Mini Reviews: Riders by Veronica Rossi and Ruined by Amy Tintera

From Goodreads: Nothing but death can keep eighteen-year-old Gideon Blake from achieving his goal of becoming a U.S. Army Ranger. As it turns out, it does. While recovering from the accident that most definitely killed him, Gideon finds himself with strange new powers and a bizarre cuff he can’t remove. His death has brought to life his real destiny. He has become War, one of the legendary four horsemen of the apocalypse. Over the coming weeks, he and the other horsemen - Conquest, Famine, and Death - are brought together by a beautiful but frustratingly secretive girl to help save humanity from an ancient evil on the emergence. They fail. Now - bound, bloodied, and drugged - Gideon is interrogated by the authorities about his role in a battle that has become an international incident. If he stands any chance of saving his friends and the girl he’s fallen for - not to mention all of humankind - he needs to convince the skeptical government officials the world is in imminent danger. But will anyone believe him?

My Rating: 2.5 hearts 

Thoughts on the Novel: Having loved Veronica Rossi’s Under the Never Sky trilogy, I was really excited to read, Riders, the start of her newest series. Riders began promisingly with the main character, Gideon, being interrogated. Unfortunately, I wasn’t expecting that more than 80% of the book would consist of alternating chapters of Gideon’s interrogator asking him questions and Gideon telling his interrogator (and thereby, the reader) how he became War and learned to control his powers and horse. Another thing that I struggled with in Riders was the lack of information with regards to the worldbuilding. Only one character had the answers, and she revealed them slowly. Even that wasn’t enough, however, because many of my questions remain unanswered. Finally, knowing that Rossi is capable of writing a well-developed slow burning romance, I was disappointed to see that Gideon and Daryn developed feelings for each other almost instantly.

Riders was released in February 2016 by Tor Teen.
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From Goodreads: Emelina Flores has nothing. Her home in Ruina has been ravaged by war. She lacks the powers of her fellow Ruined. Worst of all, she witnessed her parents’ brutal murders and watched helplessly as her sister, Olivia, was kidnapped. But because Em has nothing, she has nothing to lose. Driven by a blind desire for revenge, Em sets off on a dangerous journey to the enemy kingdom of Lera. Somewhere within Lera’s borders, Em hopes to find Olivia. But in order to find her, Em must infiltrate the royal family. In a brilliant, elaborate plan of deception and murder, Em marries Prince Casimir, next in line to take Lera’s throne. If anyone in Lera discovers Em is not Casimir’s true betrothed, Em will be executed on the spot. But it’s the only way to salvage Em’s kingdom and what is left of her family. Em is determined to succeed, but the closer she gets to the prince, the more she questions her mission. Em’s rage-filled heart begins to soften. But with her life - and her family - on the line, love could be Em’s deadliest mistake. 

My Rating: 1.5 hearts

Thoughts on the Novel: Ruined by Amy Tintera was another book I was really looking forward to reading because I had enjoyed Tintera’s Reboot duology. With insta-love and extremely weak worldbuilding though, Ruined turned out to be an even bigger disappointment than Riders. Moreover, the characters in Ruined were underdeveloped, and the plot focused too much on the unrealistic romance. For example, it made me laugh that even after Cas’ father died due to Em, Cas' biggest concern was whether Em was only pretending to have feelings for him. Ultimately, while I have no idea why the Ruined have powers but their neighbours don’t or why everyone wants to exterminate the Ruined, I can tell you that I hate fantasy books where a girl out for revenge promptly falls in love and abandons her quest.

Ruined was released by HarperTeen on May 3, 2016.

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

Review: Rebel by Amy Tintera

From Goodreads: After coming back from death as Reboots and being trained by HARC as soldiers, Wren and Callum have finally escaped north, where they hope to find a life of freedom. But when they arrive at the Reboot Reservation, it isn't what they expected. Under the rule of a bloodthirsty leader, Micah, the Reboots are about to wage an all-out war on the humans. Although Wren's instincts are telling her to set off into the wilderness on their own and leave the battle far behind, Callum is unwilling to let his human family be murdered. When Micah commits the ultimate betrayal, the choice is made for them. But Micah has also made a fatal mistake ... he's underestimated Wren and Callum. 

