Book Review: Fracture by Megan Miranda

RATING:

Genre: Young Adult > Paranormal | Suspense

Eleven minutes passed before Delaney Maxwell was pulled from the icy waters of a Maine lake by her best friend Decker Phillips. By then her heart had stopped beating. Her brain had stopped working. She was dead. And yet she somehow defied medical precedent to come back seemingly fine—despite the scans that showed significant brain damage. Everyone wants Delaney to be all right, but she knows she’s far from normal. Pulled by strange sensations she can’t control or explain, Delaney finds herself drawn to the dying. Is her altered brain now predicting death, or causing it?

Then Delaney meets Troy Varga, who recently emerged from a coma with similar abilities. At first she’s reassured to find someone who understands the strangeness of her new existence, but Delaney soon discovers that Troy’s motives aren’t quite what she thought. Is their gift a miracle, a freak of nature-or something much more frightening?

*****

FRAGMENTED.

Some things i love (like Decker). Some things i hate (like Delaney). I could not decide whether my love for Fracture can overcome the hate. Still, the plot is okay and the suspense is there, but it wasn’t enough for me. And there’s a lot of things that were predictable too.

When Delaney came back from the dead, she wasn’t sure who she was anymore. or her parents. or Decker. That’s where i was skeptical. If Decker’s devotion for her was not enough to make her feel blessed to be alive, then what will? Sigh. The push-and-pull between her and Decker was such a headache. I mean, just say what you feel, for goodness sake! But i love Decker. First pages in, I adored him already. Too bad his character was underdeveloped along side Delaney.

Troy‘s character is really good. Well i don’t really like him but i see the idea of what his character is implying. He is the other side of the equation – the other alternative to make the curse that was his and Delaney’s to carry seemingly bearable. That worked for me. Ultimately, it was Delaney’s decision if she will embrace her second life as a gift or as a burden.

Would i recommend Fracture? Hmm. Not really. But perhaps if you’re looking for a different take on the unexplained, then maybe this book will interests you.

Publisher: Bloomsbery Children’s Books

Imprint: Walker Books for Young Readers

Pub Date: 01/17/2012

Thank you NetGalley and Alona Fryman for granting my galley request.

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.: maria :.

“giving up is the ultimate tragedy.”

Book Review: Hex Hall by Rachel Hawkins

RATING:

Genre: Young Adult > Paranormal | Fantasy

(Hex Hall #1)

Three years ago, Sophie Mercer discovered that she was a witch. It’s gotten her into a few scrapes. Her non-gifted mother has been as supportive as possible, consulting Sophie’s estranged father–an elusive European warlock–only when necessary. But when Sophie attracts too much human attention for a prom-night spell gone horribly wrong, it’s her dad who decides her punishment: exile to Hex Hall, an isolated reform school for wayward Prodigium, a.k.a. witches, faeries, and shapeshifters.

By the end of her first day among fellow freak-teens, Sophie has quite a scorecard: three powerful enemies who look like supermodels, a futile crush on a gorgeous warlock, a creepy tagalong ghost, and a new roommate who happens to be the most hated person and only vampire student on campus. Worse, Sophie soon learns that a mysterious predator has been attacking students, and her only friend is the number-one suspect.

As a series of blood-curdling mysteries starts to converge, Sophie prepares for the biggest threat of all: an ancient secret society determined to destroy all Prodigium, especially her.

*****

Hex Hall is such a fun read! The story is somewhat unique once the twist was thrown in. Never mind the pop culture references or the shallowness of a boarding school (some of it, anyway). I really enjoyed my time reading this. =)

Sophie is very entertaining to read. She’s sassy, defiant, and downright sarcastic. Archer (man, i love that name) is my typical bad boy: arrogant and confident. It was refreshing to see how Hawkins build their relationship. You all know i am not a fan of love-at-first-sight stuff, right? So the gradual change of Sophie’s and Archer’s relationship from being frenemies to friends to what-am-i-to-him-? was so fun. And whatever happened to cellars being so scary? That cellar scene was hot!

The legend on how the Prodigium started was intriguing. There’s a lot of magic that’s wasted on petty quarrels so i didn’t like that. But when the time came for Sophie to be a dark witch (or whatever she was), she pulled if off flawlessly. Hello, there’s no hesitancy when she killed the demon. Very nice!

Hex Hall is exactly the light read i was in the mood for. The romance was okay, but the paranormal part was not bad, either. Try this out while i go on to read it’s sequel, Demonglass. =)

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.: maria :.

“giving up is the ultimate tragedy.”