Clockwork Angel (The Infernal Devices, #1), by Cassandra Clare

Clockwork Angel (The Infernal Devices, #1), by Cassandra Clare

Release Date: August 31st, 2010
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing
Age Group: Young Adult

Pages:479

Overall: 5 Monkeys
Source: Web
Interest: Series

Other Titles in the Series: Clockwork Prince (The Infernal Devices, #2), Clockwork Princess (The Infernal Devices, #3)


Summary from Goodreads:


Magic is dangerous--but love is more dangerous still.

When sixteen-year-old Tessa Gray crosses the ocean to find her brother, her destination is England, the time is the reign of Queen Victoria, and something terrifying is waiting for her in London's Downworld, where vampires, warlocks and other supernatural folk stalk the gaslit streets. Only the Shadowhunters, warriors dedicated to ridding the world of demons, keep order amidst the chaos.

Kidnapped by the mysterious Dark Sisters, members of a secret organization called The Pandemonium Club, Tessa soon learns that she herself is a Downworlder with a rare ability: the power to transform, at will, into another person. What's more, the Magister, the shadowy figure who runs the Club, will stop at nothing to claim Tessa's power for his own.

Friendless and hunted, Tessa takes refuge with the Shadowhunters of the London Institute, who swear to find her brother if she will use her power to help them. She soon finds herself fascinated by--and torn between--two best friends: James, whose fragile beauty hides a deadly secret, and blue-eyed Will, whose caustic wit and volatile moods keep everyone in his life at arm's length...everyone, that is, but Tessa. As their search draws them deep into the heart of an arcane plot that threatens to destroy the Shadowhunters, Tessa realizes that she may need to choose between saving her brother and helping her new friends save the world... and that love may be the most dangerous magic of all.

My Opinion:

What an awesome book! Truly amazing; I'm embarrassed to say that this was my first Clare book (if you don't count her fanfiction, which is amazing as well). 

The the first book in the prequel series to The Mortal Instruments is beautifully written, it drew me in and didn't let me go until I'd finished it! And I like to read two or three books at once, but this one... this one kept calling me, telling me to finish it first!  

As the summary says, Tessa is a 16 year old American girl who is left without nothing and had to go to London to her brother because she has nowhere else to turn to. 

From the moment she sets foot in the city, the action begins. Tessa is captured by the Dark Sisters, ugly and evil warlocks who imprison her, and show her that there is a power locked inside her, a power she didn't even know she had. The power to transform at will, to nearly become the one she's turned into.

Tessa remains captive at the Dark House, until a Shadowhunter named Will comes to rescue her. 

She is introduced to the Shadow World, and the London Institute opens its doors to let her in. 
There she meets Charlotte, who runs the Institute; Henry, her husband; Jessamine, a Shadowhunter too; Thomas, Sophie and Agatha, the servants -all with the touch of the Sight-; and Jem, a Shadowhunter and Will's best friend. 

Charlotte promises that they'll do anything to help Tessa save her brother. But there's so much they don't know. 

They're fooled into traps, make scary discoveries, and begin to fall in love. 

While Tessa clearly shows feelings for Will, I wouldn't be surprised if in book two we saw her and Jem having a moment. 
It's so hard to choose a side! Will is witty and he has these moments where you can't suppress that aww escaping you, and Jem is kind and caring 24/7, but lacks the boldness Will posesses. For now, I'm going to say, Team Will! 

Hex Hall to be published in Spain in 2011

Spanish editorial Destino has revealed the new cover for the Spanish version of Rachel Hawkins's Hex Hall, which will be titled Condena (something like Conviction). They had a poll, and this is the cover that won:

To tell the truth I like the American cover better. What do you think?

The book is coming out in Spain next year, if I'm not wrong. Let's hope it comes to Latin America soon after its release in Spain.

This book is also in my TBR List, so hopefully I'll be reading it soon and reviewing it here.
Have you read it? Did you like it?
I quite like the premise, magic is my thing!

Happy Book Birthday Crescendo and Nightshade!

Crescendo (Hush, Hush #2), by Becca Fitzpatrick

Nora should have known her life was far from perfect. Despite starting a relationship with her guardian angel, Patch (who, title aside, can be described as anything but angelic), and surviving an attempt on her life, things are not looking up. Patch is starting to pull away, and Nora can't figure out if it's for her best interest or if his interest has shifted to her arch-enemy Marcie Millar. Not to mention that Nora is haunted by images of her father and she becomes obsessed with finding out what really happened to him that night he left for Portland and never came home.

The farther Nora delves into the mystery of her father's death, the more she comes to question if her Nephilim blood line has something to do with it as well as why she seems to be in danger more than the average girl. Since Patch isn't answering her questions and seems to be standing in her way, she has to start finding the answers on her own. Relying too heavily on the fact that she has a guardian angel puts Nora at risk again and again. But can she really count on Patch, or is he hiding secrets darker than she can even imagine?

 

Nightshade (Nightshade #1), by Andrea Cremer

Calla Tor has always known her destiny: After graduating from the Mountain School, she'll be the mate of sexy alpha wolf Ren Laroche and fight with him, side by side, ruling their pack and guarding sacred sites for the Keepers. But when she violates her masters' laws by saving a beautiful human boy out for a hike, Calla begins to question her fate, her existence, and the very essence of the world she has known. By following her heart, she might lose everything--including her own life. Is forbidden love worth the ultimate sacrifice?

(both summaries from Goodreads)

I cannot wait to read these! Hush, Hush is one of my favourite reads ever, and Nightshade is getting great reviews, everyone is loving it!

Happy birthdays, dears!

Both books are released today.

