Review: Chaos by Sarah Fine + Vigilante & Stories from the Shadowlands

Today is the release day for the final book in Sarah Fine's Guards of the Shadowlands series, and if you know anything about me at all, it should be that I'm a total fangirl for these books...or any of Sarah's books if we're being honest. But Sanctum was the first book of hers that I ever explored and I was captivated from the very start.

These books follow Lela as she heads to the Afterlife in hopes of saving her friend Nadia, who's just committed suicide. Because of the way in which she died, Nadia is sent to a not-so-nice place in the Afterlife, and Lela can't stand to see her suffer. Lela sneaks into this place where Nadia is sent, and things progress from there. Lela makes a lot of sacrifices over the course of this series, but so do many of the people she comes into contact with.

I'm celebrating the release of Chaos today -- even though the fact that the series is ending is rather bittersweet -- and in doing so, I'm reviewing the last three pieces of this story: Vigilante, Chaos, and Stories from the Shadowlands. Since it's the end, I can't really reveal any details without risk of spoilers, so I'm just going to provide you with feelings-based reviews...they should more than get the point across. ;-) I've come to love all of these characters so much, and I'm sad to say goodbye to them, though I'm glad to have discovered them in the first place. And Sarah's created so much bonus content in addition to her full-length books...it's clear that she loves her characters every bit as much as I do.

Title: Vigilante
Author: Sarah Fine
Series: Guards of the Shadowlands, book #2.5
Publisher: Skyscape
Publication Date: July 25, 2014
Source: freebie for pre-ordering Chaos
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Ana has done her time as a Guard in the dark city and now that she’s finally been released into the Countryside, all she wants to do is find Takeshi, the love she lost to the Mazikin so many years ago. The only problem? He’s nowhere to be found. Now Ana faces a choice—remain alone in paradise or venture into the depths of the Wasteland in an attempt to rescue the man who still owns her heart.

I haven't read the other novella in this series entitled Captive, but I'm here to tell you that you absolutely should read Vigilante prior to starting Chaos. It's told from Ana's perspective and it gives you a ton of insight into her mindset going into Chaos. Otherwise, you might be a little...thrown by some of her actions at first, especially considering what you already know about her character from the previous books.

Also, you get to meet Takeshi. At least in Ana's flashbacks, anyway. And you'll get to see some seriously swoony parallels between their relationship and that of Malachi and Lela. Plus, you'll meet someone only vaguely referenced in a previous book, and things will all start making sense finally. Or at least as much sense as the will of the Judge can ever make to us mere mortals.

Vigilante is short and sweet and, in my opinion, totally necessary for full comprehension of these characters and what they mean to each other. It was free with your preorder of Chaos, but I'm not sure if that's a thing after the fact or how you can go about getting it now. :( I'll try to find out, if anyone's interested.

Title: Chaos
Author: Sarah Fine
Series: Guards of the Shadowlands, book #3
Publisher: Skyscape
Publication Date: October 7, 2014
Source: from publisher via Netgalley, PB won from Goodreads
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

With Juri in control and everything in absolute chaos, Lela plunges into the depths of hell to free Malachi from creatures that have waited decades to exact their revenge. But the Judge has her own way of doing things, and Lela must work with Ana, the new Captain, who has a very personal mission of her own. Together, they infiltrate the most horrifying realm either has yet encountered in the Shadowlands—the bitter landscape ruled by the Mazikin.

The stakes could not be higher, and Lela must accept the help—and love—of people she barely knows or trusts. As alliances and loyalties shift and she realizes the soul she came to save isn’t the only one in need of rescue, can Lela summon the strength to see the fight through to the very end?

I could not have asked for a better ending to one of my favorite series...seriously. Some things went the way I'd expected, but there were a lot of surprises, as well...and not all of them welcome. But I can honestly say that this final installment was everything I was hoping for, and then some.

Obviously, with the way Fractured ended, we knew Lela was going before the Judge again and that she wasn't going to let Malachi go without a fight. Lela's fierceness and her willingness to sacrifice herself for those she cares about are what I like best about her, and that hasn't changed. And now she's got Ana -- or rather, Ana's got her -- as they trek through the Mazakin realm to rescue both of their loves.

