Afterworlds by Scott Westerfeld

 Title: Afterworlds

 Author: Scott Westerfeld

 Publisher: Simon & Schuster

 Date Published: September 23, 2014

 Genre: Contemporary, Paranormal, Standalone (not really a genre)

 Pages: 608 (Hardcover)

 Age Range: 14+








                                                                   Summary:

     Darcy Patel has put college on hold to publish her teen novel, Afterworlds. With a contract in hand, she arrives in New York City with no apartment, no friends, and all the wrong clothes. But lucky for Darcy, she’s taken under the wings of other seasoned and fledgling writers who help her navigate the city and the world of writing and publishing. Over the course of a year, Darcy finishes her book, faces critique, and falls in love.

Woven into Darcy’s personal story is her novel, Afterworlds, a suspenseful thriller about a teen who slips into the “Afterworld” to survive a terrorist attack. The Afterworld is a place between the living and the dead, and where many unsolved—and terrifying—stories need to be reconciled. Like Darcy, Lizzie too falls in love…until a new threat resurfaces, and her special gifts may not be enough to protect those she cares about most.

                                                                    Review:

     SO, Scott Westerfeld has a new-ish book; I loved Westerfeld's Pretties series, so I decided to give this book a try. After finishing this book over a week- a very long time for me- I was kind of confused about how I felt. I liked some aspects of the book, I disliked some, some bothered me, and other parts I just didn't care enough about to develop an opinion. I didn't really love any aspect of this book, and I've been flipping back and forth between two or three stars. Finally, I decided to give this book a very generous three stars. My rating is more along the lines of 2.75 stars.
     Everything was really slow throughout the whole book in Darcy's chapters. Not a whole lot happened, and a lot of the book was angst. Angst is fine! I love angst... But, not really. It seemed like a lot of good advice was thrown at Darcy and she ignored it all just to some more hand-wringing. Imogen kind of fed Darcy's angst and canoodled her through it all, encouraging more emotion. Darcy's writing was really stressful for me because she was so concerned about it. She kept panicking and it kept making my heart race with worry.
     The romance between Imogen and Darcy existed. I didn't really feel a connection between the two, and there's no way that Darcy decided that she was gay out of the blue after Imogen's kiss. I felt like Darcy was latching onto whatever gave her attention. They had some really nice moments and such, but it all felt stilted- almost forced.
     I liked Lizzie's chapters much more than I liked Darcy's chapters. They were more action-packed, and they showed off the Westerfeld-ness that I fell in love with in Pretties. Lizzie was a much better character than Darcy in my opinion, and she had many faces. I didn't like some of the decisions that she made, though, and I wanted to slam on the brakes for her and Yamaraj- not a good thing.
     My favorite character was such a minor character. Agent Elian was my favorite character. He was hilarious, but I really wanted to see more of him. I also think that he should've been younger so that he and Lizzie could get together. Yamaraj was very one-dimensional for me, and besides being gorgeous, I didn't see any appeal.
     I was left disappointed by this book, but the writing was nice, and I did like some of the minor characters like Kiralee and Elian, and I did like some of the plot. Otherwise, the book was just middling. Again, it took me a whole week to get through because I just kept putting it down, and putting it off.

                                                

The Promise of Amazing by Robin Constantine

 Title: The Promise of Amazing

 Author: Robin Constantine

 Publisher: Balzer + Bray

 Date Published: December 31, 2013

 Genre: Contemporary, Romance

 Pages: 384 (hardcover)

 Age Range: 14+








                                                                        Summary:

     Wren Caswell is average. Ranked in the middle of her class at Sacred Heart, she's not popular, not a social misfit. Wren is the quiet good girl who's always done what she's supposed to—only now, in her junior year, this passive strategy is backfiring. She wants to change but doesn't know how.

    Grayson Barrett was the king of St. Gabe's: star of the lacrosse team, top of his class, and on the fast track to a brilliant future—until he was expelled for being a "term-paper pimp." Now Gray is in a downward spiral and needs to change but doesn't know how.

     One fateful night, their paths cross at Wren's family's Arthurian-themed catering hall. What follows is the complicated, awkward, hilarious, and tender tale of two teens shedding their pasts, figuring out who they are—and falling in love.

