Glass Houses by Rachel Caine

Book: Glass Houses (Morganville Vampires #1)
Author: Rachel Caine
# of Pages: 222 (paperback)
Challenge: 2015 TBR Pile Reading Challenge
Rating: 4.5 stars

Goodreads Summary:
From the author of the popular Weather Warden series comes the debut of an exciting new series set in Morganville, Texas, where you would be well advised to avoid being out after dark.

College freshman Claire Danvers has had enough of her nightmarish dorm situation. When Claire heads off-campus, the imposing old house where she finds a room may not be much better. Her new roommates don't show many signs of life, but they'll have Claire's back when the town's deepest secrets come crawling out, hungry for fresh blood. Will she be able to face the town's terror or will she drown like everyone else?

My Thoughts:

I did not know what to expect going into this book. But...WOW! I definitely didn't expect to like it as much as I did.

The writing was really good. But the characters were what made this book for me. Claire, Shane, Michael, Eve, so well-developed and likable. Their banter, their personalities, I loved everything about them. 

There was never a dull moment with all the action, suspense, and mystery, twists and revelations. And a jaw-dropping cliffhanger ending. I am so glad that I finally read this.

An amazing start to the series.

March Wrap-Up

Books Read:

Books Started:

February Wrap-Up

Books Read in February:

World After by Susan Ee - 5 stars

The Mysterious Mannequin by Carolyn Keene - 4 stars

Glass Houses by Rachel Caine - 4.5 stars

Flirting With Maybe by Wendy Higgins - 3 stars

In Time by Alexandra Bracken - 3 stars

The Dead Girls' Dance by Rachel Caine - 4 stars

The Taking by Kimberly Derting

Book: The Taking (The Taking #1)
Author: Kimberly Derting
# of Pages: 357 (hardcover)
Challenge: 2015 TBR Pile Reading Challenge
Rating: 5 stars

Goodreads Summary:
A flash of white light . . . and then . . . nothing.

When sixteen-year-old Kyra Agnew wakes up behind a Dumpster at the Gas ’n’ Sip, she has no memory of how she got there. With a terrible headache and a major case of déjà vu, she heads home only to discover that five years have passed . . . yet she hasn’t aged a day.

Everything else about Kyra’s old life is different. Her parents are divorced, her boyfriend, Austin, is in college and dating her best friend, and her dad has changed from an uptight neat-freak to a drunken conspiracy theorist who blames her five-year disappearance on little green men.

Confused and lost, Kyra isn’t sure how to move forward unless she uncovers the truth. With Austin gone, she turns to Tyler, Austin’s annoying kid brother, who is now seventeen and who she has a sudden undeniable attraction to. As Tyler and Kyra retrace her steps from the fateful night of her disappearance, they discover strange phenomena that no one can explain, and they begin to wonder if Kyra’s father is not as crazy as he seems. There are others like her who have been taken . . . and returned. Kyra races to find an explanation and reclaim the life she once had, but what if the life she wants back is not her own?

My Thoughts:

This book was so freaking amazing! I loved everything about it.

Kyra has been gone for five years even though for her it only feels like a few hours. Everything she knew has changed and she is forced to accept these changes. Kyra is pretty tough and does a good job of keeping it together considering her life has turned upside-down. Tyler is the only person she can confide in. He's sweet and patient and does everything he can to help Kyra figure out what happened to her.

This book is full of non-stop action and suspense. I could not put it down! And with an ending like that...it has left me pining for the next book. I'm counting down the days until April 28.

In Time by Alexandra Bracken

Book: In Time (The Darkest Minds #1.5)
Author: Alexandra Bracken
# of Pages: 76 (ebook)
Challenge: 2015 TBR Pile Reading Challenge
Rating: 3 stars

Goodreads Summary:
Gabe's life has been devastated in the wake of the economic crash. The only option left for someone like him to escape his tragic past is to leave his small town behind and to attempt to become a skiptracer. This already almost impossible task is made all the more difficult by his first score, a young girl who won't speak, but who changes his life in ways he could never imagine.

My Thoughts:

I didn't love this, but I didn't hate it either. It was fast-paced and entertaining. And I liked that Zu made an appearance, because she was one of my favorite characters from The Darkest Minds. While it was interesting getting to know Gabe, I wish the story would have been told from Zu's perspective.  It did have a semi-cliffhanger ending, so it will be interesting to see how it plays into the next book in the series.

Better Off Friends by Elizabeth Eulberg

Book: Better Off Friends
Author: Elizabeth Eulberg
# of Pages: 188 (ebook)
Challenge: 2015 TBR Pile Reading Challenge
Rating: 3 stars

Goodreads Summary:
For Macallan and Levi, it was friends at first sight. Everyone says guys and girls can’t be just friends, but these two are. They hang out after school, share tons of inside jokes, their families are super close, and Levi even starts dating one of Macallan’s friends. They are platonic and happy that way.

Eventually they realize they’re best friends — which wouldn’t be so bad if they didn’t keep getting in each other’s way. Guys won’t ask Macallan out because they think she’s with Levi, and Levi spends too much time joking around with Macallan, and maybe not enough time with his date. They can’t help but wonder . . . are they more than friends or are they better off without making it even more complicated?

From romantic comedy superstar Elizabeth Eulberg comes a fresh, fun examination of a question for the ages: Can guys and girls ever really be just friends? Or are they always one fight away from not speaking again — and one kiss away from true love?

My Thoughts:

This was a cute story and I like how it was told through both Macallan's and Levi's persectives, but overall I thought the book was just okay.

Macallan got on my nerves at times. She was a drama queen and there was a time or two when I just didn't understand why she did or said something. I really liked Levi and enjoyed getting to see things from his point of view.

Unfortunately, there was nothing about this book that made it stand out from others like it.

Kiss of Frost by Jennifer Estep

Book: Kiss of Frost (Mythos Academy #2)
Author: Jennifer Estep
# of Pages: 220 (ebook)
Challenge: 2015 TBR Pile Reading Challenge
Rating: 2.5 stars

Goodreads Summary:
I’m Gwen Frost, a second-year warrior-in-training at Mythos Acad­emy, and I have no idea how I’m going to sur­vive the rest of the semes­ter. One day, I’m get­ting schooled in sword­play by the guy who broke my heart—the drop-dead gor­geous Logan who slays me every time. Then, an invis­i­ble archer in the Library of Antiq­ui­ties decides to use me for tar­get prac­tice. And now, I find out that some­one at the acad­emy is really a Reaper bad guy who wants me dead. I’m afraid if I don’t learn how to live by the sword—with Logan’s help—I just might die by the sword... 

My Thoughts:

I just didn't like this book that much.

The first six chapters were mostly about what happened/what was revealed in the first book. Again I was frustrated with Gwen. While she is determined to prove herself worthy of Mythos Academy, she also makes a lot of careless decisions.

Most of what happens in this book was predictable, and again I preferred the other characters to Gwen. While I did not like this book as much as I hoped I would, I will contiue on with the series. Though it may be a while before I read the next book in the series.