This novel is kind of split between the Mazakin city and the rescue attempt and then what happens after. This final book is fraught with emotional moments: tearful reunions -- and amorous ones! -- heartbreaking goodbyes, daring escapes and startling realizations. It wouldn't be any kind of finale, though, if it didn't make you feel the whole gamut of emotions. I've always felt that there was a good balance between the darkness and the light in this series, though, even if it didn't always feel like it at the time. And nowhere is this balance more evident than in the dark, chaotic atmosphere of the Shadowlands and the nearly palpable romantic tension between Malachi and Lela.

I love happy endings as much as the next girl, but I'm also okay with a realistic ending, one in which the hero doesn't get the girl or the world isn't saved. I honestly couldn't tell you which type of ending I prefer because it really depends on the story thus far. But I can tell you that it is much easier for me to let go, to say goodbye to characters if I see them on their merry way before doing so. With this series, though, I don't think either ending would have made saying goodbye any easier. (Make of that what you will.)

I will say that this conclusion to the Guards of the Shadowlands series was completely satisfying. And it made everything these characters have been through totally worth it. This series has been so intense and so emotionally draining at times, but it has also been completely lovely at times, too. I cannot fathom never having experienced this world or never having met these characters.

GIF it to me straight:

I don't want it to be over. :(

Title: Stories from the Shadowlands
Author: Sarah Fine
Series: Guards of the Shadowlands, book #3.1
Publisher: Skyscape
Publication Date: October 6, 2014
Source: gifted by author
Purchase: Amazon

Not ready to leave the Shadowlands yet? From Malachi’s earliest days in the dark city to some of the characters’ experiences after the final scenes of Chaos, this bonus volume gives readers an in-depth look at other realms within the Shadowlands and what it means to be a Guard, whether in the dark city, or the land of the living.

It includes:

--All of Malachi’s journal entries (more than 200) including 30 exclusive, never-before-published entries that reveal his perspective during the events of Fractured

--A 50-page novella from Jim’s perspective (Libertine)

--Three bonus scenes from Sanctum from Malachi and Ana’s perspective (She is the Mission, An End and a Beginning, and The Dark Tower)

--Two lengthy scenes that show some of the surviving characters post-Chaos

This collection is available in e-book format, only.

When Sarah sent this to me, there was a warning not to view the two post-Chaos scenes until I'd actually read the final book because they were very spoilerish. So, I'm warning you now. I waited and read this collection of journal entries and short stories last, and I think that's the best order, especially when it comes to the short stories themselves.

I'd read some of Malachi's journal entries here and there over the years, but never have I sat down and read them all back-to-back. It was insightful, to say the least. Also, there are entries that have never been shared before, from during the time period that Fractured covers, and those are well worth reading, especially if you know what transpires in that book. Very entertaining and very enlightening.

I knew there was so much more of Jim's story that we weren't getting in Fractured, and I'm glad that Sarah decided to write it and share it with all of us, especially since she fed us more of Henry's story in Chaos. As both were part of Lela's team of Guards in the Land of the Living, it's only fitting that both of their stories be told.

I am so thankful for this bonus content because after I finished Chaos, I was kind of a pile of goo and yet still wasn't ready for the final goodbye. It was nice to get even more from Malachi and Ana's perspectives, though I think my favorite part of this book was having all of Malachi's journal entries in one place finally. This collection is a must-have for any fan of the Guards of the Shadowlands series.

About the author:

Sarah Fine was born on the West Coast, raised in the Midwest, and is now firmly entrenched on the East Coast, where she lives with her husband and two children. When she’s not writing, she’s working as a child psychologist. She is the author of the young adult novels Sanctum, Fractured, Chaos, Of Metal and Wishes, and Scan. Her first adult fantasy novel, Marked, releases on January 1st, 2015, from 47North.

Find Sarah:

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Tumblr

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Labels: afterlife, all the feels, all the swoons, amazon children's publishing, favorite authors, favorites, guards of the shadowlands, novellas, paranormal, reviews, sarah fine, souls

Review: Fractured by Sarah Fine

Title: Fractured
Author: Sarah Fine
Series: Guards of the Shadowlands, book #2
Publisher: Skyscape/Amazon Children's Books
Publication Date: October 29, 2013
Source: ARC received from publisher, also received via Netgalley
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

In the week since Lela returned to Rhode Island as Captain of the Guard with Malachi as her second in command, local news has been dominated by chilling sightings of human-like creatures running on all fours. Lela knows there’s only one explanation: the Mazikin have arrived in the land of the living.

