I did not like this book.

2.5 stars: one star for Julie Kagawa’s writing; one star for Puck, Ironhorse, Grim, and Ash; and the point five star for the semi-cool ending. That’s pretty much it.

Trust me, I’m not saying that I hate this series, I just think that the aspects I didn’t like were just more prominent in this second installment. The problems I had were with the plot pacing, the non-existent love triangle, and Meagan (our beloved main character).

I cannot remember the last time a specific main character has ruined an entire book for me. Yeah, I’ve given out 2 star ratings before, but that was because of many things. I can’t remember the last time it was because of a main character.

Meagan Chase is supposed to be kept in the Winter realm from the contract she had with Ash from the last book. Ash specifically tells Meagan that he cannot go proclaiming his love for her 24/7 because it’s for her own safety, but Meagan continues to cry and complain like a little five-year-old girl and will constantly get herself into ridiculous situations. I’m not even going to give a lecture on this, because a girl who will complain even though her “true love” has told her not to will never understand what I’m trying to say.

Second thing: the love triangle. OMG SOMEONE PLEASE. PLEASE.

A tiny part of me, somewhere deep inside, was rejoicing at this newest revelation, though I think, deep down, I’d always suspected. Puck loves me, it whispered, thrilled. He’s in love with me. I knew it. I knew it all along.  

Girl, who you lying to?

I’m not Team Puck or Team Ash because I like both of them, in fact forget Meagan, Ash and Puck should just stick together as BFF’s and go off into the sunset.

Puck retreated, grinning, and the nurse sighed. “Those two,” she muttered. “They’re either best friends or darkest enemies, I can’t tell which. Come with me, Miss Chase.”

Also, the thing about the plot. Ugh. It was a great plot, but the pacing dragged at some parts and I felt really tired. I didn’t really care at all what was happening at a certain point. But, whatever. At least the ending was cool.

Overall, The Iron Daughter was kind of a disappointment to me compared to The Iron King. Yes, I have decided to read the next book, The Iron Queen later on, though.

Thanks for reading my review everyone and hope you have a great day! Until the next one!

I cannot decide what I liked about this series! Maybe it’s the story, or the overall dramatic feel to it. Maybe the fact that it reminds me about reality TV? I don’t know, although this series is thoroughly enjoyable, it isn’t really the best I’ve ever read.

I think the thing that won’t let me give this book a five star rating is America Singer. If I had to give this book a rating based on America’s character, then this book wouldn’t even get a star because she’s so damn frustrating! I swear, if I were America Singer, I’d probably not even have half of the fights that she did with Maxon!

America Singer is told by someone that she needs to keep a secret. Then they do something to hurt her feelings like:

So instead, America Singer gets so upset she thinks it is perfectly okay to blurt out that secret and have them embarrassed because she was mad.

Could I not hate whoever Maxon ended up with if I chose Aspen? Could I not hate whoever Aspen chose if I stayed with Maxon?

Like, why the eff is this even a question?! I hate how America expects the entire world to revolve around her! If she rejects Maxon or Aspen, what gives her the right to hate on the girl the other chooses after she rejects the guy herself?

Nonetheless there were things that I did like about The Elite. The competition itself is turning extremely fierce, so that has me on the edge of my seat! I am rooting for Kriss however, she’s my favorite! Another thing I liked was that the Elite were given a lot of challenges to prove how they would treat their title as Queen, which I liked, because even though the Prince needs to choose a candidate it should be based also on who would actually stand by him during the actual reign.

One thing I was slightly disappointed by were the rebels. Throughout the book, there were many instances where America would mention the dangers inside the palace and the rebel attacks. But then, the one encounter I thought would be really . . . nerve-wracking? It just turns out that:

Below in the spoiler-y section are some of my thoughts on some parts of the book!

Overall, The Elite, although better than The Selection was probably more of America making up a whole bunch of jumbled decisions! I did like the political side and the competition that’s happening now, but I feel like we need to see more on the rebels. I would recommend this, once again, for those of you who want something light and fluffy to read. This is the perfect series for that!

Thanks for reading my review everyone and until the next one! :D

Wow  . . .

True love is usually the most inconvenient kind.

Okay, so, I had no expectations from this book. I actually expected to detest the main character throughout the entire book. I mean, I was uncomfortable with some things from the premise. I mean: the main character’s name is America Singer for crying out loud. But—it was surprisingly easy to get used to, so props to the author Kiera Cass for that. Also, the fact that this was compared to The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins . . . like, no.

And when I say no, I don’t mean because it was pulled off wrong, I mean because The Selection and The Hunger Games are MUCH different from one another. America doesn’t really need to win, she’s forced to enter the competition because of her family’s financial needs. She also is recently heartbroken. So, no, not The Hunger Games. But . . . I enjoyed this. I feel like this was much needed after the rollercoaster book I just read.

To start off, with the basic premise of this book centering around The Selection: girls are chosen from different caste systems to be married off to the Prince. Our main character is right down in the middle of the caste system at number Five, the category of entertainers. I thought this competition was justified, in the way it was explained. Only, some rules felt really biased. Apparently, you have to be a virgin to qualify, but if any time during the competition the Prince would like to spend time with you, he’s more than welcome!

