Review: Angel Burn

Angel Burn by L. A. Weatherly

Book Rating: 4/5 Stars

Cover Rating: 3.5/5 Stars

• Reading level: Young Adult
• Hardcover: 464 pages
• Publisher: Candlewick (May 24, 2011)

Received: Bought

Angel Burn by L. A. Weatherly


Book Rating: 4/5 Stars
Cover Rating: 3.5/5 Stars



Reading level: Young Adult Hardcover: 464 pages Publisher: Candlewick (May 24, 2011) Received: Bought
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Goodreads Summary: Willow knows she’s different from other girls, and not just because she loves tinkering with cars. Willow has a gift. She can look into the future and know people’s dreams and hopes, their sorrows and regrets, just by touching them. She has no idea where this power comes from. But the assassin, Alex, does. Gorgeous, mysterious Alex knows more about Willow than Willow herself. He knows that her powers link to dark and dangerous forces, and that he’s one of the few humans left who can fight them. When Alex finds himself falling in love with his sworn enemy, he discovers that nothing is as it seems, least of all good and evil. In the first book in an action-packed, romantic trilogy, L..A. Weatherly sends readers on a thrill-ride of a road trip - and depicts the human race at the brink of a future as catastrophic as it is deceptively beautiful. They’re out for your soul . . . and they don’t have heaven in mind.
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THOUGHTS: This books was definitely original. I've never read an angel book where the angels were quite like this, let alone as monstrous. These angels feed off of human energy, causing the victim to end up in a dazed dreamy state, always regarding the angel who ruined their life as the best thing that ever happened to them, a thing called Angel Burn.  Anyways, I really liked this book. The way the POV's alternate is one of the things that I loved, the way it switches from Willow in first person and then Alex in third person. I do like first person better, but having Alex's point of view thrown in was just a huge bonus.

SETTING: The book starts off in Pawtucket, New York. Willow leads a pretty normal life, despite the fact she's psychic, likes fixing cars, and her Mom is delusional. And then she meets Alex. She gets discovered by the Church of Angels, a legion of humans who have Angel Burn and worship the angels, for what she really is: a half angel, which shouldn't be possible and is a huge threat to the angels. After that, Willow goes on a cross-country trip with Alex. They also stay in my home state, Tennessee, for a while, which made me giggle a little bit. 

CHARACTERS: The characters in this book were very likable. Willow had a rough life, and that makes her strong. The same goes for Alex. I honestly adored Alex- after he lost everything, he became like a hard shell. You really get to know him after he falls for Willow- he becomes himself again. Sweet, super sexy and smart, strong, and protective. You can't help but love him.

 The other characters in this book are very well developed, each one has their own personality that is conveyed perfectly through the pages.

PLOT: The plot in this book really catches your attention. The action and suspense is well paced, and you find yourself feeling as hunted as Willow and Alex do. The only problem I had was that the climax could have been more dramatic. There wasn't anything that amazed you, or even really got you surprised. Overall, a good book. If you get the chance to read it, you should. 

FIRST SENTENCE: "'This is so embarrassing," muttered Nina."

LAST SENTENCE: "And somewhere inside of me, I knew that my angel was smiling."

Review: A Need So Beautiful

A Need So Beautiful by Suzanne Young

Book Rating: 3 Stars

Cover Rating: 3 Stars

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• Reading level: Young Adult
• Hardcover: 272 pages
• Publisher: Balzer + Bray; 1 edition (June 21, 2011)

 We all want to be remembered. Charlotte's destiny is to be Forgotten...

Charlotte’s best friend thinks Charlotte might be psychic. Her boyfriend thinks she’s cheating on him. But Charlotte knows what’s really wrong: She is one of the Forgotten, a kind of angel on earth, who feels the Need—a powerful, uncontrollable draw to help someone, usually a stranger.

But Charlotte never wanted this responsibility. What she wants is to help her best friend, whose life is spiraling out of control. She wants to lie in her boyfriend's arms forever. But as the Need grows stronger, it begins to take a dangerous toll on Charlotte. And who she was, is, and will become--her mark on this earth, her very existence--is in jeopardy of disappearing completely.

Charlotte will be forced to choose: Should she embrace her fate as a Forgotten, a fate that promises to rip her from the lives of those she loves forever? Or is she willing to fight against her destiny--no matter how dark the consequences.

THOUGHTS: This book was really, really sad to me, but beautiful, too. Charlotte's predicament was one that would end badly either way: If she lived, she would become a monster. If she died, well, she died. And she didn't want that to happen. I found my heart breaking for Charlotte through the book- the people she loved most in the entire world, the people she couldn't live without, slowly forgot her until she was unrecognizable to them. The writing was beautiful, and while I did love the book, it got a bit boring at times- the was really nothing that grabbed your attention and held it. 


SETTING: This is a book that I would have liked to see a bit more background in- while I know it's important that you get a lot of the people around Charlotte, I would have liked to know what she thought of her home, if she hated it or loved it. 


CHARACTERS: I feel like there could have been a little more to the characters in this book. Something about them just seemed a bit hollow to me. It seems like a lot was put into Charlotte, and the other characters were taped up and stuck on the pages. You didn't really get to know any of Charlotte's family or life before where the book picks up. I would have liked to see a bit more so I could have a better Idea of Charlotte. 


PLOT: The plot was slow to me. I found myself setting the book down often because nothing exciting was going on. You have to understand, I'm an action junkie. And there was nothing that really got my pulse racing in this book. Overall, I give it 3 stars. 


FIRST SENTENCE: "I sit on the from steps of St. Vincent's Cathedral and pick at the moss nestled in the cracks of the concrete."


LAST SENTENCE: "Because I realize: I have no idea who I am."