Review: So Close to You by Rachel Carter

So Close to You
Rachel Carter
Series: So Close to You, #1
Release Date: July 10th, 2012
Publisher: HarperTeen
Number of Pages: 320
Rating: 1 of 5 stars

Lydia Bentley has heard stories about the Montauk Project all her life: stories about the strange things that took place at the abandoned military base near her home and the people who've disappeared over the years. Stories about people like her own great-grandfather.

When Lydia stumbles into a portal that transports her to a dangerous and strange new reality, she discovers that all the stories she's ever heard about the Montauk Project are true, and that she's in the middle of one of the most dangerous experiments in history.

Alongside a darkly mysterious boy she is wary to trust, Lydia begins to unravel the secrets surrounding the Project. But the truths behind these secrets force her to question all her choices--and if Lydia chooses wrong, she might not save her family but destroy them . . . and herself.

WARNING: MINOR SPOILERS AHEAD

Instances like this make me want to curl up in a corner and cry. When I first read the synopsis for So Close to You, I was definitely intrigued. Right away, this book became one of my highly anticipated reads of the year. I thought it would be amazing. I thought it would be thrilling. I thought it would be that type of book that I would read in one sitting because I wouldn't be able it down. What I didn't think, however, was how incredibly wrong I would be.

In So Close to You, Lydia Bentley has grown up listening to her grandfather's theories of the mysterious Montauk Project, and the even more mysterious disappearance of her great-grandfather. While she's a skeptic on the existence of the Montauk Project, Lydia Bentley agrees to go hunting for clues of her great-grandfather's disappearance in Camp Hero, the alleged foundation of the Montauk Project. But what happens to Lydia is something that turns her skepticism on its head, as she's transported back in time to 1944 - the year her great-grandfather disappeared.

There's only so many cliches, tropes, conveniences and coincidences I can tolerate when reading a book, and should a book cross that line of toleration, you can bet your wallet that I'd be irritated. So Close to You crossed that line. No, scratch that. So Close to You vaulted miles and miles over that line. So Close to You is so far past the line that it can't even see the line anymore. Just read the synopsis I provided:

[...] she's transported back in time to 1944 - the year her great-grandfather disappeared.

Oh, but not only is she transported to the same year her great-grandfather disappears, but she's transported to the same week her great-grandfather disappears! And with no explanation as to why she transported to that particular year, at that particular moment. It was just random. How convenient!

Young Adult Giveaway Hop!

The Young Adult Giveaway Hop is hosted by I Am a Reader, Not a Writer, and Reading Teen where I showcase a few YA books below, that, should you win the giveaway, you can choose from!

I'm thrilled to be a part of my very first Young Adult Giveaway Hop, so, since it's my first one, I'm going to make it special, and have two (2) winners choose two (2) of the many YA books up for grabs below. I hope you find something worth winning in the list below, and good luck!

Anna Dressed in Blood (Anna, #1) by Kendare Blake

Girl of Nightmares (Anna, #2) by Kendare Blake

Hemlock by Kathleen Peacock

 

Auracle by Gina Rosati 

Defiance by C.J. Redwine

The Forsaken by Lisa M. Stasse

 

This is Not a Test by Courtney Summers

Slated by Teri Terry

Revived by Cat Patrick

 

Struck by Jennifer Bosworth

Of Poseidon by Anna Banks

Darkness Before Dawn by J.A. London

Seraphina by Rachel Hartman 

Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo 

Lies Beneath by Anne Greenwood Brown

Giveaway Guidelines: 

Fill Out Rafflecopter below 

Must be 13 years or older 

Winners will receive paperback copies of the books they choose

Giveaway ends on August 14th

Open in U.S. and Canada only

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Waiting on Wednesday (August 8)

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event hosted by Breaking the Spine, where we post upcoming releases we're highly anticipating. My pre-publication selection for this week's Waiting on Wednesday is Let the Sky Fall by Shannon Messenger.