Needing to maintain the appearance of a normal life for her foster mother, her probation officer, and her classmates, Lela returns to Warwick High along with Malachi. At night they secretly hunt for the Mazikin nest. To assist, two new Guards from very different parts of the Shadowlands are assigned to Lela’s unit, including the bad boy Jim, who repeatedly challenges Lela's authority. Lela struggles to keep all her Guards on the right side of the law, but their mistakes come at a terrible cost.

As one painful revelation follows another and the Mazikin start targeting those closest to her, Lela finds herself more vulnerable than she’s ever been, wanting a future more than she ever has. With an enemy determined to separate soul from body, one question remains: how much is she willing to sacrifice to protect those she loves?

Holy evil cliffhanger, Batman!  Why you make my heart hurt so much, Sarah?  Whhhhhhhyyyyyy???

I was late to the Sanctum party last year, but once I did discover the book, I was head-over-heels for the story...and Malachi.  Not only is the romance in this series swoon-worthy, but the world-building is absolutely phenomenal.  It is so easy to immerse myself in this world and let reality fade away, and that's really saying something considering the awful things waiting for me in these books.  But this world and the characters...there's just something addicting about them.

This sequel started off exactly where I was hoping it would:  with Malachi and Lela deeply entrenched in their love for each other, preparing to seek out the Mazakin who had escaped the Shadowlands.  And then things get complicated.  To say that the romance took a frustrating turn is putting it mildly.  Malachi, being the capable, duty-bound guy that he is, decides that his job must come first and thus begins pushing Lela away. I'm usually not a fan of this approach, as it's usually for the protagonist's "own good".  But in this case, Malachi is making the decision to turn off his feelings for Lela for the good of humanity and the safety of the other guards on this mission.

Naturally, this is hard on Lela, who cannot understand his decision.  She's been rejected and felt unloved her entire life, and for the one person who'd admitted he loves her to push her away, too....it's almost more than she can handle.  But the more desperate the situation gets with the Mazakin, the more Lela realizes that maybe their relationship was distracting them.  It's almost painful to read, but she and Malachi each seek comfort elsewhere, though the dreaded love quadrangle doesn't really feel solid.  Although we don't know Malachi's heart, it's easy to see in his actions and mannerisms that he very much still cares about Lela, and we know Lela is having a hard time overcoming her feelings for Malachi.

But they have responsibilities.  Both guards have a duty here on Earth, and with Lela as Captain, they seek to destroy the Mazakin who are running amuck.  Even if Lela wasn't sure she deserved the title of Captain, she really proved herself worthy.  She is even more lethal, more dangerous, more fierce in this second book than she ever endeavored to be in Sanctum.  But that's probably because there's even more riding on the line this time around.  She's not fighting for the future of just one friend but all the new friends she's made, plus the whole of humanity.  Besides the formidable Malachi, she's got backup from Jim and Henry, both of whom are from different sectors of the afterlife.  It was easy to empathize with each of the guards and their backstories, and it made it that much more difficult to watch the hard decisions Lela was forced to make on their behalf.

In addition to her guards, there are others who help Lela...maybe not in the same way, but they give her a little dose of normalcy in her otherwise chaotic life, and she soaks it up.  I appreciated that this novel highlighted some of the social stigmas that Lela was facing and focused on her overcoming some of them.  It was also nice to see Lela reflecting on her typecasting of Nadia's old group and coming to realize that not everything or everyone is black-and-white.

All of the story in this sequel occurs in our world, away from the dark and terrifying Hell we witnessed in the first book. But that doesn't mean this book is any less intense.  This story was fraught with danger and high emotions, and those were reflected in every aspect of the setting and characters, from the would-be crack den Lela finds herself trailing a Mazakin to, to the homeless ex-nun swinging a baseball bat at Lela in the midst of a Mazakin attack.  The situation seems hopeless, but I guess that's one of the reasons I find myself so invested in this series:  no matter how dire everything seems, these characters never stop trying.

That being said, even *I* wanted to give up hope when I got to that ending.  There are cliffhangers and then there are "just toss me over the cliff because there's no way we're ever coming back from this" cliffhangers. The ending in Fractured was the latter.  I want to remain hopeful, but in the face of all of this devastation, I'm not sure that's possible.

A sequel should leave you balancing on a precipice, begging for more while fearing the worst.  And that's exactly what Fractured did.  This book is full of twists and turns, some you see coming and some that completely blindside you.  It's raw and exhilarating and everything I hoped it would be after such an impressive start to this series.  I wish the next book wasn't another year or so away, but I have no doubt it'll be well worth the wait.  This sequel definitely was.

