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3.9 AVERAGE
3.9 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Soooo, this book was close to 5 stars for me. I was coming out of a huge book hangover and didn't have the urge to read anything. And then someone mentioned this book. I'd never heard of it and went into it blind. The only thing I really knew was that it was about Tarot cards. With no real expectations, I was pleasantly surprised. Serial killer, tarot cards, zombies, apocalypse. What's not to love? But trust me, you may think you know what this book could be about after the list I just gave, but I guarantee you don't.
I don't want to say much because I think going into this story blind is the best option. It was definitely a page turner for me. I'm glad I found a book that stopped me from going into the huge reading slump that always happens after I end up with such a book hangover from the book I just finished.
I will say, though, if you are looking for romance, this is so not the book for you. This is the main reason I gave it 4 stars.
The next paragraph could be considered a slight spoiler, so be warned if you haven't read it :)
It just felt like Evie and Jackson's relationship would end up in this big reveal at the end about why he is such an asshole and they would end up together....I'm still confused as to what their status is now that the book is over..... It doesn't bother me if a book doesn't have some type of romantic relationship, but the author hinted at it the entire book, and then nothing happened. Maybe later in the series?
I don't want to say much because I think going into this story blind is the best option. It was definitely a page turner for me. I'm glad I found a book that stopped me from going into the huge reading slump that always happens after I end up with such a book hangover from the book I just finished.
I will say, though, if you are looking for romance, this is so not the book for you. This is the main reason I gave it 4 stars.
The next paragraph could be considered a slight spoiler, so be warned if you haven't read it :)
It just felt like Evie and Jackson's relationship would end up in this big reveal at the end about why he is such an asshole and they would end up together....I'm still confused as to what their status is now that the book is over..... It doesn't bother me if a book doesn't have some type of romantic relationship, but the author hinted at it the entire book, and then nothing happened. Maybe later in the series?
Poison Princess
By Kresley Cole
Arcana Chronicles #2
This is the most deliciously addictive series that I have read in a very long time. I have had this book for years but have never gotten around to reading it, probably because I read that is it for Young Adults and I thought that meant, at the very worst, Nickolodean or Disney Channel or, at the very best, high school girls worried about their popularity and vying to be top cheerleader. Boy, was I wrong. In fact, I’m going to go out on a limb and say this is really stretching the YA genre. That is not a criticism by far because I would have put the book down if it had been too teenagery. It was not at all. In fact, it was dark yet still had Kresley Cole’s signature sarcastic humor in it. I could not put the book down. I read it until I saw light coming through my curtains and only stopped reading because of exhaustion.
The cast does consist of teenagers but these kids have way more important things to worry about than who gets to be popular or not.
Evangeline or Evie has been having visions and nightmares. She also hears voices speaking to her. Her mom sent her to a psychiatric hospital during the summer because of it but Evie is now back home and ready to go back to school. None of her friends know where she was for the summer, not even her boyfriend Brandon. Nobody really questioned her because all of her friends went away for the summer as all rich kids do during the summer.
She is still having visions, nightmares and hearing voices but she thinks she can just ignore them and hold on for two more years until she finishes school and keep her mom from throwing her into the mental hospital again. She loves school and everyone there loves her so everything should go smooth for her. She is wrong.
There are new kids from the swamps starting at her school…Cajuns. One of them, Jackson Deveaux, keeps staring at her like he hates her but also wants to eat her up at the same time. She is unnerved by it because she is strangely attracted to him even though she has the perfect boyfriend.
Meanwhile, her visions and nightmares are getting worse. Weird things are happening to her and she cannot tell a soul so she draws it all in her secret journal.
There are some spoilers below.
When disaster strikes, she turns to Jackson to help her on her journey to discover what is going on with her.
I liked Jackson even though I felt like a pervert for thinking he was so hot and his Cajun accent was so sexy. I liked how he pushed Evie’s buttons because she needed to be pushed a little because she had been way too pampered in her life. The tension between them was palpable.
When I finally figured out what was happening in the book, I got really excited. I love the premise and plotline. Evie has been thrown into a post-apocalyptic world where she is pitted against 21 other teenagers or young adults. The players are all characters from the trump cards of a Tarot deck and only one will be standing at the end. They have to kill each other. Her greatest enemy is the Death Card who is gunning for her more than anyone else. She has to make alliances in order to survive.
She decides to travel from Louisiana to North Carolina to find her grandmother, if she is alive, who knows everything about this sick game but there are more than just the other players as obstacles. There is very little water or plant life left in the world and there now humans who have been transformed into bloodsucking mutants who crave water and blood but never quench their thirst. There are also militant groups taking over everything and they are abducting any female out there because not many females survived the Flash (A flash of light like a solar flare that turned anyone who was outdoors into ash). She has a long road ahead of her.
I have already started the second book and I’m loving it.
www.paranormalromanceslut.com
By Kresley Cole
Arcana Chronicles #2
This is the most deliciously addictive series that I have read in a very long time. I have had this book for years but have never gotten around to reading it, probably because I read that is it for Young Adults and I thought that meant, at the very worst, Nickolodean or Disney Channel or, at the very best, high school girls worried about their popularity and vying to be top cheerleader. Boy, was I wrong. In fact, I’m going to go out on a limb and say this is really stretching the YA genre. That is not a criticism by far because I would have put the book down if it had been too teenagery. It was not at all. In fact, it was dark yet still had Kresley Cole’s signature sarcastic humor in it. I could not put the book down. I read it until I saw light coming through my curtains and only stopped reading because of exhaustion.
