Just to warn you, since there's so much I'm including in this post. My reviews are going to be shorter than normal and I may put full ones up later this week if time provides.
As a whole, these books stole my attention and kept me on the edge of my seat. I really loved how Kristen Day took them to a darker side in Awaken and that was the moment, I was truly hooked and officially became a fangirl.
**As a Cover Junkie, the first two books are my favorite covers. I don't know what happened with Chosen's cover (my favorite book by the way) but compared to Forsaken and Awaken's covers, it fell short in my opinion. The dresses this girl is wearing on both Forsaken and Awaken are amazing and I want them. So if you ever find them *pointed stare* you be sure to come tell me where.
** This series made me very happy and dancey! I loved every page of he way (ha ha like my play of "step of the way" cliche) You will most likely do the same thing if you read them. That's my warning**
My Review
4.5 Stars
From the beginning, Kristen Day created a story that sucked me in. Hannah, renamed Anastasia, was orphaned and ended up with parents that weren't the best. At 17, she finally finds her home at the House of Lorelei. There were a ton of revelations revealed throughout the story that kept me on the edge of my seat, encouraging me to turn the page. The whole story and series concept is something new to me and Kristen Day did a phenomenal job capturing Anastasia on paper. I could imagine drinking a cup of coffee with her. I've never read a book about sea Gods and Goddesses, so this was a very interesting read. I loved how she spun the world in and made it all so real. Luckily for me I have Awaken to read or else I'd be left waiting with an empty ache in my system demanding this book.
My Review
5 Stars
Everything that I loved about Forsaken was brought back into Awaken and taken to whole different level of amazing. Like I mentioned earlier, Awaken takes Anastasia down a darker road and finding her way back seems nearly impossible! Her situation will draw you in and trap you, so I would recommend you start this AFTER you've completed any to-do lists you may have. Kristen Day has a beautiful writing style that seems to effortlessly keep you intrigued and engaged the whole way through. Finn definitely helps though. Their dynamic relationship makes butterflies appear in my stomach and my voice rise and octave. He earned his stripes, hands down and belongs on my book boyfriend list. Girls, you will swoon over him. Plus he adds a certain flare to the novels that a true male lead should. Kristen Day certainly kept me awake and determined to finish this book in one shot.
My Review
4.5 Stars
First, I want to mention how much I loved *swoon* reading a couple chapters from Finn's point of view. Can we say heart stopping? I love how Kristen Day didn't over write their love story and beat it to death throughout the entire series. Instead it builds gradually with each new story and she drops in powerful one liners like "Essence becomes useless without love. Love turns the
strongest of men into warriors. When a man has someone to fight for, he's
capable of moving mountains." See why I'm in love. The news that there will be two more books in this series has me jumping for joy (only you can't see that) and dancing. I wasn't quite ready to give up Anastasia and her story towards the end of Chosen and I'm delighted that I don't have too. Seriously this is one of the best series I've read. Kristen Day could write about sock puppets and I'd probably love it. Luckily for me it's about Gods and Goddesses which I always love. I would recommend this series to my friends (and you) in a heartbeat. So don't miss out on all the awesomeness and start reading today. Oh and I didn't love the cover, that's why I gave this book 4.5.
I'd like to take a moment and thank Kristen Day for letting me read these books and be apart of the Chosen tour (which Rachel at YANovel Readers organized). You mastered emotional cliff hangers and caused quite a few heart palpitations and near hyperventilating over here at my house. I thank you, I applaud you. You tore my heart in two and put it back together.
Author Kristen Day has stopped by today with a teaser for the Chosen blog tour!
Title: Chosen (Daughters of the Sea 3) Author: Kristen Day Publisher: Self Published Blurb:
The essence of who we are lies not in what we have, but in what we are willing to give up. Because in the end, Time and Tide wait for no one. After sacrificing all that she had, the evil princess of the Underworld is still successful in her bid to tear Finn from Stasia’s life. In the midst of her search to reclaim him, Stasia is summoned to the island nation of Cyprus to take part in an age-old ritual; unveiling the missing pieces of her ancestry and re-igniting an ancient war. As she struggles to both save Finn’s soul and free Carmen’s mind, Stasia’s bravery and determination will be pushed to its breaking point. A dark storm is forming on the horizon, and the forces who are vying to destroy her may be much closer than she thinks. Destiny weaves a sticky web of evil, betrayal, and revenge that can only be undone by the purity of love and the soul’s unyielding will to survive. In the last installment of the Daughters of the Sea trilogy, the past will collide with the present as Stasia’s future hangs in the balance. The prophecy that paved the way for her new life may indeed be the very thing that strips her of the ones she loves the most.
