Wednesday, June 28, 2017

When We Collided

Finally, I got around to a book that's been on my book pile for a very long, long time. To be honest, it seemed like great book but somehow I got a bit scared that it would disappoint me! But... what a surprise! So without further ado, let's talk about When We Collided by Emery Lord. Also the cover is marvelous!


Jonah Daniels has been having a hard couple of months. His mother doesn't show herself too much and stays in her own room. That leaves him and his older siblings to take care of everything: the household, the money, the other kids,... But those rough months finally seem to ease up and become a bit brighter when Jonah meets Vivian Alexander. Vivi is on a holiday in Verona Cove, trying to escape all that has happened in the past. When these two collide, both finally notice what has been missing in their lives.


The first character I really want to discuss is Vivi! This book is written with two POV's, therefore it already captured my heart since chapter one (also the head banners per chapter are to die for), and Vivi got the first chapter. The things I noticed really fast about her is her eccentric behavior. She's really active and also full of life, which in my case is something I haven't seen in a main character before. Vivi also really relies on social contact and she's also very playful which makes her sometimes feel younger than she is in my opinion, but I still really love this trait in her. Although I like Vivi's impulsiveness and confident attitude, sometimes I felt like it was a bit too much and that's really a pity because she's such a great character!

From the beginning it's also really clear that something is going on with her, we don't know what until later on in the story. It was really nice to feel that buildup for us, readers, knowing what's going on with her. Her personality loves mystery but she feels like a mystery herself that has a very bright side to her. It was really amazing to discover this character from page one until the last page.

Jonah is the other main character we'll follow. He used to be a family of 8: the mom, the dad, Jonah, Leah, Bekah, Naomi, Isaac and Silas, and really can I just point out that Bekah and Silas are very original names? I've never heard them before! Our character, Jonah, is having a tough life. The 3 oldest, Jonah, Naomi and Silas are making up for the fact that their parents are not there and take care of the rest of the family. Their mom is in her bedroom almost all the time and their dad, well he's not there anymore. It's really easy to see how much Jonah cares about his family and his mother even though she's not there, I really like to see that in this character. Above that I really feel like Jonah grew up a lot faster than he was supposed to which makes him a very realistic and mature character.


His personality isn't just caring, it's also very gentle and sweet. He's the kind of guy you want to be your boyfriend. Or well, that's my opinion! I guess I just got myself yet another book boyfriend... I could easily go with this character because of his personality. I kind of have a soft spot for him! He puts everyone first and him last which really shows how much of a golden heart this one has.

When these two collide it's funny, their first encounter they're trying to mend together. I mean we have Jonah who's all serious and family supporter and Vivi who's all playful and active. And because Vivi is so active and playful, she easily finds her way with Jonah, while Jonah is a bit dumbstruck and uncomfortable while he actually really wants to talk to her. It's really adorable to see there personalities collide and trying to mend together. I really liked to see them balance each other out, Vivi trying to make Jonah more playful, less mature like he should be at this age and Jonah bringing some seriousness and steadiness in her life. 

When two people collide, not only positive things come out of it. The two will have a rough road during the story and that was something I personally really enjoyed (even though sometimes it was SO frustrating!). Especially because both will bring in factors that influence the rough road: Jonah has a lot to deal with but we also know something is going on with Vivi. These things all come together and bring them both happiness and other feelings. It's also because of a collision that both finally realize what they both should be doing in their lives and what was missing. 

The plot therefore will really balance both characters out as both of them will have major influence on the other. Through the many chapters, both readers and characters discover what life for each of them is about. Some need to mend things, others need to open their eyes, sometimes they need to ask for help and other times they should try to do it themselves. This book is really filled with so many life lessons but it's not laid on the story too thickly it's more subtle than I had expected.

Above that the feelings will be everywhere in this book, it's what you get when two characters collide and don't know what to do with themselves. When We Collided has so much happy moments but those also get broken and replaced by sad moments or embarrassing moments or frustrating ones,... It's really a great thing that there's so much variety in the book. 

And when we finally realize what is going on and our hearts have beaten together and broken together and laughed together, we all finally realize what this book really is about. It's such a surprise while reading because the characters will surprise us so much but also realize what life really is about. 

