Review: Liv, Forever by Amy Talkington

Release date: March 11th 2014
Publisher: Soho Teen
Purchase: Amazon | B&N

Synopsis via Goodreads:

When Liv Bloom lands an art scholarship at Wickham Hall, it’s her ticket out of the foster system. Liv isn’t sure what to make of the school’s weird traditions and rituals, but she couldn’t be happier. For the first time ever, she has her own studio, her own supply of paints. Everything she could want. 

Then she meets Malcolm Astor, a legacy student, a fellow artist, and the one person who’s ever been able to melt her defenses. Liv’s only friend at Wickham, fellow scholarship kid Gabe Nichols, warns her not to get involved, but life is finally going Liv’s way, and all she wants to do is enjoy the ride. 

But Liv’s bliss is doomed. Weeks after arriving, she is viciously murdered and, in death, she discovers that she’s the latest victim of a dark conspiracy that has claimed many lives. Cursed with the ability to see the many ghosts on Wickham’s campus, Gabe is now Liv’s only link to the world of the living. To Malcolm.

Together, Liv, Gabe, and Malcolm fight to expose the terrible truth that haunts the halls of Wickham. But Liv must fight alone to come to grips with the ultimate star-crossed love.

*I Received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Artistically written and hauntingly inviting, this is a great debut from a skillful new author. That said, I liked the story and all the elements used. From the descriptive scenes to the spookiness, my interest was kept until the very end. The story opened up with us getting to know the main character. Olivia didn't grow up with her biological parents, but instead she was coming from the foster care system into a new situation where, the one thing she was passionate about and had drowned herself into, had landed her the opportunity to attend a prestigious school. Wickham Hall was somewhat of a haven; Liv would be able to dive deeper into her art and develop her skill further. It was the perfect place for someone as creative as she was.

The moment Liv arrived at Wickham, she's enthralled by its Gothic appeal and history. You can only imagine her delight when she's given a large space to work on her art. But things at this new school aren't as perfect as it seems. And her suspicions heightened when she comes in contact with another loner, Gabe Nichols. But Liv wasn't convinced about the school actually being haunted, or that Gabe has some weird contact with the otherworldly. She ignored the latter's warning to stay clear of one of the institutions finest, Malcolm, and to diminish all attraction she felt towards him. And who could blame her? They shared a love for art, as well as yearned for the day to freely express themselves.

The addition of romance was sweet and bitter at the same time, and while I liked that Liv was finally able to feel such emotions for the first time in her life, I have to say though, that aspect of the story didn't persuade me. Their feelings didn't really pull me in, and with everything going on at the school, I spent the majority of the book suspecting Malcolm and not exactly opening up to him. In fact, I would have loved if something had blossomed between Liv and Gabe instead. Aside from that, my only other issue is that there were times it got draggy, for me, and I would have loved for some more things happening, even after Liv met her demise.

Regardless, when it picked up. It really picked up. I liked how there were scenes giving the reader an understanding of the spirits, along with the parts where Liv was working with Gabe and reading about people of the past. It kind of added a bit of an historical aspect that appealed to me. There was mention of other stuff like famous artists and paintings, as well as how they're interpreted. The author did a good job in bringing the pages to life and putting my imagination to work. Kudos to you, Amy.

To conclude, Liv, Forever was evocative. If you enjoy Gothic stories with mysterious rudiments (like me), you'll enjoy this one. While it would have been even better that the main character didn't die, I understood how the occurrence brought evil doers to justice and released the captive spirits. All in all, this is a wonderfully written story. 

About the Author

Amy Talkington is an award-winning screenwriter and director living in Los Angeles. Before all that she wrote about music for magazines like Spin, Ray Gun, Interview, and Seventeen (mostly just as a way to get to hang out with rock stars). As a teenager in Dallas, Texas, Amy painted lots of angsty self-portraits, listened to The Velvet Underground and was difficult enough that her parents finally let her go to boarding school on the East Coast. Liv, Forever is her first novel.

www.amytalkington.com | @amytalkington

Review: Life After Theft by Aprilynne Pike

Life After Theft
by Aprilynne Pike
Expected Publication: April 30th, 2013
Publisher: HarperCollins
Purchase: Amazon
*I was approved for the ebook by the publisher via netgalley.

