Defy the Worlds by Claudia Gray (Constellations book 2)

SPOILER ALERT! If you haven’t read the first book in the series, Defy the Stars, Stop! I don’t want to ruin the story for you.

“An outcast from her home -- Shunned after a trip through the galaxy with Abel, the most advanced cybernetic man ever created, Noemi Vidal dreams of traveling through the stars one more time. And when a deadly plague arrives on Genesis, Noemi gets her chance. As the only soldier to have ever left the planet, it will be up to her to save its people...if only she wasn't flying straight into a trap.

A fugitive from his fate -- On the run to avoid his depraved creator's clutches, Abel believes he's said good-bye to Noemi for the last time. After all, the entire universe stands between them...or so he thinks. When word reaches him of Noemi's capture by the very person he's trying to escape, Abel knows he must go to her, no matter the cost.

But capturing Noemi was only part of Burton Mansfield's master plan. In a race against time, Abel and Noemi will come together once more to discover a secret that could save the known worlds, or destroy them all.” - taken from Goodreads.com

Having separated from each other for what they thought was the last time, Noemi Vidal soon finds herself in a trap to lure Abel back to Earth. When the secrets of Burton Mansfield and Earth are exposed, it is up to Noemi and Abel to escape his clutches and stop the attack on Genesis. Unfortunately, this book ends in a serious cliffhanger that will leave fans eager for the final book in the trilogy.

The story will conclude with Defy the Fates out on April 2, 2019.

Visit Claudia Gray’s website.

Frost Like Night by Sara Raasch (Snow Like Ashes book 3)

SPOILER ALERT! If you haven’t read the first two books in the series, Snow like Ashes and Ice Like Fire, Stop! I don’t want to ruin one of my favorite stories for you.

Please visit the Recaptains blog if you need a refresher on the series.

Check out Epic Reads if you need a recap on the series.

“Angra is alive, his Decay is spreading—and no one is safe.”

“Meira will do anything to save her world. With Angra trying to break through her mental defenses, she desperately needs to learn to control her own magic—so when the leader of a mysterious Order from Paisly offers to teach her, she jumps at the chance. But the true solution to stopping the Decay lies in a labyrinth deep beneath the Season Kingdoms. To defeat Angra, Meira will have to enter the labyrinth, destroy the very magic she’s learning to control—and make the biggest sacrifice of all.

Mather will do anything to save his queen. He needs to rally the Children of the Thaw, find Meira—and finally tell her how he really feels. But with a plan of attack that leaves no kingdom unscathed and a major betrayal within their ranks, winning the war—and protecting Meira—slips farther and farther out of reach.

Ceridwen will do anything to save her people. Angra had her brother killed, stole her kingdom, and made her a prisoner. But when she’s freed by an unexpected ally who reveals a shocking truth behind Summer’s slave trade, Ceridwen must take action to save her true love and her kingdom, even if it costs her what little she has left.

As Angra unleashes the Decay on the world, Meira, Mather, and Ceridwen must bring the kingdoms of Primoria together…or lose everything.” - taken from Goodreads.com

This series is tied up nicely but not everyone ends up with a happily ever after. Fans of Meira will enjoy going on last last adventure as she works to defeat Angra and save Primoria.

Visit Sara Raasch’s website.

Illuminae by Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff (Illuminae Files book 1)

“First, survive. Then tell the truth.”

“This morning, Kady thought breaking up with Ezra was the hardest thing she’d have to do.

This afternoon, her planet was invaded.

The year is 2575, and two rival megacorporations are at war over a planet that’s little more than an ice-covered speck at the edge of the universe. Too bad nobody thought to warn the people living on it. With enemy fire raining down on them, Kady and Ezra—who are barely even talking to each other—are forced to fight their way onto an evacuating fleet, with an enemy warship in hot pursuit.

But their problems are just getting started. A deadly plague has broken out and is mutating, with terrifying results; the fleet's AI, which should be protecting them, may actually be their enemy; and nobody in charge will say what’s really going on. As Kady hacks into a tangled web of data to find the truth, it's clear only one person can help her bring it all to light: the ex-boyfriend she swore she'd never speak to again.

Told through a fascinating dossier of hacked documents—including emails, schematics, military files, IMs, medical reports, interviews, and more—Illuminae is the first book in a heart-stopping, high-octane trilogy about lives interrupted, the price of truth, and the courage of everyday heroes.” - taken from Goodreads.com

Even though this is a “hefty” book, readers will not be able to it down until the end to see how Kady and Ezra’s story turns out. Written in a unique style, I was afraid that I would be lost or easily bored. Definitely not the case. It turned out to be one of my favorite reads of the year. A sci-fi mystery with with an underlying twist of rebudding romance, readers will be left hanging for The Iluuminae Files book 2.

Visit Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff’s websites.

