Wishing For Wednesday #7

I only have two for you guys this week, but they're right gems!
I've goooott a next in series, and it's a totally cool series! Aaanndd a new book from one of my favourite authors!

Never Fade

Ruby never asked for the abilities that almost cost her her life. Now she must call upon them on a daily basis, leading dangerous missions to bring down a corrupt government and breaking into the minds of her enemies. Other kids in the Children's League call Ruby "Leader", but she knows what she really is: a monster. 

When Ruby is entrusted with an explosive secret, she must embark on her most dangerous mission yet: leaving the Children's League behind. Crucial information about the disease that killed most of America's children-and turned Ruby and the others who lived into feared and hated outcasts-has survived every attempt to destroy it. But the truth is only saved in one place: a flashdrive in the hands of Liam Stewart, the boy Ruby once believed was her future-and who now wouldn't recognize her. 

As Ruby sets out across a desperate, lawless country to find Liam-and answers about the catastrophe that has ripped both her life and America apart-she is torn between old friends and the promise she made to serve the League. Ruby will do anything to protect the people she loves. But what if winning the war means losing herself?

Never Fade is out September 30th, pre-order your copy here.

Misty Falls 

Misty is a one-girl disaster zone. Born with a Savant 'gift' that means she can never tell a lie, her compulsive truth-telling gets her into trouble wherever she goes.

So when she meets Alex: gorgeous, confident, and impossibly charming, Misty instantly resolves to keep her distance . . . Someone so perfect could never be hers, surely?

But a dark shadow has fallen across the Savant community. A serial killer is stalking young people who have these special mental powers. Soon one of them will be taken to the edge of death . . . and beyond

Misty Falls is out October 1st, pre-order your copy here.

Unmarked

Unmarked
Rating: 5/5
Buy or Borrow: Buy
Source: ARC Courtesy of NetGalley!

We join Kennedy just over 2 weeks since the events of Unbreakable, and she's been packed off to a boarding school in the middle of nowhere in Pennsylvania. The world is pretty much going to crap around her, there's been a missing girl every day  since, and they all look creepily like her. The day creepy writing with a message appears on her mirror, Jared finally finds her. Feeling like she doesn't belong, she goes with the gang and Elle in search of her long lost Aunt Faith, her Dad's secret sister.

Using her memory they track down a taxidermy museum that holds the clues to finding her aunt, but when they do, paranoid is...well that's being polite. Her aunt's specialty is prophetic dreams and after a run in with the Illuminati they've been hunting her. But they brought something with them, and when Andras finds them, the end result is tragic.

Using the clues her aunt left her, they learn more about the Freemasons, and when they finally find the journal....they learn more about the night Andras was freed. Setting out to find Andras turns out to be easier than it first seemed, when he finds them, but after some shocking revelations regarding Kennedy's family, followed by an accident with Andras, the life of someone she loves is left hanging in the balance and they find themselves working with the enemy. The Illuminati. Could they not be the villains they've been lead to believe?

"We have officially entered The Exorcist territory" 

Nooooooooooooooo. Whyyyyyyyyyyyyyy. Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa. *sob*. Dammit all. My poor feels just can't take this, I'm slightly glad the third book isn't out yet because it saves me some pain and suffering, but then I'm not glad because now I have to wait. But what a thrilling sequel, it's not often sequels can match the first books but this one manages it!

It pretty much picks up straight away, pulling you in to the story, but time has passed so we get flashbacks of Kennedy remembering what happened after Unbreakable ended so we don't miss out on anything and it's more interesting than pages of "previously on The Legion"

With Unbreakable we had what was kind of like mini episodes of Supernatural, with the whole different locations and destroying the ghosts thing, to get and build the Shift. This is an entirely different....what's the word, format? Story? I don't know. In this we have the search for her aunt, the clues to be followed to the journal, the run in with Andras, and then trying to find a way to save Jared. Unmarked is aaaalll about the demons and specifically Andras, there's no vengeance spirits in this, I mean there's a residual haunting which was delightfully creepy but this ones the demon book. Which ya know....means it's less creepy....sort of.

But I loved the change of pace with the story, I loved the focus on the demons in this book and Andras, it's keeping the series interesting. We learn more about demons in this book, as well as more about the Illuminati. I can't get enough of the rich lore/history whatever you want to call it regarding the story's world and the things in it. It's every bit as rich and detailed as Unbreakable.

Unmarked continues the fast pace, engaging narrative, and concise and smooth prose. There is literally nothing for me to complain about so this will be a gushing review full of love. This book is so engrossing it's not even funny!  It's also just as humorous as it is serious and sad, the scene where they're talking about what they'd be doing if they weren't in the Legion and Priests reaction, for example, was heartbreaking. Our characters become more complex, we're left needing to know more about them, the third book is subtly set up at the end and the world continues to ooze off the page and surround you.