Synopsis via Goodreads:

Moving to a new high school sucks. Especially a rich-kid private school. With uniforms. But nothing is worse than finding out the first girl you meet is dead. And a klepto. 

No one can see or hear Kimberlee except Jeff, so--in hopes of bringing an end to the snarkiest haunting in history--he agrees to help her complete her "unfinished business." But when the enmity between Kimberlee and Jeff's new crush, Sera, manages to continue posthumously, Jeff wonders if he's made the right choice.

Clash meets sass in this uproarious modern-day retelling of Baroness Orczy's The Scarlet Pimpernel.

The story started out really fast pace, humorous, addicting, and overall interesting. I was enjoying it all the way because 1) I had no idea there was a ghost involved, and 2) I had no idea the ghost was the one dealing with "life" after theft. You see I didn't read the description prior to going into the book nor did I have any idea it was based on another book that I've never read much less heard of. *hide's face*

Let's get to it...

It's high school. So, there will be drama, which I might say was entertaining while it last. There were several things about Life After Theft that I liked, including the fact that the story's told from the POV of a guy, which is rare for me to read. But sadly, I couldn't really connect with his character. Jeff irritated me a bit, with not only his wimpy behavior but also how it seemed as if the writer was proving his masculinity in several scenes. I didn't dislike him persay, just never got into his character much. I did however, like the romance between him and Sera, though not pulling but quite acceptable. Who knew things would turn out like that? I had my suspicions but I wouldn't say it was predictable. Just a little dry. 

The one person I did like a lot was Kimberlee. No matter how bratty she was at first I found her spirit rather amusing. I related with her emotional breakdowns and the reason why she wanted to return the items she stole. I also enjoyed the developing connection throughout between her and Jeff. That was a great aspect of the story. It all seemed so interestingly different. 
Anyhoo, character wise, not a lot of them stuck with me nor did I really see their potential. But I was pleased with the ones that stood out: Kimberlee and Sera. The latter because of all the factors surrounding her.

What else? Oh, yes. The writing was good; the overall premise of the story was good. At the beginning. But then towards the middle and thus forth, it kind of fell flat. Not the writing, but the direction of the story. Does that make sense? I started losing interest in everything that really had me hooked at the opening. Scenes came off plain and not entirely necessary. The initial concept of returning the stolen items turned into an exciting project for characters I didn't exactly cared for, stuff got too unconvincingly serious and not entirely in depth, and I felt like it lost sight of Kimberlee somewhat. I know she's like the second main character, even though she's dead (But she is on the cover. Why is she on the cover?). At one point I began missing her because for some reason she didn't seem to be present that much.

But I was interested...to see how it would turn out.

In conclusion, I fell from a full on 5 star rating to just 3 because the momentum fizzled for me. It was a good book, just didn't stay on course of being as entertaining as I initially thought it was. Witty writing, dramatic teenagers, dead girl recovering from a problem. I recommend Life After Theft because it is a light read.

About the Author

Aprilynne Pike has been spinning faerie stories since she was a child with a hyper-active imagination. At the age of twenty she received her BA in Creative Writing from Lewis-Clark State College in Lewiston, Idaho. When not writing, Aprilynne can usually be found at the gym; she also enjoys singing, acting, reading, and working with pregnant moms as a childbirth educator and doula. Aprilynne currently lives with her husband and three kids in Utah, and dreams of warmer climates.

Aprilynne Pike's #1 New York Times best-selling debut, WINGS, is the first of four books about a seemingly ordinary girl with a not-so-ordinary destiny. In this tale of magic and intrigue, romance and danger, everything you thought you knew about faeries will be changed forever...

www.aprilynnepike.com | twitter.com/AprilynnePike

Stacking the Shelves #15

This is a weekly meme hosted by Tynga's Reviews where you basically display all the books you've received in the past week. 

I had a slow week, not that I'm complaining. I really want to go through my TBR before the year ends. Still, I received these lovely gifts this week:

For review (eARCs):

  

Lindsey Lost by Suzanne Phillips

Beyond Shame by Kit Rocha

The Shadowed Onyx by Nicole O'Dell

  

Ever by Jessa Russo
Raven in the Grave (Pretty in Black #3) by Rae Hachton

Finished copy:


Time Between Us by Tamara Ireland Stone

*Special thanks to Viking Juvenile (Penguin Imprint), Moira Rogers, Barbour Books, Curiosity Quills Press, Disney Hyperion, and Rae Hachton (my favorite author). 

