Relic(ARC) by Renee Collins

"After a raging fire consumes her town and kills her parents, Maggie Davis is on her own to protect her younger sister and survive best she can in the Colorado town of Burning Mesa. In Maggie’s world, the bones of long-extinct magical creatures such as dragons and sirens are mined and traded for their residual magical elements, and harnessing these relics’ powers allows the user to wield fire, turn invisible, or heal even the worst of injuries.

Working in a local saloon, Maggie befriends the spirited showgirl Adelaide and falls for the roguish cowboy Landon. But when she proves to have a particular skill at harnessing the relics’ powers, Maggie is whisked away to the glamorous hacienda of Álvar Castilla, the wealthy young relic baron who runs Burning Mesa. Though his intentions aren’t always clear, Álvar trains Maggie in the world of relic magic. But when the mysterious fires reappear in their neighboring towns, Maggie must discover who is channeling relic magic for evil before it’s too late.
Relic is a thrilling adventure set in a wholly unique world, and a spell-binding story of love, trust, and the power of good."

Relic(ARC) by Renee Collins
400 pages

Renee Collins has created an amazing, interesting world based on our mundane history of the old west. The old west revamped into a magical world filled with extinct mythical creatures we could only dream of meeting in reality.

Relics are the remains of magical creatures that used to inhabit the earth(much similar to the long extinct dinosaurs of the real world) that still possess some of the powers of said magical creatures. Humans have been mining for them and using them for years. The powers are mainly the 5 main elements of the world(water, fire, earth, wind, and spirit).

Maggie Davis is actually one of the more regular characters in this novel. Her family is the most important thing in her life and she just wants to basically give her little sister the world after their parents and brother die because of a mysterious group of people. Moving into Burning Mesa, Maggie tries to get their lives back on track by working at the town's local saloon. Of course, her little sister can't exactly stay with her there. Her sister is forced to stay somewhere else while Maggie is busy making money by cleaning tables.

Álvar is the rich, young, charming hacienda that owns most of Burning Mesa. By fate(or coincidence), Maggie meets him and begins to work at his saloon. Is Álvar just being kind and generous or does he have his own hidden agenda?

Throughout this whole novel, Maggie is forced to make decisions that affect the well-being of her sister and herself. She gets entangled in things of her past and things that she's just discovering about herself. Between making new friends and trying to solidify her life, she can't possibly be crushing on some cowboy, right?

This is actually one of those books where I am pretty set on buying a copy of. I will admit, at first, I thought this would not be the kind of book for me. I shudder just at the thought of the old west. Renee Collins has transformed my opinion on this. She's sucked me into this world and I am very, very, much looking forward to a sequel to this. Definitely a 5 of 5 stars book!

Since You Asked(ARC) by Maurene Goo

"A humorous, debut novel about a Korean-American teenager who accidentally lands her own column in her high school newspaper, and proceeds to rant her way through the school year while struggling to reconcile the traditional Korean values of her parents with contemporary American culture."

Since You Asked(ARC) by Maurene Goo
262 pages

If the summary up there doesn't interest you, then I don't know what will.

Holly Kim is a realistic, albeit very dramatic at times, sophomore in high school. Like any other student with strict parents, Holly has been forced to maintain straight A's and to stay off the radar of the school's cliche pyramid of popularity. She's also part of The Weasel Times, her school's newspaper. One very boring day, Holly basically rewrites a whole entire article and chaos ensues.

Not without the help of her three best friends, of course.

From writing her column to hanging out with her friends, Holly has a lot to work with. What happens when she can't make everyone happy with her snarky articles?

Hey, let's not forget that Holly has to deal with secret admirers, Thanksgiving dinner, and big misunderstandings. Holly deals with all of these events and more while living out her everyday life of a student.

I could barely put this book down, let alone not give it 5 of 5 stars!

Maureen Goo has created a humorous, realistic story with quirky characters and moment-ruining guys that you'll absolutely love! I mean, there are mother to daughter arguments every so often that get a bit over-the-top, but there are also those moments where you just have to close the book and sort of making a dying whale sound. In a good way, of course.

