The Quiet Concert

Unmade (The Lynburn Legacy #3) by Sarah Rees Brennan

Title:Unmade
Series: The Lynburn Legacy #3
Author: Sarah Rees Brennan
Publisher: Random House Books for Young Readers
Release Date:September 23rd 2014

Summary from Goodreads:
Powerful love comes with a price. Who will be the sacrifice?

Kami has lost the boy she loves, is tied to a boy she does not, and faces an enemy more powerful than ever before. With Jared missing for months and presumed dead, Kami must rely on her new magical link with Ash for the strength to face the evil spreading through her town.

Rob Lynburn is now the master of Sorry-in-the-Vale, and he demands a death. Kami will use every tool at her disposal to stop him. Together with Rusty, Angela, and Holly, she uncovers a secret that might be the key to saving the town. But with knowledge comes responsibility—and a painful choice. A choice that will risk not only Kami’s life, but also the lives of those she loves most.

This final book in the Lynburn Legacy is a wild, entertaining ride from beginning to shocking end.

Review

Sarah Rees Brennan really knows how to make me laugh and want to cry all within a couple of chapters. Unmade was a truly fantastic, heart breaking, action-driven final book. This is truly how series should end!

Similar to the first two books, I loved the relationships, friendships, family love, and overall story. The witty banter between Kami and Jared is the best it has ever been. Kami is constantly coming up with funny nicknames for him that have me laughing out loud. Even though I love the banter, I adore the fact that the friendships in the story are even stronger and player a bigger role in the plot than the romances. Rusty, Angela, Holly, and Kami would really do anything for one another. Their friendship is powerful, rare, and honest. At times their love for one another and the risks they take will bring tears to your eyes.

Family is not always a common theme in YA literature and this series has it in spades. Kami has such a strong love for her family and they all play a big role in the story. The family adds depth to Kami's character and to the overall plot. As for Kami, she is a rock star hero who propels the fast paced, action packed plot forward.

There is humor, tragedy, war, and love within this last installment in The Lynburn Legacy. I was completely taken by surprise by certain parts, I applaud Brennan for taking risks that while make for a tough read truly make the book a fantastic one. I urge you to give this series a try, it is one of my all time favorites, it is fantastic beginning to end!

The Start of Me and You by Emory Lord

Title: The Start of Me and You
Author: Emory Lord
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Release Date: March 31, 2015
Source: ARC provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review (thanks Bloomsbury!)

Summary from Goodreads:
Brimming with heartfelt relationships and authentic high-school dynamics The Start of Me and You proves that it’s never too late for second chances.

It’s been a year since it happened—when Paige Hancock’s first boyfriend died in an accident. After shutting out the world for two years, Paige is finally ready for a second chance at high school . . . and she has a plan. First: Get her old crush, Ryan Chase, to date her—the perfect way to convince everyone she’s back to normal. Next: Join a club—simple, it’s high school after all. But when Ryan’s sweet, nerdy cousin, Max, moves to town and recruits Paige for the Quiz Bowl team (of all things!) her perfect plan is thrown for a serious loop. Will Paige be able to face her fears and finally open herself up to the life she was meant to live?

Review

I don't know how Emory Lord does it. Her characters are so endearing I just want to stuff them in my pocket to carry around with me, like little pocket pals. With all of their quirks, humility and earnestness, they make me feel a little less alone in the world. And Emory Lord must have the best of friends because she writes the best of friends in her stories. I didn't think it could get better than Dee and Reagan but I LOVED Paige, Tessa, Morgan, and Kayleigh and I could feel how much these girls meant to each other. And don't even get me started on the romance. Max is probably the best human being in the world and puts all other human beings to shame.Their friendship turned romance was just about the best thing ever and the ending killed me. We're talking lots of tears of joy, people, and one hell of an "AWWWWWW" moment.

And there are many more relationships worth mentioning. Like the one with her grandmother, which I loved because I am also incredibly close with my grandmother. And I thought her parents starting to date again after getting divorced was so interesting because I've never read about that particular dynamic before. And all the different relationships with other people at school - like Aaron's best friend, who she shared grief with. They were all heart warming and layered and hopeful. Emory Lord excels at creating meaningful relationships.

As with everything else, the themes in this book were just spot on. I could relate to Paige on so many levels. Her simultaneous fear and desire to start new and redefine herself by stepping outside of her comfort zone. Her increasing enthusiasm as her life started to change for the better. Her sudden realizations that what she thought she might need and what she actually needs might not be the same thing. Her fierce determination to live her life. The growth in this book was incredible, relatable, and so inspiring.

I will forever associate Emory Lord with happiness and love and friendships because her books are the epitome of these things. I feel so much when I read them and am completely smitten by the time I finish. I could not recommend her books enough. If you have a heart, I don't know how you could not love this one. So read it! :)

Top Ten Series We Would Classify As ALL TIME FAVORITES

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. This week's Top Ten list is
"Top Ten Series We Would Classify As ALL TIME FAVORITES"

Nicole's Top Five

To help make my life easier, I focused on FINISHED SERIES ONLY otherwise Throne of Glass and The Lunar Chronicles would definitely be on this list! I'm sure no one is surprised by this list of mine...