Let the Sky Fall

Shannon Messenger

Series: Let the Sky Fall, #1

Release Date: March 5th, 2013

Publisher: Simon Pulse

Number of Pages: 416

Vane Weston should have died in the category five tornado that killed his parents. Instead, he woke up in a pile of rubble with no memories of his past—except one: a beautiful, dark-haired girl standing in the winds. She's swept through his dreams ever since, and he clings to the hope that she's real.

Audra is real, but she isn't human. She's a sylph, an air elemental who can walk on the wind, translate its alluring songs, even twist it into a weapon. She's also a guardian—Vane’s guardian—and has sworn an oath to protect him at all costs.

When a hasty mistake reveals their location to the enemy who murdered both of their families, Audra has just days to help Vane unlock his memories. And as the storm winds gather, they start to realize the greatest danger might not be the warriors coming to destroy them, but the forbidden romance growing between them.

Set amongst the desert airstreams of Coachella Valley in California, LET THE SKY FALL is about two teenagers broken by their pasts, divided by their futures, and bound by love.

Why am I looking forward to this (and quite immensely), you might ask? Well, for starters, the cover is absolutely stunning. It's the first and foremost reason I checked this book out to begin with. Now, I'm guilty of skimming a synopsis, or skipping it all together, if the cover is pretty. I'm lazy like that. (Ironic how I can spend my time reading a full length book, but not on a short synopsis, no?) However, I did read the synopsis for this - in full, no skimming, and I'm not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing. The synopsis is absolutely amazing (read it. Right there - above. Tell me it's not amazing.) So it's a good thing now that I know what this book is actually about, and have both the plot and cover to lure me into reading this, but now my anticipation for this book is extreme, and it's release in 2013. Not good. That's quite a few months of me pining over this book. So, there. That's why I'm anticipating this book. That, and tornadoes just fascinate me. 

What are you waiting on? 

Link me up in the comments!

Review: Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas

Throne of Glass

Sarah J. Maas

Series: Throne of Glass, #1

Release Date: August 7th, 2012

Publisher: Bloomsbury

Number of Pages: 416
Rating: 3 of 5 stars

After serving out a year of hard labor in the salt mines of Endovier for her crimes, 18-year-old assassin Celaena Sardothien is dragged before the Crown Prince. Prince Dorian offers her her freedom on one condition: she must act as his champion in a competition to find a new royal assassin.

Her opponents are men—thieves and assassins and warriors from across the empire, each sponsored by a member of the kings council. If she beats her opponents in a series of eliminations, she’ll serve the kingdom for three years and then be granted her freedom.

Celaena finds her training sessions with the captain of the guard, Westfall, challenging and exhilirating. But she’s bored stiff by court life. Things get a little more interesting when the prince starts to show interest in her... but it’s the gruff Captain Westfall who seems to understand her best.

Then one of the other contestants turns up dead... quickly followed by another. Can Celaena figure out who the killer is before she becomes a victim? As the young assassin investigates, her search leads her to discover a greater destiny than she could possibly have imagined.

I don't like high fantasy. At all. I don't like how the plots all seem similar to me. I don't like how the worlds - no matter how detailed they might be - seem similar to me. I don't like how I can barely pronounce half of the character's names. I don't like the general feel I have when I'm reading a high fantasy novel.

With all of that being said, I am genuinely surprised I enjoyed Throne of Glass as much as I did. In Throne of Glass, young, and incredibly notorious assassin, Celaena Sardothien, is being released from her title as a prisoner in the Endovier mines to take part in a competition in which she versus some of the most feared assassins and killers in the kingdom. Should Celaena win the competition, she will be free from Endovier forever, only having to work as the king's personal assassin for four years, after which she's a free woman.

Showcase Sunday (5)

Showcase Sunday is a weekly meme hosted by Vicki at Book, Biscuits, and Tea, where we showcase what books we've gotten throughout the course of the week, whether it be from a book store, bought for your eReader, received from the library, or from the publishers for review.  

