Meg Corbyn, a Cassandra Sangue (one who sees prophesies with a little bloodletting), has finally found her place among the Others, living in the Lakeside Courtyard. Life is getting back to a semblance of normal.

Beyond Lakeside, two addictive drugs have become a problem for both humans and the Others; it is a problem for the Others because it reacts badly with their physiology, and a problem for humans because, with the threat of humans using the drugs to overpower the Others, they’re all about to be evicted, or ‘dealt with.’ Special meat anyone?

Meg is at her wits’ end trying to balance her need to speak prophesies and keep Simon Wolfguard (lakeside’s leader) off her back. Will she able to defuse the threat of humans being murdered before more of the Others fall victim to these two heinous drugs?

The dynamics between Meg and the other characters in this book is something special. When they’re not in kill-mode, the residents of Lakeside are sweet and generous. There’s humour and a generous helping of suspense to be found in Murder of Crows.

Anne Bishop is a master of making her characters work together, in spite of her males being alphas and her females not being helpless and meek little things. By getting them to work together, I think Anne gains a complexity in her storylines that others may lack.

That being said, I think perhaps this series is better suited for the older age brackets of YA, as there are some truly heinous acts towards the other Cassandra Sangue that was perhaps only hinted at in Written in Red.

Vision in Silver is due in March 2015 and, my goodness, that seems like forever away. I cannot wait to find out what happens next with Meg and Simon. Awrooooooooo!

http://www.annebishop.com/

Paperback, 337 pages

Published March 2014 by HarperCollins

ISBN13 9780732296827

Welcome to the Wasteland. Where all the adults are long gone, and now no one lives past the age of nineteen. Susan Kim and Laurence Klavan’s post-apocalyptic debut is the first of a trilogy in which everyone is forced to live under the looming threat of rampant disease and brutal attacks by the Variants —- hermaphroditic outcasts that live on the outskirts of Prin. Esther thinks there’s more to life than toiling at harvesting, gleaning, and excavating, day after day under the relentless sun, just hoping to make it to the next day. But then Caleb, a mysterious stranger, arrives in town, and Esther begins to question who she can trust. As shady pasts unravel into the present and new romances develop, Caleb and Esther realize that they must team together to fight for their lives and for the freedom of Prin.

Hardcover, 328 pages

Published March 26th 2013 by HarperTeen

Set in a post-apocalyptic world where resources are scarce, rain is poison, and hermaphrodites are outcasts, Wasteland takes a different look at a future world in which humans do not survive past 19 years of age. They marry young and have children, then spend their days foraging and making contributions to The Source. The Source controls the food and utilities that they all need to survive, making them dependent upon it.

The variants are outcasts who attack the others, especially while they forage for The Source. Esther thinks there are better ways to live her life than working all the time; she has secretly made friends with Skar, a variant, and they spend most of their time shirking duties and exploring.

There are a variety of characters both outside and inside The Source that we get to know. Their society is on the brink of change—most likely for the worse—and everyone is searching for a way to live longer. There is not a whole lot of world building in Wasteland, but just enough to get the feel of this story. As the series continues, I hope to find out more about the events in the time before this book takes place.

When a mysterious stranger shows up, Esther is immediately curious about what he is looking for, and soon they join forces to fight for change. The pace of the story picks up once Caleb arrives, and the secret of what is really going on starts to be revealed.

What I loved about the story is that even though it covers ideas that are similar to those in books that I love, there are some unusual twists that make Wasteland unique. It gave me insight into how things could be different, especially with the hermaphrodite aspect. It doesn’t play a huge role in the first book, but I found it to be a very curious and unique aspect of the story, and I can’t wait to see where it goes.

I recommend this book to lovers of survival stories and post-apocalyptic fiction.

Looking at the cover of The Museum of Intangible Things, you would assume right away that this book is perfect for the summer and that it completely revolves around friendship. And it does! But there is so much more going on in this book than the cover and the synopsis show.

The story follows two best friends, Hannah and Zoe. They couldn’t be any more different, but are still ultimate friends. While Hannah is sensible, trying to earn her college education through selling hot dogs, Zoe is spontaneous and wild.

Life is boring in their small hometown in New Jersey, and the two have always talked about going on a road trip together. But neither of them knew just what would happen on this seemingly harmless vacation: hiding and spending the night in IKEA, flashing cowboys on the highway, and wanting to see a real buffalo!

Hannah doesn’t expect what happens next, and she has no idea what to do…after all, Zoe is her best friend.

The Museum of Intangible Things was filled to the brim with emotions! When I picked this book up, I had no idea just what I was getting myself into. But Hannah and Zoe go through a true test of friendship.

Overall, I LOVED IT! But I don’t recommend reading it out in public with a full face of make-up on, unless you like looking like a raccoon with the mascara running down your cheeks. I would say to read this one at home!

Besides the two best friends, who I could really relate to, there was also a boy involved and a little romance. Going into this book, I was hoping for and even expecting some romance. But in the end I’m glad that this wasn’t the book’s main focus. I like that it truly revolved around these two girls!

The ending was heartbreaking, but OH SO GOOD! I recommend this book to anyone who needs a good cry.

Sixteen-year-old Ren is a daredevil mobile racer who will risk everything to survive in the Ward, what remains of a water-logged Manhattan. To save her sister, who is suffering from a deadly illness thought to be caused by years of pollution, Ren accepts a secret mission from the government: to search for a freshwater source in the Ward, with the hope of it leading to a cure.

