Review: The Madman's Daughter by Megan Shepherd

Title: The Madman's Daughter

Author: Megan Shepherd

Series: The Madman's Daughter #1

Publisher: Harper Voyager

Publication date: 11/04/2013

Format: Paperback | 368 pages

Genre: YA | Science Fiction | Historical

Goodreads

To uncover the truth means risking all…

London, 1894, Juliet Monreau has built a life for herself working as a maid, attending church on Sundays, and trying not to think about the scandal that ruined her life. After all, no one ever proved the rumours about her father's gruesome experiments. But when she learns her father is alive and continuing his work on a remote tropical island, she is determined to find out if the accusations were true.

Yet what she finds on the island is twisted beyond all imagining, and out of her father's control. As the island rapidly descends into chaos, she must escape the horrors of her father's creations, but not before she discovers the true extent of her father's genius - and madness - in her own blood.

My thoughts:

After Juliet's father is accused of horrendous crimes, Juliet is forced to make do with any job that will keep her off the streets. Working as a maid in the hospital, Juliet comes across something that may mean her father is still alive. Determined to find out if the accusations were true, Juliet hitches a ride with an old friend to an island filled with unnatural creatures and a dangerous murderer that leaves three claw marks as his calling card.

Wow this book had some creepy characters. I loved every minute of it. Seriously.

I'm a big fan of creepy reads - not necessarily horror but something that raises the hairs on the back of my neck. From the very first page, I could tell that this book would be a good one. The writing immediately had a feel of suspense and dark drama that was bound to creep me out. It did just that. There were creepy characters, a murderer that had everyone afraid to leave the house and bucket loads of suspense. I couldn't stop reading.

The characters were great. I loved how mysterious they were - nothing but their basic personality and history was revealed until close to the end of the read where everything got turned on its head. I found myself starting to doubt everyone, even Juliet. Were they who they said they were? Characters who seemed perfectly innocent beforehand were seen in a new light.

By the way, I loved Montgomery he was totally steamy.

The plot with Juliet and her father was amazing. He was definitely a character I won't be able to get out of my head for awhile. Totally insane. I really liked how he still managed to get into Juliet's head even when she'd decided he wasn't worth listening to - you know, because of the fact that he's a total creep who enjoys inflicting pain in the name of science.

All in all I loved this book tremendously and I can't wait to get the sequel, especially with the way it ended. Never would have called it!

My rating: 10/10

 Megan Shepherd:

Goodreads | Website | Twitter

The Madman's Daughter:

1. The Madman's Daughter
2. Her Dark Curiosity
3. A Cold Legacy

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Review: Etiquette & Espionage by Gail Carriger

Title: Etiquette & Espionage

Author: Gail Carriger

Series: Finishing School #1

Publisher: Atom

Publication date: 05 Feb 2013

Format: Paperback | 307 pages

Genre: YA | Science Fiction | Steampunk

Goodreads

 Fourteen-year-old Sophronia is a great trial to her poor mother. Sophronia is more interested in dismantling clocks and climbing trees than proper manners—and the family can only hope that company never sees her atrocious curtsy. Mrs. Temminick is desperate for her daughter to become a proper lady. So she enrolls Sophronia in Mademoiselle Geraldine's Finishing Academy for Young Ladies of Quality.

But Sophronia soon realises the school is not quite what her mother might have hoped. At Mademoiselle Geraldine's, young ladies learn to finish...everything. Certainly, they learn the fine arts of dance, dress, and etiquette, but they also learn to deal out death, diversion, and espionage—in the politest possible ways, of course. Sophronia and her friends are in for a rousing first year's education.

My thoughts:

I'm a big fan of Gail Carriger's books so when I heard she was writing a YA series I was beyond excited.

I immediately fell in love with all of the characters. I thought Sophronia made a brilliant heroine whilst still being a young girl and acting as such. She had a great personality that made me laugh quite a few times right from the very beginning of the book - I really can't wait to see more of her in the next one.

The plot was a little simpler than I would have liked but enjoyable nonetheless. I found this book enjoyable mostly due to Carriger's impressive writing style. There really is no end to the humour, wacky scenarios and quirky characters in any of her books. 

Overall this is a very quick, light hearted read that will make you giggle. I really enjoyed it just as much as the other books by this author so I sincerely recommend both this read and Gail's other books.

My rating: 8/10

Gail Carriger:

Goodreads | Website | Facebook | Twitter 

 

Finishing School:

1. Etiquette & Espionage
2. Curtsies & Conspiracies - 2013
3. Waistcoats & Weaponry - 2014

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Review: Rip Tide by Kat Falls

Title: Rip Tide

Author: Kat Falls

Series: Dark Life #2

Publisher: Scholastic

Publication date: January 1st 2013

Format: Paperback | 320 pages

Genre: YA | Science Fiction

Goodreads

Ty has always known that the ocean is a dangerous place. Every time he swims beyond the borders of his family's subsea farm, he's prepared to face all manner of aquatic predators - sharks, squid, killer whales….