About the author:

I’m the author of the Guards of the Shadowlands urban fantasy series (Skyscape/Amazon Children’s Publishing), including Sanctum (October 2012) and Fractured (October 2013). My gothic young adult novel Of Metal and Wishes will be published by McElderry/Simon & Schuster in August 2014. In May 2014, Putnam/Penguin will publish Scan, the first of two thrillers I co-authored with Walter Jury under the name S. E. Fine. When I’m not writing, I’m psychologizing. Sometimes I do both at the same time. The results are unpredictable.

Find Sarah:

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Tumblr

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Labels: afterlife, amazon children's publishing, favorites, guards of the shadowlands, must-read, reviews, sarah fine, souls

Waiting on Wednesday: Fractured by Sarah Fine

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

This week's WoW selection is...

Title: Fractured
Author: Sarah Fine
Series: Guards of the Shadowlands, book #2
Publisher: Skyscape/Amazon Children's Publishing
Publication Date: October 29, 2013

In the week since Lela returned to Rhode Island as Captain of the Guard with Malachi as her second in command, local news has been dominated by chilling sightings of human-like creatures running on all fours. Lela knows there’s only one explanation: the Mazikin have arrived in the land of the living.

Needing to maintain the appearance of a normal life for her foster mother, her probation officer, and her classmates, Lela returns to Warwick High along with Malachi. At night they secretly hunt for the Mazikin nest. To assist, two new Guards from very different parts of the Shadowlands are assigned to Lela’s unit, including the bad boy Jim, who repeatedly challenges Lela's authority. Lela struggles to keep all her Guards on the right side of the law, but their mistakes come at a terrible cost.

As one painful revelation follows another and the Mazikin start targeting those closest to her, Lela finds herself more vulnerable than she’s ever been, wanting a future more than she ever has. With an enemy determined to separate soul from body, one question remains: how much is she willing to sacrifice to protect those she loves?

Okay, so I actually already have an ARC of this, but it does not have that awesome cover.  The funny thing is, I remember disregarding Sanctum as a possible read because of the cover.  My, how times have changed.  :)  Seriously, with fantastic world-building and characters that make you feel everything they feel, Sanctum is a must-read...and so is the sequel, as far as I'm concerned.  I can't wait till I can get to it!

Now that you know what I'm dying to read, what are you waiting on this week?  Feel free to share it in the comments or leave a link so I can stop by!

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Labels: afterlife, favorites, guards of the shadowlands, must-read, sarah fine, souls, waiting on wednesday (wow)

{Audiobook} Review: Sanctum by Sarah Fine

Title: Sanctum
Author: Sarah Fine
Narrator: Amy McFadden
Series: Guards of the Shadowlands, book #1
Publisher: Brilliance Audio
Publication Date: October 16, 2012
Source: purchased
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Audible
$3.99 for Kindle as of this post

“My plan: Get into the city. Get Nadia. Find a way out. Simple.”

A week ago, seventeen-year-old Lela Santos’s best friend, Nadia, killed herself. Today, thanks to a farewell ritual gone awry, Lela is standing in paradise, looking upon a vast gated city in the distance—hell. No one willingly walks through the Suicide Gates, into a place smothered in darkness and infested with depraved creatures. But Lela isn’t just anyone—she’s determined to save her best friend’s soul, even if it means sacrificing her eternal afterlife.

As Lela struggles to find Nadia, she’s captured by the Guards, enormous, not-quite-human creatures that patrol the dark city’s endless streets. Their all-too-human leader, Malachi, is unlike them in every way except one: his deadly efficiency. When he meets Lela, Malachi forms his own plan: get her out of the city, even if it means she must leave Nadia behind. Malachi knows something Lela doesn’t—the dark city isn’t the worst place Lela could end up, and he will stop at nothing to keep her from that fate.

Where the hell was I when this book was released last year?  Seriously.  The only reason it was even on my radar was because of a blog tour wherein I believe parts of Malachi's journal were revealed.  [I still need to check those out, so don't spoil anything for me.  ;)]  And apparently, Amazon Children's Publishing is touting this as their next big thing for fans of Susan Ee's Angelfall.  As a HUGE fan of that book, I can tell you that Sanctum was just as good as Angelfall.

