Timeless

Goodreads Description:
"When tragedy strikes Michele Windsor’s world, she is forced to uproot her life and move across the country to New York City, to live with the wealthy, aristocratic grandparents she’s never met. In their old Fifth Avenue mansion filled with a century’s worth of family secrets, Michele discovers a diary that hurtles her back in time to the year 1910. There, in the midst of the glamorous Gilded Age, Michele meets the young man with striking blue eyes who has haunted her dreams all her life – a man she always wished was real, but never imagined could actually exist. And she finds herself falling for him, into an otherworldly, time-crossed romance. 

Michele is soon leading a double life, struggling to balance her contemporary high school world with her escapes into the past. But when she stumbles upon a terrible discovery, she is propelled on a race through history to save the boy she loves – a quest that will determine the fate of both of their lives."


While I am curious to see what happens in the next novel, Timeless didn’t really do anything to capture my attention.  The story follows Michele Windsor through a family tragedy that leads to her moving into the home of her wealthy and estranged grandparents’ house. Once there, she discovers that she is a time traveler and transports to 1910. While in 1910, Michele falls in love with a boy that she can never truly be with since they live in different periods.

I loved the concept of this book, but I just didn’t really feel the love between the characters. There didn’t seem to be any real reason for the characters to fall in love, other than an instant attraction. Maybe the problem is that I don’t believe in love at first sight. I need to understand what it is about these two people that make them such a great couple—is there an undeniable chemistry?  Do they have a lot in common? Do they challenge each other? Sadly, I didn’t really feel that the answer to any of these questions was yes.

I am really impressed that Alexandra Monir actually wrote and reordered the two original songs in the book. They have a big band feel to them, which is how I imagine Lily Windsor would have sung them.  You can preview them on Alexandra Monir’s website or buy them on iTunes—I recommend “Bring the Colors Back.” Overall, I think this would be a fun beach read, but it is definitely not a book I would turn to if I was in the mood for romance or anything paranormal. 

Last Sacrifice

Goodreads Description:
"Rose Hathaway has always played by her own rules. 

She broke the law when she ran away from St. Vladimir’s Academy with her best friend and last surviving Dragomir Princess, Lissa. She broke the law when she fell in love with her gorgeous, off-limits instructor, Dimitri. And she dared to defy Queen Tatiana, leader of the Moroi world, risking her life and reputation to protect generations of dhampir guardian to come.

Now the law has finally caught up with Rose- for a crime she didn’t even commit. She’s in prison for the highest offense imaginable: the assassination of a monarch. She’ll need help from both Dimitri and Adrian to find the one living person who can stall her execution and force the Moroi elite to acknowledge a shocking new candidate for the royal throne: Vasilisa Dragomir.

But the clock on Rose’s life is running out. Rose knows in her heart the world of the dead wants her back… and this time she is truly out of second chances. The big question is, when your life is about saving others, who will save you?"

This was an amazing book—I could NOT put it down! If you haven’t read this series yet, you need to. Richelle Mead is an amazing author and her plots are anything but predictable. Rose’s friends and family break her out of jail and ask her to stay out in West Virginia while they figure out who really killed Queen Tatiana. Rose, of course, does not do as she is told and embarks on an amazing adventure with Dimitri and Sydney. Even though Rose is still dating Adrian, the chemistry between Rose and Dimitri is still as strong as it always has been (despite Dimitri’s claims to the contrary).

Even though Lissa has played a large role in all of the Vampire Academy novels, her strength as a person really shines through in this book and the end of Spirit Bound. I had no idea that she would be able to accomplish the things that she did in either novel, but she has a strength and determination that we didn’t really see in the other novels.

I also loved that Sydney returned in this novel because she added a fresh perspective. It amazes me how the alchemists seem to know more about the moroi world than the guardians do. Sydney also grows a lot in this novel. Her courage and strength really show in the Last Sacrifice and it appears that Rose and Dimitri are able to soften her prejudices against moroi and dhampires.

The most thrilling part of this book was trying to solve all of the mysteries. Who is Lissa’s sister? Who actually killed Queen Tatiana? Thanks to the bond between Lissa and Rose we are able to follow both the investigation back at court and Rose’s quest to find the lost Dragomir. The excitement of these two events, along with all the plot twists, kept me turning pages all night long.

There were only two things that I did not like about the ending. The first was Adrian. I love Adrian—I think he’s great and I was so incredibly sad about how his part of the story ended. The second was a question I had about Lissa that wasn’t entirely solved—although, I’m sure it will be in Bloodlines (the first book in Richelle Mead’s Vampire Academy spin-off series). Even though the stories will continue with Bloodlines, I am so sad to be done with this series. Last Sacrifice is a fantastic read and one of the best books I have ever read.

Stargazer

Goodreads Description:
"Evernight Academy: an exclusive boarding school for the most beautiful, dangerous students of all—vampires. Bianca, born to two vampires, has always been told her destiny is to become one of them. 

But Bianca fell in love with Lucas—a vampire hunter sworn to destroy her kind. They were torn apart when his true identity was revealed, forcing him to flee the school.

Although they may be separated, Bianca and Lucas will not give each other up. She will risk anything for the chance to see him again, even if it means coming face-to-face with the vampire hunters of Black Cross—or deceiving the powerful vampires of Evernight. Bianca's secrets will force her to live a life of lies.

Yet Bianca isn't the only one keeping secrets. When Evernight is attacked by an evil force that seems to target her, she discovers the truth she thought she knew is only the beginning...."

It’s hard to say how I feel about this book. Stargazer had a much better beginning than Evernight, but the ending wasn’t quite so shocking—which is what made me want to finish the series in the first place! Despite the lack of jaw-dropping, out-of-left-field surprises, there is a lot going on in this novel. The Balthazar-Lucas-Bianca love triangle was seemingly resolved at the end of the Evernight—but if there is one thing this book illustrates, it’s that emotions and relationships are anything but simple. Bianca’s heart may still belong to Lucas, but she is forced into situations with Balthazar that cause them to become close and develop a fondness for each other.

There was so much going in this novel that I loved: betrayal, love, lust, confusion, secrecy, and of course the paranormal. Bianca finally begins to learn more about her world and the circumstances of her birth, which causes her to make some tough decisions about her future. I can’t wait to see how her choices affect her life in the future novels.

Darkest Mercy

Kennan finally returns to Huntsdale and has to face both Ash and Don’s anger at his mysterious disappearance. Bananach has gotten much stronger during Keenan’s absence and is doing everything in her power to start a war between the faerie courts. The Dark Court has been severely weekend by Niall’s grief over Irial’s death and the Summer Court will not be at full strength unless Ash decides to give herself to Keenan and give up Seth forever. With all the turmoil and inter-court conflicts, will the faeries be able to unite forces to defeat Bananach’s attempts to create war and chaos?

Melissa Marr does a great job of wrapping up the Wicked Lovely series and gives readers a very happy ending. I loved the way things turned out, BUT it almost seemed too good to be true. Even though the characters suffered during the novel, for the most part everyone had a perfect ending. I think it would have been much more realistic if some of the obstacles they faced were not so happily resolved in the end—particularly with everything relating to Keenan! Everything in this novel turned out EXACTLY the way I wanted it too, but I think that the way they got there left me feeling a little disappointed.