Manga Review: A Devil and Her Love Song, Volume 1, by Miyoshi Tomori

Rating (Out of 5): ~3

Publisher: VIZ Media (Shojo Beat)

Volumes: 13

Goodreads Synopsis:

Meet Maria Kawai--she's gorgeous and whip-smart, a girl who seems to have it all. But when she unleashes her sharp tongue, it's no wonder some consider her to be the very devil Maria's difficult ways even get her kicked out of an elite school, but this particular fall may actually turn out to be her saving grace...
Maria's frank nature gains her more enemies at her new school, but her angelic singing voice inadvertently catches the attention of Yusuke Kanda and Shin Meguro. Can these boys mend her hardened heart, or will they just end up getting scorched?

Review:

I went into this volume not really knowing what to expect, since I had barely even read the back. I kind of took it at face value, thought the artwork didn't look bad, and the title made me think that there would be some supernatural elements to it. But I don't think there are?

Pretty much, it's about Maria Kawai, who got kicked out of her last school and is starting at a new one not as prestigious as her first. She's seen as a snob, which doesn't help with the fact that she can see through people to their actual personality and motive, and is completely honest about it.

She meets Yusuke Kanda, who actually doesn't like being around people but acts like the happy-go-lucky guy, and Shin Meguro, who gets red easily and is nice but also blunt and not very welcoming around most people.

Throughout most of it, Maria is trying to fit in, not very hard or successfully, by taking Yusuke's advice and trying to put a 'lovely spin' on what she has to say. She gets in trouble with the teachers and the other students don't like her much at all. But she grows closer to Yusuke and Shin throughout the volume, somewhat unaware of the relationship forming.

 I did like Maria, with how blunt she is. She sees people as they are, which is better than the masks that they wear, but people are terrible in how they react to her. I hope that it's unrealistic, and I believe it is over-exaggerated in how they react; I think the people at her school are just... dumb, in how they reacted to her.

For quite a bit of the volume, I was unsure who the narrator was. I thought it would be Maria, which is why I was confused at first. For some of it, I think it's in Maria's head (and you can usually tell when that is), but I thought some of the time it might have been in an overhead view, but now I think it might be, and I'm pretty sure that in one chapter specifically it is, in Shin's head. Perhaps it's sometimes Maria, sometimes Shin? Hopefully that will clear up in the next volume.

I'm interested to see her relationship with Yusuke and Shin develop. When in Shin's head, it mentioned how he has feelings for her, so I'm assuming that those are going to start showing more soon. And I like Yusuke, so I'm looking forward to finding out more about him. About all of them, really, since we didn't get a whole lot of any of them in this volume.

One of the first things that catches their attention is that they find her singing. I guess she has a really amazing voice, and she sings Amazing Grace to herself a couple of times throughout the volume, which I thought was interesting, although makes sense as well. So there's the song in the title, and she's referenced as a devil within the book, but is there more to that? It seems like there could be a bit of a darker edge to the series, which makes me think that there could still be a bit of a supernatural part to the story, but I don't really think there will be. Is it all contemporary? That's not really a bad thing, and usually I would almost prefer it, but I was kind of looking forward to supernatural things...

Still, I'm liking it so far, and believe (hope) that it will only get better. I'm especially looking forward to the relationships growing, and seeing where they are going. I want to see the plot move forward, and I'm just looking forward to the next book in general.

Oh, also, the artwork. It's not amazing or anything, but it's definitely not bad. The people's faces look a little... plump, but not in a bad way. And Maria is supposedly gorgeous, while I didn't particularly think she was. I think I'm just getting used to it, though, which I don't mind.

Manga Review: Kimi ni Todoke: From Me to You, Volume 12, by Karuho Shiina

Rating (Out of 5): ~4/4.5

Publisher: VIZ Media (Shojo Beat)

Volumes: 15+

Goodreads Synopsis:

Sawako "Sadako" Kuronuma is the perfect heroine...for a horror movie. With her jet-black hair, sinister smile and silent demeanour, she's always had trouble fitting in. But her whole life changes when she befriends the most popular boy in class, Shota Kazehaya.