                                                               Review:

     First off, thank you so much to Ashley forgetting me a signed copy of the book. I highly appreciate it, girly, and a signed Jenny Han book for you is the least I could do! Anyway, this book seriously had some great potential. The plot looked great from the blurb on the flap, the cover is pretty cute, and the first few pages were good. And then, things started going downhill incredibly quickly. First, we have the instalove. The instalove was so...instantaneous, that it was kind of repulsive and left me wanting to slam on the brakes for the characters. Wren saved Grayson, and after that, let the creepy stalking of each other commence!

     The whole plot...twist with Grayson being a closeted bad boy became so weary so quickly because he didn't act like a bad boy. I love bad boys- when they are bad boys- and Grayson wasn't one. He was just a "changed" boy that kept going back and doing plain stupid things. I disliked Luke and his whole thing with Grayson and how he kept trying to get Grayson back on his team. It was interesting for awhile, but after over 350 pages of the same trouble, it just gets boring and I found myself not caring. Throughout the whole book, Grayson goes back to his old ways, and I hated him for that. He kept trying to prove that he had changed, but he kept sneaking off to do... stupid stuff.
     And Wren let him! Wren was so stupidly blind throughout this whole book that I wanted to shake her. She kept letting Grayson crawl back to her, swearing up and down that he's changed, before distrusting him again and again- for good reason! Wren's relationship with her parents became strained over the stupid actions of an idiotic Grayson, but hey, true love always prevails. *gags*

     Redeeming factors of this book? Eben. I would give him a million stars because I love that boy. And Wren's sister. Again, a stellar character with some actual drama that reaches beyond the tedious monotony of Wren's drama. Other redeeming factors? Cuteness. The book is very cute and light, and I would definitely skim through it on a rainy day.


                                           

Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard

 Title: Red Queen

 Series: Red Queen Series #1

 Author: Victoria Aveyard

 Publisher: HarperTeen

 Date Published: February 10, 2015

 Genre: Dystopian

 Pages: 400 (Hardcover)

 Age Range: 14+




            Summary:

     Graceling meets The Selection in debut novelist Victoria Aveyard's sweeping tale of seventeen-year-old Mare, a common girl whose once-latent magical power draws her into the dangerous intrigue of the king's palace. Will her power save her or condemn her?
      Mare Barrow's world is divided by blood--those with common, Red blood serve the Silver- blooded elite, who are gifted with superhuman abilities. Mare is a Red, scraping by as a thief in a poor, rural village, until a twist of fate throws her in front of the Silver court. Before the king, princes, and all the nobles, she discovers she has an ability of her own.

      To cover up this impossibility, the king forces her to play the role of a lost Silver princess and betroths her to one of his own sons. As Mare is drawn further into the Silver world, she risks everything and uses her new position to help the Scarlet Guard--a growing Red rebellion--even as her heart tugs her in an impossible direction. One wrong move can lead to her death, but in the dangerous game she plays, the only certainty is betrayal.

                                                        Review:

     I'm pretty sure that people would kill to get their hands on this book. I have heard nothing except glowing praise, and that kind of scared me away from this book. Very rarely do so many different people love such a book so much- so passionately. But, I grabbed this book at the first opportunity, set on reading it to find out what all the hype was about. Aaaaand, I really just don't see it. Don't get me wrong, some things were great, but they were really scarce in comparison to the not-so-good.
     The plot was interesting, but it felt so old and done before. A girl doesn't realize she's a special snowflake until she finds out in some wildly public way. Then, we have the ensuing cover-up act, and the love interests all vying for this selfish, seemingly perfect, doesn't-know-she's-gorgeous, bland girl. Don't get me wrong, I did like the plot, I just didn't find it as original and fresh as everybody else seemed to.
     The characters kind of bled into one another for me. Mare was...just kind of meh. She wasn't bad, but nothing really made her stick out from the hordes of other female book characters that I have read about over the years. She was a SPECIAL SNOWFLAKE that didn't understand her true specialness. And then we had our princes- Cal and Maven. First off, I do love their names, and Cal is probably my favorite character out of them all. He was sweet and funny, but he was also... preoccupied with Evangeline for a lot of the book. Kilorn kind of existed? I liked him, but he also got on my nerves, with his stupid decisions and reckless behavior. Maven... he was... there? I liked him around the middle of the book, but my feelings for him kind of ebbed away, and I was left with this great ambivalence. I just couldn't be bothered to care. And Evangeline. I had a hate-love relationship with her. She's a great villain, but I'm supposed to hate her. Kind of like I love Bellatrix from Harry Potter, but just because she is so evil.
     Let's discuss the plot twist. That plot twist was actually very well done. It was perfect wrench in the plans with an amazing execution, and my mouth actually dropped open. That being said, it helps me settle on my feelings for two certain characters, and that feeling is hate. Immense hate. Seriously, I cannot fathom why some people still ship Mare and... a certain male lead. That plot twist though! *applause* Brilliantly done, Mrs. Aveyard. And bringing a character back into the plot from the grave... I'm still bowing down to that genius.
     One more thing, our love pentagon? Square? Octagon? That needs to go. Mare is going to end up with Cal. End of story.


