Book Review: The Fever Code by James Dashner

Goodreads Summary: Once there was a world’s end.
The forests burned, the lakes and rivers dried up, and the oceans swelled.
Then came a plague, and fever spread across the globe. Families died, violence reigned, and man killed man.
Next came WICKED, who were looking for an answer. And then they found the perfect boy.
The boy’s name was Thomas, and Thomas built a maze.
Now there are secrets.
There are lies.
And there are loyalties history could never have foreseen.
This is the story of that boy, Thomas, and how he built a maze that only he could tear down.
All will be revealed.

Goodreads Rating: 4.09 stars with over 39,000 ratings

Genre Listing: Young Adult, Dystopia, Science Fiction, Post Apocalyptic. Adventure, Teen

Goodreads Challenge: 22/60

2021 Reading Challenge: #20 Read a book you meant to read on last year's challenge (find the entire reading challenge here)

Previous reviews on the series: Maze Runner, The Scorch Trials, The Death Cure, The Kill Order

Book Review:

Happy Saturday, readers! I'm excited to announce that I finally finished the Maze Runner series. It only took me a year and some change. One of my friends loaned me the entire series, and I had intended on reading it all the way through last year so that I wasn't holding on to her books for eternity. With the pandemic, however, Disease heavy dystopian did not feel like an appealing read. I've had about ten books lined up for this spot because I never complete challenges and get sidetracked.

This is going to be a relatively short review today. Most of what I'd talk about would be spoilers for not only this book but the whole series, and most of the time, I try really hard not to spoil anything. For those of you who don't know, The Fever Code is a prequel in the series. The events that happen are before the first book, Maze Runner. So chronologically, it would go The Kill Order, The Fever Code, The Maze Runner, The Scorch Trials, The Death Cure. However, if you've never read any of the series and aren't familiar with the story, I would definitely read Maze Runner, Scorch Trials, Death Cure, Kill Order, and Fever Code.  Reading it Chronologically would really take the fun out of the story and provide so many spoilers, in my opinion. That being said, now that I've read the whole thing, I kind of want to reread it starting with The Kill Order. It could be interesting, but that's a challenge for another day (or year).

I enjoyed The Fever Code by James Dashner, but I don't know if I was as into it as the other books in the series.  The entire time I was reading Maze Runner, Scorch Trials, and Death Cure, I really wanted the background story of before the kids got in the maze and how that came about. The Fever Code definitely provides that. We get a little background into Chancellor Paige, Newt, Chuck, Brenda, Jorge, and obviously Thomas and Theresa. The Glades makes an appearance once the Maze is complete. From there, we get a look at how the Gladers start to find their place in their new home. 

While there was some action in the story, I don't feel like there was as much in this book as in the others. It mostly just goes through the day-to-day of the WICKED organization and how the maze came to be. There were some twists and turns, but overall, everything felt more level than the other books. I don't know if that makes any sense. Hopefully, it does. One of the things that bothered me the most with The Fever Code is a lot of it Thomas and Theresa are pretty young. Really until they hit their teenage years, the age the story said they were didn't really feel like it corresponded to how they acted or talked. I know, obviously, they're supposed to be prodigy geniuses, but it just didn't seem consistent to me and took me out of the story a bit.

Overall, I enjoyed the book, but I think I would have liked a little more action and maybe Thomas and Theresa to seem a little more like the age they were supposed to be. I never really felt like the age they acted and the age they were ever lined up. I did enjoy that I felt like a lot of the unanswered questions got closure, however. There's apparently a couple of short stories about Thomas's memories and Newt's experience from his account in The Death Cure. I think it'd be interesting to see a story from post-Death Cure. I think a lot of skills they learned in Maze Runner would come into play for that. It could be interesting. 

Book Review: A Throne for Sisters by Morgan Rice

Goodreads Summary: In A THRONE FOR SISTERS (Book one), Sophia, 17, and her younger sister Kate, 15, are desperate to leave their horrific orphanage. Orphans, unwanted and unloved, they nonetheless dream of coming of age elsewhere, of finding a better life, even if that means living on the streets of the brutal city of Ashton.
Sophia and Kate, also best friends, have each other's backs—and yet they want different things from life. Sophia, a romantic, more elegant, dreams of entering court and finding a noble to fall in love with. Kate, a fighter, dreams of mastering the sword, of battling dragons, and becoming a warrior. They are both united, though, by their secret, paranormal power to read other's minds, their only saving grace in a world that seems bent to destroy them.

