"Specials" by Scott Westerfeld

Warning: This is the third book in a series, if you haven't read the first two you may not want to read this.

Specials by Scott Westerfeld definitely had some twists I didn't see coming. It's the continuation of the Uglies Series . It's a wonderful dystopian novel, that shows how beauty can go to our head making us feel superior when really we're not. The back in forth power grabs and seeing who could out smart who in the book was simply exhilarating to read. 

Tally has yet again had her body and mind altered. She is super happy that her and Shay are best friends again, but feels rather hallow without having Zane by her side. Zane's been in the hospital getting his brain put back together after what David and his terrible Smokies did to him. If only Tally and her knew clique the Cutters or also known as the "Special" Special Circumstance could get a hold of David and put the Smokies to an end once an for all. A couple months after Tally's initial surgery turning her into a Special, a window opens in which they can go after the Smokies. David along with a few others have been spotted so Tally and the Cutters go after them, only to get ambushed. All the Cutter's get knocked unconscious except for Tally. The Smokies almost drowned Shay, and they end up kidnapping some one else. Shay and Tally now develop a plan to track the Smokies and race against the clock to rescue their friend. Will they make it in time?

I'll be honest at this point, I was kinda annoyed that her brain kept getting altered, but as I kept reading I got over it. I think this was my favorite book out of the series. I'm kind of curious as to what people thought, were you a team David or a team Zane? The last few chapters really had me shocked, I didn't see any of it coming. I have yet to read the last book Extras , but from my understanding it's all about different characters from a younger persons view on what's happened since everything went down in Specials. I guess this series was never as tensing as the Hunger Games or the Maze Runner , but it's definitely still a good read and there's still plenty of action it.  

                                                                                                                                                                 Rating 3 out 5.

"Death Cure" by James Dashner

Warning:This is the last book of the Maze Runner Trilogy. If you haven't read the first two books you might not want too read this.

The Death Cure by James Dashner was awesome. More and more of the truth is finally revealed, however; some things the characters and us find our are simply breath-taking.

Thomas has been locked in cell, which turns out to be his last trial. All the remaining gladers under go their last trial alone. Upon completeing the trial, they find out good & horrible news. The good news is that's the last trail. WICKED thinks it has all the kill zone patterns required. Bad news. The kill zone patterns are needed to create the cure for the flare, which they still don't have. The gladers find out most of them are actually immune to the flare. That's why their brain waves needed studied, however; everyone isn't immune. Leaving some of their friends lives in the hands of WICKED. Can they get the cure in time? They have the option to go under the knife sort of speak, and get their memories back. Some gladers are all for it, while others still don't trust WICKED, and they don't think they want to remember who they were before this whole mess. Upon the group being split up some havoc breaks out, leaving the odds of everyone surviving rather low. It turns out WICKED left out a a small detail, they only need one candidate for the cure. They need the person with the strongest brain waves, but what is required of them is unbelievable. Their lives as they know it hangs in this one persons hands. There's still only a fifty-fifty chance the cure can be created successfully. Is it worth it to try? Or will they run?


I loved this trilogy. It was so sad to see it end. Luckily I still had the  prequel to read which gave me insight on how the world became to be the way it was in the The Maze Runner. 
Now, I personally can't wait to get my hands on Dashner's new book The Eye of Minds.  

"Scorch Trials" by James Dashner

 

Warning: This is the second book in the "Maze Runner" trilogy. If you haven't read the first book, you may not want to read this.

 The Scorch Trials by James Dashner was just as nerve wracking as the first book I loved it just as much. The unbelievable twists. The new characters brought into it. Everything.

Thomas and the other gladers may have escaped the maze, but their new predicament isn't much better. They met some of the people who supervised the maze, only to get rescued shortly after. Except...the rescue was staged. Their rescuers were still part of WICKED. They just wanted to see their reaction through killzone patterns. They were left with instructions. They had all been infected with the Flare. They had two weeks to get to the set location or they would die. They needed the cure. They had no weapons, and little supplies. They had to face the real world now, in of which many cases was much worse then the maze had been. Some of them would do anything to remember the past, but others don't want to remember what they had lost. Will they be able to reach the set location in time? How many troubles would they encounter? Would all of their questions be answered, or would they find out there were still plenty of secrets hidden from them?

