Lonely Werewolf Girl by Martin Millar

Think you've got family issues? Well think again...

Miserable, lonely and lost in the streets of London, werewolf Kalix MacRinnalch runs for her life from the dangerous hunters, and her murderous family.

The death of her father, the head of the werewolf clan, brings many more complications into Kalix's life, because she was the cause. Now, not only is she being hunted by the hated werewolf hunters, she also has a huge bounty on her head, courtesy of her brother. Her death could also be the deciding vote on the matter of who should be the next ruler of the clan.

Meanwhile Kalix's sister and werewolf Enchantress, Thrix is facing less serious problems, someone's been stealing her designs and releasing them as their own. She's got unmask the thief before her business goes broke.

Thrix may be the only family member that is not entirely against Kalix, or trying to use her, and she may be the only hope that Kalix has, unfortunately she's sleeping with Kalix's banished lover, and the result could be deadly.

As the fight for leadership changes to an all out war, there will definitely be many deaths, but will Kalix's be among them...

At first glance, this book sounded very promising, and it didn't disappoint! I found the story very engaging, but found that it dragged just a little too much. But all is well, because the ending is full of suspense and action!

The main character Kalix lives a very difficult life, and apart from her being an unpredictable werewolf, her situation is one that many teenagers today may relate with, she suffers from depression and is also addicted to drugs. As the story progresses, you find that her personality improves and that she is slowly changing.

At times, the multitude of characters as well as the story’s' tendency to switch from viewpoints becomes very overwhelming but as you begin to memorise the characters you begin to appreciate the different views, because each of the characters contributes a different perspective to the situation.

An excellent story, looking forward to the next book.

Last Sacrifice by Richelle Mead

It all comes down to this...

Rose Hathaway has never been one to play it safe, but now it’s all come back to bite her on the backside...

Laws were broken when she fled from St. Vladimir’s Academy to protect her best friend and the only surviving member of the Dragomir family, Lissa. She broke the law when she fell head over heels in love with Dimitri Belikov, her instructor. And to top it all off, she disregarded the orders of Queen Tatiana the ruler of the Moroi world, to protect many generations of dhampir guardians from being forced into guarding Moroi against their will.

And now the law’s finally come back to claim her, except, for once it’s for a crime that she didn’t commit. Now she’s sitting in prison, wondering when her life is about to end, for the highest possible offence: assassination of a ruler. Together with the help of Dimitri and Adrian, Rose battles against time to find the one person that can stall her execution and force the Moroi leaders to acknowledge the possibility of an unexpected new candidate for the throne: Vasilisa Dragomir

Roses’ time to live is slowly diminishing and with so few days left, every second counts and regrets are slowly surfacing, so much that she wanted to experience. Deep inside, Rose knows that the world of the dead wants her back, and it won’t let her escape it’s clutches a second time...

AAAAAAAAAAAaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrggggggggggggggggggggggggggghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!! SO GOOD!!! Who could have expected? So many secrets revealed and so many others created. Rose’s life is on the line!!!And so too are the lives of every single person that supports and depends on her. I couldn’t stand the ending of Spirit Bound... Why? Not because it was bad or a disappointment but more because it was a cliff hanger... It was pure relief to finally get my hands on the final book.

As usual Richelle Mead never fails to impress! Last Sacrifice was beautifully written and the plot featured so many twists and turns that it made my head spin! :D

I would never have expected such a plot, or such an ending... Basically all the characters were amazing in this novel, all were essential to the success of the book. Every detail counted and pages literally just flew by. My fears that the ending wouldn’t have been satisfying have all disappeared, replaced with simple satisfaction.

Overall the final instalment of the Vampire Academy series was a flaming success! I am almost sad to see the series come to an end, but how can I truly be when the ending was just so... right. Luckily another series is being published by Richelle Mead, Bloodlines, if I’m correct... I eagerly await the new series... hope they’re just as good as Vampire Academy... or maybe even better!

Embrace tht Night by Karen Chance

Sometimes, being dead is better than what Cassie has to get through... and with the growing list of enemies she’s making, she probably won’t survive the week...

After recently being named Pythia, the chief if all clairvoyants, there's only one thing left that holding her back from her full potential.

No, it's not her complete and utter lack of self preservation or her complete inability to act under stressing conditions (though these do contribute) :) it's the fact that she and a certain master vampire now have a bond. Mircea, having cast a geis on Cassandra when she was younger, now struggles to keep the situation under control.

