Siege and Storm (Leigh Bardugo)

Title: Siege and Storm

Author: Leigh Bardugo

Publisher:  Henry Holt and Co (Macmillan)

Length: 448

Rating: 5/5

In this sequel to Shadow and Bone, Alina and Mal are being hunted by the Darkling, who has escaped the Shadow Fold with an even darker power. Alina joins forces with a notorious pirate and returns to face the Darkling and rally the Grisha against him. But as her power grows, she grows further away from Mal, and risks losing everything.

I read this book in one sitting. It was that good. I thought the first book gave me feels, but this one had even more! So many unexpected turns and trials and terrible brushes with the Darkling. And Sturmhond, the notorious pirate, is possible the most fabulous character ever. I was in love with him the second we met.

However, in case anyone is curious, I am Team Mal all the way and was heartbroken every time they grew further apart.

I loved that this book had a powerful, yet flawed female protagonist. Alina is not even close to perfect, but she still stands for what she believes in, and fights to save her country at great risk to herself.

If you haven’t started reading this series yet, DO IT. And if you’ve already read these, check out these great additional stories Leigh wrote:

http://www.tor.com/stories/2013/06/the-too-clever-fox

http://www.macteenbooks.com/Facebook/shadowandbone/tailor.html

City of Ember (Jeanne DuPrau)

Title: City of Ember

Author: Jeanne DuPrau

Publisher: Random House

Length: Audiobook, 6hrs 52min

Rating: 3/5

At age twelve, children in the City of Ember are given a job to contribute to the welfare of the city. Lina wants to be a messenger so she can travel to every part of the city. Doon wants a job underground, because that’s where the generator is, and he’s determined to find a way to fix it. In Ember, the darkness is only kept at bay by the generator, and lately, there have been many blackouts. Coupled with the dwindling lack of supplies, and Doon is sure the city is close to shutting down forever. When Lina finds a document that suggests there might be a way out of Ember, she teams up with Doon to find out if there is a way to escape the darkness and if so, if anything exists beyond the city of Ember.

Why is Ember the way it is? Lina and Doon know nothing but their city, where the only power is from a water-powered generator that produces electricity, but only to power lights plugged into the wall. There are no portable lights, and when the power goes out, all one can see is absolute darkness.

Doon and Lina are only twelve, but they take on the responsibility of saving the city when the adults can’t. While they grow a lot in this process, they also learn that they can’t do everything themselves, and that pride can be not only their downfall, but the downfall of the city as well. Will they figure out the puzzle and save their city?

I should include the disclaimer that I tend to like books I listen to on audiobook a little less than those I read because I’m impatient to find out what happens. That being said, I did enjoy the voices of the narrator, even though the slow pace and incredibly detailed descriptions frustrated me. This book centers around a word puzzle that Lina finds, and it’s hard as a reader to help Lina figure out the puzzle without being able to see it. But afterall, I suppose it is Lina and Doon’s puzzle to figure out, not mine, and the mystery was the best part of the book.