Unbreakable: Review

Synopsis:

Four months after Ben disappeared through the portal to his home universe, Janelle believes she’ll never see him again. Her world is still devastated, but life is finally starting to resume some kind of normalcy. Until Interverse Agent Taylor Barclay shows up. Somebody from an alternate universe is running a human trafficking ring, kidnapping people and selling them on different Earths—and Ben is the prime suspect. Now his family has been imprisoned and will be executed if Ben doesn’t turn himself over within five days.

And when Janelle learns that someone she cares about—someone from her own world—has become one of the missing, she knows that she has to help Barclay, regardless of the danger. Now Janelle has five days to track down the real culprit. Five days to locate the missing people before they’re lost forever. Five days to reunite with the boy who stole her heart. But as the clues begin to add up, Janelle realizes that she’s in way over her head—and that she may not have known Ben as well as she thought. Can she uncover the truth before everyone she cares about is killed?

***

(This might contain spoilers of Unraveling.)

This. Book. Is. Awesome! I don't even know what to say about it because it's just so good. It's action-packed, surreal but realistic at the same time, and a whole lot of exciting! I can practically feel my blood humming in excitement! This is way better than Unraveling, and so much better than I expected.

Janelle is a true heroine this time. She really can kick some ass. Hard and swift. She's not one of those indecisive or reckless girls. She's strong, realistic, and smart. I like her so much more than in Unraveling because this time her personality actually shines through her. Ben is her counterpart. Don't get me wrong, I still like him so much. He's softer than Janelle and more emotional and reckless. But his determination is what I admire most. They are different. But they are definitely strong characters.

The plot is no let down. Actually that's what I like most. The plot in Unraveling and Unbreakable is actually pretty separated. It's Undone that links the two stories together. I kinda like that because individual stuff can sometimes make the series (or is that a trilogy?) more exciting. The most important part is: Norris succeeds in taking our breaths away. Stakes are much higher than in Unraveling despite this time it's not the world/universe/multiverse/wherever Janelle's living in that's at risk but more personal. It's really hard to explain exactly how good Unbreakable is. I just have to say one thing: The plot twists will never cease to amaze you.

If you haven't read Unraveling yet, go read it. It's not like any other YA paranormal that you've ever read.

Rating: 8.5/10

P.S. You know another thing that I love so much in this book? It's a quote from the book, but not exactly because it's quoted from Dante's Paradise:

But already my desire and my will were being turned like a wheel, all at one speed, by the Love which moves the sun and the other stars.

And it reminds me so much of City of Fallen Angels... (Yeah, I'm lame as that XD)

Undone: Review

Synopsis:

Before the accident. Before their universes collided. Before they fell in love.

Riveting and romantic, Undone: An Unraveling Novella contains three short stories set in the world of Unraveling, the first book in the gripping sci-fi duology by Elizabeth Norris.

Before Ben Michaels saved Janelle Tenner’s life, Janelle saved Ben when he stumbled through an interuniverse portal into a completely new world. That day, he fell in love with the girl of his dreams. And he never forgot her.

Through three stories told from Ben’s point of view, learn how Ben and his friends discovered their ability to travel between worlds, how Ben first met Janelle, and how he pined for her for years before he actually got the chance to meet her, save her life, and capture her heart. And find out what happens to Ben between the cliff-hanger conclusion to Unraveling and the beginning of its heart-stopping sequel, Unbreakable.

***

Well, the point of views of the boys in a YA book is always interesting. And yep, I can admit that I don't really understand the depth of Ben's feelings for Janelle until I read Undone. If you read Unraveling, you can't miss this novella, not just because it's a really, really sweet and at times, heart stopping novella. It holds very important information, especially the third part of the story. I can sense that the events in Undone will definitely link to Unbreakable, the sequel of Unraveling.

Undone is better than Unraveling in many ways. At least now I can make an attachment to Ben. He always existed in the rim of the boundaries of my mind until now. He official enters my mind now. That's a good thing, because things won't be interesting if there isn't any remarkable about the characters or the book itself. He's no different from the guy Janelle first talked to. But then, what the hell? It's just a short novella.

There is an exciting part of the story. I don't know if you noticed it, but in the early summary of Undone, the third part of the story is set between Unraveling and Unbreakable. Which is... when Ben is in his home universe. And yeah, something bad happens there. Not the all-out-apocalypse-and-hazard thing. But still, it's bad. And it seems like there's a concrete link between this and the events of Unbreakable (Nah, I don't have any ARCs of Unbreakable if there is one, but the summary reveals something.)

I can't wait for Unbreakable, especially after reading Undone. Because you know what? Undone has a strong connection with Unbreakable than Unraveling does. If you have finished reading Unraveling, make sure you read this novella.

Rating: 7.5/10

Unraveling: Review

Synopsis:

Sixteen-year-old Janelle Tenner is used to having a lot of responsibility. She balances working as a lifeguard in San Diego with an intense academic schedule. Janelle's mother is bipolar, and her dad is a workaholic FBI agent, which means Janelle also has to look out for her younger brother, Jared.

And that was before she died...and is brought back to life by Ben Michaels, a mysterious, alluring loner from her high school. When she discovers a strange clock that seems to be counting down to the earth's destruction, Janelle learns she has twenty-four days to figure out how to stop the clock and save the planet.

***

This book is quite good. Not one of the best in history of mankind. But really, it's good enough. Of all the stuff, I really love the plot. I'm always into things like portals, time traveling, parallel universe, wormholes that kind of stuff. They are just... fascinating. I mean, you can travel to other very, very remote planets through wormhole in a very short time? That's almost against all kinds of the laws of physics. And yet it seems to be possible? What's not to love about this?

Yep, the plot is not ALL about time traveling. But the consequences of time traveling? Apocalypse. This is not a dystopian novel, obviously. But apocalypse in a good-ole YA paranormal? Well, this is very interesting. It's exactly why I choose to read this series in the first place. (It seems like I love chaos)

Janelle is the main female protagonist of the book. I have to say very few main female protagonist in YA novels can actually sunk her fingers into my mind. Janelle is NOT one of them. But I think she's an alright character. Okay, she's a little bit snarky, which I like. She's also funny sometimes, which is... another thing I like. She handle the whole traveling-through-the-wormhole stuff surprisingly well (okay, I know wormhole is no new topic. But I think it's more than a little bit shocking if you know that your friend is actually from another universe parallel with others). But she's not a strong enough character that can actually stand out from other characters a lot. That's kind of a flaw to me.

Ben is the main male protagonist of the book. Again, not many main male characters can actually get into my mind (looks like my mind is a closed box). And sadly, Ben is not one of them. But I kinda like him. Okay, he's not humorous. He's just a little bit too mature for a seventeen-year-old. But he's sweet. Really sweet. Though the sweetness will boost if there aren't so many "fucking" in his words.

The ending... well, what I feel about the ending is pure divergence. It's a great ending for the first book EMOTIONALLY. I mean, it's your boyfriend that has to cross a portal back to his home universe (this is not a spoiler. It is mentioned in the synopsis of Unbreakable). And the vow that Ben makes is very, very sweet and weirdly heart-aching. But it's not such a great ending practically. I expect things will get crazier before the book ends. I mean, come on, it's chaos in San Diego. The ending is more like a rush to me than an actual honest-to-god ending. But that's only the first book, after all. I do believe that things will get crazier and stakes will be higher in Unbreakable.


Rating: 7/10