The Immortal Rules by Julie Kagawa

Title: The Immortal Rules
Author: Julie Kagawa
Series: Blood of Eden #1
Genre: Fantasy/Young Adult
Page Count: 485 Pages (Hardcover)
Published: April 24th 2012 by Harlequin
Rating: 5/5

MY VAMPIRE CREATOR TOLD ME THIS:

"Sometime in your life, Allison Sekemoto, you will kill a human being. The question is not if it will happen, but when. Do you understand?"

I didn't then, not really.

I DO NOW.

Allison Sekemoto survives in the Fringe, the outermost circle of a vampire city. By day, she and her crew scavenge for food. By night, any one of them could be eaten.

Some days, all that drives Allie is her hatred of them. The vampires who keep humans as blood cattle. Until the night Allie herself is attacked—and given the ultimate choice. Die…or become one of the monsters.

Faced with her own mortality, Allie becomes what she despises most. To survive, she must learn the rules of being immortal, including the most important: go long enough without human blood, and you will go mad.

Then Allie is forced to flee into the unknown, outside her city walls. There she joins a ragged band of humans who are seeking a legend—a possible cure to the disease that killed off most of humankind and created the rabids, the mindless creatures who threaten humans and vampires alike.

But it isn’t easy to pass for human. Especially not around Zeke, who might see past the monster inside her. And Allie soon must decide what—and who—is worth dying for.

My Review:

Well, I can’t believe I waited this long to start such an amazing series. I am in love with The Immortal Rules.

In my defence I have been burned a couple of times by other authors and decided to wait until all three books in the trilogy were released before starting, and I guess the silver lining is now I don’t have to wait for the next one I can just dive right in.

The immortal rules is a story about an orphaned 17-year-old girl who is living her life in the outskirts of a walled-in city that is run by vampires. She scavenges, steals, and begs to keep herself alive with the other “unregistered” because she refuses to sell her blood to the monsters that run the city in exchange for food and shelter. Outside the walls the world is in ruins and swarming with “rabids” - infected people and animals that are zombie-like with a vampire flare. I don’t know how much more to say without major spoilers. It’s a vampire book with a Walking Dead feel.

Although it’s YA it’s not angsty or juvenile. Allie is a strong female lead that is bad-ass and like-able. The supporting characters are both lovable and loathable (yes I’m making up terms) making for a well-rounded cast to traverse the story with.

One thing I will say is that it took me a few chapters to realize that Kannin isn’t meant to be a love interest, but more of a mentor role. That may be obvious to others but I thought it was worth mentioning.

I loved the story and world-building. Julie Kagawa has been one of my favourite authors since her Iron Fey series and she didn’t disappoint with her take on vampires.

Fav. Quotes (minus the spoilery ones):

“You will always be a monster, there is no turning back from it. But what type of monster you become is entirely up to you.”  

"The closer you got to someone, the more it would destroy you when they were inevitably gone."

My Rating: 5/5

You'll like this series if you liked

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins, Twilight by Stephenie Meyer or The Iron King by Julie Kagawa.

Cover Coverage

This series has had a couple cover makeovers.Which is your favourite?

Links 4 More:

*As a side note: I was given an ARC of this book by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review, but since I missed the publication date I purchased a hardcover and man am I glad that I did!

Bumped, Megan McCafferty - 4.5/5 Great Read

Title: Bumped
Author: Megan McCafferty
Series: Bumped, Book #1
Genre: YA, Dystopian
Page Count: 336 Pages (Hardcover)
Pub. Date: Published April 2011 by Balzer + Bray (Imprint of HarperCollins)
Rating: 4.5/5

When a virus makes everyone over the age of eighteen infertile, would-be parents are forced to pay teen girls to conceive and give birth to their children, making teens the most prized members of society. Girls sport fake baby bumps and the school cafeteria stocks folic-acid infused food.
Sixteen-year-old identical twins Melody and Harmony were separated at birth and have never met until the day Harmony shows up on Melody’s doorstep. Until now, the twins have followed completely opposite paths. Melody has scored an enviable conception contract with a couple called the Jaydens. While they are searching for the perfect partner for Melody to bump with, she is fighting her attraction to her best friend Zen, who is way too short for the job.
Harmony has spent her whole life in Goodside, a religious community, preparing to be a wife and mother. She believes her calling is to bring Melody back to Goodside and convince her that pregging for profit is a sin. But Harmony has secrets of her own that she is running from.
When Melody is finally matched with the world-famous, genetically flawless Jondoe, both girls’ lives are changed forever. A case of mistaken identity takes them on a journey neither could have ever imagined, one that makes Melody and Harmony realize they have so much more than just DNA in common.
From New York Times bestselling author Megan McCafferty comes a strikingly original look at friendship, love, and sisterhood—in a future that is eerily believable..

~My Review~

In a world where teens are the only people able to conceive Melody is praised for her choice to be a surrogate. Her twin sister Harmony, raised by "the churchies", however is not happy about her newfound sister's choice and has set out to change her mind.

