Non-YA review: Thistle & Thorne ('Til The World Ends), by Ann Aguirre

Release date: January 29, 2013
Publisher: Harlequin Luna
Format: Paperback, 368 pages

Goodreads description:
Thistle & Thorne by Ann Aguirre

After a catastrophic spill turns the country into a vast chemical wasteland, those who could afford it retreated to fortresses, self-contained communities run by powerful corporations. But for Mari Thistle, life on the outside-in the Red Zone-is a constant struggle. To protect her family, Mari teams up with the mysterious Thorne Goodman. Together, they'll face an evil plot in both the underworld of the Red Zone and the society inside the fortresses that could destroy those on the outside...for good. 


The following review is based on an eARC provided to me by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion.

Review:
Thistle & Thorne is the second story in the ‘Til The World Ends anthology. I am reviewing all three novellas separately and you can read my review of Julie Kagawa’s Dawn of Eden here.

I haven’t read anything by the author before, but I really enjoyed this short novella and I think I’ll look into her Razorland series after all, even though I wasn’t all that intrigued with it before! From what I’ve heard, Thistle & Thorne precedes the events in Enclave but features different characters. 
EDIT: Ann Aguirre contacted me and cleared up that the world in this story is not related to the Razorland series. I'm sorry about the confusion - I read in someone else's review that it was a prequel and simply believed that because I didn't know any better at the time.

Thistle & Thorne is set in a post-apocalyptic world where a sharp division is made between rich and poor. Those who are either rich enough to buy their way in (or born privileged) live in gated communities called fortresses. Their lives are full of luxury and they have enough food, clean air, actual trees etc. The less lucky ones have to try and survive in the Red Zone among crumbling buildings, backstabbing, and crime. It took me moment to get a hang of the world building but I soon found myself at home and figuring out the rules of the place. The world our heroine Mari lives in is harsh and gritty and I felt the way it was developed in the story very realistic.

Mari herself is a strong woman trying to survive in a world that is primarily shaped by powerful men. She has two younger siblings whom she is taking care of as best she can, working as a thief-for-hire to pay her way through life and to protect her brother and sister from the dangers of their surroundings. For them, she would do anything and despite her grim prospects she never gives up.

When a theft she was contracted to commit goes badly, Mari has to team up with Thorne Goodman to escape the wrath of Stavros, a crime boss threatening her block with annihilation. Together, they form a plot to overthrow Stavros’ reign. Thorne himself and his motivations are shady at first, but I really enjoyed seeing his character gain depth and grew to like him a lot. He and Mari made a killer team! Each of them could stand on their own but working together they were so much better. There was a bit of romance, too, but it never hijacked the story. There is also a cast of side-characters that rounded the story off well and showed more sides of the world Mari moves in. I loved her neighbor, Nat! That woman can make you soup and take care of your siblings just as well as craft you a knife.

The writing flowed very well and the pace built up more and more towards the resolution and final showdown. I would have read the whole story in one setting if real life had not interfered. Even though the setting is bleak, there were also descriptive passages I found very beautiful and that showed Mari’s ability to find hope among the darkness and imagine a different, better future. The ending wasn’t a huge surprise but it also wasn’t guaranteed from the beginning and there were a few twists.

Overall I really enjoyed Thistle & Thorne and actually wished it was a bit longer! I’d love to see what happens next, but as far as I know these exact characters don’t make an appearance in the Razorland series. I think there’s a loophole kept open for another story though. I can hope, can’t I? I’d be up for another team-up between Mari and Thorne anytime.
I’d recommend the story to anyone who enjoys post-apocalyptic books or stories about organized crime featuring a strong heroine and layered hero. Small warning: there is quite a bit of graphic violence, hence why the story falls into the Adult category.


Have you read Thistle & Thorne or any other of Ann Aguirre's books? How did you like it? Does the premise of the story appeal to you? Let me know in the comments :)

Non-YA Review: Dawn of Eden ('Til The World Ends), by Julie Kagawa

Release date: January 29, 2013
Publisher: Harlequin Luna
Format: Paperback, 368 pages

Goodreads description:
Dawn of Eden by Julie Kagawa

Before The Immortal Rules, there was the Red Lung, a relentless virus determined to take out all in its path. For Kylie, the miracle of her survival is also her burden-as a doctor at one of the clinics for the infected, she is forced to witness endless suffering. What's worse, strange things are happening to the remains of the dead, and by the time she befriends Ben Archer, she's beginning to wonder if a global pandemic is the least of her problems...


The following review is based on an eARC provided to me by the pubisher via NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion.


Review:
Since this is a novella collection rather than one of the short story anthologies I'm used to, I've decided to review each of the three novellas separately.

