Mini-Review of Elixir (Covenant 3.5) by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Phew! We have been on a Covenant roll lately!!!
Here's one more review from JLA--the novella "Elixir", which falls between Deity (Book 3) and Apollyon (Book 4, not yet released).

Yes, I made the cover pic bigger this time, because it is just so gorgeous :)

Elixir (Covenant #3.5) by Jennifer L. Armentrout
Mini Review by Steph
Steph’s Rating: 5 stars Dani’s Rating: 5 stars Overall Rating: 5 stars

Goodreads Synopsis:
Aiden St. Delphi will do anything to save Alex.
Even if it means doing the one thing he will never forgive himself for.
Even if it means making war against the gods.

Steph’s Mini Review:

    This has to be one of the best novella’s I’ve ever read. It probably is the best. In less than 80 pages, Jen is able to show us a whole new side and perspective of Aiden’s character. From all of the other books in the Covenant series, we see Aiden in Alex’s POV. He seems perfect, calm, and collected. Her prince and knight in shining armor.

    Yeah, Aiden doesn’t exactly view himself quite that way. He is much more complex than anyone could have guessed, and he has his own internal struggles to face even though he needs to be out there to support Alex, especially after the events in Deity. He is...much more aggressive than I thought he was. It was also nice to see Aiden’s perspective of Alex, which is comparable to Alex’s view on Aiden :). You mean he’s a total perv. He’s like: OMG ALEX’S LEGS ARE SO....PURTY.

    I think the thing I liked most about this novella was that it actually had a plot (shocker right?). I am pretty picky when it comes to novellas, because I think that if an author actually intends to write one, they should do all they can to make it on par with everything else in the series. In Elixir, all of the important characters from the Covenant series are present, and stuff actually happens with Aiden and Alex. Even this little novella had the twists that we know JLA so well for. If you read Elixir, you would definitely get more information about the brewing war. It picks up right after the torturous Deity ending, and covers the span of about a month There is a reason why this novella is named “Elixir”. ;)

It is a great Covenant installment, and definitely isn’t something you should skip over! Sometimes you can skip novellas in a series and still be okay, but I think it’s really beneficial to actually read Elixir. Plus, it helps feed your never ending thirst (or at least my never ending thirst AND DANI’S) for more of Covenant. Can’t wait for Apollyon to come out in April!!!

Want to read the 1st chapter of Apollyon?

So recently, the YA Scavenger Hunt has begun, and on participating blogs and websites you will be able to find teasers, news, and other things about some of your favorite upcoming YA books. There is a contest you can enter, and there are many cool and special prizes you can win! Visit any participating blog to find out more info on it.

Well today, I was browsing around and I ended up finding a sweet surprise! The first chapter of Apollyon, the fourth book in Jennifer L. Armentrout's Covenant Series, was posted up! Now I am a HUGE fan of JLA, so this was something for me to celebrate :)

Here is the chance for you to read it yourself, but hurry because this post will be removed on Dec 2nd:
http://cynthiahand.blogspot.com/p/chapter-1-my-blood-itched-for-fight.html

I think its pretty awesome that this was posted right after our review of the third book, Deity, came out. Our review for Elixir will be posted very soon!

Apollyon has a tentative set release date on April 9th, 2013, for anyone who is wondering. Too long for my tastes :)
Enjoy this sweet tease!!!

Steph
A Walk on Words

Review: Deity by Jennifer L. Armentrout

As promised, yes we know it's a little late, here is the REVIEW for Deity by Jennifer L. Armentrout!!! Enjoy!

Deity: The Third Covenant Novel by Jennifer L. Armentrout
Steph’s Rating: 5 stars Dani’s Rating: 5 stars Overall Rating: 5 stars 

Goodreads Synopsis:

"History is on repeat, and things didn't go so well the last time."

Alexandria isn't sure she's going to make it to her eighteenth birthday--to her Awakening. A long-forgotten, fanatical order is out to kill her, and if the Council ever discovers what she did in the Catskills, she's a goner... and so is Aiden.

If that's not freaky enough, whenever Alex and Seth spend time "training"--which really is just Seth's code word for some up-close and personal one-on-one time--she ends up with another mark of the Apollyon, which brings her one step closer to Awakening ahead of schedule. Awesome.

But as her birthday draws near, her entire world shatters with a startling revelation and she's caught between love and Fate. One will do anything to protect her. One has been lying to her since the beginning. Once the gods have revealed themselves, unleashing their wrath, lives will be irrevocably changed... and destroyed.

