Ripper by Amy Carol Reeves

Genre:  YA Historical Paranormal

Ripper Series, Book 1

Amy Carol Reeves' website

Amazon | Book Depository | Goodreads

Description (taken from Amy Carol Reeves' website):

In 1888, following her mother's sudden death, seventeen-year-old Arabella Sharp goes to live with her grandmother in a posh London neighborhood. At her grandmother's request, Abbie volunteers at Whitechapel Hospital, where she discovers a passion for helping the unfortunate women and children there.

But within days, female patients begin turning up brutally murdered at the hands of Jack the Ripper. Even more horrifying, Abbie starts having strange visions that lead her straight to the Ripper's next massacres. As her apparent psychic connection with the twisted killer grows stronger, Abbie is drawn into a deadly mystery involving the murders, her mother's shadowed past, and a secret brotherhood of immortals—who'll stop at nothing to lure Abbie into its "humanitarian" aims.

When Abbi begins her volunteer work, she meets some interesting characters.  There's William, the annoyingly brilliant physician who just knows how to push Abbi's buttons.  And then there's Simon who is one of the nicest and caring physicians at the hospital.  Also Dr. Bartlett, Abbi's boss and mentor while at Whitechapel Hospital.

And then we mix these characters plus a dash of paranormal in with the sensational Ripper brutalities.  And what do we get?  Why this book of course.  But I don't know if it worked for me.  I loved the story telling from Abbi's point of view, and I was able to like the characters a lot.  However I couldn't really mix it with the Ripper action.  There's two scenes that I wasn't able to get over because they hung me up horribly.  One was a romantic scene and the other was an action scene.  I guess I had a hard time believing those scenes.

Anyone who likes young adult fiction and Ripper lore should pick this one up.  Just remember, it's Ripper lore which means there is some gore (but not a lot).  And while I enjoyed the book and had some issues, there are probably a lot more readers out there who enjoyed this read.

Challenges:  Debut Author Challenge and Young Adult Reading Challenge

manda-rae's Haul

Stacking the Shelves consists of books we received in the last week, hosted by Tynga's reviews.

Today (Friday - it'll be yesterday by the time this is posted) has been a super long day for me.  It started at two in the morning for me.  I had to go to work really, really early in order to make my closing appointment.  And now for the exciting news: my husband and I are proud homeowners now.  A long and exhausting day ends with a good note.  Now we'll be spending the next week moving things into the house.  And maybe one day, I'll be able to unpack all of my books that have been sitting in boxes for years.

For Review:

• Libyrinth by Pearl North
• Amazon | Book Depository | Goodreads
• A book regarding librarians in a fantasy world.  It sounds curious to say the least.  And I didn't notice until I received the cover, but there's a little guy sitting on the girl's shoulder; kind of creepy if you ask me.  The third book is coming out in a couple of weeks, so I thought I'd check this series out.  Thanks goes to Tor Teen for my review copy.

From the Library:

• Tiger Lily by Jodi Lynn Anderson
• Amazon | Book Depository | Goodreads
• When I first heard about this book, I was a little hesitant because Tiger Lily plays such a small roll in Peter Pan.  But then I saw some good reviews (and some not-so-good ones) and wanted to know more.  I mean, I am a fan of Peter Pan.  I annoy my husband because I like to watch Peter Pan every once in a while.  So, I thought this book might be perfect for me because I'll get a new twist to one of my favorite tales.

manda-rae's Past Week

Reviews:

• A Want So Wicked by Suzanne Young
• The Calling by Kelley Armstrong

Memes:

• Top Ten Book Romances That You Think Would Make It In The Real World (outside the book)
• Waiting on Wednesday: Ironskin by Tina Connolly

Author Interview:

• Dusty Crabtree: Author of Shadow Eyes

Giveaway:

• Pledged by Gwynneth White

The Calling by Kelley Armstrong

Genre:  YA Paranormal Fantasy

Darkness Rising Series, Book 2

Kelley Armstrong's website

Amazon | Book Depository | Goodreads

Note:  Please read The Gathering before reading the description for this one.  And please be aware, my review is going to contain what some would consider a spoiler.  So don't read my review if you want to be completely surprised (but you probably should've caught on in the first novel anyways).

Description (taken from Kelley Armstrong's website):

Maya Delaney’s paw-print birthmark is the sign of what she truly is—a skin-walker. She can run faster, climb higher, and see better than nearly anyone else. Experiencing intense connections with the animals that roam the woods outside her home, Maya knows it’s only a matter of time before she’s able to Shift and become one of them. And she believes there may be others in her small town with surprising talents.

Now, Maya and her friends have been forced to flee from their homes during a forest fire they suspect was deliberately set. Then they’re kidnapped, and after a chilling helicopter crash, they find themselves in the Vancouver Island wilderness with nothing but their extraordinary abilities to help them get back home. Plentiful action and romance in this second installment in the Darkness Rising series will keep readers enthralled to the last page.

