Book Review: Changeless

Title: Changeless
Series: The Parasol Protectorate (Book #2)
Author: Gail Carriger
Published: 2010

Summary: Alexia Tarabotti, now Lady Maccon, awakens in the wee hours of the mid-afternoon to find her husband, who should be decently asleep like any normal werewolf, yelling at the top of his lungs. Then he disappears -- leaving her to deal with a regiment of supernatural soldiers encamped on her doorstep, a plethora of exorcised ghosts, and an angry Queen Victoria.

But Alexia is armed with her trusty parasol, the latest fashions, and an arsenal of biting civility. Even when her investigations take her into the backwaters of ugly waistcoats, Scotland, she is prepared: upending werewolf pack dynamics as only a soulless can.

She might even find time to track down her wayward husband, if she feels like it.

My Thoughts: Before reading Changeless I was nervous about not liking it as much as Soulless. Because, let's face it, the flirting and teasing before the main characters actually get each other, are more fun to read about than when they are actually in a relationship (and married!) Twilight was funnier before Bella and Edward got married and Jacob still had a shot, right?

Anyway, Alexia is still a feisty character! She's independent, modern and very curious, and she's not one to sit around when there is a mystery to solve!

I liked Changeless storyline, but I thought the pace was a bit slow at times. And the book didn't quite live up to my expectations.

Rating: 3.5 of 5

Previous book in this series:
Soulless

Book Review: The Summoning

Title: The Summoning
Series: Darkest Powers (Book 1)
Author: Kelley Armstrong
Published: 2008

Summary: After years of frequent moves following her mother’s death, Chloe Saunders’s life is finally settling down. She is attending art school, pursuing her dreams of becoming a director, making friends, meeting boys. Her biggest concern is that she’s not developing as fast as her friends are. But when puberty does hit, it brings more than hormone surges. Chloe starts seeing ghosts–everywhere, demanding her attention. After she suffers a breakdown, her devoted aunt Lauren gets her into a highly recommended group home.

At first, Lyle House seems a pretty okay place, except for Chloe’s small problem of fearing she might be facing a lifetime of mental illness. But as she gradually gets to know the other kids at the home–charming Simon and his ominous, unsmiling brother Derek, obnoxious Tori, and Rae, who has a “thing” for fire–Chloe begins to realize that there is something that binds them all together, and it isn’t your usual “problem kid” behaviour. And together they discover that Lyle House is not your usual group home either…

My Thoughts: The same day Chloe Saunders hits puberty, unexplainable things start happening to her. She sees horrible people that others don't. Chloe is soon sent to Lyle House, a group home for troubled teens, and is diagnosed with schizophrenia. While her disease might explain some of the things that are happening to her, it doesn't explain everything. When her new friends at Lyle House are questioning her diagnose, and note her powers, Chloe is soon questioning both her diagnose, and the purpose of the Lyle House. When Chloe starts to look closer into the Lyle House history, she discover dangerous things. What's Lyle House purpose? What happens to the children who are being transferred from the Lyle House? Why are the Lyle House children diagnosed with schizophrenia and other diseases, when they might have unexplainable powers?

Chloe's questions are many, but one thing is for certain - for every day she stays in the Lyle House, she gets closer to being "transferred".

The Summoning was darker than I had expected, and I had as many questions as Chloe. Who was on the good/bad side? Who could Chloe trust? While some parts of the book was slow, the last part of the book was filled with suspense and action - and I couldn't stop reading until the last word.

Rating: 4 of 5

P.S. I own book 1 and book 3 in this series, but I don't have book 2 and can't get it from the library. Do you think I could skip book 2 and get straight to book 3? Or will I miss out on a lot of information, so I need to buy book 2?

Waiting on Wednesday (8/4)

On today's WoW post I'm waiting on two books, both of them are being released TOMORROW!


Title: You Wish
Author: Mandy Hubbard
Release Date: August 5

What if all your wishes really came true?

Kayla McHenry’s sweet sixteen sucks! Her dad left,
her grades dropped, and her BFF is dati...more What if all your wishes really came true?

Kayla McHenry’s sweet sixteenth sucks! Her dad left, her grades dropped, and her BFF is dating the boy Kayla’s secretly loved for years. Blowing out her candles, Kayla thinks: I wish my birthday wishes actually came true. Because they never freakin’ do.

Kayla wakes the next day to a life-sized, bright pink My Little Pony outside her window. Then a year’s supply of gumballs arrives. And a boy named Ken with a disturbing resemblance to the doll of same name stalks her. As the ghosts of Kayla’s wishes-past appear, they take her on a wild ride… but they MUST STOP. Because when she was 15? She wished Ben Mackenzie would kiss her.

And Ben is her best friend's boyfriend.

Title: Stalker Girl
Author: Rosemary Graham
Release Date: August 5

How do you know when you’ve crossed the line between curiosity and obsession?
Carly never meant to become a stalker. She just wanted to find ou...more How do you know when you’ve crossed the line between curiosity and obsession?
Carly never meant to become a stalker. She just wanted to find out who Brian started dating after he dumped her. But a little harmless online research turns into a quick glance, and that turns into an afternoon of watching. Soon Carly is putting all of her energy into following Brian’s new girlfriend — all of the sadness she feels about her mom’s recent breakup, all of the anger she feels over being pushed aside by her dad while he prepares for his new wife’s new baby. When Carly’s stalking is discovered in the worst possible way by the worst possible person, she is forced to acknowledge her problem and the underlying issues that led to it.


You Wish sounds h i l a r i o u s, and I love the cover! Stalker Girl sounds very interesting as well, and I want to know who "the worst possible person" is!

Read & Watched in July

Books:
1. Blood Feud - Alyxandra Harvey (Review)
2. Tempted - P. C. Cast (Review)
3. Changeless - Gail Carriger (Review)
4. Shadowed Summer - Saundra Mitchell (Mini Review)

Four books? What is this? I'm ashamed of myself! I blame it on lots of work this month though (and also ehrm, lots of TV watching (see below)).

Movies:
1. Beauty & The Briefcase
2. Just Friends (sooo bad!)
3. True Confessions of a Hollywood Starlet
4. This Is It
5. Eclipse (Review)
6. Our Family Wedding
7. Now You See It

TV series:

Roswell: Season 2, Episode 12-21
10 Things I Hate About You: Episodes 1-20
Pretty Little Liars: Episodes 1-5
Make It Or Break It: Season 1: Episodes 1-16

I watched all episodes of 10 things I hate about you in about 3 days. What can I say? They're addictive and soo short - about 20 minutes each! They flew by! I also recently started to watch the Pretty Little Liars show (haven't read the books) - and I love it so far! A is creepy! My favorite liars are Abria & Spencer :) I also started to watch Make It or Break it this month, and as you can see from the number of episodes I've watched so far - I really like that show too! (Emily's my favorite gymnast :P)

In My Mailbox (week 30)

Won from Sydney Salter:

Shadowed Summer by Saundra Mitchell

Iris is ready for another hot, routine summer in her small Louisiana town, hanging around the Red Stripe grocery with her best friend, Collette, and traipsing through the cemetery telling each other spooky stories and pretending to cast spells. Except this summer, Iris doesn’t have to make up a story. This summer, one falls right in her lap.

Years ago, before Iris was born, a local boy named Elijah Landry disappeared. All that remained of him were whispers and hushed gossip in the church pews. Until this summer. A ghost begins to haunt Iris, and she’s certain it’s the ghost of Elijah. What really happened to him? And why, of all people, has he chosen Iris to come back to?