Julie Kagawa's Dawn of Eden was the novella I was most curious about, since I've never read anything by the other authors. I loved The Immortal Rules (you can read my review here), and this novella takes place a few decades earlier, when the Red Lung virus first broke out. You’ll pick up on a few more things if you’ve read the book (as well as a cameo appearance of one of my favorite characters), but it’s not necessary and anyone can follow along easily even if this is their first encounter with the series.
It's also Julie Kagawa's first ADULT story, and the shift in tone is noticeable. That being said, I think it's one of the best pieces of prose I've read by her so far.

The story follows Kylie, a doctor in training in D.C. fighting a losing battle against the virus. The country is in chaos, electricity, the internet, and any type of broadcast media have broken down. People are looting and killing each other in the streets, hospitals are overflowing with the dead. Kylie is constantly surrounded by death as she and her two interns do their best to ease the pain of the dying. And yet, despite all the bleakness and blood and death surrounding her, Kylie never gives up hope. She does not become immune to her patients' suffering. She believes that some of them might get better, and refuses to leave them and save herself. This inner strength and determination to fight to the last really made me admire her!

Enter Ben Archer and his injured friend. Kylie feels immediately attracted to Ben, but doesn't get distracted from their very desperate situation. When her dead patients eventually start to reawaken around her as rabid beasts, Ben has to own up to what is really happening and what role his friend had in it. He and Kylie set out on an adventurous journey through a country that seems deserted but could be crawling with enemies as soon as the sun goes down, following the hope that Ben's estranged family might still be alive and healthy on their middle-of-nowhere farm.

As I’ve already hinted, the bleak and desperate, apocalyptical atmosphere of the novel was palpable. There were also parts that made my heart hammer because I just knew something horrible was going to happen, but not exactly when or how! Definitely some major creep factor here! But apart from all that, I loved to see Kylie and Ben’s relationship develop. They are thrown together, but their relationship never felt forced and there were also no attempts to make them fall in love faster than was reasonable. The scenes between them were fairly explicit but well done – however, not YA. I was actually surprised by how explicit it was because I think of Julie Kagawa as a YA writer, but I didn’t mind ;)

Overall, I really enjoyed this glimpse at a time before society in a way reestablished itself in The Immortal Rules. The scenario and the way people reacted to the world going crazy around them felt very realistic to me, and I liked the pace – it wasn’t building towards one big peak but had several smaller ones with calmer moments in between. If you love dystopian/postapocalyptic settings with a little romance thrown into the mix, you should definitely give it a try! However, if you have a weak stomach and a problem with graphic violence, you should better sit this one out…

Have you read The Immortal Rules? Are you anxious to get a glimpse into the 'before' of the story? If you've already read it, what did you think of Julie Kagawa's first non-YA story? My curious mind wants to know :)

Stacking the Shelves: ebooks and Harlequin love

Stacking the Shelves is a weekly meme hosted by Tynga's Reviews for us to show off all the new books we got in the past week, no matter whether it's print or ebooks, gifted, bought, won, for review...

My apologies, I usually make this post on Saturday mornings but erm... wasn't possible this time. So now it's a Sunday post. I did get some more kindle books yesterday though, so it makes more sense anyway :)


For review from NetGalley (thank you, Harlequin!)

'Til the World Ends, by Julie Kagawa, Ann Aguirre, Karen Duvall
Indigo Awakening, by Jordan Dane

I was so happy when I got approved for these books! I'm especially curious for Julie Kagawa's adult Immortal Rules prequel. And Indigo Awakening... well, it's not a book I would have checked out because of the cover, but the description was amazing and then all those great reviews kept popping up. When I saw that it was still on NetGalley even after the release, I just couldn't resist any longer.


Ebook special deal
Indie author Rae Hachton has a special deal for her Pretty In Black series on her homepage at the moment. You can get all three books, even one that isn't officially out yet, for only 11.99$. I think they're usually around 6$ each. Click here to find out more. Deal ends tonight!


Pretty in Black, by Rae Hachton
Black Satin, by Rae Hachton
Raven in the Grave, by Rae Hachton


Free or cheap kindle ebooks


The Descent Series 1-3: Death's Hand, The Darkest Gate, Dark Union, by SM Reine
Lady of Devices, by Shelley Adina
Ten Tiny Breaths, by K.A. Tucker

I think the only one I paid for was Ten Tiny Breaths, but it was 99 cents. This might be different in your region or at the time you're viewing it though! I wanted Ten Tiny Breaths already before it came out, so this was a great opportunity. I bought the other ones pretty much on a whim, one because I want to read more steampunk and the other because it's been quite a while since I've read adult Urban Fantasy; both descriptions sounded interesting.

Since I just keep buying loads of ebooks but never get around to reading them, I'll have to make an intervention soon. I think once I've finished my current paperback I'll make myself read ebooks only. I'm behind on my NetGalley books anyway, and I have sooo many awesome sounding novels on my kindle app! I really need to get a real kindle.

What do you guys think of my haul? Have you read any of those books? And what did you get this week?