Hidden by Marianne Curley

Hidden by Marianne Curley

Publisher: Bloomsbury 
Publication date: June 25th 2013
My rating: 1 star

For as long as Ebony can remember, she's been sheltered. Confined to her home in a secluded valley, home-schooled by her protective parents, and limited to a small circle of close friends. It's as if she's being hidden. But something is changing in Ebony. Something that can't be concealed. She's growing more beautiful by the day, she's freakishly strong, and then there's the fact that she's glowing. 
On one fateful night, Ebony meets Jordan and she's intensely drawn to him. It's as if something explodes inside of her--something that can be seen from the heavens. Ebony still doesn't know that she's a stolen angel, but now that the heavens have found her, they want her back.

 Jesus Christ! Please strike these characters from Heaven! Please, I beg of you. 

I've never read a Marianne Curley book before but a lot of people seem to love Old Magic so I thought, what the hell, Hidden has a pretty cover and the blurb sounds decent even though most angel books turn into fails, at least for me they do. So... I. Read. IT! 

I read it after dropping it two months ago. It was so painfully stupid. The characters! My God! The insta love is in warp speed. And it happens twice. Please, take your time so it sinks in. It happens twice! This girl feels this insane attraction and 'love' for two guys. She is such an immature brat. She disobeys her mother and gets into more trouble at every turn. Oh. I can just feel this headache thumping inside my head. It's pounding more and more. And the mother is not any better than her daughter. It's probably genetic. Just picture yourself being 15 or 16 and telling your friends how mean your mum is for not allowing you a lot of things. Picture her being stupid, because there is no way a mother can be smarter than her child. No way. Sounds familiar? There you go! I'm sure we've all done it once or twice. But we aren't smarter than our parents, at least not till our boobs stop growing. 

Who wouldn't be pissed off if s/he had to deal with this type of ridiculous characters and storyline in general? 

I wanted to like it. I even put it on my wishlist so I could order it. I'm glad I waited and wasn't blinded with the pretty cover. 

Book Review: Clockwork Princess by Cassandra Clare

Book: Clockwork Princess
Author: Cassandra Clare
File Type: Hardcover
Release Date: 19 march 2013
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books.

Synopsis:

Danger and betrayal, secrets and enchantment in the breathtaking conclusion to the Infernal Devices trilogy.

Tessa Gray should be happy - aren't all brides happy?Yet as she prepares for her wedding, a net of shadows begins to tighten around the Shadowhunters of the London Institute.A new demon appears, one linked by blood and secrecy to Mortmain, the man who plans to use his army of pitiless automatons, the Infernal Devices, to destroy the Shadowhunters. Mortmain needs only one last item to complete his plan. He needs Tessa. And Jem and Will, the boys who lay equal claim to Tessa's heart, will do anything to save her.
Rating 3.5

I'd like to pat myself on my back because writing a review for this book hasn't been an easy task. It's a given that this book is heartbreaking. And I was quite prepared for it. But alas, things never go according to the plan and there I was , a crying-snot-blubbering heap of heartbreak.

I had initially written a huge review for this and it was pretty fantastic. I had just about managed to explain all my feelings and thoughts about this book but my stupid laptop turned itself off and all my emotions? Poof. Gone.

There was nothing left. NOTHING. 

Right now? I'm sad. 

I'm sad because The Infernal Devices is a series very close to my heart and that it isn't easy saying goodbye to a series you love. With unforgettable characters, vivid world building and a highly engrossing journey through the Victorian Era in London , The Infernal Devices is something that is to be cherished forever. The fact that I won't get to read about Will , Tessa , Jem , Sophie , Charlotte , HENRY! , Gideon , Cecily , Gabriel , Bridget..(and oh the list just goes on.) makes me even more sad. Sure, they might be mentioned somewhere or the other because that's the way Cassandra Clare rolls but it wouldn't be the same. It wouldn't.

Clockwork Princess beats it's predecessor by a mile when it comes to character development. There were times while I was reading Clockwork Princess and I would read about a certain character and I would wonder as to why I never liked this character before. And then realization would strike home because it is in this book that each character gets a well deserved platform. 
Also, the imagery spun by Ms. Clare never fails to surprise me. The Victorian Era has been portrayed so beautifully that I couldn't help but feel mesmerized. Wales is now on my list of 'Beautiful Places to Visit before you die.'
What's also so spectacular about this whole scenario is how much this trilogy in itself has affected each one of my emotions. A few years ago while cursing and whining about the disaster that was The City of Fallen Angels , I would've never guessed that a few years in future I'd be so deeply affected by the prequel of the series that had started out pretty great but later started to throw nothing but crap at me. 

When I talk about emotions , I try not to think much about the love triangle. Because let's admit it. It was pretty epic. There was something so beautiful in the pain and heartbreak that came with each page and I just couldn't help but fall more and more in love with this book. Will , Tessa and Jem are unforgettable characters and there were times when I just wanted to crawl inside the book and soothe their pain.