Sawako and Kazehaya are now dating! Sawako's worried that she hasn't told her parents about it, though. Will her father freak ou that his little girl has a boyfriend?

Review:

Why are Kazehaya and Sawako so cute together? They are just so adorable, it shouldn't be possible. But it is and I love it.

Okay, so after thinking about this one for a while, I'm not as excited about it as I originally was, but just looking through it makes me excited all over again. It's mostly Kazehaya and Sawako, especially together, that makes me feel this way, I'm sure. I just can't stop myself from fangirling over this series every time.

Most of the volume is about Kazehaya and Sawako getting used to being around each other romantically, and it's super cute. Sawako is still unsure of her relationship with most people, and feels that it would be bothersome if she were to call or text Kazehaya at anytime, but Ayane and Chizu convince her otherwise. And then Kazehaya walks Sawako home after school, and there's a cute incident where they hold hands.

Kazehaya was not at his cutest in this volume, which was a bit disappointing (because I love him), but he's still sweet and awkward around her. Sawako, though, was so sweet and like her normal awkward, but she got a bit brave a few times around Kazehaya, which was nice to see. It's good that she's finally gaining some confidence.

On their walk, they run into Sawako's mom. Sawako hasn't told her parents about having a boyfriend, but her mom is excited and really nice to Kazehaya. She invited Kazehaya over for dinner, where Sawako's dad is very tense. He freaks out over meeting and finding out about Kazehaya, and tries to find something bad about him, and is disappointed when he doesn't.

Overall it was really nice, and I'm excited to watch their relationship develop even more. They took several steps forward in this volume, and there was a mention of Sawako meeting Kazehaya's parents, so hopefully we'll get to see that.

In the last chapter, we get to see how Ayane and Chizu first met. They've only known each other about a year, and they didn't really get along at first. Ayane thought Chizu was stupid, while Chizu thought Ayane was a snob; they had a bit of a competitive feeling for each other at first, which is funny. We also get to see Chizu hanging out with Ryu and Kazehaya, which was pretty awesome; and what they thought of Sawako when they first saw her at school.

I did rather enjoy this one, like I usually do, but it wasn't as amazing as I'd hoped. Even saying that, though, I am really excited to read the next one. I just love this series, and I tend to go through the volumes as soon as I get them, and they end way too fast.

Teaser Tuesday!(1): Charmed Thirds (Jessica Darling, #3), by Megan McCafferty

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by MizB over at Should Be Reading! All you have to do to participate is:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

 --------------------------

So I've decided to give Teaser Tuesday a shot, go ahead and tell me what you think below (in the doobly-do) if you'd like. :)
I'm kind of in-between books at the moment, mostly because I found an arc of a book, but it's not out for several months, and so I kind of want to wait, but I also really want to read it right this second. And even though this is a bit of an older book, I think I'm going to focus on this one for the moment. Anyway, here it is:  
Charmed Thirds (Jessica Darling, #3) by Megan McCafferty:  
“Tonight was our last night together before I take the two-and-a-half-hour trip to New York for my internship at True. Marcus and I thought about getting out and doing something that would inspire highly intellectual banter, but instead we stayed in and did some bang-a-langin'.” (Paperback, pg. 42)  
“He rubbed his temples. 'Stop pretending this has nothing to do with me.'
Total body clench. 'What do you mean?'” (Paperback, pg. 42)

Review: How to Say Goodbye in Robot by Natalie Standiford

Rating (Out of 5): ~3.5

Publisher: Scholastic

Spoilers?: No.

Goodreads Synopsis:

From bestselling author Natalie Standiford, an amazing, touching story of two friends navigating the dark waters of their senior year.

New to town, Beatrice is expecting her new best friend to be one of the girls she meets on the first day. But instead, the alphabet conspires to seat her next to Jonah, aka Ghost Boy, a quiet loner who hasn't made a new friend since third grade. Something about him, though, gets to Bea, and soon they form an unexpected friendship. It's not romance, exactly - but it's definitely love. Still, Bea can't quite dispel Jonah's gloom and doom - and as she finds out his family history, she understands why. Can Bea help Jonah? Or is he destined to vanish?

