Book Review #451 - Nailed by Patrick Jones

The nail that sticks out farthest gets hammered the hardest.

Flint Southwestern High School is run by a cult: the jockarchy. And Bret Hendricks could never fit into their conformity cult. Bret doesn't mind standing out from the crowd when he's on stage acting or singing in his band. And he feels at home in his funky girlfriend's arms because sticking out together doesn't seem as hard.

But loyalties aren't what Bret thinks they are, as his safe havens seem to disappear one by one, and he learns that sometimes you just have to risk getting hammered in order to build a great future.

For any teen who feels that standing out is harder than just conforming. Patrick Jones's second novel nails the real truth about the high price of hiding one's true self.

My Rating: 3.5/5

I have read a lot of contemporary books recently and although this one is not as well known as the others it is certainly just as good.

Bret was a very realistic, raw and honest yet very flawed protagonist. He embraces the fact that he is different from everyone else but struggles with the bullying that he is subjected to.

Bret's relationship with his father was another huge focus point in this book. I found this to be the most realistic portion of the book.

The romantic relationships Bret had didn't have much substance but there was an element of realism about them unlike most YA books.

The ending, although predictable from quite early in the book is the ending that I wanted.  

Book Review #450 - City of Heavenly Fire (The Mortal Instruments #6) by Cassandra Clare

ΕRCHOMAI, SEBASTIAN HAD SAID.

I am coming.

Darkness returns to the Shadowhunter world. As their society falls apart around them, Clary, Jace, Simon and their friends must band together to fight the greatest evil the Nephilim have ever faced: Clary’s own brother. Nothing in the world can defeat him — must they journey to another world to find the chance?

My Rating: 5/5

This book was one of my most eagerly anticipated books of 2014.

In the lead up to its release, I decided to re-read the entire series. I definitely fell more in love with the shadowhunter world.

City of Glass is still my favourite book of this series, but City of Heavenly Fire runs a close second.

I loved the introduction of Emma as she reminded me of a mixture of Clary and Jace. I am definitely looking forward to reading more about her in The Dark Artifices series.

This book was a lot longer than the others because it deals with a lot more plot twists, action and characters.

I had numerous ideas on how this series would end, and whilst I wasn't completely accurate I was on the right track.

Possible Spoiler: Out of all the plot twists and endings, the Simon one surprised me the most.

This was the first time (probably because I re-read the entire series in under a week) that I felt a connection to both Izzy and Alec.

There was a significant more romance in this book compared to the others which will please a lot of people.

I have yet to read The Infernal Devices series so a lot of references to the characters from that series and their ancestors went a little over my head.

Book Review #449 - Fated (Soul Seekers #1) by Alyson Noel

Strange things are happening to Daire Santos. Crows mock her, glowing people stalk her, time stops without warning, and a beautiful boy with unearthly blue eyes haunts all her dreams. Fearing for her daughter’s sanity, Daire’s mother sends her to live with the grandmother she’s never met. A woman who recognizes the visions for what they truly are—the call to her destiny as a Soul Seeker—one who can navigate the worlds between the living and dead.



There on the dusty plains of Enchantment, New Mexico, Daire sets out to harness her mystical powers. But it’s when she meets Dace, the boy from her dreams, that her whole world is shaken to its core. Now Daire is forced to discover if Dace is the one guy she's meant to be with...or if he’s allied with the enemy she's destined to destroy.

My Rating: 3.5/5

I have a love/hate relationship with Alyson Noel's books so I was interested in how I would feel about this one. I would say I fell somewhere in between.

The main thing I loved about this book was the whole seeker magic aspect. I thought that this was unique as it depicted the magical element in a more natural way.

The main problem I had with this book was the characters. There wasn't anything redeeming about them and their actions weren't believable at all.

Daire the protagonist was annoying from the first paragraph - although I did think she softened out towards the end. Her relationship with Dace was a little unbelievable simply because of the pacing of it.

I also really loved the idea of the spirit animals and hope that this aspect gets developed more throughout the rest of the series.