                                          

Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell

Title: Fangirl

Author: Rainbow Rowell

Publisher: St. Martin's Press

Date Published: September 10, 2013 (normal edition)

Genre: YA fiction, realistic fiction, funny, contemporary, romance

Pages: 464 (hardback) - (exclusive collector's edition)

Age Range: 13+





Summary


Cath is a Simon Snow fan. Okay, the whole world is a Simon Snow fan, but for Cath, being a fan is her life--and she's really good at it. She and her twin sister, Wren, ensconced themselves in the Simon Snow series when they were just kids; it's what got them through their mother leaving.

Reading. Rereading. Hanging out in Simon Snow forums, writing Simon Snow fan fiction, dressing up like the characters for every movie premiere.

Cath's sister has mostly grown away from fandom, but Cath can't let go. She doesn't want to.
Now that they're going to college, Wren has told Cath she doesn't want to be roommates. Cath is on her own, completely outside of her comfort zone. She's got a surly roommate with a charming, always-around boyfriend, a fiction-writing professor who thinks fan fiction is the end of the civilized world, a handsome classmate who only wants to talk about words . . . And she can't stop worrying about her dad, who's loving and fragile and has never really been alone.

For Cath, the question is: Can she do this? Can she make it without Wren holding her hand? Is she ready to start living her own life? And does she even want to move on if it means leaving Simon Snow behind?


Review
 

This book had it's up and downs but I turned out loving it in the end. The book started rather slow, but around chapter ten or eleven, things started to pick up a little. Then it got slow again, only to pick up speed later. This book was like a roller-coaster.

I thought the book would pick up and get really exiting. Like, something exciting or outraging would happen. But nothing really did. I know it's a contemporary novel and there isn't much you can do plot-wise that would be original--I just thought that since the story was original, something more would have happened. Some parts did surprised me, like when Nick kinda stole the story he worked on with Cather. It was slow in a lot of places and there were a lot of things I (personally) would have taken out. I kept reading and eventually things picked up until I couldn't put it down towards the end.

Let's talked about the fanfiction.
I really felt that it was unnecessary. What was the point? I mean, sure Cather wrote fanfiction but did we need to read it and parts from the Simon Snow series? No. I felt it was irrelevant to the plot of the book. It would have been okay to add the fanfiction when she read it to Levi. But I found the fanfiction useless otherwise.

Speaking of Levi! The relationship between Levi and Cahter is so sweet and awkward. I thought they were perfect together. I am a Levi & Cather shipper!! I totally ship them!

It was a great coming-of-age novel!! It's a wonderfully amusing read. It expressed what teens think when they first start college, though doesn't go into too much detail about college life.

Cather did a lot of things in the beginning that I saw myself doing. I'm shy and really awkward around people I've just met (just like Cather). So the first few chapters kind of reminded me of myself because I could see myself doing the same things as Cather. 

It had some really funny parts! And the last couple-hundred pages made it impossible for me to put it down. The night I finished it, it was kinda late and I had about 70 pages left. I was tired so I decided I would just read some and finish it the next day. Once I started, I could not stop. I stayed up and finished the book.

I was going to rate this book 3.5 stars but the book was just too good towards the end, so 4 it is!

Shadowhunter News: The Cast

Okay, I know I've been kinda behind on news revolving around the coming ABC Family show, Shadowhunters, so I thought I'd catch up today. I'll be posting the cast that we have so far, starting with our main characters.

Clary Fray will be played by Katherine McNamara 

She's so pretty and cute!! But she also needs to be sassy to keep up with Jace. She also needs to be tough. I hope she can pull all of this off, because I really think she looks the part.

Jace Herondale/Lightwood/Morgenstern/Wayland will be played by Dominic Sherwood

At first, I wasn't so sure about him playing Jace, but now that I've seen the pictures of him on set, I'm good with it. I just hope he can keep up and play this character well, because he's a sexy, snarky, and important character for this series. 

Simon Lewis will be played by Alberto Rosende

I can totally see Alberto as Simon. He has this sort of geeky look, but I can also see him as being really cute (which is totally Simon). I'm excited to see him on-screen! Even as a rat lol!