"I'm not sticking around to be one of the Ghostbusters" 

The world building this time was still fantastic, it was very doom and gloom, and still very vivid and atmospheric, The book was playing like a movie in my head. Unbreakable was off the charts creepy, Unmarked was still creepy but taken down a notch. Which is just as well because ghosts freak me out a bit, ever since I got forced to watch Paranormal Activity and Most Haunted as a marathon. *shudder*.

So we have the taxidermy museum, nice and creepy, slightly wish I couldn't picture it so well, but there we go. We have her aunts house, we have the tomb in Boston and theeeeennn the safe-house. I can picture all clearly in my mind, and I love being able to do that. Each place had an atmosphere that you felt while reading and again the world sucked you in. I was oblivious to everything and everyone.

There was plenty to keep you intrigued in the book, I was trying to work out what the deal was with the missing girls, to no avail. The plot twists are insane, and if I was home alone I would have shrieked/screamed and had a full out temper tantrum at the one with Jared....I mean dude, seriously. And it's still not resolved and we have to wait for book three....someone hold me!

"She missed the chapter on prison tats in criminal history class" 

I love these two books because it's not often I read a book lately and I can't work out what's going to happen next. I always work it out. Not so with Unbreakable and Unmarked, I tried, I really tried but I got nothing. I loved it! It's just so great to be able to read a book and not know what's going to happen next so you're frantically turning the pages.

Like I already said, we learn loads more this book, particularly about the Illuminati as we meet the characters of Gabriel and Dimitri. It would appear Gabriel was tasked with spying on Kennedy's aunt, broke her heart and was also a friend of Kennedy's mums because SPOILER ALERT, her mum was a freaking Illuminati. You can imagine my face when I was reading! I'm really excited to learn more, because her mum was part of an order that where kind of a shady group of Illuminati's that weren't sanctioned, and now I want to know more and why her mum got involved and so on.

"A marquis of hell preying on a bunch of kids? Times must be tough Andras" 

We also get a deeper look in to what happened the night the Legion summoned Andras, what went wrong and the whole one of the Legion stabbing the Angel but not actually killing her like they'd assumed.

I enjoy the flashbacks, whether it's Kennedy remembering something, or courtesy of a journal entry it's a nice break from the narrative that keeps it fresh and conveys important information in an interesting way while adding to the intrigue.

There's a new interesting twists regarding the Vessel which is assumed to be the Shift but turns out to be the White Dove, who is Kennedy, who was predicted by her aunt and I'm excited to watch that play out and see where it goes!

Jared and Kennedy are finally together in this one and they're are so adorable which is what makes what happens so heartbreaking, because they really deserve a break. After releasing Andras Kennedy is feeling really guilty, and pretty much is feeling how Jared always feels, so they make kind of the perfect match.

In Unbreakable we saw a brief glimpse of Elle and I was sad not to see that much of her but for anyone feeling the same, don't worry, because Elle is along for the ride as well in Unmarked! It would also appear her and Lukas have something going on *winkwink* which means we'll be avoiding a love triangle, although there is still going to be plenty of angst to keep things interesting!

                      "No-one touched your precious demon-slayer belt Buffy" 

I must say I really like the character of Elle, she's the perfect best friend, so fiercely loyal to Kennedy, I love how she just believes everything Kennedy tells her, no questions asked and even through everything she still sticks with the gang. I'm excited to see more of her and Lukas too. I wasn't sure how I felt about a possible love triangle, but I love how Lukas has Elle and is just Kennedy's friend. I also love her bickering with Alara, and watching their friendship grow was a nice added touch to the story! I need more of those two together!

Dimitri and Gabriel are....interesting. I love Gabriel's snark, and while he and Dimitri are new characters, they have just as much depth as our other main characters, including Elle who clearly has more to her from some things Kennedy said about her family. Gabriel was her mothers friend, and I do want to know more about him but right now I'm focused on Dimitri, we don't get as much about him as Gabriel and I neeeedd to know what his deal is! SO much intrigue!

"Holding hands while you waited for your Wonder Twin powers to activate?" 

I'm also excited to see the whole Kennedy being Illuminati thing playing out. Like I said I want to know more about her mum, but I also want to see how this plays out. In the beginning Priest and Alara are very not okay with it and a line is drawn in the sand but as it carries on they appear to be over it, and I want to see whether Kennedy can still become the Legion member when her Dad dies, or if she'll be joining Gabriel and co.