This book in my opinion was phenomenal! Dashner really drags you into the gladers world. Just like the first book, if the gladers got scared, I got scared for them too. You definitely have to read it, but don't start it right before bed otherwise you won't be sleeping that night. You'll read it until it's finished. Simply racing through the pages. Then you'll be there sitting trying to recap on all the craziness you just read. Love, love, love this trilgoy!

                                                                                                                                                                Rating 5 out of 5.

"Pretties" by Scott Westerfeld

Warning: This is the second book in a series. If you haven't read the first book, "Uglies", you may not want to read this.

Pretties by Scott Westerfeld in my opinion was even better then the first book,Uglies. It's a wonderful YA novel. You have suspense just like the first book did. Maybe more. You have a love story,  that seems to be branching into a love triangle  and you have your almost heart breaking moments. The book has you asking questions, and wanting to the know the answers as soon as possible. The book leaves you wanting more.

Pretties picks up right where Uglies left off. Tally turned herself into the Specials so they'd make her pretty. Tally didn't want to be pretty anymore, but she had to test the medicine David's mom made. She had to save her friend Shay, since she's the one who technically screwed Shay's life up. When Tally left, she left with some uncertainties. We as in the readers and Tally don't know if David would forgive her or if they were officially over forever.  Unfortunately after the surgery to become pretty, almost all of your memories and feelings from the ugly days are forgotten. Tally forgot the only boy she ever loved. The only person who made her feel pretty without truly meeting the worlds pretty standards. She forgot David. Tally made friends with a clique called the Crims who all remembered they're really bubbly moments. The night Tally was suppose to be officially voted into the clique, some of her ugly pals snuck in to the party in New Pretty Town and left her with a message.  Leaving herself greatly confused, still not really remembering anything from the ugly days. Soon after a relationship blooms between Tally & another pretty from the Crims. It's up to them to try and remember what's going on. They have to get their minds back, and lead themselves and their friends out of the city. In which mayhem and hell break loose. Leaving Tally the opportunity to uncover some more truth as to where the Specials found out what exactly to change in an uglies mind.

There's was no struggle getting into this book, like there had been with first one. The first book left me with too many questions, in which I was determined to find out. I liked the new Crim guy Tally was dating, but the whole time she was trying to remember her past, I was thinking... DAVID....hello??? What about him. The people in the smoke? Come on now. Think! The book definitely had my attention the whole time. They had to do some pretty crazy stuff in attempts to get their memories back, and get out. I can't wait to start the third book, Specials.

                                                                                                                                                                                              Rating 3 out 5.

"Uglies" by Scott Westerfeld

  Uglies by Scott Westerfeld is a very interesting YA novel. The world is filled with such extreme beauty any one who looks normal is ugly. I found it interesting because to me it's amazing what people today will do to have the perfect body, and even though this book takes place in the future, the lengths in which people will go to be perfect are still extreme. It has suspense and of course that cute love story every teen or young adult wants to read about.



 Tally Youngblood is going to turn sixteen in three months. At the age of sixteen you get surgery to go from being ugly to being extremely pretty. Tally and her ugly friends have always played tricks and snuck around getting into things they shouldn't have. So when her best friend Peris turned pretty before she did , he moved to New Pretty Town. She decided to sneak out to see him. Whenever you move, you can come visit your old ugly friends, but they're not allowed to visit you, however; Pretties never come back. Tally assumed it was just because New Pretty town was so amazing. It didn't have any rules, any curfews, no one ever fought, you could sleep in as long as you wanted, and party all night long. On the way out Tally met another ugly who snuck in. Her name was Shay. They soon discovered they shared the same birthday and would turn together. They became best friends. Tally had everything planned out she knew exactly how she wanted to look. Shay didn't really seem to care. A couple nights before their birthday Shay told Tally about an ugly settlement out in the wild. They called themselves the Smoke and they lived out there hiding from the Pretties government. Shay wanted to go, Tally thought she was crazy, who didn't want to be pretty? Shay left her encoded instructions about how to get there just in case she changed her mind. On the day of Tally's birthday, scary looking pretties came and picked her up. They called themselves Special Circumstance. They gave Tally two options. Bring Shay back, or stay ugly forever.  Tally had always dreamed of being pretty, and the way Special Circumstance said it, it sounded like Shay was in danger. She went to find her. Special Circumstance told her when she found her just to activate a location tracker so they could bring in all the kids from the Smoke and help them. Tally had a rather treacherous adventure ahead of her to be traveling alone. Once locating them, she soon realized how happy they were. She became good friends with them.  Within the few days  she was there, Tally learned some secrets about the pretty surgery that ended up making it sound not so pretty. Who was telling the truth the wild Smokies or the Special Circumstance? She had a hard time deciding if she should activate the tracker or not. The choice she ended up making led to catastrophic results.



