Never Fade by Alexandra Bracken

Goodreads Blurb

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?

Oh my holy freaking crap you guys. You guys.

This is a beyond amazing sequel for The Darkest Minds! While The Darkest Minds wasn't my favorite (but still really good!) Never Fade completely blew away every expectation my puny and uncreative brain had. I never could've imagined (or guessed) any freaking thing that happened in this book. My mind has been blown. Utterly shattered.

The plot is definitely the book's strongest point. Starting off with a bang (literally) Never Fade is 500 pages of nonstop action that had me absolutely glued to the book, dying to find out what happened next. There are innumerable plot twists that absolutely made me die inside. (Also, at a certain plot twist, I choked on my chips. During class. And made a totally attractive gagging sound.)
There's action on every page and there's really no way anyone could ever be bored! So much happens in so little time that I actually couldn't keep track of it all! So I got a bit confused. But that's just me.

Ruby is still one kickass heroine and I loved her even though we can't really connect to her. She comes off as a bit cold and emotionless (more than in Darkest Minds) but it's heartbreaking because we know that she still got bothered by things and that she sometimes felt so weak. She starts to warm up quickly though, and soon, she's the strong and fearless heroine we all know and love!
Chubs was the added humor.
Liam was the added sweetness.
Jude was the added adorableness.
Vida was the added kickass.
Seriously, could our characters get more perfect?

Old characters come crawling back from the dumps, new characters are introduced, but either way, you have to love them! Whether it's the evilness, their madness, their kindness, or whatnot, every character ends up touching you (no matter how fast they're ripped away. Trust me. A lot are ripped away.)

Never Fade was an absolutely amazing adventure that let us explore our characters and the world they're stuck in. More stunning than the first, the Darkest Minds sequel is definitely one to pick up--even if you weren't to sure about the first one! Explosive (seriously. EXPLOSIONS!) and heartwrenching, Never Fade is the perfect sequel with a killer ending!

Pages: 512
Genre: Dystopian/Supernatural
Series: The Darkest Minds #2
Publisher: Disney Hyperion
Release Date: October 15, 2013
Rating: 7/5 stars

Waiting on Wednesday

The Iron Traitor by Julie Kagawa

After his unexpected journey into the lands of the fey, Ethan Chase just wants to get back to normal. Well, as "normal" as you can be when you see faeries every day of your life. Suddenly the former loner with the bad reputation has someone to try for-his girlfriend, Kenzie. Never mind that he's forbidden to see her again. 

But when your name is Ethan Chase and your sister is one of the most powerful faeries in the Nevernever, "normal" simply isn't to be. For Ethan's nephew, Keirran, is missing, and may be on the verge of doing something unthinkable in the name of saving his own love. Something that will fracture the human and faery worlds forever, and give rise to the dangerous fey known as the Forgotten. As Ethan's and Keirran's fates entwine and Keirran slips further into darkness, Ethan's next choice may decide the fate of them all.

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  My love for this series is unbeatable. IT IS. SERIOUSLY. I ADORE ADORE ADORE THIS SERIES TO THE ENDS OF THE EARTH. I'm THRILLED they went with the design of the other covers FIRST OF ALL. SECOND OF ALL. *waves* HI KIERRAN. I'M IN LOVE WITH YOUR DAD. JUST SAYING. BUT SQUEEE!!!!!! THERE ARE NO WORDS. THIS IS SO LONG OVERDUE AND I DON'T KNOW WHY I WAITED THIS LONG. But yeah. *EXCITED FEELS*

So sad my other books don't have that "New York Times Bestseller" thing on my copies of the first 4 books...

Another Little Piece by Kate Karyus Quinn

Goodreads Blurb

On a cool autumn night, Annaliese Rose Gordon stumbled out of the woods and into a high school party. She was screaming. Drenched in blood. Then she vanished.
A year later, Annaliese is found wandering down a road hundreds of miles away. She doesn't know who she is. She doesn't know how she got there. She only knows one thing: She is not the real Annaliese Rose Gordon.
Now Annaliese is haunted by strange visions and broken memories. Memories of a reckless, desperate wish . . . a bloody razor . . . and the faces of other girls who disappeared. Piece by piece, Annaliese's fractured memories come together to reveal a violent, endless cycle that she will never escape—unless she can unlock the twisted secrets of her past.

Oh my gosh. Was this creepy or was it creepy? (Spoiler: IT WAS CREEPY.)

I am, obviously, not a very smart person. So when did I read this? Well, I started at 11 PM all the way until 3 AM. And then little ole me just couldn't get to sleep.
So yes, yes it was very creepy. Creepy, but very original and absolutely intriguing. I found myself becoming increasingly and increasingly stunned by both the haunting writing and the brilliant story line. Because this story line was absolutely brilliant. And creepy. We can't forget that.

