The White Cat

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 criminals. Many become mobsters and con artists. But not Cassel. He hasn't got magic, 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.

Cassel has carefully built up a facade of normalcy, blending into the crowd. But his facade starts to crumble when he finds himself 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. As Cassel begins to suspect he's part of a huge con game, he must unravel his past and his memories. To find out the truth, Cassel will have to out-con the conmen.

I hadn't read that much about this book before I picked it up so I got really surprised when I found out it was about magic. It's a great idea with the curse workers and it's very interesting to read about but I wish there were something more. Spoiler alert! When Lila is transformed back to a human, you couldn't even tell she had been a cat for the last three years. What happened to her behaviour for example? It would have been more realistic if she had some of the cat-stuff left.

I really like that the protagonist in this book was a guy, Cassel. I liked him from the very beginning! His family is a bit messy and I bet it's hard to know who to trust. I also really liked Maura and I hope to read more about here in the second book in this trilogy.

The ending was the best part and I wanted to read the second book right away!

The White Cat by Holly Black
Paperback, 311 pages
Gollancz
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Vampire Academy

St. Vladimir’s Academy isn’t just any boarding school—it’s a hidden place where vampires are educated in the ways of magic and half-human teens train to protect them. Rose Hathaway is a Dhampir, a bodyguard for her best friend Lissa, a Moroi Vampire Princess. They’ve been on the run, but now they’re being dragged back to St. Vladimir’s—the very place where they’re most in danger... 

Rose and Lissa become enmeshed in forbidden romance, the Academy’s ruthless social scene, and unspeakable nighttime rituals. But they must be careful lest the Strigoi—the world’s fiercest and most dangerous vampires—make Lissa one of them forever. 

Me and vampires are a new thing actually. I haven't ever given them a real chance either so.. but I've heard many book bloggers talk about this series and I got curious. Of course. In the beginning of this book, I got so annoyed by Rose but the more I read, the more I thought she reminded me of myself when I was younger. But I wish someone had slapped me back then!

I liked Dimitri from the start and I hope to read more about him in the series. Christian also seemed like a nice guy. I really like the setting and in my mind, the academy is a dark and thrilling place.

It wasn't that exciting in the beginning but it changed after a few chapters. I tried to guess who the "bad guy" was but I was wrong and surprised. I really looking forward to read the rest of the series!

Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead
Paperback, 332 pages
Razorbill
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Cinder

Humans and androids crowd the raucous streets of New Beijing. A deadly plague ravages the population. From space, a ruthless lunar people watch, waiting to make their move. No one knows that Earth’s fate hinges on one girl. . . . 

Cinder, a gifted mechanic, is a cyborg. She’s a second-class citizen with a mysterious past, reviled by her stepmother and blamed for her stepsister’s illness. But when her life becomes intertwined with the handsome Prince Kai’s, she suddenly finds herself at the center of an intergalactic struggle, and a forbidden attraction. Caught between duty and freedom, loyalty and betrayal, she must uncover secrets about her past in order to protect her world’s future.

Just a few pages in, I was convinced. Cinder is a great character and her relation with the android Iko is very interesting to read about. I actually didn't think I liked sci-fi but ha, I was wrong.

This is a re-telling of Cinderella and it shows in a few different ways. For example in Cinder's family where she has two mean stepsisters and an even meaner stepmom. She also falls in love with a prince, Kai. Kai is a really interesting character and I liked him. He's likeable and friendly to his people. I hope to read more about him in the next book, Scarlet.

I really recommend this book and I'm very curious about Scarlet!

Cinder by Marissa Meyer
Paperback, 387 pages
Square Fish
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Starcrossed

Helen Hamilton has spent her entire sixteen years trying to hide how different she is—now it's getting harder. She's having nightmares of a desperate desert journey, visions of three women weeping tears of blood. And why is she possessed by the sudden, unstoppable urge to kill the handsome new boy in school, Lucas Delos? 

A love written in the stars . . . A feud started in ancient Greece . . . A curse not even the gods can break. 

Why on earth does every book has to be compared to Twilight?! Because of that, I had very low expectations and maybe that was a good thing because I LOVED IT. It was very difficult putting it down at nights and I really like greek mythology. It's interesting and it's a very good story Josephine Angelini made up.

