It's Monday! What Are You Reading? (8)

(It's Monday! What are you reading? is a weekly blog meme hosted by Sheila at Book Journey. Each Monday participating blogs post about which books we are currently reading and our reading plans for the week. You can sign up at Book Journey by clicking here)

Looks like I'll be sticking to two books a week from now on. It's easier to handle and gives me time to do other things (like work and write). (Although wouldn't it be grand to be able to read, like, five books a week? Hah!)

Last week I finished:

Origin by Jessica Khoury
Quick thoughts:
I love this book. The concept was so interesting and met my expectations. Really brings up the question: How far will science go to satisfy the selfishness of humanity? Pretty far, I'd say. There were character I loved, and ones I hated (and with good reason). There was action, exploration, the right amount of sci-fi for me (not too heavy), and a great plot with a satisfying end. There is to be, not a sequel for this book, but a companion novel. Vitro. I'm excited for its release date and will for sure be picking up a copy.

Do I recommend? Yessir!


I am still reading Proxy, and hope to finish it very soon. From there I will read another e-galley; I'm just not sure which one. Help me choose?
I'm between Runes, Dragonfly, Far Far Away, and Fyrelocke.
Let me know which one you think I should read next in the comments!

This week I am reading:

The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey
Blurb:
After the 1st wave, only darkness remains. After the 2nd, only the lucky escape. And after the 3rd, only the unlucky survive. After the 4th wave, only one rule applies: trust no one.

Now, it’s the dawn of the 5th wave, and on a lonely stretch of highway, Cassie runs from Them. The beings who only look human, who roam the countryside killing anyone they see. Who have scattered Earth’s last survivors. To stay alone is to stay alive, Cassie believes, until she meets Evan Walker. Beguiling and mysterious, Evan Walker may be Cassie’s only hope for rescuing her brother—or even saving herself. But Cassie must choose: between trust and despair, between defiance and surrender, between life and death. To give up or to get up.

Thoughts so far: Loving it so far! I'm about 30% into it, and excited to pick it back up!


And if I finish that before the week's done, I will likely pick up Icons by Margaret Stohl.

What are you all reading this week?

Mini Review: Dream Dark

Title: Dream Dark

Placement in Series: 2.5

Series: Caster Chronicles/Beautiful Creatures

Rating: 4/5

Blurb:

When Link joined his best friend, Ethan Wate, on a quest through a mysterious network of underground passageways endlessly crisscrossing the South, he knew the journey would be dangerous. But returning home to Gatlin, South Carolina was just the beginning...

Wounded during a climactic battle, Link discovers that tending his injuries won't be as simple as visiting a doctor and that healing his arm should be the least of his worries. For being bitten by a Supernatural does more than break the skin -- it changes a person, inside and out, turning Link into someone more and more like the dark creature who injured him.

Mini Review:

I kind of wish this was from Link's POV. Considering the rest of the series is told from Ethan's perspective, I understand why Dream Dark does not stray from that, but I feel as if this would have been more effectively told had it been from Link's perspective instead. It just didn't feel realistic that Ethan would know so much detail about what Link went through, even though he did state that Link told him all of this. That's really my only qualm with Dream Dark.

I'm glad we got to get a look into Link's life, especially considering what had happened to him in Beautiful Darkness. This was a nice little companion to the Caster Chronicles that I enjoyed. I have always found the "point fives" of a series to be just as important as the rest of the books, and this one is no different. Getting this look into Link's transformation is something integral that I am glad is available to us readers. Plus getting a glimpse into a secondary character's life is always refreshing.

Also, this novella really helped me to feel for Link. I knew his mother was crazy, but I didn't think she was this crazy! I would love to see more from Link. I find him to be a very interesting character, and one of my favourites.

The '4' rating was because I really felt like more could have been included, but again, because it was Ethan telling the story there was not really much room for that.