The Book Barbies: rachel vincent

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Friday, March 16, 2012

|Review| My Soul to Save by Rachel Vincent

Title: My Soul to Save
Author: Rachel Vincent
Series: Soul Screamers #2
Published: December 29th 2009 by Harlequin Teen
Genre: YA paranormal
Rating: ☂☼☃✈ (4 hearts basically, I'm having fun with my Mac's special characters xD)

Goodreads summary:

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...

Racquel's thoughts:
Rachel Vincent does it again! I enjoyed book 2 in the Soul Screamers series just as much as I did the 1st book and the short novella preceding the 1st novel!

What I enjoyed:
-The fact pacing! (I'm also going to contradict myself later on with this...) The book starts and *BAM* so does the plot. There are no chapter fillers or any nonsense. Every page is important.

-The characters<3 Kaylee is a bean sidhe? cool! She's learning about her kind and everything but she's also a teenage girl and a kind hearted one at that. You also have Nash, Kaylee's protective boyfriend and male bean sidhe. Just like Kaylee he's not just a paranormal creature but also a teenage boy and I loved seeing both Kaylee and Nash manage their human and bean sidhe life. Also we got more Tod time in this book which is nice because he's one hilarious grim reaper.

-The romance. It was hot! yaay for some hotness in YA, I love it! For once, things get steamier than just G rated in a YA book! Also, Nash was a great boyfriend and throughout the book he really only has Kaylee's safety in mind (this is an awww moment everybody). They are definitely a fantastic couple.

-The re-construction of Kaylee and her dad's relationship. I LOOVE when family is present in book so even though Aiden, Kaylee's dad isn't a main character by any means, I loved his scenes even though him and Kaylee were always just arguing. I'm just really enjoying seeing where their relationship will go, will it get better or worse?

What could have made this book 5 hearts:
-If the fast pacing slowed down a bit. Yes I just contradicted the first thing I enjoyed about the book but sometimes everything was happening too fast. We didn't get enough interaction of Kaylee and Nash or Kaylee and Emma (Kaylee's bestfriend) or Kaylee with anyone really because it was all about the plot and while I loved the characters, if we got more of the characters without them thinking about the main plot element it would have made the characters and romance PERFECT because it would have made them extremely 3D.

Overall rating: 4 hearts~ My Soul to Save is another fun, fast addition to the Soul Screamers series and I will definitely be reading the next one!

First:

Addison Page had the world at her feet.

Favorite:

"Anything else? Can I fan you with a big palm leaf? Feed you grapes while you write your homework in my blood?"

Teaser:

What if I was the sexual equivalent of popcorn? Suitable for light snacking only?

Wednesday, February 29, 2012

|Review| My Soul to Lose by Rachel Vincent

Title: My Soul to Lose
Author: Rachel Vincent
Series: Soul Screamers #0.5
Published: July 1st 2009 by Harlequin Teen
Rating: ♥♥♥♥
Goodreads summary:

It was supposed to be a fun day, shopping at the mall with her best friend. Then the panic attack started and Kaylee Cavanaugh finds herself screaming, unable to stop. Her secret fears are exposed and it's the worst day of her life.
Until she wakes up in the psychiatric unit.
She tries to convince everyone she's fine--despite the shadows she sees forming around another patient and the urge to scream which comes burbling up again and again. Everyone thinks she's crazy. Everyone except Lydia, that is. Another patient with some special abilities....

Racquel's thoughts:
This is the perfect prequel to a start of what seems to be a great series for me! Only 51 pages in the Soul Screamers Vol. 1 book, this is like a tease of what's to come and it definitely left me with a I WANT MORE, NEXT BOOK NOW! feeling.

It starts off right into the action and I loved that. We have Kaylee and Emma two bestfriends going on a shopping spree. Usually I don't like best friend relationships. I barely see genuine ones! The bestfriend always ends up being a bitch and back stabbing the main character, if the best friend is a guy then he will fall in love with the main character or the best friend starts 'hanging out with different' crowd, she's changing, usually becoming more 'popular' and her relationship with he main character is falling. The only bestfriend relationship I actually didn't hate was between Harper and Laney from Saving June and I think I can add Kaylee and Emma to the list!