I love how Holly eventually uses her column and changes the way everyone starts thinking about things in their everyday school life. Holly battles unjust systems within her school, is forced to do things she'd never do otherwise, and is basically experiences life. She slowly becomes more of herself and she starts taking a bit more risks, regardless of the problems ahead. A bit dauntless, but what's life without some risks?

Now I just have to go to the nearest book store and buy this whenever I get the chance!

Promise Me Something(ARC) by Sara Kocek

"As if starting high school weren't bad enough, Reyna Fey has to do so at a new school without her best friends. Reyna's plan is to keep her head down, help her father recover from the car accident that almost took his life, and maybe even make some friends. And then Olive Barton notices her. Olive is not exactly the kind of new friend Reyna has in mind. The boys make fun of her, the girls want to fight her, and Olive seems to welcome the challenge. There's something about Olive that Reyna can't help but like. But when Reyna learns Olive's secret, she must decide whether it's better to be good friends with an outcast or fake friends with the popular kids. . . .before she loses Olive forever."

Promise Me Something by Sara Kocek
320 pages
To be released on September 1st, 2013

To be honest, I was pretty sure I was going to end up disliking this book. I'm happy to say that that isn't the case at all!

At first, I absolutely could not stand most of the characters. Take Reyna, for example. She is stuck in the past, for lack of a better way to put it. Her mother passed away when she was a kid and now her father was almost killed. By a car accident that his girlfriend, Lucy, caused by going past a stop sign. Needless to say, Reyna isn't a very big fan of her. Reyna's trying to make friends, but Olive isn't exactly what she's looking for... Sadly for Reyna, she'll just have to take what she can get.

Olive is the outcast of the school. She's a very big complainer and she's very bitter about everything. Even with Reyna's reluctance to be her friend, Olive is determined to stay.

Throughout the whole book, Reyna is wishing that she was with her best friends, at the high school that she was originally supposed to go to. What happens when Olive isn't as bad as she thought she was? And then there's that secret Olive's been keeping...

Reyna isn't really used to not having any friends. She has a group of best friends she's known since she was a kid. They've been together through good times and bad. What happens when Reyna's feeling left out, not a part of the group anymore?

The plot is probably my most favorite part of the whole book. I mean, some things were a bit obvious, but the main thing totally blew me away. Sara Kocek has written a very truthful and realistic story that you can't stop reading. The humor will have you grinning, you'll be feeling for the characters, and you'll read about something that's happening out in the real world. I love the topics discussed in this book and although I wanted more from the ending, I can't help but to give this 5/5 stars!

Clockwise by Elle Strauss

"Casey Donovan has issues: hair, height and uncontrollable trips to the 19th century! And now this --she's accidentally taken Nate Mackenzie, the cutest boy in the school, back in time. Awkward. Protocol pressures her to tell their 1860 hosts that he is her brother and when Casey finds she has a handsome, wealthy (and unwanted) suitor, something changes in Nate. Are those romantic sparks or is it just "brotherly" protectiveness? When they return to the present, things go back to the way they were before: Casey parked on the bottom of the rung of the social ladder and Nate perched high on the very the top. Except this time her heart is broken. Plus, her best friend is mad, her parents are split up, and her younger brother gets escorted home by the police. The only thing that could make life worse is if, by some strange twist of fate, she took Nate back to the past again. Which of course, she does."

Clockwise by Elle Strauss(Book One of the Clockwise series)
290 pages

Let me start by telling you that this book is full of cliches. Full. Of. It. Obviously I won't spoil it for you, but the cliches are likely to make you roll yours eyes or start banging your head against a table. Okay, probably not the latter, but you get what I mean.

Let's not forget the lack of descriptions of things. I mean, it just really irked me sometimes when something wasn't detailed and just written there without anything else continuing it. I WANT to know all of the details.

