Book Review: If I Die (Rachel Vincent)

Everyone else is talking about Eastlake High’s gorgeous new math teacher, Mr. Beck, but Kaylee Cavanaugh has bigger things on her mind. Kaylee’s a banshee—her scream is a portent of death. But the next scream might hit too close to home. Kaylee’s borrowed lifeline has almost run out. Yeah—it’s a shock to her, too. So to distract herself from her own problems, Kaylee is determined to defend her school against the latest supernatural threat. That hot new teacher is really an incubus, who feeds from the desire of unsuspecting students. The only girls immune to his lure are Kaylee and Sabine, her boyfriend’s delinquent ex-girlfriend. Now the unlikely allies have to get rid of Mr. Beck…before he discovers they aren’t quite human either. But Kaylee’s running out of time, and those who love her will do anything to save her life. 


Welcome to the 4th day of Rachel Vincent' IF I DIE blog tour! The 5th book in the Soul Screamers Series is a fantastic, fuel-filled rush of a book - so much so that my postman probably grabbed my copy for himself! Thank yo Lucy and MIRA for sending me a second copy, and I promise if the first one ever turns up I'll be giving it away for you guys to enjoy - watch out for it!

In the meantime, check out my review:

I've always been a fan of the Soul Screamers series, but I must admit - there is always a make or break book in every series and this is it. It is, in many case, a hit or miss, love it or hate it book. It's the book that completely changes the trajectory of the series, and although we readers have probably suspected this, Rachel Vincent still manages to surprise us with the twists in If I Die.

Luckily for me, I was one of the happy one after reading the book. It all begins in a rather awry way for Kaylee, and it seems that this time, she might not come out unscathe. Her relationship with Nash hangs in the balance, a very suspicious teacher is being rather unprofessional in his extra-curricular activities, and worse of all, Kaylee may not even have the time to correct all these and get her life back on track. Indeed, it was very possible she won't even have a life at the end of it.

Every book in the series is generally fast-paced, but If I Die was particularly. Because there were so many challenges for Kaylee in the book, it was inevitable that the book breezes through some of, in my opinion, the more important explanations. There were twists that I find were not of complete surprise - regardless, it didn't take the enjoyment out of it though, which was why, overall I still enjoyed it. I did still gape at some scenes and flickered through others like there was no tomorrow! 

Kaylee was undoubtedly under a lot of pressure in the book, and her resilience shines through quite spectacularly. While there were some actions of Kaylee that I found questionable, far be it for me to call it out; after all, unless you yourself have your days numbered, who are you to judge one who does? Having said that, Kaylee's maturity and her ability to act for the greater good even when she is in peril herself, really underscores everything admirable in her - not to mention it gives us readers some really good action scenes! Funny enough, I particularly liked the bloody scenes that I would usually otherwise have ignored. Rachel really does know her action scenes!

Of course, we learn more about the netherworld and the complexity of the creatures that inhabit it. For me, one thing that stood out was that the netherworld creatures that were featured in If I Die still had a heart. At times I even felt like perhaps Kaylee should not interfere with nature, because it was after all in the nature of these demons to act in their own interest and humans are, no matter how sad, the collateral damage in this case. Much like the animals are to provide for human needs. Only a very convincing character and a heartfelt speech from one does this to me, so kudos to Rachel for getting me all pro-demon in this case!

Last but not least, Tod (insert heart sign here).

That is all - and I, as always cannot wait for Kaylee's adventure in Before I Wake!

Four Stars!

*

Book courtesy of MIRA INK.


PS - Pop into Endlessly Bookish for more If I Die tomorrow and check out the banner for the rest of the tour stops:

Book Review: My Soul to Save (Rachel Vincent)

When Kaylee Cavanaugh screams, someone dies.

So when teen pop star Eden croaks onstage and Kaylee doesn't wail, she knows something is dead wrong. She can't cry for someone who has no soul.

The last thing Kaylee needs right now is to be skipping school, breaking her dad's ironclad curfew and putting her too-hot-to-be-real boyfriend's loyalty to the test. But starry-eyed teens are trading their souls: a flickering lifetime of fame and fortune in exchange for eternity in the Netherworld—a consequence they can't possibly understand.

Kaylee can't let that happen, even if trying to save their souls means putting her own at risk…..

I am once again ensnared by Rachel Vincent's The Soul Screamers Series. There is just that extra oomph in this series that puts it above the many others I've read- I'm not going to deny how addicted I am to it. And in more ways than one, Kaylee Cavanaugh is my heroine of choice!

