Review: CRUEL BEAUTY by Rosamund Hodge

Title: Cruel Beauty
Author: Rosamund Hodge
Publication date: January 28, 2014
Publisher: Balzer + Bray (HarperTeen)
Source: an ARC from Epic Reads because they're AWESOME.

Graceling meets Beauty and the Beast in this sweeping fantasy about one girl's journey to fulfill her destiny and the monster who gets in her way-by stealing her heart.

Based on the classic fairy tale Beauty and the Beast, Cruel Beauty is a dazzling love story about our deepest desires and their power to change our destiny.

Since birth, Nyx has been betrothed to the evil ruler of her kingdom-all because of a foolish bargain struck by her father. And since birth, she has been in training to kill him.

With no choice but to fulfill her duty, Nyx resents her family for never trying to save her and hates herself for wanting to escape her fate. Still, on her seventeenth birthday, Nyx abandons everything she's ever known to marry the all-powerful, immortal Ignifex. Her plan? Seduce him, destroy his enchanted castle, and break the nine-hundred-year-old curse he put on her people.

But Ignifex is not at all what Nyx expected. The strangely charming lord beguiles her, and his castle-a shifting maze of magical rooms-enthralls her.

As Nyx searches for a way to free her homeland by uncovering Ignifex's secrets, she finds herself unwillingly drawn to him. Even if she could bring herself to love her sworn enemy, how can she refuse her duty to kill him? With time running out, Nyx must decide what is more important: the future of her kingdom, or the man she was never supposed to love.

Review:

First line: I was raised to marry a monster.

You have to know something before you read this review or before you pick up the book: nothing can prepare you for the greatness of this book. I'm sorry, but it's true. If you have an experience like mine, you will find yourself completely in love with this book and confused as to why you didn't think you would be. It's not that I didn't have high expectations—I really did—or that I didn't read incredibly positive reviews—I read a lot—or that I was bracing myself just in case—okay, I might have a little bit, but not that much. I was simply blown away by my love for this book. 

Because her father made a foolish decision to bargain with "The Good Lord," Nyx has to marry the evil ruler with a "secret" agenda to murder him, which will absolutely lead to her death. She deals with resentment towards her favored twin sister, her aunt (who's shacking up with her widowed father), and her cold-hearted father (but who only acts that way to her). Then she has to marry the monstrous lord. Of course, we all know at least the outline of her journey because everyone is familiar with Beauty and the Beast. So we know.

Or do we? 

Beauty and the Beast is a common retelling, I think especially in YA fiction, and usually incorporates the same elements: girl sacrifices herself for her father, mysterious house, "evil" beast, enchanted mirror, forbidden rooms, trouble at home, and the beast needs help. Deep down, we can all be reassured that everything will work out because that's how it's supposed to go. Rosamund Hodge doesn't give us that reassurance, ladies and gents. Many times, I felt my whole body go tense because I hoped and wished that everything would turn out right. I constantly reminded myself that this is not Beauty and the Beast so Cruel Beauty can do whatever it wants and twist me around its little finger because there are no guarantees. It might have been only me, but one of the parallels involved (and probably an obvious twist to others) astounded me. I was in awe because I didn't connect the dots until I was way into the story. 

Then there's the fact that the I was die-hard in love with the characters. I don't think I could have loved Nyx more. I feel like I always praise complex characters, but that's because complex characters are interesting and connectable. Nyx felt torn between her bitterness/resentment and her love for her sister. She felt evil inside, but strived to save her world. She craved her father's care, but resented him too. She was torn between so many decisions and feelings that I sympathized with her more than I have with another character in a long time. 

"I'm here!" I shouted. "Your bride!" Congratulations on your marriage!" 

Ignifex was amazing as well with his equally dry wit and snarky attitude. Both were dangerous, both unpredictable, and both played off each other wonderfully well. 