Note:  I tried hard to remain spoiler-free but failed...

Honestly, I don't really remember the little details from the first book.  Yes, I remember the main characters:  Maya, Rafe, Daniel, Nicole, Sam, etc.  Yes, I remember the main theme and how the first one ended.  But the subtle details and connections that were forming, yeah I can't recall those.  So, this book didn't really feel like a true second for me.  And I quite enjoyed this one.

First off, we're not going to see much of Rafe in this book.  Which was a total downer for me because I remember liking him in the first one.  But the awesome friendship between Daniel and Maya?  It's awesome, and I'm so happy to finally see a novel that doesn't have a love triangle and actually emphasizes the guy friend without the boyfriend material.  (Cue record ripping noise.)  Wait a second, I must not have read that far into the second book.  Yeah, once I finished it, I had to amend my thoughts.  Things started clicking, and I realized like Maya, I had not picked up on the subtle hints and clues.  And if you haven't figured it out, go read the book (I'm sorry, but I don't think I can spell it out for you - and who knows, I might be wrong with my assumption anyways).

But what I really loved was the mystery behind the characters' developing powers.  We don't even find out what all of them are (which kind of left me hanging).  And woah, I could gush and gush about these powers, but I glued my mouth shut to keep me from ruining it for you.  And how things from the first novel tie into this one.  Oh, and things from Kelley Armstrong's first YA series also tie into this one.  And the fact that we're in the same world as her adult Women of the Otherworld series (I should stop while I'm ahead).

Anyways, Kelley Armstrong is one of my favorite authors.  And I believe her books will keep you entertained.  However, if you're like me, you may want to wait until the whole series is out before reading them.  Otherwise, you forget the minor details.  Definitely recommend this book for paranormal fans out there...

Challenges:  Sensational Seconds and Young Adult Reading Challenge

Waiting on Wedneday

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly post hosted by Breaking the Spine, and it spotlights upcoming books that we as readers are anxiously awaiting...

Ironskin by Tina Connolly
Genre:  YA Fantasy
Tina Connolly's website
Expected publication date:  October 2, 2012
Amazon | Book Depository | Goodreads

Description (taken from Tina Connolly's website):

Jane Eliot wears an iron mask.

It's the only way to contain the fey curse that scars her cheek. The Great War is five years gone, but its scattered victims remain -- the ironskin.

When a carefully worded listing appears for a governess to assist with a "delicate situation" -- a child born during the Great War -- Jane is certain the child is fey-cursed, and that she can help.

Teaching the unruly Dorie suppress her curse is hard enough; she certainly didn't expect to fall for the girl's father, the enigmatic artist Edward Rochart. But her blossoming crush is stifled by her own scars, and by his parade of women. Ugly women, who enter his closed studio...and come out as beautiful as the fey.

Jane knows Rochart cannot love her, just as she knows that she must wear iron for the rest of her life. But what if neither of these things is true? Step by step Jane unlocks the secrets of her new life -- and discovers just how far she will go to become whole again.

Honestly, the cover sold me.  And the description just makes me think of rich fantasy awesomeness.  I hope it's good!

Top Ten Book Romances That You Think Would Make It In The Real World (outside the book)

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly post hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. This week's post is Top Ten Book Romances That You Think Would Make It In The Real World (outside the book).

Ooh, this one should be interesting.  So does this mean romances without paranormal weirdness involved?  Say vampires being human?  Hmmm....  I don't know.  I kind of like the vampire sexiness.  Oh boy.

Cat and Bones

The Night Huntress Series by Jeaniene Frost

Mmmm...  Bones, he's another hot one.  I don't know how it'd work out with him being human though.

Eugenie and Dorian

The Dark Swan Series by Richelle Mead

Nevermind the fact that Dorian's a fairy.  He's hot...

Eve and Michael

The Morganville Vampires Series by Rachel Caine

Kate and Vincent

Die for Me Series by Amy Plum

Technically, this couldn't work without the paranormal aspect because Vinent would have died about fifty years before Kate was born.

Lena and Alex

Delirium by Lauren Oliver

Although being in a world where love is normalness, I'm not sure all the emotions between Alex and Lena would be experienced.

Mia and Adam

If I Stay Series by Gayle Forman

Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful!!

Nikki and Jack

Everneath by Brodi Ashton

She so would have gotten back together with him eventually (because he's a keeper).

Rose and Dimitri

Vampire Academy Series by Richelle Mead

Although I'd take Adrian over Dimitri any day.  I think Rose is missing out...

Stephanie and Morelli

Stephanie Plum Series by Janet Evanovich

Oh wait, they're set in the Jersey real-world.  Hmm, after considering this, I might want to cross out Morelli and add Ranger.  Or maybe I should just save Ranger all to myself...