenix on his own.

Archangel's Kiss by Nalini Singh

Title: Archangel’s Kiss (Guilt Hunter #2)

Author: Nalini Singh

Publisher: Gollancz

Pages: 323

Rating: 3/5 Stars

Archangel's Kiss had been sitting on my bookshelf for a long time when a March Challenge to dig into my TBR pile finally prompted me to read it. I feel bad only giving the book three stars as Nalini Singh is one of my favorite authors, but three stars equals "I liked it" and that is the truth. I liked this book. Archangel's Kiss was a quick, engaging read that I definitely enjoyed, but it by no means knocked me off of my feet.

I read Archangel's Blood three years ago, so I had a hard time remembering all of the details of that book. They came back to me as I read and I was reminded why I'd made sure to pick up Archangel's Kiss and the next book in the series, Archangel's Consort. Nalini Singh creates characters and worlds that are vivid and engaging - very, very close to the world we currently live in, but different in subtle ways that really matter. Even if I didn't like Raphael, Elena, Illium and Dimitri, I'd be tempted to read Nalini's books just for the world building.

Archangel's Kiss picks up almost right where we left off in the previous book - newly minted angel Elena has woken up in Raphael's home, far from her native New York and the Guild Hunters she considers family. Given that Elena and Raphael are almost dysfunctionally (in the best way possible) in love with each other, Elena's new surroundings aren't as much of a problem as one might think.

What is a problem is the fact that the angel community is not happy with Elena's transformation and she might just be too weak from her injuries to stay alive. Raphael's Seven - his band of loyal angels/vampires - have a major problem with their boss making himself vulnerable because of Elena. They see her as a weakness that Raphael's enemies will exploit and make no secret of the fact that they don't trust/respect her - which is a testament to how deep their resentment goes considering Raphael's less than forgiving nature at having his decisions questioned. The lone exception, of course, is Illium, which is more dangerous than noble as I'm pretty sure the blue-winged angel is in love with Elena.

That won't end well.

Raphael and Elena's burgeoning relationship is framed by two distinct threats - a ball hosted by the oldest (and arguably most detached from reality) Archangel Lijuan and a power play by an unknown enemy to bring about a war among the Archangels. Raphael is adamant that Elena regain her strength quickly - if she doesn't, it could mean death for both of them.

As with the Psy-Changeling series, family - and more specifically children - are at the heart of everything. Protecting one's own is the motivation for nearly every character in both series and that's very apparent here where an otherwise acceptable series of political maneuverings becomes a matter of life and death when an angel child is attacked. The attack brings memories to the surface for nearly every character and as a result we learn a lot more about Elena - what caused the rift between her and her father, as well as her sisters/mother's deaths - and Raphael's past.

For all of the build up to Who's Trying to Star A War and What is Lijuan Up To, the actual denouement happened fairly quickly. That's not a complaint, really, as Nalini's books have always been more about the relationships of her characters than the plot, but it's worth noting.

I'm still having issues with the wings. I just keep thinking about how awkward it would be to cart the damn things around. I did enjoy how Nalini explained the way the angels adapted their clothes to fit around the giant extra appendages protruding from their backs. I commend her for making the wings a very real, very permanent part of the angels. While it may have been more to my tastes if the angels were somehow able to "put their wings away" when not in use, I also think it would have been something of a cop-out to do so.

Oh, since this is a romance novel, I will also say that the sex is pretty damn hot - wings and all. I expect nothing less from Nalini.

So, there it is. A review of a book that I definitely liked, but can't really gush over. I'm looking forward to reading the next book.

Hopefully it won't take me another three years.

Entice by Jessica Shirvington

Title: Entice
Author: Jessica Shirvington
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Pages: 438
Rating: 4/5 Stars


For me, reading Entice was a little bit like reading New Moon in that it had a lot of a character I had no real interest in (Lincoln/Jacob), but it was good and important in terms of story. More on that later…

Entice picks up shortly after Embrace ends, with Violet and Lincoln working together as partners and trying to repair the damage done to their relationship in the previous book. Shirvington wastes no time in getting the plot moving as the very first chapter introduces a dark force from Lincoln’s past that immediately begins to chip away at the fragile trust between he and Violet.

In addition to the drama with Lincoln, Violet’s world is further rent askew by the arrival of new Grigori – two trainers and three newbies like herself. They’re there for training – Violet has eschewed attending the Grigori Academy in her quest to have as normal a life as possible – but almost immediately they are faced with a larger Angel problem that Violet is sure ties back to Phoenix.

She’s right.