I was fascinated by the world of the bean sidhe in My Soul to Take and in its sequel Rachel Vincent does not let up in unleashing more of the horrors of the netherworld. Fortunately, I was fascinated by these too. I find it enchanting really, and Kaylee is a strong narrator who both satisfied and stirred my curiosity. I was continually surprised and horrified along with her; she's such a genuine character, one I consider as a reflection of myself in fiction. I think one of the characteristics that truly define her is what she gives the readers - the ability to see themselves in her.

Not only do we learn more about the netherworld, we also see Kaylee beginning to realise the extent and limitation of her bean sidhe abilities. Having just recently discovered her heritage, she is still set to explore it; but as always, danger is connected to exploration and she is not exempt. Thus, Kaylee takes us into action-filled adventures in both realms, dodging both raging hellions and condescending human adults alike. Spurred by her moral compass, Kaylee once again dives heads first into danger, but who wouldn't in her place? Rachel has truly and effectively conveyed her character's motives and intent behind their actions in My Soul to Save.

Apart from the fascinating mythology, the action-adventure that makes you fly through the pages, we also see more romance. But not only of Nash and Kaylee, but of the reaper's also. Tod - despite his tendency to always appear aloof - shows his one weakness in this book, and I'm sure I'm not the only reader whose heart went out to him. Although Tod messes up a a little at the end, one can understand why. Despite his ungentlemanly actions, I think the jury's still out on Tod's behaviour; for the romantics at heart like me however, he did what did for love, and that says a hell of a lot of things. I admired his assertiveness, no matter how disillusioned he ended up

Rachel's mythology, plus her fantastic set of characters has fully cemented Soul Screamers on my favourite YA series list!

Five Stars!


* Thanks to Mira Ink for my beautiful review copy. I <3 it!

Book Review: My Soul to Take (Rachel Vincent)

She doesn't see dead people, but…

She senses when someone near her is about to die. And when that happens, a force beyond her control compels her to scream bloody murder. Literally.

Kaylee just wants to enjoy having caught the attention of the hottest guy in school. But a normal date is hard to come by when Nash seems to know more about her need to scream than she does. And when classmates start dropping dead for no apparent reason, only Kaylee knows who'll be next…

Rachel Vincent should be a name readers should always, always categorise under 'bloody amazing'. Her shifters series is noteworthy in the Urban fantasy genre and her newly published (in the UK, at least) Soul Screamers series is just as fantastic! I love it! It has in its pages the exact reasons why I love YA - and why it is bound to be one of my favourite series!

My Soul to Take hooked me from the very beginning. Despite paranormal YA being very popular in the market today, I am drawn to the book even before it began introducing its paranormal element. Rachel's writing is magnetic - her no nonsense prose is witty, direct and thoroughly enigmatic. The way it delivers exactly what is just right - without taking the wit off the narrative voice - is truly captivating. It is a very comfortable read, smooth in both its prose and pace. Before I knew it, I was half-way thru it!

I don't think I've ever read a book about bean sidhes before. I have come across the notion of course, particularly in highland romances, but I have yet to read one which focuses entirely on it. The Soul Screamers series fits the bill entirely, and I have been completely enthralled by its mythology.  It is incredibly well-imagined, and so easy to drown in! It is not only rich and particularly exciting, it is also a joy to gather and discover more of it with Kaylee as I read along.

Kaylee Cavanaugh is one funny, sassy and witty heroine. At times even confused, as well as horrified by her abilities. She is the perfect complement to Nash's laidback, protective personality. While she is a risk-taker unaware of the consequences, Nash is a guarded and a careful assessor. This pair is - there is no other word for it - sexy. Yes, My Soul to Take is definitely more seductive than many YA books I've read - and I am not complaining!

Apart from the obvious pair, there are also a number of secondary characters that not only surprises you, but ones you know will play an increasingly important role in the succeeding books. One of those is Tod, who has a hugely surprising relationship to one of the characters - I will not ruin the surprise for you, but it has a completely huge twist I never would have guessed! The book has a whole lot of it on hand for the readers - brace yourselves! You're in for a definite treat! The fact that everything is well balanced with some very nerve wracking instances just adds to the general marvelousness of this series.

Fast-paced, engaging, enthralling, magnetic, seductive - My Soul to Take definitely has the best of YA!

Five Stars!


* Review copy courtesy of Mira Ink. Thank you!

Soul Screamer (Rachel Vincent) Blog Tour!

Rachel Vincent’s hotly anticipated Soul Screamers series will be hitting UK shores in early January. The first book in the series, My Soul to Take, is being published by an exciting new book imprint, MIRA Ink - and today I have with me a guest post from Rachel about the research she did on banshees for this exciting new series:

I did a lot of research into what I could find of the original Irish bean sidhe lore, and similar Scottish and Manx folklore, and I used most of what I found in the books, in one way or another. Kaylee’s last name, Cavanaugh, for example, comes from the Kavanaugh family, one of the five great families whose deaths are said to be mourned by the bean sidhe in Ireland.