Review:

I feel a little unsure about this book. It's just one of those books that makes me unsure. It gives me the feeling that I don't know if I enjoyed it or not, if it was good or not. I just don't really know about it.

It's about Bea, a girl who moves to this town, and Jonah, the loner boy who already lives there. Bea doesn't really fit in very well, she's a little odd, but she starts hanging out with some of the girls at the school. Despite that, though, she's drawn to Jonah. So she starts hanging out with him, and talking with him through a radio show. And they make a connection, that's not quite romantic, but I guess something more? But then they find something out about Jonah's family, the reason why he prefers to stay by himself, and the part that's been kept even from him.

I got a feel for who both of the characters are, but I don't think I really related to either one very well. But I don't think that was the writing, and more on my part. They were good characters, they were just a little displaced, maybe from me in particular. But I liked their relationship, I did like them, and I kind of got their relationship. I've read a couple of books where the characters have a relationship beyond friendship and romance, but for some reason I haven't really been able to connect with any of them. I get those kind of relationships, I do, so I don't know why I have such a hard time with the books when they do them.

The part about Jonah's home life, with his family and the secrets, was really good. It was done really well. But, saying that, I don't think I really like the ending. I understand why he did it, even if I don't really understand how he did, or why he did it to Bea in particular. It wasn't a very happy ending, even if it wasn't a depressing one. It's realistic, but a bit tragic, actually.

I did really enjoy the radio part of the book. I've read, and even seen, several things with radio in them, and I have enjoyed all of them. I love most things when it comes to radio, unless it's in real life. Because, for some reason, I kind of hate radio in real life. I can never find a good channel, not one that has very good music, and there are always way too many commercials. I haven't found a really good talk show, but I probably haven't looked hard enough. It's terribly upsetting to me.

There are lots of things that don't give me one set emotion. This was a good book, and yet the ending makes me not know if I really liked it. I liked the characters, but I didn't really connect with them. There are lots of things that go in to this book, and it all makes me not know what to tell you.
I think I'll just call it a good book, say that I will be reading her other books, and leave it at that.

Review: The Gathering (Darkness Rising, #1) by Kelley Armstrong

Rating (Out of 5): ~4/4.5

Publisher: HarperCollins (HarperTeen)

Spoilers?: No.

Goodreads Synopsis:

Sixteen-year-old Maya is just an ordinary teen in an ordinary town. Sure, she doesn't know much about her background - the only thing she really has to cling to is an odd paw-print birthmark on her hip - but she never really put much thought into who her parents were or how she ended up with her adopted parents in this tiny medical-research community on Vancouver Island.

Until now.

Strange things have been happening in this claustrophobic town - from the mountain lions that have been approaching Maya to her best friend's hidden talent for "feeling" out people and situations, to the sexy new bad boy who makes Maya feel . . . . different. Combine that with a few unexplained deaths and a mystery involving Maya's biological parents and it's easy to suspect that this town might have more than its share of skeletons in its closet.

Review:

This, like that last book, I have been meaning to review but just haven't gotten around to it yet. What better time than a month before the next book in the series, though, right?

I read Kelley Armstrong's first young adult series, and I've read a couple of her Women of the Otherworld series (but only the first two, because I don't want to skip around but am having a hard time getting into the ones not about Elena/the werewolves). I've really enjoyed what I've read so far, and it didn't bother me that she was starting a new series with new characters but like her first ya one. But for some reason, even though I knew better, I was a bit wary that it would be too similar to the first one.

I was pleasantly surprised to find that it was very different. In a very good way.

Maya, the main character, is not Chloe (from the Darkest Powers series). I really liked Chloe, but I was glad to see that they were very different. (It kind of amazes me how well Armstrong is at creating characters different from her other ones.) Very different things are happening to the characters in this series compared the the first, which is nice. This book has more mystery and intrigue. It's actually a bit more exciting, or thrilling; not that the other one wasn't. They're just so different.