Yes, yes I did say Kennedy's dad. He pops up. I think he's a douche. Kennedy is really easy to connect with, and you feel what she feels, so I was feeling some rage when her dad was all "you think you love him" about Jared. Turns out her Dad is the fifth Legion member and I'm soooo not buying what he's selling with his excuses.

With the arrival of Kennedy's Dad you can see the relationship with Kennedy and Alara thrown in to sharp relief. Like Kennedy says in the book, Alara has known her for a short time but knows her better than her stalker father. I love Alara's friendship with Kennedy and after her saying Kennedy reminds her of Maya her sister I had so many feels. So many.

We get more Alara background too! We know she's rich, but in this installment we see her sister and brother helping her out so she doesn't have to do what her parents say, and it turns out she has a secret hot boy. More of him please!

"I'm going to my room, or whatever you call those cryogenic chambers where you have us sleeping" 

We also get more of Priest and what life was like for him and I'm really feeling for him. His grandfather was all he had, and he doesn't have another person like everyone else does, can we please give him a new friend? Pleaaaseee?

Lukas....well, we get a deeper look at him as well. As we all gathered from the previous book he and Jared where very competitive, because their father favoured Jared, and we see more of how deep that went, because it's revealed that Lukas isn't quite the golden boy everyone thinks he is. He knew about the list and didn't stop Jared because he wanted him to get in trouble, I can see his reasoning, but it's another side to Lukas I didn't suspect was lurking. Especially as he partially deserves some of the blame.

I'm excited to see more of the new group dynamic. It's been revealed about Jared and the list and as expected Priest and Alara aren't happy, Priest  more so. While Alara appears to be okay with Kennedy despite knowing she knew, Priest is really not okay with Jared at all, and I'm not sure how he is with Kennedy, he was really pissed but then he seemed a bit more mellow at the end. So it's really going to change the dynamic of the group especially when Jared is back.

Because of this our merry band of demon/ghost fighters are split as Dimitri takes Priest and Alara to look for a new demon Bastiel, that Andras released. I'm sad because I need more of Alara and Kennedy's friendship especially after what Alara said, and I need for Priest to be okay with Kennedy because he was her first friend and ugh. I don't like them being separated!

I'm ridiculously excited for the next book to see how everything plays out, and like I said, particularly the whole Kennedy/Illuminati thing and if Priest and Alara are really okay about it or if they'll shove her out again. Not to mention Kennedy having to deal with her dad although I think Elle might rip him to shreds? The new pieces of information have tided me over but there's so much more to know and I love how we get just enough to keep us going but we're still left with questions, it's the perfect blend!

Unmarked is a strong sequel to what's turning into a fantastically unique series filled with great friendships, plenty of creepyness and a smidge of world saving! There's plenty of different puzzles to try and work out but the unpredictability of the book is another feature that marks out from the crowd. The world of Unmarked is fast becoming a favourite and the lively characters jumping of the page are becoming more loved each installment! Bring on round three!

Unbreakable

Unbreakable
Rating: 5/5
Buy or Borrow: Buy
Source: ARC Courtesy of NetGalley
For Fans Of: Supernatural all the way.

It's dark, it's creepy and it's a graveyard, Kennedy would love to be anywhere else but she has to find her cat. Unfortunately a spirit finds her first. Although Kennedy doesn't believe in ghosts she pretends it never happens. But then her cat starts to act strangely and when she comes home to find her mother dead, things take a turn for the worse.

Four weeks later, spending her last night in her home before she goes to boarding school in New York, a waaay better option than living with her aunt, she awakes to find her cat lying on her chest being all kinds of freaky and taking her breath. It's at that point that twins Lukas and Jared burst into her room and shoot it, then the creepy graveyard ghost that comes out of her cat. Enter epic scale freakout, made even worse when the twins are still there the next day with the happy news that a demon is trying to kill her, promptly followed by her unplugged radio spazzing out and all her knives trying to stab her.

As she escapes with the boys, they reveal that her mother was a part of The Legion of the Black Dove, ancient secret society that protects the world from a demon their ancestors unleashed centuries ago in their fight against the Illuminati. Turns out Kennedys mum wasn't the only society member murdered. All five where, in the same way on the same night, making the kids the new Legion.

Kennedy has to take her place along with Priest, Alara, Lukas and Jake in order to uncover the truth and stay in the land of the living. The gang embarks on a quest to find the five scattered pieces of a device called the Shaft, which they believe will destroy the demon. Journeying from one creepy place to the next, battling the spirits sworn to protect the pieces, bonds form, love prospers and creepiness abounds. Unfortunately, not everything is as it seems...