With all the dystopian fiction flooding the bookshelves lately, I was pleasantly surprised by Megan McCafferty's fresh take on the genre. The conflict surrounding the society in Bumped isn't post-apocalyptic or struggling under oppression as so many are, it's an amplified struggle that we face today - we make our choices based on fear, fear of poverty, fear of rejection, and in more cases than not a miss-placed fear of God.

I was sucked into the story of Melody and Harmony, and their struggle to know what is the right thing to do. I felt compassion for the Harmony, who is trying to balance what she knows is true in her heart, and the rules she feel obligated to follow. Melody wants to fulfil the role her parents have trained her for. Both sisters start out the book making their decisions based on fear and manipulation, but grow throughout their struggles to a place where they can start to think on their own.

The ending wasn't as wrapped up as I wanted it to be, but after finding out that Megan McCafferty is writing a sequel, I am actually glad she ended it the way she did. Bumped was a light and fun read that also really made me think.

Thanks to NetGalley and HarperCollins for the ARC

My Rating: 4.5/5

~ You'll like this series if you liked ~

Uglies by Scott Westerfeld, Unwind by Neal Shusterman, or Matched by Ally Condie.

~Links 4 More~

Author Website: here
Add to your Shelfari: here
Add to your Goodreads: here
Buy it at BookDepository (free shipping): here

Early Review - Outside In by Maria V. Snyder

Title: Outside In

Author: Maria V. Snyder

Series: Insider, book #2

Genre: YA, Dystopian

Page Count: 320 Pages

Pub. Date: 02/22/2011

Rating: 5/5

*Received from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*

~Book’s Description From NetGalley~

ME?
A LEADER?
Okay, I did prove that there’s more to Inside than we knew. That a whole world exists beyond this cube we live in. And finding that led to a major rebellion—between worker scrubs like me and the snobby uppers who rule our world. Make that ruled. Because of me, we’re free. I thought that meant I was off the hook, and could go off on my own again—while still touching base with Riley, of course. He’s the one upper I think I can trust. But then we learned that there’s outside and then there is Outside.
And something from Outside wants In.

~My Review~

I absolutely loved Inside Out so I had high hopes for Outside in - and boy did it deliver. I love the dystopian genre and this series has definitely brought a great new flavor to the mix.

Outside In picks up shortly after the events of Inside Out (if you haven't read I.O. yet the rest of the review will contain spoilers) in the broken world of Inside, where the oppressors have been removed but the people are far from free.

One of the things I liked most about this book was its very existence. There are so many stories where the people fight to break free from oppression/dictatorship and the story ends along with the battle for freedom, but in this book, as in the real world, we know that the battle may be won but the war is far from over. I appreciated the realistic handling of how the Scrubs reacted to being "free" - they fought, they went on strike, and they were divided without a common cause.

I was very pleased with Trella's growth as a character and the development of her relationship with Riley. Much like Inside Out there are lots of new things for Trella to discover and tough choices for her to make. We get to see more from our favourite characters, as well as some colourful new ones.

Overall I enjoyed Outside In just as much as Inside Out and would definitely recommend you pick it up on February 22nd!

My Rating: 5/5

~ Other books in this series ~

#1 Inside Out, #2 Outside In

~ You'll like this series if you liked ~

Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins, Uglies by Scott Westerfeld, Unwind by Neal Shusterman, or the Opal Cowen Series by Maria V. Snyder.

~Links 4 More~

Author Website: here

Add to your Shelfari: here

Add to your Goodreads: here

Buy it at BookDepository (free shipping): here

Inside Out - Quick Review

Title: Inside Out

Author: Maria V. Snyder

Series: Insider, book #1

Genre: YA, Dystopian

Page Count: 320 Pages

Rating: 5/5

I'm Trella. I'm a scrub. A nobody. One of thousands who work the lower levels, keeping Inside clean for the Uppers. I've got one friend, do my job and try to avoid the Pop Cops. So what if I occasionally use the pipes to sneak around the Upper levels? Not like it's all that dangerous - the only neck I risk is my own. Until I accidently start a rebellion and become the go-to girl to lead a revolution. I should have just said no...

~ My Review ~

I have been itching to read this book since I heard about it. Maria Snyder is one of my favourite authors and she definitely delivered with Inside Out! Trella is a very likable character and I was drawn into her world of pipes and hidden spaces until the last page.

In the future that is Trella's present, she lives as a "scrub" and has the job of cleaning the air, heating, and water pipes that run throughout the world she knows as Inside. She is a "lower" part of the labour class of people born into service for the "uppers" - those who control Inside.

Her best and only friend Cog is always hoping for an escape, something beyond Inside. Trella knows that hoping only leads to pain, so she takes on a dangerous task to prove to him, and to herself, that there is nothing out there.

The character and plot development were well paced and the ending was satisfying while still leaving room for more (book 2 will be released Feb. 22 2011).

If you haven't read this yet you are missing out on a fantastic dystopian novel.

My Rating: 5/5

 

~ Other books in this series ~

#1 Inside Out, #2 Outside In

~ You'll like this book if you liked ~

Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins, Uglies by Scott Westerfeld, Unwind by Neal Shusterman, or the Opal Cowen Series by Maria V. Snyder.