Isabelle Lightwood is going to be played by Emeraude Toubia

 She's so gorgeous!! Like OMG I CAN'T EVEN!! I can't wait to see her play this beautiful, feminist, and badass character.

Alec Lightwood is going to be played by Matthew Daddario

I'M READY FOR SOME MALEC!!!

Magnus Bane is played by Harry Shum Jr.

 DREAMY! He looks even better in-character (if you can believe it)!

Luke Garroway is being played by Isaiah Mustafa

I can already tell he's going to be an awesome werewolf!

Valentine Morgenstern is going to be played by Alan Van Sprang

He was a mad/evil king on Reign and he was really great!! He will be an amazing villain!

Raphael Santiago is played by David Castro

 Wow. All I have to say is wow.

Hodge Starkweather is being played by Jon Cor

 He is so HOT!! OMG! This is probably my favorite cast member so far. Can anyone guess why? LOL! I feel kind of guilty since he's kind of a bad guy but....

Camille Belcourt is being played by Kaitlyn Leeb

She's so gorgeous!! She looks so perfect...

Jocelyn Fray is being played by Maxim Roy

Maryse Lightwood is being played by Nicola Correia Damude

Well that's everyone so far!

OMG seriously can't wait for this show because of this awesome cast!! It seems like ABC Family is working really hard to make the cast perfect. Almost everyone looks how I pictured them while reading the books :) 

I'll be posting on my other blog today, so check that out at www.ashleyearleybooks.blogspot.com or www.ashleyearleybooks.tumblr.com

Glass Sword by Victoria Aveyard

                                                     

     Look how pwitty book two in the Red Queen series is!!! Even though I'm not a huge fan of the first book, these covers are very, very pretty to have sitting on a black bookshelf. 
     Here's our synopsis: If there's one thing Mare Barrow knows, it's that she's different.

Mare Barrow's blood is red—the color of common folk—but her Silver ability, the power to control lightning, has turned her into a weapon that the royal court tries to control.

     The crown calls her an impossibility, a fake, but as she makes her escape from Maven, the prince—the friend—who betrayed her, Mare uncovers something startling: She is not the only one of her kind.

      Pursued by Maven, now a vindictive king, Mare sets out to find and recruit other Red-and-Silver fighters to join in the struggle against her oppressors.

     But Mare finds herself on a deadly path, at risk of becoming exactly the kind of monster she is trying to defeat.

     Will she shatter under the weight of the lives that are the cost of rebellion? Or have treachery and betrayal hardened her forever?

    You're probably wondering when it will be released. To answer your question, February 9th, 2016. Settle in for the long wait, everyone.

Miss Mayhem by Rachel Hawkins

 Title: Miss Mayhem

 Series: Rebel Belle #2

 Author: Rachel Hawkins

 Publisher: G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers

 Date Published: April 7, 2015

 Genre: Paranormal

 Pages: 288 (Hardcover)

 Age Range: 13+



        Summary:

     Life is almost back to normal for Harper Price. The Ephors have been silent after their deadly attack at Cotillion months ago, and best friend Bee has returned after a mysterious disappearance. Now Harper can return her focus to the important things in life: school, canoodling with David, her nemesis-turned-ward-slash-boyfie, and even competing in the Miss Pine Grove pageant.
     Unfortunately, supernatural chores are never done. The Ephors have decided they’d rather train David than kill him.  The catch: Harper has to come along for the ride, but she can’t stay David’s Paladin unless she undergoes an an ancient trial that will either kill her . . .  or make her more powerful than ever.


                                                           Review:

