DNF Review: Unhinged (A.G. Howard)

Title: Unhinged
Series: Splintered, Book 2
Author: A.G. Howard
Publisher: Amulet Books
Release Date: January 7, 2014
Genre: Young Adult Dark Retelling
Told: First Person (Alyssa), Present Tense
Content Rating: up to Chapter 6 (sensuality, disturbing situations)
Format Read: ARC (trade)
Find On: Goodreads
Purchase On: Amazon | B&N | Book Depository
Summary:

Alyssa Gardner has been down the rabbit hole and faced the bandersnatch. She saved the life of Jeb, the guy she loves, and escaped the machinations of the disturbingly seductive Morpheus and the vindictive Queen Red. Now all she has to do is graduate high school and make it through prom so she can attend the prestigious art school in London she's always dreamed of.

That would be easier without her mother, freshly released from an asylum, acting overly protective and suspicious. And it would be much simpler if the mysterious Morpheus didn’t show up for school one day to tempt her with another dangerous quest in the dark, challenging Wonderland—where she (partly) belongs.

As prom and graduation creep closer, Alyssa juggles Morpheus’s unsettling presence in her real world with trying to tell Jeb the truth about a past he’s forgotten. Glimpses of Wonderland start to bleed through her art and into her world in very disturbing ways, and Morpheus warns that Queen Red won’t be far behind.

If Alyssa stays in the human realm, she could endanger Jeb, her parents, and everyone she loves. But if she steps through the rabbit hole again, she'll face a deadly battle that could cost more than just her head. 

*          *          *

I did not finish this book. I stopped at Chapter 6.

Series: This is the second book in the three-book Splintered series. You can read my 2013 review of Book 1, Splintered, here, and my 2019 re-read notes here.

While I somewhat enjoyed Splintered, there was always something about it that rubbed me the wrong way, although I could never put my finger on it. Still, I decided to try and binge the entire trilogy. 

As I began Unhinged, I quickly realized that my earlier problem was probably a lack of happy mediums. The overall story is one of madness and normalcy, but while the madness is expectedly disturbing, the normalcy is almost just as unsettling with dark art and fashion, unsavory hangout spots, and unstable families - not a happy medium to offer a madness respite. Then there's Alyssa: she is so strong and yet also so weepy and weak - I recall her screaming and generally flailing a lot in Splintered but it didn't fit her actions or personality. And then there are the boys, aka love interests: on the "normal" side we have a suffocatingly protective human who would rather Alyssa be a damsel in distress who can't do a thing for herself, and on the "mad" side we have a man who would actually kill her to force her to do everything herself. I have never liked either, and Unhinged escalated my dislike of both boys by leaps and bounds in only the first 6 chapters.

Conclusion: Although I am an Alice's Adventures fan and will always try a retelling, with its constant madness, contrasting MC, and no boy worth shipping I just can't bring myself to waste any more time on this series.

Top Ten (Twelve) Books I Read In 2014

Top Ten Tuesday is a meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish! This week's topic: 

Top Ten (Twelve) Books I Read in 2014
(in no particular order)

1. Waistcoats & Weaponry by Gail Carriger (RTC)
2. This Shattered World by Amie Kaufman & Meagan Spooner (RTC)
3. House of Ivy & Sorrow by Natalie Whipple (review)
4. Searching for Sky by Jillian Cantor (review)
5. Relax, I'm a Ninja by Natalie Whipple (review)
6. Fortune's Pawn by Rachel Bach (review)
7. Invisible by Dawn Metcalf (review)
8. On the Fence by Kasie West (review)
9. Illusions of Fate by Kiersten White (RTC)
10. The Accidental Highwayman by Ben Tripp (review)
11. Otherbound by Corinne Duyvis (review)
12. Shutter by Courtney Alameda (review)

So what were your top reads this year?

Review: Otherbound (Corinne Duyvis)

Title: Otherbound
Series: standalone
Author: Corinne Duyvis
Publisher: Amulet Books
Release Date: June 17, 2014
Genre: Young Adult Contemporary Fantasy
Rating: Older Teen (some heavy sensuality, some language, lots of brutal violence and abuse and torture [see Trigger Warning below])
Told: Third Person Duo (Nolan, Amara), Past Tense
Format Read: ARC (traded)
Find It On: Goodreads

Summary:

Amara is never alone. Not when she's protecting the cursed princess she unwillingly serves. Not when they're fleeing across dunes and islands and seas to stay alive. Not when she's punished, ordered around, or neglected.