This book is absolutely amazing, I had my doubts when I started but all of those are gone! The characters are uniquely written. And although I sometimes thought Vivi was a bit too much, she really made up for it in the end. I was really into the story because of the characters but also because of the many feelings and life lessons that were buried inside the story. When you finally think you understand what's happening, you find out you were wrong all along but that this book holds an amazing, feels-loaded message for everyone who wants to see. A splendid read that's an absolute recommendation!

"But there are always consequences when worlds collide..."


Wednesday, June 21, 2017

Invaded

So we had the month of April which was basically invaded by Luxen, aliens. We're June and once again this blog is going to be invaded by yes another alien species! It's also the 21st of June which means it's FINALLY summer and we can all look out to summer reads that brighten our day even more. And of course the lay-out will change with the season, so I'm excited! Anyway, back to our invasion of today: Invaded by Melissa Landers!


Note: this is not a first in a series! I recommend not reading any further as Invaded is the second book and there have been many developments and changes made since Alienated. If you're interested in the series or want to read Alienated, I wrote a review of this book on my blog HERE!

Earth is in need of planet L'eihr's technology but L'eihr won't help out Earth before they have an alliance where everyone agrees to the terms. Cara and Aelyx need to make sure that alliance will be formed by pleasing their people. Cara needs to please L'eihr and Aelyx needs to please Earth. Both knew it would be a huge adjustment and them being away from each other doesn't make things any easier. Especially because both are being targeted and the alliance is in danger.

First off, the characters! Cara seriously grew so much onto me. I can't believe that I didn't like her at first in Alienated. This character really has a very big task and she's very sure of herself to make it true. Her determination and her trying so hard was something I really appreciated. Especially because she's now on another planet, surrounded by species who don't like her at all, Cara is really being tested. I appreciated that this character showed us to always believe everything will come to a good end, and didn't give up. 

I did love the fact that the author made the balance between her being totally alright and not giving up and then give her moments where she really doubts if she can do this and want this. I think that's a very realistic perspective of life as well, the ups and downs, and our character has these moments which gives the book a very realistic twist (well in the feels department since Aliens are not real yet.)! Cara really surprised me by her actions and motivation and I'm really keen on her! 

Then we've got Aelyx, also he is on a planet where the species will test him. Also Aelyx the alien has changed a lot over the past two books, his hatred for mankind has simmered down now he knows Cara. During the book we'll also see his perspective and his feelings towards her and can I just scream? He's so adorable! Another trait in this character was his patience on the unknown planet and try his hardest to form the alliance. He's also really gentle, gentler than I had expected, and really caring which really is a trait that I feel he had less in Alienated

The bond between Cara and Aelyx will be tested as both are on unknown territory and are away from each other's support, but they're still there for each other and that will be highly appreciated by the readers. Both of them might be far away from each other, but the cuteness and gentle, comforting moments will get a chance in this book as well. Something I really appreciated to see as I was a bit scared that we wouldn't see these moments at all because they were apart. However readers might also really appreciate the fact that they're on their own, it really gave them the chance to feel one with the planet they're on and also made sure that the characters knew further development! 

Lastly, I really want to talk about Cara's brother! It might come as a surprise but he really grew on me! I don't want to spoil too much because it really is something to enjoy during the read, but I just love this character so much. He's really funny and caring but in his own way and I was really happy that we'd get to know him after all. Troy is a very surprising character, especially after all the things we already knew about him (which weren't all the most positive ones) and readers will really be pleased by him!

The plot really surprised me the most, because it felt like a huge contrast and I actually really liked that. I'm in love with the fact that it's a reversed world where both characters go to the partner's world and live there. Of course there's this bigger task that's important while they're there but still, it is something really cool!

Especially because now Cara lives on planet L'eihr we'll even get more drowned into the culture and above that get to see the landscapes, the government, the daily schedules and how everything works on the planet. Get ready to become full L'eihr! I really think this is a great asset to the book to see the functioning of this other planet and the contrasts it shows with ours.

But as I already mentioned, a bigger task needs to be done: the alliance. It's only because of the alliance that both character now reside on each other's planet. Thank you alliance, now I know how planet L'eihr looks like. The alliance between the two should help the earth with it's problems but readers will soon try to find out why the L'eihrs want this alliance: what's in it for them? And that's how all the suspicion starts to take place. 

