Review: Inescapable by Amy A. Bartol

 

Book Description:

My name is Evie Claremont and this was to be the making of me--my freshman year of college. I had been hoping that once I had arrived on Crestwood's campus, the nightmare that I've been having would go away. It hasn't.

I may be an inexperienced seventeen-year-old, but I'm grounded...sane. Since meeting sophomore Reed Wellington, however, nothing makes any sense. Whenever he is near, I feel an attraction to him--a magnetic kind of force pulling me towards him. I know what you're thinking...that sounds fairly awesome. Yeah, it would--if he liked me, but Reed acts as if I'm the worst thing that's ever happened to Crestwood...or him. But, get this, for some reason every time I turn around he's there, barging into my life.

What is the secret he is keeping from me? I'm hoping that it is anything but what I expect: that he is not exactly normal...and neither am I. So maybe Crestwood won't be the making of me, but it could be the breaking of me. I have been left to wonder if the dark future my dream is foretelling is...inescapable.

Book Information:

Pages: 392

Publisher: CreateSpace

Series: The Premonition #1 

Book Review:

I'm not too sure what to say about this book. I read it, I enjoyed it, but it wasn't really memorable. Evie is not your typical heroine. She's pretty funny, and her comments amused me. But her character is not really definite because one moment, she's brave and strong. The next, she's weak and needs help. Reed is sort of... Edward-Cullen-esque. Upon meeting Evie for the first him, he immediately tries to get Evie to leave the school because he can't stand to be in the same place as her, but soon falls madly in love with her and feels like need to always protect her from harm. I didn't really care for Reed because he's overprotective and just...eh. Russell is a football player from the South and apparently, he's also Evie's soulmate. I liked Russell better than I liked Reed, but I hated his exaggerated Southern drawl. Alfred is Evie's nerdy friend who is always around to help her with whatever she needs.

I enjoyed reading this book because it's take on angels was interesting. I also like paranormal books set in school for some reason, so that was a plus for me. However, the characters are a bit one-dimensional. There is a love triangle (which I normally like), but so much of the book is focused on Evie's choice between Reed and Russell that it actually annoyed me. I wanted to shake Evie's shoulders and say, "MAKE A CHOICE ALREADY!" because it seemed like she was just stringing one of them along. The ending was a nice twist for me. I was expecting something like it, but nevertheless, I was pleasantly surprised because I liked the villain. I recommend this book to people who liked Twilight by Stephanie Meyer because I could definitely see the similarities. 

Rating: 3/5. I'm giving it a higher rating than I was originally going to because I like the cover!

Review: Fated by Alyson Noel

 

Book Description:

Lately strange things have been happening to Daire Santos. Animals follow her, crows mock her, and glowing people appear out of nowhere. Worried that Daire is having a nervous breakdown, her mother packs her off to stay in the dusty plains of Enchantment, New Mexico with a grandmother she’s never met.

There she crosses paths with Dace, a gorgeous guy with unearthly blue eyes who she’s encountered before...but only in her dreams. And she’ll get to know her grandmother—a woman who recognizes Daire’s bizarre episodes for what they are. A call to her true destiny as a Soul Seeker, one who can navigate between the worlds of the living and the dead. Her grandmother immediately begins teaching her to harness her powers—but it’s an art that must be mastered quickly. Because Dace’s brother is an evil shape-shifter who’s out to steal her powers. Now Daire must embrace her fate as a Soul Seeker and find out if Dace is one guy she’s meant to be with...or if he’s allied with the enemy she’s destined to destroy.

Book Information: 

Pages: 352

Publisher: St. Martin's Press 

Series: Soul Seekers #1  

Book Review:

I was really excited to start this book, but unfortunately, it fell a bit short for me. The plot sounded really interesting. Essentially, Daire Santos' mother thinks she's going crazy, so she puts her on a lot of medication and sends her to her grandmother's house. Daire has never met her grandmother before, but they have an immediate bond. In the new town, Daire meets Dace and Cade, who are twins. Dace is gorgeous and good while his brother Cade is also gorgeous but evil. Daire finds out that she's a Soul Seeker from her grandmother, and finds out about the feud between her family and Cade's family. 

Honestly, I was considering giving up by the first chapter because it didn't grab my attention, but I forced myself to finish the book. Alyson Noel's writing style was a bit hard for me to read. Also, I didn't hate Daire, but I didn't really care that much for her either. Dace wasn't too bad, but most other characters just annoyed me. I actually really liked Daire's friend, Xotichl. She's blind but it seems like she can see when she technically can't. She's just a really interesting character and I would have liked to read more about her. Another problem I had with this book was that the problems were taken care of a bit too quickly. Things happened to Daire and I was just like, "Oh. Okay. What next?"

This book wasn't too bad as a whole, but it wasn't great. I'm not planning on reading the rest of the series, but it was enjoyable enough. I would recommend it to people who love paranormal books but are looking for more unique aspects because the idea of being able to channel energy from the earth is really interesting!

P.S. I love love love the cover!

Rating: 3/5