"I wasn't the fifth member of their secret exorcist society" 

Holy shiiiiiiiitt. Excuse my language but seriously, I think I have another favourite series. This is one of those ones where I'll now go and acquire a physical copy for my collection, I loved it that much! Being the avid Supernatural fan that I am, I couldn't resist this when I read the synopsis I mean ghosts and demons?! I wasn't sure what to expect, but I really wasn't expecting to love this book this much! It's like a YA Supernatural, there's journals and grimoirs and salt and devils traps, but with more hunters and twin brothers, I will admit I half expected at one point for Jared or Lukas to be all "Dad went on a hunting trip....and he hasn't been home in a few days", how can you not read it!?!

I was hooked in from the first creepy page, and from then on I couldn't put the book down. It's fast paced, engaging, entertaining has a smooth flow and excellent prose. I mean, I would have more than one quote but I was too engrossed to take note! Although I did enjoy "Scream first and ask questions later".

The plot was fairly complex, with plenty of twists and turns that are largely unpredictable, the last twist in particular, I really did not see coming! You spend the entire book thinking one thing and then at the end it's like "BHAM SURPRISE BITCH" and you're like whaaaaaaaaaaaaat. ,It was the perfect cliffhanger, you're left wanting more, and the next book is set up perfectly right in the end chapters, but subtly and without giving much away for what's going to happen in the next book. There's an obvious plot point but yeah.
Essentially it's kind of a quest story with clues and going from location to location, but it's more....spiced up shall we say? What with the spirits and everything.

The world building is astounding. There's detail, but it's concise and doesn't interrupt the narrative with too much information. The world really does suck you in. I didn't want to leave the world of the story to be honest. Each location is described very vividly and very creepily. I mean we have creepy house, creepy well, creepy children's home and creepy prison, the shop wasn't quite up there with the other creepy ones but to be hones that was a nice break. I still need to go in to shops, and after reading this book I think I will avoid the creepy places mentioned...not that I wouldn't be avoiding them any way...in some cases...but yeah.

Like I said all these different locations and settings are vividly brought to life and suck you in. You can feel the atmosphere of the places oozing off the page, and the writing was very cinematic for me. Or maybe that's just how my brain works with awesome books, I don' t know?

The world created is very in the vein of Supernatural with the demons, which we haven't seen yet but I'm fairly certain they're different, and the ghosts and vengeful spirits and so on, and with the whole salt thing and weapons. BUT the unique part of the book that I latched on to and loved is the rich history of the Legion. What they are, how they came about, what happened and so on. It's so very enthralling but we don't get all the details in one go, we get enough to tide us over and keep our intrigue up. Like we don't know exactly what happened when the ancestors summoned the demon, what happened to the angel? What's the deal with Kennedy's mum? I'm fairly sure he dad is someone important too.

Kennedy I loved, I connected with her and I could empathize with her. She's not a badass, but she's not useless either even though she thinks she is. Yeah she can't fight but her photographic memory and drawing skills come in handy with binding symbols and devils traps. She's had a rough go of it, and now she's thrown in to this world with all these badass fighters, and she feels like she doesn't belong and I think a lot of people can sympathize with that. But at the same time, she's not afraid, well she was a bit, but she still went in to the haunted house, she jumped in the well after Priest etc and towards the end of the book you could see her courage growing, and I'm excited to see it taken further in the next book.

Each character is well written, multi-dimensional and has plenty of depth. Each of them has a different story. Each has a different background. They're all so different but work so well together. In the book they each have a specialty, another unique element, Jared's for example being fighting and weapons. We get to know a bit about each of them, and what made them who they are today. I feel I can't pick a favourite!

We have a romance going on, I'm sure it'll please a lot of you! Kennedy and Jared. It's not really anything more than her liking him and him caring about her in the beginning, the romance was to me, fairly secondary, which was no bad thing, it was there but it wasn't in your face, but you see the relationship grow and build up and towards the end it hits full on romance territory.

Jared is a damaged soul, he thinks the deaths of their family members was his fault and Lukas certainly blames him for it. He essentially thinks he's bad and screws everything up which makes him very different from the standard hero who's all "I'm sexy and I know it and I can do no wrong", he's not perfect and I loved that, Kennedy isn't perfect either, both have screwed up and I just really loved reading about them, the whole not perfect thing made them more realistic and human. They're also totally adorable.

I feel I should mention Lukas right about now. Jared's twin brother. I'm not sure yet if there will be a love triangle. As far as I could tell, Kennedy likes Jared, Lukas is her friend. Lukas likes her, but I can't tell in what capacity, sometimes it seems one way, other times another. It's going to be interesting to see if we're going to have a full on love triangle and how it's going to be dealt with. I have every faith in Kami to write it perfectly either way.