The worldbuilding/paranormal aspect of this was absolutely chilling too. And very, very disturbing. Fascinatingly so. I could not stop reading despite everything that happened. I love the twist on "Selling your soul to the devil" bit and...well I can't really say more than that or else I spoil everything, don't I?

What the best thing about this was, though, was how there wasn't really a giant twist. It was more like an accumulation of little things that starting clicking together in your brain, until finally you got the full picture. And it's an absolutely twisted picture too. It's amazing what Kate Karyus Quinn has done, giving us little pieces that seem insignificant until we realize just what they mean. It's a bit confusing at first, but once you get used to it, you just have to scramble through every detail, wondering which were important and which were just plain creepy.

My only complaint, though, was that the romance was rushed, but after that initial thought, I learned to love Dex. He...okay, damn, can't say much about that either.
Besides the romance, I did feel as if the plot was a bit slow at times, but intriguing all the same. But when it wasn't slow...oh God, it was definitely quickly paced and had me reeling back in shock when I finally figured something out. And...it was sort of heartbreaking too, near the end. But, you know, can't say anything about that either or it just ruins the entire read.

Dark, twisted, and disturbing, Another Little Piece is one of the best horror/thriller books I've read in a long time and I absolutely have to recommend it to everyone. Chilling to the core, this is definitely a book to pick up and one of the best to read on a stormy night (if you want to pee your pants.) It just sucks you straight in and you can't help but flip through the pages, eager to finally get the whole (creepy) story.

Pages: 419

Genre: Horror/Paranormal

Series: Standalone

Publisher: Harper Teen

Release Date: June 11

Rating: 4 stars

Debut Authors Bash: Kate Karyus Quinn

Hey guys! I know GYDO (my own debut author thing) just ended, but when my friend at YA Reads said that she was hosting a debut author blog hop...well I had to join! And I hadn't managed to snag Kate Karyus Quinn on that, so...well. HERE SHE IS. With a rather epic post from a certain character's POV. 

My review of Another Little Piece goes up tomorrow (Spoiler: I LOVED IT.)
Oh, and there's a giveaway! 

---

Thanks so much Nikki for having me on your blog and giving me such an awesome assignment for the YA Debut Author Bash! It was so much fun to dive back into Dex’s head after having spent so much time away from him. Anyone who’s read ANOTHER LITTLE PIECE can probably tell that I like the guy quite a lot. And for anyone who hasn’t read ALP, I have a quick warning that this is a teensy bit spoilery – so read with caution!

Nikki’s Question to Dex:

How did you feel when Annaliese came back?

And Dex’s answer:

Here’s the thing about watching someone die: it feels pretty final. Of course, when someone goes the way that Annaliese did: all screaming and covered in blood—you know you’ll be seeing them in your dreams, or nightmares to be more accurate, for years to come.

Since I have this little problem with seeing how people die, well I’d already been seeing that particular vision for years anyhow, so it wasn’t anything new to me… except that I no longer worried about trying to save her. I’d failed. And that’s a test you can’t retake.

Or so I thought.

So how did I feel when I saw Annaliese? I should have been overjoyed just like everyone else. Somehow she’d miraculously survived and was being returned home.

Except.

She was dead. I knew she was dead. And dead people come home in body bags or maybe even as ghostly spirits, but not the way Annaliese did.

She was alive, fully alive. Flesh. Blood. Breathing. Smiling in the same uncertain way she always did, peering out from behind her long hair. No, that’s not right. The long hair had been cut so that only a few spiky inches of hair were left. Still being dead should change more than your hairstyle. Generally it changes ones entire lifestyle.

So what was the deal? I didn’t know. I didn’t want to know.

The truth is: I was scared. I guess somewhere along the line I’d gotten used to seeing the different ways that people might die, but this was the first time I’d seen someone come back to life and I did not really care to know exactly how that sausage got made. I didn’t want any part of Annaliese’s miracle.

I decided to stay as far away from her as possible. But seeing as how I lived next door, that wasn’t nearly far enough away and soon my curiosity got the better of me. And then I got to know Annaliese and then I started thinking the most dangerous thing of all: Maybe I wanted her to keep being whatever weird and totally wrong thing she’d come back as.

And worse yet… Maybe I liked her better this way.

Another Little Piece Blurb
On a cool autumn night, Annaliese Rose Gordon stumbled out of the woods and into a high school party. She was screaming. Drenched in blood. Then she vanished.
A year later, Annaliese is found wandering down a road hundreds of miles away. She doesn't know who she is. She doesn't know how she got there. She only knows one thing: She is not the real Annaliese Rose Gordon.
Now Annaliese is haunted by strange visions and broken memories. Memories of a reckless, desperate wish . . . a bloody razor . . . and the faces of other girls who disappeared. Piece by piece, Annaliese's fractured memories come together to reveal a violent, endless cycle that she will never escape—unless she can unlock the twisted secrets of her past.

