Title: Seeker
Author: Arwen Elys Dayton
Series: Seeker, book #1
Publisher: Delacorte BFYR
Publication Date: February 10, 2015
Source: from publisher via Netgalley
Purchase: Amazon |
Barnes & Noble
For readers of A Game of Thrones and The Hunger Games comes an epic new series.
The night Quin Kincaid takes her Oath, she will become what she has trained to be her entire life. She will become a Seeker. This is her legacy, and it is an honor. As a Seeker, Quin will fight beside her two closest companions, Shinobu and John, to protect the weak and the wronged. Together they will stand for light in a shadowy world. And she'll be with the boy she loves--who's also her best friend.
But the night Quin takes her Oath, everything changes. Being a Seeker is not what she thought. Her family is not what she thought. Even the boy she loves is not who she thought.
And now it's too late to walk away.
Gah, can we stop with the comparisons already? I really hate it when summaries include these because it really tends to muck up the way a reader goes into a story, as well as what they take away from it. To me, this book was like no other I've read. It's told in third person omniscient from four different perspectives, and it's incredibly fast-paced, which leaves some of the novel feeling as if it's lacking a coherent connection to previous events in the story.
But, it all rights itself in the end and the story becomes quite cohesive, meaning everything comes around full circle and you're left with a mind-blowing, WTF conclusion. Or, at least, I was.
I've seen a lot of DNF and not-so-pleasant reviews of
Seeker, and I can see where some readers would have trouble with this novel. Myself, I couldn't
stop reading it. Every time I tried to put the book down, something
else would happen and I'd have to see how that aspect would play out. The pacing
is a bit disjointed, especially when the reader is taken from the present and then sent back to the past in an interlude that lasts several chapters and several perspectives. And then plunged head-first into the story a solid year-and-a-half later. It's intense, that's for sure. But it makes for one crazy story that kept me captivated to the very last page.
The characters make this story what it is; they're all so intriguing with all their questionable and underlying motives. Some of the characters I thought I would love in the beginning of the book became characters that I could barely tolerate in the end, while others who were barely a blip on the map at the start became favorites and I couldn't get enough of their stories. I loved the reversal of fortune that occurs within the pages of this book and how each character reacted to such a fate.
I expected a shifty turn in the romance, based on the summary of the novel, but I honestly had no idea what to expect. And I don't want to ruin it for anyone else. But it was pretty unexpected, considering the circumstances...though I was REALLY hoping the author would take the romance in a certain direction. And I'm pretty pleased with where it left off.
The setting became a character itself at the hands of the author. Or maybe I should say settings, since half of the story occurs in Scotland, while the other half takes place in Hong Kong. These locations were beautifully described, and although I've always had a soft spot for Scotland, with its castles and all of that green, green land, I actually preferred the story once it landed in Hong Kong. If I thought the first part of the book was intense, I was woefully unprepared for what was to transpire in the latter sections of the story.
I really don't know how to describe this novel except to call it
intense over and over again. It's the kind of story that you have to be willing to give a chance, knowing that you're going to be confused for a majority of the book but that all will be revealed in the end. Personally, I can't wait to see what's next for these characters in
Traveler!
About the author:
Arwen Elys Dayton is hard at work on the SEEKER series, a grand YA story for Random House.
Arwen began her career as a teenage staff writer at a foundation that produced Peabody Award-winning educational shows for PBS. Soon afterward, she began writing screenplays and novels, including Sovereign’s Hold and Resurrection, the #1 Amazon bestseller in Sci-Fi in both the US and the UK.
She spends months doing research for her stories. Her explorations have taken her around the world to places like the Great Pyramid (which she explored by flashlight when researching Resurrection), Hong Kong and its many islands, and lots of ruined castles in Scotland. She enjoys creating complete worlds inhabited by characters who charm, frustrate or inspire.
Arwen lives with her husband and their three children on the West Coast of the United States. She is represented by Jodi Reamer at Writers House.
Find Arwen:
Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Instagram
Wednesday, February 11, 2015
Arwen Elys Dayton Tour Info for SEEKER
Seeker by Arwen Elys Dayton is the BIG title from Random House this spring. The book was optioned back in 2013 by Columbia Pictures. School Library Journal says "Fans of Veronica Roth’s Divergent, Marie Lu’s Legend, and Suzanne Collins’s The Hunger Games series: your next obsession has arrived." And Publisher Weekly continues the praise with "In this powerful beginning to a complex family saga...Dayton excels at creating memorable characters."
To top that all off, Seeker has an AMAZING COVER that totally caught my eye. AND as I was snooping around on Arwen's web page, I found this fun post she did about Scottish Castles included in the book! So who wouldn't want to check out this book?
Author: Arwen Elys Dayton
Series: Seeker, book #1
Publisher: Delacorte BFYR
Publication Date: February 10, 2015
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble
Arwen will be heading out on a 5 city tour two days after the release of Seeker. Be sure to support the event bookstore, call and pre-order your copy so it's waiting for you the night of the event! Cannot make an event? Contact one of these awesome indie booksellers and pre-order your signed copy!
1200 11TH ST
BELLINGHAM, WA 98225-7015
Confirmed
891 GRAND AVE
SAINT PAUL, MN 55105-3008
Confirmed
811 ELM ST
WINNETKA, IL 60093-2236
Confirmed
123 NEWARK AVE
JERSEY CITY, NJ 07302-5869
Confirmed
18 W 18TH ST
NEW YORK, NY 10011-4607
Confirmed
I LOVED this book! I wish the author was coming to Texas so I could tell her in person!! :(
(This post can originally be found at PageTurners Blog.)