I don't feel too particularly safe in talking about this ship and the other elements involved since I don't want to take anything away the amazing journey. There is a sort-of-kind-of love triangle involved, but don't fear! When I heard other people refer it as a love triangle of sorts and then I started reading, I thought that there was no "kind of" about it. But there is. Kind of. *winks* 

Ignifex sat down. "If you start wondering how this house works, you'll likely go mad. That could be amusing, I suppose. Especially if it's the kind of madness that causes you to run naked through the hallways. Do feel free to indulge in that anytime." 

I applaud Rosamund Hodge for everything. Absolutely everything. And I don't think I'm going overboard with my praise. Great mythology, those twists I was talking about, and then there's this fantastic thing called world-building. I'm telling you, I was in love. 

I thought something else was incredible as well. Hodge may not have realized it (or anybody else for that matter), but she incorporated many Disney movie elements. Below, you will be attacked by gifs from Disney movies that I was reminded of while reading Cruel Beauty. 

As you can see, it felt like Hercules and Beauty and the Beast had a baby that had features resembling its relatives Frozen, The Little Mermaid, and Peter Pan (yes, that scary shadow dude is Peter Pan's shadow). For a Disney lover like myself, this made it even more fun to read.

Verdict: Blown-away by this fantastic "retelling" mixed with mythology and probably subconciously added elements of Disney. Very thankful for Epic Reads!

The Dos and Don'ts of YA Romance

Imagine you're reading a book that you're liking and connecting with, it's feeling good and you're bobbing along, ready to see what happens next. Then WHA-BOOM. Something annoying happens and it's lost. All of it. The connection, the interest, the patience, the respect, and the increasing love. It comes to a screeching halt and then disappears. That wha-boom can come from many things and vary from person to person. Sometimes the wha-boom isn't really a wha-boom at all, but is a build-up of repeated offenders. But there is one aspect of a story that gets a beating more than others—in my opinion, at least—and that's romance. In YA, romance is a fickle thing and can conjure up more groans from me than any other part (the narrative and realism are very close). So I decided to make up a list of my personal dos and don'ts of YA romance (hence the title).

DO: Let it simmer

I want the slow-burning kind of love! I do enjoy a whirlwind romance now and then, but I realized that I'm in desperate need for a friend-turned-lover kind of relationship. Let that tension build! It builds up my emotions, the feels, the angst, and while it's not a quickie romance, it's still very exciting.

DON'T: Insta-love it

Of course, the opposite of tension-feeling and realistic love is insta-love. Who likes instant-anything? I'd much rather cook my oats then have those nasty packets, so why would I want to make my fictional romance instant as well? 

DO: Talking is a beaut

I don't want to be bogged down by dialogue and I love affection just as much as the next person (ahem, Alienated), but it would be nice if they talked more than they lay hands on each other. This is a bit like insta-love in the way of not feeling authentic. I don't FEEL the romance when all there is between them is lust.

DON'T: Overuse the understanding card

A big problem I have, especially in contemporary, is when the girl protagonists talk as if their love interest is so amazing and so special because he "understands" her like no one else. He can understand you, but don't keep saying it over and over as if I'm a stupid reader and you're trying to convince me of something. Hearbeat by Elizabeth Scott, anyone?

DO: Incorporate other "life stuff," but DON'T force conflict

We have a twofer! Here's the thing. Personally, I need something to be going on besides the romance. It can involve the romance, but make me care. Be cautious! I see many books just add conflict because they know they need it, but it's not developed well so I still don't care. And now I'm just annoyed.

DON'T: Clinginess

When I read about a love interest who clings, like guys who border on being abusive because they're controlling, I really feel like squirming and yelling, "GET OFF OF ME." Yes, they're on the other person, but I feel suffocated and frustrated just looking at it. And from what I hear from Twilight readers, I'm looking at you, Edward.

DO: Caring is sharing
When I say that, I mean that when you show that the two lovers truly care about each other (deeper than the quick, superficial stuff), it spills over and makes ME care. So really, the caring is being shared around. Rae Carson's Hector and Elisa , anyone?