Maya is straight-forward, feisty, bold. I liked her, as I did Daniel, her best friend (and felt bad for both of them because of Serena, and would have liked to get to know her). (Also, I'm hoping that's not going to be a triangle. It could go in a different direction, and I hope it does.) I did like Rafe, and there was a point where Maya thought, was sure even when she wasn't, that he'd done something. I didn't really believe that he had, but Maya's feelings on it were completely believable.

I did like all of the characters relationships with each other. They live in a very small, secluded town, so everyone knows each other. The teenagers have nice, or just interesting, relationships, as do the adults. I want to know what is going to happen to all of the kids, see where they go, what they are if they're something. And I really Maya's relationship with her parents. They're so close, honest with each other, and can just play around. It was nice to read about such a close, fun family.

I also like what Maya is, what's she's turning into, or whatever (but I won't spoil it, since it's kept so nicely hidden unless you've read it). That was interesting, and I'm looking forward to more of that in the next book. As I'm looking forward to finding out what's going to happen, plot-wise. In this book, a lot of things are kept secret from the residents, the kids especially, and Maya and her friends are just starting to find things out and investigate them. Some big things happen near the end of the book, and I'm excited to see where they're headed.

This book seemed to open things up for the next one. It was definitely a good start to the trilogy, and did make me want to read the next one. Made me excited, and interested, for it.

Review: Desires of the Dead (The Body Finder, #2) by Kimberly Derting

Rating (Out of 5): ~3.5

Publisher: HarperCollins (HarperTeen)

Spoilers?: No.

Goodreads Synopsis:

Violet can sense the echoes of those who've been murdered—and the matching imprint that clings to their killers. Only those closest to her know what she is capable of, but when she discovers the body of a young boy she also draws the attention of the FBI, threatening her entire way of life.

As Violet works to keep her morbid ability a secret, she unwittingly becomes the object of a dangerous obsession. Normally she'd turn to her best friend, Jay, except now that they are officially a couple, the rules of their relationship seem to have changed. And with Jay spending more and more time with his new friend Mike, Violet is left with too much time on her hands as she wonders where things went wrong. But when she fills the void by digging into Mike's tragic family history, she stumbles upon a dark truth that could put everyone in danger.

Review:

I read this a while ago, around the time that it came out. But I thought I'd go ahead and review it now, what with the third book coming out next month, since I'll probably be reviewing it.

In this one, Violet is now officially with Jay, and she's still keeping her ability a secret while using it at the same time. Jay starts hanging out with the new boy at school, though, Mike, making her feel a bit on her own. Then she discovers something morbid in Mike's family's past that isn't very good.

This book felt a bit mediocre compared to the first one, as I gave it a lower rating than the first one. I'm still enjoying Violet, and Jay, and VioletandJay. I still liked the insight to the Bad Guy's head. I didn't feel much of a connection with the new characters, though. And I don't think that the mystery was as good as the first, and it just generally wasn't as exciting (that doesn't mean that it was hard to read or anything, though, because it wasn't). Which is disappointing, since I really did enjoy the first one.

I'm just hoping that the next one is better, and much more exciting.

Manga Review: Arisa, Volume 6, by Natsumi Ando

Rating (Out of 5): ~3

Publisher: Kodansha Comics

Volumes: 9+

Synopsis:

[No synopsis this time, since I couldn't find one. I probably sum it up enough, though. Sorry, nonetheless.]

Review:

So this series is seeming to continue to drag on, and I'm hoping that it gets to wherever it's going, the climax or revealing the King or Arisa waking up, soon. Something to stop these constant, meaningless problems that keep coming up.

Almost all of this volumes focuses on the problems surrounding Shizuka. Tsubasa tries to make Shizuka happy and not focused on her revenge with Arisa. It doesn't really work, except that Tsubasa ends up getting hurt and Shizuka walks in order to get help. Although, I didn't really see the meaning in her walking? I guess it was supposed to be momentous and whatever, but I just found it dumb, when she could have, much easier, used her wheelchair instead. It kind of makes a difference, as Shizuka is going to give the phones back, but instead the King sends her a message and changes her mind. And then Shizuka messes up the house and attacks her guardian. It pretty much brings everything back to how it was in the volume before this.

