Review: Katana by Cole Gibsen

Title: Katana
Author: Cole Gibsen
Published: 8th March 2012
Publisher: Flux
Source: eArc thanks to NetGalley and Flux

Rileigh Martin would love to believe that adrenaline had given her the uncanny courage and strength to fend off three muggers. But it doesn't explain her dreams of 15th-century Japan, the incredible fighting skills she suddenly possesses, or the strange voice giving her battle tips and danger warnings.

While worrying that she's going crazy (always a reputation ruiner), Rileigh gets a visit from Kim, a handsome martial arts instructor, who tells Rileigh she's harboring the spirit of a five-hundred-year-old samurai warrior.

Relentlessly attacked by ninjas, Rileigh has no choice but to master the katana--a deadly Japanese sword that's also the key to her past. As the spirit grows stronger and her feelings for Kim intensify, Rileigh is torn between continuing as the girl she's always been and embracing the warrior inside her. - From Goodreads

So this book was billed as Kill Bill meets Buffy on NetGalley. Do I love Kill Bill? Yes self, I do! Do I love Buffy? Yes again Emma, I think Buffy kicks ass and I miss her! I have also had a fascination in ancient Japanese culture for as long as I can remember. So I think it is clear to say that I had high hopes for this book! I was pleased that it delivered everything I was expecting and more.

Rileigh is a normal skateboard loving girl until she and her best friend, Quentin, are attacked by muggers in a parking lot. Without knowing what she is doing Rileigh manages to defend herself against all 3 of the muggers leaving them broken on the ground. This is when the dreams begin! Dreams of ancient Japan which are so real they make Rileigh's heart hurt with recognition. Before she knows it Rileigh has been pulled into a world of reincarnated Samurai Warriors and she must defend herself against enemies from the past. The only problem is that her enemies could be anyone!

There are only a handful of literary characters that I think I would get on well with in real life and that I would want to hang out with. Rileigh is one of them. She is such a strong character who is totally thrown into a situation that she is not prepared for and she totally reacts in the way I probably would, although I would have added being drunk to the moping and the bar fight!! In lots of books when the protagonist moans about the situation they have found themselves in you just want to shake them, but in this case you understand her concerns and let it slide as she is so kickass. She is totally Buffy-esque and that makes me so happy (I miss Buffy!).

Any awesome reincarnated Samurai action story has to have a smoking hot love interest and this one has two!! This was an interesting love triangle and not the usual bog standard one. Rileigh's head and current self is securely settled on the cute guy from school, but her heart and past self are all about the smoking hot Kim. He is buff, handsome, looks out for Rileigh and only wants her to be happy... where can I get me one? Also he owns his own dojo and I like a man who has plans for his future and a way to support himself (Argh, I'm getting so sensible in my old age!!)

This had some great supporting characters which enriched the story, especially her gay best friend Q (who doesn't love a gay best friend?). I also liked that Rileigh had a job and therefore could not just up and disappear on an adventure without thinking of the consequences or telling anyone. This is something that can often annoy me in YA fiction, but in this book it was tackled with grace. As we started to piece together the story from ancient Japan I was constantly trying to guess who the enemy was in her current life. I was suspicious of so many characters that it actually did not turn out to be the one I was most sceptical about! I had no idea who was trust worthy in this book.

I loved this book and flew through it constantly wanting more. The only thing I was disappointed about at the end was that this is a stand alone novel. I would have loved to keep reading about Rileigh and the antics her and her band of Samurai might get up to. I will definitely be picking up Cole Gibsen's next book as soon as it's released. I can't wait.

Review: Spirit Bound by Richelle Mead (VA5)

Title: Spirit Bound
Author: Richelle Mead
Publisher: Razorbill
Published: 18th May 2010
Series: Vampire Academy #5
Source: Own Copy

Salvation has its price.
The words stunned Adrian for a moment, but he kept going. "You're lying. What you're describing is impossible. There's no way to save a Strigoi. When they're gone, they're gone. They're dead. Undead. Forever."

Robert's next words weren't directed at Adrian. They were spoken to me. "That which is dead doesn't always stay dead...."

After a long and heartbreaking journey to Dimitri’s birthplace in Siberia, Rose Hathaway has finally returned to St. Vladimir’s—and to her best friend, Lissa Dragomir. It's graduation, and the girls can’t wait for their real lives outside of the Academy’s cold iron gates to finally begin. But even with the intrigue and excitement of court life looming, Rose’s heart still aches for Dimitri. He's out there, somewhere.

She failed to kill him when she had the chance, and now her worst fears are about to come true. Dimitri has tasted her blood, and she knows in her heart that he is hunting her. And if Rose won't join him, he won't rest until he's silenced her...forever.