It's not to say that this book isn't worth your time, because it is/isn't. Depends on how you look at this review and the other reviews you'll most likely read of it.

Casey is everything I dislike in a female main character. Very insecure, compares herself to our people look wise, and crushes on the popular guy. I mean, most of us have probably been there, but Casey just stays like that until basically near the end of the book. BUT I have to admit that she was an okay character. Why? Because she was an independent type of person. She faces all of these obstacles in her life(most of it due to the whole time travelling thing) and she just has that "let's do this" and "I can't stop the inevitable" type of thinking that I just can't help but to admire.

Nate is the oh-so-amazing and oh-so-likable popular guy. With the mean and jealous girlfriend, of course. I can't really say much because his character pretty much only really comes out when spoilery things happen.

I would have to give this a 4/5 stars. It really is a good read. It wasn't very long so you can just read it at your leisure. The plot is pretty good too, but the cliches ruined its hope of a 5/5 from me. Sometimes, though, the cliches just gave you a smile.

I am, of course, looking forward to reading the next book of this series...

Investigating the Hottie by Juli Alexander

"Peterson. Amanda Peterson. When my life suddenly turns into the Princess Diaries meets Mission Impossible, can I do in a week what I haven’t managed to do in all my fifteen years—reel in a hottie?

Investigating the Hottie is a completed young adult romance. When Amanda spends a week with her aunt, Christie, she learns that her aunt is a spy. Christie admits that Amanda has security clearance and has already started her training. When her aunt asks her to investigate a teenage hacker, Amanda thinks that spending time with a nerd should be doable despite her social ineptitude. Unfortunately for Amanda, the hacker is a hottie."

Investigating the Hottie by Juli Alexander
200 pages

First of all, let me just say this book was actually pretty good. The characters were very realistic, and I mean very realistic. This book targets what every teenage girl feels and reacts to each situation brought to her.

Amanda Peterson is anything but normal. Her aunt is a spy and now, she's one too. Her first assignment is to investigate a teenage hacker--who is not what she expected--but what happens when she starts falling for him? Let's not forget that Amanda has basically never talked to a boy because of her shyness! In this crazy ride of firsts and odd situations, Amanda is a hilarious character that you will love reading about!

The teenage hacker, Will, is everything you wouldn't expect. He's popular, plays soccer, he does everything you wouldn't expect a hacker to do! A perfect cover, right? Maybe not so much...

Christie, Amanda's aunt, has her own case to solve with her partner, Nic. Both of these characters are always bickering, over every single little thing. Opposites attract, huh?

In this very short, at least for me, novel, Juli Alexander gives us a good plot and very good characters to go with it!

Anyways, I would rate this 3 out of 5 stars. I loved the characters, but I quickly grew disappointed 3/4 of the way in. The little twist at the end just really doesn't appeal to me. There was a bit of obvious foreshadowing as well... And I think I may have been happier if the ending wasn't so vague.

Feather AND Gates(ARC) by Laurie Lyons

"Lucy is a bright eyed, fiery redhead with a quick wit and a photographic memory. On the night of the spring equinox, Lucy meets Nathaniel, a dark and mysterious man who at first appears to have amnesia. Lucy feels inexplicably drawn to Nathaniel and is amazed to discover that he is invisible to everyone but herself. Fearing she is going insane--or worse, losing her photographic memory--Lucy goes on a hunt for answers. What she learns turns her world upside down.

FEATHER is a tale of love, the power of memories, and the struggle between right and wrong.

How far would you go to save your true love’s soul?"

Feather by Laurie Lyons
Book One of the Feather Trilogy

Feather is a heavenly read, literally.

Lucy has the gift of photographic memory and she can remember every conversation she's ever heard of. This obviously helps her academic grades, but it doesn't help her when she's faced with a problem that she doesn't know the solution to. Let's not forget that not knowing something is a huge thing for Lucy as she's usually known every answer to every question.

Nathaniel is every girl's dream.. Amazing eyes, a sweet and passionate personality, a complete angel. An actual Angel. Too bad Lucy's the only one that can see him.