Champion by Marie Lu (Legend book 3)

"He is a Legend.

She is a Prodigy.

Who will be champion?"

SPOILER ALERT! If you haven't read the first two books in the series, Legend and Prodigy, Stop! I don't want to ruin one of my favorite series for you.

It has been eight long months since the last time Day and June saw or spoke to one another. Under the pretense of seeking treatment for his brother Eden, Day has moved to San Francisco to seek treatment. Dying and away from the girl he loves, Day is shocked when he gets a request from the Primo Elector to come to an Independence Day banquet in Denver. He initially turns down the request but then June makes a personal call to him. Suddenly, his emotions are on a roller coaster ride. Trying to keep the hurt out of one another's voices, June tells him that the tentative peace treaty between the Republic and the Colonies has collapsed. The Colonies believe that the Republic used biological weapons on them and caused the illness that now plagues them. Day is needed to attend an emergency meeting to help figure out what to do next.

Anden, the young Elector, has come to June over the brewing crisis with the Colonies. He was too late to stop his father's use of biological weapons on the war front. The Colonies are demanding a cure or Africa and their military will join the war against them. June quickly realizes that there is no cure and that Anden's only hope is to use Eden to help find one. June knows that Anden is using her as Day's weakness to get him to agree to help just as he is using their friendship. Wanting to protect the people of the Republic, June reluctantly agrees. This was not how she wanted her reunion with Day to go.

Day and June are both nervous and cautious when they are finally reunited. When Alden explains the situation with the Colonies and his plan to use Eden to find a cure, Day leaves the table and June follows. She notices now pale he is and that he has lost weight. He tells her that he has had the flu but she knows that he is lying. June doesn't push him. He asks her what she would do in his situation because he only came because she asked him to. She tells him that the Republic will fall if attacked by the African superpower. Day looks at her and says that he will not allow his brother to be used again but he will help Anden and the republic in any way that he can.

Can a cure be found to the plague? Will it be in time to stop the impending war with the Colonies? Is Eden the key to the cure? Does June's friendship with Anden turn into something more? Will she become Anden right hand as the Princeps? Will a cure be found for Day? Does June discover the truth? Can Day and June find their way back to one another or will the needs of the Republic keep them apart?

Visit Marie Lu’s website.

Legend by Marie Lu

Los Angeles, California
Republic of America
In the Republic, all children take the Trials at the age of ten. The score determines your future placement. The highest scoring children receive high school and college educations with good paying jobs by the Republic. Low scoring kids are sent to work dangerous jobs. Those who fail the Trials are sent to labor camps and their families are compensated, but that is a lie. The lucky ones die before Congress has a chance to experiment on them.
Day is the most wanted criminal in the Republic, only no one knows what he physically looks like. It is known that he is young and that his fingerprints aren’t on file. He is wanted for assault, arson, theft, destruction of military property and hindering the war effort.” Day makes the Republic look bad. He failed his Trials and feels like his younger brother Eden will as well.
Despite the danger, Day and his friend Tess scavenge for item for his family and monitor their house to see if anyone is stricken with the Plague. When soldiers spend far too long inside Day’s house and then paint an unfamiliar mark on the door, Day will do anything to help Eden and his family. He pretends to be injured and goes to the hospital with the intention of stealing some Plague cure medications. Taking someone hostage in the lab, he is dishearten to discover that only Plague suppressants are available. He grabs those and makes a run for it, leaving behind a pendant his father has given him. Day leaps from a staircase window to fall a couple of stories to the outside. Slightly injured, he is confronted by a soldier, Metais Iparis, as he tries to escape into the sewers system. Before Metais can fire, Day throws his knife, hitting him in the shoulder and knocking him down.
June Iparis is the “Republic’s favorite little prodigy” and the only person to achieve a perfect score on the Trials. She is a senior at Drake, the republic’s top university and is preparing to graduate after only three years with perfect grades. June is training to be a soldier to fight against the Colonies, just like her older brother Metais. She is respected by her fellow students but has trouble fitting in. June is only fifteen years old.
Always in trouble with her superiors June is a bit of a daredevil, pushing herself for the opportunity when she will go after Day. When Metais picks her up at school from her latest suspension, he says to stay in their apartment and he will be back later, Metais needs to be at the hospital to oversee the transfer of some vials of mutant Plague samples. June is preparing to sneak out of the apartment when Thomas, an old friend and one of Metais’ subordinates arrives with the bad news. Metais has been killed. Commander Jameson meets June at the hospital. She informs June that as of this moment her training and coursework at Drake is complete. She is graduating early. They go to Metais’ body and Jameson asks June to describe and analyze the scene. June notices that a knife has been plunged into Metais’ heart and it looks like the killer escaped into the sewer. She gives June a few minutes with her brother’s body before she joins the search. From this point forward, June will be a member of Jameson’s patrol as an agent in training. Her first mission is tracking her brother’s killer, the elusive Day.
June plans a mission for just after Metais’ funeral in an attempt to flush out Day by posing as someone selling Plague medication. She knows he won’t show himself but us pleased when he communicated with her. She is able to pick up a few clues about his background. June then goes undercover as a street urchin in the Lake sector to see if she can find out any information about Day. When she stumbles upon an illegal skiz fight, June realizes the people watching may know something about Day. A fight ends and the crowd calls for the next opponent. Unfortunately a young, frightened girl is pushed forward. Knowing she will probably blow her cover, June steps up to fight instead, unknowingly saving Tess. As Day watches from the shadows, he knows June will be a tough competitor. The fight quickly turns dirty and June is stabbed in the side. She breaks her opponent’s arm to end the fight.
Hurrying to leave, June exits the arena and angers the crowd. Once outside, she dares to peek over her shoulder and sees that several men have followed her. Her injury prevents her from getting away and she is knocked to the ground, hitting her head. Dragging her back towards the fight, she hears a pop and finds herself all alone in a cloud of dust. A beautiful boy offers his hand and takes her to safety.
Weary of one another, June is grateful that the two strangers bandaged her up and allow her to spend a few days tagging along. She hopes to uncover some information about Day’s whereabouts, not realizing until she comes to care about the boy who saved her that he is day. Who murdered Metais and why when Day denies he did it? What happens when June turns Day over to the Republic? What secrets is the Republic keeping covered, especially those concerning Day? Who will June be able to trust now that her brother is dead? What choices will she willingly make that will change the course of her life?
Told in alternating chapters from both Day and June’s points of view, readers are able to keep up through the use of different type fonts. An absolutely engrossing read that will be hard to put down and leave you clamoring for book two, Prodigy on January 29, 2013.
Visit Marie Lu’s website.
Visit the Legend Series website.