America was really frustrating though! Like, her justifications for her feelings and decisions were so weird and pointless! I don’t hate her, she’s okay and fine. But, honestly, if I were America, I would be handling decisions way more differently.

“No, I’m not choosing him or you. I’m choosing me.”

Don’t worry, guys, she’s just kidding.

I also hated Aspen as a love interest, which is why I’m rooting for Maxon! I mean, Maxon is different from other love interests, but he’s so much better than Aspen. Imagine your boyfriend works hard all day and you guys meet up. You use your OWN money and buy and cook him a fantastic dinner because sometimes he can’t eat. Are you expecting lots of undying love and gratitude? Or this:

“America, I’m supposed to be providing for you. It’s humiliating for me to come here and have you do all this for me.”

LIKE IT IS HER MONEY AND SHE WILL SPEND IT THE WAY SHE WANTS!!! And then he has the nerve to reach the Palace as her personal guard and then choose to kiss her after sneaking into her room—by the way, that’s forbidden.

I REALLY want to learn more on the rebels! Maybe we’ll find out something more about them in the upcoming books? Because they sound really interesting, so far we haven’t actually seen a rebel.

I enjoyed this book, but I felt like I would’ve been in love with this if I were younger. It is really enjoyable, but maybe I should’ve read this a couple of years ago? But, I still do like this. This is REALLY easy to read, it’s light and fluffy and definitely a guilty pleasure.

Overall, you should pick up The Selection if you want some light reading and want to find your next guilty pleasure! It’s not the kickbutt series you’re looking for, instead it’s like watching TV with the intriguing drama! So, recommended to those of you that don’t mind some light, fun reading! And I am literally going to post this, and get on with The Elite.

Thanks for reading my review, guys, and hope you all have a great day! :D Until the next one!

Lissa Dragomir is a Moroi princess: a mortal vampire with a rare gift for harnessing the earth's magic. She must be protected at all times from Strigoi; the fiercest vampires - the ones who never die. The powerful blend of human and vampire blood that flows through Rose Hathaway, Lissa's best friend, makes her a dhampir. Rose is dedicated to a dangerous life of protecting Lissa from the Strigoi, who are hell-bent on making Lissa one of them.

Rose has serious guy trouble. Her gorgeous tutor, Dimitri, has his eye on someone else, her friend Mason has a huge crush on her, and she keeps getting stuck in her best friend Lissa's head while she's making out with her boyfriend, Christian.

Then a nearby Strigoi attack puts St. Vladimir's on high alert, and the Academy whisks its students away on a mandatory holiday ski trip. But the glittering winter landscape and posh Idaho resort only provide the illusion of safety. When three students run away to strike back against the deadly Strigoi, Rose must join forces with Christian to rescue them. Only this time, Rose - and her heart - are in more danger than she ever could have imagined...   

I really liked this book A LOT more than Vampire Academy!

This book had more world building and I can seriously start to see the tensions between the Moroi and the Strigoi begin to build up!

I thought that this book focused a lot more on Rose’s “guy trouble” and it was honestly beginning to annoy me. I was considering giving this book a 2.5 star rating because of Rose. Confused?

“‘Exactly. You and I’ll have to go Strigoi hunting someday,’ she teased.

 

‘I don’t think so,’ I replied.

 

The words in and of themselves weren’t that bad, but the tone I used to deliver them certainly was.”

THIS BEHAVIOR WAS BECAUSE ROSE HEARD THAT DIMITRI LIKED TASHA. PERIOD. It got even worse at a certain point in the book.

“‘Speaking of personal lives . . . I suppose you were off visiting Tasha, huh?’

 

I knew it was petty and I was expecting a ‘none of your business’ response.Instead, he replied, ‘Actually, I was visiting your mother.’

 

‘You going to hook up with her too?’ I knew of course that he wasn’t, but the quip seemed too good to pass up.”  

And then there’s me over here on the sidelines like:

Like I said, I really enjoyed the storyline, but I feel like Rose Hathaway and I have a love-hate relationship. While it is true that I’ve never read another character like her, it is also true that she is just too impulsive and immature for my taste. But, there are amazing characters that I DO like! Such as: Lissa, Christian, ADRIAN IVASHKOV, Tasha (even if Rose was jealous of her), and Dimitri. He’s a real sweetheart and even when Rose acts impulsive, he doesn’t do the same to her.

I do admit, the second half is what made me really appreciate Rose and bump up my rating for this book.

“‘Well. Like I said, I don’t want to fight anymore. I don’t want us to hate each other. And . . . well . . .’ I squeezed my eyes shut and then opened them. ‘No matter how I feel about us . . . I want you to be happy.’”

So, like I said! Love-hate relationship with Rose Hathaway! And, she shows a lot of strength and leadership potential! So, I was happy in the direction this book went towards the end!

Overall, Frostbite really felt like one until the second half. I was really impressed after with the direction this book went in! So, I really enjoyed the second half more than the first. The second half is probably the only reason I’m giving this a 4 out of 5 star rating. So, I am reading the next book in this series, Shadow Kiss sometime . . . soon? I’ve got a huge reading pile.

Thanks for reading my review guys, and hope you have a great day! Until the next one.