Shizuka is psychotic again and wishes Arisa out of this world. Manabe takes her phone, and Shizuka then finds out that Arisa is actually in a coma. Manabe then 'officially' teams up with Tsubasa to find the King again, even though I don't think he really turned against her since a few volumes ago (two, maybe?). But then the King decides to grant someone else's wish, where the person with the cellphones gets taken out. Shizuka freaks out, Manabe takes them, in order to throw them away I think, but ends up getting hit by a car instead. Shizuka, who feels terrible and is emotionally unstable, decides to move away. Tsubasa is upset, but I am glad.

Before she leaves, Shizuka gives Tsubasa a URL, the supposed secret that she knows about Arisa, which leads her to a chat room. Her and Manabe hack into it, and discover some chats between Arisa and the King, and it reveals how it all started. It's been inactive for a while, but when Tsubasa sends a message, the King responds. Also, I'm pretty sure that it's revealed in this volume that the King is Kudo?

At the end of the volume, there's an extra chapter. It's about Arisa and Tsubasa and how they reacted to their parents splitting up. Tsubasa reacts badly, while Arisa accepts it, but they're both hurt. They have a fight, and then make up and decide to send letters to each other everyday.

I'm hoping that, in the next volume, some more big things are revealed and the plot move forward some more. A lot would be nice, but I don't really believe it's going to. That's pretty much all I'm hoping for, actually. The series is just alright at this point, and I want it to get better, to move along already.

Manga Review: Codename: Sailor V, Volume 1, by Naoko Takeuchi

Rating (Out of 5): ~3

Publisher: Kodansha Comics

Volumes: 3 (or maybe 2?)

Goodreads Synopsis:

Like Sailor Moon, Minako Aino is a normal 13-year-old schoolgirl until a fateful day when a white cat introduces himself to her and tells her she has the power to transform into the hero, Sailor V. Using a magic pen to transform, Sailor V fights the evil agents of the Dark Agency as she strives to protect the earth.

Codename: Sailor V, created by the author before she created the mega-popular Sailor Moon, has never before been available in the U.S.

Review:

I had rather low expectations for this. I watched the anime when it was on TV and I was really little, so I don't remember any of it, and I never read it. But then, not too long ago, I watched it online, and was very unimpressed. Really unimpressed. Which made me wary to read the manga. But I've heard a lot of good things about it, and I know that it was big when it first got translated and people were really excited about it coming back, me included. And I'd already decided that I was going to give both series a try, only I'm still not sure for how long.

Now, with those low expectations, I kind of enjoyed the manga. I wasn't all that impressed, and none of it was beyond what I was expecting, but it wasn't bad. Which is actually pretty good, in my book.

We meet Minako Aino, also known as Sailor V. She isn't very smart, is pushy, falls 'in love' with guys way too easily, plays video games a lot, and doesn't really believe the cat when he talks to her. Minako is alright as a character, but I'm not all that attached to her. I think it's mostly how easily she becomes obsessed with things that bothers me, as it does with anyone, in books and not. Also, she was fighting when told, except for at certain points when she would say that she'd never really chosen, or agreed, to fight for them. And she seems exactly like the people she's inadvertently saving, an annoying teenager that would fall for anything people are saying. It might be more cliché, though, if she were to be annoyed by it all originally, though. I don't know which I would prefer.

Pretty much all of the book consists of Minako fighting villains rather easily for a chapter each, most of which (if not all) are from the Dark Agency. One of the villains is a boy from her school, several others are pop-stars, one's a tourist hostess. Except for the last one, where she helps out a guy that she has a crush on and a gang he's involved in. But it kind of bothers me that she's winning so easily, and how she's doing it seems a little... dumb? But, you know, whatever. Don't want to complain or nitpick the logistics too much.

She's also, kind of, rivaling with the police, one of whom hates her and another that admires her. I didn't mind the police, found them (or, the one that admires her) a bit entertaining. We didn't get much of the personality of her friend, except that she's a lot like Minako, but we did get to see a bit from the geeky boy at her school, Amano, who was just alright. I did like Artemis, the cat, for however much we did get of him. Oh, and I noticed the small appearances that Usagi made, which I found interesting. Nice to know that she'd planned that (assuming that she did write Codename: Sailor V first, which I believe she did?).