While Angelfall entertains the idea of deviant angels on earth, Sanctum takes the story to the afterlife.  I know, I know...angels and the afterlife are soooo overdone in YA.  But it's the author's spin that makes these books really stand apart from all of those others.  With Sanctum, there's no going through the stages of grief after death, no wishing to be alive again.  This book is simply about Lela's mission to save her suicidal best friend from a hellish future in the afterlife, one that she's only dreamt about but that her friend is truly living.

Lela hasn't had an easy life.  And until she sticks her neck out for someone she doesn't even know, she hadn't realized it could actually get better.  Once Nadia befriends Lela, everything changes.  Suddenly, Lela has a future.  But just when things are going great, Nadia leaves Lela to deal with everything on her own.  Lela didn't set out to follow Nadia into the afterlife, but now that she's there, and because she knows what awaits Nadia thanks to the nightmares that have plagued her over the years, she is willing to do anything to save her best friend.  I think it speaks so much to Lela's character and to how much she's progressed that she cares so deeply for this girl that she's only known for a year.

The afterlife doesn't have to be the muted, dreary existence that awaits Nadia behind the Suicide Gates. But as the name implies, that is the afterlife that one can expect when they take their own life.  The cover of this book might have turned me off previously because of its bleakness, but now, having read the book, I think it's a very appropriate and entirely suitable cover.  The setting of this story is so dismal and gray, but based on the descriptions provided by Lela in the book, the city depicted on the cover is exactly like I imagined.  And knowing how it got that way makes it all the more intriguing because this is a place where you can have anything you want but it will never be enough.

While searching this dark city for Nadia so that she can break her out, Lela has a run-in with one of the guards.  I don't know any better way to describe their relationship than this:  Malachi is to Lela what Dimitri was to Rose in the Vampire Academy series...sexy accent included.  Lela is already strong and capable, but Malachi makes her better.  In Malachi, Lela finds the sanctuary and solace that she has desperately needed all her life.  But Lela means just as much to Malachi...after learning his story and how he ended up at the Suicide Gates, I think he might need Lela even more than she needs him.

Malachi agrees to help Lela find Nadia and get them out of the city, but there are risks involved.  There are these creatures (souls?) called Mazakin that want to be set free, and they are invading the Shadowlands.  I like what this storyline added to the book:  the danger, the race to stop them, the uneasy feeling that it might already be too late.  I feel like maybe there's a reason why Lela followed Nadia so quickly in death, that the powers that be have a purpose for Lela, and maybe it has something to do with stopping the Mazakin.  I usually am not a fan of taking free will away from a character, but in this case, it works.

Know what else is working for this story?  The audiobook narrator.  Amy McFadden is perrrrrfect!  All of the accents, the emotion she expresses...I liken her skills to that of Khristine Hvam, who provided the narration for a couple of the Vampire Academy books (coincidence?) and Laini Taylor's Daughter of Smoke and Bones series.  This audiobook was so unbelievably good; it's the kind that you could listen to over and over again.  Or maybe I'm just jonesing for another Malachi fix.

I could go on and on about this book, and still not fully convey how much I loved it.  It's equal parts dark and disturbing, but there's an underlying current of hopefulness throughout.  The tender moments far outweigh the battles scenes as far as favorites go for me because the chemistry between Malachi and Lela is undeniable, but that doesn't mean I can't appreciate how badass these characters are.  I'm so very glad I found this sleeper hit when I did...before it exploded on the YA market like Angelfall did.  And although I hope the book follows in those same footsteps and exceeds everyone's expectations, one place I hope it doesn't tread is the no-man's land of "Is she ever going to write the sequel?"  Because it's a whole other kind of torture to be waiting for the second book when there's no release date in sight.  (By the by, there's no cliffhanger, if that's what you're thinking.  I simply loved this story and want more.  Like yesterday.)

Rating:  

Favorite Quotes:

"He looked up at me, dark brown eyes shining. "You're so beautiful," he slurred making me sure his lips were growing numb and his brain wasn't far behind. Figures. The first time a guy tells me I'm beautiful, I'm in hell and he's delirious."

"This kiss was a living thing. A wild and dangerous thing. It spread its wings and carried us out over the city, over the walls. Malachi tasted like the forest, like the sun, like every dream I'd ever had about what this moment should be."

“I wanted the chance to give him something, to give him the best of me, as pathetic as it was, damaged and broken, warped at the edges, hardly worth having. I decided that if I had the chance, if he asked, if he needed, it was his.” 

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Labels: afterlife, audiobooks, dac 2012, favorites, guards of the shadowlands, must-read, reviews, sarah fine, souls