For Review: 

Through to You by Emily Hainsworth (via Edelweiss)

The Lost Prince by Julie Kagawa (via NetGalley)

A HUGE thanks to Balzer + Bray, and Harlequin Teen for the review copies!

Bought:

 

  

So Close to You by Rachel Carter

Storm by Brigid Kemmerer

Enclave by Ann Aguirre

Hold Me Closer, Necromancer by Lish McBride

Scarlet by A.C. Gaughen

*All of the books I bought this week, with the exception of So Close To You, are currently $2.99 for Kindles and Nooks!*

Ah! So, so excited to read the books I've bought this week! (Especially The Lost Prince. Eeeep!) I may have only gotten two review copies this week, but the two books I got are ones that I've been highly anticipating for a while, and I cannot wait to read them. The same goes for the books I bought (especially Storm and Hold Me Closer, Necromancer, considering hype seems to follow them everywhere they go), and I'm also excited to read Scarlet, although I haven't seen many reviews for it. And So Close to You and Enclave both got pretty mixed reviews (and a few negative reviews from trusted friends of mine), so we'll see how I like them! 

What books did you get this week?

Waiting on Wednesday (July 25)

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event hosted by Breaking the Spine, where we post upcoming releases we're highly anticipating. This week's pre-publication "cant-wait-to-read" selection is The Evolution of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin.

The Evolution of Mara Dyer

Michelle Hodkin

Series: Mara Dyer, #2

Release Date: October 23rd, 2012

Publisher: Simon & Schuster

Number of Pages: 272

The truth about Mara Dyer's dangerous and mysterious abilities continues to unravel in this gripping sequel to the thrilling "The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer." One week after Mara walked into a police station in Miami at the close of "The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer," she has been committed to psychiatric treatment for what her parents believe was a mental breakdown. But what seems like a hallucination to everyone else is a chilling reality for Mara. Someone from her past has discovered her strange, deeply disturbing secret and that someone wants her to pay. But when no one believes the truth, Mara is totally helpless. The only person on her side is Noah Shaw, as sexy and handsome as he is loyal and cunning. Noah is the only person who can help Mara--as long as he doesn't get himself killed in the process.

Yes, I know. I wasn't the biggest fan of The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer, but I feel like the plot for the first book was very good, except it got bogged down by a bad romance (ra ra a a a, roma rom a a), so I have an inch of hope that Hodkin will focus more on the plot in this book than the romance. And, with an ending like the first book's, how could you not want to read this? The Evolution of Mara Dyer could be absolutely awesome - if Hodkin doesn't bog the blog down with a romance again. *crosses fingers*

Showcase Sunday (4)

Showcase Sunday is a weekly meme hosted by Vicki at Book, Biscuits, and Tea, where we showcase what book we've gotten throughout the course of the week, whether it be from a book store, bought for your eReader, received from the library, or from the publishers for review.

For Review:

 

 

Midnight City by J. Barton Mitchell (via NetGalley)

Incarnation by Emma Cornwall (via Edelweiss) 

Mystic City by Theo Lawrence (via NetGalley)

Stormdancer by Jay Kristoff (via NetGalley)

Speechless by Hannah Harrington (via NetGalley)

Ironskin by Tina Connolly (via NetGalley) 

Thanks to St. Martin's Griffin, Gallery Books, Random House, HarlequinTeen, and Tor Books for the review copies!

Bought:

    

Struck by Jennifer Bosworth

The Forsaken by Lisa M. Stasse

Tiger Lily by Jodi Lynn Anderson

Borrowed from Library: 

Until I Die by Amy Plum

I'm really excited to read a lot of the books I've got this week, especially Incarnation (I chose it for my Waiting on Wednesday pick a few weeks ago), Struck (it hasn't gotten the best reviews, but the cover is amazing and so is the synopsis), and Tiger Lily (because it's gotten amazing reviews, and it sounds great). 

What books did you get this week?