The cast does consist of teenagers but these kids have way more important things to worry about than who gets to be popular or not.
Evangeline or Evie has been having visions and nightmares. She also hears voices speaking to her. Her mom sent her to a psychiatric hospital during the summer because of it but Evie is now back home and ready to go back to school. None of her friends know where she was for the summer, not even her boyfriend Brandon. Nobody really questioned her because all of her friends went away for the summer as all rich kids do during the summer.
She is still having visions, nightmares and hearing voices but she thinks she can just ignore them and hold on for two more years until she finishes school and keep her mom from throwing her into the mental hospital again. She loves school and everyone there loves her so everything should go smooth for her. She is wrong.
There are new kids from the swamps starting at her school…Cajuns. One of them, Jackson Deveaux, keeps staring at her like he hates her but also wants to eat her up at the same time. She is unnerved by it because she is strangely attracted to him even though she has the perfect boyfriend.
Meanwhile, her visions and nightmares are getting worse. Weird things are happening to her and she cannot tell a soul so she draws it all in her secret journal.
There are some spoilers below.
When disaster strikes, she turns to Jackson to help her on her journey to discover what is going on with her.
I liked Jackson even though I felt like a pervert for thinking he was so hot and his Cajun accent was so sexy. I liked how he pushed Evie’s buttons because she needed to be pushed a little because she had been way too pampered in her life. The tension between them was palpable.
When I finally figured out what was happening in the book, I got really excited. I love the premise and plotline. Evie has been thrown into a post-apocalyptic world where she is pitted against 21 other teenagers or young adults. The players are all characters from the trump cards of a Tarot deck and only one will be standing at the end. They have to kill each other. Her greatest enemy is the Death Card who is gunning for her more than anyone else. She has to make alliances in order to survive.
She decides to travel from Louisiana to North Carolina to find her grandmother, if she is alive, who knows everything about this sick game but there are more than just the other players as obstacles. There is very little water or plant life left in the world and there now humans who have been transformed into bloodsucking mutants who crave water and blood but never quench their thirst. There are also militant groups taking over everything and they are abducting any female out there because not many females survived the Flash (A flash of light like a solar flare that turned anyone who was outdoors into ash). She has a long road ahead of her.
I have already started the second book and I’m loving it.
www.paranormalromanceslut.com
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
"It begins directly at the End, Empress."
I am pleasantly surprised and enchanted with Poison Princess. So many of my friends have been telling me that I MUST read something by Kresley Cole, especially her Immortals After Dark series but I decided to take a chance on Poison Princess first for a few reasons. One of those happened to be the original cover that I had seen from time to time on Goodreads and I kind of loved it.
Another reason to read was because I haven't read a dystopian since I have no idea when. But what swayed me the most is that the "hero" Jack, is one of the nominees for the 2014 Book Boyfriend Elections! The whole point of the elections is to find new book boyfriends and I believe I've found one! But he's not just any book boyfriend. He's a cajun talking JERK, and I kind of love those....but he is not for everyone. He's kind of abrasive, rough and a little scary. In fact, I'm not even sure if I've completely warmed up to him just yet but I digress.
"When she takes a sip, I release a pent-up breathe. She's drinking a toast to her own doom, to our beginning."
Poison Princess starts off with a creep-tastic prologue, set 246 days A.F. (after Flash aka the apocalypse) with the main character, Evie, being lured into a creepy home by an even creepier guy, Arthur. While giving us a peak at his sinister thoughts, Arthur asks Evie to document her life before and after the Flash. I have to say that I'm glad I kept reading because I wasn't completely sold on Evie's character. Despite the intrigue surrounding her visions, her interesting relationship with nature, and the sense of impending doom, Evie before the Flash was kind of a shallow girl. Sure, she's only 16 but she was more worried about her clothing, her popularity, her jock boyfriend, and the love/hate attraction she feels towards Jack. It isn't until the Flash and the lengths she has to go to, to survive that I found myself liking her.
"Slice you to ribbons, choke you in vine."
Despite the rather slow beginning, this book managed to catch me hook line and sinker. Especially when it is revealed to why Evie sees and does the things that she can.
Spoiler
Evie is one of 22 teens that represent the Major Arcana-players of Tarot cards. Evie is the Empress-she is a symbol of life, nature, sexuality, desire (according to Wikipedia)."I was with the boy that monsters should fear."
While I still have some unanswered surrounding Poison Princess, I have already delved into Endless Knight
and cannot stop reading! This is mature YA at its' finest and I cannot wait to continue reading.3.5 stars
adventurous
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Poison Princess is a great book! I found myself hooked and pulled in to find out what will happen with the characters and more about the world. There were points where I wasn't sure what to think, but, as with any story, I had my answers by the end of the book. There is even the pull to read the next book to see what happens next!
Wow I'm kinda speechless. This book was truly an emotional roller coaster and I couldn't put it down. The ending was not what I was expecting at all and I'm here for it. I'm totally going to continue on with the series and I'm so excited. The reason it's 3.5 though is because of the romance. I just felt like it was more playing with emotions and I just don't like that and it was kind of aggressive at times and I'm just not here for it. But I really hope that it gets better in the future books.
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes