Until The Beginning by Amy Plum: Review

Synopsis:

When Juneau's clan disappeared, she lost so much more than her friends and family. She soon discovered everything she thought she knew about her life was a lie. Her people's gifts were actually secret abilities that others wanted, desperately enough to kidnap an entire village.

Juneau and her new companion Miles's cross-country journey to find her clan has led them to a game preserve in New Mexico. Now Juneau's people are finally within reach, and she will stop at nothing to save them. But she has a target on her back too, because unbeknownst to her she is the key to unlocking everything. To rescue her people - and herself - Juneau must discover what she, and her abilities, are truly capable of.

***

You will be captured. There will be a battle. Whether a battle of wills or an actual physical struggle, I can't tell. But I see you at the center of it. And when the end comes, your regular weapons won't help you - I read that as meaning both physical and mental weapons... meaning your Reading and Conjuring. Instead you must Invoke.

I wasn't exactly a big fan of After The End. It wasn't bad, but it just didn't capture my attention the way the other books did. The ending though... it's quite an impressive cliffhanger ending, so I was still somewhat curious about the development of the story. Until The Beginning is much better than After The End, and there are some things that I actually like. Although there are moments of confusion and unnecessary stretching of the plot, it's still a somewhat satisfying sequel.

The plot here is much more straightforward. After saving Miles from almost certain death, Juneau tries to free her clan from the greedy hands of the modern world, with Miles' help. Of course, some secrets are unveiled along the way, and betrayal is present. But, it's not hard to see the outcome of the story, and how the relationship between Juneau and Miles will grow. Being predictable doesn't mean it's not enjoyable, though. There are a lot of pivotal moments of Juneau discovering the truth of the Yara. We also get to discover the depths of some of the characters' minds, especially Miles'. The tender and fun conversations between Juneau and Miles are abundant, which is more than fine by me. The only problem I have with the plot is that the explanation for the Yara and other stuff related to it is still too simple for me. While the fact that there are less information dumping is good, the concept of the Yara is still... somewhat unreasonable. We cannot ignore the fact that the writing and the plot has improved quite a bit, and for now that's enough.

In this book, Yara, Gaia and stuff related to them is more of a natural force than a freaky superpower demonstrated in After The End. It's more of a good thing than a bad thing. For one, the so-called scientific explanation for this kind of things are not very scientific by today's standards. They are like super simplified version of a phenomenon at its best. Thinking it as a natural force explained by a sort-of religious concept somehow makes more sense to me. This is one of the reason why I couldn't relate to After The End. The explanation was simply too ridiculous for me to sort through. This book has its paranormal facts organized and it's much better than the mess in the first book.

I'm not sure if there's another book after this, considering it ends in a nice note. Unless it has some dynamic plot waiting for us, I'm not sure I will pick this up again. Either way, the sequel has shown improvements and I'm happy about it.

Rating: 7/10

After The End (ARC): Review

Synopsis:

She’s searching for answers to her past. They’re hunting her to save their future.

World War III has left the world ravaged by nuclear radiation. A lucky few escaped to the Alaskan wilderness. They've survived for the last thirty years by living off the land, being one with nature, and hiding from whoever else might still be out there.

At least, this is what Juneau has been told her entire life.

When Juneau returns from a hunting trip to discover that everyone in her clan has vanished, she sets off to find them. Leaving the boundaries of their land for the very first time, she learns something horrifying: There never was a war. Cities were never destroyed. The world is intact. Everything was a lie.

Now Juneau is adrift in a modern-day world she never knew existed. But while she's trying to find a way to rescue her friends and family, someone else is looking for her. Someone who knows the extraordinary truth about the secrets of her past.

***

After The End is about a world where "it has been destroyed by World War III". Except it's not. It's fully functioning and good. Juneau's clan is in danger. And she sets out to find them, only to find that her whole world -- her whole life -- is a huge lie. She has to depend on a boy who might be the last trustworthy person to find them. And uncover all the secrets behind her abilities.

