Uncommon Criminals

Summary: Katarina Bishop has worn a lot of labels in her short life life. Friend. Niece. Daughter. Thief. But for the last two months she’s simply been known as the girl who ran the crew that robbed the greatest museum in the world. That’s why Kat isn’t surprised when she’s asked to steal the infamous Cleopatra Emerald so it can be returned to its rightful owners. There are only three problems: First, the gem hasn’t been seen in public in thirty years. Second, since the fall of the Egyptian empire and the suicide of Cleopatra, no one who holds the emerald keeps it for long, and in Kat’s world, history almost always repeats itself. But it’s the third problem that makes Kat’s crew the most nervous and that is simply…the emerald is cursed. Kat might be in way over her head, but she’s not going down without a fight. After all, she has her best friend—the gorgeous Hale—and the rest of her crew with her as they chase the Cleopatra around the globe, dodging curses, realizing that the same tricks and cons her family has used for centuries are useless this time. Which means, this time, Katarina Bishop is making up her own rules.

I love Ally Carter. That’s it, plain and simple. *runs up to Carter* “TEACH ME YOUR WAYS!!!!!” *kisses feet* (and I’m a germaphobe). If only. Just like her first book in the series, Heist Society, this new read is fast paced and clever. Even though a sequel can be a dream come true, it can also be a hellish nightmare because what usually happens is the first one is amazing and the second one…not so much. Thank God that’s not the case here. I found this book to be just as amazing and witty as the first, if not better, because honestly the ending blew me away. Usually I can predict a book’s plot for the most part, but oh no, not this one. It had me going, “How…? But-I-um…Wha…? …HOW?!” And I mean that in a good way, not in a Breaking Dawn-esque ”HOLY HELL WHAT IS THIS CRAP??” way. Seriously, though, I totally didn’t expect the ending even though the answer was there all along (not a spoiler). The only thing that irritated me a little was that I STILL. DON’T. KNOW. HALE’S. NAME. “Hale” is his last name. What is his first name?? But, truth be told, that severely annoying unanswered question (seriously, it completely perturbs me) is completely diminished by the fact that Carter is an amazing Young Adult writer. In other words, I don’t care. It annoys me, yes, but I don’t care. I will read a dozen more Heist Society novels and never know Hale’s name before I hate Ally Carter for not telling me. (But if she does, you know, no complaints here. Lol.) So pick up one of her adventure-filled books. Now. You won’t regret it.

Passion

Summary: What if you find your soul mate…at the wrong time? Luce would die for Daniel. And she has. Over and over again. Throughout time, Luce and Daniel have found each other, only to be painfully torn apart: Luce dead, Daniel left broken and alone. But perhaps it doesn’t need to be that way… Luce is certain that something—or someone—in a past life can help her in her present one. So she begins the most important journey of this lifetime…going back eternities to witness firsthand her romances with Daniel…and finally unlock the key to making their love last. Cam and the legions of angels and Outcasts are desperate to catch Luce, but none are as frantic as Daniel. He chases Luce through their shared pasts, terrified of what might happen if she rewrites history. Because their romance for the ages could go up in flames…forever.

This was by far my favorite Fallen novel, even though the cover didn’t fit with the previous books. (I actually REALLY hate the cover of this book. If it would have been the cover of the first novel, I wouldn’t have even considered picking it up, to be honest.) But anyways, this is the most interesting book so far. I love how Lauren Kate turned this paranormal romance almost into historical fiction. Luce has learned that not only can she see her past through the Shadows, but she can also visit it by pulling herself through a Shadow’s gateway. So that’s exactly what she does. Each time period she goes to is hundreds of years before the last, and she visits so many lands and experiences so many cultures. That’s really the main reason this was my favorite book. It’s just…amazing. And actually, if you think about it, it was kind of like a prequel to the first books because it answered a lot of the questions that probably a lot of readers had. It kind of filled in the back-story. The only hink I have about this book is that it’s the third and there’s still no foundation for Luce and Daniel’s love. Right now, it’s all lust. I really hope Kate doesn’t wait until the end of the next book to reveal why their connection is so strong. So check out this book series. It’s getting better and better.

Torment

Summary: How many lives do you need to live before you find someone worth dying for? Hell on earth. That’s what it’s like for Luce to be apart from her fallen angel boyfriend, Daniel. It took them an eternity to find one another, but now he has told her he must go away. Just long enough to hunt down the Outcasts—immortals who want to kill Luce. Daniel hides Luce at Shoreline, a school on the rocky Californian coast with unusually gifted students: Nephilim, the offspring of fallen angels and humans. At Shoreline, Luce learns what the Shadows are, and how she can use them as windows to her previous lives. Yet the more Luce learns, the more she suspects that Daniel hasn’t told her everything. He’s hiding something—something dangerous. What if Daniel’s version of the past isn’t actually true? What if Luce is really meant to be with someone else?