Those left standing will discover if love is truly greater than Fate...

Steph’s review: *small spoilers for Half-Blood and Pure*

    I’ve been fretting for weeks on how to start this review. I read it pretty much right after it came out at the start of November, but I have just been pushing back the review because I am, no joke, absolutely speechless from it. I couldn’t produce a single coherent thought to write down! Now, after several weeks of rereading and deep mental processing, I can say that Deity is definitely the best JLA book I have ever read, and that is saying something, because as far as Dani and I are concerned, pretty much every JLA book is a 5 star read. Deity left my heart pounding and aching for more of the Covenant Series.

    There is just so much I want to say about this book, and this review could probably continue for a few miles long, but I want to keep this as spoiler free as possible (TRUST ME. You do not want major spoilers for this Deity!!!).

    This books picks up right where Pure left off. Alex and the gang have returned from the New York Council after the massive daimon attack. Right from the first chapter, very typical of JLA, there are already plot twists working themselves. Oh, you thought Pure and Half-Blood were bad with the twists and turns? I know I’ve mentioned before that Pure had lots of twists, but just wait until you read Deity. This book is full of them cover to cover, and I actually didn’t expect any of them this time! I swear I was gaping at the pages the entire time I read this! It is just so fast paced, and I had to stop and put the book on several occasions to process the events that just happened. I think the true plot of the Covenant series is really starting to broaden in Deity, and JLA really just dumps a load of information (good, extremely interesting and important info :)) into your head.

    There is so much character development in Deity. Our Alex baby really starts grows up in this book. Maybe it’s all of the stress taking a toll on her, but she is now starting to think things through. Her actions are now done with what she believes is best for everyone she loves, rather than more selfish reasons that we see in Half-Blood. Sometimes her decisions weren’t the best for herself, but they were best for the people around her.

    I think I need to bold this: As of Deity, I have officially converted from Team Seth to Team Aiden. I’d like to think Dani agrees.***See below for Dani’s official position. In the books before, I thought Aiden was kind of a douche since he was pretty much leading Alex on all the time and then just kicking her to the curb, saying things like “Oh I would destroy your life if we were together! But BY THE WAY I really like you! But we just can’t be together!” But now, I take back every bad thing I have ever said about Aiden, because he just MANS UP and goes for the gold in Deity. He is just so sweet and protective and supportive in this book, and his and Alex’s relationship is now going in a completely new direction *squeals!!!*. Did I mention he’s sexy as heck???

    And then there is our new third wheel in the love triangle...Seth...

    *sighs*. I don’t really want to say anything about Seth because I know anything I say would mean a giant rant with a giant spoiler somewhere in there. You will just need to read Deity for yourselves to understand what I mean. No matter what happens, I will always have hope for Seth, but I don’t think he will ever win me back to his “Team”.

    There are lots of new characters introduced in Deity too “hint, hint” :), and I just won’t be able to get to all of them in this review. Even the recurring characters are changing so much, some for better and some for worse, like Deacon, Marcus, Lucian, Luke, etc. You name the character--they’ve changed.

    Overall, Deity has just left me breathless and shocked. Honestly, no review can do it the full justice it deserves. I am craving Apollyon badly already, and I really do not know how I am going to survive the 5-month wait until April. The wait for Deity was bad enough, but the fricken super cliff-hanger ending of Deity has me screaming my head off for more! I really wish I could just hibernate through the winter and wake up to find that it’s April. I would give up 5 months of my life, just to read Apollyon now. I need it that bad.

    I recommend Deity to everybody. If you have not started the Covenant series, I suggest you stop whatever you are doing, sit down, and start reading it. Deity was definitely worth the wait, and I can’t wait to see what happens in Apollyon!

****Dani was Team Seth in Half-Blood and Pure, but after having read Deity, Dani is considering converting to Team Aiden. But, Dani still has hope for Seth to return to his normal arrogant, infuriating, sexy, and amazing self. All she is saying that Seth has a rather large personality change in Deity...

City of Bones (Mortal Instruments #1) Movie!

It was announced some time ago that movie on City Bones, the first Mortal Instruments book, would be created. On November 15, the trailer was released! I think that Lily Collins will make a wonderful Clary, but I'm not too excited about Jamie Campell Bower, who is playing Jace. As all Mortal Instruments fans know, Jace is portrayed as the epitome of sexiness. He's the broken bad boy who every girl is dying to put back together. Jamie doesn't match my mental image of Jace at all. Jace's voice is supposed to be like "the voice of angels", but instead Jamie talks in a deep, almost rough voice, without any of Jace's smooth, musical lilt. But, I think I can deal with him playing Jace. In this trailer, he seems okay. Hopefully this movie on one of my favorite books in the world won't be too bad!

