ARC Review: Arise by Tara Hudson

Publisher: HarperTeen

Publication Date: June 5th, 2012

Amelia—still caught between life and death—must fight for every moment of her relationship with the human boy Joshua. They can hardly even kiss without Amelia accidentally dematerializing. Looking for answers, they go to visit some of Joshua’s Seer relatives in New Orleans. But even in a city so famously steeped in the supernatural, Amelia ends up with more questions than answers…and becomes increasingly convinced that she and Joshua can never have a future together.Wandering through the French Quarter, Amelia meets other in-between ghosts, and begins to seriously consider joining them. And then she meets Gabrielle. Somehow, against impossible odds, Gaby has found a way to live a sort of half-life...a half-life for which Amelia would pay any price. Torn between two worlds, Amelia must choose carefully, before the evil spirits of the netherworld choose for her. 

(Courtesy of Goodreads)

Let's just start with the cover, because I always feel I should comment on that first, to get it out of the way. This cover is gorgeous and goes well with the cover of book number one, Hereafter. It's no secret that I think HarperTeen rules the publishing world when it comes to covers, and this is a prime example. Beautiful, eerie, and relevant to the story. Another win by the cover people at HarperTeen.

Now for what is between the pretty covers... I loved this book's predecessor, Hereafter (read my full review HERE). Arise was one of my most eagerly anticipated sequels of 2012, and I was beyond thrilled to get an advance copy of it (Thanks, HarperTeen!!). Hereafter ended with a lot of answers to the mysteries surrounding Amelia's life, death, and afterlife, but it also left me with a lot of questions... My biggest question was, "How do a ghost and a living human manage to have an intimate, fulfilling relationship without people thinking he is crazy?" Well, Arise answers that question and many more as the story within takes us from Oklahoma to the most haunted city in the United States, New Orleans...

I'm pretty certain I liked Arise even more than I liked Hereafter, and Hereafter was a pretty tough act to follow. I've always been a fan of ghost stories, and I've always been fascinated with the practices of Voodoo and the way religion is so deeply intertwined. Arise picks up right where Hereafter left off, and the story and the mysteries within intensify as Voodoo is brought into the mix. We meet some new characters and we get to know some of the characters from Hereafter a little better, for better of for worse. In fact, one of the things I liked about Arise was that you never REALLY knew who to trust... Were the good guys really good, and were the bad guys really bad? It all sorts out in the end, but you never know until then. All the same, I still liked all the characters, even the baddies usually had some quality that redeemed them in my eyes to some degree. What I liked best though, were the strong bonds of friendship that formed in this book and the romantic element. I'm usually not for the sappy romance in books, but it was well done here. No love triangle, just two people (even if one of them IS dead) who love each other intensely and at all costs. The love story element was beautiful.

Hereafter was a quick read for me because I didn't want to put it down. It was one of those books that kept me turning the pages because I had to have answers. Arise was no different. It was definitely a 24-hour read, and I have to say that I wasn't even a little bit pissed about the lack of sleep when I was finished! It was a spellbinding, intensely romantic, thrilling, and intricately woven tale of love, loss, family, and friendship.  I can't wait for the release of the third book, Elegy, which should release sometime next year. I can firmly state that, after reading two of her books, Tara Hudson has solidly earned my fandom.

My Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★++  

Grade Level Recommendation: There are a few intense make-out scenes and some talk of sex and intimacy, but nothing graphic. The violence is more of the paranormal type, and if I were to give any cautionary advice, it would be that some of the aspects of voodoo might scare some very sensitive kids. Otherwise, I would say this book is fine for 6th grade and up (ages 11+).

Don't forget to enter my GIVEAWAY for a SIGNED hardcover copy of Hourglass by Myra McEntire!  One of my favorite books of 2011! (Read my review HERE!)

CLICK HERE FOR DETAILS!

WWW (5) and Waiting on Wednesday (May 17th, 2011) Double Feature

W. W. W. Wednesday is hosted by Should Be Reading, a great YA blog that I subscribe to. Here's how it works... Each Wednesday I will answer the following questions:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you'll read next?


Okay, so this is a little on the late side. It's been a crazy busy week with end-of-school-year parties, team parties to plan for my girls' softball teams, the start of swim team and All-Stars, and Field Days. I had this half written, though, so I figured I would finish it and post it (even though it's now Saturday)... This was a good week. I didn't hate a single book. I actually quite liked most of them.... :)

What are you currently reading?

I'm still working on My Fair Godmother and Disney After Dark since those are my bedtime reads for my kids. They take a bit of time at two chapters per night, but I must say, I find myself reading ahead after my kids fall asleep, My Fair Godmother, in particular.