Plague by Michael Grant (Gone series book 4)

SPOILER ALERT! If you haven't read the first three books in the Gone series, Stop! I don't want to ruin the story for you.

“It’s been eight months since all the adults disappeared. Gone. They’ve survived Hunger. They’ve survived Lies.”

Despite everything that everyone trapped in the FAYZ has been through, things are peaceful. Unfortunately the peace is short-lived. Water is becoming scarce in Perdido Beach and Sam Temple is leading an expedition 20 miles to the north to see if Lake Tramonto is a possibility for relocation. Tensions are running high between Sam and Astrid as she struggles with her religious beliefs in the new FAYZ society and caring for her autistic brother, Little Pete. The Darkness has found a way into the mind of the Nemesis and begins controlling it. A highly contagious and often fatal illness soon spreads like wildfire through Perdido Beach and an army of highly intelligent and enormous insects unleash a reign of terror.

Panic ensues in the FAYZ when no one left in Perdido Beach is able to come up with a solution. Can Sam, Astrid, Caine and Diana put aside all of their differences to save not only themselves but those they love? And who are the latest causalities and who will survive to appear in the next Gone installment, Fear in 2012.

Visit Michael Grant's website.

The Doomsday Box by Herbie Brennan (Shadow Project book 2)

SPOILER ALERT! If you haven’t read the first book in the series, The Shadow Project, Stop! I don’t want to ruin the story for you.

Danny, Opal and Michael are back and still work for the top secret Shadow Project. A new member, Fuchsia, has joined their team and possesses some mysterious abilities. Their newest assignment turns out to be for the CIA and involves a reclaimed military project from the 1960s, Project Rainbow. The project involved time travel and teleportation but unfortunately the space-time distortion that was created couldn’t be closed. The US government sealed it shut until recently when the decision to reopen it was made. But in drilling the concrete bunker open, an alarm from inside near the rift goes off. The Shadow Project is brought in to see what or who triggered the alarm.

Opal checks out the rift’s chamber in an out-of-body experience and gives the all clear. The decision is made to continue opening the chamber. Everyone is in awe of the rift except for Fuchsia, who fights the urge to be physically sick. Mr. Carradine, the CIA liaison to the Shadow Project, seems familiar with the rift chamber. Soon Colonel Saltzman, the US military commander of Project Rainbow notices a box at the rift and opens it. Carradine calmly and forcibly tells him to put it back. Fuchsia feels like “Pandora’s Box” was opened.

Several hours later the members of the Shadow Project are placed under quarantine with the sudden death of Colonel Saltzman. The suspected cause is the Black Death. Mr. Carradine decides the only way to stop Cobra is to send the Shadow Project kids back in time to talk Cobra from leaving the box in the future. But can the four of them find Cobra in 1962 and successfully talk him out of doing something 20 years in the future? Can they survive Moscow during the height of the Cold War? Will they be successful and make it back to their bodies as well as same the world?

Visit Herbie Brennan’s website.