Excerpt
“I’m not playing your bullshit games, Nadia,” I growled.
“Games?” She snorted, cracking a dry smile and coming to a stop in front of me. Her features hardened and her golden eyes flashed, “This is no game, Love. But believe me - I’ll be enjoying every minute.” She noticed the small puddle of blood collecting below my right knee and smirked. “Why Finn, I don’t believe I’ve ever seen you look so dreadful. It’s a shame your essence and abilities have no effect down here. That looks horrific.”
“You’re playing with fire, Nadia,” I accused her in a low voice. She should know the consequences of her actions.
“I happen to like fire. It’s powerful and tantalizing. Just like me.” She turned on her heel, kicked off her shoes and made her way to the trunk. She visibly shivered in her thin tank top and jeans. With a snap of her fingers, the room warmed to a comfortable temperature. “I don’t know how you stand it down here! It’s absolutely frigid!” She chuckled to herself when I cursed her through gritted teeth. She whistled happily as she opened the trunk and began rifling through it; searching for something in particular.
“Now where did I put it…Aha! Found it!” she squealed with delight. Then she snapped her head around and grinned at me like she was two personalities away from a straight jacket and a padded room. “Enjoying the view?”
“Don’t flatter yourself.”
“Oh come on Finn,” she purred. “You know you want this.” She spun around in a circle and raised a golden, sly eyebrow at me.
“But unfortunately for you, I don’t screw pieces of shit.”
“I’m crushed.” She looked me up and down, tapped her chin, and smiled, “Not yet.” With a flick of her finger the white vines pinned me against the wall; slicing new wounds on my arms and legs. “I’ll save that for later. Right now, we have other things to take care of. And I must say, I’m so glad you came to your senses and chose me. I was beginning to lose hope,” she joked. She twitched over to where I was shackled to the wall and let out what sounded like something close to a cackle.
“Yea, I’ve really been looking forward to having my soul wrenched out of my body and starving to death in this god forsaken hole in the ground,” I spit at her with venom.
“I might not be as transparent as that little tramp of yours, Stasia, but-“
“Leave her out of this! You don’t even deserve to speak her name,” I growled. The familiar rush of power and adrenaline that usually accompanied my anger didn’t come, and I began to realize the gravity of the situation I was in. Not that I was going to let Princess Psycho know that.
“Oh, please…she’s nothing but an Achilles heel.” She collapsed into a fit of giggles, “Get it - cause her brother was Achilles..?” I ignored her failed attempt at irony.
“She possesses every quality required of a leader in our world and more. Qualities you have never, and will never, possess - purity, strength, grace and most importantly, humility.”
“Humility, weakness - same thing.” She dismissed my words with a flip of her hand.
“The prophecy speaks for itself. Even you can’t argue with that,” I retorted. “She is my destiny. And I, hers.”
“All I hear is blah, blah, blah-I want to have sex with her-blah, blah, blah. Lust turns the strongest of men into invalids and I simply couldn’t let that happen. Your essence is far too important for what is ahead of me.”
“Essence becomes useless without love. Love turns the strongest of men into warriors. When a man has someone to fight for, he’s capable of moving mountains.” Her grin dropped and she stomped over to me with vapor rolling off of her skin. She stood in front of me, silent for a moment, then grinned wickedly and unrolled the leather case she had been clutching in her hand. She slid something silver out and held it up so I could see it. A syringe.
“I think I’m in the mood to play nurse.” Her eyes sparkled as she moved towards me. I tried to fight the vines, but the excruciating pain that shot through me sucked what little energy I did have completely dry. “Now don’t tire yourself out, Love. I need to get a good strong sample.” At her words, another pair of vines shot out from the stone wall and slithered around my left arm; securing it tightly. My trace had become dull in the last few days under whatever vacuum she had placed on my prison. She slowly ran a finger down my cheek and smiled sympathetically.
“Your sacrifices will not be in vain. I can promise you that.” She dropped her hand and her golden eyes hardened, “But the slow, painful deterioration of your soul will be. I’ve decided you owe me that. It’s the least you can do.”
