“When sixteen-year-old Tessa Gray arrives in England during the reign of Queen Victoria, something terrifying is waiting for her in London’s Downworld, where vampires, warlocks and other supernatural folk stalk the gas lit streets.  Friendless and hunted, Tessa takes refuge with the Shadowhunters, a band of warriors dedicated to ridding the world of demons. Drawn even deeper into their world, she finds herself fascinated – and torn between- two best friends and quickly realizes that love may be the most dangerous magic of all.”

Clockwork Angel is the first novel in the Infernal Devices series and is the prequel to the highly successful Mortal Instruments Series by Cassandra Clare. Over the past few weeks I’ve been hearing reviews mostly to the tune of “ZOMG, SO GOOD”, in regards to this book. So, not that I needed much encouragement, having already been a die-hard fan of The Mortal Instruments, I decided to see what all the fuss was about.

The story is set in Victorian London and centers on Tessa Gray who has just arrived from New York to join her brother Nate after the death of their Aunt. Tessa barely sets foot on English soil before she’s kidnapped by The Dark Sisters – a wicked pair of warlocks who have hidden Nate and taken him hostage. In return for her brother’s safety Tessa is tortured into uncovering a shape shifting ability she never knew she had.

The Magister knew of it though. He is the leader of the Pandemonium Club, a mysterious club where humans and Downworlders (vampires, warlocks, faeries, werewolves) mix and he wants control of Tessa’s unique ability.

While uncovering murders linked to the club, Tessa is discovered and rescued by the Shadowhunters – Nephilim who are the children of Angels and humans who have sworn to protect humans from demons. Taking refuge at the London Institute Tessa enlists the help of the Shadowhunters to find her brother while she helps them uncover the dark plan to wipe out their kind…

When Clockwork Angel arrived in the mail I did a bit of a dance, I was that excited. I was Shadowhunter starved! A year had passed since her last book release and I was missing the sarcasm that Cassandra Clare does so well, and she definitely delivered. It took a bit of time in the beginning to adjust to the new time period and things took a bit of time to get going because a whole lot of groundwork needed to be laid before the story was able to gain some speed.

There’s no shortage of action in this book and can be quite creepy at times thanks to the evil clockwork minions of the Magister, made from the bodies of the dead. That, plus London’s notoriously bleak weather give the book quite a dark quality.

For me, Cassandra Clare’s standout talent as a writer is her ability to create such loveable, dynamic characters. The new characters we meet in this story are no exception. We see a few familiar last names – Herondale, Lightwood, Wayland, all being the ancestors of the characters were knew and loved from The Mortal Instruments (including Magnus Bane!) We’re also presented with a bunch of new characters as well.

It probably wasn’t until Magnus showed up though that I realized just how much I had missed the Shdowhunter world. He was his charming self as always and even though in this book his appearance was briefer than I’d have preferred, he was still great. Plus, it’s Magnus that leaves us with a great cliffhanger right at the end.

Our main character, Tessa, definitely has spunk.  She’s a lady with all the politeness and proper manners that go hand –in-hand with the time period, but when it comes down to it she puts up a hell of a fight and has a comeback for any snarky comment Will throws her way.

Speaking of Will; this guy is badass. His only downfall is that he’s also an a-hole. With his dark hair and blue eyes he’s beautifully sexy and has the kind of wit and classic one-liners that we’ve come to love from Jace in TMI. As Jace’s ancestor it’s clear that’s one of the character traits he’s passed down. Like most characters in this book, Will has a dark and mysterious past, which is apparently the reason he’s a jerk to most people and keeps them at arm’s length. Everyone except his best friend and parabatai, Jem.

Jem though, has dark secrets of his own, secrets which are destroying him from the inside out. He’s the only one who’s been able to get close to Will and balances out Will’s snark with his calm, soothing demeanor. With his silver hair and musical skills Jem’s a charmer simply by being a gentleman. He catches your attention with his subtleties.

The blurb hypes the three of them to be caught in a fierce love triangle but it’s not really the case – at least not in this book. It seems clear which of the two boys Tessa prefers (but if she was smart she wouldn’t…) but we’ll see how that’ll unfold in the next books.

There’s no denying there’s a well thought out plot here. Though it seems the plot moves Tessa rather than her driving the plot, it still twists, turns and weaves brilliantly, especially at the end – right when you think you know where everyone stands, it gets turned on its head which was really great. It was also great to see Shadowhunters from the perspective of a Downworlder, at times it made them appear very elitist and superior.

