Review: Sacrifice by Brigid Kemmerer

Title: Sacrifice (Elemental #5)
Author: Brigid Kemmerer
Publisher: Kensington Teen
Release date: September 30th 2014
Source: Netgalley
Format: eARC

Rating: 4/5

Buy on: Amazon | B&N | BookDepository

You can read my review of  Elemental - here, Storm - here, Spark - here, Breathless - here, Spirit - here. & Secret - here.

Earth. Fire. Air. Water.

One misstep and they lose it all. For the last time.

Michael Merrick understands pressure. He's the only parent his three brothers have had for years. His power to control Earth could kill someone if he miscalculates. Now an Elemental Guide has it in for his family, and he's all that stands in the way.

His girlfriend, Hannah, understands pressure too. She's got a child of her own, and a job as a firefighter that could put her life in danger at any moment.

But there are people who have had enough of Michael's defiance, his family's 'bad luck'. Before he knows it, Michael's enemies have turned into the Merricks' enemies, and they're armed for war.

They're not interested in surrender. But Michael isn't the white flag type anyway. Everything is set for the final showdown.

Four elements, one family. Will they hold together, or be torn apart?

I started reading this series with the novella Elemental, which is the story of a 17 years old Michael Merrick, now with Sacrifice the series comes to an end with the book of a 22 years old Michael, he´s the older brother and guardian of the Merricks, he´s the head of the household, with a lot of responsibilities and he´s always trying to keep at bay his brothers which is not an easy task. But now things are getting complicated because the Elemental Guides will not leave them alone, through the series they had faced several Guides, because they want to annihilate them just because they´re pure Elemental, which makes them worthy of a death sentence due to their affinity with their element is too strong and sometimes they can control their powers and are feared by how easy they can use their ability to harm others.

But now the new Elemental Guide that arrives to town is willing to do anything to kill the Merricks and that Guide doesn´t care about collateral damage and begins with an attack that leaves them with nothing, and leaving Michael as the main suspect, and he slowly starts to lose everything, that´s why he´s always stressed and feeling lost at times and his main concern is to keep his brothers safe, which is proving increasingly difficult.

About the romance between Hannah and Michael is almost nil, since they has been dating for a while and they´re sort of drifting apart because he wants to keep her safe, but he doesn´t give her explanations.

I have to say that after reading Spirit, I realized that no one has a secure place in the Elemental series, but I still ....didn´t saw coming ......something that happens in this story, it was so unexpected and I'm still in shock.

In Sacrifice, almost all the characters from previous books do a cameo (we get so see some more than others) and although I would have liked to get a bigger dose of Chris, Gabriel, Nick and Hunter; but I understand that this is the story of Michael. The ending was okay, but I don´t like open endings and I felt it a little abrupt, but I accept it, and to some extent it makes sense and is a good ending. But I really hope this isn´t the end and we get at least a novella (because I need some answers) or a spin-off (I can dream).

The Elemental Series is a series that I liked a lot (some books more than others), but after 5 books and 3 novellas...the story of the Merrick brothers and Hunter comes to an end (NO !!!).

Review: Secret by Brigid Kemmerer

Title: Secret (Elemental #4)
Author: Brigid Kemmerer
Publisher: Kensington Teen
Release date: January 28th 2014
Source: Netgalley
Format: egalley

Rating: 4/5

Buy on: Amazon | B&N | BookDepository

You can read my review of  Elemental - here, Storm - here, Spark - here, Breathless - here & Spirit - here.

Nick Merrick is stretched to the breaking point.

Keep his brother's business going or the Merricks will be out on the street.

Keep the secret of where he's going in the evenings from his own twin--or he'll lose his family.

Keep his mind off the hot, self-assured dancer who's supposed to be his "girlfriend's" partner.

Of course there's also the homicidal freak Quinn has taken to hanging around, and the Elemental Guide counting the hours until he can try again to kill the Merrick brothers.

There's a storm coming. From all sides. And then some.

Nick Merrick, can you keep it together?

If you have read my previous reviews you will know that I LOVE THIS SERIES! and that my favorites are the Merrick twins, so of course I was dying to read Nick Merrick´s book for some time but since I read Breathless, Nick´s novella and I saw where his story was heading I knew that this was a must for me.

And you must wonder why this series is so AMAZING? First because its main characters, the Merrick brothers (which each one of them have an affinity with the elements : water, fire, air and earth) and Hunter, are real, flawed, with vulnerabilities and good guys. And something that I love about this series is that each book is the story of one of them and a girl, but every book is not the same formula with different details but each story is unique, and after reading Spirit the previous book, I no longer know with what new surprise I ´ll face in the next book.