Elixir (Elixir #1), by Hilary Duff, Elise Allen (Contributor)

Elixir (Elixir #1), by Hilary Duff, Elise Allen (Contributor) on Goodreads

Release Date: October 12th, 2010
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing
Age Group: Young Adult

Pages: 327

Overall: 5 Monkeys
Source: Web
Interest: Series

Other Titles in the Series: Devoted (Elixir, #2)

Summary from Goodreads:

As the daughter of a renowned surgeon and a prominent Washington D.C. politician, Clea Raymond has felt the glare of the spotlight her entire life. And though she dreads the paparazzi who track her every move, she herself is a talented photojournalist who takes refuge in a career that allows her to travel to the most exotic parts of the world.

But after Clea’s father disappears while on a humanitarian mission, eerie, shadowy images of a strange and beautiful young man begin to appear in Clea’s photos—a man she has never seen in her life.

When Clea suddenly encounters this man in person she is stunned—and feels an immediate and powerful connection. As they grow closer, they are drawn deep into the mystery behind her father’s disappearance and discover the centuries-old truth behind their intense bond.

Torn by a dangerous love triangle and haunted by a powerful secret that holds their fate, together they race against time to unravel their past in order to save their future—and their lives.

My Opinion:

WOW. Just WOW.

When I first heard Hilary Duff was releasing a book, I thought, "Yeah, right. How much did she actually write?". But now I can definitely see that (with help), she's the one who wrote it. Elise Allen helped, how much, we don't know.

So you've read the summary, Clea is a rich girl who travels the world, camera in hand, and takes pictures of everything she sees. Until a man starts showing up in her photos, and she can't explain how he's there.

Ben and Rayna are her friends, Rayna is your typical "OH MY GOSH, tell me now, what happened with that guy!" sort of girl, and Ben is more reserved, nerdy and quiet.

Only, the man isn't just in her photos, but in her dreams too. Really vivid dreams, where she sees herself as four different women, all with the same guy, the one from the pictures. And she starts to find excuses to go to bed all the time, just to dream about him. Up until her fantasies turn into nightmares.

She has a new job as a photojournalist: she has to go to Rio, and capture every moment of the Carnival taking place there. Ben joins her. In Rio was also where her father went missing.

At the beach, after having taken photos and danced all night, Ben and Clea have a moment alone, one where you think, "Aww, kiss him!". But then Clea sees him, the man from her dreams, and runs after him.

From then on the novel takes a 360 degree turn, making it fast-paced and just plain awesome.

We discover the truth about this mystery man, and how he's connected to Clea. How he's destined to be with her.

Clea will start looking for her father, and learning more about the Elixir of Life in the meantime, about how it's changed her fate forever.

We're left with a terrible cliffhanger (in the good way!), that left me aching for the next part!

Seriously, I know you must have thought the same thing I did, "Could Hilary Duff have really written a book?". Just read Elixir and see for yourself.

• Visit Hilary Duff's website, and follow her on Twitter.
• Visit Elise Allen's website, and follow her on Twitter.

White Cat (The Curse Workers #1), by Holly Black

White Cat (The Curse Workers #1), by Holly Black on Goodreads

Release Date: 2010
Age Group: Young Adult

Pages: 310

Overall: 5 Monkeys
Source: Won
Interest: Series

Other Titles in the Series: Red Glove (The Curse Workers #2), Black Heart (The Curse Workers, #3)

Summary from Goodreads:

Cassel comes from a family of curse workers -- people who have the power to change your emotions, your memories, your luck, by the slightest touch of their hands. And since curse work is illegal, they're all mobsters, or con artists. Except for Cassel. He hasn't got the magic touch, so he's an outsider, the straight kid in a crooked family. You just have to ignore one small detail -- he killed his best friend, Lila, three years ago.Ever since, Cassel has carefully built up a façade of normalcy, blending into the crowd. But his façade starts crumbling when he starts sleepwalking, propelled into the night by terrifying dreams about a white cat that wants to tell him something. He's noticing other disturbing things, too, including the strange behavior of his two brothers. They are keeping secrets from him, caught up in a mysterious plot. As Cassel begins to suspect he's part of a huge con game, he also wonders what really happened to Lila. Could she still be alive? To find that out, Cassel will have to out-con the conmen.
Holly Black has created a gripping tale of mobsters and dark magic where a single touch can bring love -- or death -- and your dreams might be more real than your memories.

My Opinion:

What an amazing book! I have nothing but great words for this book, it's awesome!

From the beginning we're trapped into this game of trust and deception, of cons and murders, of love and brotherhood. I loved the world Black has created and can't wait to read more about it!

The story is all about Cassel (pronounced like "castle", according to the author) and how he is a non-worker in a family of workers. To be a worker means to have a special ability: emotion workers can change your feelings just by touching you, memory workers change or block your memories, etc., etc. But transformation workers are the rarest workers in the world. Basically just one is born within a decade, or a generation even.

Workers work their magic by touching other, hence the use of gloves. To be seen without gloves is very serious thing, and "bare hands can be as dangerous as knives".

Cassel has killed his friend Lila, and now his guilt is coming back. And so is his mother, locked up in prison, and about to be set free. Cassel is asked to leave school after an incident involving the school's roof, and has to go home.

To prepare for his mother's arrival, his grandfather gets him to work on cleaning up their old house. There, he sees cats lurking around. And a white cat he thinks he's seen before.

From that point on the story gets more amazing and fast paced. We learn the truth about Cassel and the cat, and there's a scene towards the end that is just plain awesome.

The ending made me groan in frustration! How could Cassel's mother do that to her son? Ugh! Poor Cassel!

I really have nothing more to say, except that I loved this book and can't wait for Red Glove.

Visit Holly Black's website.