Life is going great for Lucy. She has her wonderful friends, she has a wonderful future, but she's never had a guy that she's really loved. Sure, she's dated a couple of guys that she's liked, but none of them can really compare to the mysterious Nathaniel.

When the Demons realize that Nathaniel is changing a small place on Earth because of his heavenly connection, how far will Lucy go to keep him with her? Can a mortal come between the laws of Heaven and the wraith of Hell? Can she save his soul?

Feather is a book that you zoom right into. Every page is written so that you just have to continue reading until it's over! At first, it's slow. But once you read on and on, you'll be hooked.

Laurie's writing style is a bit different. It's good, but it is a bit to get used to.

Once you start with Feather, you'll have to continue on and read Gates.

Speaking of Gates, I had the opportunity to read the Advanced Reading Copy of it!

"In the second book of The Feather Trilogy, Lucy and Nathaniel have started their sophomore year at Mulbridge University. Everything seems perfect but a series of strange accidents leave them both wondering if something sinister is lurking. Is it just fate or is something evil after Lucy’s soul? Does Roman, recently returned from the depths of Hell, have anything to do with it? Nathaniel and Lucy struggle to find answers until all is terrifyingly revealed on the Winter Solstice in an ending that will leave you breathless."

Gates(ARC) by Laurie Lyons

Book Two of the Feather Trilogy

In stores on May 24, 2013

Lucy's life is going great and things couldn't get better. She has a life to live with a now visible Nathaniel. Heaven and Hell can't possibly take him away from her now.

Roman is pretty much the only thorn on her side. Lucy, with her amazing memory, remembers every encounter they've ever had... Most of them not being very pleasant. Alas, Lucy's best friend is dating him and falling for him. Can they let bygones be bygones and at least act civil towards one another? Probably not.

Nathaniel's already met Lucy's friends when he was invisible in Feather and he quickly charms his way into her group of friends. They don't suspect a thing.. Except for Anastasia, Lucy's best friend. She's worried that Lucy is getting in over her head and falling for a guy that she thinks she's just met.

One after another, accidents are appearing near Lucy... Deadly accidents. Nothing like this has ever happened to Lucy and Nathaniel is getting extremely worried. Nathaniel proves, once again, that he'll do anything to save her life. But what if she's not the one in danger this time?

The Winter Solstice is coming up and no one is safe. Can Nathaniel and Roman, an Angel and a Demon, mortal enemies, save everyone before it's too late?

The ending of Gates will leave you breathless for more because Laurie Lyons just loves giving her readers a cliffhanger...

Anyways, speaking of Laurie, I've promised to serenade her!

Angel With A Shotgun by The Cab:

(I'm an angel with a shotgun, shotgun, shotgun, An angel with a shotgun, shotgun, shotgun..)
Get out your guns, 
battles begun, 
are you a saint, or a sinner?
If loves a fight, then I shall die,
with my heart on a trigger.
They say before you start a war,
you better know what you're fighting for.
Well baby, you are all that I adore,
if love is what you need, a soldier I will be.
I'm an angel with a shotgun,
fighting til' the wars won,
I don't care if heaven won't take me back.
I'll throw away my faith, babe, 
just to keep you safe.
Don't you know you're everything I have?
And I, wanna live, not just survive, tonight.
Sometimes to win, 
you've got to sin,
don't mean I'm not a believer
And major Tom, will sing along.
Yeah, they still say I'm a dreamer.
They say before you start a war,
you better know what you're fighting for.
Well baby, you are all that I adore,
if love is what you need, a soldier I will be.
I'm an angel with a shotgun,
fighting til' the wars won,
I don't care if heaven won't take me back.
I'll throw away my faith, babe, 
just to keep you safe.
Don't you know you're everything I have?
And I, wanna live, not just survive, tonight.
And I'm gonna hide, hide, hide my wings tonight.
They say before you start a war,
you better know what you're fighting for.
Well, baby, you are all the I adore,
if love is what you need...
A soldier I will be.

