Review: Reign of Shadows by Sophie Jordan

Title: Reign of Shadows (Reign of Shadows #1)
Author: Sophie Jordan
Publisher: Harper Teen
Release date: Harper Teen
Source: Edelweiss
Format: eARC

Rating: 3.5/5

Buy on: Amazon | B&N | BookDepository

Seventeen years ago, an eclipse cloaked the kingdom of Relhok in perpetual darkness. In the chaos, an evil chancellor murdered the king and queen and seized their throne. Luna, Relhok’s lost princess, has been hiding in a tower ever since. Luna’s survival depends on the world believing she is dead.

But that doesn’t stop Luna from wanting more. When she meets Fowler, a mysterious archer braving the woods outside her tower, Luna is drawn to him despite the risk. When the tower is attacked, Luna and Fowler escape together. But this world of darkness is more treacherous than Luna ever realized.

With every threat stacked against them, Luna and Fowler find solace in each other. But with secrets still unspoken between them, falling in love might be their most dangerous journey yet.

With lush writing and a star–crossed romance, Reign of Shadows is Sophie Jordan at her best.

Reign of Shadows is an interesting YA fantasy book with romance, it tells the story of Luna, a 17-year-old girl that has lived her entire life in a tower in a forest that is said to be cursed and with the only human contact of her caregivers Perla and Sivo, whom had been dedicated to protecting her from the murderer of her parents and the outside world. For the last 17 years the kingdom had lived almost in eternal darkness due to an eclipse, with only one hour a day of light, so that the world around it has changed and is not safe, because there creatures called "dwellers", which are a zombie like that eat humans, also due to the lack of sunlight is difficult to grow plants, so food is scarce. And despite all this Luna wants to explore the world.

So when she stumbles and saves the life of Fowler, a young man whose main goal is to survive in the strange world in which he had to live and what he least want is a fellow traveler, due to some unexpected circumstances he reluctantly accept Luna to tag along in his search of a safe place. So most of the plot is about their journey and the obstacles they encountered along the way, besides the romance that develops between them.

The book is told from the point of view of Luna and Fowler, so we get to know both of them and we learn a little about Fowler´s background and this give us some understanding of why he´s so harsh with Luna and so disconnected from his humanity.

Because Reign of Shadows is a book of fiction, I read it with understanding that everything is possible, so I did not stop to analyze what is feasible and what´s not, and that due to the total eclipse for almost 17 years (there is only one hour of mid light), it is difficult to grow food and some animals have mutated, besides some of Luna´s skills may not be believable (in a normal world), but I decided to accept them as they come. The story feels more post-apocalyptic than fantasy sometimes, but it is very entertaining and I really enjoyed it, And it has an cliffhanger ending that hook me to read the next book in the series.

Review: Uninvited by Sophie Jordan

Title: Uninvited (Uninvited #1)
Author: Sophie Jordan
Publisher: HarperTeen
Release date: January 28th 2014
Source: Edelweiss
Format: egalley

Rating: 4/5

Buy on: Amazon | B&N | BookDepository

The Scarlet Letter meets Minority Report in bestselling author Sophie Jordan's chilling new novel about a teenage girl who is ostracized when her genetic test proves she's destined to become a murderer.

When Davy Hamilton's tests come back positive for Homicidal Tendency Syndrome (HTS)-aka the kill gene-she loses everything. Her boyfriend ditches her, her parents are scared of her, and she can forget about her bright future at Juilliard. Davy doesn't feel any different, but genes don't lie. One day she will kill someone.

Only Sean, a fellow HTS carrier, can relate to her new life. Davy wants to trust him; maybe he's not as dangerous as he seems. Or maybe Davy is just as deadly.

The first in a two-book series, Uninvited tackles intriguing questions about free will, identity, and human nature. Steeped in New York Times bestselling author Sophie Jordan's trademark mix of gripping action and breathless romance, this suspenseful tale is perfect for fans of James Patterson, Michelle Hodkin, and Lisa McMann.

As a good fan of dystopian novels I could not miss reading this novel, Uninvited is a very good first book in a series, as the plot has good pacing, it is easy to read and the idea of this world is very interesting.

In the near future, America has become more violent and the number of murders is increasing, that why people are leaving the cities to live in suburbs or away from the major cities, so looking for a solution to such violence the government developed a genetic test to determine if a person has the "killer" gene known as  Homicidal Tendency Syndrome (HTS). Which everybody sees it as something positive, as this can identify a murderer before he strikes ..... and in some states such carriers are taken to special camps and other states such carriers are added to a bank of information and constantly monitored by a social worker (but the treatment of this carriers seems more like they´re on probation or parole).

This is the world in which Davy Hamilton lives, she´s a seventeen- year-old prodigy and she thinks that everyone with the killer gene, are violent and that´s okay what the government is doing to them or at least she thinks that until she receives her positive results and is informed that she´s a carrier of the killer gene and all her world is changed because she suddenly becomes an outcast, everyone sees her with fear and as a potential killer and there are times when she´s in the receiving end of violence just because she´s a carrier.

The book is told from the point of view of Davy, but something that I really liked is that at the beginning of each chapter there are news, conversations, government reports and text messages between Davy 's friends that let us see a little more of what is going and allow us to see a little more of the situation with the carriers.

I really liked Uninvited, and like most dystopian novels the world where the story takes place is scary and violent, the story caught me from the beginning, it´s a fast and entertaining read, has action and the romance is not an insta-love, but develops gradually as they get to know each other and Sean despite being really intimidating, sometimes ends up helping and protecting her.
I recommend it to fans of dystopian novels.