So Secret is the story of Nick Merrick and Quinn Briscoe, told from the point of view of both, and for everyone they are dating but in Breathless novella, I really saw how was their relationship in reality. So in this book Nick continues struggling with his sexuality, and with the feelings he´s starting to have for Quinn´s dance partner and apparently the guy is also interested in Nick but besides that he still doesn´t know what to do regarding his sexuality, because Nick is trying to be the perfect brother as he has been so far....he always do the right thing, he helps his older brother with his landscaping company and worries about not having enough money, he´s the peacemaker of the family, he has excellent grades and he usually does what all that´s expected of him, so he doesn´t know what to do about Adam.

Meanwhile Quinn is having strong family problems, so she tries to be away as long as possible, so she spends her time in a parking lot or in the woods until she starts spending time with Tyler, the archenemy of the Merrick brothers. I´ve known Quinn since the first book of the series, but I´ve never liked her and this book did not improve much my impression of her. She's still one of my least favorite characters of the series.

I´ve always liked Nick, but after reading his story, my heart is with him, it made ​​me very sad to see his fear of speaking to his brothers about how he really feels and about his sexuality, but he especially dreads to the reaction of his twin brother Gabriel.

And Adam ( insert scream), he´s so cute!!! I loved him, because that despite the fact that he´s completely open with his sexuality, he never pressured or forced Nick to do anything, and he has tremendous patience with him. I loved this couple! and I would recommend you to read Breathless before reading this book.

As I said before I LOVE this series and I really liked this book (Quinn´s part of the book notwithstanding), because it has great characters that I'm fond of them, besides of being a paranormal novel with lots of action scenes and romance, but it also has realistic themes. I highly recommend this series, it´s highly addictive.

I received an eARC of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange of an honest review.

Spirit by Brigid Kemmerer

Title: Spirit (Elemental #3)
Author: Brigid Kemmerer
Publisher: K Teen
Release date: May 28th 2013
Source: Netgalley
Format: egalley

Rating: 4.5/5

Buy on: Amazon | B&N | BookDepository

You can read my review of  Elemental - here, Storm - here, Spark - here & Breathless - here

With power comes enemies. Lots of them.

Hunter Garrity just wants to be left alone. He’s learned the hard way that his unusual abilities come at a price. And he can’t seem to afford any allies.

He’s up to his neck in hostiles. His grandfather, spoiling for a fight. The Merrick brothers, who think he ratted them out. Calla, the scheming psycho who wants to use him as bait.

Then there’s Kate Sullivan, the new girl at school. She’s not hostile. She’s bold. Funny. Hot. But she’s got an agenda, too.

With supposedly secret powers rippling to the surface everywhere around him, Hunter knows something ugly is about to go down. But finding out what means he’ll have to find someone he can trust...

After what happened in the previous book, Hunter Garrity is among the most undesirable people in school and the Merrick brothers and Becca don´t trust him at all. Then there is Calla, she wants to force him to contact the guides, if he doesn´t do that she will continue to cause more damage and killing people in the process. And besides the fact that no one want to be around him, he´s having problems at home with his grandparents and his mother, so Hunter is close to lose control of his life and his powers.

But among so many bad things happening in his life, he meets Kate Sullivan, the new girl in school, she's funny, beautiful, very bold and the only person that talks to him, so he finds peace and something else in her, and his attraction to her is something that he never felt before, but the question is can he trust her?

In this book all my favorites characters make an appearance: Chris, Nick, Gabriel and Michael Merrick and Becca, and none of them trust Hunter for what he did in Spark and Gabriel is really hostile to him (I can understand why he is upset). But this book allowed me to see Hunter´s side of the story, the way he was educated and trained to not trust anyone and especially the pure Elementals (aka Merrick brothers), because they´re highly dangerous and the enemy, but Hunter is at a point in his life where he doesn´t know what is right or what is wrong anymore and he has an terrible internal battle. There were times I didn´t like some of the decisions he took, but all was part of his self-discovery.

I love the Elemental series and of course I loved Spirit! and this book is a little different from Storm and Spark. This book has a mayor twist that left me with my mouth hanging open and now I know that no one is safe in this series. If you have not started reading this amazing series, then you need to read Storm, the first book in the series. And I can´t wait to read the next book: Secret, which will be Nick's book! The Elemental series books are highly addictive!