We also get to see the role of women during the period from different angles from each of the ladies we meet in the book. From Jessamine who wants a more traditional life, to Charlotte who is bending the rules and pushing the boundaries of what is acceptable for a lady to do (and without a corset too!)

By the end there are still so many questions left hanging you double check the last page to see if there’s even a sentence or two more to answer at least one, but no such luck.

This is a stunning novel and it’s going to be an agonizing wait for the next book but I know it’ll be worth it. It’s a fresh take on a period piece so expect action, many lines of great, quotable dialogue, a bit of romance and plenty of Shadowhunter mystery. A huuuuuuge thumbs up!

Pages: 488
Publication Date: August 31^st 2010
Rating: :

Teaser Quote:  “That was enterprising,” Will sounded nearly impressed.

Nate smiled. Tessa shot him a furious look. “Don’t look pleased with yourself. When Will says ‘enterprising’ he means ‘morally deficient.’”

“No, I mean enterprising,” said Will. “When I mean morally deficient, I say, ‘Now, that’s something I would have done.”

The Real World is  frightening place.

Just ask sixteen-year-old orphan, Dru Anderson, a tough girl who has taken on her fair share of bad guys. She’s armed, dangerous, and not going down without a fight. So it’s going to take her a while to figure out who she can trust…

Dru and Graves finally made it to the Schola Prima – the djampir training facility she was originally supposed to head to when Christophe rescued her from the evil clutches of his dad. Now their finally here, Dru should be able to relax and let her guard down a little, right?

Wrong.

Although she’s obviously supposed to feel safe in an environment like this, Dru knows better. Someone is trying to have her killed, and until she figures out exactly who that is, she’s not trusting anyone.

Except Graves, of course. She trusts him with her life. Apart from her deceased family, she’s never trusted anyone so much, ever.

And Christophe. Even though she’s not so sure she should, Dru trusts him too. But she doesn’t tell this to Graves, who thinks there’s more than meets the eye to Christophe. Or maybe its just that he’s jealous of the hold that Christophe seems to have over Dru. So when Dru decides to be plain and clear about her feelings for Graves, she’s more than a little confused when he pushes her away.

He liked her, right? What was he waiting for?

And so starts the frustrating game that is Dru and Graves. He says its not the right time, that she’s got too much going on, and maybe he’s right. But that doesn’t make it any easier, lessen the sting of rejection she’s trying so hard not to feel.

Dru find opposition from Anna – the other svetocha living at the Scholar Prima – and things take a turn for the worse.

Then, almost as if it were right on cue, the vampire attack happens. They’re after Dru – that much is obvious – but they’re not discriminating who they take down in the process. Dru and her friends become injured, and Graves … well, he’s nowhere to be found.

Suddenly, the game changes, and all Dru cares about, all she can think about, is finding where he is.

Is he still alive? God, she certainly hopes so.

Readers are treated to a different side of Dru in Jealousy. Her strong, fierce exterior is shelved for a while as she tries to negotiate her feelings for Graves, and the mess that has become her life. She doubts herself, misses her family desperately, and searches for a little comfort in a cold, hard world that affords her none. She’s still that kick-ass heroine we’ve all come to know and love, but this time, her human, sixteen-year-old adolescnet side just shines a little brighter than it did in the last two books.

Jealousy is an outstanding addition to the Strange Angels series. Dru’s world is one I love to get lost in, time and time again.

Publication: July 2010 (available now)

Pages: 316

Rating::

Teaser Quote: He was full of surprises, my Goth Boy.

Fans of teen vampire fiction are going to love this contest. Thanks to Little Brown UK we have four of the House of Night novels to giveaway to one lucky winner. Unfortunately, we’re not in posession of the entire series, but the titles we are offering are:

To win one of these awesome prize packs you need to do one or more of the following:

• Comment on this post with your email address.
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Leave a comment on this post outlining exactly how many of the above options you participated in with the link/s for proof. If you’re not comfortable displaying your email in public, you can send us your email address at yareadscontest(at)gmail(dot)com.

Each option will get you a new entry.

Competition closes Friday July 31.

The teen vampire genre is enjoying a good run at the moment. It seems every time I walk into a bookstore, a new author has released a vampire novel of some kind. So when I picked up Vampire Academy, I did so with hesitation. And as it turns out, my hesitation wasn’t exactly unwarranted.