As they each embark on a quest and adventure their own ways, they struggle to survive. Faced with choices neither can imagine, their choices may propel them to the highest power—or plunge them to the lowest depths.

Goodreads Ratings: 3.47 with over 2,000 ratings

Genre listing: Fantasy, Young Adult, Romance

Goodreads Challenge: 23/60

Goodreads Challenge: #44 Read a book with exactly four words in the title (find the full challenge here)

Book Review:

I actually had another book in mind for #44, but I really wanted to read this and didn't want to burn through more free spaces. I really liked the concept of A Throne for Sisters, but it fell short for me in a lot of ways. Sophia and Kate are in an orphanage where they, along with the other orphans, are abused and trained for indentured servitude. The two sisters escape and have different ideas of how to go about their lives and ultimately split up.

I liked the different approach in that one thought the best way to survive was to go to the palace and try to find a husband while the other thought they should try to fight or go live in the woods. I probably would have been more in line with the latter. One was a lot more open about what they had been through, and the other kept it a secret. 

I think the biggest drawback for me in this book is how short it is. It's only 166 pages, so everything just happens so quickly, and there's not a lot of world-building. This can work for some books, but I think that this story really needed some build-up. Some of the questions that I felt went unanswered were:

• How did they get to the orphanage
• Why do they hate orphanages
• Did they previously try to escape?
• Why do they have these "special talents?"
• Is telepathy the only one they have?
• Do other people have different talents
• Why do the people of Ashton hate people these talents  
• What's the story behind the masked goddess
• Why do they worship her?
• Is she the only deity they worship?

I have more questions than answers, unfortunately. The other issue I have is both Kate and Sophia fell in love with their love interests in a matter of hours. Sophia's prepared to get married within a couple of days. Which I get was her plan, but it's kind of cringe-worthy.  Maybe it happens in the second book, but I was really hoping they'd both just end up being solid characters who found a way to stand on their own to feet. They both seemed kind of week to me. It was like these Royalty and Warrior were the only two options they could possibly fathom. 

I enjoyed the story, but I just felt like I needed more from it. I'm not sure if I'll read the next book in the series or not. I haven't decided yet. There was a cliff hanger for both Kate and Sophia, but I wasn't so engaged that I feel like I need to find out what happens right away.

Book Review of Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare

Goodreads Summary: In a time when Shadowhunters are barely winning the fight against the forces of darkness, one battle will change the course of history forever. Welcome to the Infernal Devices trilogy, a stunning and dangerous prequel to the New York Times bestselling Mortal Instruments series.

The year is 1878. Tessa Gray descends into London’s dark supernatural underworld in search of her missing brother. She soon discovers that her only allies are the demon-slaying Shadowhunters—including Will and Jem, the mysterious boys she is attracted to. Soon they find themselves up against the Pandemonium Club, a secret organization of vampires, demons, warlocks, and humans. Equipped with a magical army of unstoppable clockwork creatures, the Club is out to rule the British Empire, and only Tessa and her allies can stop them....

Goodreads Rating: 4.31 stars with over 323,000 ratings.

Genre Listing: Paranormal, Angels, Historical Fiction, Fantasy, Young Adult, Teen, Adventure, Mystery, Science Fiction, Action

Get the Book: Amazon,  Book Depository
My other reviews of Cassandra Clare's books: Clockwork Prince, Clockwork Princess, City of Lost Souls

Review:

Edited 12/1/2016

Happy Late Holidays to everyone! I hope whatever holiday you chose to celebrate was good to you. I finally got around to reading one of my Christmas presents, as you can see. The husband-folk did a good job. He got me this and the next two books in the infernal devices series. I, unfortunately, don't get much time to read anymore. I'm working about 50-60 hours a week, so posts are going to be few and far between. :(

I'm just going to come out and say it- I like the Infernal Devices more than I like the Mortal Instruments. With the MI series, I get tired of Jace, Clary, and their drama. I found Will, Jem, and Tessa to be refreshing, and I get a taste of old characters too - like Camille and Magnus. I had read this a while back, but how much I forgot about it astonishes me. It made it kind of like reading it for the first time again. Unfortunately, the things I did remember were the plot twists, so it was hard for me to get completely engrossed in it.

