Noteworthy Passages: Firespell

Firespell by Chloe Neill
Publisher: Signet
Pub. Date: January 5th, 2010
Pages: 246
Age Level: 14+
Series: Dark Elite #1

Synopsis from Goodreads
As the new girl at the elite St. Sophia’s boarding school, Lily Parker thinks her classmates are the most monstrous things she’ll have to face…

When Lily’s guardians decided to send her away to a fancy boarding school in Chicago, she was shocked. So was St. Sophia’s. Lily’s ultra-rich brat pack classmates think Lily should be the punchline to every joke, and on top of that, she’s hearing strange noises and seeing bizarre things in the shadows of the creepy building.

The only thing keeping her sane is her roommate, Scout, but even Scout’s a little weird—she keeps disappearing late at night and won’t tell Lily where she’s been. But when a prank leaves Lily trapped in the catacombs beneath the school, Lily finds Scout running from a real monster.

Scout’s a member of a splinter group of rebel teens with unique magical talents, who’ve sworn to protect the city against demons, vampires, and Reapers, magic users who’ve been corrupted by their power. And when Lily finds herself in the line of a firespell, Scout tells her the truth about her secret life, even though Lily has no powers of her own—at least none that she’s discovered yet…

Noteworthy Passages

Lily & Scout; pg. 60
Exactly what had been behind that door? I decided I couldn't hold in the question any longer. "Angry drug dealer?" I asked her. "Mental institution escapee? Robot overlord?"
"I'm not aware if robots have taken us over yet." Her tone was dry.
"Flesh-eating zombie monster?"
"Zombies are a myth."
"So you say," I muttered.

Lily; pg. 101
Scout and I looked at each other for a few seconds, and in the time that elapsed during that glance, something happened--I realized I'd been given an opportunity to become part of a new kind of family; an opportunity to trust someone, to take a chance on someone. My parents may have been four thousand miles away, but I'd gained a new best friend. And that was something. That was the kind of thing you held on to.

Lily & Scout; pg. 159
"And speaking of saving the world," I said, "did you have a call after we got back last night? Or did you just sleep late?"
"I sleep with earplugs," she said, half-answering the question. "The radio alarm came on, but it wasn't loud enough, so I dreamed about REO Speedwagon and Phil Collins for forty-five minutes. Suffice it to say, I can feel coming in the air tonight."