Impulse by Ellen Hopkins~ Perfect, the sequel to this comes out on September 13th. So far, I've loved everything she's written, and this is no exception.

Starcrossed by Josephine Angelini~ I was so excited to get a NetGalley of this, and so far it is really good. Releases May 31st.




What did you recently finish reading?

L.A. Candy by Lauren Conrad~ Not as bad as I thought it was going to be. Look for my review soon.

Trapped by Michael Northrop~ I thought this book was really good. Read my review HERE.

Shimmer by Alyson Noel~ Riley Bloom book #2. I like these books so much better than the Immortals books. Read my review of both Shimmer, and it's predecessor, Radiance, HERE.

Hereafter by Tara Hudson~ Wow. This book was great. So far, it's in my top 5 for 2011. Read my review HERE.




What do you think you'll read next?

The Poison Eaters by Holly Black~ This looks so good. I picked it up totally on impulse, and it's been nagging me to read it...

Abandon by Meg Cabot~ Do I even need to give a reason? Meg Cabot rules and this book looks AM-A-ZING! Oh. And the cover is great too.

Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins~ I've been wanting to read this forever and I've recently read such heavy books, that I thought some humor in order. :)

"Waiting On" Wednesday is another fun blog event. Hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine, this event gives us a chance to talk about the books we anxiously await the release of. Since there is ALWAYS a looooooong list of books I'm waiting on (I actually keep a spreadsheet), I figured this is one that I MUST do.

Again, late, for the above posted reasons, but I still wanted to get this out there...

The Space Between by Brenna Yovanoff

Everything is made of steel, even the flowers. How can you love anything in a place like this?

Daphne is the half-demon, half-fallen angel daughter of Lucifer and Lilith. Life for her is an endless expanse of time, until her brother Obie is kidnapped—and Daphne realizes she may be partially responsible. Determined to find him, Daphne travels from her home in Pandemonium to the vast streets of Earth, where everything is colder and more terrifying. With the help of the human boy she believes was the last person to see her brother alive, Daphne glimpses into his dreams, discovering clues to Obie’s whereabouts. As she delves deeper into her demonic powers, she must navigate the jealousies and alliances of the violent archangels who stand in her way. But she also discovers, unexpectedly, what it means to love and be human in a world where human is the hardest thing to be.

This second novel by rising star Brenna Yovanoff is a story of identity, discovery, and a troubled love between two people struggling to find their place both in our world and theirs.

(Courtesy of Goodreads)

I loved The Replacement. It was probably one of my favorite new releases of last year. That is enough for me to be waiting on Yovanoff's next book (which is not related to The Replacement). This looks really good. Definitely part of the underworld/half-demon trend, but I have a feeling this will be better than most of the others out there.

Publisher: Penguin/Razorbill

Publication Date: November 15th, 2011

My Expected Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Review: Hereafter by Tara Hudson

Publisher: HarperCollins/HarperTeen
Publication Date: June 7th, 2011

I was so excited to get a NetGalley of Hereafter. It's been on my radar for quite some time now, and it did not disappoint. In fact, it was even better than I expected. I think it may be tied with Nightshade as my favorite read by a debut author since I read The Forest of Hands and Teeth many, many books ago...

Can there truly be love after death?

Drifting in the dark waters of a mysterious river, the only thing Amelia knows for sure is that she's dead. With no recollection of her past life—or her actual death—she's trapped alone in a nightmarish existence. All of this changes when she tries to rescue a boy, Joshua, from drowning in her river. As a ghost, she can do nothing but will him to live. Yet in an unforgettable moment of connection, she helps him survive.

Amelia and Joshua grow ever closer as they begin to uncover the strange circumstances of her death and the secrets of the dark river that held her captive for so long. But even while they struggle to keep their bond hidden from the living world, a frightening spirit named Eli is doing everything in his power to destroy their newfound happiness and drag Amelia back into the ghost world . . . forever.

Thrilling and evocative, with moments of pure pleasure, Hereafter is a sensation you won't want to miss.

(Courtesy of Goodreads)

This book had me from the first page. Tara Hudson manages to draw you in right away and hold your attention to the point that not only can you not put the book down, but you continue to hash it out in your mind once the book ends.