My Rating: 4 stars 

Thoughts on the Novel: Picking up right after the events of Reboot, Amy Tintera’s Rebel remains packed with action, but was also a more contemplative read that enabled its characters to develop further.

Narrated by both Wren’s and Callum’s distinct voices, Rebel allows the reader to see just how different these two characters are in thought and action. For example, while Callum morally opposes killing, Wren has no qualms about doing so. At the same time, despite their contrasting views, they remained a solid couple. In fact, I think they became more similar to each other in Rebel because Callum comes to realize that perhaps violence may be a necessary means in some situations whereas Wren learns that there are limits to when she will kill. I also really liked the addition of Micah as a contrasting figure for Wren to determine the type of leader that she wants to be. 

My favourite characters in Rebel though turned out to be the snarky Addie and Riley. As Wren’s trainer at HARC, I expected Riley to be this emotionless soldier, but instead, he continually teased Wren like an older brother so that she would lighten up.  

An excellent sequel, Rebel was released by HarperTeen in May 2014. 

Comments About the Cover: I like how it matches with Reboot’s cover and continues to highlight the number 178. 

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

Review: Reboot by Amy Tintera

From Goodreads: Five years ago, Wren Connolly was shot three times in the chest. After 178 minutes she came back as a Reboot: stronger, faster, able to heal, and less emotional. The longer Reboots are dead, the less human they are when they return. Wren 178 is the deadliest Reboot in the Republic of Texas. Now seventeen years old, she serves as a soldier for HARC (Human Advancement and Repopulation Corporation). Wren’s favorite part of the job is training new Reboots, but her latest newbie is the worst she’s ever seen. As a 22, Callum Reyes is practically human. His reflexes are too slow, he’s always asking questions, and his ever-present smile is freaking her out. Yet there’s something about him she can’t ignore. When Callum refuses to follow an order, Wren is given one last chance to get him in line - or she’ll have to eliminate him. Wren has never disobeyed before and knows if she does, she’ll be eliminated, too. But she has also never felt as alive as she does around Callum.The perfect soldier is done taking orders.

My Rating: 3.5 hearts 

Thoughts on the Novel: Reboot by Amy Tintera was a fast-paced read with solid worldbuilding and a unique take on zombies. Unlike most zombie novels, I enjoyed Reboot since Tintera kept the violence but not the gore. The focus on romance, however, decreased my enjoyment of the novel somewhat.

Although the backstory of how the world in Reboot came about is kind of vague, Tintera’s world is believable as it presently is. With a virus decimating the population, it’s not hard to imagine a corporation arising to take advantage and the rich segregating themselves from the poor to avoid the spread of the virus.

One effect of this new virus that it can cause those who have/had it to reanimate after death with better physical abilities and a lack of emotion. The longer the time between death and revival, the corresponding increase in physical abilities and decrease in emotionality afterwards. This makes Reboots great soldiers, and so they’re taken by HARC (Human Advancement and Repopulation Corporation) to find criminals or those who are sick without the risk of infection.

Among Reboots, Wren is famous for rebooting after one hundred seventy-eight minutes. Feeling little emotion and having no qualms about killing people, she’s one of – if not the – best of HARC’s soldiers. Callum, on the other hand, reboots after twenty-two minutes and therefore almost resembles a human physically and emotionally. As a couple, I liked how the two of them balanced each other because Callum drew Wren out of her shell and made her question the state of things whereas Wren helped him become a stronger Reboot. But, I also thought the romance was very insta-love because as soon as this cute guy shows up, you start to see Wren becoming more emotional.

Reboot was released by HarperTeen on May 7, 2013.  

Comments About the Cover: I think it’s a simple and effective cover. I like how the top half is a bar code that emphasizes the numbers 1, 7 and 8. The number 178 is important of course, but bar codes also have a vital role in Reboot as they help to deindividuate a person.  

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