*coughs* Not so hard to figure out what character I think this song most refers to.

A slight change of lyrics from Jar of Hearts by Christina Perri:

No, I can't take one more step towards you
'Cause all that's waiting is pain
Don't you know I'm not your problem anymore
You wanted me to lose the love I loved the most

I didn't want to learn to live half alive
And now you want me to one more time
Without him

And who do you think you are?
Runnin' 'round leaving chaos
Collecting your jar of souls
And tearing our love apart
You're gonna catch a cold
From the darkness inside your soul
So don't come back for us
Who do you think you are?

I hear you're asking all around
If I am anywhere to be found
But I have grown too strong
To ever fall back in your charms

And I've learned to live my life
And now you want him to die

And who do you think you are?
Runnin' 'round leaving chaos
Collecting your jar of souls
And tearing our love apart
You're gonna catch a cold
From the darkness inside your soul
So don't come back for us
Who do you think you are?

And it took so long just to feel alright
Remember how to put back the life in my eyes
I wish I had missed the first time that we met
'Cause you broke all your promises
And now you're back
You don't get to get her back

And who do you think you are?
Runnin' 'round leaving chaos
Collecting your jar of couls
And tearing our love apart
You're gonna catch a cold
From the darkness inside your soul
So don't come back for us
Don't come back at all

And who do you think you are?
Runnin' 'round leaving chaos
Collecting your jar of souls
Tearing our love apart
You're gonna catch a cold
From the darkness inside your soul
Don't come back for us
Don't come back at all

Who do you think you are?

Who do you think you are?

Who do you think you are?

So, who do you think my slight changes of lyrics is about for this? :)

Be sure to follow Laurie Lyons on Twitter!

Invisibility(ARC) by Andrea Cremer and David Levithan

"Stephen has been invisible for practically his whole life — because of a curse his grandfather, a powerful cursecaster, bestowed on Stephen’s mother before Stephen was born. So when Elizabeth moves to Stephen’s NYC apartment building from Minnesota, no one is more surprised than he is that she can see him. A budding romance ensues, and when Stephen confides in Elizabeth about his predicament, the two of them decide to dive headfirst into the secret world of cursecasters and spellseekers to figure out a way to break the curse. But things don’t go as planned, especially when Stephen’s grandfather arrives in town, taking his anger out on everyone he sees. In the end, Elizabeth and Stephen must decide how big of a sacrifice they’re willing to make for Stephen to become visible — because the answer could mean the difference between life and death. At least for Elizabeth."

Invisibility by Andrea Cremer and David Levithan
358 pages
To be released on May 7th, 2013.

Invisibility can be a curse or a blessing. To Stephen, it is nothing but a curse.

Stephan has never been seen by anyone, not even his own family. He's been invisible to everyone for all of his life.. Until he meets Elizabeth.

Elizabeth is like any other ordinary girl.. Or is she?

In a world where no one sees you, it's not that hard to disappear.. Is it?

Stephen has lived day by day with the same routine done over and over again. Never thinking that anyone would ever see him, never imagining meeting a girl like Elizabeth and falling in love.

Elizabeth's been through tough times in her past and moving to New York City was her family's way of avoiding it all. All she wants to do is blend in and someday publish her own comic book.

Invisibility is heartbreak, loneliness, love, and everything all at once.

You just can't describe how well Andrea and David have made this book.

This is probably my worst review ever(or my shortest review ever) because Invisibility can't be described with mundane words. Invisibility is a book that you have to actually read to understand. Invisibility is amazing.

Also, here's a very short conversation I had with Andrea Cremer on Twitter about a sequel to Invisibility:

Me: So... Any plans for a sequel of Invisibility? *hopeful*

Andrea: Nothing specific yet, but definitely a possibility :)

So there you have it! I don't know about you, but I'm definitely crossing my fingers in hope of a sequel!

Follow Andrea Cremer on Twitter and David Levithan on Twitter!