Author Bio

Kate Karyus Quinn is an avid reader and menthol ChapStick addict. She has lived in California and Tennessee, but recently made the move back to her hometown of Buffalo, New York, with her husband and two children in tow. She promised them wonderful people, amazing food, and weather that would . . . build character. Another Little Piece is her first novel.

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GYDO 2013 Wrap Up

AND GYDO IS OVER! 

I hope you met some fabulous YA authors and found a few more books to add to your TBR! And hopefully win a prize? This was definitely an awesome month and hope y'all had funnnnn! What was your favorite post and what do you hope to see next year?

And in case you missed any, here are all the posts.
Jordana Frankel, Author of THE WARD
Cristin Terrill, Author of ALL OUR YESTERDAYS
Jennifer Rush, Author of ALTERED
Kasie West, Author of PIVOT POINT
Sarah Skilton, Author of BRUISED
Liz Coley, Author of PRETTY GIRL-13
April Tucholke, Author of BETWEEN THE DEVIL AND THE DEEP BLUE SEA
Rachel Alpine, Author of CANARY
Amy Christine Parker, Author of GATED
Kelly Fiore, Author of TASTE TEST
Ashley Elston, Author of RULES FOR DISAPPEARING
Lenore Appelhans, Author of MEMORIES OF AFTER
Erin Bowman, Author of TAKEN
Amy Greenfield, Author of CHANTRESS
Miriam Forster, Author of CITY OF A THOUSAND DOLLS
Amanda Sun, Author of INK
Mindy McGinnis, Author of NOT A DROP TO DRINK
Elizabeth May, Author of THE FALCONER
Christina Desir, Author of FAULT LINE
Sara B. Larson, Author of DEFY
Phoebe North, Author of STARGLASS
Romily Bernard, Author of FIND ME
Imogen Howson, Author of LINKED
Josin McQuein, Author of ARCLIGHT
Mary Gray, Author of THE DOLLHOUSE ASYLUM
Bethany Hagen, Author of LANDRY PARK
Lydia Kang, Author of CONTROL

Soooo...yeah! Tons of awesome authors and a lot of giveaways, both INT and US! Can't wait until next year! 

GYDO: Lydia Kang

Lydia Kang, Author of Control

When I starting writing, I didn’t realize that I’d have to become my protagonist’s worst nightmare. Fellow writers would advise, “Don’t go easy on your main character. Put them through hell! Make them suffer! Don’t hold back!” Because a tepid story about a character who’s happy with no problems is, well, boring. As in, watching-paint-dry boring.

So let’s look at some of the terrible things I’ve done to Zelia Benten, the main character of CONTROL:

I’ve made her runty and not too pretty.

I’ve made her a lab science geek. (Okay, that is debatable, since I actually think that’s cool but maybe for Zelia, it didn’t exactly make her social life blossom.)

I tore her family apart.

I gave her a life-threatening illness she has to live with, day in and day out.

I gave her enemies within the one sanctuary where she could be safe.

I made her hair frizzy. Really, really frizzy.

I had this really freaky-looking, monstrous guy chase her in a club. A guy with black teeth.

I revealed secrets about her life that made her question everything she knew and trusted.

I hurt the people she loves in some wretched ways.

Basically, I was Queen Mean to Zelia.

But hey, she’s got her work cut out for her, right? You’ll have to read the book to see if she overcomes these mighty obstacles. Oh, and whether or not she gets a good makeover!*

*which may or may not happen in the book. Okay, okay. She does gets a makeover. Because I love makeovers. But it’s only temporary. J

Control Blurb
When a crash kills their father and leaves them orphaned, Zel knows she needs to protect her sister, Dyl. But before Zel has a plan, Dyl is taken by strangers using bizarre sensory weapons, and Zel finds herself in a safe house for teens who aren’t like any she’s ever seen before—teens who shouldn't even exist. Using broken-down technology, her new friends’ peculiar gifts, and her own grit, Zel must find a way to get her sister back from the kidnappers who think a powerful secret is encoded in Dyl’s DNA.
A spiraling, intense, romantic story set in 2150—in a world of automatic cars, nightclubs with auditory ecstasy drugs, and guys with four arms—this is about the human genetic “mistakes” that society wants to forget, and the way that outcasts can turn out to be heroes.

Author Bio

Lydia Kang is a young adult fiction author, part-time doc, salt-lover, geek-girl, and hyphen addict. She is represented by Eric Myers of the Spieler Agency, and her YA sci-fi novel, CONTROL (Dial Books for Young Readers/Penguin) releases in December 2013 and its sequel CATALYST (Kathy Dawson Books/Penguin) arrives Fall 2014.

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