Jenn's Review: Wake

Author: Dana Faletti
Series: Whisper trilogy, #2
Publication Date: January 21, 2014
Publisher: Createspace
Pages: 290
Obtained: publicist
Genre: YA, Urban Fantasy
Rating: 2.75/5
Bottom Line: Touched By an Angel meets Buffy
Grab, Just get it at the library, or Remove from your TBR list? Just get it at the library...

Blurb: Fans of The Mortal Instruments and Fallen will love the second book in Dana Faletti's Whisper trilogy! When 16-year-old Callie Evans learned she was more than your everyday suburban teen, everything changed. One minute she was a typical high school student, the next, a demon-slayer extraordinaire. As a newly discovered Arc angel from heaven, Callie’s destiny is to fight the Darks that prey on human teens. 
But when Callie meets Romuel, one of the most powerful angels of all time, her reality is shaken once again. Romuel will force her to become what she was meant to be, but will her boyfriend, fellow Arc, Joshua, be able to set his pride aside? He doesn’t appreciate Callie’s attentiveness toward the older, wiser immortal Romuel. Joshua found her first. And he’s not willing to share. 
Is it Callie’s highly active imagination or does the Dark population seem to be multiplying exponentially in her world at an alarming rate? Newsflash: She’s not imagining things. They’re everywhere. And she’s got to find a way to stop them before it’s too late.
Join Silas, Jules, Jixer and the rest of the immortal crew in a story that will wake up the world to the war that’s been raging since the beginning of time, a war in which whispers are the deadliest weapons of all.

Review:  With the huge billing "fans of The Mortal Instruments and Fallen will love" I expected big things from this series.  It did not deliver.  However, I can say that I liked Wake much better than the first book in the series, Whisper.


I had a hard time getting into this series, because I kept tripping over the writing.  Every author has their own style of writing, and I rarely comment on such things, but when their style disrupts what it is they are trying to convey, it is frustrating.  It's not that Dana Faletti's writing style was choppy so much as full of hiccups.  I don't mind metaphors when they are smoothly incorporated, but here I felt bashed over the head with them.

I found myself continually tripping over the dialogue.  Having her characters replace the words 'hell' and 'shit' with 'hello' and 'shugar' was meant to be endearing but wasn't.  Also one of the Micro Angels has an accent that is phonetically forced on the reader, which is a tricky thing to pull off; I kept stopping to match the accent on the page to the one in my head.  Also, Ms. Faletti uses a plethora of causal Biblical references, sometimes without purpose, that I wish she'd really owned and expanded upon.  It gave the plot a lack of depth.

Unfortunately, I felt no attachment to any of the characters.  They are all two dimensional at best with no humor or darkness.  The characters don't struggle; nothing is complicated.  There is supposed to be romantic confusion in the novel but it is resolved before it begins so it comes off as merely a plot device.  Occasionally, Ms. Faletti switches the point of view from Callie to Josh for entire chapters.  I didn't feel like this was necessary to the story as it is often a present tense version of what is then told to us by Callie in the past tense.

However, Wake gets to the heart of the story.  The premise is intriguing and Ms. Faletti is starting to put it all together.  The big conflict has presented itself, and though it is still underdeveloped, it held my attention.  While parts of it were slightly predictable, there were definitely enough  twists and turns to make it interesting.

With a good editor and some further development, I think this series would make a fine middle grade read.  By the end of this novel, I found myself starting to invest in the characters and where they are headed.  Unfortunately, it is a little too late for me.

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Jenn's Review: A Temptation of Angels

Summary:  Even angels make mistakes in this page-turning epic romance

When her parents are murdered before her eyes, sixteen-year-old Helen Cartwright finds herself launched into an underground London where a mysterious organization called the Dictata controls the balance of good and evil. Helen learns that she is one of three remaining angelic descendants charged with protecting the world's past, present, and future. Unbeknownst to her, she has been trained her whole life to accept this responsibility. Now, as she finds herself torn between the angelic brothers protecting her and the devastatingly handsome childhood friend who wants to destroy her, she must prepare to be brave, to be hunted, and above all to be strong, because temptation will be hard to resist, even for an angel.

Review:  Temptation of Angels has been sitting on my shelf for a while.  I wanted to adore this book and though I liked it, I can't say that I was in love with it.

