Review: Carnival of Souls by Melissa Marr

In a city of daimons, rigid class lines separate the powerful from the power-hungry. And at the heart of The City is the Carnival of Souls, where both murder and pleasure are offered up for sale. Once in a generation, the carnival hosts a deadly competition that allows every daimon a chance to join the ruling elite. Without the competition, Aya and Kaleb would both face bleak futures--if for different reasons. For each of them, fighting to the death is the only way to try to live.

All Mallory knows of The City is that her father--and every other witch there--fled it for a life in exile in the human world. Instead of a typical teenage life full of friends and maybe even a little romance, Mallory scans quiet streets for threats, hides herself away, and trains to be lethal. She knows it's only a matter of time until a daimon finds her and her father, so she readies herself for the inevitable. While Mallory possesses little knowledge of The City, every inhabitant of The City knows of her. There are plans for Mallory, and soon she, too, will be drawn into the decadence and danger that is the Carnival of Souls.

From Melissa Marr, bestselling author of the Wicked Lovely series and "Graveminder," comes a brand-new tale of lush secrets, dark love, and the struggle to forge one's own destiny.

Wow ~ "vlogging" is hard... LOL.. Probably because I'm not the most articulate person in the world, but I just had to give it a shot... I always have too many thoughts in my head at one time, which is why writing comes easier to me than speaking... my words get jumbled in my thought process.. but, see, I've got this sa-weet new computer, and I've gotta play with all the new gadgets ;) you know how it is...

This is a review of Melissa Marr's incredible Carnival of Souls. 

Summary (for those of you with less patience): FIVE STARS!!! Loved the characters, world building, and storyline. Breathtaking action, heartbreaking betrayals, dark secrets, and fights to the death.... This book will get your heart pounding in more ways than one..

Happy Reading Everyone :)

~ Keely ~

Tuesday Tickle

Tuesday Tickle is a meme inspired by Should Be Reading's Teaser Tuesday. It's basically the same concept, I just always tended to give more than two sentences plucked out of a random page, so I thought I'd just go with it and give a more in depth look at a book I'm reading or recently finished.

This week, I'm choosing Carnival of Souls by Melissa Marr. I purchased this as an audio book and finished listening in two days ~ couldn't press the stop button! It's an amazing tale of secrets, betrayal, and survival of the fittest. (Review to come soon!)

In a city of daimons, rigid class lines separate the powerful from the power-hungry. And at the heart of The City is the Carnival of Souls, where both murder and pleasure are offered up for sale. Once in a generation, the carnival hosts a deadly competition that allows every daimon a chance to join the ruling elite. Without the competition, Aya and Kaleb would both face bleak futures--if for different reasons. For each of them, fighting to the death is the only way to try to live.

All Mallory knows of The City is that her father--and every other witch there--fled it for a life in exile in the human world. Instead of a typical teenage life full of friends and maybe even a little romance, Mallory scans quiet streets for threats, hides herself away, and trains to be lethal. She knows it's only a matter of time until a daimon finds her and her father, so she readies herself for the inevitable. While Mallory possesses little knowledge of The City, every inhabitant of The City knows of her. There are plans for Mallory, and soon she, too, will be drawn into the decadence and danger that is the Carnival of Souls.

From Melissa Marr, bestselling author of the Wicked Lovely series and "Graveminder," comes a brand-new tale of lush secrets, dark love, and the struggle to forge one's own destiny.

The synopsis makes it seem that the story focuses on Mallory ~ and it does to a certain extent ~ but I felt there was  more spotlight on Kaleb and Aya... Aya in particular is one of my favorite characters.. complex and courageous, hiding a secret that would undoubtedly lead her to her demise.

Aya withdrew the knives and and slid them into the sheaths that hung from her belt. She was so far from class-appropriate behavior by now that one more stain wasn't worth the guilt that threatened. It was bad enough that she lived alone, that she wore her hair in a short, non-ornamented style more suitable for a soldier in Marchosias' army than an eligible ruling caste girl. Her behavior in the fights was an embarrassment to any ruling class family: noble women didn't engage in fights outside sanctioned clubs, and they certainly didn't kill for sport or gain.

I also came across an excerpt you might like, giving a bit of insight into the minds of Kaleb (a badass who's impossible not to love) and Aya (a kick-ass female who's unafraid to get her hands dirty), while also shedding some light on the type of world The City is.

Exclusive excerpt: 'Carnival of Souls' by Melissa Marr

Hooked yet? If not, check out the trailer.. C'mon... you didn't really think you'd be able to read one of my posts without coming across a trailer, did you? ;) The best part about it ~ Five Finger Death Punch.. :)

Hope I've convinced you of your need to read this book.... ALSO, check out the webpage
Enter the Carnival Totally fun interactive page ~ gives more insight to what's held between the pages of the book, including quotes, maps, and character introductions....  You should definitely check it out! And if that's not enough, Amazon has a sneak peek you can download  to your kindle ~ free! ~ so get clickin'! Sneak Peek Happy Reading Everyone :)

~ Keely ~

Waiting on Wednesday: Gravity by Melissa West

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Breaking the Spine in which we book lovers share what soon-to-be-released novels we are anxiously awaiting to find a permanent home on our overflowing shelves.

My pick this week:

Gravity by Melissa West
Release Date: October 16, 2012

In the future, only one rule will matter:

Don’t. Ever. Peek.

Seventeen-year-old Ari Alexander just broke that rule and saw the last person she expected hovering above her bed — arrogant Jackson Locke, the most popular boy in her school. She expects instant execution or some kind of freak alien punishment, but instead, Jackson issues a challenge: help him, or everyone on Earth will die.

Ari knows she should report him, but everything about Jackson makes her question what she’s been taught about his kind. And against her instincts, she’s falling for him. But Ari isn’t just any girl, and Jackson wants more than her attention. She’s a military legacy who’s been trained by her father and exposed to war strategies and societal information no one can know — especially an alien spy, like Jackson. Giving Jackson the information he needs will betray her father and her country, but keeping silent will start a war.

I love that Ari is a "military legacy," meaning she must be a badass heroine who doesn't constantly need saving. And alien spy? C'mon... what more could you ask for?

What are you waiting for?

Happy Reading Everyone :)

~ Keely ~