One thing I like about this book is the funny comments that shows up from page to page. For example when Claire thinks Helen is a vampire.

The only thing I think is a bit negative is the very long chapters but on the other hand, I read it very quickly. I really want to recommend this book and the trilogy.

Starcrossed by Josephine Angelini 
Hardcover, 488 pages
HarperTeen
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Anna and the French Kiss

Anna is looking forward to her senior year in Atlanta, where she has a great job, a loyal best friend, and a crush on the verge of becoming more. Which is why she is less than thrilled about being shipped off to boarding school in Paris--until she meets Étienne St. Clair. Smart, charming, beautiful, Étienne has it all...including a serious girlfriend. But in the City of Light, wishes have a way of coming true. Will a year of romantic near-misses end with their long-awaited French kiss?

I know a lot of people loved this book so my expectations were pretty high when I first picked it up, but maybe they were a little bit too high. It was a great book but it wasn't as fantastic as I thought it would be. I don't normally like too romantic books and this is pretty close to that.

Anyway, I really liked the characters - especially St. Clair. Even though he's a bit cliché I liked him with his british accent and personality.

Very soon I'm going to read the next book by Perkins - Lola and the Boy Next Door and I hope it's as good as this or maybe even better.

Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins
Hardcover, 372 pages
Dutton Books
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The Hunger Games

Could you survive on your own, in the wild, with everyone out to make sure you don't live to see the morning? 

In the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capitol surrounded by twelve outlying districts. The Capitol is cruel and keeps the districts in line by forcing them all to send one boy and one girl between the ages of twelve and eighteen to participate in the annual Hunger Games, a fight to the death on live TV. 

Sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen, who lives alone with her mother and younger sister, regards it as a death sentence when she steps forward to take her sister’s place in the Games. But Katniss has been close to dead before—and survival, for her, is second nature. Unintentionally, she becomes a contender. 

If Katniss is to win, she will have to start making choices that will weigh survival against humanity and life against love.

This is the first book in the Hunger Games-trilogy and I read it in april last year. I actually saw the movie before I picked up the book but it was no problem reading it. It was just as exciting and thrilling as I hoped it would be.

The book is a real pageturner and pretty thin so I got through it fast. Suzanne Collins is a good writer and I really like the world she has created. The only problem with this book is that it sometimes is incredibly predictable but it wasn't something I cared about a lot.

I really recommend this book so if you haven't picked it up yet - just do it!

P.S. I'm going to re-read the trilogy very soon and then I'll give some more comments about it.

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
Hardcover, 374 pages
Scholastic Press
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Heist Society

When Katarina Bishop was three, her parents took her on a trip to the Louvre…to case it. For her seventh birthday, Katarina and her Uncle Eddie traveled to Austria…to steal the crown jewels. When Kat turned fifteen, she planned a con of her own—scamming her way into the best boarding school in the country, determined to leave the family business behind. Unfortunately, leaving “the life” for a normal life proves harder than she’d expected. 

Soon, Kat's friend and former co-conspirator, Hale, appears out of nowhere to bring Kat back into the world she tried so hard to escape. But he has a good reason: a powerful mobster has been robbed of his priceless art collection and wants to retrieve it. Only a master thief could have pulled this job, and Kat's father isn't just on the suspect list, he is the list. Caught between Interpol and a far more deadly enemy, Kat’s dad needs her help. 

For Kat, there is only one solution: track down the paintings and steal them back. So what if it's a spectacularly impossible job? She's got two weeks, a teenage crew, and hopefully just enough talent to pull off the biggest heist in her family's history--and, with any luck, steal her life back along the way.  

This book is a little bit different than the other ones I've read lately and it's a good thing. I don't normally read books with thieves but it was really interesting. I also liked Ally Carter's writing style and now I'm very curious about her other books.

I liked Katarina Bishop, the main character, but also Hale. The book contains a good mix of characters but I hope Kat's father shows up more in the following book.

A very short review this time but I don't think I have anything more to say about this. I will definitely read the next book in the series but I don't know if it will come out in swedish. Otherwise I will be reading it in english. We'll see..

Heist Society by Ally Carter 
Hardcover, 287 pages
Disney-Hyperion
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