Seriously, The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones, look like a good movie!

Quotes that prove the amazingness of Jace:

“Is this the part where you start tearing off strips of your shirt to bind my wounds?" (Clary)
"If you wanted me to rip my clothes off, you should have just asked.” (Jace)

“One of the Silent Brothers is here to see you. Hodge sent me to wake you up. Actually he offered to wake you himself, but since it's 5 a.m., I figured you'd be less cranky if you had something nice to look at." (Jace)
"Meaning you?" (Clary)
"What else?” (Jace)

“Don't tell me," Jace said, "Simon's turned himself into an ocelot and you want me to do something about it before Isabelle makes him into a stole. Well, you'll have have to wait till tomorrow. I'm out of commission." He pointed at himself - he was wearing blue pajamas with a hole in the sleeve. "Look. Jammies."
"Jace," Clary said, "this is important."
"Don't tell me," he said. "You've got a drawing emergency. You need a nude model. Well, I'm not in the mood. You could always ask Hodge," he said as an afterthought. "I hear he'll do anything for a -"
"JACE!" she interrupted him, her voice rising to a scream. "JUST SHUT UP FOR A SECOND AND LISTEN, WILL YOU?” 

Here's the trailer! Enjoy! :)

~Dani <3

Review: City of Lost Souls by Cassandra Clare

 

City of Lost Souls by Cassandra Clare
Bev’s rating: 4.5 stars Dani’s rating: 5 stars Average: 4.75 stars
Reviewed by Bevy, the honorary word walker**

**This review was actually written a while ago by one of our friends, Beverly. She unfortunately does not have a blog, so her fanatic rant on City of Lost Souls will be posted here at A Walk on Words. Dani has provided commentary on this, since she read it a little while after Beverly. Hope you guys enjoy! A warning, Bev gets a little intense in this review. Might I mention she is an extremist Jace fan? :)
--Steph
 

Goodreads Synopsis:
      What price is too high to pay, even for love? When Jace and Clary meet again, Clary is horrified to discover that the demon Lilith’s magic has bound her beloved Jace together with her evil brother Sebastian, and that Jace has become a servant of evil. The Clave is out to destroy Sebastian, but there is no way to harm one boy without destroying the other. As Alec, Magnus, Simon, and Isabelle wheedle and bargain with Seelies, demons, and the merciless Iron Sisters to try to save Jace, Clary plays a dangerous game of her own. The price of losing is not just her own life, but Jace’s soul. She’s willing to do anything for Jace, but can she still trust him? Or is he truly lost?
      Love. Blood. Betrayal. Revenge. Darkness threatens to claim the Shadowhunters in the harrowing fifth book of the Mortal Instruments series.

Review: 

“‘A date,’ Jace repeated. ‘Often a ‘boring thing you have to memorize in history class,’ but in this case, ‘an offer of an evening of blisteringly white-hot romance with yours truly.’”

~City of Lost Souls

"It's me," said Jace. "Watching me play Scrabble is enough to make most women swoon. Imagine if I actually put in some effort.” 

    I am eternally indebted to Cassandra Clare for a number of reasons. Among these are her creation of not just one, but several sexy male characters! And if that fact doesn’t draw you into her latest installment in The Mortal Instruments series, clearly you a) aren’t a girl, or b) aren’t gay. 

    While I firmly believe sexiness can be enjoyed in any situation, I’d first advise you to read the other four books in the series. Strike that. I command you to read the other four books first. Only then can you fully appreciate the hotness and sweetness and raging awesomeness of Jace--not to mention you’ll probably be lost if you don’t read the other four books. Rather than give you a long synopsis on every Mortal Instrument book thus far, I’ll assume I am writing for an educated reader who has read the other four novels. Be warned! You are about to venture into spoiler territory--it’s not too late to turn back!