I'm kind of rambling at this stage in fangirly glee, and I'm not sure if I've left anything out! Buuuuuuuuuuuttt....

Unbreakable is a perfect blend of action, romance, adventure, supernatural and the creepy. Fast paced, it'll keep you glued to the page the entire way through with the engaging narrative, bouts of humour, mysteries, heart pounding moments and rich history regarding the Legions. Delightfully creepy it's guaranteed to send shivers down your spine and depending on your creep factor...possibly make you sleep with the light on! Unbreakable is a unique take on demons and ghosts, and I can't wait to see more.

If you love Supernatural, you're gonna love this. I chuckled every time someone said or thought "....unnatural"*winkwink*

(shhhhh I'm reviewing the second one tomorrow so stay tuned for more fangirling ;))

Unborn

Unborn
Rating: 4/5
Buy or Borrow: Buy
Source: ARC Courtesy of NetGalley

Khara has spent centuries living in the Underworld with her adoptive father Hades, but when she's ripped from her home by a Dark One and unceremoniously dumped in the middle of Detroit, Khara gets a rude awakening. You see she's not the only child of Ares, although she is his only daughter, seeing as how all his daughters are usually killed at birth, all except Khara who was saved by her mother and hidden with help from Demeter. When she's dumped in Detroit, Khara just so happens to be found by Drew when he's on patrol....Drew, along with Pierson, Kierson and Casey turn out to not only be her half brothers, but also part of a group of immortal warriors who police Detroit's supernaturals, and they're (mostly) only too excited to meet their long lost sister.

Taking her in and vowing to keep her safe from the impending threat of Diemos, sure to come after, they soon discover there's something strange going on. Soul Breathers are breaking a treaty, the Gargoyles have gone AWOL, and the jackass fallen angel lodging with them appears to know way more than he's letting on. Like the fact Sean, another of the brothers, is actually her twin. It's a race against time to find out who and what she is before the evil stalking her through the city can find her.

Okay, full disclosure, I thought this sounded intriguing and I changed up the synopsis because when I started reading, I was like "okay cool Drew's gonna be the love interest" but then I was like wait whaaaaatt?! Because ya know, it doesn't mention the whole "the warriors are her brothers" thing, so I was expecting something waaay different, but this was actually way more awesome than I was anticipating. Not gonna lie!

I'm currently seeing a lot of other reviewers smack talking this, I can kind of see your point I guess, but quite frankly the book made me laugh, and it was a total and complete escape for a few hours, what more do you want?!

I have never read anything by the author before, I was drawn in by Underworld and Immortal Warriors, but after this, I think I'm going to endeavor to check out more of her titles! At the minute I'm on a roll with really awesome books so I'm kind of on edge waiting for the other shoe to drop, as it where, so I was incredibly wary as I started reading.

However, it didn't take me long to get fully engrossed in the story and the world. Seriously it sucked me and spat me back out a couple hours later with lots of feels and a book hangover, which I'm nursing by eating an entire packet of Haribo.....as you do.

The world building was fantastic, I'm not sure if it was the intent but I got such a dark vibe from Detroit, and I could picture the house, the streets and the club perfectly, like I was there. It's such an engrossing world to be in to be honest you don't really want to leave, I was watching the time on my Kindle tick down and getting very distressed!

Unborn is incredibly unique, I mean hello did you see the whole "adopted daughter of Hades" thing? He's not in this book but I'm so desperate to meet him I'm psyched he'll be in the second book.....he kind of has to! Karah and her brothers are all kids of Ares, and each of them has different mothers, except Karah and Sean and Pierson and Kierson...obviously. Basically Ares is a bit of a tool and was sleeping with different ladies to experiment to see what he could produce. So each of them has their own thing they can do, Pierson is the magic dude in this case for instance.

The mythology for the book is the thing that really made it for me, I love unique and rich mythology and that is what Unborn has, I've never read this take on it before or anything like it really, and I loved learning about the world of the book. In Unborn we get this amazing blend of Greek Mythology and the whole Angelic mythology going on that are both unique and work very well together, and I've never come across before!  There was no info dumping either which is always a plus. The book told you what you needed to know in the right amount of detail without disrupting the fast pace and flow of the book.

Karah was an interesting lead, because she's kind of....I'm not sure how to explain it. She talks a tad bit odd I would imagine, I mean I was picturing her with a British accent to be honest because I can't imagine the wording with US accents which is weird but bear with me. The impression I got was that things where pretty lonely in the Underworld, and with Diemos being a giant douche and the general violence, emotions are weakness down there so Karah pretty much doesn't show emotion much. Which is understandable.