"I am not alone," he said. "Wherever we are, we are as one."

 This whole complication could be understood so well. All three of them lived for each other and if it came to that, they would even die for each other. Will and Jem's relationship was the highlight of the whole book. If,like me , you've ever wondered the dynamics of the Parabatai bond , things get pretty clear after reading this one.

"whether Will wanted her there or not or Jem either-- she could not watch the two of them walk into danger and not want to be where they were."

Some may wonder that if I did love Clockwork Princess so much and that according to me , this book beats Clockwork Prince then why is that Clockwork Prince received five shining stars and that this one just about managed to bag three and a half stars?
I'll tell you why.

Just because I feel everything doesn't mean I like everything I read. That end was beautiful but it wasn't something that sat well with me. 
There were certain things in the book that I did not approve of. And the epilogue was something I'd like to forget about. I'm at a loss of words because I have no idea how to explain to you my reasons without spoiling this book for you. Although, it was pretty predictable. My heart break went on until the end....until I read the epilogue and all I could say was WHAT?

In the end, although this book had it's flaws and I had my issue with it, this experience has been nothing but epic. This is a series that deserves to be cherished. And Cherish it, I will.

Book Review: Boundless by Cynthia Hand

Book: Boundless
Author: Cynthia Hand
File Type: Ebook
Release Date: 22nd January 2013
Publisher: HarperTeen 

synopsis:

The past few years have held more surprises than part-angel Clara Gardner could ever have anticipated. Yet from the dizzying highs of first love, to the agonizing low of losing someone close to her, the one thing she can no longer deny is that she was never meant to live a normal life.

Since discovering the special role she plays among the other angel-bloods, Clara has been determined to protect Tucker Avery from the evil that follows her . . . even if it means breaking both their hearts. Leaving town seems like the best option, so she’s headed back to California - and so is Christian Prescott, the irresistible boy from the vision that started her on this journey in the first place.

As Clara makes her way in a world that is frighteningly new, she discovers that the fallen angel who attacked her is watching her every move. And he’s not the only one. . . . With the battle against the Black Wings looming, Clara knows she must finally fulfil her destiny. But it won’t come without sacrifices and betrayal.

In the riveting finale of the Unearthly series, Clara must decide her fate once and for all.

review:
"That's what I feel. I'd die to to protect you." 

OR

"That little stink. That overly protective, impossible, infuriating, and utterly sweet little stink."

If you read my earlier reviews of Unearthly and Hallowed, you would notice that I wasn't a big fan of both the books. The flaw lay in the story. Even though both the books were fairly entertaining and all the characters had voices that screamed 'FUN', in the end it all came down to how and where the story led you and in both the cases, it only led me to disappointment. And that is precisely why, I wasn't so excited about reading this one. In other cases, many of my friends have totally adored this series and have been swept off their feet by the cowboy (yes,Tucker.) of the book. I, being the party pooper, couldn't see why they even liked him.
My heart was always vouching for Christian, the other guy. The guy who understood Clara's problems and the guy who always stood by her.
To also add to that, LOVE TRIANGLES INFURIATE ME.

So you can only imagine how this one here surprised me!
It could be the last-book-of-the-series-syndrome or could be because my expectations were low but hell, this book was the perfect end to the series.
I like how this one wasn't all about Clara.
After reading Radiant , the short story which had Angela's and Clara's trip to Italy narrated in it, we already know that there are problems simmering on the surface. And we also have the finale of the Tucker-Clara-Christian triangle drama. Which might I add was really bittersweet. I'm sure all of you want to know who Clara finally ends up with, don't you? 
The best thing about this book is that it's the real deal. The final showdown. In many words, all the crap or amazingness the previous two books put us all through finally makes sense and sounds worthwhile when you come to read this one.

And there is that ACTION.
Hurray!!! I'm doing the googly dance just because there are action sequences in this one. There is fighting. And there is nobody in this whole wide world who could be as happy as I am to see violent fights. 
Now you would think why anyone would even like violence and would want perfectly okay people fight and probably kill each other?
Because, Katniss wouldn't have been Katniss if there was no war and there is nothing like that adrenaline rush you feel when you're in the middle of an action sequence.

To put simple things straight, this book was fantastic.
It was fun, sad , shocking and heart-exploding and I'm surprised that I'm even alive.
I changed who I liked again and again and finally had to just accept what Ms.Hand threw at me. As a reader, whenever there was thinking required , I thought and thought and did my guessing but never did I ever come close.

In the end, Boundless redeemed itself and made me totally happy. So if you're one of those who like me questions whether he/she should read this one, then I would definitely recommend you to stop questioning yourself and just read this book because you know you want to. And as for those who do, what the hell are you even waiting for? :D