Lily & M.K.; pg. 201-202
"You can't--," she began, but I held a finger to her lips.
"I wasn't done," I informed her. "Before I was interupted, I was making a point: Don't mess with the weirdos, unless you want to lie awake at night, wondering if one of those weirdos is going to sneak a black widow into your bed. Understood?"
She made a huffy sound of disbelief, but wouldn't meet my eyes.
I'd actually scared the bully.
"And M.K.," I said, stepping away and heading for the hallway door, "sleep well."
She didn't look like she would.

~~~~~~~~

There were more noteworthy passages in this book but I didn't want to spoil the fun by posting all of them here. lol. So I figured I'd give ya just enough to wet your appetite. :P If you would like to read my review of Firespell simply click HERE.








PLEASE NOTE: This is a feature hosted here at my blog in which I present you with selected passages or quotes that I deem Noteworthy from a book I've just reviewed. My hopes are of course, that these passages will make you want to pick the book up and read it. This feature was started and created by me in January in hopes of making my blog more unique. That being said, I would like to kindly request that you do not use this feature as it was intended to be for my blog only and is not a meme. If you see some one else using it, please know it is without my permission. Thank you.

In My Mailbox (41)

In My Mailbox
IMM is a weekly meme hosted and created by Kristie at The Story Siren and was inspired by Alea at Pop Culture Junkie.

For Review from Harper
~Death Echo by Elizabeth Lowell
~Seth Baumgartner's Love Manifesto by Eric Luper

Won from Holly Cupala
~Signed! Dirty Little Secrets by C. J. Omololu and bookmark

Won from Book Crazy
~Voices of Dragons by Carrie Vaughn
~The Line by Teri Hall
~Cracked Up to Be by Courtney Summers
~Break by Hannah Moskowitz (Just finished reading. Review coming soon!)

All in all, I think I did pretty good this week. I'm really excited to get started reading some of these books. Hope you all got some wonderful books as well and are having a great weekend. :D

Review: Firespell

Firespell by Chloe Neill
Publisher: Signet
Pub. Date: January 5th, 2010
Pages: 246
Age Level: 14+
Series: Dark Elite #1

Synopsis from Goodreads
As the new girl at the elite St. Sophia’s boarding school, Lily Parker thinks her classmates are the most monstrous things she’ll have to face…

When Lily’s guardians decided to send her away to a fancy boarding school in Chicago, she was shocked. So was St. Sophia’s. Lily’s ultra-rich brat pack classmates think Lily should be the punchline to every joke, and on top of that, she’s hearing strange noises and seeing bizarre things in the shadows of the creepy building.

The only thing keeping her sane is her roommate, Scout, but even Scout’s a little weird—she keeps disappearing late at night and won’t tell Lily where she’s been. But when a prank leaves Lily trapped in the catacombs beneath the school, Lily finds Scout running from a real monster.

Scout’s a member of a splinter group of rebel teens with unique magical talents, who’ve sworn to protect the city against demons, vampires, and Reapers, magic users who’ve been corrupted by their power. And when Lily finds herself in the line of a firespell, Scout tells her the truth about her secret life, even though Lily has no powers of her own—at least none that she’s discovered yet…

Review
With a wide array of charismatic characters and an enticing plot that kept me turning the pages, Firespell is a great start to what I believe is going to be an even greater series.

My favorite aspect of this book would have to be the characters. I thought Lily was a strong, witty, and mature protagonist. I found she was an easy character to like, atleast the majority of the time; there were one or two times I wanted to smack her upside the head but I also feel these things made her more realistic. As for Scout, well I'm going to have to say I actually liked her even more than Lily. Scout is like my ideal best friend; she's sassy, fun, slightly odd, and...well...she basically kicks ass. As for the supporting characters - the Brat Pack, the Adepts, etc - I felt they were all great characters who really helped add to the story. I have to admit, I was a bit surprised by Foley, the headmistress; she didn't turn out to be quite the person I was expecting her to be, personality wise. Then there is Sebastian; he's barely in this book but I find myself very intrigued by him. I'm very curious to see how his character plays out in the next book.

The very beginning of Firespell was a bit slow at first but aside from that, I actually thought this book was very well paced. It wasn't always jam-packed with action but there was always something going on to hold my attention and pull me further into the story. I found it to be a very compelling, even quick, read. There were various twists, some of which I saw coming and others that I didn't. I loved the Gothic boarding school setting - one of the reasons I actually wanted to read this book - and there was just the right amount of paranormal-ness to satisfy me without it consuming the whole story.

The actual writing style wasn't really anything that jumped out at me as being distinguished but it was likable enough and had a good flow and consistency. The ending wasn't exactly a big shocker but I feel it is well suited to draw Firespell to a close and leave me in eager anticipation for the next book.

As with any first book in a series, you got to lay the ground work and background information has to be given; this sometimes creates a bit of drag in parts of the book if not written properly. That said, I think Neill did a lovely job of grasping my attention with Firespell and holding it until the last page. I really enjoyed this book and can't wait for the release of Hexbound, which I suspect will be even better. If Firespell sounds like something you'd like, then I'd definitely say go for it.

Grade
Characters: B+
Writing: C+
Plot: B-
Ending: B
1st in Series: B
Enjoyment/Likability: B
Recommendable: B

Overall: B

Cover: A-

Noteworthy Passages: The Miles Between

The Miles Between by Mary E. Pearson
Publisher: Henry Holt
Pub. Date: September 1st, 2009
Pages: 288
Age Level: 14+

Synopsis from GoodReads
Destiny Faraday makes a point of keeping her distance from her classmates at Hedgebrook Academy. Her number-one rule: Don’t get attached. But one day, unexpectedly finding a car at their disposal, Destiny and three of her classmates embark on an unauthorized road trip.

They’re searching for one fair day—a day where the good guy wins and everything adds up to something just and right. Their destination: Langdon, a town that Destiny’s unsuspecting companions hope will hold simply a day of fun. But, as Destiny says, “Things are not always what they seem.” Only she knows that Langdon holds far more than that—a deep secret she has never shared with anyone.

The Miles Between explores the wonder and magic of a very real world where chance, mystery, and secrets abound.

Noteworthy Passages

Destiny; pg. 4
Today is October 19, the exact same date I was sent away when I was seven. I pay attention to dates, numbers, and circumstances. Obsessively, some say. I prefer to think of it as careful observation, finding the pattern to coincidence. Can there really be such a thing as a pattern to coincidence? It would seem to defy the very definition. But many things are not what they seem to be.

Destiny & Aiden; pg. 67
As soon as we burst through the door, Aiden's tight lipsdisappear and he jumps into the air hooting. "I peed next to the president of the United States! Side by side! He asked me a question!"

Destiny; pg. 98
As we approach the outskirts of Langdon, the scattering of houses and clusters of shops hugging the road get closer together. My pulse thumps in my temples. Do I recognize anything? A shop? A house I may have visited so long ago? Colors. A tangled patchwork of tinted memories that have percolated for so many years within me surfaces. But I'm not sure if the memories have blended together to become something entirely new. Are they colors that were never really there? Brick red, smoky blue, and silvery gray. So much gray. My hazy memories of Langdon.

Destiny; pg. 149
We sit on the upper rail, each of us holding a post with one hand and our feet braced against the lower rail, facing out to the lake. The breeze blowing across the lake is gentle and slow, and yet it weaves through the branches overhead to make the softest of music, like a hundred fingers plucking the stringed bows of the tree.

Destiny; pg. 226-227
There is nothing mysterious or magical about the truth. It is simply there, cold and hard and large and unforgiving.

~~~~~~~~~

As always, I hope you enjoyed reading my Noteworthy Passages post. If you'd like to read my review of The Miles Between, you can HERE. :D









PLEASE NOTE: This is a feature hosted here at my blog in which I present you with selected passages or quotes that I deem Noteworthy from a book I've just reviewed. My hopes are of course, that these passages will make you want to pick the book up and read it. This feature was started and created by me in January in hopes of making my blog more unique. That being said, I would like to kindly request that you do not use this feature as it was intended to be for my blog only and is not a meme. If you see some one else using it, please know it is without my permission. Thank you.