Will has some pretty comical moments, which I liked. If possible, he's even snarkier and more brooding than Jace is in MI. Jem, however, is a far better character in my opinion. He seems real and wise beyond his years. I think he has an interesting perspective on life because of what he's gone through. I'm interested in reading more about him in the next book. I don't dislike Will, but I'm less interested in seeing what happens with him.

It's going to be interesting to read more about Tessa and her journey to finding out who/what she is. There's a pretty nice glimpse of it in Clockwork Angel, so I'm hoping the next book doesn't disappoint. I'm intrigued to see how this connects with Mortal Instruments. I know it has to in some way, I just haven't pieced the how together yet. I'm also hoping that Jessie gets over herself in the next book. At this moment, I can't stand her and hope she gets punched in the face or something.

One of my favorite quotes from this book is:"Sometimes," Jem said," Our lives can change so fast, that the change outpaces our minds and hearts. It's those times, I think when our lives have altered, but we still long for the times before everything was altered- that is when we feel the greatest pain. I can tell you though from experience, you grow accustomed to it. You learn to live your new life, and you can't imagine, or even really remember, how things were before."

Overall I enjoyed this and am hoping to start the next book soonish. It didn't quite captivate me as much as I hoped it would, but it's still a good read.

Four out of Five Moons.

Book Review of Dying to Forget by Trish Marie Dawson

Goodreads Summary: "...With trembling fingers, I reach up and touch the hard and chiseled contours of his chest while Ryan's large and strong hands roam over my entire body, feeling and squeezing everything. I've never been touched like this before and my insides are starting to freak out.

"I want you, Piper," he murmurs into my neck.

My mouth drops open in surprise and even though my brain seems to be telling me to jump and run out of the room, I’m unable to move, stuck firmly to the same place on the mattress. With my nerves on high alert, I glance at the door repeatedly, sure that someone will come bursting through it at any second but the steady thumping of the music downstairs reminds me that no one can hear what is happening in this room. No one cares that Ryan Burke took me, of all people, into a bedroom. That realization hits me suddenly. Oh. My. God. What am I doing here?"

Piper Willow dies the summer after her high school graduation but she doesn’t make it to Heaven or Hell…instead she finds herself in a spiritual terminal called the Station. She’s given only two choices: Return to Earth as the subconscious for a person in need of some outside assistance, or move on and spend an eternity lost in her own sorrow and pain.

Does Piper have what it takes to save a life - to be the nagging voice inside someone else’s head - or will she fail and end up lost and tormented in limbo...forever?

Goodreads Rating: 4.09 with 995 reviews
Genre Listing: Young Adult, Paranormal, Fantasy, Romance, Supernatural, Ghosts, Death, Teen, Contemporary

Get the Book:  Amazon, Book Depository
My other reviews of Trish Marie Dawson's books: Dying to Remember

Review:

Edited 12/1/2016

Wow. This book is intense and pretty dark. If you can't handle morbid death related things, this book is probably not for you. I, on the other hand, found it absorbing.

The premise of the book is that if a person is depressed and thinking about committing suicide, they get a Volunteer placed in your head. It's the Volunteer's job to make your life better and try to talk the person out of committing suicide. The suicidal person doesn't know the volunteer is in their head, and the volunteer stays there until the person either doesn't need them anymore or commits suicide. If the person ends up dying, they get sent to the station, where they have two choices. Either become a volunteer and try to save lives or spend eternity in their special hell.

In this paranormal book, we meet Piper, who frankly has to deal with a lot of crap no one should have to deal with. She ends up becoming a volunteer, and we follow her through her death, training, and two of her assignments. I felt connected to Piper, and I felt sorry for her. I just wanted to be able to be her friend and talk her through the things she was going through, but once she dies and starts volunteering the book lightens up a little bit (that seems odd to say). It's still pretty dark because it's dealing with death, but Piper's comical while being a volunteer.

I find the premise of this book interesting. I've been interested in death-themed books lately, and this fit in with that. It's a different take on a very dark and controversial subject. Even though it's young adult, I appreciated that Piper went through some tough situations and didn't spend the entire book swooning over boys. As a reader, you get the sense that she genuinely cares about her assignments and wants to help them succeed.  I'm amazed that it's under 200 pages. It leaves a complete story, but at the same time the ending hooked me in, and I want to read the second book- Dying to Remember.