Rachel Vincent really had me engrossed! I was going as crazy as Kaylee at the psychiatric unit and I felt like even *I* needed to escape. It was very interesting seeing how Kaylee handles being deemed as somewhat "crazy" and it broke my heart when she found out she couldn't leave right away like she thought she would. Vincent handled the issue very well, I believe and the paranormal aspect of the book was scary but intriguing.

Eve though this is only a novella (a mini, short novel basically), the characters were as developed and as great (and even better in some cases) as the would be in a full length book. Rachel Vincent definitely has talent and I know I'm going to be dreaming about this series!!

Rating: 4 hearts~ a solid novella that will make you a fan of the series!

First:

“Thanks for the ride, Traci!”

Favorite:

If anyone could, it would be Uncle Brendon. He could sell water to a fish.

Teaser:

My pulse swooshed in my ears, a hollow echo of real fear.

Thursday, February 16, 2012

|Review| My Soul to Take by Rachel Vincent

Title: My Soul to Take
Author: Rachel Vincent
Series: Soul Screamers #1
Published: August 1st 2009 by Harlequin
Rating: ♥♥♥♥
Goodreads summary:

She doesn't see dead people. 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.

Racquel's thoughts:
My Soul to Take is a book that falls under the category of "WHY DID I NOT READ THIS BOOK ALREADY?!" Well if you know me, you already understand that contemporary and romance are my loves while my relationship with paranormal is a mediocre one but hello Soul Screamers series, this looks to be a start to a beautiful friendship! I absolutely loved how this book wasted no time with nonsense. From the beginning we got the important details and it jumped right into action, that's how the entire book is actually, there are no fillers. Everything is important which makes it a fast paced book that you will finish quickly.

I loved Kaylee, she was relatable girl plus she was a real teen girl!! I could go to school and randomly point at some girl and there's a 50-50 chance that that girl goes through similar things as Kaylee (not the paranormal things, mind you. If somebody could relate to that then we got a problem!). Her best friend relationship with Emma wasn't an annoying one (thank god) and there was no back stabbing involved for once.

Same thing with Nash, he could be a real guy if you push the paranormal things to a side, he had his friends, his past girlfriends, his teammates and his family. I liked how he was involved with sports at school but wasn't an asshole even if there was a present stereotype in the book that the majority of the dancers and jocks are jerks. That annoyed me to no end but I guess since Nash wasn't a jerk, that somewhat made up for it.

I loved the family dynamics in this book! Family plays a big part in every persons life so to see it present here made me really happy. Really my favorite parts were with Kaylee's uncle, dad or Nash's mom. Also, being moi, I have to mention the romance which I will say was lovely! Nash and Kaylee are a perfect duo, I loved seeing them help each other but I also liked how they knew where they stood. When something was too great for them they didn't try to act as superman and fight it, they got their families to help which is a foreign thing in YA books.

The only thing that really didn't sit well with me besides the stereotypes is the reaction characters had upon learning about this whole paranormal world. I wanted more "THAT'S IMPOSSIBLE!" but it didn't annoy me to extremes because I could understand Kaylee's quick acceptance since she's been somewhat dealing with the screaming for a long while now. But in the end, the great characters and fantastic writing made this a super enjoyable read and I just cannot wait to start book two like NOW!

Rating: 4 hearts~ a great paranormal series that makes me hate myself for not reading it sooner!

First:

"Come on!" Emma whispered from my right, her words floating from her mouth in a thin white cloud.

Favorite:

...he sounded eager to slay the dragon Skepticism, And I was ready to ride into battle with him...

Teaser:

"Does she come with a mute button?"

Check out the Soul Screamers challenge:

Soul Screamer Challenge

20 members If you are participating in the Soul Screamer Challenge and interested in discussing the books along...

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Saturday, January 14, 2012

Soul Screamers Reading Challenge

Sign up post!

The Challenge:

To READ (or re-read) and REVIEW (or post about) all five full-length books in the Soul Screamers series by Rachel Vincent between January 15 and June 14, 2012.

The Books:

My Soul to Take from January 15 to February 14, 2012

My Soul to Save from February 15 to March 14, 2012

My Soul to Keep from March 15 to April 14, 2012

My Soul to Steal from April 15 to May14, 2012

If I Die from May 15 to June 14, 2012