What's in your haul?

Review: Ever by Jessa Russo

Ever

by Jessa Russo

ebook, 295 pages

Expected publication: October 1st 2012 

Publisher: Curiosity Quills Press

Purchase: Amazon | Book Depository

*ebook approved by Netgalley.

Synopsis via Goodreads:

Seventeen-year-old Ever’s love life has been on hold for the past two years. She’s secretly in love with her best friend Frankie, and he’s completely oblivious.

Of course, it doesn't help that he’s dead, and waking up to his ghost every day has made moving on nearly impossible.

Frustrated and desperate for something real, Ever finds herself falling for her hot new neighbor Toby. His relaxed confidence is irresistible, and not just Ever knows it. But falling for Toby comes with a price that throws Ever’s life into a whirlwind of chaos and drama. More than hearts are on the line, and more than Ever will suffer.

Some girls lose their hearts to love.

Some girls lose their minds.

Ever Van Ruysdael could lose her soul.

~My Review~

A ghostly, romantic, and riveting story. Ever is an exceptional debut portraying the indescribable writing skill and fascinating ideas of an impeccable author.

To say that I enjoyed this story is quite the understatement. To say that it made quite an impression? Not even close. I was completely emotional while reading, and honestly, I can't seem to find the right words to describe my feelings about the novel.

Let's see...

I was torn between Frankie and Toby. At first I was all for the ghostly guy but then this dark and mysterious creature appeared next door and entered a world Ever was closed off to. For so long she kept herself tied to Frankie and neglected the land of the living; she was so devoted to staying by his side and protecting her love for him that she completely missed out on what reality had to offer. And sadly enough, Ever was detached from anything outside of Frankie even when he was alive, with her friend and parents being the only exception. It's such a shame that not even in death did she have the courage to tell Frankie how she truly felt, and obviously he couldn't express himself either. Both were silly, in my opinion, from the start.

In comes Toby...

Ever's sudden attraction is understandable; from the very descriptive words throughout the chapters Toby was obviously hot. But his reaction to her always made me suspicious. I questioned his motive in everything he said or did. I just couldn't trust him that fast. Towards the end, I figured out why. And those reasons are best left unsaid and for you to find out for yourselves. Regardless, I liked him and his secretive persona. It made me want to dig deep into his mind and uncover his story.

I liked Ever's parents, and her best friend Jess. It's not a lot of people that could accept, better yet remain cool with the fact that a ghost was lingering around and that you could actually see him. I think its great that Jessa made them so chilled with the idea, while leaving some of the supernatural elements intact and unveiled. The connection she established between the characters was quite astonishing as well, simply believable.

As for the plot and what was taking place? I had no idea. I kept reading and drowning myself with questions about what it could possibly be that's shaking up Frankie so much and what was going to happen further in the book. I loved the anticipation and felt extremely satisfied with the results.

Now let's get down to the pace and writing style. Ladies and gentlemen I saw fireworks. Things weren't rushed but went by in a well balanced and quick manner, while entertaining and taking me by surprise along the way. Every scene, every emotion, down to a piece of clothing or an object was creatively if not carefully described. Jessa hadn't missed a thing, even if she did I didn't notice because from what I've read it was absolute perfection. Is this really your first novel Ms. Russo? It's like you've been writing for centuries. 

My final thoughts? Oh jeez just make sure to get yourselves a copy. Do I have to spell it out any further. I loved it and will re-read it for years to come. 

About the Author

Jessa Russo is an unashamed super fan of all things paranormal romance. She reads, writes and breathes paranormal YA, rarely straying from her comfort zone. Seriously. She loves the stuff. When not writing or reading, Jessa's out and about making memories with some seriously awesome people - for an introvert, she's pretty extroverted. ;-) You can bet that she's also ALWAYS secretly planning her next trip to New Orleans. (If her eyes glaze over, she's in one of her stories, or NOLA.) 

www.jessarusso.com | twitter.com/JessaRusso