This book had tons of potential, but it feels like only the surface was scratched.  The story was fairly straight forward with few plot twists.  It was certainly engaging, I often had trouble putting it down, but I wanted more.  I often find angel books confusing in their lack of plot exposition, but such was not the case here.  Although I did think things could have been explored on a deeper level.  I'm actually not sure when this story takes place or if it's in our world.  For example, the clothing and decorum feel Victorian, yet the technology is not, and I'm not sure whether that's because Keepers have access to the past and the future or if it's another dimension.

The characters were fascinating but I wanted to know more about all of them. Helen is confused about her feelings for Griffin and Raum, and while I didn't want her indecision to waiver on indefinitely it all seems too easily resolved while things like climbing a fence seem to go on forever.  Helen also accepted her situation far more readily than I would have, but perhaps that's because she was groomed for it. I also think there is more to Darius and Anna then the perfunctory roles they are relegated to and I hope Michelle Zink explores them further in the next book.

This is a series I am interested in continuing because it has a solid concept and characters with which  I crave familiarity.  It was an easy but compelling read and I look forward to learning more of the Keepers.

Final Take:  3.75/5

Jenn's Review: Fallen

Summary:   There’s something achingly familiar about Daniel Grigori.

Mysterious and aloof, he captures Luce Price’s attention from the moment she sees him on her first day at the Sword & Cross boarding school in sultry Savannah, Georgia. He’s the one bright spot in a place where cell phones are forbidden, the other students are all screw-ups, and security cameras watch every move.

Even though Daniel wants nothing to do with Luce–and goes out of his way to make that very clear–she can’t let it go. Drawn to him like a moth to a flame, she has to find out what Daniel is so desperate to keep secret . . . even if it kills her. ~product description

Review:  This has been on my TBR list for a while, so perhaps my anticipation ramped up my expectations, perhaps my recent reads have raised the bar, or maybe angels are just a sub-genre of paranormal that I don’t enjoy as much, but I was underwhelmed.  I wouldn’t say that I didn’t like it, it certainly held my attention, and at no point did I feel the need to put it down. 

I felt like I spent most of the book waiting for the reveal.  It’s not a secret that the book is about angels, but it takes three quarters of the book for Lucinda to be introduced to this knowledge.  Granted, lots of interesting other things happen in that amount of time, but most of the supernatural occurrences go unexplained.  There are some twists and turns when things come to climax, but most of them were predictable and I wasn’t engaged enough with the characters to be concerned, shocked, or upset at anything that happened to them.  That being said, I enjoyed Lauren Kate’s writing style and her ability to hold my interest.

I may be tempted to pick up the second book in the series the next time I’m looking for a light, quick read or when my TBR pile thins out a little, but I don’t think this will be a must read series for me.

Final Take:  3.5/5

Jenn's Review: City of Glass

Summary:  To save her mother's life, Clary must travel to the City of Glass, the ancestral home of the Shadowhunters — never mind that entering the city without permission is against the Law, and breaking the Law could mean death. To make things worse, she learns that Jace does not want her there, and her best friend, Simon, has been thrown in prison by the Shadowhunters, who are deeply suspicious of a vampire who can withstand sunlight.

As Clary uncovers more about her family's past, she finds an ally in mysterious Shadowhunter Sebastian. With Valentine mustering the full force of his power to destroy all Shadowhunters forever, their only chance to defeat him is to fight alongside their eternal enemies. But can Downworlders and Shadowhunters put aside their hatred to work together? While Jace realizes exactly how much he's willing to risk for Clary, can she harness her newfound powers to help save the Glass City — whatever the cost?

Review:  Oh, how I adore this series!  The City of Glass is the big showdown I was waiting for and it lives up to it's promise. Now that I've finished it I keep going back and re-reading my favorite parts, because I an just not ready to let it go.

The Lightwoods have been summoned to Idris by the Clave and the trouble that was simmering is quickly comming to a boil. Jace doesn't trust what the Clave will do to Clary when they find out how powerful she is, so he attempts to prevent her from going with them. I was frustrated with Jace for a good while about this because, knowing Clary is determined to go to save her mother, and knowing the lengths she's gone to for her family and friends, Jace still thinks he can trick her into staying in New York. If, he was smart he would have found a way to help her while attempting to keep the Clave in the dark. It would have been much safer. But here I am discussing the characters as if they are real people again, and that only happens when I'm completely absorbed in a book.