 I'll be honest, it took me a little while to really get into this book. It was never boring,  I think it was just the writing style. It took me a bit to get use too. Once I got use to it though, I really enjoyed the booked and just seeing how things developed in it. It gave you glimpses of the past  before the "pretties" existed and you got to see how it developed into the world it was. It got somewhat suspenseful, and I found myself wanting to know more and more. I couldn't read it fast enough. It was kind of scary to think about, because as fast as technology is developing I honestly think the things in this book could really end up being the future. It may be a ways out yet, but scientists could get there. I just started the sequel, and I only took a break from reading it to blog. I honestly can't wait to get back to it. I think a love triangle is beginning to bloom in this Uglies Series. 

                                                                Review 3.5 out of 5
                                                                   




                                                                                                                                                              

"Allegiant" by Veronica Roth

Warning: This is the last book in a trilogy if you haven't the first two books you may not want to read this.

Allegiant by Veronica Roth got some seriously hateful reviews. I understand why some people were upset by certain things in the book, but if you can over look the emotionally traumatizing parts of it, it's still amazing. It's a very well written first person perspective book. The only thing that differed between this book and the first two books is that it has two perspectives. One chapter was Tobias's view, and the next was Beatrice's view, however; this just made me love Veronica's novel even more. 



Allegiant picks up where Insurgent leaves off. Beatrice is locked in a cell awaiting a trial from the factionless members. The factions have been completely taken over and disassembled by Evelyn and her people. The biggest secret of all time has just been released. Evelyn chooses to ignore it. She wants nothing to do with the outside world, however; Beatrice & her friends want to go. They want to join the Allegiant and get out of Evelyn's dictatorship like grasp before another war breaks out. A war now between the faction lovers and the people who were never accepted by them. What's really beyond the border? Was all of the secret revealed or will there be more to it? They're running out of patience and out time to find out. If they're going to go, they have to go now. Time. Will there ever be enough of it to amend family issues or is there a line drawn in which some matters are simply unforgivable?




 I'll be honest the twist at the end got me. Like I said, I get why people were upset, but I don't get why they just hated the book. I thought the route Veronica chose to go with the story was realistic, and beautifully painful. It was hard for me to process everything at first. I think I was just in denial,but I think her choice made me respect more as an author, because she, herself  became dauntless. Her decision was unbelievably brave. She knew what she wanted. Fan response, and she definitely got it.Divergent Trilogy is a must read!

                                                                                                                                                                                             Rating 4 out of 5

"Insurgent" by Veronica Roth

Warning: If you haven't read Divergent the first to this trilogy, you may not want to read this review. 

 Insurgent by Veronica Roth is the second book in a trilogy. It's another first person perspective book that I really love. The suspense builds higher and higher with every page.
      
 This book picks up right where Divergent left off. Beatrice wakes from a nightmare about the massacre that took place in the Abnegation faction. She and the other survivors are staying with Amity. The factions are on the brink of war, but Amity chooses to stay out of it. Beatrice hears Marcus tell Johanna, the Amity's leader, that the Abnegation leaders died protecting a very important secret. She's determined to find out what it is. Amity's peaceful refuge doesn't stay peaceful for long. The Erudites and Dauntless traitors want the Abnegation survivors. They want the Divergent. A gun fight breaks out and Beatrice and her friends make a narrow escape, losing some people on the way. They must determine the next plan of action which leads to the biggest betrayal no one would have ever expected & the revealing of a secret that could destroy the factions. Forever.