Icons(ARC) by Margaret Stohl

  "Your heart beats only with their permission.

Everything changed on The Day. The day the windows shattered. The day the power stopped. The day Dol's family dropped dead. The day Earth lost a war it didn't know it was fighting.

Since then, Dol has lived a simple life in the countryside -- safe from the shadow of the Icon and its terrifying power. Hiding from the one truth she can't avoid.

She's different. She survived. Why?

When Dol and her best friend, Ro, are captured and taken to the Embassy, off the coast of the sprawling metropolis once known as the City of Angels, they find only more questions. While Ro and fellow hostage Tima rage against their captors, Dol finds herself drawn to Lucas, the Ambassador's privileged son. But the four teens are more alike than they might think, and the timing of their meeting isn't a coincidence. It's a conspiracy.

Within the Icon's reach, Dol, Ro, Tima, and Lucas discover that their uncontrollable emotions -- which they've always thought to be their greatest weaknesses -- may actually be their greatest strengths. 

Bestselling author Margaret Stohl delivers the first book in a heart-pounding series set in a haunting new world where four teens must piece together the mysteries of their pasts -- in order to save the future."

Icons by Margaret Stohl

Book 1 of the Icons series

448 pages

To be released on May 7th, 2013.

As you may have already known, Icons has already been through a couple of cover changes(this amazing cover I used is the cover for the ARCs) and is not officially released yet. Lucky for me, I happened to be able to get this copy!

Let me warn you now, Icons starts off slow and slugs its way throughout the whole book. Normally, I would have pitched it, but the whole concept of Margaret's world she's created was way too good to pass up. That's not to say that it isn't good--it's good.

The Day is the one thing that changed everything. The Day was when the House of Lords, and 13 of the Icons they brought with them, came to Earth. Everything changed from that point on. Life on Earth changed for the worst.

Going into the book, I wondered: What are these Icons? Trust me, it wasn't very clear until after everything happened. That was one of the things that killed the book.

Dol is a very straightforward character that you can't help but to like, but you can't help but to hate either. She's constantly unclear of herself and is sort of a depressing character. I mean, I would too if I had the power to know of everyone's emotions and what they're thinking.. Oh, I forgot to mention that she can't exactly NOT know everyone's emotions and thoughts. There, sadly, is no off switch for it. A blessing and a curse, most would say. Not Dol, she absolutely dreads all of it. Because the world is full of sadness and loss of hope because of the Lords. Hell yes that sucks.

Ro is Dol's best friend. They've been together at the Mission for years. Are they something more? Yes, absolutely. He would do anything to save her from anyone meaning her harm. And he certainly is capable of doing so. Ro has this power that is fueled by rage, rage, and more rage. When Ro's angry, someone's got to pay.

When Ro and Dol are captured, and I literally mean captured, by a team of Sympas, a group of trained human soldiers that basically do the dirty work for the Ambassador and the Lords, or traitors to the human race, let's just say that things are exploding.

As with many in the YA fiction, a charming enemy appears when they're on the road to freedom and escape from the Embassy. Who is this charming guy? It's no one other than the Ambassador's son, Lucas. Lucas is like the guy of every girl's dream.. Handsome with tons of charisma... Let's just say this mysterious boy is enough to keep a girl's heart beating...

The real enemy, the Lords, are pretty much a huge mystery to me even after finishing this book. Why? They are mentioned throughout the entire book, but we don't even know what they can really do. All we know is that they've got Icons stationed in every continent...

Do I love this book? No.

Would I read this book again? Maybe.

Would it be worth reading? Yes.

It isn't her best book(I loved Beautiful Creatures way more than this), but it is worth a shot. No matter how slow it was, it will be worth it in the end. I give it a 4 stars for her amazing ideas, the plot, and these wonderful characters she's created. And I will be waiting for the next book in the series...

Follow Margaret Stohl on Twitter!