But Ty is unprepared for the deadliest dangers of the deep. When he and his Topsider ally, Gemma, make a horrific discovery far below the surface, they begin to unravel a conspiracy that will put them in conflict with outlaws, Seaguard officers, and the savage, trident-wielding surfs - plus creatures unlike any Ty has encountered before.

My thoughts:

I was a big fan of the first book in this series, Dark Life, so I couldn't wait to pick this up. I have to say, I'm a bigger fan of Kat Falls than I was when I finished the first book. I loved it.

 

What I loved most about Dark Life was the world building and the creativity that went into it. I found this to be the case in Rip Tide too, maybe even more so. I absolutely adored the descriptions of the ocean, townships and Rip Tide itself. It was the kind of writing where you can picture everything seamlessly as you read it as if you're watching a film - a really great film at that. So much imagination was put into this book which, in my opinion, made the world it's set in more charming, and the story more enthralling.

 

I also found the characters to be just as well written. I loved Ty just as ever - he really came into his own in this book. Gemma was just as great. I actually thought she had the most depth to her character compared to the last book where Ty was more of the main focus. Ty was still the main star of the story, but I felt that I got to know Gemma a whole lot more in Rip Tide.

 

Overall I found this to be a fantastic read that I finished in no time at all - I only wish it was a lot longer!

 

My rating: 10/10

 

Kat Falls:

Goodreads | Website | Facebook

 

Dark Life:

1. Dark Life
2. Rip Tide

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Review: Zenn Scarlett by Christian Schoon

Title: Zenn Scarlett

Author: Christian Schoon

Publisher: Strange Chemistry

Publication date: 2nd May 2013

Format: Netgalley

Genre: YA | Science Fiction

Goodreads

Zenn Scarlett is a resourceful, determined 17-year-old girl working hard to make it through her novice year of exovet training. That means she's learning to care for alien creatures that are mostly large, generally dangerous and profoundly fascinating. Zenn’s all-important end-of-term tests at the Ciscan Cloister Exovet Clinic on Mars are coming up, and, she's feeling confident of acing the exams. But when a series of inexplicable animal escapes and other disturbing events hit the school, Zenn finds herself being blamed for the problems. As if this isn't enough to deal with, her absent father has abruptly stopped communicating with her; Liam Tucker, a local towner boy, is acting unusually, annoyingly friendly; and, strangest of all: Zenn is worried she's started sharing the thoughts of the creatures around her. Which is impossible, of course. Nonetheless, she can't deny what she's feeling.

Now, with the help of Liam and Hamish, an eight-foot sentient insectoid also training at the clinic, Zenn must learn what's happened to her father, solve the mystery of who, if anyone, is sabotaging the cloister, and determine if she's actually sensing the consciousness of her alien patients... or just losing her mind. All without failing her novice year....

My thoughts:

I'm not normally a big fan of sci-fi but this one caught my eye, plus I like to step out of my favourite genres every once in a while and broaden my horizons. This was a pleasant surprise though.

What I noticed straight off was that a lot of people will definitely give up on this read because of the language at the start. I felt like I was thrown into the deep end completely with the space lingo thrown into the story here and there. It got a little much sometimes for the beginning of a story so occasionally I got a little lost. I stuck with it though and eventually got the hang of what on earth everybody was talking about.

I really started to enjoy the imagination put into this book. The descriptions of the planet, different races of people and the variety of bizarre alien creatures really allowed your mind to run away with itself imagining what they would be like in real life. Eventually the read started to have a life of its own and I really enjoyed being part of that experience as a reader.

The plot was short and sweet in my opinion. It was nothing overly complicated and sometimes I could see from a mile off exactly what would happen - I didn't think it took anything away from me enjoying the read, but I would have loved a few more surprises. 

I really loved Zenn. She was a perfect character for the world this book is set in. Zenn had a load of different flaws which made her relatable, she had a mysterious and compelling backstory and a lovely personality to boot - plenty of depth for any character in my opinion. I was a little disappointed that I didn't see much of the other characters - there were some great ones that I would love to see more of. Liam in particular though I expect to see him a lot more often in the sequel. I'm assuming there will be a sequel based on the ending. There better be...

Overall I do recommend this read. Especially for someone wanting to get their hands on sci-fi - I would start off with this one, if only because of the amazing world-building.

My rating: 7/10

Christian Schoon:

Goodreads | Website | Twitter 

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