This, just like the first book should not be started late at night, because you won't want to put it down. There's so much suspense that builds up in it. Veronica Roth definitely knows how to suck readers in. You literally want to laugh when the characters laugh, and cry when they cry. It's so easy to put yourself into her books. I couldn't read it fast enough. I had to know what the secret was, and if all my favorite characters would live long enough to be in the next book. The unexpected twists and the betrayal. Oh the betrayal! My heart physically ached for characters.The secret was pretty crazy too. If you haven't read the Divergent Trilogy yet, i'm telling you now that it is a must!

                                                                                Rating 5 out of 5.

"Divergent" by Veronica Roth

       "Divergent" by Veronica Roth is an extremely adventurous book. It's another first person perspective book that I fell madly in love with. It's your typical YA book with a couple of twists. There's a love story or two, different betrayals, and it's action packed. 

     Teenage Beatrice Prior is just about to have her choosing ceremony. Her choice could change her life forever. She can choose to stay in her own faction, stay in the area she grew up, be an Abnegation forever, or she can transfer to a different faction. Here's the catch if she transfers there's no going back. No family visits. It's faction before blood. Here's the next catch if you transfer you have an initiation process at the new faction. If you fail, you're factionless forever. Forced to live in the almost uninhabitable parts of the city. Will Beatrice transfer & go after a new life or will she stay an Abnegation forever? Stay with her family.


     This is honestly one of my favorite books. The first one out of a trilogy. I loved all three of them. There's so many different twists in not only this book, but the trilogy as a whole. The book made me think a lot. It had me in it's grasp from the first page. It's a book you don't want to start late at night because I promise once you start reading it you don't want to set it down until it's done.


                                                                                                                                                                                             Rating 5 out of 5

   

"Reached" by Ally Condie

Warning: If you haven't read the first two books I'd wait to read this review on the third one.

Reached by Ally Condie is the third & final book to the Matched Trilogy . This book threw in a third point of view into the mix. We get to know Xander a bit more. Seeing things from his perspective along with Cassia & Ky's. I can honestly say I loved this trilogy from beginning to end. One of the best things about it is that even though there are some sad parts the ending is relatively happier then any other dystopian novel I have ever read!


 Cassia and her friends journey is nearing the end. After they joined the rebellion after what seems like ages they're finally striking. They use the disease the society made and use it against them. The Pilot. The Rebellion. They're the only ones who have a sufficient amount of the cure. Everything is going smoothly, they're gaining control of the city, but then it happens. The disease starts mutating and the cure is uttered useless. Cassia got the the disease and was cured before it mutated therefore she can't get it again, however; some of her friends and family weren't so lucky. Cassia, Xander, and the people from the stone villages are raising against the clock hoping to find a new cure in time.


This book and the Matched Trilogy in general had me from start to finish. Ally Condie is definitely one of my favorite authors now. To be honest there was one thing that slightly bugged me. The trilogy didn't leave me completely hanging, but if Ally wanted to she could definitely write a fourth book. Like seriously! What exactly is in the "other lands"? Is Matthew still alive? Who won the election? What will happen to the city? These questions aren't really important, they're very minor to the actual story line, but I just have to wonder. Regardless I can say that  if you're looking for a new trilogy to read I recommend this one.

                                                                                                                                                                                             Rating 4 out of 5
                         

"Crossed" by Ally Condie

Warning: If you haven't read the first book Matched I would not read the review for it's sequel, Crossed.  

Ally Condie continues Cassia &  Ky's dangerous journey with Crossed.  Something I really loved about this book besides the first person perspective, was that there was more then one perspective. I loved that one chapter was from Cassia's view, then the next was Ky's view. This way even though they were separated you still knew what was going on. 


 The first book ended with Ky and the other male Aberrations being sent away to play decoys in the middle of a war zone. The officials promised full citizenship status back to those who served out there for six months, however; the Aberrations aren't fools. No one survives in the outer provinces that long. Ky's memories of Cassia is all that gets him through the day. The dream of one day seeing her again.  Ky makes a couple new pals all longing to escape. How would they though? There's no where to run. No where, until they get stationed at a certain camp. Ky's original home before he moved to the inner provinces, and he remembers something. In order for there to be any chance of his plan working he'll have to leave almost everyone behind to die. Can he do it? Back in the inner provinces Cassia left Xander behind and is still trying to escape the city and go after Ky, however she's running out of time. Xander's still holding on to hope he can eventually win Cassia's heart, but he understands the importance of finding Ky so he gave her some things she could use on her journey. However the things he gave her are questionable. Will they help or cause more harm?
Cassia is staying at a reformatory work camp, when officials come for Aberration girls making them go play decoys right in the middle of the war zone too. In which Cassia finds her way out. She pretends to be an Aberration  War zone or not she knows Ky has to be out there some where. The only question on her mind now is, once she is outside the walls can she stay alive long enough to find him? 