Sometimes it takes an earthquake to breakdown the prejudice barriers and Ms. Clare certainly provides it. She shakes the Shadowhunter community to its very core ...and it's awesome. I loved the fact that even though I figured out a few things, she still had me guessing about how things would resolve right to the very end. I loved the final showdown too. Cassandra Clare does a fantastic job of jumping between characters without the narrative becoming confusing or choppy.

Now, that I'm through the first three books of the series, I must say I wish Cassandra Clare had found another way to keep Clary and Jace apart. I know nothing is quite as effective, but that type of story line troubles me, even though I knew it would resolve itself. It's one of the things that pulled me forward. I'm sure she will find a way to mess with them through the next three novels in the series, so I'll see how well she can find a new way to keep the tension.

I think I've reached a point in the series where I can put it down for a while and come back to it later. At least I hope so, because there are a ton of books in my TBR pile that are feeling rather neglected. I look forward to mulling these first three over in my mind before I return to Cassandra Clare's Shadowhunters. I especially look forward to starting the Infernal Devices series.

Final Take:  5/5

PS.  There are tons of great things on the Mortal Instruments website to dive into like cut scenes.

Jenn's Review: City of Ashes

Summary: Clary Fray just wishes that her life would go back to normal. But what's normal when you're a demon-slaying Shadowhunter, your mother is in a magically induced coma, and you can suddenly see Downworlders like werewolves, vampires, and faeries? If Clary left the world of the Shadowhunters behind, it would mean more time with her best friend, Simon, who's becoming more than a friend. But the Shadowhunting world isn't ready to let her go — especially her handsome, infuriating, newfound brother, Jace. And Clary's only chance to help her mother is to track down rogue Shadowhunter Valentine, who is probably insane, certainly evil — and also her father.

To complicate matters, someone in New York City is murdering Downworlder children. Is Valentine behind the killings — and if he is, what is he trying to do? When the second of the Mortal Instruments, the Soul-Sword, is stolen, the terrifying Inquisitor arrives to investigate and zooms right in on Jace. How can Clary stop Valentine if Jace is willing to betray everything he believes in to help their father?

Review: City of Ashes picks up shortly after City of Bones left off. Things quickly start spiraling out of control. The tenuous threads that held the teenage Shadowhunters together are starting to fray. Clary is trying hard to put her interest in Jaece behind her and concentrate on Simon... but circumstances are not making it easy.

There is not a dull moment in City of Ashes. It's action packed from start to finish, with a few quick respites for regrouping. Valentine is a formidable foe, especially with two out of the three Mortal Instruments. He's a swift talker, and charming when he wants something, but a ruthless maniac to the core. Many prejudices come to light in this book along with old fears and buried vengance. The progression of the characters was nice. Alec is finding his way, Isabelle is learning to trust Clary, and Simon learns to take control of his life. Even Jace, who is reeling out of control, softens around the edges when Clary is around.

I found this plot slightly more predictable than City of Bones, but enjoyable nonetheless. There were a few clichés, one particularly cringe-worthy one, and a couple of blatant moments of foreshadowing but on the whole the characters and overarching plot twists kept it interesting.

I must say that I love the available extras on the Mortal Instruments website.  Aside from that the fact that excerpts also come in audio format (how cool is that?!?), Cassandra Clare has also included a reading group guide (love when these are available).  But the more fascinating part for me are the deleted scenes, which are more frequent in quantity as the series advances.  They're wonderful little bonus morsels.

Cassandra Clare still hasn't resolved several big issues by the end of the book. Plus this one is left on more of a cliffhanger than the last, so there is no way I'll be able to read anything except City of Glass next. Yes, I'll admit it. I'm hooked.

Final Take: 4/5

Jenn's Review: City of Bones

Summary:  When fifteen-year-old Clary Fray heads out to the Pandemonium Club in New York City, she hardly expects to witness a murder—much less a murder committed by three teenagers covered with strange tattoos and brandishing bizarre weapons. Then the body disappears into thin air. It’s hard to call the police when the murderers are invisible to everyone else and when there is nothing—not even a smear of blood—to show that a boy has died. Or was he a boy?

This is Clary’s first meeting with the Shadowhunters, warriors dedicated to ridding the earth of demons. It’s also her first encounter with Jace, a Shadowhunter who looks a little like an angel and acts a lot like a jerk. Within twenty-four hours Clary is pulled into Jace’s world with a vengeance, when her mother disappears and Clary herself is attacked by a demon.