Vampire Academy is the first novel in an ongoing series and is narrated through the eyes of Rose Hathaway. She’s a Guardian-in-training and it is her job to protect Lissa Dragomir – who is not only a Moroi Princess, but also Rose’s best friend. But Rose is not your average student Guardian. She can see inside Lissa’s mind and can feel all of her best friend’s emotions. And Lissa is pretty special too; she has  very rare healing abilities that have only been seen a couple of times in all of vampire history. Oh yes, and they’re both heartbreakingly stunning. The boys love them, and the girls love to hate them.

Rose is a likeable enough character. She’s sassy, feisty and fiercely loyal. She’s quick to fly off the handle, so Vampire Academy is never without at least a little action. And it’s certainly not without its romance. Rose has a bit of a reputation as a player, but that’s the thing about reputations – you can never really tell if their genuine or made from gossip. Will her reputation deter Dimitri – her Guardian mentor – or will he allow himself to make up his own mind?

Rose’s mental connection with Lissa is an interesting narrative tool which allows readers to follow Lissa’s story quite closely, too. Because Rose feels all that Lissa does, readers are also invited to identify with her, as well as Rose. For me, however, Lissa proved to be nothing more than a shallow narrative agent which provides conflict and drama for Rose to deal with.

Unfortunately, Rose’s voice did not draw me in to the point where I was utterly hooked. It would be unfair to say that I was bored, because I wasn’t, but I certainly had to concentrate on the reading process. I had to force myself to become invested in the story and develop a connection with the characters.

If someone gave me the sequels, I’d read them. However, I’m in no rush to go out and buy them for myself. Vampire Academy is not a bad read, but it’s certainly nothing to brag to your friends about.

Rating: :

This is the second installment in the Morganville Vampire novels. You can find the review to the first, Glass Houses, here

When Claire Danvers went off to college early, she thought her biggest problems would be keeping up with classes, and fitting in. Boy, was she ever wrong. You see, Claire made the mistake of choosing a college in Morganville – the one town in all of America that is run by the undead. And where there are vampires, there is also trouble.

Dead Girls’ Dance picks up exactly where Glass Houses left off. Michael Glass, owner of the house she lives in, and Claire’s good friend, is lying on a heap in the floor, dead. But Claire, Shane and Eve have no time to grieve; Shane’s Dad is in town and he’s causing all kinds of trouble. Claire, Shane and Eve find themselves in the middle of a messy battle.

Nothing is as it seems in Morganville though, and Dead Girls’ Dance is full of unexpected twists and turns. The occupants of the Glass House suddenly find themselves under the protection of Amelie – Morganville’s most powerful vampire. Having protection means Claire can go back to class, Eve can go back to work, and Shane can go back to doing the same old nothing he was doing before their protection was activated. But who has time for all those things when someone always wants them dead?

Readers get to know the characters of this series a little more in this installment. The narrative uncovers Shane’s dark history, and affords readers some insight into why he is so full of angst. The difficulties Eve has with her family are also explored, providing an added plot twist that you won’t see coming! And what about Michael, lying in a broken heap on their lounge room floor? Well, Michael has more secrets than you think…

In Glass Houses readers were tortured with a whole lot of pent up sexual tension between Shane and Claire. Shane even made a deal with a vampire to keep Claire safe. Dead Girls’ Dance throws a few more romantic ingredients into their story and the tension between them reaches an all time high. The problem is, Claire still isn’t legal, and Shane isn’t exactly getting younger. So how will they deal with their feelings for each other? Never before has a bad boy been this attractive. Shane is drool worthy in every sense of the word, and this novel shows that love conquers all boundaries and can change a person forever.

Rachel Caine proves once again that she is the master of action and suspense. Dead Girls’ Dance is so fast paced that you just wont be able to turn the pages quick enough. So strap on your seat belts and join your favorite characters on their roller-coaster ride into hell and back.

Rating: :

Glass Houses is the first book in the Morganville vampire books. It was published back in 2006 but only now seems to be getting the recognition it deserves. As far as vampire stories go, this one pretty much hits the nail in the coffin!

Claire Danvers is just sixteen years old, but she has already moved out of home and started her college education. College, however, is not all it’s cracked up to be. The girls in Claire’s dorm are huge bullies, and Claire has become their target. They steal her clothes, break into her room and push her around in the halls. One day, sporting a black eye and fearing for her safety, Claire decides enough is enough and seeks lodgings off campus. She moves into the Glass House where she meets Eve, Michael and Shane. But as it turns out, Claire isn’t really any safer living in her new home because Morganville is actually run by a bunch of undead vampires, and the girls who gave her a black eye have their protection.