     This review will spoil both the first, and second book so if you haven't read the book, I suggest that you keep on scrolling. I will, however, have a mini review at this point that will be non-spoilery. Here's the non-spoilery review. This book was disappointing. The first one was very light and funny, action-packed, and it read like a contemporary. This one was....less so. It was heavier, it had a lot of little things that made me really angry, and the characters have changed so very much.
     Things will now get spoilery, and ranty, and angry, but mostly spoilery. I read this book in four hours because I couldn't put it down. That being said, I am very upset. The first few pages or so of the book were pretty much the same as the first one (which I LOVED) and it picked up pretty soon after the events in the first book. Then, we started changing. By changing, I mean the whole over-all prose wasn't the light, funny, in-charge Harper that I had loved so much. Instead, things felt heavy, dark, and...angry.
     The characters have changed so much from the first book. I LOVED Harper in the first book, but in this book I liked her a little less. I felt bad for the poor baby, but she really needs to relax and let some things slide. While Harper was busy trying to do everything, and keeping a little secret from David, and trying to be all Paladin-y, her best friend was getting on my nerves. I liked Bee in the first book, but here I flat-out disliked her. She wasn't a very good friend like she was in the first book, and I dislike that she's a better Paladin than Harper. Bee might have grated on my nerves, but Ryan started to shred them up. After book one, I still kinda loved Ryan and might have still shipped him and Harper. After book two, I wanted to slap that fool with this book in the face. First off, he cheated on Harper (NOT OKAY) and then he dumps Mary Beth for Bee. I HATE Ryan and Bee together. I really do. They better break up soon, because I will throw up if they continue to be an item. Ryan may have shredded up my nerves, but David set them on fire and threw them into a batch of gasoline. Oh, my God. I was so upset with half of the things that David did, and I really hope that Harper decides to stay broken up and live a happy life by herself because that fool...
     Alexander the Ephor was an amazing plot device to have, but he was kind of meh for me... The whole thing with Blythe just dying and not even being a problem in this book was upsetting because it made me feel like she was never an issue. I disliked how much petty drama we had intertwined with some highly major issues. I hated how much we had people sneaking around behind each others back, and how insensitive people became. David with the whole thing about Bee becoming his Paladin was mean to both Bee and Harper. And even though Harper never should have gone around with Ryan to block David's powers, I understand why she did it, and I hated how much David despised her for it. The whole book I was waiting for Bee to do something awful to everyone because I thought that she had been hijacked by Alexander. And the entire ending, I was screaming at Ryan and Bee because they were being horrible people, and I was cursing out David because, well, I dislike him right now.
     I did like some of the cute moments between David and Harper, and I did like some of the smaller moments in the book, but I really hope that book three will go back to its roots.

                                    

The Darkest Light Giveaway

  Hi everybody!!

 I'm giving away 2 paperback copies of The Darkest Light on Goodreads!

 The giveaway has already started and lasts until September 10th of this year :)

Click the link below to enter to win!
https://www.goodreads.com/giveaway/show/145336-the-darkest-light

Ashes to Ashes by Jenny Han and Siobhan Vivian

 Title: Ashes to Ashes

 Series: Burn for Burn Trilogy #3

 Author(s): Siobhan Vivian, Jenny Han

 Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers

 Date Published: September 16, 2014

 Genre: Contemporary, Paranormal

 Pages: 401 (hardcover)

 Age Range: 14+




          Summary:

     They only meant to right the wrongs. It was about getting even. Burn for burn.
     But the fire they lit kept raging…Reeve ended up hurt, then Rennie ended up dead.
     Everything will turn to ash if they don’t stop what they started. But now that Mary knows the truth about what happened to her, will she want to?
     Secrets drew Lillia, Kat, and Mary together. The truth might tear them apart.

                                                      Review:

     Oh, my literal gosh. Ashes to Ashes is like that third book in a series that you just have to read, but you kinda wish you could rewrite. It's slightly angering, more than slightly intense, and a little perfect. Honestly, I'm not sure how to rate this book- I almost wished that I hadn't read it. I want to give it all the stars, but I also want to take away a few stars because of... issues. This review is going to be spoilery because I can't talk about this book without being spoilery. I just can't...
     Mary became so evil and awful in this book.I knew that something was totally wrong with her, but I never guessed ghost. When I read Mary's chapter and found out that she's been a ghost the whole time, I lost my mind. And that was the beginning! It really set the mood for the rest of the book. I really hated Mary in this book. She became so evil and vengeful over something that she did entirely to herself. I liked Lillia even more through this book, but she made a few stupid decisions. That being said, I felt bad for Lillia too. Kat... was Kat? She didn't undergo much of a change throughout this trilogy and I didn't get to see her shaken up that much except when she gave up Oberlin. Reeve- oh, Reeve- I kinda love him now. He's changed so much throughout this trilogy, and he's not the person that I though the was at first. Alex also didn't go through much change, but I still really like him.
     The plot in this book is slower than in the others, but there's also so much more that happens. When Lillia gave up Reeve, and Kat gave up Oberlin to kill Mary, I was rocking back and forth like a crazy person- I was so upset. And when Lillia broke the seal with Reeve that had been placed on Mary, I was screaming at Lillia for being such a fool. One of my favorite parts of the book was when Reeve was shoving Kat and Lillia out of the room so he could deal with Mary. I almost cried when Reeve cut himself, and I thought that he was dead. My favorite part of the book is when Mary realized that she had done everything to herself. I really liked how the authors dealt with Mary's problems and suicide.
     The epilogue... I don't even know. I really started shipping Reeve and Lillia and then Lillia never hears from Reeve again?! What is up with that? And Kat settling for a different school? And Alex and Lillia are together? I'm glad there was an epilogue because I hate open-ended books, but I'm not sure if I liked the epilogue. It was so...final. And so final in things that I'm not sure if I like.
     I'm so glad I read this series, and Fire With Fire is my favorite book out of the three. Jenny Han and Siobhan Vivian truly have some talent- especially together.