    So we left off in City of Fallen Angels screaming in horror as Jace-the-good-sexy-angel morphed into Jace-the-evil-sexy-servant-of-Sebastian (note how the words ‘Jace’ and ‘sexy’ stay constant), and I think we can all agree that when Clary said “I’ll be back. Five minutes” we knew it was doomed to go downhill from there. The City of Lost Souls (COLS) picks up a couple of weeks after its predecessor concludes (on a cruel cliffhanger, might I mention). Immediately, the main characters--Simon, Clary, Isabelle, Alec, and Magnus--are thrust into intense action, with intricate subplots developing as the story progresses. We see the pain of Simon as he faces the fact that his mother can’t accept him. We see the slow but sweet romance budding between Isabelle and Simon (and Maia and Jordan, two secondary characters who become more important--so goody if you like werewolves!). At the same time, we bite our lips as Alec’s paranoia over losing Magnus has him seeking out an old enemy-turned-ally-kinda. Meanwhile, Clary is in the most dangerous situation of them all--she is in the hands of Jace and Sebastian, who have become mysteriously bound in such a way that when Sebastian is hurt, so is Jace (great--if one dies, the other dies too!) These subplots made COLS my favorite Mortal Instruments book so far.

    Not only that, but I felt that Clare’s writing in this book was greatly improved from her previous books. A lot of times, her writing in the previous books was two parts boring dialogue, one part boring description, and one part witty conversation (namely spawning from our favorite male protagonist Jace). This book was packed with far more gripping conversations, and despite the more quiet moments (i.e. when Clary and Jace lie together in a boat in Europe), it keeps you wanting to turn the pages. 

    I think one of Clare’s best achievements in this latest installment of the Mortal Instruments is painting vividly the angsty relationship between Jace and Clary in this book. On one hand, Clary is physically attracted to Jace, yet she knows it’s not...Jace. Plus Sebastian is this creepy, incestuous, one-hundred-percent-scary-demon-child dude hanging around, making it all awkward.

    The plot in City of Lost Souls is also tightly woven. I couldn’t find any noticeable plot holes, and she builds it all up to a stunning climax that made the 500-odd pages worthwhile.

    My least favorite moments: Okay, honestly Clary? I know you’re madly in love with Jace (hell, who isn’t?) but sometimes you act just plain stupid. You can’t be so selfish about a hot momma. Also, I LOVE Alec/Magnus but Alec--what’s your problem? Stop worrying about Magnus’s past and focus on the present.

    Overall, I recommend COLS--it’s an engaging read with great characters, plot, and dialogue!

Dani's commentary

In blue is Bevy’s commentary on Dani's commentary...

Dani’s commentary: JACE IS A SEXY BEAST. NUFF SAID. *hear hear* On a more serious note, Jace is the most witty, smart, and most of all, HOT character you will ever meet in a YA book.Proof of his hotness is the fact that he won the YA Sisterhood’s (a book reviewing blog) annual CRUSH TOURNEY!So he really is the king of crushes!

MARRY ME JACE. As you can clearly tell, Bevy is completely smitten with Jace. Heck yes. Heccccck yes. MY HEART SKIPS A BEAT! She is head over heels! I bet she could walk on air. ;) She already does WALK ON WORDS. Too bad he’s taken by Clary...Bev is CRAZY about him. Like if she saw a guy who remotely looked like Jace...who knows what would happen. So, in a nutshell, don’t mess with this girl. You’re allowed to fall in love with Jace, but I wish you luck if you try to compete with her. I wouldn’t compete with me over any guy. >:)

P.S. Jace’s name is pronounced just how it looks! It is not Jack-ee or Jase-ee. It is JACE. As in it rhymes with LACE. So don’t mess up this dude’s name. He’d probably beat you up anyway if you did....

Opal (Lux #3) Giveaway by JLA!!!

 Jennifer L. Armentrout is having an early giveaway of her next book coming out, Opal!!! 

This is the 3rd book in her JAW-DROPPING series, Lux, that comes out on December 18th, 2012.
Want to get your hands on one of the three copies she's giving out? Enter the contest at her blog:
http://www.jenniferarmentrout.com/want-to-read-opal/

Don't miss it! There are plenty of ways to gain entries!!! Best of luck to everyone :) I know I'm entering. 

Steph
A Walk on Words

We are accepting review requests!!!!!!

A Walk on Words is now accepting requests for book reviews!!!!
You will need to contact us through awalkonwords@gmail.com with:

the title of the book
the author of the book
the form of the book (physical copy, e-book, ARC etc.)
 and a summary or a blurb of the book (it can be self-written)

For more information on requests, please take a look at the Review Policy and Contact us tab at the top.