But why would demons be interested in ordinary mundanes like Clary and her mother? And how did Clary suddenly get the Sight? The Shadowhunters would like to know. . . .

Review:  I have been meaning to get around to reading the Mortal Instruments series for a long time.  I'm glad I finally got to City of Bones and frustrated at the same time. Glad because it's fantastic and I couldn't put it down and frustrated, because I'm going to have to dive right into the next book because, well, I can't put them down!

Cassandra Clare has an easy writing style that continuously catches me by surprise. Maybe it's the ease with which a complicated story flows, or the quirky humor imbued in her characters. I loved all Ms. Clare's characters. Clary may have started the narrative in a position of weakness, but she doesn't throw up her hands and wail, she absorbs knowledge, accepts the challenge, and sets off to defend her family and friends no matter the odds.  I loved wounded Jace, feisty Isabele, protective Alec, and lovesick Simon. 

I love her obscure references and symbolism and I love that she doesn't try to veil it but incorporates it honestly.  It made me see some of the twists coming, but certainly not all of them.  I was still caught by surprise on several points and routing for things to turn out differently.  I actually feel like Ms. Clare wrote herself into a bit of a corner and I can't wait to see how she writes her way out of it.  It's one of the reasons I will be reading City of Ashes next.  Yes, she left things open ended, it was a good stopping place and not a horrendous cliff hanger, but it's the curiosity of where she will go from here that is pulling me into this series.

I have heard tell that Cassandra Clare's Infernal Devices series is even better than Mortal Instruments so I'm excited that I will have lots more Shadowhunter goodness to go.  However, the time is come to end this review because, well, I've got some reading to do...

Final Take:  5/5

Read an excerpt here.

Listen to an excerpt here.

Jenn's Review: Danann Frost Falls From Grace

Summary:  Danann Frost is thousands of years old, yet young for her kind. She is a creature of the Light, an Angel, one of the Seraphim; a race of beings that live beyond our world. She has been cast out of paradise and Fallen from Grace, all for the love of a Dark One - a vampire. The only problem is, Seth did not want her and told her to go and not come back. Danann has made a life for herself amongst the vampires of this world and they protect her fragile nature. She and the vampire Asher live on the fringes of the human world; love and loyalty cannot separate them but trouble and vengeance are on their way. After two hundred years of enduring the crippling punishments of her Fall, Seth walks back into her life but he is bitter and angry and out for revenge. Thank God he is after someone else...or is he? Can Danann escape the dark intentions of her once-beloved for whom she Fell from Grace, or has she put all those that she holds dear in danger? Journey with Danann as she takes the path to taking back her Light and ascending to be Angel once more. Will the Archangel Uriel surrender her Light or will Danann be doomed to walk in darkness forever?

Review: I liked this book and didn't like this book all at the same time. How is that possible? There is a wonderful story here, but it is buried and in need of pruning.

The novel begins with backstory, Danann's fall from grace, which is imperative to the narrative, but it means so much more once it is given the context of the main story, her struggle to regain her Light. Without that context and conflict, it comes off flat. Therefore, it is over eighty pages before I really connected with the character of Danann. Her backstory is so much more interesting once you gain perspective on it. It would have been even more interesting if it had been revealed a little at a time, trimmed down and told as flashbacks and dreams. Don't get me wrong, the story needs an introduction, but if it were me, I would have started with Uriel casting Danann out and with Seth's dismissal of her, then skipped to present day from there.

Also, because the backstory is so neatly laid out at the beginning of the book, there are no surprises. Everything is revealed. The reader knows what happened between the characters, is aware that it is all a big misunderstanding, and then spends the rest of the book waiting for the characters to figure that out too, which can be frustrating.

I do, however love Danann and Seth -and Asher and Mia too. Joanne Valiukas created something special. The characters are wonderfully rich and I would rather have spent more time with these four than all the minor characters, interesting though they may have been. I did get a little frustrated with Danann's and Seth's trust issues. They went back and forth a few too many times for my tastes... Although if I hadn't known the entire backstory, those too would have been more interesting. There is also no denouement, so the ending, after such a big build-up, is rather abrupt. I understand leaving things open-ended, but I wanted just a little more closure.

I would definitely give this author another chance. Joanne Valiukas has a fascinating concept that is fully conceptualized; I think, if taken out of linear chronology, the story would not only be more cohesive, it would be a blockbuster. I look forward to reading more from Joanne Valiukas. I expect great things from her.

Final Take: 3.0/5