I couldn't help but chuckle sometimes when she was all "I'm feeling something" purely because it reminded me of Legolas in LOTR when he's drinking and is all "i think it's affecting me". But yeah, so, she doesn't do emotions, she's unused to feeling them which made it unusual and intriguing to read from her perspective. Not to mention to watch her develop and slowly deal with emotions better, and accept them and maybe even understand them a little bit. I'm excited to see more development for Khara.

Khara is a fairly complex character, written incredibly well, but the thing I loved about the book (among other things) where the other main characters. Every single supporting character was written with just as much care, attention and detail. All of them are complex and I loved each of them as they are all so very different.

Oz being the fallen angel....I lost count of how many times I muttered "douche" to myself while reading, I kind of figured he'd be the love interest, I enjoyed how subtle the romance was. I mean, there are feelings there clearly, but so very subtle they aren't in your face, which is probably partly due to the fact Khara doesn't recognize what she's feeling and can't recognize it in him, but towards the end it's more obvious. The romance is kind of secondary I would say, to the main plot. Which I liked.

The brothers. Sean, who's her twin, we don't see much. I'd be interested to see more about Sean, there's all these allusions to a mate and shit hitting the fan on the coast where he is, I will admit sometimes it made me wonder if I was missing something, like was there a first book about Sean or? But apparently not, I'm going to assume the intrigue from him means we'll be seeing more of him second book.

The four brothers we see the most are Drew, Casey, Kierson and Pierson. I loved all of them, they made me laugh individually and as a group, but I have to admit I do have two favourites. Kierson and Casey are totally my favourites. it's probably mean of me but there you go.

Kierson starts out a  bit like "uuuhh" cos he's all "I know she's my sister but she's hot" but at one point I think it was just a running joke to lighten the mood. I liked him because he was probably the nicest one to her, and he appeared to care the most about his new found sister, something Khara has never really had before, and I thought he was a bit of a sensitive flower sometimes which was kind of adorable. So  he's favourite number one.

Favourite number two, is Casey. Hear me out. So he was a total prick in the beginning, like dude you have a sister at least pretend to be happy. I couldn't work out if he actually hated her or was just indifferent at one point. But when you find out a bit more about him and his power and who his mother was, you understand him totally and how he acts, which is not too different from Khara. There where a few points prior to that where I was like okay I like you. But I loved Casey and the complexity he has, and the gradual warm up to Khara, that goes to full out protective brother mode.

We're not lacking for cool creatures. I loved the gargoyles, they added a nice unique element, it's not often they get included in supernatural stuff, and the whole Soul Breather/Stealer thing was another entirely new thing that I've never come across before and added another unique element to the story as well as a major plot point.

I thought the plot was thought out and complex, subtly building up to the second book and leaving you on your toes and waiting eagerly for the next one. Unborn keeps you engaged the entire time with everything going on and it was pretty impossible to put down. I've got to say, I'm excited for the second book!

Unborn is the perfect blend of Supernatural, mythology of the Greek persuasion, action and a very very subtle romance, featuring a protag I can guarantee you've never come across who adds another element to a book packed full of uniqueness. Unborn will keep you turning the pages, as you immerse yourself in to a world like any other, and with the right sprinkling of humour, there's nothing to not like!

Wishing For Wednesday #6

This week I'm bringing you one of my most anticipated books this month, and the end of one of my favourite "re-read it multiple times" trilogies, as well as a couple that have piqued my interest!

Salt and Storm

A sweeping historical romance about a witch who foresees her own murder--and the one boy who can help change her future.

Sixteen-year-old Avery Roe wants only to take her rightful place as the witch of Prince Island, making the charms that keep the island's whalers safe at sea, but her mother has forced her into a magic-free world of proper manners and respectability. When Avery dreams she's to be murdered, she knows time is running out to unlock her magic and save herself.

Avery finds an unexpected ally in a tattooed harpoon boy named Tane--a sailor with magic of his own, who moves Avery in ways she never expected. Becoming a witch might stop her murder and save her island from ruin, but Avery discovers her magic requires a sacrifice she never prepared for.

Salt and Storm is out September 23rd, pre-order your copy here.

The Queen of Zombie Hearts 

I have a plan.

We'll either destroy them for good, or they'll destroy us.

Either way, only one of us is walking away.

Alice 'Ali' Bell thinks the worst is behind her. She's ready to take the next step with boyfriend Cole Holland, the leader of the zombie slayers; until Anima Industries, the agency controlling the zombies, launches a sneak attack, killing four of her friends. It's then she realizes that humans can be more dangerous than monsters; and the worst has only begun.