DON'T: Make her be a flip-flopper
Flip-flopping usually happens to girl protagonists during a love triangle. Even though there should NOT be a love triangle anyways (so overrated, Lauren can tell you why), if you do have one, don't make her flip-flop between the guys. I get the heart's conflict, but when she constantly says she's in love with one and then says it to the other, I really wish that both guys would dump her. She deserves to be forever-alone.

What are your dos and don'ts for YA (or any category) romance?

Happy Valentine's Day! Go to my list here to have recommendations for great swoon-worthy books!

Top Ten Tuesday: Swoon-worthy Books

Hosted by The Broke and the Bookish

Did somebody say SWOONS? I do swoons. I swoon for fictional characters, I swoon for non-fictional (not as fun), I like swooning, I like reading about swooning, I swoon in groups...swoon is just a fun word and a fun thing to do. Ironically enough—I blame the pressure of it all—I kept blanking on items for this list so I know I left out key books.

Cruel Beauty by Rosamund Hodge
I just finished reading this one and I might have been giggling like a schoolgirl.

Unravel Me by Taherah Mafi

CHAPTER 62

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
My heart.

Alienated by Melissa Landers

I don't think anyone could read how the L'heirs show affection without swooning.

Forever Princess by Meg Cabot
The tension between Michael and Mia throughout made me knot up. But it was all worth it when it came time to the carriage scene. 

Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell
So much awkward love.

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
[insert one of many oven/fire/bread jokes here]

The Crown of Embers by Rae Carson

HECTOOOOR

Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo
Mal. The Darkling. Then we get Sturmhond in the sequel! Three options means triple the swoon-age!

Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas

I had a lovely, yet heartbreaking time while reading about Celeana and Chaol. 

Grave Mercy by Robin LaFevers

The great thing about this is that she creates another swoon-worthy couple in the sequel.

Scarlet by A.C. Gaughen

Everneath by Brodi Ashton
It was hard to not be Team Cole in this one, I didn't even try.

As you could see, while I felt like I had trouble remembering important swoon-y books, I went over 10. No regrets. 

What are some books that made you swoon?

Rewind & Review: January 27 - February 9

Hosted by Shae Has Left the Room

What a crazy two weeks it's been. It's actually been more of a blur, really, but that seems to be the pattern for me these days. Another great pattern that I hope continues: I've been picking more "win" books than "loser" books! 

Books I Was Given:

• Cruel Beauty by Rosamund Hodge (thanks to Epic Reads!)
• Racing Savannah by Miranda Kenneally (thanks to Miranda herself!)

Books for Review:

• We Were Liars by E. Lockhart (Random House via NetGalley)
• The Edge of Falling by Rebecca Serle (Simon Pulse via Edelweiss)
• The Treatment by Suzanne Young (Simon Pulse via Edelweiss)

Number of Books I've Completed: 2 *cue sad sound effects*

What I'm Reading Now/Next:

• Fire by Kristin Cashore
• We Were Liars by E. Lockhart

Previous Blog Posts:

• Top Ten Tuesdays - Worst Worlds/Characters
• The Blogging Age
• Review: ALIENATED by Melissa Landers
• Top Ten Tuesday - Emotional Books
• Review: BRIGHT BEFORE SUNRISE by Tiffany Schmidt

Bookish (and not-so-bookish) Happenings: 

• The feedback and comments I got from The Blogging Age discussion was AMAZING. Really, I actually wasn't sure about the post and then whap, I was slapped with great, insightful comments. And Jamie, who I consider the blogging queen, thrilled me to pieces. 
• I had an interview for a Scholar Program at a university I'm looking at and they offered me a spot RIGHT THEN. I thought that was pretty cool, but I still need to decide if I want to join.
• I haven't been on Twitter much thanks to school sucking all the time out of my life. 
• You know how I was off of sweets during January? Well, I definitely made up for it this past couple of weeks. I don't know if I'll ever be able to do it again. 
• Did anyone else freak out about The Fault in Our Stars trailer? I DID.
• I just wanted to say that Joanne Rock is one of the nicest authors out there. I feel like I give her virtual hugs all the time. 

