From Goodreads: Aubree can’t think of a
better place to be than in perfectly boring Ohio, and she’s ready for a
relaxing summer. But when her older sister, Elizabeth, gets into real
trouble, Aubree is talked into taking over Elizabeth’s summer job,
leading a group of senior citizens on a bus tour through Europe. Aubree
doesn’t even make it to the first stop in Amsterdam before their
perfect plan unravels, leaving her with no phone, no carefully prepared
binder full of helpful facts, and an unexpected guest: the tour company
owner’s son, Sam. Considering she’s pretending to be Elizabeth, she
absolutely shouldn’t fall for him, but she can’t help it, especially
with the most romantic European cities as the backdrop for their love
story. But her relationship with Sam is threatening to ruin her
relationship with her sister, and she feels like she’s letting both of
them down. Aubree knows this trip may show her who she really is - she
just hopes she likes where she ends up.
My Rating: 2.5 hearts
Thoughts on the Novel: I haven’t had the opportunity to travel
much so I love it when books incorporate traveling abroad. It’s too bad
then that Jen Malone’s Wanderlost didn’t do such a great job of making me feel
as if I was in Europe since it involved more telling than showing. Also, the
chance for Aubree to go on a trip to Europe began with the laughable premise of her perfect
older sister being arrested for literally no reason. If you’re in the mood to
read something that will make you want to book a trip ASAP, I’d recommend Kirsten
Hubbard’s Wanderlove instead.
Wanderlost was released in May 2016 by HarperTeen.
In exchange for an honest review, this book was received from the publisher (Harpercollins) via Edelweiss.
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From Goodreads: When forced to choose
between safety with the dragon organization Talon and being hunted
forever as an outcast, Ember Hill chose to stand with Riley and his band
of rogue dragons rather than become an assassin for Talon. She’s lost
any contact with her twin brother, Dante, a Talon devotee, as well as
Garret, the former-enemy soldier who challenged her beliefs about her
human side. As Ember and Riley hide and regroup to fight another
day, Garret journeys alone to the United Kingdom, birthplace of the
ancient and secret Order of St. George, to spy on his former brothers
and uncover deadly and shocking secrets that will shake the foundations
of dragons and dragonslayers alike and place them all in imminent danger
as Talon’s new order rises.
My Rating: 3 hearts
Thoughts on the Novel: Considering that the series feature dragons, the
books in Julie Kagawa’s Talon series have yet to wow me – and Soldier was no
exception. Yes, it advanced the overarching plot and confirmed my suspicions about
Ember and Dante’s heritage, but it still focused a little too much on the
love triangle for my liking. As well, the reveal about Garret’s family felt
very rushed. With two more books planned for this series, I don’t think I’m
going to continue on with it.
Talon was released by Harlequin Teen in April 2016.
Talon was released by Harlequin Teen in April 2016.
*sobs* Just bought Wanderlost. And well, I wasn't interested in Kagawa's series because of the love triangle so no loss there. But Wanderlost!
ReplyDeleteLike you, I honestly didn't much care about Kagawa's Talon series. I thought it was a bit disappointing in many ways. I usually adore her so this was a major letdown.
ReplyDeleteBummer. I hate it when you are on a bad reading streak. I didn't have any desire to read either of these titles, so I'm not disappointed but I do hope your next reads are better.
ReplyDeleteI've read another not so great review for Wanderlost, which is a shame because I've read a few quotes of it, too, and they make me feel as if it would be an enjoyable read, if not for the unbelievable elements. I will look into Wanderlove, though- I have to say, I'm quite amused by the similar titles *laughs* I'm glad you were able to enjoy one of them, though.
ReplyDeleteI've never read the Talon, series, although it's possible I gave the first one a brief try at some point- whatever happened, I don't remember liking it enough to continue, although I did hear som pretty good reviews for the first and second books a couple of years ago. I can definitely agree that, if you're not invested in it (and sometimes, unfortunately, even if you are) love triangles can make an entire book fall flat, which is always such a disappointment. I feel like they take away from the plot, a lot of the time, and the whole focus is this love triangle and it can get a little much, especially if you're not entirely keen on it.
I hope your next two reads are far more enjoyable! xx
I've read so many mixed reviews of Talon I don't think I will ever check out that series xD But I'm totally agree with you about the Wanderlost. I don't travel either so I was pretty disappointed I didn't get to see more of the locations.
ReplyDeleteSorry you didn't really love this one. I was curious about Talon but never read that many good things about it, so I haven't read any of those! Sorry that the series isn't getting better for you.
ReplyDelete-Lauren