This book was way better than the first. You actually learn what all the hoopla is about. And by hoopla, I mean what the heck those stupid Shadows are (you’ll know what I’m talking about if you’ve read Fallen). Luce learns that the shadows aren’t trying to hurt her—they’re trying to help her. By manipulating the Shadows, one can see into their past, and that’s exactly what Luce does. Aided by two new friends, Miles and Shelby, Luce tries to seek out answers that Daniel won’t give her. And while Daniel is always on Luce’s side, it seems that someone else is, too. Cam has sworn a truce between his side and Daniel’s, and it really leaves readers wondering who’s the good guys, who’s the bad guys, and where exactly Luce fits in to all of this. While to some people it might be annoying, the unanswered questions that Lauren Kate leaves us with is what makes this book such a page-turner. If I was told right away everything I wanted to know, what would be the point in reading the book to its end? I really really really loved this book, so anyone who’s read the first one but didn’t quite like it, trust me: this one is way better. And if you haven’t read the first novel, you should check it out. It’s worth it.

Fallen

Summary: What if the person you were meant to be with could never be yours? There’s something achingly familiar about Daniel Grigori. Mysterious and aloof, he captures Luce Price’s attention from the moment she sees him on her first dat at Sword & Cross boarding school in Savannah. He’s the one bright spot in a place where cell phones are forbidden, the other students are screwups, and security cameras watch every move. Except Daniel wants nothing to do with Luce—he goes out of his way to make that very clear. But she can’t let it go. Drawn to him like a moth to a flame, Luce has to find out what Daniel is so desperate to keep secret…even if it kills her.

One look at this gorgeously illustrated cover and you’ll see why it was hard for me not to pick this book up. And then there’s the quote on the back of the book (it’s the italicized sentence at the beginning of the summary). I mean, it just screams awesomeness. Unfortunately, the front cover and back cover quote made my expectations of this book exceedingly high, so when I read it, it wasn’t as good as I thought it would be (of course, right?). But, nonetheless, this was a very decent book. I’m pretty sure the focus audience Lauren Kate had for this book was teenage girls—which is great and all, cause hey, I’m one of them—but it really makes it hard for anyone else wanting to read this book to relate to the main character, Luce. She’s all teenager, and obsession over a guy can get annoying quick. She fell a little flat at times. It also didn’t like how she went back and forth between Daniel and another guy, Cam. Speaking of Daniel, the one she obsessed over, he was really an ass. Most teenage girls would have called him a douche and moved on. But honestly, I really liked this book. The supporting characters brought it to life, which was an unexpected change since most minor characters are underdeveloped. It really is an interesting read. (P.S. If you’re into the Twilight series, I guarantee that you’ll enjoy this book.)

Willow

Summary: Seven months ago on a rainy March night, Willow’s parents drank too much at dinner and asked her to drive them home. But they never made it—Willow lost control of the car, and both of her parents were killed. Now her older brother barely speaks to her, her new classmates know her as the killer orphan girl, and the only way she know how to survive and control the pain is by secretly cutting herself. But when Willow meets Guy, a boy as sensitive and complicated as she is, she finds it hard to keep the secret that’s written all over her body. He sparks an intense relationship between them that turns the “safe” world Willow has created for herself upside down.

Julian Hoban has created an intense character in Willow. For someone so young to carry such insufferable guilt and then to have an addicting disease like self-harm, that’s real. It’s believable. The chance that there’s a girl out there with family issues to this extent who engages in self-harm is very, very real, and books like these give girls—and boys—like that hope. Willow is relatable in that she suffers like everyone else, and her family is nowhere near perfect. And just like real life, there is always that one person who you can rely on and trust in those situations. Guy was there for Willow every step of the way, even though he just wanted to run to her brother for help. This book isn’t one of those that have a perfect happy ending, in case that’s what you’re hoping for after the serious tone of the beginning and middle. Just like the rest of the book, the ending is real and believable. Overall, this book is a very good book to read. It really helps people to understand the emotions behind self-harm, especially for those that think it is not truly a disease. The only quirk I have about this book is that it is written for young teens, so if you are used to a more elaborate writing style, you feel like you’re reading a children’s book.

Vampireville

Summary: For goth-girl Raven, dating her dream boyfriend is complicated, especially because Alexander’s secret means that they can see each other only at night. And now the pair must be extra weary in the dark with Alexander’s archrival, Jagger, appearing around town. As if Jagger isn’t enough cause for worry, Luna, his strikingly pale sister, has also surfaced and seems to have her sights set on Raven’s longtime nemesis, Trevor. Together, Raven and Alexander must begin a terrifying search for Jagger and Luna’s hideout to drive them away — that is, if it’s not already too late to save Dullsville from becoming Vampireville.

Raven was as funny as ever in this installment of Vampire Kisses. I just adored the desperate measures she went through to keep Luna away from Trevor. Some of them were just downright hilarious! [She gave him "Garlic One" capsules and told him they were an aphrodisiac. The worst part is that he believed her. Haha!] And Alexander is such a sweetheart! He’s so innocent; it’s adorable. I’m also growing a big soft spot for his butler Jameson, who’s a riot. Getting off subject a little, I noticed that these books are the G-rated version of the Sookie Stackhouse novels. The plot isn’t the same or anything, but it seems to me that they are similar. There was also a lot more action in this book compared to the two previous ones. I also loved seeing Luna as who she truly is, which is actually not a bad person [well. . .vampire]. And I especially loved seeing Raven get to parade around as a vampire. It was too funny! Check this series out.