Cress by Marissa Meyer

Author: Marissa Meyer
Genre: Young Adult | Sci-Fi
Series: The Lunar Chronicles
Book: 3
Release Date: February 4th, 2014
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Rating: ❤❤❤❤❤
Read: February 8th, 2014

Synopsis
In this third book in the Lunar Chronicles, Cinder and Captain Thorne are fugitives on the run, now with Scarlet and Wolf in tow. Together, they’re plotting to overthrow Queen Levana and her army.

Their best hope lies with Cress, a girl imprisoned on a satellite since childhood who's only ever had her netscreens as company. All that screen time has made Cress an excellent hacker. Unfortunately, she’s just received orders from Levana to track down Cinder and her handsome accomplice.

When a daring rescue of Cress goes awry, the group is separated. Cress finally has her freedom, but it comes at a high price. Meanwhile, Queen Levana will let nothing prevent her marriage to Emperor Kai. Cress, Scarlet, and Cinder may not have signed up to save the world, but they may be the only hope the world has.

My Thoughts
This series is only getting better! And if you haven't started reading this series yet, you are missing out on something so amazing. This is one of the must-read series.

I loved book 2, Scarlet, and at that time I really wanted to know more about Thorne. Because I seriously loved his character (and Wolf, too). And I was so thrilled when I found out there would be more of Thorne in Cress. The wait was torturous.

The reason I loved this book was not only because of Thorne, but a thousand other reasons. Just the name of the character, Cress, was very intriguing. I loved the wordplay since "Rapunzel" literally means a type of plant, and so does "Cress".

Compared to its predecessors, Cress was probably the most emotional one. The twist was well-executed, but I did wish it hadn't been that heartbreaking. Now all I have to do is waiting just one more year until Winter is scheduled to be released. JUST. ONE. MORE. YEAR. 

Burn Out by Kristi Helvig

ARC provided by the publisher via NetGalley

Author: Kristi Helvig
Genre: Young Adult | Sci-Fi
Series: Burn Out
Book: 1
Release Date: April 8th 2014
Publisher: EgmontUSA
Rating: ❤❤❤❤❤
Read: March 29, 2014

Synopsis
A futuristic blend of Beth Revis's Across the Universe and Lenore Appelhans's Level 2, Burn Out will satisfy the growing desire for science fiction with a thrilling story of survival, intrigue, and adventure.

Most people want to save the world; seventeen-year-old Tora Reynolds just wants to get the hell off of it. One of the last survivors in Earth's final years, Tora yearns to escape the wasteland her planet has become after the sun turns "red giant," but discovers her fellow survivors are even deadlier than the hostile environment.

Holed up in an underground shelter, Tora is alone--her brilliant scientist father murdered, her mother and sister burned to death. She dreams of living on a planet with oceans, plants, and animals. Unfortunately, the oceans dried out ages ago, the only plants are giant cacti with deadly spines, and her pet, Trigger, is a gun--one of the bio-energetic weapons her father created for the government before his conscience kicked in.

When family friend, Markus, arrives with mercenaries to take the weapons by force, Tora's fury turns to fear when government ships descend in an attempt to kill them all. She forges an unlikely alliance with Markus and his rag-tag group of raiders, including a smart but quiet soldier named James. Tora must quickly figure out who she can trust, as she must choose between saving herself by giving up the guns or honoring her father's request to save humanity from the most lethal weapons in existence.

My Thoughts
More like a 4.5 to me...

One of the most thrilling and unpredictable post-apocalyptic fictions I have ever read. Each scene was so crazy good that it was hard to put down once I started reading this astoundingly well-written book. It was full of suspense and actions I don't know where to start with. A must read for any science fiction fans out there, especially those who love post-apocalyptic fictions.

I was completely in love with the characters because they were complicated. Tora was so feisty that even she was in the toughest situation, she still didn't give in. The other characters, such as Markus, James, Britta and Kale were also such great character, even some of them were so evil I wanted to strangle them.

The plots were creative, well-written and fast-paced. I was amazed by the way the story was told which was so full of surprises and awe-inspiring scenes. The transition from one scene to the next was very nicely executed that it didn't cause me any boredom.

How the book was ending made me want to read the next installment right away. It is hard to predict what will happen next and that makes the wait even harder.

All in all, this is one great book that should not be missed by any science fiction fans or just anyone who wants to read something refreshing and filled with loads of actions and suspense. Kristi Helvig is a debut author that I will keep an eye out for. 

Monument 14

Author: Emmy Laybourne
Series: Monument 14
Book: 1
Pages: 294
Genre: Dystopia
Published Date: June 5th 2012
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Rating: ❤❤❤❤❤

Synopsis
Your mother hollers that you’re going to miss the bus. She can see it coming down the street. You don’t stop and hug her and tell her you love her. You don’t thank her for being a good, kind, patient mother. Of course not—you launch yourself down the stairs and make a run for the corner.Only, if it’s the last time you’ll ever see your mother, you sort of start to wish you’d stopped and did those things. Maybe even missed the bus.But the bus was barreling down our street, so I ran.

Fourteen kids. One superstore. A million things that go wrong.

In Emmy Laybourne’s action-packed debut novel, six high school kids (some popular, some not), two eighth graders (one a tech genius), and six little kids trapped together in a chain superstore build a refuge for themselves inside. While outside, a series of escalating disasters, beginning with a monster hailstorm and ending with a chemical weapons spill, seems to be tearing the world—as they know it—apart

Review
I read this one with a friend on Goodreads. Normally I would not go for this type of book. I am glad I did since I am absolutely, positively and completely in love with this book.

What I really loved about this book is the concept. The idea of being trapped is not that new, but being trapped with kids to take care of in a superstore during a disastrous period is just very intriguing. I loved all characters in this book. Yes, all fourteen of them. Each has their own uniqueness that made the book even more interesting. You can find almost any type of personality from this group of young people.

The wording is also amazing. It was not overly descriptive that made you yawn and rolled your eyes. The flow of the story was so good that it made me unable to put the book down. Literally! I read and ate dinner simultaneously. Each chapter ended just causing more curiosity and I just had to read on to find out what happened next.

Moreover, who would have guessed that this book could be humorous also? I found some scenes ridiculously funny. I know it should not be since the idea of kids being trap while the world is going crazy, murderously crazy outside should not be something to laugh about. But, it was! Well, at least some parts of the book. I guess the author tried to lighten up the mood since some characters were only 5 or 8 years old.

The ending itself was so good. Yes, it was a cliffhanger. But which book for what series is not? I cannot wait to read the second book in this terrific series.