Clockwork Princess by Cassandra Clare GIVEAWAY

"Tessa Gray should be happy - aren't all brides happy?
Yet as she prepares for her wedding, a net of shadows begins to tighten around the Shadowhunters of the London Institute.
A new demon appears, one linked by blood and secrecy to Mortmain, the man who plans to use his army of pitiless automatons, the Infernal Devices, to destroy the Shadowhunters. Mortmain needs only one last item to complete his plan. He needs Tessa. And Jem and Will, the boys who lay equal claim to Tessa's heart, will do anything to save her."

Clockwork Princess by Cassandra Clare
Book 3 of The Infernal Devices
568 pages

Tessa Gray had agreed to marry Jem Carstairs, a Shadowhunter that is slowly dying because of his reluctant addiction to yin fen. What's worst is that Tessa is also in love with another, Jem's parabatai--Will Herondale.

As you know, this is the last book in The Infernal Devices series. This is most likely the last time we will ever read about our beloved London Shadowhunters. But, Cassandra has stated that she is working on a series, initialed TLH, about the next generation from our Shadowhunters.

Like all of Cassandra's other books, there is pain, suffering, hopelessness, death, and happiness all at once. Most of her fans have already become accustomed to this, but Clockwork Princess is the most dreaded one yet. This is, in fact, the first series of hers that has officially ended.

Tessa Gray is a strong lead character that many of us have seen ourselves in. Why? Of course it's because of her fondness for books. She quotes, reads, lives and breathes in the words of books. She changes, rapidly, from the somewhat terrified New Yorker to a girl that can definitely hold her own. There's an usual thing about her though... She has the power to Change into another person by just holding onto an object of theirs. "With great power comes great responsibility," said basically every wise character in fiction. Tessa is wanted by Mortmain because her power can destroy the Shadowhunters she's come to know and love.

Mortmain is a mundane that was raised by a warlock couple. They had raised him as their own and he had come to love them as his parents... Until one day, his parents are killed without reason. Resentful of Shadowhunters and seeking revenge, he constructs an army of clockwork creatures to kill all of the Shadowhunters. He has planned everything through and through.. All he needs to complete his plan is Tessa, but the Shadowhunters she's befriended are not willing to go down without a fight.

Will Herondale is witty, humorous, beautiful, and deadly to his enemies. He, like Tessa, lives and breathes the words from the pages of his favorite books. He is like a rose with dozens of thorns to stop you from going near him. Will was cursed so that all he loved and all that loved him would die. As we know from Clockwork Prince, he, with the help of warlock Magnus Bane, discovered that his curse was nothing but a lie from a devious demon. In love and desperate to make things right, he confessed his love to Tessa. It was all to no avail for Jem had proposed to her just moments before and Tessa had told him that she did not return his feelings for her at all. In Clockwork Princess, he is sad but at the same time happy. If he would not get the love of his life, he would do everything to ensure that Jem and Tessa would stay together. He knows that Jem is dying and he will do whatever he can to stop it. When Jem is close to dying and Tessa is still in danger.. Who will he stay with--his love or his parabatai?

Jem Carstairs is dying. He's known for all his life that he would die and leave his parabatai behind. He is determined to live as long as he can with Tessa, even if that time is quickly ticking. Jem is calm and careful unlike his blue-eyed parabatai. He and Will are near inseparable. As Mortmain is getting closer to taking Tessa away from them all, how can he possibly try to save her life when his is draining away?

There will be twists, turns, and every road block imaginable for the Shadowhunters of the London Institute. The Consul is growing ever doubtful if Mortmain is really coming to take Tessa and destroy all of their race. Jem is dying and there is nothing they can do. When it comes time for the final battle, who will side with them?

There will be tears and you will want to throw the book a couple of times or scream out in your sadness, but it will all be worth it. Cassandra ties up all of the loose ends of the series(also managing to answer some questions we had about The Mortal Instruments) and make it all work in a way that is uniquely its own.

Not so surprisingly, the ending is exactly as I wished it to be. As many fans said, the ending is bittersweet. As bittersweet as it is, you will absolutely love it.