Wednesday, January 28, 2015
Review: A Wicked Thing by Rhiannon Thomas
Author: Rhiannon Thomas
Series: A Wicked Thing, book #1
Publisher: HarperTeen
Publication Date: February 24, 2015
Source: from publisher via Edelweiss
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble
I'm on a roll with fairy tale retellings lately! This one isn't my favorite -- it's not even based on my favorite tale -- but I loved how this retelling turns the original on its head. The Disney version of Sleeping Beauty would have us believe that the happily ever after begins with the kiss, but A Wicked Thing explores how Aurora might feel at being awakened from a long slumber by a handsome prince and finding her entire world has changed.
I think the aspect I appreciated the most in this story was Aurora's characterization. She is not the damsel-in-distress we've been led to believe. Aurora wakes up from a hundred year slumber, unaware of how long she's been asleep or that she's essentially alone in the world. And yet, she refuses to accept that her only choice is to marry the handsome prince who awoke her, even if his family and their subjects all believe that her waking and subsequent marriage to the prince who made it happen is what will save the kingdom.
For a story that starts with a kiss, there was a distinct lack of actual romance in the book. There are actually three would-be suitors in the story, but of them all, I preferred the one that Aurora probably found the most vile. I just love a helpful rogue...sue me. Of the other two, one is the sweet but guileless Prince Rodric who awoke her from her slumber and the other is an acquaintance she made in secret outside of the castle. Two of the three presume to use Aurora for their own purposes, though there may be real feelings involved. It's hard to tell so early in the game. The other is simply a good friend and wishes to do whatever is necessary to save the kingdom from its current blight. I liked and despised one and all at least once at some point throughout the story.
When I started this novel, I'd seen nothing indicating that this would be a series. That always irks me a bit, to be reading and getting closer and closer to the end of the novel and still see no resolution in sight. But, with this novel, I didn't mind quite as much because of Aurora's considerable growth as a character over the course of the book. She wakes up, and instead of resigning herself to the role set before her, she questions the future of the kingdom at the hands of the current king. Aurora wants her kingdom to return to the magnificence she knew before the curse struck, and she knows that she must trust her heart in order to make it so. She is good at heart, but Aurora must make some hard decisions in order to ensure the safety of her kingdom in the future.
A Wicked Thing started off slow. Okay, painfully slow, with Aurora cowing to her kingdom's current rulers at first and walking around for the first third of the book in complete indecision. But I'm glad I forged through that because seeing Aurora break free of that damsel-in-distress façade was worth it. This story is not the uplifting, romantic story from your childhood. It's tragic and sad in equal parts, but Aurora's determination to set things right left me hopeful. And her story is only going to get more interesting now that she's taking charge of her future.
Tuesday, January 20, 2015
Review: Seeker by Arwen Elys Dayton
Author: Arwen Elys Dayton
Series: Seeker, book #1
Publisher: Delacorte BFYR
Publication Date: February 10, 2015
Source: from publisher via Netgalley
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble
Gah, can we stop with the comparisons already? I really hate it when summaries include these because it really tends to muck up the way a reader goes into a story, as well as what they take away from it. To me, this book was like no other I've read. It's told in third person omniscient from four different perspectives, and it's incredibly fast-paced, which leaves some of the novel feeling as if it's lacking a coherent connection to previous events in the story. But, it all rights itself in the end and the story becomes quite cohesive, meaning everything comes around full circle and you're left with a mind-blowing, WTF conclusion. Or, at least, I was.
I've seen a lot of DNF and not-so-pleasant reviews of Seeker, and I can see where some readers would have trouble with this novel. Myself, I couldn't stop reading it. Every time I tried to put the book down, something else would happen and I'd have to see how that aspect would play out. The pacing is a bit disjointed, especially when the reader is taken from the present and then sent back to the past in an interlude that lasts several chapters and several perspectives. And then plunged head-first into the story a solid year-and-a-half later. It's intense, that's for sure. But it makes for one crazy story that kept me captivated to the very last page.
The characters make this story what it is; they're all so intriguing with all their questionable and underlying motives. Some of the characters I thought I would love in the beginning of the book became characters that I could barely tolerate in the end, while others who were barely a blip on the map at the start became favorites and I couldn't get enough of their stories. I loved the reversal of fortune that occurs within the pages of this book and how each character reacted to such a fate.
I expected a shifty turn in the romance, based on the summary of the novel, but I honestly had no idea what to expect. And I don't want to ruin it for anyone else. But it was pretty unexpected, considering the circumstances...though I was REALLY hoping the author would take the romance in a certain direction. And I'm pretty pleased with where it left off.
The setting became a character itself at the hands of the author. Or maybe I should say settings, since half of the story occurs in Scotland, while the other half takes place in Hong Kong. These locations were beautifully described, and although I've always had a soft spot for Scotland, with its castles and all of that green, green land, I actually preferred the story once it landed in Hong Kong. If I thought the first part of the book was intense, I was woefully unprepared for what was to transpire in the latter sections of the story.
I really don't know how to describe this novel except to call it intense over and over again. It's the kind of story that you have to be willing to give a chance, knowing that you're going to be confused for a majority of the book but that all will be revealed in the end. Personally, I can't wait to see what's next for these characters in Traveler!
Tuesday, January 6, 2015
Top Ten Tuesday: Our Most Anticipated Debut Novels for 2015
Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by the awesome ladies at The Broke and the Bookish. Apparently, they are overly fond of list-making and love to share their bookish lists with the rest of us book nerds. =) We're game.
April's Picks:
Jen's Picks:
Which debuts are you looking forward to this year? Be sure to share a link to your TTT post so we can visit!
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starryeyedjen
- I work with numbers by day, and I'm a mommy and avid reader by night. I'm a self-proclaimed Spreadsheet Queen, and I'll read anything you put in front of me. I seriously love all the books! And I adore audiobooks, too!
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