What I like about After The End is Juneau. She's very smart, cunning, and intelligent. It's almost impossible to fool her because she has her way to find out the truth and evade danger. She's also wary too, which is something can't be said to some other heroines in other books. Normally they'll have a internal emotional breakdown and lower their guards when it comes to a boy they like. Not Juneau, though. She keeps her guard, and thinks carefully before trusting someone with her secrets. She's a little bit cold. But for some reason that just raise the level of her awesomeness.

But there are some stuff that I have problems with. Miles is a problem. It's not like I don't like that guy, because he's pretty nice when he wants to be. But he's surprisingly close-minded for a person living in a city. Just because you can't see something or something sounds really ridiculous doesn't mean they don't necessarily make sense, right? And yet it takes him a loooooooooooong time to open his mind and truly listen to what Juneau says about her life. If you ask me, it's pretty annoying. 

The plot itself is predictable. Not that I don't enjoy it. But I just want something unexpected, something dynamic. And... there are not much of that in this book. Which is a little disappointing, because I'm expecting quite a lot from this book. I guess next time I'll have to refrain from my expectations and actually judge the book based wholly on the synopsis alone when it comes to a new book.

The ending of the book is what I like the least. It's a sort-of cliffhanger ending. Normally I like cliffhanger endings even though it will bring me anticipation as well as the pain to wait for the next book. But this time, the cliffhanger pisses me off a lot. I understand that it's not the author's fault. And I also know the significance of the ending because I have a feeling the actions Juneau takes at the end will definitely change a dying certain someone. But I'm also pretty sure that certain someone is not going to die that soon (otherwise there will be almost no use continuing to read the series, unless you pull a "The Crown of Embers" thing on this book). And that assumption, for some reason, outweighs the significance of the ending and pisses me off. It's kind of unreasonable, but that's what I feel.

I think the book is okay, actually. But there are flaws that I can't ignore. I'm also curious about the next book, but I'm quite certain I will not have the "I need this book now or I will cut a bitch" syndrome.

Rating: 6/10

Die For Me: Review

Well, obviously in some ways I'm not a trendy fangirl. But finally I've finished Die for Me by Amy Plum. Check out the summary below:

In the City of Lights, two star-crossed lovers battle a fate that is destined to tear them apart again and again for eternity.

When Kate Mercier's parents die in a tragic car accident, she leaves her life--and memories--behind to live with her grandparents in Paris. For Kate, the only way to survive her pain is escaping into the world of books and Parisian art. Until she meets Vincent.

Mysterious, charming, and devastatingly handsome, Vincent threatens to melt the ice around Kate's guarded heart with just his smile. As she begins to fall in love with Vincent, Kate discovers that he's a revenant--an undead being whose fate forces him to sacrifice himself over and over again to save the lives of others. Vincent and those like him are bound in a centuries-old war against a group of evil revenants who exist only to murder and betray. Kate soon realizes that if she follows her heart, she may never be safe again.

***
This book is quite charming but a little awkward. And the awkwardness is not because of the relationship. Actually, this is one of the most pure relationship I've seen for a long time.  Especially after my whole TID+Covenant+Shatter Me mess. The awkwardness is in the whole revenants-theories part. The good thing about the supernatural being is that the idea is kind of new. At least, there is no dystopian/fallen angels/vamps/werewolves/faeries/etc. It's just...you know, revenants, within Paris.

Paris is not exactly my favorite city. But surely the setting is good enough because Paris gives out a prosperous feeling to the crowd. Paris has a dark past too. I am studying the French Revolution right now and learn about the chaos in Paris. This book gives Paris a mysterious scent.

The characters... well the characters are different yet oddly similar to the ones I'm obsessed with. Kate, as always, is describe as a selfless girl. Well, she is quite selfless actually. But I'm not sure if I like her as much as others. And Vincent... he is slightly different. He won't hide his feelings for Kate like the famous hot boys in YA novels. Jules is my favorite character. He is fun and he treats Kate really good. He will be a good friend.

I think this will be the shortest review I've ever written because I don't have strong feelings about this book. It's peaceful. But I can't ship Kate and Vincent as much as the others I'm always obsessed with. Good thing is that this book can be... you know, sort of a break from novels that will definitely drive me crazy.

But still, I will read Until I Die.

Rating: 7.5/10