Thanks!!!
Steph and Dani {A Walk on Words}

Review: The Iron King by Julia Kagawa

Hi! Welcome to Dani's infatuation/obsession/addiction to the IRON FEY SERIES!
As promised, here is my review of The Iron King by Julie Kagawa! This was Mrs. Kagawa's debut novel and it led to a whole franchise of iron fey books and other products! She is one of my favorite authors and definitely my favorite YA author. The way she manipulates words to paint grand scenery, her imagination, her wonderful characters....are only some of the things that makes her writing unforgettable. You can find more information about the Iron Fey series here: http://www.theironfey.com/
Follow Mrs. Kagawa's blog for insight into her writing, books, and more! http://juliekagawa.blogspot.com/

The Iron King by Julie Kagawa Reviewed by Dani
Dani’s rating:5 stars Steph’s rating: 4.5 stars Average: 4.75 stars

Goodreads Synopsis:
Meghan Chase has a secret destiny; one she could never have imagined.
Something has always felt slightly off in Meghan's life, ever since her father disappeared before her eyes when she was six. She has never quite fit in at school or at home.
When a dark stranger begins watching her from afar, and her prankster best friend becomes strangely protective of her, Meghan senses that everything she's known is about to change.
But she could never have guessed the truth - that she is the daughter of a mythical faery king and is a pawn in a deadly war. Now Meghan will learn just how far she'll go to save someone she cares about, to stop a mysterious evil no faery creature dare face; and to find love with a young prince who might rather see her dead than let her touch his icy heart.

Review:

First of all, I’d like to say that the Iron Fey series is my ALL-TIME FAVORITE YA BOOK SERIES. Julie Kagawa has concepted a unique idea that NO OTHER WRITER has ever thought of before: The Iron fey. So, we’ve all heard or read about Shakespeare’s A Midsummer’s Night Dream and the various spin-off series inspired by that timeless story. This book involves several of the characters from A Midsummer’s Night Dream, including Oberon, Titania, Mab, and of course, the famous prankster Puck. Ms. Kagawa’s splendid idea was, if faeries were born from human thoughts and ideas, then what if there were faeries born from human advancements in technology? What kind of faeries would be created? The iron fey!

The Iron King’s plot was absolutely amazing. There were so many moments that left me shocked and eager to read what happens next. This was another one of those books that made me pull an all-nighter to finish reading it! Puck will cause you to burst out laughing with his hilarious jokes and flippant yet serious manner. Ash’s quiet soulfulness will make you long to crack the icy shell around his heart. Grimalkin, a certain furry guide who you may have heard of from other Shakespeare stories, will make you shake your head in exasperation each time he says the phrase “I am a cat.”

Ahh...Ash. Ash is my FAVORITE YA crush. He’s one of those broken-hearted and tormented boys that every girl is dying to put back together. When Meghan first meets Ash, he is trying to kill her. Yes, I know, an unlikely romance. But isn’t every relationship surprising in its own way?

“Then, through the woods, I saw him, a lean figure on a huge black horse.The boy from my dream, the one I saw from the bus that day. His cruel, angelic face wore a smile as he drew back a large bow, an arrow glistening at the tip.”

-Meghan’s first real encounter with Ash (her glimpse of him from the bus does not count)

Now, note that this is Ash before he has fallen in love with Meghan. He is the third son of Mab, the Queen of Winter. His heart is like a chunk of ice and his exterior shows that he is a true winter prince. What kind of creature wouldn’t be stoic and aloof if he had lost his true love? Ash blames Puck for causing the death of Ariella, a winter fey who Ash fell head over heels for. Meghan begins to thaw Ash’s frozen heart and shows him that life is still worth living even without his beloved Ariella.

Meghan is one of the strongest YA heroines I have ever read about. She somehow copes with the loss of her brother and being thrown into a strange, dangerous faery world known as the Nevernever. In the midst of all these obstacles, she manages to strike a deal with a dark, mysterious faery, someone who one does not want to mess with. She manages to force Ash to help her rescue her brother, and in turn, she has to relinquish something of her own to Ash. What does she give to Ash in return? Who are these iron fey? Will Meghan choose Puck, the best friend (who happens to be a faery) she has known all of her life, or Ash, the new, dark and enigmatic stranger?

“‘I would have gotten you there!’ Puck roared. ‘Me! You don’t need his help! Don’t you trust me to keep you safe? I would’ve given everything for you. Why didn’t you think I’d be enough?’”

-A glimpse of Puck’s outburst caused by Ash and Meghan’s deal...Is this feeling, perhaps, jealousy?

I won’t give you a teaser of an Ash and Meghan moment because I am leaving it up to YOU to read it in The Iron King!

You can never spend too much time looking at a Team Ash banner and rereading the quote on it from The Iron Queen (Iron Fey #3)

Review: Insurgent by Veronica Roth