As the surviving slayers prepare for war, Ali discovers she, too, can control the zombies and she isn't the girl she thought she was. She's connected to the woman responsible for killing and turning Cole's mother. How can their relationship endure? As secrets come to light, and more slayers are taken or killed, Ali will fight harder than ever to bring down Anima even sacrificing her own life for those she loves.

The Queen of Zombie Hearts is out September 30th, pre-order your copy here.

Winterspell

The clock chimes midnight, a curse breaks, and a girl meets a prince . . . but what follows is not all sweetness and sugarplums.

New York City, 1899. Clara Stole, the mayor's ever-proper daughter, leads a double life. Since her mother's murder, she has secretly trained in self-defense with the mysterious Drosselmeyer.

Then, on Christmas Eve, disaster strikes.

Her home is destroyed, her father abducted--by beings distinctly nothuman. To find him, Clara journeys to the war-ravaged land of Cane. Her only companion is the dethroned prince Nicholas, bound by a wicked curse. If they're to survive, Clara has no choice but to trust him, but his haunted eyes burn with secrets--and a need she can't define. With the dangerous, seductive faery queen Anise hunting them, Clara soon realizes she won't leave Cane unscathed--if she leaves at all.

Inspired by The Nutcracker, Winterspell is a dark, timeless fairy tale about love and war, longing and loneliness, and a girl who must learn to live without fear.

Winterspell is out September 30th, pre-order your copy here.

The Iron Trial

The Iron Trial
Rating: 5/5
Buy or Borrow: Buy
Source: Copy courtesy of the publisher!

Sculpting the ice in to hand and footholds, a Mage climbs an icy mountain, tricked in battle, it's imperative he gets to a certain cave. But when he does...it's too late. What awaits him is a slaughter, later known as the Cold Massacre. There is only one survivor...his infant son, but next to his wife there's a sinister message carved in to the ice..."KILL THE CHILD".

Flash forward 12 years or so, Call is about to embark on the Iron Trials, the tests all children with magical ability or suspected magical ability must complete to determine whether they will enter the Magisterium to train or not. All his life Call's dad has told him Magicians are bad, they can't be trusted and they have a plan for him to fail on purpose. Although it turns out it's easy enough to fail without even trying to throw it. Against the odds, let's be honest his score was in the minus, Call is chosen my Master Refus to become one of his apprentices.

Being told what he was by his dad, pretty much that the Magisterium will result in his death, among other similarly cheerful things, Call isn't too jazzed about getting to go to magic school. Ever since he was born (at least that's what Call thinks) one of his legs isn't quite right, so he's expecting much the same treatment as in his regular school. Jasper happily delivers, but as Call gets drawn deeper into the world of the Magisterium and actually makes friends...he finds himself not quite wanting to leave anymore.

But when he stumbles across ties to his past and finds out a shocking truth about himself, everything will change. In the midst of all the magic fueled mayhem, someone isn't who they seem, and a creature formally a Mage has a shocking message for them....One will fail. One will die. One is already dead. One things for sure..Calls in for the ride of his life.

So Holly and Cassie totally got me. I'm not even ashamed to admit it, I mean I'm 21 years old I should have been able to figure this damn book out, but no! I was shocked and surprised and then full of "ugh" at the wait for the next book. Seriously.

I'm a huuugge fan of Cassie. I am a Mortal Instruments fan, I have all the books, they cause me lots of feels, and I'm currently obsessing about the next book in the Shadowhunter world, and the incredibly long wait for it. Seriously I met Cassie at a signing before the movie came out and fangirled my brains out. After embarrassing myself royally with everyone's favourite Jace. Sooo I figured this would be the perfect way to tide myself over until the next one. I mean....it's not a YA book, so how much pain can it cause me right? Ugh.

The world created by Cassie and Holly is glittering, rich and well...magical. It sucks you in as you read, half the time I forgot I was actually sitting in my bedroom. The school is underground...how awesome!? I mean it was such a unique setting, the world is built fantastically and vividly without excess description bogging down the narrative. There's toadstools to sit on, stalagmite seats, blind fish, quartz EVERYWHERE (hence glittering), lichen that tastes like different food, elementals some of which are cute little lizards others are Wyverns etc. I could go on all day, although I will add that I want to try that soda!

When you're reading you really do feel like you're underground and in the world with the characters. The dark tunnels with the glittering quartz and phosphorescent rocks/mushrooms etc...I wanna go! It's such a colourful world!

