Manga Review: Bloody Cross by Shiwo Komeyama

Yen Press
Published May 1, 2012
224 Pages

Half angel, half demon, Tsukimiya needs to drink the blood of a pure demon in order to break the curse that will kill her on her 18th birthday. In the middle of a battle, she meets Hinata, an angel, claiming to be there to help Tsukimiya.

But when the demon is killed, Hinata is the one who drinks the blood, leaving Tsukimiya to die. But in a turn of events Tsukimiya drinks the blood of Hinata, causing the two to share the curse.

Now Tsukimiya and Hinata must find a way to save themselves before it is too late. 

I didn’t like this manga. That statement is completely weird because its rare for me not to like a manga.

It way to sexual (funny I’m saying that). Almost immediately I know exactly what this girl looks like naked. It took away the integrity of the manga because before you even know she is this bad-ass hybrid, she is just a naked girl.

I also didn’t like how Tsukimiya allowed Hinata to touch her. There was no boundaries which I thought was weird considering that they just met.

The art was dull, sloppy in some areas and very cliche. What I did like about the manga was the story. The idea of a hybrid being sentenced to death by the 18th birthday and how he/she needs to fight and kill in order to save their life sounds really cool. I just think it was poorly executed.

Others may like this manga but I don’t. Oh and I read the second one . .  still didn’t like it.

2 Pickles

Book Review (ARC): Sins of the Fallen by Karina Espinosa

Kindle Edition
Published Jan. 28, 2014
263 Pages

17 year old Maximillion Taylor goes to a party with his best friend and the last thing he expect was to be kidnapped by a hot girl who actually is a succubus. 

Max is more special than he thought and is now being hunted by angels and demons. In order to figure out who he is and where his origins lie, he must fight demons, protect his love ones, and stop from becoming a evil being. 

At first I didn’t enjoy this book. I didn’t find the beginning to be too special. However, it caught me by surprise as I kept reading.

Max is very childish. End of story. For a 17 year old boy he is very I am doing what I feel right because my father and best friend has been lying to me for all these years. He is purely based off emotion and he is a bit of a brat. I didn’t really enjoy his character.

But because he was such an emotional ride it made for a interesting story. Something was for the most part always happening.  I liked how the author made it easy for Max to try to be normal boy i.e. going to school, and getting a girlfriend.

I didn’t like the love triangle and the possible ruin of a friendship between his guardian angels. I felt that was unnecessary drama between a 500 year old angel and a 17 year old boy.

But despite the character flaws and the love triangle, the story the author wrote was really engaging and interesting. The need to know what was going to happen was an exciting part of the book. I like the betrayal although I didn’t get it, I liked it.

 

NetGalley Review: Dark Hope by Monica McGurk

Greenleaf Book Group
To Be Published July 29, 2014
400 Pages

For the past ten years, Hope Carmichael has been living under her father’s overprotective and obsessive watch as a result of her being a survivor of a child abduction. 

But at 15 years old, freed by her mother, Hope is now able live a life in which she can start over and be normal. She meets Michael, a teen with a mysterious past, who at the same time makes her happy but makes her question everything that is happening. When Lucas the school bully begins taking a unwanted interest in Hope, she can’t but wonder what is really going on and Michael is hiding so many secrets.

Firstly, beautiful, beautiful cover. But the book fell short.

The book starts off wonderful. It begins off in a action scene that only fills with questions. It is a really great lead up and it showed potential of being a really developed and exciting book.

However, Hope was as lifeless and naive as her father raised her to be. She possessed no spark, no real personality through the book. I can understand in the beginning but she really didn’t change herself.

I love stories about angels, forbidden love and battles. However, I felt that the author put too much religious stories into this book. I understand she did it to legitimize the concept but there was so much in it, the book stalled. The author also added a very important political issues in Atlanta (Sex Trafficking and Kidnapping of girls) and I felt it was out of place. I see how she tried to tie it into Hope’s own story but that is such a strong issue, I felt that to throw it in there wasn’t really right.

I liked Michael’s character. He was everything a love interest should be. The only issue I have with Michael and Hope’s relationship was there was no chemistry. I knew Michael felt something for Hope; that was pretty obvious but I didn’t get that same feeling from Hope. No butterflies at first or even second sight. There wasn’t really anything until he kissed her forehead. Love takes many different forms and times but the chemistry is always there. Just in this case I didn’t feel it.

