On McPig's Wishlist - Extracted

Tesla and time travel?! I want this book!


Extracted (The Lost Imperials #1)
by Sherry D. Ficklin & Tyler Jolley

Welcome to the war.

The Tesla Institute is a premier academy that trains young time travelers called Rifters. Created by Nicola Tesla, the Institute seeks special individuals who can help preserve the time stream against those who try to alter it.

The Hollows is a rogue band of Rifters who tear through time with little care for the consequences. Armed with their own group of lost teens--their only desire to find Tesla and put an end to his corruption of the time stream.

Torn between them are Lex and Ember, two Rifters with no memories of their life before joining the time war.

When Lex’s girlfriend dies during a mission, the only way he can save her is to retrieve the Dox, a piece of tech which allows Rifters to re-enter their own timeline without collapsing the time stream. But the Dox is hidden deep within the Telsa Institute, which means Lex must go into the enemy camp. It’s there he meets Ember, and the past that was stolen from them both comes flooding back.

Now armed with the truth of who they are, Lex and Ember must work together to save the future before the battle for time destroys them both... again.

Outside In - Book Review

Outside In (Insiders #2)
by Maria V. Snyder

What is it about:
Me?

A leader?

Okay, I did prove that there's more to Inside than we knew.

That a whole world exists beyond this cube we live in. And finding that led to a major rebellion between worker scrubs like me and the snobby uppers who rule our world. Make that ruled. Because of me, we're free. I thought that meant I was off the hook, and could go off on my own again, while still touching base with Riley, of course. He's the one upper I think I can trust. But then we learned that there's outside and then there is Outside.

And something from Outside wants In.

What did I think of it:
I really liked Inside Out, still it took me forever (and a sale) to get my trotters on the sequel.

And now I'm wondering what took me so long, because this book is just as enjoyable as the first.

I will confess there were some things in this book that made me grumble. The whole relationship between Trella and her mother was puke-worthy in my opinion, but I will spare you the rant. The whole switching back and forth between who Trella thought was to be trusted and who wasn't, was tiring at times as well. Especially with Trella thinking she's a good judge of character. Big surprise: she is not!

What I did like was Trella's reluctance to taking charge and changing things. I could understand why she wanted others to make the big decisions, and I liked how she slowly begins to realize that it's better to take charge of your own life.

The overall story is enjoyable and entertaining. I really like the world building and the way the people reacted to the change Trella brought upon their world. it felt realistic.

All in all this was a satisfying conclusion to this duology, although I wouldn't mind if Snyder decides to write other Dystopian/SciFi books.

Why should you read it:
It's a very entertaining Dystopian/SciFi YA read.

Teaser Tuesdays - Of Beast and Beauty

I already finished this book, but had to share this quote.


But maybe that isn't possible. Maybe the mind of the majority is always the healthy mind, simply by virtue of its numbers. Maybe it's the definition of madness to believe I'm right and everyone else is wrong, to find my thoughts rational and reasonable when almost the entire world finds them damaged and flawed.

(page 317, Of Beast and Beauty by Stacey Jay)




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Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following: - Grab your current read - Open to a random page - Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!) - Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

Nice Girls Don't Have Fangs - Book Review

Nice Girls Don't Have Fangs (Jane Jameson #1)
by Molly Harper

What is it about:
Maybe it was the Shenanigans gift certificate that put her over the edge. When children's librarian and self-professed nice girl Jane Jameson is fired by her beastly boss and handed twenty-five dollars in potato skins instead of a severance check, she goes on a bender that's sure to become Half Moon Hollow legend. On her way home, she's mistaken for a deer, shot, and left for dead. And thanks to the mysterious stranger she met while chugging neon-colored cocktails, she wakes up with a decidedly unladylike thirst for blood.

Jane is now the latest recipient of a gift basket from the Newly Undead Welcoming Committee, and her life-after-lifestyle is taking some getting used to. Her recently deceased favorite aunt is now her ghostly roommate. She has to fake breathing and endure daytime hours to avoid coming out of the coffin to her family. She's forced to forgo her favorite down-home Southern cooking for bags of O negative. Her relationship with her sexy, mercurial vampire sire keeps running hot and cold. And if all that wasn't enough, it looks like someone in Half Moon Hollow is trying to frame her for a series of vampire murders. What's a nice undead girl to do?

What did I think of it:
There are a lot of stereotypical characters in this book, including the heroine, but as this is what you probably could call Paranormal Chick-Lit (horrible sounding term, btw) maybe you shouldn't expect too much character depth. This book is all about quirky and funny.

The events are a little out there at times, and predictable as well, but all in all this was a very entertaining and enjoyable read.