I'll be reading the next one when I get it, which I'm not sure when that'll be. Soon, maybe? There are only two volumes of Codename, though, right? Since they're in an extended version, or whatever? I hope so, since I haven't heard anything about a third volume being released. And I want to start Sailor Moon, which I already have one volume of, but I want to finish Codename first. It's the prequel, and I like going in order, so it bothered me a bit that Kodansha was releasing them at the same time. But, that's alright.

I'll be reading it, nonetheless, and hope I don't have to skip ahead to Sailor Moon.

Manga Review: Arata: The Legend, Volume 6, by Yuu Watase

Rating (Out of 5): ~3.5 - 4

Publisher: VIZ Media (Shonen Sunday)

Volumes: 14+

Goodreads Synopsis:

Hinohara discovers to his horror that his tormentor Kadowaki has followed him to Arata's world. Recalling his suffering, Hinohara flies into a rage that triggers his transformation into a demonic entity!

Review:

This is just... a really good series at this point. I like the characters, the plot is moving along pretty good, I like the art, the humor. It's not... completely amazing or anything, but it's really good.

In this volume... Hinohara and Kadowaki fight some more, and something demonically bad happens to Hinohara, which Kotoha brings him back down from (and there's a moment here where Hinohara could have cussed. Did he cuss in the original and they censored it, or did he not? Because I just feel that it would have been more powerful a moment had he cursed). Then one of the six sho comes and makes Kadowaki stop. Kannagi takes Tsukuyo after Hinohara drops it, and they have a talk, because Hinohara is being weak and depressed and pulling into himself and giving up. It's very much the way he was in the human world, and how he's now reacting to Kadowaki's presence. It's very not-good, but the talk is a nice moment. It makes Hinohara stronger, as does his talk with Kotoha later, and it makes the relationship with Kannagi better. Kannagi also has to realize that he can't take Tsukuyo from him. A bit later, Kanate admits to what he's planning on doing, to the robbers that blamed him before he went to Gatoya; and how he then plans on parting ways with them. I... hope that doesn't happen. I really like Kanate, and I'm looking forward to seeing what happens with him, but I don't want him to go.

For the next chapter, but only one, it switches to Arata. Where one of the sho takes Kadowaki's place, who's name is Harunawa. He has marks all over his body (he looks really cool. I don't know why, but I really like how symbols look on people, like with Kanate as well,), and he fights some of the students (and kills them?) with his hayagami, which he also does to Arata. It's bad, and I'm hoping that it gets fixed quickly, in the next one. But then Oribe shows up, and says that Arata has her 'protection'? What does that mean? I want to know what that means. I mean, I have an idea what she meant, but why did she say it and why didn't he take her seriously? I'm thinking that she's from Arata's world, that maybe she's connected to the Princess or Kotoha? But maybe it's someone we haven't met yet? But hopefully it's someone? I want to know what she knows.

It goes back to Hinohara for the rest of the volume. Him and the gang are just arriving at the next town, which turns out to be all about tourists and making money. They have to pay in order to get in, and have a hard time getting in to meet the zokusho. They have to work in order to make money, but have to work a ton in order to make enough for anything. It's all completely ridiculous.

They meet Suehiro, who kind of helps them. Excluding Kotoha, they have to do some hard labor (where, weirdly enough, they look really good in their uniforms; Kannagi in particular), and then have to wash women's backs to make money (the second of which only Kanate and Hinohara do, but don't mind at all). It takes them a lot to make anything, though, but it's all, in a way, a hoax anyway. I won't spoil that for you, though. It all works out in it's own way, though, and the four set out to meet the sho Yorunami, who apparently holds a lot of power and influence over the others.

At the end, Hinohara gives Kotoha a pretty butterfly hair clip-thing, which is sweet. Then it shows Kadowaki in Harunawa's place, where he meets his new attendant, a clumsy girl who wants to know his favorite things, while he only cares about bring Hinohara down. Hopefully she will bring some sense to him.