Overall, I though this was a decent read. Did it spark a reread or a wow in me? No but the author did tell a good story although it lacked. 2.5 Pickles

Kindle Review: Ember (Death Collectors #1) by Jessica Sorensen

Borrowed Hearts Publishing
Published Aug. 28, 2012
337 Pages

17 year old Ember can see how a person will die when she touches them. The only person that knows her secret is her best friend Raven, who not only drags Ember’s goth self to every party but tries to make her life as easy going as possible.

But then she meets Asher Morgan, who is completely surrounded by mystery and is the only person Ember cannot sense death from. Ember is more than excited to be around him but her bliss is short lived when unexplained deaths begin happening over town and all the evidence points to Ember.

Ember must find the answers to not only her ability but to the deaths that occur around her.

This was a decent read but I am not entirely sure I would actually recommend this book. I loved the theme of grim reapers. There are so many stories of who, how and what when it comes to the reapers, but I actually like what Sorensen did.

She created a love triangle -.- good and evil and it wasn’t in bad taste. Ember wanted Asher, while this guy named Cameron wanted Ember. Sorensen didn’t over do it with the romance or dripping love scenes but she did make Asher way too perfect. Cameron was more realistic and I actually prefer him.

I didn’t like Ember or her friend Raven. They both pitied each other and it made their friendship feel fake. Ember was unrealistic. You can’t touch people because you see their death and yet you go to house parties expecting not to be touched. That doesn’t seem right. Ember didn’t seem like she was concerned about the fact that she can see death and Raven was just a jerk even before her mind became warped.

Sorensen laid the drama on too thick when it came to Ember and Raven’s home life. Both mothers were drug addicts, their fathers are gone and Ember’s brother might as well be an addict and Ember is completely disconnected from it all. I felt it was too much.

Although I loved the grim reapers aspect of it, the book as missing action and drive. Ember was boring, Asher was boring and Cameron didn’t have enough time in the book to do a whole lot of trouble.

I was able to finish the book but I needed more out of it. Overall it gets 3 Pickles.

 

 

 

Book Review: A Touch of Crimson (Renegade Angels) by Sylvia Day

FOR ADULTS ONLY*****

Signet
Published Oct 4, 2011
344 Pages

I like Sylvia Day and I like angels.

Adrian Mitchell is the top angel, a powerful angel in charge of a special ops unit of Seraphim. His job is to kill fallen angels who are turned vampires. But although he has a job to do he messed up by falling in love with a mortal so his punishment is to love this same woman over and over again never reaching her in time before she dies.

However, he finally has her but she doesn’t remember her past or him for that matter.

This book really really reminded me of Dark Lover (Black Dagger Brotherhood #1) by J.R. Ward especially the ending.  Adrian meets the forbidden girl of his dreams over two hundred years ago so seeing her at the airport did a number on him and he instantly goes right for her.

Obviously the woman is completely oblivious of her past or even the danger of a future but she wants Adrian and throughout most of this book they do a lot of beating around the bush.

Here is what I didn’t like about the book . . .  the language during these scenes. Day uses such blunt words that I really couldn’t picture either character saying. It felt completely out of place and a bit forced. It was as if she was trying to add more of a shock factor but it really wasn’t needed. It seriously was not needed.

Other than that the story itself was well written. I was really involved in Adrian because he has so much control. Granted almost all leading strong rough men do but his control was different. It wasn’t I’m going to make you hate me and stay way from me control. But I want you around all the time I’m just not going to touch you.

Overall this book gets an 8 out of 10. Good read.

 

Tania Lasenburg is a communications major that plays video games and cyber stalks Gym Class Heroes. Follow her on twitter @mrztanyapickles

 

Book Review: Angel Para Bellum Vol 1 by Nozomu Tamaki

This manga is from the creator of “Dance in the Vampire Bund” which was an amazing series that I recommend to anyone who loves manga, action, romance and of course vampires. You can find it here on goodreads.

Before the review or even reading this series there is a key fact that people should know. Para Bellum means (along the lines of) If you want peace, prepare for war. Beautiful quote. Anyways . . .