Add that to the fact that somehow, while travelling back in time, Cassie managed to double the effect of the geis and you’re practically asking for trouble!

The ONLY counter spell known is hidden with the Codex Merlini, an ancient book containing not only the counter spell but the spell to change humanity with it. Unfortunately it's also highly doubtful that Cassie will even be able to get within a kilometre radius of the book, after all, many people of all different status, are willing to do almost anything to get their hands on the book and they’re not all friendly...

Meanwhile, Pritkin, who's grown to become one of Cassandra’s, trusted “friends" hides a dark past and an even darker secret, one that not only will destroy their friendship but also the world...

In my opinion, Embrace the Night is the best book in the series so far. The characters are still as strong and unique as usual but the story, though the plot twists and turns at several points in the book, is still understandable and not too confusing.

Cassie's relationships with Pritkin and Mircea both become more complicated within this book, it focuses a lot more on Cassandra and Pritkin and a little if Mircea as well.

Overall I eagerly anticipate the next book: Curse the Dawn. Can't wait to read it!!!!

The Demon's Covenant by Sarah Rees Brennan

Mae's normal life is slowly slipping through her fingers!

After her previous run-in with magic and demons Mae’s glad that she’s still alive and that she has time for a break. But her life without magic is now boring and just so ordinary, she simply can’t believe that most humans live their lives in complete ignorance, not knowing of the powerful forces that surround them. Everything changes when she discovers that her brother Jamie, who just found out is a magician, is secretly meeting with the new and dangerous leader of the Obsidian Circle, Gerald, who has only one motive, convince Jamie to join the circle or force him...

Distressed and angry at her brother for keeping such a dangerous secret from her, Mae calls in the Ryves brothers, Allan and Nick for assistance. Unfortunately much has happened between the brothers after they left Mae and now Allan has more incentive for completing a dangerous trap devised by Gerald to trap Nick and strip him of his powers.

Furthermore, Mae just can’t seem to stay away from the dangerous and mysterious Nick, even after she’s discovered that he’s a demon. She just can’t understand what it is about him that has her so intrigued.

With brother set against brother, and nobody that can truly be trusted, Mae must devise an plan to intervene with Allan and Gerald's plans before it's too late.

It's not so much the obsidian circle that they have to fear as much as Nick when he discovers that Alan, the one person in the world that he completely and wholly trusts is about to betray him....

Ah! So good! I Love this series! The action, the suspense and the slightly disturbing romances! All characters are amazing, all unique with different personalities. Jamie is loyal and loving, and definitely too trusting.

Mae is strong and vibrant as well as independent. Allan, he is the one that always makes sacrifices for others, always putting others edit himself. And finally Nick, his current demon state just makes the book that much more interesting, his sarcastic comments balance out with his inability to feel human. Gradually, u slowly notice changes in Nick’s personality, very slight ones, but changes nonetheless!

I simply can't wait to get my hands in the next book, which won't be out until June!!! I seriously don’t think I can wait that long! ;)

The Reformed Vampire Support Group by Catherine Jinks

“If being a vampire were easy, there wouldn’t have to be a reformed vampire support group”.

Being a vampire is not at all as glamorous as the media describes it to be. Nina an author of vampire books, was turned in 1973 and now, 51 years later, she still doesn’t look a day over 15. Sure the immortality is a bonus, and so is the excellent night vision. Unfortunately the list of disadvantages exceeds the bonuses by far... Firstly, the superhuman strength never arrived and in fact, she’s actually become very frail and delicate. Also, the allergy to sunlight or, lights at all, is also rather discouraging and very inconvenient.

There’s also the slight issue of being completely dead to the world every time the sun rises and only reviving when the sun sets. Occasionally vampires also feel an intense pain, a pain so strong that it causes them to cough up blood. Blood. Now that is a problem, fortunately they now have developed pills that can substitute blood and live on guinea pigs, but every now and then a vampire loses control of his blood thirst and attacks and turns humans. but that's okay....:P :D

Yep. That’s the life of a vampire, nothing at all like Nina expected. Nina envies humans and their ability to enjoy life, they actually have excitement in their lives. Every Tuesday, Nina meets up with a group of vampires for therapy but when one of the members is staked by a mysterious slayer, Nina doesn’t know whether to welcome the excitement or run and hide. After all, it’s not like she can do anything with the state that she’s in...