A lot seems to happen in each volume, which is good. I'm hoping for more of Arata, particularly because of what happened in this volume, and I want to find out more about Oribe. I want some stuff to happen with Kanate, as well as between Hinohara and Kotoha. And I'm sure we'll meet Yorunami (who's name, for some reason, I am having the hardest time pronouncing,) in the next one, see what's up with him. I kind of am assuming that it'll get resolved rather quickly, like with the other sho's, but it's also quite likely that it will become a longer plot line.

It's just... a good, adventurous shonen manga, with some bits of shojo thrown in, so far. I'm liking it rather well.

Review: Trial by Fire (Raised by Wolves, #2) by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

Rating (Out of 5): ~4.5

Publisher: Random House (EgmontUSA)

Spoilers?: Some. And for the first book, Raised by Wolves.

Goodreads Synopsis:

 There can only be one alpha.

Bryn is finally settling into her position as alpha of the Cedar Ridge Pack—or at least, her own version of what it means to be alpha when you’re a human leading a band of werewolves. Then she finds a teenage boy bleeding on her front porch. Before collapsing, he tells her his name is Lucas, he’s a Were, and Bryn’s protection is his only hope.

But Lucas isn’t part of Bryn’s pack, and she has no right to claim another alpha’s Were.  With threats—old and new—looming, and danger closing in from all sides, Bryn will have to accept what her guardian Callum knew all along. To be alpha, she will have to give in to her own animal instincts and become less human. And, she’s going to have to do it alone.

Bryn faces both the costs, and the rewards, of love and loyalty, in this thrilling sequel to Raised by Wolves.

Review:

I've had this on my shelf for a while, and I don't know why I've been putting it off for so long. I really enjoyed the first one, and this one was really good as well.

In the last one, Bryn parted from Callum and became the alpha of her own pack, despite the fact that she's not a werewolf. This has bothered me, but because of how her pack is, with their ages and everything, it could be worse. And because of those things, I think it's believable, even if she does need to grow up some more. Bryn does need to grow, though, she's a bit too young to be controlling a pack of people. And learn how to fight some more, maybe?

In this one, she's still the alpha, still sixteen (I believe?) and going to school. She's with Chase, and there are some cute moments between them, but mostly ones where it's obvious how they feel about each other. They seem to still be working things out but I like them together. And then there's Devon, whom I love, but feel a bit bad for because of Bryn. He just needs to find himself a partner.

They get a new wolf in this book, one who's been abused by his alpha, and Devon's older brother, Shay. His name is Lucas, and I was afraid he was going to cause problems with Bryn and Chase, but instead he made a connection with a different wolf in her pack. Which was sweet.

Shay is, overall, a terrible person. He set them up. In several different ways. Least of all with a pack of, um, people with “knacks”. Like how Callum kind of has a web of the future in his head, and Bryn (along with most of her pack) have a stronger-than-usual instinct to survive. Only they're much more dangerous, and they have a deal with Shay. There's a lot more to them, and I wasn't really expecting it. But I'm glad it happened.

The ending, I think, really threw the rating up. Something happens with Lucas that I really wasn't expecting. (At one point, I did question what he said, but I pushed it aside like everyone else in the book did.) It was a good twist, in a not-really-good way. Especially because I liked him, felt bad for him, hoped for more from him, and also feel bad for the person he made a connection with. Also, Bryn goes to talk to Callum, and I really liked their conversation, and am looking forward to it happening. Hopefully in the next book?

One thing that bothered me from the last book, and made me a little wary, was that we were introduced to so many new people at the end, all of her pack members, and I had no idea who was who. Aside from a few people that I was confused about a bit longer than I'd have liked, everyone was explained pretty well. And I got more of all of their personalities in this book, which is good. With Lake, for instance, Bryn's one good, tough, girl friend. And Maddy. We learned some more about Ali, too, who is a pretty awesome parental unit. (I feel bad for Casey, Ali's ex-husband. I see both sides of what happened, and it's just sad.)

I'm excited to see what happens next. I'm really hoping for that thing between Bryn and Callum. I want to see more things between Chase and Bryn. I'm really not looking forward to what is hinted at with Devon and his brother. I'm hoping the next (and final?) one is good, as good as the first two and with a good ending.