Mini-Reviews: Haze & Daughter of Chaos

Title: Haze (The Rephaim #2)
Author: Paula Weston
Publication Date: September 9, 2014
Genre: Fantasy

Gaby Winters’ nightmares have stopped but she still can’t remember her old life. Still can’t quite believe she is one of the Rephaim—the wingless half-angels who can shift from place to place, country to country, in the blink of an eye. That she was once the Rephaim’s best fighter. That demons exist. That Rafa has stayed.

But most of all, she can’t quite believe that her twin brother, Jude, might be alive.

And Gaby can’t explain the hesitancy that sidetracks the search for him, infuriates Rafa, and sends them, again, into the darkest danger. -Goodreads

4.5 Stars

Thank you Tundra Books for sending me this copy for review!

Cover Reveal: Mortal Gods, by Kendare Blake

So, I have a confession to make. I haven't actually read Antigoddess, or even Anna Dressed In Blood. That's not to say that I don't want to start either series written by this author, it's just that I'm afraid of disappointment. I've heard such great things about Anna Dressed in Blood, and I'm waiting for that perfect moment to dedicate myself to both books (I think it's a duology?). And well, I recently went on a Netgalley spree, which I'm not entirely proud of. But anyways.

The cover for Mortal Gods, by Kendare Blake!

IT'S SO PRETTEH. Makes me want to start the series!

Blog Tour + Giveaway: Elixir, by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Follow the Blog Tour!

Title: Elixir (Covenant #3.5)
Author: Jennifer L. Armentrout
Genre: YA paranormal
Pub. Date: November 27, 2012

Aiden St. Delphi will do anything to save Alex.
Even if it means doing the one thing he will never forgive himself for.
Even if it means making war against the gods.

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

3 Stars 

I'm not usually one to read novellas, because in my opinion they don't really satisfy me, but Elixir is an exception to that. It was intriguing to see things from Aiden's POV, and although I never really liked him, I actually began to respect him while reading this. An interesting read, and I highly recommend reading it before Apollyon, as it makes things much
clearer.

About the Author

# 1 New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Author Jennifer L. Armentrout Lives in West Virginia.

All the rumors you heard about her state aren’t true.

Well, mostly. When she's not hard at work writing, she spends her time, reading, working out, watching zombie movies, and pretending to write.

She is the author of the Covenant Series (Spencer Hill Press), the Lux Series (Entangled Teen), Don't Look Back (Disney/Hyperion) and a yet untitled novel (Disney/Hyperion), and new YA paranormal series with Harlequin Teen.

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads

Giveaway!

Spencer Hill Press is giving away a $200 gift card to Barnes & Noble, Amazon, Book Depository or any indie bookstore of the winner's choice to not only stock up on amazing books, but to perhaps buy a Nook HD or Kindle Fire.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Waiting on Wednesday #6: Antigoddess, by Kendare Blake

Waiting on Wednesday is hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine

Title: Antigoddess (Goddess War #1)

Author: Kendare Blake

Genre: Mythology

Pub. Date: September 10, 2013

Old Gods never die…

Or so Athena thought. But then the feathers started sprouting beneath her skin, invading her lungs like a strange cancer, and Hermes showed up with a fever eating away his flesh. So much for living a quiet eternity in perpetual health.

Desperately seeking the cause of their slow, miserable deaths, Athena and Hermes travel the world, gathering allies and discovering enemies both new and old. Their search leads them to Cassandra—an ordinary girl who was once an extraordinary prophetess, protected and loved by a god.

These days, Cassandra doesn’t involve herself in the business of gods—in fact, she doesn’t even know they exist. But she could be the key in a war that is only just beginning.

Because Hera, the queen of the gods, has aligned herself with other of the ancient Olympians, who are killing off rivals in an attempt to prolong their own lives. But these anti-gods have become corrupted in their desperation to survive, horrific caricatures of their former glory. Athena will need every advantage she can get, because immortals don’t just flicker out.

Every one of them dies in their own way. Some choke on feathers. Others become monsters. All of them rage against their last breath.

The Goddess War is about to begin. -Goodreads

Anyone else DYING of anticipation? I haven't read her other series, Anna Dressed in Blood, but based on the synopsis, I have a good feeling about this one!

What are you waiting on? Comment and link below!

Review: Persephone, by Kaitlin Bevis

Title: Persephone (Daughters of Persephone #1)
Author: Kaitlin Bevis
Genre: Mythology
Pub. Date: July 6, 2012

There are worse things than death, worse people too.

The “talk” was bad enough, but how many teens get told that they’re a goddess? When her mom tells her, Persephone is sure her mother has lost her mind. It isn’t until Boreas, the god of winter, tries to abduct her that she realizes her mother was telling the truth. Hades rescues her, and in order to safely bring Persephone to the Underworld he marks her as his bride. But Boreas will stop at nothing to get Persephone. Despite her growing feelings for Hades, Persephone wants to return to the living realm. Persephone must find a way to defeat Boreas and reclaim her life. -Goodreads

It seems like I've been constantly let-down with all the attempts of Greek mythology retellings. Namely, The Goddess Test series, Everbound, and now, Persphone.

I'm not exactly sure what made me dislike this book. It was either the stupidly simple plot, the characters, or even the absence of anything remotely interesting. It was likely a combination of the above, and along with the mediocre writing, leading to my disliking of this book.

Generally, it never really felt like anything was at stake. Ya, Persephone successfully kills the bad guy, but this was fairly easy, when I was expecting, based on the characters' explanations, a difficult and life-threatening task.

The fact that everything was predictable as heck also caused me to not take this book seriously.

The writing was atrocious at worst, mediocre at best. Let's take a few examples, shall we?

"She rolled her eyes to show her opinion of that particular dieting method."

Well, DUH, if you roll your eyes, OBVIOUSLY you're showing your opinion.

"I peered past her out the window, grinning so she knew I was joking."

The second parts of those sentences were merely unnecessary and annoying and were just one of those DUH moments. The book was full of these. I found myself making this face quite a bit while reading Persephone:

Hades was... Bleh. A disgrace to Greek mythology and all the cool gods we expect from it. The protagonist, Persephone, was naive and stupid and I never found myself sympathizing with her.

Why is this book appealing to most? I've no idea. I certainly found it very unappealing. Excuse me while I go diligently search for an entertaining Greek mythology book.

If you are looking for a good book on Greek myth, go read some of Rick Riordan's books. Don't make the same mistake I made.

2 Stars