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

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Hidden (Firelight #3) by Sophie Jordan

Release date: Septiember 11, 2012.

Sophie Jordan Website

Goodreads

A dangerous journey.
Shattered bonds.
Undying passion.

Jacinda was supposed to bond with Cassian, the "prince" of their pride. But she resisted long before she fell in love with Will—a human and, worse, a hunter. When she ran away with Will, it ended in disaster, with Cassian's sister, Miram, captured. Weighed down by guilt, Jacinda knows she must rescue her to set things right. Yet to do so she will have to venture deep into the heart of enemy territory.

The only way Jacinda can reach Miram is by posing as a prisoner herself, though once she assumes that disguise, things quickly spiral out of her control. As she learns more about her captors, she realizes that even if Will and Cassian can carry out their part of the plan, there's no guarantee they'll all make it out alive. But what Jacinda never could have foreseen is that escaping would be only the beginning....

Loyalties are tested and sacrifices made in the explosive conclusion to Sophie Jordan's Firelight trilogy.

UK Cover

Thirteen (Women of the Otherworld #13) by Kelley Armstrong

Release date:  July 5, 2012.Kelley Armstrong WebsiteGoodreads

A war is brewing—the first battle has been waged and Savannah Levine is left standing, albeit battered and bruised. She has rescued her half brother from supernatural medical testing, but he’s fighting to stay alive. The Supernatural Liberation Movement took him hostage, and they have a plan to expose the supernatural world to the unknowing.
Savannah has called upon her inner energy to summon spells with frightening strength, a strength she never knew she had, as she fights to keep her world from shattering. But it’s more than a matter of supernaturals against one another—both heaven and hell have entered the war; hellhounds, genetically modified werewolves, and all forces of good and evil have joined the fray.
Uniting Savannah with Adam, Paige, Lucas, Jaime, Hope, and other lost-but-notforgotten characters in one epic battle, for a grand series finale.

Note: all hardcover editions are “collector editions,” which will include features such as author notes on the series and the post-13 Elena story “From Russia, with Love.”

Demon Eyes (Witch Eyes #2) by Scott TraceyRelease date: October 8, 2012.Scott Tracey WebsiteGoodreads

Braden came to Belle Dam in search of answers. Answers to his past, to the incredible power he was born with, and the threats destined to come for him. What he found was a supernatural feud between the Lansings and the Thorpes: a feud divided by blood, ruled through manipulation, and fought with magic. His arrival has caused the tide to turn in Belle Dam, and now the things in the darkness have begun to stir.
Trapped between his power and his desires, Braden struggles with the legacy he's inherited. The witch eyes give him access to incredible power, but they've ravaged his body for nearly the last time. As a series of girls are stolen, snatched away in dead of night, Braden realizes that once more there are demons maneuvering in the dark. Friendships are tested, and old alliances threatened, as Braden unravels the history behind the city's darkest secrets, and the demons bound to its core.

Embers and Echoes(Wildefire #2) by Karsten Knight

Release date: August 28, 2012.

Karsten Knight Website

 Goodreads

Ashline Wilde is about to discover that when you’re the reincarnation of a Polynesian volcano goddess, “new beginnings” are just a myth.
Leaving the fiery ruins of her sophomore year behind her, Ash travels to the sizzling beaches of Miami, hot on the trail of the little sister she’s only seen in visions. But her happy family reunion isn’t all palm trees and paradise. A cult of evil gods-on-earth, known as the Four Seasons, has kidnapped her sister to use in its terrifying new religion. Soon, the streets of Miami erupt in chaos and violence…and Ash gets caught right in the tropical crossfire
Ash isn’t without help, however. Unexpected romance arrives in the form of Wes, an Aztec god of night with his own vendetta against the Four Seasons. As memories of Ash’s previous life begin to flicker into her dreams, the boundaries between ally and enemy, life and death, and love and hate all bleed together. And when a mysterious trickster from her past reappears to derail her new quest, Ash must choose between the echoes of a once-forgotten yesterday and the embers of an uncertain future.
Because when old flames return from the dead, even a volcano goddess can get burned.

 The Crimson Crown(Seven Realms #4) by Cinda Chima Williams

Relese date: October 23, 2012.

Cinda Chima Williams Website

Goodreads

A thousand years ago, two young lovers were betrayed— Alger Waterlow to his death, and Hanalea, Queen of the Fells, to a life without love.     Now, once again, the queendom of the Fells seems likely to shatter apart. For young queen Raisa ana’Marianna, maintaining peace even within her own castle walls is nearly impossible. Tension between wizards and Clan has reached a fevered pitch. With surrounding kingdoms seeking to prey on the Fells’ inner turmoil, Raisa’s best hope is to unite her people against a common enemy. But that enemy might be the person with whom she’s falling in love.     Navigating the cutthroat world of blueblood politics has never been more dangerous, and former streetlord Han Alister seems to inspire hostility among Clan and wizards alike. His only ally is the queen, and despite the perils involved, Han finds it impossible to ignore his feelings for Raisa. Before long, Han finds himself in possession of a secret believed to be lost to history, a discovery powerful enough to unite the people of the Fells. But will the secret die with him before he can use it?      A simple, devastating truth concealed by a thousand-year-old lie at last comes to light in this  stunning conclusion to the Seven Realms series.