Chaos and heartache ensue and not everyone makes it out alive.

There’s a lot happening in this book. I tend to cringe at the introduction of new characters – especially an entire cadre of them – but Shirvington does a good job of balancing their influence and importance with the story she’s telling. I enjoyed the Grigori-in-Training, especially Spence who proved to be just as good a friend to Violet as Steph.

Moment of appreciation for Steph here – she’s truly the best friend ever and I cannot applaud Shirvington enough for allowing her to be in on the God Squad, as Steph calls it. I’d hate to see Violet try to maintain a friendship with someone who was constantly being pushed to the side and not understand why.

Anyway, I thoroughly enjoyed Spence’s leap-before-you-look mentality as it made a nice counterpoint to Violet’s sometimes paralyzing overanalyzing. Did it get her into trouble? Sure, but it also saved the day and I think that’s what’s important.

Nyla and Rudyard were interesting (and admittedly a bit nauseating to this non-traditional romantic). I appreciated the example they became for Lincoln and Violet as they struggled with their unrequited love for each other. While what happens to Nyla and Rudyard is tragic, I can’t say I’m going to miss them.

In Entice Shirvington takes her already dense mythology to another level, bringing in references to biblical places and themes. I had an ARC copy of this and there’s no description on the back so when the entire company took off for Jordan I was more than a little surprised. I wasn’t sure how I felt about it initially (it felt contrived for some reason, overreaching maybe), but by the time the adventures in the Middle East came to an end, I decided that I had enjoyed it. I suspected the reveal about Violet’s rank in terms of the Grigori hierarchy and it was delightful to have it confirmed.

Also, kudos to Shirvington’s use of Judas. I really enjoy that type of historical twist.

Now, onto the triangle – which isn't so much of a triangle in this book as a couple with a third wheel. Phoenix makes three appearances here. Three. To say that that wasn’t enough is an understatement of epic proportions. While I’m fully aware of the fact that the way he messes with Violet’s head is not nice (also an understatement, I know) I find him so much more interesting and dynamic than Lincoln.

Lincoln and Violet – sigh. I tried to like them more because actively disliking characters/couples in novels is exhausting – especially when said characters/couples play such vital roles in the narrative. I just can’t with Lincoln. As a character, I find him boring, as I tend to do with all good characters. And that’s what Lincoln is. He’s good. He’s the type of Grigori that steadfastly believes in the Grigori rules and code and that all Angels need to be Returned – there is no grey area with him.

I also think he’s weak and hypocritical – demanding nothing but strength and honesty from Violet while lying to her and keeping secrets – and I hate the way that makes Violet feel. I really hate the way she beats herself up over what happened with Phoenix, not in terms of her own self-worth, but in terms of how it affects Lincoln. I don’t doubt for a second that Violet and Lincoln love each other. What I have a problem with is that their love doesn’t make them stronger – it’s too rife with jealousy, doubt and unspoken truths – it makes them both weak.

I lay all of the blame for that at Lincoln’s feet. He’s the older one, he’s the one with experience in the Grigori world and instead of being a rock, a true partner for Violet, he’s a whiney ball of feels and I just…ugh. I find that so unattractive, unappealing, unromantic and every other un you can think of.

Also, for the love of all that’s holy, why doesn’t Lincoln TELL Violet anything?

Cripes. Okay. I’ll stop because I could really write a novel about the many, many ways I dislike Lincoln and his relationship with Violet. I’ll just leave you with this – I sincerely hope that in the next novel Violet and Lincoln really do put their romantic feelings for each other on the backburner as they know that they should. I just want them to follow through on that mutual decision for about five minutes instead of immediately waffling.

I want more Phoenix in the next novel, too, okay? Thanks. ;)

Ranting about Lincoln aside, I enjoyed Entice just as much as Embrace. All of the other characters, especially Violet, are just as intriguing as they were in the first book. I’m particularly thrilled with what happens with Magda because I SUSPECTED IT ALL ALONG! HAHA! The lower rating is simply because I missed Phoenix and wanted more of him. I’m so very much looking forward to Emblaze.

Embrace by Jessica Shirvington

Title: Embrace
Author: Jessica Shirvington
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Pages: 397 (Kindle Edition)
Rating: 5/5 Stars


Alright, time for my full review.

I. Loved. This. Book.

When it comes to fiction, I’m not typically an angel person. The whole concept of the wings drives me batty. How does a character DO anything with huge wings attached to their shoulder blades?
How do they sleep? How do they wear clothes? How do they walk through narrow doorways?