She can't be alone, because a boy from another world experiences all that alongside her, looking through her eyes.

Nolan longs for a life uninterrupted. Every time he blinks, he's yanked from his Arizona town into Amara's mind, a world away, which makes even simple things like hobbies and homework impossible. He's spent years as a powerless observer of Amara's life. Amara has no idea . . . until he learns to control her, and they communicate for the first time. Amara is terrified. Then, she's furious.

All Amara and Nolan want is to be free of each other. But Nolan's breakthrough has dangerous consequences. Now, they'll have to work together to survive--and discover the truth about their connection.

*          *          *

Why I Read It: The premise was so unique I had to give it a try.

Series: This is a standalone with a full arc and a conclusive and satisfying ending.

Writing: Engrossing, with excellent description and flow. Even though Chapter 1 opened with Nolan shopping for notebooks in a Walgreens, I was sucked right in and had the hardest time putting the book down. Although some have complained about Nolan's back and forth between worlds being hard to follow, I had no trouble at all and thought it was very well done.

Setting: There were two settings: Nolan's on Earth in Arizona, and Amara's in a fantasy world on the lam. We didn't see much of Nolan's world as he mentally spent most of his time in Amara's, which was an interesting albeit kind of vague but colorful fantasy world with mages and slaves and diverse races living on oddly shaped islands. The magic was original and interesting, both the inherent magic of Amara's world and what Nolan, a traveler from another world, brought with him.

Story: Impressive, with stellar intrigue and brutal action. The mystery was good, with lots of twists and surprising revelations. There was pinches of tedium here and there, but they still held my interest and were quickly smothered by violent acts of magic and escape and abuse. Said escapes were choppy but thrilling and almost impossible to stop in the middle of, and the magical backlash caused all sorts of chaos, which was one of the highlights for me. Magic gone right can be dull - magic gone wrong can be magnificent. The climax was perfection, just the right pacing and length and lots of action, and the end was sweet and satisfying.

Characters: All the characters in the story were contradictory, confused, and complicated, which made them realistic but extremely difficult to describe. Amara was fear and hate in her forced situation but courage and loyalty in the face of duty. Nolan struggled for normalcy and control, but once he found control he put responsibility above normalcy. I struggled to truly understand them and, while I eventually did with Nolan, I never quite did with Amara. Her situation was confused so she was confused, and if the character didn't know then I certainly couldn't. This wasn't particularly a bad thing though, and made for a raw and realistic read.

Romantic Relationships: Bisexual. Of the main characters, Amara was the only one who had the time for a relationship, and she didn't waste any of it. She made out and slept with whoever was on hand, no matter how she felt about them at the time. I did think she and Maart were sweet together, but otherwise her lack of sexual morals degraded my opinion of her a bit.

Trigger Warning: Abuse and Violence. There are a few scenes of pretty brutal abuse (Amara at the hands of her adult male caretaker), nothing sexual but very violent. There are also several torture-like instances at the hands of a curse that some might find rather disturbing.

Conclusion: An impressive, diverse and engrossing read that I quite enjoyed. Highly recommend for older teens who enjoy unique multi-world fantasies.

Read It Again?: Possibly, but probably not (it's a good one-time read)

Scribble Rating: 

4 1/2 of 5 Scribbles

Top Ten Books I Read In 2013

Top Ten Tuesday is a meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish! This week's topic:

Top Ten Books I Read In 2013

1. These Broken Stars (Amie Kaufman & Meagan Spooner)
2. Transparent (Natalie Whipple)
3. Cinder (Marissa Meyer)
4. Arclight (Josin L. McQuein)
5. Curtsies & Conspiracies (Gail Carriger)
6. Pivot Point (Kasie West)
7. The Elite (Kiera Cass)
8. The Art of Wishing (Lindsay Ribar)
9. The Nightmare Affair (Mindee Arnett)
10. The False Prince (Jennifer A. Nielsen)
11. Splintered (A.G. Howard)

(Yes I know, that's 11, not 10. What can I say, I had a lot of really good reads this year!)


So what were your top ten reads of 2013? Did you read any of my picks? What did you think of them?

2013 End of Year Book Survey

Although I really should be writing reviews, I couldn't help but do The Perpetual Page-Turner's End of Year Book Survey! Check out my 2013 Best in Books, and find out a little of what I'm looking forward to in 2014!