It's not a secret that the Earthlings hate Aelyx and it's also not a secret that L'eihrs hate Cara, these relationship between the alien and the earthlings and the earthling and the aliens will really create a tension and more division in both camps. The remaining question is how everyone is going to react to the tension and that was also the surprising moment in this book. (Which I'm not going to get say because hello spoilers!)

This book actually really contains a lot of surprise and I really loved it a lot more than I did Alienated because there's a lot more action and mystery that's supported by the tension. Above that now Cara resides on L'eihr she won't only find out more about their culture but also about many more other cultures in the galaxy which once again gives a nice twist to the story. When we finally find out what on earth is actually going on, you'll be actually really surprised by this as it is something unpredictable, yet fantastic to find out. I have to say this outcome was actually a lot more twisted and original than I had expected. Then again, I hadn't expected anything like this in the plot.

Next to mystery, action and thrilling I really felt like the story made a lot more room for the feels. Now the characters are divided, the tension will also be transferred onto their relationship which then causes moments of comforting, love and caring but also moments of jealousy and uncertainty which I actually really appreciated. The bonds created will receive a new dept that was really amazing to witness and of course there are also the family bonds and friendships that get more attention! 

Lastly, I noticed that this book has a third in a series, but I don't know if I want to read it. It's not that I hated the two books in this series, not at all. In fact I absolutely enjoyed them! However the author made it look like this was the last in the series as the end feels really the end for me. I'm satisfied with it. I think that's a good thing actually, if readers want it to be the end they can but they can also go on and explore further. I did notice that there's a suggestion that opens the way for a third book, but I also thought that it could be a future thing that we wouldn't ever know and didn't really mind that. I'm not sure what I'm going to do, either read on or stop here and make this my ending. Either ways are possible and I like that about the series. 


PS: I actually originally thought that this was a duology! That's why I thought this was the end, until I found out a few minutes ago that there was a third in the series! 



This book shows such a contrast to Alienated! The characters are now more evolved but still show their traits and strengths through the book. I even felt like we finally got to know them a lot more and a lot better, which is a very big asset to this book. Above that the plot takes a whole new turn as the worlds are now reversed: Cara is on the planet L'eihr and Aelyx is on earth. I really loved to see this going that way because both are foreign on the planets and that causes a lot of new things and a lot of adjustment. We finally also got to know the L'eihr culture a lot more because Cara lived there and I must say this culture was nice to explore! To top it all off, the two characters need to make the alliance between the two races stand, but some don't agree and sabotage which gives the plot a taste of action and suspense! I loved this book even more than I did Alienated!

“When you preach hatred, how do you expect your followers to respond?” 

Wednesday, June 7, 2017

New Moon | Audiobook

A little while back, I tried out the first in a series that I had always told myself you will not read it! Yet I haven't been able to resist and although I had my remarks on it, I still wanted to read the rest of the series so that's what I did! I picked up the audiobook of New Moon by Stephenie Meyer and enjoyed this one a lot more than Twilight!

Note: This is not a first in a series, I highly recommend you not to read any further since this is the second book in the series and further developments have been made. If you're interested in the series and haven't read the first story, I have a review on Twilight HERE!


Bella's life is all about Edward Cullen. Now she knows what he is it's even harder for her to stay away. Edward saved Bella once, but not all danger is gone and the more he realizes she's in danger, the more he's turning away from her. Bella is left with a broken heart over Edward's behavior and comfort comes from a very unexpected corner. But is everything how it looks like?

First I'd really love to talk about Bella because I finally know how I feel about her! In my review of Twilight I wrote that I wasn't really sure how to feel about her, but I do now! I like her! It might be because Edward Cullen is less around her side or it might just be the fact that she grew up and didn't overreact as much as she did in the first book. I feel like she behaves herself a lot more mature and that's something I really appreciated about her. 

Above that, Bella is torn over Edward Cullen who is trying acting weird and that causes her to make changes in her life. It isn't about Edward all the time and that made this character also a lot more pleasant. Bella will sort out her feelings after a while and her feelings were so relatable when you're torn over someone that I could also really feel with her. She'll get stronger and more determined in a mature way and not in a childish one. She really feels like a whole other character, one that I appreciate a lot more and also grew a lot more than Bella in Twilight.

