Wednesday, March 26, 2014

Divergent by Veronica Roth

Synopsis
In Beatrice Prior's dystopian Chicago, society is divided into five factions, each dedicated to the cultivation of a particular virtue—Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent). On an appointed day of every year, all sixteen-year-olds must select the faction to which they will devote the rest of their lives. For Beatrice, the decision is between staying with her family and being who she really is—she can't have both. So she makes a choice that surprises everyone, including herself.
During the highly competitive initiation that follows, Beatrice renames herself Tris and struggles to determine who her friends really are—and where, exactly, a romance with a sometimes fascinating, sometimes infuriating boy fits into the life she's chosen. But Tris also has a secret, one she's kept hidden from everyone because she's been warned it can mean death. And as she discovers a growing conflict that threatens to unravel her seemingly perfect society, she also learns that her secret might help her save those she loves . . . or it might destroy her.
Debut author Veronica Roth bursts onto the literary scene with the first book in the Divergent series—dystopian thrillers filled with electrifying decisions, heartbreaking betrayals, stunning consequences, and unexpected romance.
 
Review
What can I say about Divergent? I found Divergent probably a year ago. I happened to read the first 5 chapters at the local bookstore one day while I was killing time. I was only planning on reading the first chapter, and ended up not being able to put it down. I was considering buying the book that day, but ended up walking away from it. A few months later I finally bought the Kindle version....but it sat on my Kindle while I continued to put more books in front of Divergent in my read order. 
 
Finally when I realized that the movie was coming out soon, I wanted to make sure I read the book before the movie so I kicked my butt in gear and got reading. I fell in love again. I read through it fairly quickly considering my busy schedule currently. Probably about a third through the book I realized that I loved it more than The Hunger Games. Divergent is constantly compared to The Hunger Games and The Hunger Games has been getting continuously high ratings. So realizing that I love Divergent more than The Hunger Games is crazy. 
 
I finished the book the night before my husband and I went to the movie and I love the story. My husband said it best after watching the movie, "I love The Hunger Games, but I think I love Divergent more. Divergent just seems to have more substance." The characters just seemed to be more real and there seemed to be more story behind the revolution. I feel like because the revolution started in the first book that there will be a lot more storyline for the next two books. 
 
Overall, I absolutely loved Divergent and I can't wait to dig into the rest of the series now. 
 
Purchase Links
Kindle: http://www.amazon.com/Divergent-Veronica-Roth-ebook/dp/B004CFA9RS/ref=sr_1_7?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1395878620&sr=1-7&keywords=divergent
 
Amazon:   http://www.amazon.com/Divergent-Veronica-Roth/dp/0062024035/ref=tmm_pap_title_0?ie=UTF8&qid=1395878620&sr=1-7


Gabriel's Redemption by Sylvain Reynard

Synopsis
From the author of the New York Times bestsellers Gabriel’s Rapture and Gabriel’s Inferno comes the epic conclusion to the captivating romantic trilogy.

Professor Gabriel Emerson has left his position at the University of Toronto to embark on a new life with his beloved Julianne. Together, he’s confident that they can face any challenge. And he’s eager to become a father.

But Julianne’s graduate program threatens Gabriel’s plans, as the pressures of being a student become all consuming. When she is given the honor of presenting an academic lecture at Oxford, Gabriel is forced to confront Julianne about the subject of her presentation—research that conflicts with his own. And in Oxford, several individuals from their past appear, including an old nemesis intent on humiliating Julia and exposing one of Gabriel’s darkest secrets.

In an effort to confront his remaining demons, Gabriel begins a quest to discover more about his biological parents, beginning a chain of events that has startling repercussions for himself, Julianne, and his hope of having a family.

Review
"Gabriel's Redemption" was the third installment of the "Gabriel" series. When I read "Gabriel's Inferno" and "Gabriel's Rapture" I flew right through them. I had a lot of issue getting through "Gabriel's Redemption" as fast as the first two books. The first half of the story went very slowly for me, but after that midway mark, I finally got into the story a lot more. I can't really put my finger on what it was that made it a slow read for me, but by the end of the book I really enjoyed it. I felt like it was a great end to the series. A friend of mine had read it prior to me finishing and she kept asking me where I was at, because she said that she wanted to know my reaction to the end. I won't spoil it for anyone, but I will say very close to the end of the book I wanted to throw the book across the room and never finish reading it because I didn't want the series to be ruined for me....but I stuck it out and I ended up very happy with the ending.

Purchase Links
Kindle: http://www.amazon.com/Gabriels-Redemption-Inferno-Trilogy-ebook/dp/B00CDUVUP4/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1395877970&sr=1-1&keywords=gabriel%27s+redemption

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Gabriels-Redemption-Inferno-Trilogy/dp/0425266516/ref=tmm_pap_title_0?ie=UTF8&qid=1395877970&sr=1-1

Cage (Corps Security) by Harper Sloan

Synopsis
**Warning** This book is intended for a mature reading**

"Alpha heroes you'll want to kidnap and keep, heroines to root for, and sizzling love scenes with emotional punch." Carly Phillips, NY Times Bestselling Author

Greg Cage was born to protect. While growing up, he was his mother and sister’s shield against the world… until he failed. For the last decade, he has carried that guilt and need for vengeance around… until it was stripped from him. Now, with his best friend getting married and no longer needing his protection, he is even more lost, completely adrift, and desperate for some control. All he has ever known was how to protect: his family, his friends, and his country. Can he go against everything he has ever known, and give up that control?

Melissa Larson will never let anyone hold the reins in her life. She has been the rock in her family for more years than she can remember, and the fight to keep them together is her main priority right now. She has always been fiercely independent and proud. The last thing she will ever do is ask for someone else’s help. But when that choice is out of her control, forcing her to rely on others to save her and her family, and pick up the pieces that are left, will she be able to let someone else be her strength?

The second Greg locks eyes with Meli, he knows that she is someone he needs. Someone he craves. Meli knew the second she met Greg that he would be nothing but trouble and heartache. Her life takes an unexpected turn, and that bitch Fate is back to wreak more havoc on another member of the Corps family.

All hell breaks loose, leaving Greg no choice but to call in a favor. He hooks back up with his old friend Braxxon Breaker from the Breakneck MC. Together, they make sure that nothing threatens anyone Greg loves again.

CAGE is a complete story with a HEA.

Review
Having just come off reading "Axel," book one in the Corps Security series by Harper Sloan, I was extremely excited for this book. I was pleased with how "Cage" turned out. I still liked "Axel" better, but the "Cage" story wasn't just a copy of the "Axel" story, which would have been the easy-out for Harper Sloan.

The story follows Cage and Melissa. Cage is Axel's friend and Melissa is Izzy. Their relationship starts out in a strange way, but witnessing both Cage and Melissa coming to the realization that they are actually capable of loving and being loved is an amazing thing to witness. They have some ups and downs throughout the relationship, and the epilogue was the icing on the cake for this book.

Purchase Links
Kindle: http://www.amazon.com/Cage-Corps-Security-Book-2-ebook/dp/B00F28ICBE/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1395876611&sr=1-1&keywords=cage+harper+sloan