1. Best Book You Read In 2013 (by Genre)?

Contemporary YA: The Distance Between Us (Kasie West)

Dystopian/Post-Apocalyptic: Cinder (Marissa Meyer)

Historical Fiction: Curtsies & Conspiracies (Gail Carriger) (Okay, it's technically alternate historical fic, but that's as close as I'm gonna get to historical fic this year)

Paranormal: Transparent (Natalie Whipple)

Science Fiction: These Broken Stars (Amie Kaufman & Meagan Spooner) (This probably wins Best Book as well - seriously, if you haven't read it yet, get to it pronto!)

Fantasy: Splintered (A.G. Howard)

2. Book You Were Excited About & Thought You Were Going To Love More But Didn’t?

Frozen (Melissa de la Cruz & Michael Johnston) - OH THE DESPAIR

3. Most surprising (in a good way!) book of 2013? 

Arclight (Josin L. McQuein) - Had zero expectations and it blew me away.

4. Book you read in 2013 that you recommended to people most in 2013?

Curtsies & Conspiracies (Gail Carriger)

 5. Best series you discovered in 2013?

Lunar Chronicles (Marissa Meyer)

 6. Favorite new author you discovered in 2013?

Kasie West

7. Best book that was out of your comfort zone or was a new genre for you?

Insomnia (J.R. Johansson) - Psychological thrillers are rarely my thing, but I'm glad I tried this one!

 8. Most thrilling, unputdownable book in 2013?

These Broken Stars (Amie Kaufman & Meagan Spooner)

 9. Book You Read In 2013 That You Are Most Likely To Re-Read Next Year?

The False Prince (Jennifer A. Nielsen) - So I can binge-read the entire trilogy!

10. Favorite cover of a book you read in 2013?

11. Most memorable character in 2013? 

Cinder from Cinder (Marissa Meyer)

 12. Most beautifully written book read in 2013?

These Broken Stars (Amie Kaufman & Meagan Spooner)

13. Book that had the greatest impact on you in 2013? 

These Broken Stars (Amie Kaufman & Meagan Spooner)

 14. Book you can’t believe you waited UNTIL 2013 to finally read? 

Cinder (Marissa Meyer)

 15. Favorite Passage/Quote From A Book You Read In 2013?

“...Oh god. I'm one of those girls."

"What girls?" he asked, perplexed.

"Those girls. The ones in all those books and TV shows. Some dumb high school girl falls in love with some supernatural guy, and he's all, 'Behold, I am five million years old!' and she's all, 'Oh my god, how can you ever love pathetic little me!' and he's like, 'Because of destiny!' or whatever. It's just so...ew. You know?”

--The Art of Wishing (Lindsay Ribar)

16. Shortest & Longest Book You Read In 2013?

A quick guess is: 

Shortest: Pawn (Aimee Carter)

Longest: Tandem (Anna Jarzab)

 17. Book That Had A Scene In It That Had You Reeling And Dying To Talk To Somebody About It? (a WTF moment, an epic revelation, a steamy kiss, etc. etc.) Be careful of spoilers!

The climax of Splintered (A.G. Howard)

18. Favorite Relationship From A Book You Read In 2013 (be it romantic, friendship, etc).

Scarlet and Wolf from Scarlet (Marissa Meyer)

19. Favorite Book You Read in 2013 From An Author You’ve Read Previously:

School Spirits (Rachel Hawkins)

20. Best Book You Read In 2013 That You Read Based SOLELY On A Recommendation From Somebody Else:

Cinder (Marissa Meyer)

21. Genre You Read The Most From in 2013?

YA Dystopian

22. Newest fictional crush from a book you read in 2013?

Oliver from The Art of Wishing (Lindsay Ribar)

23. Best 2013 debut you read?

Pivot Point (Kasie West)

24. Most vivid world/imagery in a book you read in 2013?

These Broken Stars (Amie Kaufman & Meagan Spooner)

25. Book That Was The Most Fun To Read in 2013?

Curtsies & Conspiracies (Gail Carriger)

26. Book That Made You Cry Or Nearly Cry in 2013?

These Broken Stars (Amie Kaufman & Meagan Spooner)

27. Book You Read in 2013 That You Think Got Overlooked This Year Or When It Came Out?

Transparent (Natalie Whipple) and The Art of Wishing (Lindsay Ribar) - Both are awesome stories I read twice this year. Highly recommend!!

1. One Book You Didn’t Get To In 2013 But Will Be Your Number 1 Priority in 2014?

Unhinged (A.G. Howard)

2. Book You Are Most Anticipating For 2014 (non-debut)?

The Winner's Curse (Marie Rutkoski)

3. 2014 Debut You Are Most Anticipating?

