Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Wolfsbane (Nightshade #2) by Andrea Cremer

I loved this book as much as the first installment. In this second book, Calla has run away from her union with Ren when she thinks she will have to kill Shay as a sacrifice. She's then captured by the Searchers who end up being different than what she thinks. Her pack is suffering for her running away. Major changes happen and loyalities are divided and tested. Calla along with the Searchers attempt to save her pack and fight back against the Keepers (and her old pack) who want them to stay slaves and not really know their true history.

The characters are gut wrenching at times. Especially trying to feel Ansel's pain about being stripped of his wolf. Calla is brave and tries to right the wrongs she made by running away. She's conflicted about Ren, worried about what happened to him, and grief stricken when she realizes the choice he made, which wasn't her. Shay is there to support her and become her alpha and lead the new pack if only she chooses him.

Sleepless by Cyn Balog

This was a new sort of fantasy for me. Sandman. Or sandmen. The concept behind the story is that there really are sandmen that help you sleep each night. Sandmen are made after they die. They serve a hundred years as sandmen and then are returned to their human life. This was a quick little read, interesting, but definitely not a memorable book or one that I"d want to read a second time. But at least it has a pretty cover.

Getting Lucky by Carolyn Brown

I love a good romance novel. I've recently discovered this author and her cowboy romances. They may be a little cheesy at times but a book where the male character sweeps the female lead off her feet.....well, I'm all for it. This book introduces us to the Luckadeau's who all have this "lucky streak" (white streak in their super black hair).  The female lead (of course it's been a while so the name escapes me) has a one night stand which leads to a baby. Fast forward five years later, she takes a job teaching in a town where the one night stand's twin (although she doesn't know it at the time of their first meeting) live. Come to find out she and her daughter now have a new famil to deal with.

Nightshade by Andrea Cremer

I tend to be a little obsessed with my werewolves and other paranormal/fantasy type creatures. This is no exception. I LOVE this book! Calla is part of a society that basically tells her how to live, who to marry and mate with (yes she's a werewolf). But Calla meets someone who makes her rethink her way of life and want to follow her heart, despite the major conflicts she goes through. She has a tight knit pack of friends who are basically an extension of her family. She is expected to be mated (or part of union) with Ren, an alpha male from another pack. Together she and Ren will create a new pack. But a chance encounter with Shay makes Calla start to think about her true feelings for Shay and Ren, her feelings about being told how to live her life and she starts to question the truths that she has believed for so long.

The Emperor's Code by Gordon Korman

Dan and Amy travel to China to continue the path of the 39 clues.