Thanks to K Teen for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Mini Review: Breathless by Brigid Kemmerer

Title: Breathless (Elemental #2.5)
Author: Brigid Kemmerer
Publisher: Kensington Teen
Release date: April 30th 2013
Source: Netgalley
Format: egalley

Rating: 4.5/5

Buy on:  Amazon | B&N

You can read my review of  Elemental - here. Storm - here & Spark - here

Too many secrets. Not enough time.

Nick Merrick is supposed to be the level-headed one. The peacemaker. Since it’s just him and his three hotheaded brothers against the world, that’s a survival tactic.

But now he’s got problems even his brothers can’t help him survive.

His so-called girlfriend, Quinn, is going quick as mercury from daring to crazy. Meanwhile, Quinn’s dancer friend Adam is throwing Nick off balance, forcing him to recognize a truth he’d rather shove back into the dark.
He can feel it—-the atmosphere is sizzling. Danger is on the way. But whatever happens next, Nick is starting to find out that sometimes nothing you do can keep the peace.

It is difficult to review a short story, because at least Breathless has 65 pages to show us a day in the life of Nick Merrick and his girlfriend Quinn, but although I wish the story was a little longer, I think Brigid Kemmerer gives a glimpse of what is to come in the book of Nick - Siege (published in January 2014) and let us see a little more of his personality and although I've seen him in the previous books through the eyes of his brothers, is not the same to be in his head.

This short story is told from the point of view of Nick and Quinn. Nick is perfect brother of the family, he´s gets along with his siblings, is the peacemaker, always does what he should do, has excellent grades, know how to treat the girls and what he should do to keep them happy but now that he is with Quinn, she´s not like the other girls and he´s having problems with her. And meanwhile Quinn, (I still don´t like her) is having problems with her family and because of this she´s too impulsive and self-destructive and ends up getting Nick into trouble.

Overall, if you have read Storm and Spark, you must read Breathless!, I got excited when I read the excerpt of it on the blog of the author, it gives you an idea where Nick´s story is going.

Elemental is quickly becoming one of my favorite series! I highly recommend it!

I want to thank Kensington Teen and Netgalley for this review copy.

Spark by Brigid Kemmerer

Title: Spark (Elemental #2)
Author: Brigid Kemmerer
Publisher: Kensington
Release date: August 28th 2012

Rating: 5/5

Buy on: Amazon | B&N | BookDepository

Read my review of Storm HERE.

Gabriel Merrick plays with fire. Literally.
Sometimes he can even control it. And sometimes he can’t.

Gabriel has always had his brothers to rely on, especially his twin, Nick. But when an arsonist starts wreaking havoc on their town, all the signs point to Gabriel. Only he’s not doing it.

And no one seems to believe him. Except a shy sophomore named Layne, a brainiac who dresses in turtlenecks and jeans and keeps him totally off balance. Layne understands family problems, and she understands secrets. She has a few of her own.

Gabriel can’t let her guess about his brothers, about his abilities, about the danger that’s right at his heels. But there are some risks he can’t help taking.

The fuse is lit…

Definitely I have a weakness for bad boys (in books), but underneath all that armor they use to repel people, there is someone who is suffering and has several personal demons they need to fight. And I think that´s why I LOVED this book, because in the first book of the series Gabriel Merrick was not my favorite of the Merrick´s brothers (was Chris), but after reading Spark, I love Gabriel!.

In the first book of the series - Storm we met the four Merrick brothers and Hunter, their powers and that because they´re pure elementals, others elementals consider them dangerous and want to eliminate them.  Spark begins a few days after the events of Storm and has dual POV (Gabriel and Layne) and I really enjoyed it. Gabriel has an explosive temper and he´s constantly fighting with his brother Michael, and his classmates. Layne is a smart girl but shy and insecure and her main priority is to get good grades and take care of her younger brother. And Gabriel has too many personal demons and in several of them when I was reading about them I felt a lump in my throat and I cried a few times, he carries guilt over what happened to his parents.

And to add to his problems, someone starts to burn houses and the main suspect is Gabriel, my heart ached to see that neither of his brothers trusted him and thought he was the culprit. But the good thing is that the Merrick brothers although they have problems with each other at some point in the story, they unite and protect each other when someone outside of their the family, threatens the tranquility of one of them.

Something I loved about this book is that we keep seeing and knowing a little more about Hunter, Becca (the protagonist of the first book) and the Merrick brothers (Michael, Chris, Nick). I really like this series, the characters are great and Spark is a very second book. Now I can´t wait to read Spirit, which is Hunter´s book and Breathless - Nick's short story. I highly recommend this book! If you haven’t read Storm yet, you must give this book a chance.