Anyway, suffice it to say, I get stuck in my own silly headspace when it comes to angel stories and it made me hesitant to read Embrace – despite the absolutely gorgeous cover.

Wow. Let’s take a moment to appreciate that.

Obviously, I got over my hesitation and I’m so glad that I did.

Like I said in my mini-review, I loved Violet. Even though she fell into the cliché of the girl hopelessly in love with her best friend, I loved her right from the start. Her strength and badass attitude was one cultivated over time and it made her completely relatable. I loved that her relationship with her father was strained, but in the most loving way possible. She didn’t have a lot of friends, but it wasn’t because she was unlikable, she just happened to be the type of person who didn’t have a lot of friends, but the one she does have – Steph – is awesome.

Like most books, I went into this one essentially blind – I didn’t even read the description – and as such I had no idea that there would be a triangle. Although, considering this is a paranormal YA novel, a love triangle is basically par for the course.

I liked Lincoln when the story began. I thought he was a good friend to Violet and as physical descriptions go, his wasn’t anything to sneeze at. I was all set for Violet to gradually make him aware of her feelings for him and for him to gradually reveal the fact that he pretty much loved her all along.

Then Phoenix happened.

Dude.

Like I said, I don’t normally get invested in triangles to the point where I have a strong opinion as to who gets the girl. I read The Hunger Games not caring one iota whether Katniss ended up with Peeta or Gale. Embrace, however, was a completely different story. As soon as it was clear that Phoenix was going to play a major role in this story, my mind was made up and nothing that happened during the course of the story swayed my opinion. Phoenix is a glorious bad boy right down to the dark hair and smoldering good looks and that is so my type. His connection with Violet is visceral and utterly delicious.

My affinity for Phoenix probably colored my view of Lincoln as well. As soon as the truth about Violet’s Grigori nature came out, Lincoln read as more cowardly, more petulant and his jealousy toward Phoenix wasn’t attractive in the slightest.

Phoenix’s jealously wasn’t all that attractive either, but it works better with his character. Considering the fact that Lincoln appears to be the good boy, I guess I felt that jealousy should be above him.
Unfair? Eh, maybe, but I don’t care. ;)

I just wrote my review for Divergent, so forgive me for making a comparison here because the two stories are nothing alike, but in terms of plot Embrace wasn’t as tight. While Jessica Shirvington clearly did a lot of research and mythology building to support her story, there were big exposition moments that, while fascinating and engaging, really felt like story time. There were also a couple of places where I felt like Violet arrived at a decision without cluing the reader into the decision making process – when she decided to be with Phoenix, for example. Violet talks about having made a choice, but I have no idea when or how it happened.

Those were my only quibbles, however, and as you can see from my five star rating, they didn’t affect my enjoyment of the story. The plot itself – fallen angels, light vs. dark, Grigori and the whole concept of Embracing – I enjoyed immensely and I look forward to diving into Entice, the next book in the series.

Waiting on Wednesday

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

This week I'm waiting on...

Goodreads Description:

The sky is dark with wings. . . .

In RAPTURE, the highly anticipated fourth and final novel in the FALLEN series, Luce and Daniel are together . . . but for how long? Can history be rewritten? Or are some punishments eternal?

Why I want it:

Take a look at the cover. I swear, Lauren Kate's novels have cornered the market on 'Covers That Make Me WANT'. The book could be about fishing in Maine or geography and if it looked like the book above - with the barren landscape, stormy grey sky, brunette in a white dress with the dark hair all fluttering in the breeze - I'd be all over it.

Plus, it doesn't hurt that I've read the first book of the series (actually, I bought it for a friend as a Christmas gift based SOLELY on the cover) and fully intend on reading the rest. I love tales of star-crossed lovers in pretty much any form.

Personal Demons by Lisa Desrochers

Title: Personal Demons
Author: Lisa Derochers
Publisher: Tor Teen
Pages: 365
Rating: 3 Stars

I really wanted to give this 3.5 stars. Personal Demons started out really, really well and I was reading it super fast - always a good sign. I enjoyed Frannie and loved Luc. I'm a sucker for a leather jacket and a pierced eyebrow. ;p The fact that he registered emotions as scents was a little odd and could have been awkward in its obvious attempt to be 'different', but for the most part it worked.

Although, I've never thought of ginger as being particularly lustful.

Lisa Desrochers walked the fine line of being a book about religious themes without becoming a religious book and I appreciated that. The only character that ever preached at me was Frannie's younger sister Grace and she was supposed to be zealous, so it worked.