Using Cassandra's own words:
Ave Atque Vale Infernal Devices


As I promised, you can enter a contest to win a copy of Clockwork Princess!!


a Rafflecopter giveaway

The Golden Lily by Richelle Mead

"Sydney Sage is an Alchemist, one of a group of humans who dabble in magic and serve to bridge the worlds of humans and vampires. They protect vampire secrets--and human lives."

The Golden Lily by Richelle Mead
Book 2 of the Bloodlines series
418 pages


The Golden Lily will leave you desperate for more, or at least that's what I thought when I turned the last page. The characters are intense, sometimes oblivious, but always real.

Sydney Sage is the type of heroine that you just feel for. I mean, it's not everyday that you have to keep an ENORMOUS secret from everyone.
What really made me love the story was the whole amazingness of it. Richelle Mead has created a world that lives right within our own. There are many authors that can pull that off, but hers is just so.. Out there. I can tell that's she thought about this through and through. From the Moroi to the Dhampirs and the Strigoi to the Alchemists, all of this was its own complex creation.

Don't believe me yet?

The Characters:
Every character is different from their favorite activities to how well they can fight-to-the-death!

Sydney Sage: She's the responsible one, the one that has to deal with every little problem. When she gets closer to the vampires that the Alchemists only barely tolerate, will she go against everything she knows and save the day?
Adrian Ivashkov: He's artistic, crazy(literally), thoughtful, outgoing, and I just flat-out LOVE him. To bad he has a thing for a certain badass, red-headed Dhampir...
Jill Dragomir: She's the princess-in-hiding. Literally.
Eddie Castille: He's the Romeo to Jill's Juliet. He's also the one in charge of protecting her from danger, but the only danger here is the line between duty and love.

There are many other characters, but it just wouldn't do for me to reveal them all! Trust me, you'll be completely blown away by them when you start reading it!

The Plot:
There are twists and turns, vampire feedings, new cars, and the occasional boyfriend issue here and there. Mainly, Sydney is just supposed to keep Jill safe and hidden from the Moroi trying to kill her. Why? One of the ways to kick a Moroi queen off her throne is if she has no one left in her family. Jill's older sister, Lissa, is the Moroi queen and they're all they have left of their family. Trying to kill Lissa is impossible, so the people against her are aiming to kill Jill.
As it is, Sydney already has enough to deal with. Obviously, her troubles don't end here.
The Alchemists are, in fact, a very old group of humans. They've been around for centuries! The self-proclaimed "Warriors of Light" used to be a part of them. The Warriors would have been okay, if not for the fact that they were trying to kill a Moroi, Sonya Karp. She used to be a Strigoi, but that was a mistake she deeply regrets. To put it simply, the Warriors kill the evil Strigoi and they're sure that Sonya is making everyone around her believe that she's still a Moroi. The Warriors of Light will stop at nothing to kill Sonya.

Romance:
Sadly for you romance lovers, there is about no romance at all. I mean, the characters are off dating one another, but there's no serious, serious relationship. The only romantic scene you can look forward to is in the last 2 pages.

Pros vs Cons:

This book will pretty much keep you reading until there's nothing left of it to read because you've already finished it.
That is somewhat bad for your health, but who cares. I am 100% sure that it's worth staying up over.

There's barely any romance.
The last 2 pages will be worth it, my friend... Just keep reading!

Vampires, vampires, vampires.. What happened to werewolves?
It's the era of all things immortal. Besides, none of the characters are actually immortal except for the Strigoi.

You'll see characters reappear from Vampire Academy.

It's a whole 'nother different view on everything.

It's not very expense, just about 10 USD.

It's too much things to remember when reading.
Last time I checked, books were meant to be complex and exciting. The Golden Lily definitely is!

With the pros and cons out of the way, will you be reading The Golden Lily next? WAIT. It's the second book of the Bloodlines series, don't forget to read Bloodlines first!

Follow Richelle Mead on Twitter and check out her awesome site!