1. Graceling Realm by Kristin Cashore

2. The Lumatere Chronicles by Melina Marchetta

3. The Lotus War by Jay Kristoff

4. His Fair Assassin by Robin LaFevers

5. Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor

Ashley's Top Five

1. Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling

2. The Infernal Devices by Cassandra Clare

3. The Lynburn Legacy by Sarah Rees Brennan

4. Under The Never Sky by Veronica Rossi

5. Legend by Marie Lu

What are your top ten?

Dangerous Boys by Abigail Haas

Title: Dangerous Boys
Author: Abigail Haas
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Childrens Books
Release Date: August 14, 2014

Summary from Goodreads:

It all comes down to this. Oliver, Ethan, and I. Three teens venture into an abandoned lake house one night. Hours later, only two emerge from the burning wreckage. Chloe drags one Reznick brother to safety, unconscious and bleeding. The other is left to burn, dead in the fire. But which brother survives? And is his death a tragic accident? Desperate self-defense? Or murder ...? Chloe is the only one with the answers. As the fire rages, and police and parents demand the truth, she struggles to piece the story together - a story of jealousy, twisted passion and the darkness that lurks behind even the most beautiful faces ...

Review

Dangerous Boys was another successful, deliciously twisted story. Abigail Haas is so good at writing these mystery-thrillers. She really makes you contemplate the nature of man and good vs evil. Even when I thought I had this one figured out, she surprised me yet again.

Chloe is drowning is her small town. She just wants to get out of there, and she almost did, but then her father left and her mother fell apart and she was left to pick up the pieces. But every day that she's stuck in that town bears down on her. She's tired of being the girl everyone expects her to be. She's tired of pretending. Ethan makes her feel trapped but Oliver... Oliver sets her free.

The tone of this story got darker and darker as it progressed. I thought I knew who Chloe was - even as her actions became more worrisome - but turns out I didn't know her at all, which fits precisely with the theme of this book.

"You can never really know someone. [...]
We're all strangers, in the end.
I remember something, from a book Oliver gave me months ago. It said that we're all irrevocably trapped inside our own minds: just as it's impossible for anyone to truly know us, we can't begin to hope to know anyone else.
I understand it now.
You can be a part of someone's life for years, your parent or brother or friend, and then on day they turn around and do something so unconscionable, a crime so great, that suddenly, they're a stranger to you. You think that their goodness is innate, embedded in their DNA, so you take it for granted, right up until the terrible moment when everything changes. Only then do you realize, those good deeds were actions. Actions that can stop, change on a dime at any time.
You don't know what's behind that smile. You can't imagine who someone will turn out to be. We assume the sun will rise very morning just because it has done every other day, but what happens when you wake up to darkness? When you open your eyes and find, today is the one different day?"

There were lots of quotes like this that I devoured. The writing was beautiful and darkly poetic. And again, the way Haas delivers the story, switching between the past and the present, revealing only so much at a time, is perfect. I was completely transfixed.

Overall, Dangerous Boys was addictive and pleasantly unsettling, and I enjoyed it, but not quite as much as Dangerous Girls. They were two very different stories - which I was ready for - and I preferred the later. The pace and plotting of this one didn't pull me in quite as much (and I felt really bad for Ethan). But I can understand all of the praise for both of Haas's novels. They really are something else and I highly recommend them for a good suspense novel!

February 2015 Recap

Nicole Read

Ashley Read

Favorites

Nicole's Picks

Ashley's Pick

February Reviews

What's New With Nicole

SO I was supposed to be in Argentina right now but due to freak snow in Dallas my flight got cancelled and unfortunately since I was going as part of a group and it is mission impossible to rebook 35 people, we are now flying out Monday. And I don't think we are going to Chile anymore. So you can say I am pretty bummed. Especially since this past month was ROUGH. I have been taking classes THREE nights a week and had a 4th class on top of all that, that met intermittently. So basically all I did in February was go to class and do endless amounts of schoolwork. When I wasn't doing that I was reading to keep myself from going insane. I did manage to squeeze in a snowboarding trip but that's about it. Fortunately, March should be a much more exciting month. I have a few events planned with friends, one of which I get to see Ashley :)

What's New With Ashley

I wish I was going on an awesome trip like Nicole's :)! I decided to participate in On The Same Page Secret Sister and I sent and received my first package this month, it was awesome!! (Thank you Secret Sister!) It has been a lot of fun planning and putting together the monthly boxes. The winter tundra is really keeping me inside on weekends so nothing crazy has been going on besides painting in the new house and hanging up pictures. I have been taking up sewing so that has been lots of fun, I am currently teaching myself how to make bags/purses. I am SOO ready for spring!