“So, are you looking forward to spending eternity on Tartarus, or will an exception be made to send you straight to the pits of fire?” I asked in the same tone I’d use to ask about the weather.
“You really think my own mother would sentence me to an eternity of hell?” she chuckled. “Please tell me you aren’t that simpleminded.”
“You know as well as I do that a certain level of evil is not tolerated. Your mother’s decision will be overridden by the-“
“Shut up!” she yelled and slapped me across the face. It stung, but I hid it beneath a purposefully smug smile -- which only made her anger boil over. “Enough of this! You are no more than a means to an end. You will never be Prime. You will never see your tramp or your family again. You are nothing.” With that, she uncapped the syringe and drove it into my forearm; right through the eye of the skull. My thoughts turned to Stasia as my world filled with pain and faded into darkness.
**If you don't want to read it now, I may have to suggest you see a doctor...
Some fun thoughts from Kristen Day which will make you love her even more. Seriously, her answers are ah-ma-zing! Love her train of thought.
Paranormal is my normal: I may or may not be completely in love with YA Paranormal Romance Series. Actually, it’s more of an obsession. I devour them like strawberry shortcake cheesecake (best dessert EVER) and have no control over the need to read them over and over. I’ve read The Hush, Hush series four times so far, but who’s counting? I fell in love with writing since succeeded in writing that pesky letter G in cursive (or Z for that matter). Then I fell in love with it all over again when I learned how to diagram sentences. It became more of a work of art to me. It just…made sense. So anyway, after reading every YA paranormal romance novel on the planet, I found myself craving certain aspects to the story that I wasn’t getting in the books I was reading. I wanted a stronger heroine, less drama with more action, and a different kind of ‘darkness’. That’s when I decided to create my own imaginary world and characters; intertwining all of the things I couldn’t seem to find in other books.Life’s a Beach: Choosing the beach as my location for the series was a balancing act. I despise mermaids, but love the idea of having a connection with the sea. This is where my favorite classics came into play: The Odyssey and The Iliad. I know what you’re saying - seriously? That awful monstrosity of a story we were forced to read in high school? Yes, that’s the one. I didn’t have the normal gag reflex most of my friends had to reading them though; I fell in love. The challenges, the beasts, the sirens, the twists and turns and the intertwining love story; all sucked me in and had a profound effect on me. Couple that with a love of the beach and it suddenly occurred to me what I wanted to write about. My family lives on Oak Island, with Bald Head Island a mere ferry ride away. Bald Head is truly magical and enchanting (if you have never been, you should go!) and was the perfect setting!
Reality meet Fiction: I desperately wanted to read about a heroine that had a real reason for being strong. Last I checked being gifted with magical powers doesn’t make you an instant leader/hero/bad*ss. Experience is the only thing that can give you that kind of mental strength. So, that’s what inspired me to incorporate a little bit of tough reality into my fiction. Thank you so much for hosting the Chosen Blog Tour! I hope everyone has enjoyed reading the Daughters of the Sea series as much as I enjoyed writing it!
About Kristen Day
Kristen Day is a southern belle at heart with a crazy streak that desperately tries to escape at every opportunity. She loves all things nostalgic, rustic, and quirky. She’s been told she sees the world through rose-colored glasses, but she prefers to think of them as kaleidoscope glasses - swirling and morphing reality into something she can digest (who hasn't pretended those pasty lima beans were really kiwi strawberry jelly beans?).
She is the author of the DAUGHTERS OF THE SEA trilogy, which includes FORSAKEN, AWAKEN (Oct 2012), and CHOSEN (Winter 2012). She loves all books, but really enjoys writing young adult, paranormal romances. She’s loved to write for as long as she can remember. Her first published work was her poem RED in second grade (you guessed it - it was a poem about the color red - life altering, right?) that won her 5 gold stars and a spot in her elementary school's poetry book. That's when her addiction to the written word officially began. She was the only kid in fifth grade that actually enjoyed diagramming sentences. Go ahead and laugh - its okay.
When she’s not writing she’s making jewelry, painting, feeding her addiction to sweet tea, watching the Discovery Channel, or going on random adventures in the mountains of North Carolina with her amazing husband. She was born in Boone, NC and graduated from Appalachian State University with a degree in Marketing in 2001.Author’s Links
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