Four out of five moons

Book Review of Beautiful Chaos by Kami Garcia and Margaret Sthol

Goodreads Summary: Ethan Wate thought he was getting used to the strange, impossible events happening in Gatlin, his small Southern town. But now that Ethan and Lena have returned home from the Great Barrier, strange and impossible have taken on new meanings. Swarms of locusts, record-breaking heat, and devastating storms ravage Gatlin as Ethan and Lena struggle to understand the impact of Lena's Claiming. Even Lena's family of powerful Supernaturals is affected -- and their abilities begin to dangerously misfire. As time passes, one question becomes clear: What -- or who -- will need to be sacrificed to save Gatlin?

For Ethan, the chaos is a frightening but welcome distraction. He's being haunted in his dreams again, but this time, it's not Lena -- and the mysterious figure is following him out of his dreams and into his everyday life. Worse, Ethan is gradually losing pieces of himself -- forgetting names, phone numbers, even memories. He doesn't know why, and he's afraid to ask.

Sometimes there's no going back. And this time, there won't be a happy ending.

SPECIAL BONUS: Includes "Dream Dark," a thrilling short story set before Beautiful Chaos. When Link joined his best friend, Ethan Wate, on a quest through a mysterious network of underground passageways endlessly crisscrossing the South, he knew the journey would be dangerous. But he had no idea it would change his life forever.

Goodreads Rating: 3.99 with over 58,000 ratings
Genre Listing: Young Adult, Paranormal, Fantasy, Witches, Magic, Supernatural, Incubuses, Romance, Young Adult, Teen,
Get the Book: Amazon , Book Depository
Other Kami Garcia/Margaret Stohl reviews: Dangerous Creatures, Beautiful Redemption, Beautiful Darkness

Review:

Edited 12/1/2016

  Wait...? What? The book's over, but it can't be over! I have more pages left!!!! Oh. Those are a mini story and a preview. WHY WOULD YOU DO THIS TO ME. THAT... THAT CAN'T BE THE END OF THE BOOK. Noooooo! - I just finished Beautiful Chaos, and this is my thought pattern right now. I hate previews being thrown into my book. It throws me off, and honestly I never read them. I might go back and read the Beautiful Dark that's supposed to be a snippet of between Beautiful Darkness and Beautiful Chaos. But not right now, I'm too distraught.

I knew I was going to start getting upset with this series. Not the kind of upset where I don't want to read the series, but the point where someone I adore gets killed off. I can't even process right now. This entire book was just so incredibly sad. The next book in the series is called Beautiful Redemption; that has to mean it's going to be happy, right? RIGHT? I need it to be happy. I don't say this usually, but I need a happy ending with this one.

For me, if I do not want a book to end it's a good sign. I loved this book and was kind of glad to see it back in Gatlin- even though I enjoyed the tunnels in the second book. Despite the sadness of the book, I enjoyed this. I'm intrigued by where Beautiful Redemption is going to go with the story. It'll sadly be a while before I get to read it, so I'll just be sad and wallowing in the unknown that Beautiful Chaos created.

Character wise, I think Amma is still my favorite character because she's so sassy. I was sad to see her be less Amma-y this book. Also, I adore Aunt Prue. In all of the books so far Amma and the Sisters have been a delight to read. I thought that John was lacking. It's weird, but I thought John had more depth when he was being controlled, now that he's on his own he's pretty boring. At least, when he was being controlled, he was dark and brooding. Now he's just one of the gang. I'm glad to see Liv was present in this book. I was worried that she wouldn't be around as much as she was in Beautiful Darkness. She did kind of fade into the background a bit, but she was still there. Link being an Incubus has grown on me. It was talked about a bit more. I still have the issues with it that I mentioned in my review of Beautiful Darkness, but I can, at least, move past it now.

I wasn't prepared for the book to end, to be honest. I thought I still had a few hundred pages or so to go, so I hadn't prepped myself for a good review of this book. Sorry, this one's lackluster. I don't want to give spoilers or anything, but the I wanted to throw my book. I wouldn't, because that's harmful to books, and my wrist hurts like hell, but the want to throw was there. I wish I'd be able to read Beautiful Redemption soon, but that's not going to happen. I had the first 3 in a box set, and I don't own the fourth yet (and no, I haven't gotten around to getting a library card). That's okay, though. I have a box full of books that I need to read, and Bargain Books was having a buy 4 get 1 free sale.... So I obviously had to buy more... Yeah. I have an addiction. I suppose there are worse things to be addicted to.

Four out of five moons