As for Edward, of course I still like him. Just as in the review on Twilight he still finds his way toward my heart and I won't be sorry about that! Once again he shows us how mature he can be, and his little childish moments he had in Twilight will also disappear; which I'm grateful for. I felt like in New Moon we saw even a lot more how protective he is over Bella in a less over-romantic way. I really love this protectiveness of Edward in a tender and sweet way instead of the cliche way we saw it in the first book. And just in general, I really love this character for his protectiveness and kindness. 

However this book made a lot more room for other, new, characters to come in and present themselves, something I was very happy about! First of all, I'd like to talk about Charlie. I just adore this character so much and I'm so happy that in this book he was more present. Charlie is a bit like Edwards but then in a different way, he's protective of Bella but makes it seem like that in the little ways which I appreciated a lot. He's very down to earth but a character that's funny and is just really enjoyable! Sometimes he's also so unknowing which made him even funnier. 

As for a character we saw briefly in Twilight, there's Jacob! Also this character was one that I was really happy to see more of because he adds so much to the story. He's different from Edward, he's less stiff and more outgoing but in a sweet way. He'll also take care of her which is another trait in this character that will be loved by readers. Other than that this character really gives more to the story as he'll be very important and is just a very good friend to Bella which made me appreciate him even more. I feel like the movies made him seem so hateful and not good enough, but in the books he's way different (at least that's what my opinion is).

Now the plot was also a whole new thing. Twilight focused on discovering what the Cullens were and the possible danger that comes along with it. This danger that comes with the Cullens will be the first focus point in the book. I really loved to see this part because otherwise it only seems like they were untouchable. Stephenie Meyer really made it clear that danger comes from all different corners and not just the ones you expect. 

This all leads to the protectiveness that Edward brings as he decides this danger is not what he wants from Bella. I did think he'd become protective but what follows was something I don't really feel was something many would see coming, this isn't anything predictable. Of course if you've seen the movies it is predictable but this was one of the movies I absolutely loathed so I don't remember too much of it. That of course sets everything into motion, Bella is sad because he's being like this and she turns to new friends: Jacob.

New Moon brings such a very nice friendship and bond between the characters, it's really something to appreciate and also something that's really relatable. Of course it isn't full of action but it did make us see more about the characters and their interests which I think is an asset to the book.

However for everyone who thinks this would be boring because there is no action, hold up! There is! Things seem solved after Twilight, the bad guy is gone but does it really mean it's solved? Above that certain things will start to seem weird and not as they first seemed to be. New things will come out of the dark and present themselves. This is a bit cryptic, I know and I also bet half of you know what it is but I like to stay not-suggestive for the ones that don't know. These unsolved problems and new things that are looming around will make sure that the reader, next to all the loss and the new friendship, will get mystery and action into the story. The author made a very good balance between this new mystery and the new friendship in the plot! 

Which brings me to the feelings, the first book in the series was very cliche and had me rolling my eyes so much. The romance was just too much and too thick but New Moon really changes all that. There will be place for friendship, loss, funny parts but of course there's still romance. I'm really happy that the romance is much tender and sweeter instead of the over-romantic-eye-rolling-cliche

Lastly, when we finally know what's going on everything will turn upside down! Bella might be acting as if she's alright but she still feels the ache and that makes her a bit crazy which then causes everyone to get a minor heart attack because every crazy thing she does, has consequences... I'm not going to get into details though (but yet again, most of you already know...). That's yet another thing that I appreciated in this book, when you think it's all okay and well it turns out to be different than what you expected! 

A little note for everyone who did see the films but did not read the books: you need to read them. Although the movie really shows a lot of things that happen in the book, I felt like the ending had a lot more to give in the book than in the movie! So if I can make a suggestion: read the books! Although my review on the first book wasn't too good, I have to say New Moon really surprised me by turning out a lot more different than I had expected!

I enjoyed this book far better than Twilight! Even though some characters don't come around as much as I wished them to, other and new characters get a chance to present themselves and to further develop during the story. The mystery towards the other creature in this series and their influence in the story was also something I really enjoyed to see. And of course there are things from the first book that return because they weren't solved, bringing a whole new portion of action and wonder! I also found this book far less cliche and over-romantic which can only be another asset in my opinion! I'm really looking forward to the next book in the series and to seeing the adventure with Edward and Bella!

“Forbidden to remember, terrified to forget; it was a hard line to walk.”