Book trailer

Storm by Brigid Kemmerer

Title: Storm (Elemental #1)
Author: Brigid Kemmerer
Publisher: Kensington
Release date: April 24th, 2012

Rating: 4.5/5

Buy on: Amazon | B&N | BookDepository

Earth, Fire, Air, Water – they have more power than you dream.

Ever since her ex-boyfriend spread those lies about her, Becca Chandler is suddenly getting all the guys—all the ones she doesn't want. Then she saves Chris Merrick from a beating in the school parking lot. Chris is different. Way different: he can control water—just like his brothers can control fire, wind, and earth. They’re powerful. Dangerous. Marked for death.

And now that she knows the truth, so is Becca.

Secrets are hard to keep when your life’s at stake. When Hunter, the mysterious new kid around school, turns up with a talent for being in the wrong place at the right time, Becca thinks she can trust him. But then Hunter goes head-to-head with Chris, and Becca wonders who’s hiding the most dangerous truth of all.

The storm is coming .  . .

Storm is a book that I began to read to very high expectations, when it went it come out on April, I read several reviews of it, saying that this book was wonderful,  with hot guys and it was a must read .......Well let me tell you these reviews weren´t wrong, I love this new series (at least as far as I´ve read).

The story begins when Becca saves Chris Merrick when he´s getting a beating by two boys. And this is just the beginning and because without her knowing she got caught up in a dispute between elementals and now they think that she´s with Chris and she becomes a target of the elementals who wish you harm the Merricks.

The book is told from the point of view of Chris and Becca. Becca gets bullied at school, but despite this she is strong and has a strong sense of what is right. Chris is 16 year old, is the youngest of the Merricks, he is an elemental and his element is water. Another major character in the story is Hunter, which complements the love triangle and has a key role in this book.

Other characters that are introduced in this book are the rest of the Merrick brothers. The twins Gabriel and Nick Merrick of 17 year-old, which are very close. Nick is more focused, very smart and always tries to keep the peace between his brothers, his element is air and Gabriel is the most rebellious of the brothers, is the athlete, not very good at school, with explosive temper, his element is fire. There is also the older brother Michael Merrick,  he is 23 year-old, his element is earth, he is very responsible, he is raising her brothers and cares a lot about them, so much that he can be really rude but his only goal is to keep his brothers safe.

Storm further explains what are the elementals and also more about the guides that are like cops for the elementals which are called to eliminate the elementals that are causing problems or the pure elemental because their power is so strong and that can sometimes get out of control, so they are considered highly dangerous and should be eliminated. The Merrick's brothers are pure elementals but thanks to a deal that their parents did with the other elementary in the city, they have been allowed to live .... until now.

Storm is a novel with paranormal romance, with lots of action, is funny, has hot guys, with a very good plot that keeps you interested, and has an interesting twist and I feel that the ending was open to continue in the next book in the series - Spark. I loved this book, you must read it!

Book trailer

Mini Review: Elemental by Brigid Kemmerer

Title: Elemental (Elemental #0.5)
Author: Brigid Kemmerer
Publisher: Kensington
Release date: March 27th, 2012

Rating: 4/5

Earth, Fire, Air, Water – they are more than you dream.

As an air Elemental, 17-year-old Emily Morgan doesn’t have much power. That’s okay—she knows what happens to kids who do.

Like Michael Merrick. He’s an earth Elemental, one with enough power to level cities. Which makes him sexy. Dangerous. And completely off limits. At least according to Emily’s family.

But her summer job puts her in close contact with Michael, and neither of them can help the attraction they feel. When forces of nature like theirs collide, one misstep could get someone killed. Because Emily’s family doesn’t just want her to stay away from him.

They want him dead.

Elemental is a novella or short story (very short) of 50 pages that takes place six years before Storm, when Michael was 17 year-old and a summer coincides with Emily in a place where there are batting cages, where she is working for the summer. And we got to see a Michael who is always angry, wanting to escape his situation (his problems with the other elementals) and Emily's family is just one of the main elementals that would like too see him dead and end the truce between Merrick family and the rest of the elementals in the city.

Is not fully explain in this short story what are the elementals, just that they´re humans with affinity to an element: earth, water, air or fire and the stronger your power is, you are considered more dangerous, so because Michael is a pure elemental, the other elementals want him dead. We can also see a bit of Michael's relationship with his younger brothers and his parents.

I really enjoyed this novella, because I could see Michael before having the responsibility of raising his brothers and to some extent understand him. My only problem is that it is very short and ended in the most interesting part.