The magic/laws of magic/lore, whatever you want to call it in Iron Trial is unique and rich. Mages draw on Air, Wind, Fire and Earth, however there are a select few, that can draw from the void, using chaos magic. Chaos magic is neither bad nor good, from what I gathered it depends on the person using it. The Mages have a goodie using it, while the enemy is well...The Enemy. Or to give him his proper title, The Enemy of Death. Suitably sinister right? He pretty much created his Chaos Ridden and made the Chaos Ridden animals.

It is possible to be consumed by the magic and become a human elemental, and we even meet one of those. It's one of the "devoured" that gave the rather sinister "one will die" etc message, and believe me, think it's just a device to add some intrigue all you like, knowing Cassie and Holly, that is going to come round and bite you on the ass because it will mean something and most likely come true.

I love how each different year is a metal, Iron for first years, Copper for second, Silver for third I believe and so on. It added another unique element so different from all the wannabe Harry Potter books with the grand old schools in castles etc. Not to mention the cool bracelets they have to wear, that gives them entry in to rooms and stuff, it has the metal on for each year, but also different coloured stones you have to earn, you get them when you've mastered an element.

The friendship in the book was rather heart warming. I thought Tamara was a bit of a cow in the beginning and I assumed she would carry on, but her sticking up for Call, the first time anyone had, made me love her and by the end of the book Aaron, Tamara and Call had formed such a strong friendship that you watched grow that you can't wait to see what's going to happen. Particularly with Call the counterweight for Aaron but also...well..you'll see! It was a very well written friendship,each of them different and bringing something to the group, and like I said, Tamara turned out totally different to what I was expecting! But then so did Call.....more later.

Jasper...well he was cruising for a bruising. He's a bit of a prat and I had him pegged for a rich kid, to be honest I thought "calm down Draco" more than once, he was edging into the "MY FATHER WILL HEAR ABOUT THIS" territory more than once. But like Tamara, Jasper turns out a lot different. In my mind Jasper gets separated from his only friend, is under a lot of pressure to do well to pull his family out of the slump they fell in after the war, he's a bit tattered, struggling a bit, and he could probably really do with more friends. I feel bad for him actually and I hope he gets more involved in the next book!

I want more of Warren, I must say! Warren is probably the only lizard I will ever like. A fire elemental that talks and legit has eyebrows, I can actually picture him very clearly in my mind as well! I need more Warren! I thought he was going to be the sidekick but then we got Havoc the Chaos Ridden wolf pup, I guess it's an adorable trade but still!

There's plenty of intrigue throughout the book, who does the bracelet belong to that Calls dad sent? What is Call? It becomes obvious that Call's dad didn't want him at the school for reasons other than they caused his mother's death, I couldn't work out what it was until right at the end when I was told. So the intrigue leads to some pretty major plot twists that I honestly didn't see coming so I spent a lot of time shocked and surprised. I'm willing to bet Calls dad was atleast friends with Constantine/The Enemy, if not his brother. I briefly entertained the idea he WAS The Enemy's supposedly dead brother but that's just silly! Or is it? Hmmm.

My first thoughts of Call where that it was so unique to see a main character who's not perfect, Call has problems with his leg and can't be as active as he wants to be and it was such a unique touch. Not to mention he's got to be the only kid who wouldn't be over the moon and shaking with excitement that he has magic and gets to go to magic school! But then....wow.

Call. I did not see that coming. I was reading along, safe in the knowledge I knew exactly where this was going..Call was so obviously the Makar, but even when it turned out to be Aaron I was all "No biggie, there's going to be two and it's going to be all OMG this has never happened before" and so on. No. Call turned out waaaayyy different to what I was expecting. He is not the hero you think he is. Call's soul is actually Constantines....aka the Enemys...he's just lost his memories. Oh yeah. That happens.

I was so shocked and so surprised because I was so sure he was going to be the hero type, turns out he has the potential to be the Villain of the series! Well technically I guess he already is? I am so excited to see where this is going, I mean, is he going to get his or rather, Constantines memories back? Will he be fighting himself? Will he turn out to be good or are we going to see the journey and making of a villain from the villains point of view? I don't know but I'm excited to find out!

The Iron Trial is a vivid, colourful, unique, fun world full of magic and mystery. It will draw you in, and keep you engaged through until the end with a combination of amazing world building, rich lore, loveable characters, humour, action, adventure and it's unpredictability. There is so much that is unique about the book it can't fail to stand out from the crowd, and there's so many little details that add to the wonder. The Iron Trial is a fantastic start to a new series!

And is if that wasn't enough, the questions from the first test Call has to do....yeah those are in the back of the book, so you can have a go and see if you're worthy of admittance to the Magisterium...you're welcome ;)