       Seven Seas Entertainment          Published: July 3, 2012
192 Pages

 

This manga, Angel Para Bellum, is about a little boy named Mitsuru who looks like a little girl. Mitsuru is the key to preventing an all out war between heaven and hell and because of that demons are after him and he has two angels as his personal bodyguards.

The artwork for this manga was great; bright and detailed. There is really not much to question regarding the artwork. The story line however, was a bit weak. I was interested enough to keep reading and even read the second volume but the action almost immediately starts, which normally I don’t have a problem with, but it really doesn’t leave much to the imagination. It’s a hard balance that not many authors can pull off.

This is not to say that the story didn’t pick up in the second volume.  It did but I’m expecting better the third volume because there is a lot of predictability.

Overall this volume gets a 7 out of 10. I am expecting great things to happen by the third volume. If you can’t wait that long then this series isn’t for you.

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Tania Lasenburg is a communications major with dreams of owning /working for a publishing company as a high end corporate. In her spare time, she is working to make Motif Ink a house hold name. Follow her on twitter @mrztanyapickles

Book Review: Embrace by Jessica Shirvington

The biggest thing that I cannot stand in young adult books is the spoiled disrespectful character. I hate it even more when it is the protagonist. With that being said . . .

Embrace by Jessica Shirvington

“Embrace” is about 17 year old Violet, who is about to find out that she is part angel. Her “trainer”/ love of her life knows who she is and because he didn’t tell her (because he couldn’t) Violet believes he betrays her. So her revenge? Meet Phoenix, he is the enemy, that Violet wants sexually. Now before I tell you anything further; Violet is a brat. She feel because she hasn’t accepted the fact that she is part angel she can do whatever she wants and do whatever she wants.

The idea that Violet keeps throwing out is Lincoln betrayed her. But in actuality she betrayed Lincoln on so many different levels and she refused to acknowledge that fact. I couldn’t stand her an if she was a real person I would tell her that. Lincoln was a bit of a punk; he knew that Violet was just wrong but he did nothing. Phoenix wanted Violet so to be honest he did nothing wrong and he played his part pretty well.

Violet was disrespectful to those that was trying to help her. Granted finding out you’re part angel and people are after you is a inconvenience but you don’t need to be rude and nasty about it.

She was selfish. She did what she wanted knowing that she would break Lincoln’s heart and I don’t mean going behind his back on a mission; I mean personal and physical actions.

This books gets a 4 out of 10. I will not continue with this series.

Book Review: Boundless by Cynthia Hand

goodreads.com

Let me first begin by stating how I actually really enjoyed the Unearhtly series. However, I am not sad it ended nor am I happy with the author for how she ended it.

Clara Gardner, which we know by now, is part angel and part human. In the first book she fell in love with a country boy named Tucker even though her soulmate is the amazing Christian Prescott. In the second book, she realizes that Tucker’s life would constantly be in danger if she stayed with him and although she tries to keep her feelings for Christian at bay and protect Tucker. Also her brother is going through a mess of things and is being distant from his mother and sister. By the end of the book not only does Clara break up with Tucker but her brother runs away.

In Boundless, she goes away to college with Christian and as much as she tries to forget about Tucker it doesn’t work. There is a huge danger that from the beginning of the book Clara and Christian is prepping for. Hand does a great job of leading up to drama; her details are great and leave much the imagination.  However, she went weak on Clara; who becomes extremely annoying in the book. She leads Christian on who not only puts his life in danger but has worn his heart on his sleeve for her; he even choose her over the girl was in love with before meeting her. I didn’t like how at the end of the book when Clara pretty much gets what she wants there is no sign or mention of Christian as if he didn’t save her life a few times or as if he didn’t love her.

My next issue is Clara’s brother. The whole drama in the book is because of him and the only thing the author figured Clara should say about her brother at the end of the book is that ‘I hope he comes by.” Like REALLY?

I feel that Hand got really lazy for the end of the book and granted the book is all about Clara there still should be something about those boys at the end. 9 years had passed by. LIKE COME ON!

I hope that she decides to come out with a book about Christian that Clara won’t show up in because she pretty much deaded him and I strongly believe that she (Clara) was selfish.

This book gets a 7 out of 10 mainly because that ending was disappointing and Clara was annoying.