But Rose can't forget what she learned on her journey—whispers of a magic too impossible and terrifying to comprehend. A magic nextricably tied to Lissa that could hold the answer to all of Rose's prayers, but not without devastating consequences. Now Rose will have to decide what—and who—matters most to her. In the end, is true love really worth the price?

Fall in love with Rose and Dimitri all over again in Spirit Bound, the eagerly awaited fifth novel in Richelle Mead's enthralling Vampire Academy series. - From Goodreads

May contain spoilers from earlier books in the series:

This books was jam packed with action from the first to last page, so much good stuff happens. At the end of the previous book Rose failed to kill Dimitri, as we know when he sent her back her stake, and Rose returned to school. This should feel familiar to us, having Rose back at school, but after everything that has happened to her recently she seems to have lost a little bit of her spark. After Rose passes her Guardian test with flying colours (they have to invent new things to test her on, she is that good!) her, Lissa, Adrian and Christian head to court with school behind them. There they begin to discover things that the shouldn't and life changes drastically for at least one of them.

Using some of the information that Rose found on her journey to find Dimitri in the last book, Rose and Lissa begin to discuss the possibility of using spirit to help those who have been turned into stigoli. Soon the pieces of the puzzle fall into place and before we know it Victor is being dragged back into the story along with his crazy brother and an angry Dimitri. Meanwhile at court we see the vampire politics in full swing while Lissa tries to navigate her way through the issues that come with her being the only surviving member of her family.

Rose feels like a completely different character in this book than at the start of this series. We can really see the transition between the reckless and, in comparison, carefree Rose from the first book and the more responsible and cautious Rose. I also loved watching her relationship with Adrian in this book. I think about half way through this book I became a solid member of Team Adrian. Within this story each of the characters had a significant part to play, and I always like it when everyone weaves into the story to compliment it and add in their own individual element.

Rose was not the only character to show a completely different side to them. I felt that the Lissa we saw in this book was far less annoying and actually brought something to the Lissa-Rose relationship. There is the possibility that I was just feeling forgiving when I read this book but I think that Lissa was becoming her own woman far less needy and dependent on Rose to think of all the ideas and protect her. Don't get me wrong, I still found her irritating, just far less so!

This book was faced paced and crammed from the first to the last page with drama, drama, drama!! This is good as after reading this book you could see that the last book was a much slower pace. I thought the story was exciting and the final cliffhanger left me feeling like I had been punched in the stomach (which someone had warned me about!) and moving right on to the final instalment!! A great series that I will be sad to finish!

Review: Halflings by Heather Burch

Title: Halflings
Author: Heather Burch
Published: 1st February 2012
Publisher: Zondervan Publishing
Series: Halflings #1
Source: eARC thanks to Zondervan and NetGalley

After being inexplicably targeted by an evil intent on harming her at any cost, seventeen-year-old Nikki finds herself under the watchful guardianship of three mysterious young men who call themselves halflings. Sworn to defend her, misfits Mace, Raven, and Vine battle to keep Nikki safe while hiding their deepest secret—and the wings that come with.

A growing attraction between Nikki and two of her protectors presents a whole other danger. While she risks a broken heart, Mace and Raven could lose everything, including their souls. As the mysteries behind the boys’ powers, as well as her role in a scientist’s dark plan, unfold, Nikki is faced with choices that will affect the future of an entire race of heavenly beings, as well as the precarious equilibrium of the earthly world. - From Goodreads

This is the story of Nikki and the half man half angels who have been given a divine mission to protect her. The 3 half man half angels, also known as halflings, are Mace, Raven and Vine. All three of the boys pose as high school students in an attempt to be close to Nikki and keep her safe from some danger both demonic and human.

The halflings in this book are beautiful, Greek god looking, boys and with both Mace and Raven showing an interest in Nikki we have a whole book with the mother of all love triangles! We have Mace who she meets first and who has the sweet and earnest thing going for him, then there is the bad boy type who is Raven. Nikki is torn between the two of them for the whole book which was felt a little forced to me.

There also felt like there was more to Nikki than her just being a mere human. We have a glimpse of what she might be, but the relationship between her parents, another man and the halflings makes it feel like there is far more to Nikki than we get to see. This is not something that is addressed in this novel and it is one of the many threads left hanging with nothing resolved at the end of the book.


By the end of the book I felt that there were a number of plot threads left unanswered with not enough explanations for my liking. I also felt that there was a build up to some kind of grand plot event towards the end of the book that never appears. It feet to me like the whole book was a build up to something and then the book just finishes. I wanted more story and more action. Also it was never very clear who the enemy was in this book. I like a little bit of suspense and mystery, but if I am kept guessing for more than a book I get a little bored.

I think that when the next book in this series is released I will have to have a very light TBR pile for me to pick this up. If I do pick up the next book in this series I will definitely be needing some answers quickly.