Review: United by Melissa Landers

United

By: Melissa Landers

Series: Alienated Trilogy

Genre: Science Fiction, Young Adult

Length: 317 pages

Synopsis From Goodreads:

After thwarting a deadly coup and saving the alliance between their worlds, Cara and Aelyx have finally earned a break. Their tiny island colony is everything they dreamed it would be―days spent gathering shells on the beach and nights in each other’s arms.

But the vacation is short-lived.

The treaty between Earth and L’eihr has awakened an ancient force that threatens to destroy them all. The Aribol, mysterious guardians charged with maintaining interstellar peace, deem the alliance a threat to the galaxy. They order a separation of the races, decreeing humans and L’eihrs must return to their own planets within the month or face extinction. In fact, they already have agents in place on Earth, ready to begin.

With the clock ticking, Aelyx and Cara assemble a team of colonists and race back to Earth, where they unite with old friends to solve the mystery of who the Aribol are, what they want, and the real reason the alliance has provoked them. As tensions build to a full-scale war, Aelyx and Cara must fight harder than ever―not just for their future, but for the survival of both their worlds.

My Review:

Rating:

This books was a great conclusion to Cara and Aelyx's story, however at times I found it a bit fast-paced and anti-climatic. I was hoping for a more epic ending for this phenomenal trilogy. Melissa Landers is an amazing author and I absolutely fell in love with her story and the characters in the first two books. However, with this final installment I feel as connected to the characters as I was previously.

Invaded got you prepared for a final showdown, an epic battle between the Aribol and the two colonies only to come up short in United. I was prepared for a lot more than a two chapter take over of the Aribol. I felt the story was rushed and we missed some of the details, that really would have brought this ending together.

I missed the interaction between Aelyx and Cara as well. I didn't feel the love they had from the first two books. The characters almost seemed like such small roles in United, compared to Alienated and Invaded.

With the first books I devoured them in a matter of days, this book took me nearly two weeks to finish only because I had a hard time staying connected to the story. I had hoped for a lot more with this conclusion.

Even though, it was a good conclusion to this trilogy, I can't say it was horrible. Everyone got their happy ending!

And I would still recommend this trilogy, it is definitely worth reading at least once!! :)



Published by: K

Review: Alice in Zombieland by Gena Showalter

Alice in Zombieland

By: Gena Showalter

Series: White Rabbit Chronicles

Genre: Young Adult Fantasy, Horror

Length: 404 pages

Synopsis From Goodreads:

She won't rest until she's sent every walking corpse back to its grave. Forever.

If anyone had told Alice Bell that her entire life would change course between one heartbeat and the next, she would have laughed. From blissful to tragic, innocent to ruined? Please. But that's all it took. One heartbeat. A blink, a breath, a second, and everything she knew and loved was gone.

Her father was right. The monsters are real.

To avenge her family, Ali must learn to fight the undead. To survive, she must learn to trust the baddest of the bad boys, Cole Holland. But Cole has secrets of his own, and if Ali isn't careful, those secrets might just prove to be more dangerous than the zombies.

My Review:

Rating:

LOVE, LOVE, LOVE THIS BOOK!!!

Alice in Wonderland meets The Walking Dead!! Two of my favorite things combined to make one spectacular story!

This book had me hooked from the very beginning! I found myself devouring chapter after chapter, not wanting to put it down for anything. This is my first Gena Showalter book and I found myself pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed it. Even with it's high ratings on Goodreads I found myself a bit skeptical on reading this book. However, now that I have read it, I am glad that I did. 

“Never forget that evil is evil. You cannot change it. You cannot lead it to the light. But, if you let it, evil can lead you to the darkness.” 

I loved the Zombie slayer twist! It definitely took my back to my days of watching Buffy the Vampire Slayer!! Special individuals selected to fight evil and protect humanity.  What more could one ask for? 

I don't think I can express just how much I loved this book!! 

Also, while I am not one for time jumps, this one worked for me. I liked that at the start of the book we jump back 6 months to the day Alice's family died. We got to experience the family dynamic and know the family better. If the story had started 6 months after her families death, I feel I wouldn't have been as effected by their deaths. This way we felt for Alice when she lost her parents and her baby sister. And it made it easier to connect with Emma when she makes her appearances in Alice's new life.

Gena Showalter is a magnificent author! Developing captivating characters and a zombie world you could almost believe was real!! I even found myself enjoying and becoming attached to the secondary characters. Frosty and Kat were the absolutely best!! Kat is definitely the epitome of best friends out there everywhere. I sure know she reminds me of one of my best friends! :) Loved her character, and how she stuck by Alice's side no matter what. I look forward to seeing more of her in the future books.

“The moment our gazes met, the rest of the world washed away—” 

Now onto Cole and Alice. While I am not always a fan of insta-love, this is one I can get behind. The love wasn't all that instant, at least not for Alice, but it kind of felt like Cole fell hard from the moment he met her. I can't wait to see what the future books have in store for them. I have a feeling its going to be a tough road, because their relationship seemed to meld together seamlessly in this book. And that can only mean trouble ahead.

This definitely a book I would recommend, it drags you in from the very first sentence. I have to thank my sister for getting me to read this book. I was in a bit of a reading slump and she recommended I read this book, even though she hasn't read it and I am glad she did. Or I might still find myself in that slump.

Published by: K