Hungry (H.A. Swain)

4. Series Ending You Are Most Anticipating in 2014?

The Selection series: The One (Kiera Cass)

5. One Thing You Hope To Accomplish Or Do In Your Reading/Blogging In 2014?

Read more! 100 books read in 2014, here I come!!

~          ~          ~          ~          ~

So that's my 2013 Survey! Not surprising, These Broken Stars won seven times (such a phenomenal read!). Did you read any of the books I mentioned? What did you think of them? And if you did the Survey, link up in the Comments!

Top Ten Books I've Read So Far In 2013

My first Top Ten Tuesday, hosted by The Broke and the Bookish! This week's topic: 

Top Ten Books I've Read So Far In 2013

• Splintered by A.G. Howard
• Pivot Point by Kasie West
• The False Prince by Jennifer A. Nielsen
• Arclight by Josin L. McQuein
• The Elite by Kiera Cass
• The Art of Wishing by Lindsay Ribar
• Transparent by Natalie Whipple
• The Testing by Joelle Charbonneau
• The Distance Between Us by Kasie West
• Indelible by Dawn Metcalf
• Reboot by Amy Tintera

Yes, I know, that's 11, not 10. What can I say, I've had some pretty good reads this year!

So what are some of your favorite 2013 reads so far?

Review: Splintered (A.G. Howard) + Giveaway

Title: Splintered
Series: Splintered Book 1
Author: A.G. Howard
Publisher: Amulet
Release Date: January 1, 2013
Genre: Young Adult Dark Contemporary Fantasy
Told: First Person (Alyssa), Present Tense
Content Rating: Older Teen (sensuality bordering on sexuality, some language, disturbing images, violence)
Format Read: ARC (trade)
Find It On: Goodreads
Summary: 

Alyssa Gardner hears the whispers of bugs and flowers—precisely the affliction that landed her mother in a mental hospital years before. This family curse stretches back to her ancestor Alice Liddell, the real-life inspiration for Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. Alyssa might be crazy, but she manages to keep it together. For now.

When her mother’s mental health takes a turn for the worse, Alyssa learns that what she thought was fiction is based in terrifying reality. The real Wonderland is a place far darker and more twisted than Lewis Carroll ever let on. There, Alyssa must pass a series of tests, including draining an ocean of Alice’s tears, waking the slumbering tea party, and subduing a vicious bandersnatch, to fix Alice’s mistakes and save her family. She must also decide whom to trust: Jeb, her gorgeous best friend and secret crush, or the sexy but suspicious Morpheus, her guide through Wonderland, who may have dark motives of his own.

*          *          *

Writing: Beautiful, dark prose. Skillfully written and a breeze to read.

Setting: The "real world" was realistic and engaging, while Wonderland was spooky, creepy, warped, and overly enthralling. Tim Burton would have been proud to call it his own.

Story: It began a little rough, but I knew that was just me trying to relate to MC Alyssa, who I personally didn't have anything in common with. The real world lead-up was just right (aka not too long) and engaging, even though I was itching right from the start for the Wonderland part to begin. When it finally did, I immensely enjoyed every moment of it. The familiar scenes and places shown in a different and disturbing light - I was engrossed all the way through. The end... I didn't feel it was quite believable (removing a single number from a huge equation alters the equation - and more importantly the answer - entirely), but I let it go. Wonderland is supposed to be a bit off anyway. All in all it was a highly entertaining story that kept me riveted.

Characters: I had a hard time connecting with artiste and skater girl Alyssa in the beginning (again, I had nothing on common with her), but once she hit Wonderland I was behind her all the way. Jeb was the protective and passionate older-brother type that a lot of girls (including me) secretly wish for in a boyfriend, and I enjoyed watching his [steamy] romance with Alyssa unfold. Morpheus was chilling and seductive and I couldn't help rooting for him and Alyssa as well, even when I knew he was bad for her. The rest of the Wonderland cast was individually creepy and entertaining in their own right, and Rabid in particular still makes my skin crawl just thinking about him.

Favorite Bit(s): Cover love - SO gorgeous. And, of course, Alice/Wonderland is an addiction of mine.

Conclusion: Beautifully rendered and warped, I highly enjoyed this book and definitely recommend it!

Scribble Rating: 

4 .5 of 5 Scribbles

And in honor of my love for Splintered, I have official swag to give away!

Fill out the Rafflecopter form below for a chance to win one of two swag packs signed by the author herself, A.G. Howard! Good luck! :)

a Rafflecopter giveaway