Citizens of Morganville can’t go outside after dark because, unlike so many other vamps in YA novels today, these vampires are strictly nocturnal. Morganville vampires are created according to the more traditional vamp conventions. Sunlight kills them, they don’t like garlic or holy water, and they can’t come inside your house without being invited first.

But vampires and bullies aren’t all Claire has to worry about. After moving into the Glass House, she starts having warm fuzzy feelings for her housemate, Shane. The problem is, Shane is eighteen – nearly nineteen, in fact – and Claire is still very underage. When Claire realises that Shane likes her too, will they complicate their living situation by acting on their feelings, or will they keep their raging teenage hormones at bay? Caine has a knack for drawing the reader into this love story without giving too much away. As the last page comes to a close readers will be screaming for more details about Claire and Shane.

To complicate things even more, Claire can’t tell her parents that she is in trouble at school, or that she has moved off campus because they will make her move back home – and that is not what Claire wants at all. With the taste of independence in her mouth, the idea of moving back in with her parentals is a shuddering thought. What will happen when they show up in town for a random visit? How will she explain that she’s living in the most unsafe town in all of America in such a way that they wont force her to move back home with them? And more importantly, what will they think of Claire’s older boyfriend?

As well as being a compelling, action-packed fantasy read, this novel highlights some pertinent problems plaguing teens all over the world. If you’ve got overprotective parents, or you’ve ever been picked on at school, then you’ll find it easy to relate to Claire.

Glass House is well written, easy to follow and utterly engrossing. I read it, and its three sequels in just two days. Rachel Caine is quite obviously a fan of a good cliff hanger so be warned that the last page might leave you literally begging for more. I recommend buying all Morganville books at once, because once you pop the first page, you just won’t be able to stop!

Rating: :

**As this is the third novel in an ongoing series, we highly recommend finding (and reading) the first two novels before diving into this one*

Schuyler Van Alen is not just your average run of the mill vampire. She is part of Manhattan’s most popular and elite of all Blue Blood vampires, and life for Schuyler just became very, very complicated. She isn’t like the other vampires in her society – they all remember the details of their past lives, they all know where they come from. Schuyler, however, is a new spirit. She has no memories of her previous lives because this life is her first. As if being a teenager isn’t hard enough, the third instalment in Melissa De La Cruz’s Blue Bloods vampire series – Revelations – finds Schuyler tackling problems that transcend your regular teenage, adolescent dramas. Or do they?

After the death of her Grandmother, Schuyler suddenly finds herself living with the Force’s, against her will. Waking up to the sound of Mimi Force’s voice every morning isn’t exactly Schuyler’s idea of fun. It’s bad enough that she has to see Mimi every day at school, now that the two girls are permanent housemates, Schuyler’s home-life has taken a turn for the worse. To make things even more complicated, living with the Force’s also means sharing a roof with the one boy that Schuyler loves more than life itself. Shame that Jack Force is Mimi’s “twin”, and her destined life partner. Jack and Mimi share a bond so strong that such a bond has never been successfully broken in all of vampire history. Devoted fans, however, would be well aware of the growing sexual tension between Jack and Schuyler. Will living in the same house finally tip their attraction over the edge? And if so, what would be the cost? These were definitely the questions burning on my lips as I picked up this novel, and while I can safely say that Revelations does in fact reveal some of the answers the fandom seek, closure on the matter seems a long way off. As the epilogue comes to a close, I couldn’t help but feel that the narrative does a one-eighty, and readers end up back at the beginning, asking the same questions, pondering the outcome in much the same way we were at the end of Masquerade.

While it has never been easy to like Mimi, readers might be surprised to find Schuyler is a little less likable than she was in previous novels. I hope for the sake of our protagonist that the questionable decisions she makes in Revelations are simply the result of immature, adolescent hormones, rather than a complete shift in her character and personality.

As I turned the last page, I found myself exhaling and feeling slightly frustrated that I would most likely have to wait an entire year for the next instalment. But I have to give De La Cruz props for her focus on action and drama. So much happens in such a short space of time that dwelling on specific events is never really an option. And although I feel a little ripped off in terms of closure, it is that exact feeling that will undoubtedly find me hanging for the next novel.

Rating: :