As the synopsis suggests, this book is a paranormal romance, but it's much more than that. It's a ghost story, and most of all, a mystery. The protagonist knows nothing about her past. Not her last name, not what type of person she was, not her age, not how long she's been dead. She doesn't even know what the circumstances surrounding her death were. She is totally clueless. She wanders around, alone, trying to make sense of everything. She doesn't see any other ghosts and living people can't see her. All she knows is that her first name is Amelia and that she died from drowning. How does she know that she died from drowning? She has nightmares of the event often, where she is one place, and then suddenly falls asleep to wake up in the river reliving her death. It is one such nightmare that brings her into the life of Joshua, a living boy. She connects with him while saving his life in the same river she died in. After Joshua dies and is revived with her help, he is able to see , hear, talk to, even feel her; something that hasn't happened to her yet, and she's intrigued...and so the romance begins. Enter those who want to prevent this from happening: Eli, a sinister spirit who has his own designs on Amelia. Joshua's grandmother, who can also see Amelia, thinks she's and abomination, and wants to exorcise her from the living world. While battling against these threats, Joshua and Amelia embark on a quest to find out who she is, what she is all about, and why she drowned. This is where the story gets really interesting, and this is where I'll stop... Trust me, you don't want to know any more because you will want to read it yourself!

This book was fabulous! I enjoyed it from beginning to end, and although I had the same nagging question in my mind ("Just how are they going to make this relationship "real", and exactly how is the whole intimacy thing going to work out when she's a ghost and he's alive?"), I never once felt like this plot lacked plausibility. I am thoroughly entrenched in this story, and will be waiting on pins and needles for the 2nd book in the series (which is so far out that it doesn't have a name or a Goodreads synopsis, let alone a release date). If you like a good ghost story, this book is a MUST read!

My Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★+

Grade Level Recommendation: I would let my rising 5th grader read this without a second thought, and I would have a year or more ago. There is no sex or language. There is some teen drinking (there a couple of HS keg parties, both of which have disastrous consequences), benign romantic episodes like kissing, and there are some pretty detailed descriptions of scary events. Otherwise, it is as clean as a whistle. I would say ages 9+ (4th grade and up), as long as the kid doesn't scare easily.

WWW (4) and Waiting on Wednesday (May 11, 2011) Double Feature

W. W. W. Wednesday is hosted by Should Be Reading, a great YA blog that I subscribe to. Here's how it works... Each Wednesday I will answer the following questions:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you'll read next?

I've had houseguests for the past week, so I've been pretty busy...

What are you currently reading?

My Fair Godmother by Janette Rallison~ I'm still on this one, and probably will be for awhile, at two chapters each night.  It's still cute.  :)

Hereafter by Tara Hudson~ I am seriously loving this book!  I can't wait until my company leaves so I can have some time to finish.

Shimmer by Alyson Noel~ I loved the first Riley Bloom book, and this one is shaping up to be even better.

L.A. Candy by Lauren Conrad~ I'm reading this for a challenge, and it's honestly not as bad as I thought it would be...

What did you recently finish reading?

Nightshade by Andrea Creamer~ I had only gotten a few chapters into this when my husband borrowed my Kindle for a few days.  Once I got it back, I couldn't stop reading this.  Amazing!  Read my review HERE.

What do you think you'll read next?

With so many books going at the moment, I'm not sure I'll start anything new this week, but if I do...

Angelfire by Courtney Allison Moulton~ This looks good, and I've heard so many positive things about it.  It is due back soon, so i should probably get on it...

Starcrossed by Josephine Angelini~ I have been dying to read this one!

"Waiting On" Wednesday is another fun blog event. Hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine, this event gives us a chance to talk about the books we anxiously await the release of. Since there is ALWAYS a looooooong list of books I'm waiting on (I actually keep a spreadsheet), I figured this is one that I MUST do. 

So, without further ado, the book I am highlighting this week is....

The Power of Six by Pittacus Lore

I've seen him on the news. Followed the stories about what happened in Ohio. John Smith, out there, on the run. To the world, he's a mystery. But to me . . . he's one of us.
 
Nine of us came here, but sometimes I wonder if time has changed us—if we all still believe in our mission. How can I know? There are six of us left. We're hiding, blending in, avoiding contact with one another . . . but our Legacies are developing, and soon we'll be equipped to fight. Is John Number Four, and is his appearance the sign I've been waiting for? And what about Number Five and Six? Could one of them be the raven-haired girl with the stormy eyes from my dreams? The girl with powers that are beyond anything I could ever imagine? The girl who may be strong enough to bring the six of us together?
 
They caught Number One in Malaysia.
Number Two in England.
And Number Three in Kenya.
They tried to catch Number Four in Ohio—and failed.
 
I am Number Seven. One of six still alive.
 
And I'm ready to fight.

(Courtesy of Goodreads)

I really enjoyed I Am Number Four, and am really looking forward to book #2.  I have a feeling that this one will be even better than the first.

Publisher: HarperCollins

Publication Date: August 23rd, 2011

My Expected Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★