I kind of felt like the switches between Luc and Frannie's first person POV were cheating a little, but I really liked getting into both of their heads, so I let it slide.

The only problem I had with the book was Gabe. I understand why his character was important. There needed to be a player from Heaven in the mix, not only to give Luc a little competition, but to save Frannie. As much as I like the badboy, this was not a book where Hell was some misunderstood place for castoffs and outsiders. It was Hell in every sense of the word. Frannie did NOT belong there.

The issue comes with the fact that I never got a clear picture of Gabe's feelings for Frannie until I was told - by Luc - that yes, he was in love with her and yes, he'd risk his wings for her. That's all well and good and I was expecting as much, but having to be told something I should have been shown is never good. I think Ms. Derochers made a mistake with Gabe in one of two ways - either he shouldn't have really fallen for Frannie or she should have written from his POV as well.

I was hoping it would come out that while Gabe sincerely cared about Frannie and wanted her safe, the way he made her feel was all a ruse - that Gabe was pushing his power on her to woo her like Luc did to humans. Given the fact that we don't get a Gabe POV, I think this would have been the better way to go. In the sequel, Ms. Desrochers could have delved into Gabe's love for Frannie and surprised everybody with the fact that he really was in love with her.

Ms. Desrochers writing style was very accessible and easy to read. Personal Demons had quite a few references to Top 40 Pop which is fine, but it will date the book in a couple of years - it kind of already did - and I'm not sure that's worth the risk, so to speak.

While I'm not surprised there's a sequel, the book ends in a very satisfying way, so I'm curious where the next installment will take us. I'm assuming we'll learn more about how Frannie is supposed to use her Sway and how Luc deals with being human - a plot point I'm rather 'meh' about, but I'll deal with it as long as he doesn't lose his edge.

Review: Hex by Ramona Wray

Title: Hex: A Witch and Angel Tale
Author: Ramona Wray
Publisher: CreateSpace
Pages: 254
Rating: 3/5 Stars

I give this book 4 Stars for story and 2.5 Stars for technical merit. Once the plot well and truly thickened I liked Lucien/Lily/Ryder's story very much. In fact, I stayed up until 3am to finish reading the book. Wray created some colorful characters and a very interesting setting for her story.

Technically speaking, there's room for improvement. Wray is a good author, but I felt that the beginning of the book moved a little too quickly. Lily's inability to touch people certainly went a long way in explaining why she fell for and trusted Ryder so quickly, but I still wanted it to take longer. I'm a sucker for watching two people fall for each other, so perhaps this a bit of personal preference.

Wray overuses simile and metaphor. They are useful parts of speech but when I actually notice their frequency...that's a problem. Lily also has an extensive wealth of information that comes in very handy at various times in the novel, but I don't believe for a second the random teenager would know. It was a bit jarring when she was able to name the man who originally said "absolute power corrupts absolutely" or when she went off on a rant that the mid-20th century song that spawned the idea that you hurt the ones you love the most. If there had been some justification made as to why she knew these things, I would have gone with it, but there wasn't.

I think Wray has it in her to write some really amazing fiction, so I'd recommend this book to anyone who enjoys YA novels. I'll keep an eye on Wray and give her other work a try.

Review: Fallen by Lauren Kate

Title: Fallen
Author: Lauren Kate
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Pages: 452
Rating: 3/5 Stars

This book was a solid 4 (out of 5) stars until the last 4th. Then it slipped into 3 star territory. Kate's characters are engaging and likable, the world of Swords & Cross intriguing and the mystery kept me turning pages.

The ending, unfortunately, left me disappointed, and not simply because as the first book in a series there were some loose ends. I like loose ends. It gives me a reason to anxiously await the next book. What was lacking for me was a solid sense of satisfaction at the threads that were tied up. There just weren't enough of them. Luce solved the who and what of Daniel, found out why Molly, Cam, Roland, Arrianne and Gabbe were all so chummy/hostile toward each other and that was basically it. I would have liked to know why Daniel fell at the very least, although I'm not blind to the implied idea that he was booted from Heaven for falling in love with a mortal.

I realize that events happened quickly and given the story is told from Luce's POV without it actually being a 1st person narrative, it makes sense that she didn't have time to adequately process everything. But I wanted to process more. I wanted more time for certain reveals to sink in, allowing more reveals to materialize.

Kate has me for the 2nd novel. She successfully created a world and characters that make me want to learn more. But I really hope her pace improves with the next novel. If my questions are answered later, I'll probably forgive the way this book ended. If they're not then I probably won't stick around for the 3rd book.

M