                                         

Shadowhunter News: First Look at the Silent Brothers

OMG GUYS!! We have our first look at the Silent Brothers!!

So excited for this TV show!! I'll be posting a bunch of pictures from the show soon! Stay posted ;)

Fire with Fire by Jenny Han and Siobhan Vivian

 Title: Fire With Fire

 Series: Burn For Burn Trilogy #2

 Author(s): Siobhan Vivian, Jenny Han

 Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers

 Date Published: September 16, 2014

 Genre: Paranormal, Contemporary

 Pages: 544 (paperback)

 Age Range: 14+





                                                     Summary:

      Lillia, Kat, and Mary had the perfect plan. Work together in secret to take down the people who wronged them. But things didn’t exactly go the way they’d hoped at the Homecoming Dance.
     Not even close.
     For now, it looks like they got away with it. All they have to do is move on and pick up the pieces, forget there was ever a pact.
     But there is something seriously wrong with sweet, little Mary. If she can’t control her anger, she’s sure someone will get hurt. Mary understands now that it’s not just that Reeve bullied her—it’s that he made her love him.

     It seems once a fire is lit, the only thing you can do is let it burn…

                                                      Review:

     Wow. Jenny Han has a serious Peter complex. For those of you that don't know what that means, let's compare Peter from the To All The Boys I've Loved Before duology, to Reeve from this trilogy. They're both jocks that are seemingly jerks, but end up being love interests because they are just so gosh darn sweet when you actually get to meet them. No, that wasn't sarcasm. I seriously love Peter, and Reeve seems pretty good so far. That being said, I guess it's time to look at the characters.

     Mary is creeping me out more and more. I don't know what really ends up happening with her, but she is seriously creeping me out. I think in Ashes With Ashes she's gonna go on some revenge trip by herself to get back at Lillia, but I really just don't know. I'm an even smaller fan on Mary's after reading this book because she's grown bratty, self-centered, and even more obsessive over Reeve. In the book, we have some more Reeve moments, and we actually have some really nice moments, but (SPOILERS) I'm not sure if he's boyfriend material. I kinda like Alex and Lillia. Alex is that sweet boy that's pined after Lillia for years, and Reeve is the jock that *gasp* cares for a girl a little more than himself. However, I am okay with LIllia and Reeve just because I really love LIllia and want to see her happy, especially after all this drama with her friends (END SPOILERS). I liked when Reeve almost went on a revenge trip, and when Lillia went after him, but I feel like that could have been a scene between her and Alex, or at least between Reeve and Lillia as friends. I feel so bad for poor lil' Kat and I really hope that she finds someone to be with, or at least gets into Oberlin. I'm glad that she and Alex didn't work out, because I ship Alex and Lillia, but if Alex and Lillia don't work out, I'd be okay if Alex and Kat got it on.

     (SPOILERS) I'm a terrible person because when Rennie died, I laughed for a good five minutes. I was so happy because I hated Rennie so much that it was almost ridiculous. (END SPOILERS) We have some major drama in this book, even more so than we saw in the first book. Because this book is considerably thicker than the first one, the story moseyed along at a slower pace, which was nice. I saw the Rennie thing coming, but I didn't see something happening to Rennie in such a big way.

     Predictions? Oh, Lord. I think that Mary will go on her own, personal revenge trip, at least against Lillia and Reeve. I think that Lillia and Alex will end up going to college together, but I think that Lillia and Reeve will stay together :(... I hope that something happens to Kat's family, just so that we can get some more depth to Kat. Kat is kinda like this untouchable vixen, and I'd like to see her world shaken a bit. I hope Mary dies. That's horrible, I know. But seriously. Let's get rid of the psycho? Please?

     I can't wait to read Ashes With Ashes. I've heard it's a really disappointing conclusion, but I'm waiting with baited breath.