SCARLET by Marissa Meyer-REVIEW

SCARLET picks up right where CINDER left off. The excitement and adventure of the first book continues from Page 1 and doesn't let up until the end. Meyer masterfully weaves together the story we fell in love with in the first book with the new storyline involving new characters.

This time Marissa Meyer twists the story of Little Red Riding Hood into a thrilling science fiction tale.

Scarlet, a girl who helps run the family farm, sets off to discover the mystery of her grandma's disappearance and meets a rough and dangerous street fighter named Wolf. Little does she know that her journey to find her grandmother will lead her to the middle of the mystery about Princess Selena's true identity.

Scarlet and Wolf add a lot to the understanding of the complex political situation between Earth and the Lunar Empire. I enjoyed getting to know the new characters, but was always glad when the story took me back to Cinder and her new struggles. I loved Cinder's sidekick, Captain Thorne. He provides some humor in the very stressful situations Cinder finds herself in while escaping.

SCARLET has it all. Suspense, adventure, friendship, and romance. I can't wait to see what Marissa Meyer does next. CRESS will be released in 2014 and pull from Rapunzel and WINTER (2015) will incorporate bits of Snow White. I'm dying to see how she works all these fairy tales into this complicated dystopian, science fiction world.

 Little Red Riding Hood complete with hood and a Big Bad Wolf!

Scarlet and her grandmother are farmers. They sell their produce to the local stores and taverns in the nearby town. When Scarlet first meets Wolf she is startled by his looks, yet drawn to him. They are soon thrown together in the search of Scarlet's missing grandmother.

In the meantime Cinder is working at escaping prison before the Lunar Queen Levana has her put to death. Cinder and renegade Captain Thorne set out to find why Cinder is so important to the Queen and to hopefully find out more information about the dead princess Selena.

Both Scarlet and Cinder find secrets about themselves that have been kept from them for years. Will they be able to grasp who they each are before it is too late for the people of earth?

Scarlet was every bit as good as Cinder! I was not disappointed...well maybe a little bit at the ending, but only because Scarlet ends with a HUGE cliffhanger! I enjoyed reading Scarlet's story and her attraction to Wolf(there are a couple of sigh-worthy tender moments!). But I also enjoyed jumping back into Cinder's story and to read how both Scarlet and Cinder's lives collide. A bit of romance, a bit of suspense all set in a dystopian world~doesn't get much better than that!

It is always fun when both of us can agree on a favorite book! We both have put this on our favorites list and are eagerly anticipating future additions to the series.

TANTALIZE by Cynthia Leitich Smith - REVIEW

Quincie Morris leads a stressful life; playing the part of a responsible adult since the death of her parents has left her the owner of the family restaurant. Fat Lorenzo’s was a successful family business until a large Italian restaurant chain moved in down the street. The small business couldn’t compete, so in order to keep the doors open, her Uncle Davidson, now her guardian and manager of the restaurant, decided to change Fat Lorenzo’ into a vampire-themed Italian restaurant called Sanguini’s. The chef would be the center of the act, leading a midnight toast every night.

Quincie’s close friend, Vaggio, has been with the restaurant for years as its chef and is looking forward to the new challenge. Quincie works late many nights a week. She is either working with Vaggio, taste-testing for the new menu, or organizing some of the many tasks left to do before opening night. One night while she is in the office reviewing her “To Do List,” she hears a noise from the kitchen. Thinking Vaggio simply dropped something, she continues to work. She is also waiting for Kieren, a half-werewolf that has been the love of her life and best friend for years. She is startled when she hears Kieren’s frantic cry calling her name from the kitchen. Immediately going to meet him, she is horrified by the site of Vaggio dead on the kitchen floor, bloodied and mangled as if torn apart by wolves. Kieren is bloodied from attempting to help and is desperate with worry about Quincie. He quickly pulls her from the restaurant and goes down the street to call the police. Once the police arrive, they return to the scene of the crime to answer questions.


Quincie feels her world closing in on her. She has lost her parents and a dear friend within a short period of time. Her Uncle Davidson has been preoccupied with Ruby, his wannabe vampire girlfriend, so much so that he isn’t ever home and rarely spends time with Quincie anymore. Now, she learns that Kieren is planning to leave. He is going to join a werewolf pack for support while he learns the ways of his culture. Once he joins, he will never be able to come back. The thought of never seeing, touching, or talking to Kieren again leaves her shaken.


Quincie is in a vulnerable state when the new chef for Sanguini’s shows up unexpectedly. Uncle Davidson hired him without even consulting her, which irritates her since she is usually considered a partner when it comes to major decisions. Henry Johnson is the new chef and as he and Quincie work together to make him more vampire-like, they grow closer. The first thing they change is his name, and Henry Johnson becomes Bradley Sanguini. Bradley cooks for her daily, constantly trying new recipes for the possible menu. He also introduces her to wine. Never one for drinking, she quickly develops a taste for it, seeming to always have a glass of wine in her hand while she is working. She is surprised that her uncle doesn’t say anything about her drinking. She is even more shocked when Uncle Davidson allows her to drink wine at home.


Quincie’s life seems to flash before her eyes. Her mind is occupied with thoughts of the restaurant so much that her grades at school begin to fall. She loses interest in any activity that isn’t surrounding Sanguini’s. She begins to spend less time with Kieren, both because she is afraid of her feelings when he is gone for good and because Bradley and Uncle Davidson plant the seed of suspicion in her mind that Kieren might have lost control of his change and killed Vaggio himself. All of these thoughts distract her to the point that she is lured into a dangerous situation where there is no way out. Her life will be forever changed.


TANTALIZE by Cynthia Leitich Smith is a stimulating paranormal mystery mixed with romance. The relationship between Quincie and Kieren is touching and so deep that the reader feels Quincie’s pain at the thought of losing Kieren, while at the same time understanding Kieren’s reasons for keeping Quincie at arms length and never following through on the emotions he feels for her.

Edifying Meets Edgy Halfway - THE MORTAL INSTRUMENTS TRILOGY by Cassandra Clare

Sorry we've been gone so long folks.  Julie has been in California visiting family and I've been finishing up my dissertation.  Now that things have settled down and Julie is on her way home, we can get back into the groove.  As an apology for our long absence, we have a wonderful chance for you.


Julie and I both LOVED LOVED LOVED Cassandra Clare's Mortal Instruments Trilogy. 

When asked about the trilogy Julie said:
"Yep, I liked them a lot.  They were fairly clean.  The demon stuff and the hint of sex would make them a bit more on the PG13 side.

Cassandra Clare is my hero.  I love the world she created in these books.  I want to be Clary and I definitely want to know Jace.  There were several times during the course of these novels where I was brought to tears or laughed out loud.  These are a must read.


Karin's Reviews:
CITY OF BONES
CITY OF ASHES
CITY OF GLASS

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