Threatened, the entire group hide out in Nina’s home, hoping to unmask the slayer before he strikes again. In an attempt to find the culprit, they find themselves up against a group of werewolf trafficking murderers who will stop at nothing.

Nina has to find a way to defeat the traffickers and find the slayer before it all comes crashing down...

The Reformed Vampire Support Group offers a different view of vampires than your average vampire book. The vampires in this book are different and unique, in their own way. Catherine Jinks writes a very creative and praise-worthy book!

Nina, the story’s main character is not what I would describe as brave, but you do have to give her points for trying, the fact that she tries to be like her own book character is very admirable. The story is very quick to read and I simply couldn’t believe that in a couple of hours I had devoured the last page of the book.

An excellent book! I can’t wait for the sequel!

Stakes & Stilettos by Michelle Rowen

Sarah Dearly's life sucks, literally.

Newly made vampire Sarah, just wants to go back to the good old days when she had a job and, most of all, didn't have to drink blood. Unfortunately, Sarah knows that the vamp virus is permanent. In hopes of having some normal aspect in her life, Sarah applies for a normal job, only to get staked in the process. Luckily, a masked vampire known as the red devil who just happened to be laying dormant for the past hundreds of years chooses that exact moment to save her... yay for her! :D

Thierry is convinced that the Red Devil that saved Sarah was an imposter but how can he possibly be so sure when the Red Devil is always covered in a black scarf? But unmasking the Red Devil is currently on the bottom of her to do list... after all she's got a lot more to worry about.

While attending her high school reunion, Sarah runs into someone with a grudge, a very bad grudge, against HER! So Stacy-turned witch blows some glitter in her face, no big deal right? But then she finds out that she's been cursed to be a sunlight allergic, bloodthirsty nightwalker, the utmost worst type of vampire you can get. She only has three days to find and change Stacy's mind before the curse becomes permanent.

Meanwhile Thierry, is STILL married to his gorgeous wife Veronique, and nothing Sarah can say or do, can change Veronique’s mind to "divorce" Thierry.

To make matters worse, the curse has made Sarah very dangerous, and many of her closest friends and loved ones have begun to fear her. She must find Stacy and reverse the curse before it is too late...

An awesome story!! It's humorous and Sarah's quick and sarcastic remarks make the book very enjoyable! Sarah, the book's heroine just can't seem to catch a break! The situations that she always lands herself in are absolutely hilarious!

Very very enjoyable!Can't read to read the fifth and final book: Tall, Dark and Fangsome!!!!

Guardian of the Dead by Karen Healey

"In less than a day i had been harassed, enchanted, shouted at, cried on and clawed. I'd been cold, scared, dirty, exhausted, hungry and miserable. And up until now, I'd been mildly impressed with my ability to cope."

Ellie Spencer, a student of Mansfield boarding school has always considered herself normal, well, at least normal enough. She spends time with her best friend, Kevin, fantasizes over her crush, the mysterious Mark and keeps herself updated on the news about the serial killer that's on the loose, the Eyeslasher, they murder their victim and remove the eyes.

But all that she thought she'd known about the world changes when Mark starts taking an interest in her. They meet, they talk and Ellie leaves with a migraine and missing memories. Nothing much... :D :P

A stranger, one more dangerous than Mark, emerges from the mists, her beauty is mesmerising and her age is almost impossible to guess. But only one thing matters: She's after Kevin and will stop at nothing.

Mark and Ellie are launched into a gripping fantasy when the true motive of the Eyeslasher is revealed. They set out on a mission that is near impossible. But the fate of the world rests upon their shoulders; failure is not an option...

One thing's for sure though, Ellie is definitely NOT normal...

Guardian of the Dead is an exciting book that really draws the reader in. The book focuses on many legends and is full of gripping action! The characters are all unique and the plot is so unpredictable that you'll find yourself gasping out loud at certain times!

As mentioned above the characters were all unique and different, Mark was Ellie's mysterious crush but he just wasn't heroic enough for me, he cried and blamed himself too often which i found slightly annoying and pointless.

Ellie though, she was the heroine. She was smart and courageous. The fact that she so easily believed in the supernatural kept the book fast-paced and action packed! Yet even she had a vulnerable part about her and that was her body image, something as ordinary as that just makes her more realistic and relatable to for the audience.