Upcoming Blog Posts: *

• Top Ten Tuesday - Swoon-worthy Books
• Shippin'
• Review: CRUEL BEAUTY by Rosamund Hodge
• Top Ten Tuesday - Blogging Loves
• A Whole New World
• THE GIRL OF FIRE AND THORNS Series Recap

*Subject to change

The hoopla of Valentine's Day is coming up, brace yourselves. Happy reading!

To buy any of the books mentioned in this post, click this button: 

Review: BRIGHT BEFORE SUNRISE by Tiffany Schmidt

Title: Bright Before Sunrise
Author: Tiffany Schmidt
Publication date: February 14, 2014
Publisher: Walker Children's (Bloomsbury)
Source: an e-galley provided by the publisher for an honest review

When Jonah is forced to move from Hamilton to Cross Pointe for the second half of his senior year, "miserable" doesn't even begin to cover it. He feels like the doggy-bag from his mother's first marriage and everything else about her new life—with a new husband, new home and a new baby—is an upgrade. The people at Cross Pointe High School are pretentious and privileged—and worst of all is Brighton Waterford, the embodiment of all things superficial and popular. Jonah’s girlfriend, Carly, is his last tie to what feels real... until she breaks up with him. 

For Brighton, every day is a gauntlet of demands and expectations. Since her father died, she’s relied on one coping method: smile big and pretend to be fine. It may have kept her family together, but she has no clue how to handle how she's really feeling. Today is the anniversary of his death and cracks are beginning to show. The last thing she needs is the new kid telling her how much he dislikes her for no reason she can understand. She's determined to change his mind, and when they're stuck together for the night, she finally gets her chance. 

Jonah hates her at 3p.m., but how will he feel at 3 a.m.? 

One night can change how you see the world. One night can change how you see yourself.

Review: 

First line: "You've dropped something."

I don't know what I was expecting, but the plot turned out to be what I was and wasn't expecting, all wrapped up in one. These types of plots—where two people are stuck together for a night and their opinions about each other change in less than 24 hours—are tricky. It balances on a thin rope of being unrealistic and involving insta-love. But Bright Before Sunrise succeeded in not being annoying or too implausible. 

What makes this work:

Connection. It's an overall cute story, alternating between Jonah's and Brighton's narratives, displaying the times at the beginning of each chapter. What impressed me was that I was able to connect with both of these characters, even though they were vastly different. Jonah comes from Hamilton, which is represented as the projects, and has an extremely frustrating home life as well as a toxic girlfriend. Brighton, on the other hand, is the poster child for the sunny Cross Pointe and never lets herself have a break. I looked forward to both of their narratives, but I think I favored Jonah's more, partly because he had a backbone. 

Humor. There can be different layers of cute, from a cute that can seem a bit patronizing (like a pat on the head) to a cute that makes me smile. This was the latter. Since I did connect with both characters, they easily made me smile because I got it.

Having him in my bathroom seems way too intimate. I get naked in that shower every morning. The way-too-flimsy-but-neverseen-in-public bathrobe Evy gave me for Christmas is hanging on a hook behind his head.

Realism. You know where most stories with these kind of plots tend to go south? It's when their feelings suddenly change or when the whole story is focused on their romance. This is a contemporary novel and many contemporaries have romance as a focus, but it shouldn't always be that way. The author does a great job in making their relationship progress at a nice pace. It's only 12 hours, I know. But it doesn't feel like 12 hours. Whenever they found themselves more comfortable or reached a new hour or new step in their relationship/friendship, it was done with ease and realism. THAT is how it's done. What helped was that they were both working towards separate goals: Jonah with his achy-breaky heart and revenge, Brighton with her can-do attitude and participation goal. While Jonah hesitated with his plan to show his newly ex-girlfriend the truth (simultaneously embarrassing her), he developed feelings for Brighton. Not overpowering love that so many books seem to do, but slowly developed care. 

