Mini Reviews: Dark Metropolis by Jaclyn Dolamore and On the Fence by Kasie West

From Goodreads: Sixteen-year-old Thea Holder's mother is cursed with a spell that's driving her mad, and whenever they touch, Thea is chilled by the magic, too. With no one else to contribute, Thea must make a living for both of them in a sinister city, where danger lurks and greed rules. Thea spends her nights waitressing at the decadent Telephone Club attending to the glitzy clientele. But when her best friend, Nan, vanishes, Thea is compelled to find her. She meets Freddy, a young, magnetic patron at the club, and he agrees to help her uncover the city's secrets-even while he hides secrets of his own. Together, they find a whole new side of the city. Unrest is brewing behind closed doors as whispers of a gruesome magic spread. And if they're not careful, the heartless masterminds behind the growing disappearances will be after them, too. 

My Rating: 2 hearts 

Thoughts on the Novel: Although I haven’t read any of Cassandra Clare’s novels, the fact that Jaclyn Dolamore’s Dark Metropolis was compared to her books meant that I had pretty high expectations for it. For a multitude of reasons however, I ended up being disappointed by Dark Metropolis. Firstly, while reading the book, it was hard for me to get into a rhythm because it kept switching perspectives between different characters, all of whom I found rather dull. On top of that, Dark Metropolis then featured two bland romances, – one heterosexual, one homosexual, – both of which were insta-loves. Finally, I found the worldbuilding to be pretty vague as many things were either explained only briefly or alluded to.

Dark Metropolis was released by Disney-Hyperion in June 2014. 

In exchange for an honest review, this book was received from the publisher (Disney Book Group) for free via NetGalley. 

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From Goodreads: She's a tomboy. He's the boy next door … Charlie Reynolds can outrun, outscore, and outwit every boy she knows. But when it comes to being a girl, Charlie doesn't know the first thing about anything. So when she starts working at a chichi boutique to pay off a speeding ticket, she finds herself in a strange new world. To cope with the stress of her new reality, Charlie takes to spending nights chatting with her neighbor Braden through the fence between their yards. As she grows to depend on their nightly Fence Chats, she realizes she's got a bigger problem than speeding tickets - she's falling for Braden. She knows what it means to go for the win, but if spilling her secret means losing him for good, the stakes just got too high. 

My Rating: 3 hearts 

Thoughts on the Novel: Although a cute read, I think I was expecting Kasie West's On the Fence to be a bit more emotionally involving. For example, even though the way that Charlie's mom dies is a mystery, I didn't find this aspect of the book to be particularly intriguing. The romance also wasn’t quite as adorable as I hoped because I found Charlie’s realization that she loved Braden to be very sudden and unexpected. The focus on family, however, was what I found appealing about On the Fence.

On The Fence was released on July 1, 2014 by HarperTeen.  

In exchange for an honest review, this book was received from the publisher (HarperCollins) for free via Edelweiss.