I think the use of words such as "Te Ika a Maui" and other words in the same language was very clever and made the book more interesting, unfortunately it also made the book very confusing ans towards the end i barely understood what was going on.

Luckily there is a glossary at the end of the book, which i of course didn't notice until i finished the story. :P

Overall a fantastic story!

Unbelievable by Sara Shepard

"Beauty is only skin deep, but Ugly goes clean to the bone..."

Emily is still recovering from being sent to Iowa after her parents caught her hugging Maya. But after she escaped from her Aunt's farm home and was reported missing, her parents seem to have accepted Emily for the way she is. Maybe a little too accepting...

Aria is still homeless after being kicked out of her home by her mum. And unfortunately the only option left is to move in with Byron, her father, and Meredith... and you know what they say: Two is company, but three's a crowd...

Spencer still can't completely remember what happened the night of Ali's disappearance and her suspicions that she was the one to kill Ali grow... But they also shift when her perfect sister, Melissa, begins to act and say suspicious things...

After being hit by a car after she discovered the identity of A, Hannah wakes from a coma only to find that she's lost all memory of what happened. She only remembers up to Mona's birthday party. But a lot happened during the last few days...

Emily, Spencer and Aria all depend on Hanna to remember the identity of A, before she strikes again...

Unbelievable is completely... unbelievable! The fourth book is just as thrilling as ever and many more deadly secrets are revealed... A's included. It's utterly amazing... the plot of the books features many twists and turns.

Can't wait to read the next book!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Misguided Angel by Melissa de la Cruz

Schuyler fled to Florence with her forbidden lover Jack Force, shortly after inheriting the Van Alen Legacy. The two race against time in search of the remaining gates, hoping to prevent them from falling into the clutches of the silver bloods, which would mean the return of Lucifer.

Meanwhile, back in New York, Mimi Force has recently been elected to become Regent of the slowly decreasing Coven. She immerses herself in work hoping to overcome the painful heartache over the loss of Kingsley and her desire to completely destroy Jack for that he did to her. Unfortunately, her plans must go on hold and she must completely focus on the situation at hand.

Someone or something has breached the Blue Blood's security and has released footage of them all over the internet. But to make matters worse they are also abducting Blue Bloods, and plan to burn them online.

With already one failed attempt at rescue, Mimi calls in a Venator from Shanghai, Deming Chen, for assistance.

With already one Blue Bloods' life lost forever, and another kidnapped, they can't risk failure... Mimi's position as Coven leader is already shaky, but if they fail to find the killer, the Blue Bloods will go back into hiding regardless of what Mimi demands.

Misguided Angel is a very quick read that really engages the audience. The story is in parts, each featuring a different character's point of view. Overall, it's very well written and i can't wait for the next book!

Beautiful Malice by Rebecca James

"So. Were you glad, deep down? Were you glad to be rid of her? Your perfect sister? Were you secretly glad when she was killed?"

Ever heard of the Boydell sisters? Katie and Rachel Boydell? One of them died and the other became famous, for all the wrong reasons...

Katherine Patterson, originally Katie Boydell moved away from her heart-broken family with hopes of leaving behind all of what happened, to start anew unfortunately you can't keep secrets forever, especially if you had your name and photo all over the newspaper...

Katherine blames herself; she blames herself for what happened to Rachel. That if she had thought and tried hard enough she could have saved her. Katherine believes that she shouldn't be happy if Rachel isn't, that she shouldn't be allowed to experience and enjoy what Rachel could not.

But that's before she meets and befriends Alice. Alice's ability to live and enjoy the present and not dwell on the past is what draws Katherine to her. But Alice is not entirely what she seems, she has mood swings that change her pleasant and fun to spiteful and hateful. She dismisses other people's feelings and she uses people whenever she benefits. But the worst is that Alice hides a secret, one that connects her to the murder of Rachel...

A secret that can only lead to another death... or perhaps even two.

It was the blurb at the back of the book that caught my attention, "Were you secretly glad when she was killed?" Eeeeeep! I simply couldn't resist! I mean, who can resist such a line?!?

I am very glad that I picked this up though, several people have read and recommended it to me but I never actually got around to adding it to my to-read list... luckily it was there at my local library and I quickly devoured the story, page after page.

The main character Katherine/ Katie, is lovable and admirable but I feel that she wastes too much of her life mourning for what happened, when she should accept that it was the past and no matter how she feels and regrets it, she can't change anything.

An excellent novel!