There were some unnecessary digs at Goths which annoyed me, but that seems to be all the rage with authors who write about vampires. As if Goths aren't among their readers...

Ok... Moving on from this pet peeve of mine.

The romance was enjoyable as well, although I see a love triangle coming up in later books. That might not be a bad thing in this case, as the love interest was a bit dull in my opinion. But then again the heroine is a 'nice girl', so maybe nice girls don't do love triangles.

Anyway: even though I might sound a bit snarky about this book, I did enjoy it. I might give the second book a try as well, to see if Jane indeed decides to ditch her love interest for someone with a bit more bite :-P

Why should you read it:
It's a fun and enjoyable paranormal read.

How to Navigate Zombie Cave and Defeat Pirate Pete - Book Review

How to Navigate Zombie Cave and Defeat Pirate Pete (Slug Pie Story #1)
by Mick Bogerman

What is it about:
Armed with a pitchfork, miner’s hat, and map, Mick Bogerman dares to hunt for pirate treasure in Zombie Cave. His little brother Finley is tied up at the beach. Literally--Mick tied him up. No one needs a little brother tagging along when you’re going to slay the undead.

But Mick soon wishes he’d taken some human company with him, because lurking in every corner, reaching from every crevice, is another hungry corpse. No wonder the place is named Zombie Cave! And finding treasure in the twisty tunnels is a lot harder when your map disintegrates. And man-oh-man the cold, dark tide chases fast.

But the worst part about fighting off ravenous flesh-eaters is the one monster deadlier than a regular zombie... the worst of the worst... Pirate Pete.

What did I think of it:
Although this book is meant for children between the age of 8 and 12 I can tell you it's a cool read for older readers as well.

Mick goes hunting for gold in Zombie Cave, and the things he encounters are not for the faint of heart. The language in this book might be mild, but the gore and action are plenty. Bogerman sure knows how to write a thrilling adventure full of zombie action.

Mick is a fun lead character. He's resourceful, funny, and mostly knows how to handle himself in a tight situation. I rooted for him to succeed in his quest.

The zombies were my kind of zombies as well: undead, decaying creatures, hungry for human flesh. There were some tense situations, but nothing too scary in my opinion.

For me this was a fast and fun read, and I can advise this book to any zombie lover, and to children who don't shy away from a gory adventure tale. I think I might give the other books in this series a try as well, even though there probably won't be zombies in those.

Why should you read it:
It's a fun and action-packed read.

On McPig's Wishlist - Dark Alchemy

I love Laura Bickle's books, so I'm very excited about this upcoming book:


Dark Alchemy
by Laura Bickle

Geologist Petra Dee arrives in Wyoming looking for clues to her father's disappearance years before. What she finds instead is Temperance, a dying Western town with a gold rush past and a meth-infested present. But under the town's dust and quiet, an old power is shifting.

When bodies start turning up - desiccated and twisted skeletons that Petra can't scientifically explain - her investigations land her in the middle of a covert war between the town's most powerful interests. Petra's father wasn't the only one searching for the alchemical secrets of Temperance, and those still looking are now ready to kill.

Armed with nothing but shaky alliances, a pair of antique guns, and a relic she doesn't understand, the only thing Petra knows for sure is that she and her coyote sidekick are going to have to move fast, or die next.


Expected publication: March 24th 2015 by Harper Voyager Impulse

ACID - Book Review

ACID
by Emma Pass

What is it about:
The year is 2113. In Jenna Strong's world, ACID—the most brutal controlling police force in history—rule supreme. No throwaway comment or whispered dissent goes unnoticed—or unpunished. And it was ACID agents who locked Jenna away for life, for a horrendous crime she struggles to remember. But Jenna's violent prison time has taught her how to survive by any means necessary.

When a mysterious rebel group breaks her out, she must use her strength, speed, and skill to stay one step ahead of ACID, and try to uncover the truth about what really happened on that terrible night two years ago. They have taken her life, her freedom, and her true memories away from her. How can she reclaim anything when she doesn't know who to trust?

What did I think of it:
After reading and loving The Fearless I had to read ACID as well.

And this book doesn't disappoint.

There's lots of action, intrigue, and suspense. Jenna is thrown from one difficult and dangerous situation in the next, with almost no time to take a breath. I very much enjoyed how the story progressed, and how things fitted together.

There are some things that didn't really make sense, or were a bit too obvious, but the story was too cool to really feel annoyed by them. It was easy to suspend disbelief and enjoy the ride.

Overall this book didn't grab me as much as The Fearless did, but it was most certainly a very enjoyable read. I will keep an eye out for Pass' next book.

Why should you read it:
It's a cool, action-packed Dystopian YA read.