Another great example of realism in the book was the ending. Since it's the ending, I can't tell you why, but believe me, it was refreshing. 

Flaws. With Brighton as a main character, the story easily could have followed down a doomed path of "perfect" characters. I thank the author for not ruining her book that way. At one point, Brighton chose poorly, and stupidly didn't act as she should have. But before it became too late for the situation to be fixed, she wised up and had a tiny payback of her own. That's what should happen. Characters are supposed to be flawed. Who wants a Mary Sue? Brighton was overwhelmed with the night's events and emotions, which made her not make the smartest decisions. But she fixed it. She made me go from helpless to proud. I'll repeat myself, that's how it's supposed to happen. Flaws are involved. Brighton has a hard job of keeping up with her Miss Perfect image. Jonah deals with his crappy home life and a situation he hates being in. Both of them deal with irrational choices and overcome their own personal flaws. All of those "imperfections" come together to make a great book with dimensionality. 

Looking back, I don't know what I was expecting. It doesn't matter though because I got what I needed.

Verdict: A fast-paced story involving cuteness and depth as well as a natural relationship progression.

Note: Quotes may change from ARCs to publication.

Top Ten Tuesday - Books That Made Me Feel

Hosted by The Broke and the Bookish

I don't cry for fiction. When the two ladies behind my row were balling and my mom and sister were crying during Up, my eyes were embarrassingly dry. During the heart-wrenching scene in Toy Story 3, I felt moisture prickling at my eyes, but it never appeared on my face. I never cried during The Hunger Games series UNTIL I read it for the sixth time, emotional music was playing, and I looked at my younger sister during that part in Mockingjay...then, and only then, did the tears fall. I am, however, an emotional person. Any gifs used or exclamations used are representations of my inner heartbreaking feels. So this list may or may not make you cry, but they did make me feel.

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

The gif says it all.

Second Chance Summer by Morgan Matson
Another cancer book, another book that made me weepy inside. 

Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein
"KISS ME HARDY!" 

If I Stay by Gayle Forman
I feel like I mention this book all the time, but there's a valid reason, considering her whole family dies in one accident. And she has to decide if she should stay or go. I can't even imagine. 

Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins

WHY, SUZANNE, WHY?

Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas
This brought on feelings of sadness and anger and even disbelief. It was pretty emotional for me.

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
WWII Nazi Germany and narrated by Death. Rainbows and sunshine obviously won't be involved.

These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner

That one part almost made me throw the book against the wall.

Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver
Heartbreaking.

Out of Sight Out of Time by Ally Carter

You wanted to hug Cammie throughout, but my insides especially started teary near the end. 

What books make you feel emotional?

Review: ALIENATED by Melissa Landers

Title: Alienated 

Author: Melissa Landers

Publication date: February 4, 2014

Publisher: Disney-Hyperion

Source: an e-galley provided by the publisher for an honest review

Two years ago, the aliens made contact. Now Cara Sweeney is going to be sharing a bathroom with one of them. 

Handpicked to host the first-ever L’eihr exchange student, Cara thinks her future is set. Not only does she get a free ride to her dream college, she’ll have inside information about the mysterious L’eihrs that every journalist would kill for. Cara’s blog following is about to skyrocket.

Still, Cara isn’t sure what to think when she meets Aelyx. Humans and L’eihrs have nearly identical DNA, but cold, infuriatingly brilliant Aelyx couldn’t seem more alien. She’s certain about one thing, though: no human boy is this good-looking.

But when Cara's classmates get swept up by anti-L'eihr paranoia, Midtown High School suddenly isn't safe anymore. Threatening notes appear in Cara's locker, and a police officer has to escort her and Aelyx to class. 