Honestly, though, I wound up with more questions than answers after reading the folklore. But in fiction, that’s a good thing. Unanswered questions are an opportunity for me to make things up and expand upon what I found. Which is where most of the worldbuilding in the Soul Screamers series comes from.

I made up answers for why bean sidhe wail, what their wail is actually doing, why there’s no male of the species (in my world, there is!), how they inherit their abilities, and how being saddled with abilities like Kaylee’s can shape a girl’s adolescence.

Why do I think bean sidhes are cooler than other creatures, like vampires? Well, I don’t know that I think any one creature is cooler than any other. (Except for reapers. I think my reapers are pretty cool.) But for me, the advantage bean sidhes have over your typical vampires and werewolves is they’re largely unknown. You go into a vampire book knowing what to expect. Biting. Drinking blood. Lots of night-dates. And probably an older (waaaay older) man. But most people go into the Soul Screamers books not knowing what to expect. And in case you’re one of those, here’s a hint:

Mysterious deaths. Scary abilities. Kissing. Evil soul-stealing hellions. Sarcastic reapers. Kissing. Netherworld addictive substances. Lies and secrets. Kissing. Insanity. Things crawling through the shadows. And did I mention the kissing? ;)

Thanks Rachel! :)

Rachel Vincent is a New York times best selling author. The Soul Screamers series is her first series for teenagers. Rachel is also the author of the successful Shifters series about a pride of werecats which are written for adults. Rachel lives in Texas with her husband who she met when she worked in Subway. When she’s not writing paranormal fiction Rachel spends time catching up on her favourite TV shows, she is addicted to Dexter and True Blood! For more info visit www.rachelvincent.com

Book Review: Alpha (Rachel Vincent)

YOU'VE GOT TO HAVE FAYTHE...

The unscrupulous new Council chair has charged Jace, Marc, and me with trespassing, kidnapping, murder, and treason. Yeah, we've been busy. But now it's time to take justice into our own hands. We must avenge my brother's death and carve out the rot at the heart of the Council.

It's not going to be easy, and loss seems unavoidable, but I have promised to protect my Pride, no matter what. With a target on my back and Marc at my side, I'm heading for a final showdown that can--that will--change everything forever. A showdown I'm not sure I'm ready for.

But life never waits until you're ready.

Alpha is my first Rachel Vincent read and though it is the final book in the Shifters Series, the first I have read of it. While I'm not very fond of Urban Fantasy, even I will admit this is one bloody good read! I enjoyed this book a whole lot - action-packed, romantic and thrilling, Alpha is one very engaging read.

The book is really built as part of a series. It begins right in the middle of the conflict, and if I'm not wrong, directly after the events of the preceding book. Throughout the plot it also consistently refers to events and characters from previous books. Not much is explained and the book half assumes the reader is aware of what happened previously, but what really made me stick to it is the fact that instead of putting me off, it only enticed me to read the previous books. So if you have not read the series yet, this is a brilliant time to start - you don't have to impatiently wait for the next installment!

The primary character, Faythe, is by no means perfect. Her faults are laid out as it is from the very beginning. She's stubborn and heedless, yes, but also strong and unwavering. In Alpha, Faythe struggles with her affection for both Marc and Jace, two toms who vie for her heart. While I cannot begin to understand how she can love both of them, her indecision and guilt over hurting either of them is palpable in her actions. And while I vehemently stand against her infidelity to Marc, her acknowledgment of this mistake and the punishment she endures placated me.

Out of all the characters, I like Marc the most. Sure, he has a temper, is easy to provoke and is angry for most of the book. But he is such a genuine character; this may sound funny - but I do see a cat in his personality. I love his every word in this book - they are so honest and so genuine, and his hurt is strongly present. I'm glad he is not as forgiving to Faythe at all. His anger gives a sharp edge to the romance, and I'd be damned if I did not enjoy every single second of it!

Alpha is not all about romance - there is also a huge thrill surrounding politics, loyalties and disputes. It is in this part that Alpha fails to make me feel like I have grasp the whole of what is happening. I believe this part heavily refers to occurances in the previous books. There is a lot of tension involving the werecat council and a war amongst shifters is brewing - Faythe is in the thick of it. Tied to this is a very thrilling action interspersed throughout the book. Despite the fact that I lack previous knowledge about what led to certain events in Alpha, I loved being part of Faythe's world. The action, the thrill, the sense of danger following her footsteps is exciting!

I wish the ending was longer - it appeared too abrupt for my liking. Here's to hoping for more!

Simply put, Alpha is one exhilarating read. Forget werewolves, werecats are definitely in. And I just have to add this - I am in lust with the consistency of the Shifter Series' covers!

Four Stars.

* Copy provided by publisher for review. Thank you!