This book is a little more suspenseful the the first one, but just as enjoyable. How many more secrets is the society hiding? Just like the first book I'd highly recommend this one too! The rebellious nature, the realization of how many choices were really taken away, the love story is just precious, but how long will it take for this love triangle to really be solved?  How much would you risk to get the ones you love back? 

                                                                         I'd rate this 4 out of 5.

"Matched" by Ally Condie

     
 Ally Condie created the perfect dystopian love story. I'm not usually very big on the whole romantic aspect of books, but this book and it's sequels definitely held my attention. One of my favorite things about Matched was the writing style. It's from a first person perspective so I get to read it as myself. I sincerely love books written in a first person perspective because it makes it that much easier to really put yourself into book & connect with the characters. 

Teenage Cassia Reyes believes she lives in the perfect society. You never have to feel the weight of being pressured by anything because the officials choose everything for you. EVERYTHING. They choose when you eat, what you eat, how much you eat, where you work, when your free time is, what music you can listen too, who you get to fall in love with, and when you should die. What's not to love right? Assuming you get to love at all, they might just nominate you to be a Single. Forever Alone. The match system is perfect. The officials match you once you turn seventeen. You get a big banquet, then they pair you off with someone you've never met. You get a microcard to study up on your match. Matched at seventeen, marriage contracts at 21, and you can have two kids as long as you have them before 30, and you die on your 80th birthday. It's all based on genes & common interests. Don't get to many citations though, they may just write you up as an aberration or worse! An anomaly. Luckily for Cassia she knows her match. They're best friends actually, grew up in the same borough even. Very rare. A couple to be jealous of for sure. Everything was just perfect until there was a mishap with her microcard. When she plugged it in, her match didn't come up. Another boy did. The irony is that Cassia realizes she knows this boy too. She knows the microcard was an accident, but she still can't help, but be curious. She sets off on a path of forbidden interests, only to discover how unperfect the society really is, and the dark secrets it harbors. 


 In my opinion Matched is a must read, it's not as gory and gruesome as other dystopian novels such as The Hunger Games Trilogy or The Maze Runner Trilogy , but it's still plenty action packed. It has a good subliminal message & it's one of the cutest love stories.
                                                      
                                                                                Rating 4 out of 5.

The Book Reviews Purpose

I'm a total book junkie. Like when I meet new people & they something like "Hey what do you do in your free time?" Or "Hey what do you like to do to have fun?" My answer is reading. "Hey, you thinking about college? You know what you want a degree for?" Umm...Yes. My dream job would be getting paid to read books before they hit shelves. I'm not really sure what different options I'd have to do so, maybe being an editor? Regardless, that'd be amazing. When it comes to books and reading i'm very enthusiastic about it. When a book comes in the mail, for me it's like Christmas morning. Then I have family members who totally despise reading, and they'll tell me that there's just something wrong with me. To which I laugh because nonreaders just don't get it. They'll never understand the enjoyment a book can bring, and for that I pity them. I think it's probably my enthusiasm about books that make people interested in my opinion of the books that I read.  I have people all the time texting, calling, emailing me you name it, wanting to know if I've read this book or that book and what I thought about it, and if I have any book recommendations. I felt like even though I love talking and comparing my opinions of books, explaining my thoughts about the same book like over 20 times was a bit much. So the other day my step-dad came up to me and was like why don't you just make a blog about books? I was like what about them?  and he was like hmm.. lets see... Instead of telling 800 people about the same book over and over, each time you finish a book why don't you just post your thoughts and give your opinions publicly. Which as you can see by my post, I agreed to it, finding the idea simply brilliant. I was just disappointed I hadn't thought of it first. Long story short, this is where my journey of book reviewing really begins.