Cara finds support in the last person she expected. She realizes that Aelyx isn’t just her only friend; she's fallen hard for him. But Aelyx has been hiding the truth about the purpose of his exchange, and its potentially deadly consequences. Soon Cara will be in for the fight of her life—not just for herself and the boy she loves, but for the future of her planet.

Review:

First line: Winning.

Warning: If you decide to read this book (which I force recommend you do), you may be surprised at the amount of smiling you will do while reading. 

At least, that's how it was for me. I kept going back and forth about if I should read this and then the publisher gave me a Netgalley link, so I thought, why not? It wasn't a life-changing, realistic book. It was a cute, smiling, wonderful book that kickstarted my reading again. I am still in awe of how Melissa Landers did it. It went from careful, I may have to start saying "whatever" to I can't stop reading in an impressive transition. 

First thing you need to know: Cara is competitive. We're told that right from the beginning, from the very first line actually. Because of that, she snags the valedictorian slot in her school and then is surprised with a prestigious scholarship. The catch is that it involves a student exchange with a L'eihr, a.k.a. an alien. Her parents and principal are all gung-ho about it, but she has doubts, especially since her jerky boyfriend is anti-alien. Nevertheless, she agrees.

When we were first introduced to Cara and her social life, I had a sinking feeling in my stomach. Oh no, not another controlling, jerky boyfriend, who she'll be conflicted in whether or not she should break up with him or not, but we all know that she should...that kind of feeling. Thankfully, Landers knew what she was doing and fixed that problem very quickly. I won't even touch on that pesky best friend business she had going on though. 

Another plus in Landers' favor? Providing pronunciation for the aliens' names! Hurray! She does it in a smooth way that made me sigh with relief because I can barely pronounce normal English words, don't make me try to pronounce names that are spelled weird. Not only that, but she also makes us feel the differences between aliens and humans. They aren't just people who were born on a different planet, they had a completely different culture, attitude, upbringing, and complexities. They felt foreign and I always looked forward to learning more. 

But let's be honest. The building romance and feels between Aelyx and Cara was like a flutter-fest for me. My heart fluttered, my hands fluttered, and I wouldn't doubt that my eyelashes fluttered because I was a fluttering mess. I don't do well in embarrassing situations, even fictional ones, but Landers pulled this off excellently. There were awkward scenes that made me adore the story more. Then not-so-awkward ones that got me fluttering again. Things did get heated, but not too far, and once again, Landers pulled it off well. Standing ovation for her, yes?

While she was still toying my emotions, Landers then decided to heat up the other side of my brain: anger. I was angry. Not at the writing or the story, but the characters. Then it wasn't even the characters themselves, but how realistic they are to our society. Aliens and other scary things are happening. So of course, humans will start to overreact and become hurtful and violent. They turn on their neighbor, they become insistent that they are right and they basically make everything 100x worse. Cara's situation goes from being a great experience for her and Earth to needing guards and being shunned from everyone. It was awful because I could see that happening. Hey, it probably has happened many times throughout history. Something scary happens and we all panic and create hurtful groups like Alienated's HALO. But let's not forget the other side, shall we? The aliens weren't completely blameless either. Aelyx and the other two exchange students, especially the girl, decided to do something that they thought was in the best interest of their planet, but ultimately, they were teenagers thinking that they knew best (of course, adults have many of those moments as well). This story was all kinds of laughs, smiles, flirting, blushing, and fluff. But then Landers sticks in this aspect that actually added depth into the silliness, making me appreciate the novel so much more. 

Since this book was such a win for me, I hate to touch on anything negative because I felt like the positives blew everything out of the water. Alas, I have to. That ending. There was one part with her parents that felt wrong to me, but I reminded myself that this was a fun book, I shouldn't focus on it. Then we get to the actual ending and hello, sinking feeling. I really can't say much (since it is the ending), but I dread the direction it seems to be taking. I'll be one of the first to request the sequel, but I hate the implication that started forming in the last few pages. 

Me.

Verdict: DISNEY-HYPERION FOR THE WIN!