However, she never expects that her search will lead to dangerous encounters with a passionate young scientist; a web of deceit and lies; and an earth-shattering mystery that’s lurking deep beneath the water’s rippling surface.

Jordana Frankel’s ambitious debut novel and the first in a two-book series, The Ward is arresting, cinematic, and thrilling—perfect for fans of Scott Westerfeld or Ann Aguirre.

Hardcover, 465 pages

Published April 30th 2013 by Katherine Tegen Books

Just as Ren is about to get her chance to become a racer, the government issues a warning that no one may cross the line between The Ward and the rest of the city. The Ward division of the city is water-logged and people are dying from an illness; they are cut off in an effort to keep the illness from causing more damage in the city.

During her races, Ren tries to locate a secret fresh water source that is rumoured to be on The Ward’s side of the city. She works for the government, earning money to take care of herself and her sister. As if she doesn’t have enough on her plate, boy troubles soon arise.

Ren ends up in the race of a lifetime while her sister is on the brink of death and she is on the verge of locating the water source. Every time she thinks she close, something else comes up. It’s a constant struggle for her, and she must remain strong or lose everything.

As the story is based on racing, it is fast paced and with three different angles to the storyline all revolving around Ren, there is never any downtime. What I enjoyed most about the story was its unique plot. It was refreshing to read something a bit different. It made me think a lot about finding the water and what the consequences or benefits may be. It is very much a story of the government versus the people. Recommended.

In only a few months the entire world, or at least most of it, will be able to witness The Maze Runner in theatres! Having read The Death Cure weeks ago, I finally decided it was time to collect my thoughts and write some reviews.

I loved The Maze Runner so much that I forced my boyfriend, who never reads and would rather work on his car, to read it! The Scorch Trials was absolutely AHH-mazing as well, and I just couldn’t get enough of the story and its characters. But when it came to the third and final book in this trilogy, The Death Cure, I was a bit nervous. I had heard rumors going around that people weren’t finding themselves enjoying it.

After reading The Death Cure and understanding what those reviews were talking about, I see where they were coming from, but I also see why people (like myself) love it so much!

There’s no hesitation at the beginning of The Death Cure and it takes right off where The Scorch Trials ended; the Gladers have been captured and trapped in the WICKED facility. They are offered their fully restored memories with only a small surgical procedure, but many are unsure. After coming to a decision, all the Gladers decide to go through with the procedure, except for three of them: Thomas, Mino, and Newt.

The next morning, the three boys are roughly awakened to find that the offer isn’t an offer anymore, but is instead being forced upon them. They are strapped to chairs and completely surrounded by armed guards, but they know way they can get themselves out of this mess. Even Brenda and Jose, who Thomas relied on, are actually working for WICKED. But before this can even register, Brenda has a plan to get him and the other two out.

The five of them escape, coming to the conclusion that Teresa and all the other Gladers have already done the same. They leave the WICKED facility with a few weapons in hand and they stumble upon Gally, a Glader we lost in the second book (I believe. Don’t quote me on this!). He informs the group that he now works for a rebel group known as the Right Arm, which is planning to take down WICKED, and Thomas plays a huge role in their plan.

Thomas goes back to the WICKED compound and to sacrifice himself for science and discovers that more munies (people who are immune to the flare) have been captured and sent into the maze. The Right Arm wants to blow the whole place up, and even after being offered a train ride to safety, Thomas knows he has to save his friends, and the people in the maze.

There was so much happening so fast in this book. Where do I even start?

I’ve created a list of my likes and dislikes, because I feel like it will just be easier to get my point across without this review being miles long.

Likes:

• Thomas. As always, he was amazing! In The Death Cure, Thomas did have a few tough things to do and watch. He had to witness his best friend, Newt, turn into a Crank and shoot him in the head, and he watched the girl he was crushing on in the first two books die. He was so strong and brave in both The Maze Runner and The Scorch Trials, but it’s still amazing how much he has grown and developed as the main character.
• Brenda and Jose. They were actually working for WICKED?! WHAT? I had absolutely no idea! It makes me want to re-read the second book, to see if I can find any clues! This was such a good twist in this final instalment, right at the beginning of the story.
• Gally. He came back! I know, mind blown!
• Outside world and its chaos. When reading books like this, where the world is ending, I’m always curious to find out what is happening outside the story limits in different parts of the world. I didn’t expect to see much of that in The Death Cure, but I’m glad I did!

Dislikes:

• Gladers and their memories. I understand that no one would want to get surgery on their brain from the enemy, but isn’t there even a little bit of curiosity to know what your thoughts were before you went into the Glade? I was just a little thrown off by the quick and easy way that Thomas, Newt, and Mino said no to the offer.
• Thomas and his two ‘girl friends’. In the first two books, Thomas is practically in love with Teresa, but in the last two books he starts to have these indescribable feelings towards Brenda. This doesn’t bother me, but when Teresa made this huge sacrifice towards the end of The Death Cure, Thomas practically brushed it off, took Brenda’s hand, and skipped away into the sunset. It was just a bit weird.
• The Governments and its dumb choices. Who in the world would release the Flare without even once thinking to test it. Just to–I don’t know–maybe see if it has any negative effects?

I want to read The Kill Order!! This story revolves around two different main characters from when the Flare first started to spread! I’m dying to see how the world came to such a horrible state! 

AND is it September yet? I can’t wait to see The Maze Runner in theatres!