Ohana Talks: Naked Hardcovers

   I love hardcovers, at times they can be my book weakness. When are they my weakness? When their covers are gorgeous. The picture above is just a few examples of the ones I own. Aren't they gorgeous?

   Today I wanted to show you some of my favourite naked hardcovers. I know that people don't normally know what the undercover looks like unless you own them, so these are just a few of my favourites that I have seen so far!

Perfect Ruin by Lauren DeStefano 

(Original Hardcover)

The Internment Chronicles, #1

Through the Zombie Glass by Gena Showalter

White Rabbit Chronicles, #2

Bloodlines by Richelle Mead

Bloodlines, #1

Compulsion by Martina Boone

The Heirs of Watson Island, #1

Reawakened by Colleen Houck

Reawakened, #1

The Diviners by Libba Bray

(Original Hardcover)

The Diviners, #1

Talon by Julie Kagawa

Talon, #1

The Power of Six by Pittacus Lore

The Lorien Legacies, #2

The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater

The Raven Cycle, #1

Forever by Maggie Stiefvater

The Wolves of Mercy Falls, #3

   There is one other that I adore but have no picture of and do not own, and that's All the Bright Places by Jennifer Niven. If you ever stumble upon a copy of it in a bookstore, make sure to check it out.


   I think my favourite thing about hardcovers is that you only get them for the first year of publication, then the paperback releases and the hardcovers become impossible to find. I guess it just makes them unique to me because the people who find the series after don't get to experience the beauty. Don't get me wrong, I do hate that the hardcovers are impossible to find after the first year. I just enjoy it too.

   What are some of your favourite naked hardcovers? What do you like most about them? The covers? Or their spines?

Book Review: Rogue by Julie Kagawa

Release Date: April 28th, 2015

Read: May 9-13th, 2015

Publisher: HarlequinTeen

Series: Talon, #2

Format: Hardcover, 464 pages

Source: Bought

Description from GoodReads:

   Ember Hill left the dragon organization Talon to take her chances with rebel dragon Cobalt and his crew of rogues. But Ember can't forget the sacrifice made for her by the human boy who could have killed her—Garret Xavier Sebastian, a soldier of the dragonslaying Order of St. George, the boy who saved her from a Talon assassin, knowing that by doing so, he'd signed his own death warrant. 

   Determined to save Garret from execution, Ember must convince Cobalt to help her break into the Order's headquarters. With assassins after them and Ember's own brother helping Talon with the hunt, the rogues find an unexpected ally in Garret and a new perspective on the underground battle between Talon and St. George. 

   A reckoning is brewing and the secrets hidden by both sides are shocking and deadly. Soon Ember must decide: Should she retreat to fight another day…or start an all-out war?

Review:

Relax, oh paranoid one. I doubt there'll be Talon agents hiding in the potted plants.
   I think I've come to the conclusion that this series is just not for me. I know I loved every other piece of work that Kagawa's produced, but something with this one just bothers me waaaay too much.  The series just had too much of a rebelling/Government overthrowing feel rather then a dragon feel, and at this point I just can't stand those anymore. I've had my fill of them for a long time.
   Rogue had some of the same problems Talon did, like Riley. We got to know him a lot more in Rogue and one thing that I noticed was his age. The book kept having chapters where we'd go back in time and see Riley as a Basilisk, like 12 years back. If Riley was a 'hatchling' then that would have made him at least 15-16, adding the additional 12 years that would make Riley 27/28 years old. This means a 27/28 year old has feelings for a 15/16 year old. I am not okay with this, this screams pedophile in my book.  Even if dragons lived longer and age wasn't much of a difference, this was definitely a nope for me. This along with the 'inner dragon' urges, I just couldn't find myself truly enjoying the book.
   Ember in Rogue came off as a immature little girl, and honestly I felt sad that she was written like this for Rogue. In Talon at least she had the sense to know when not to do something or if it was too dangerous. In this one she was just a mess. Nope, I could have done without her character.
   Where Rogue did have some problems for me, it was still a fantastically written book. Kagawa knows how to keep her viewers interested, even when you utterly despise two of the three main characters.
   This series may not be for me, but I'm at the point where I'm too invested in the series that I just have to continue it. I will be picking up Soldier when it releases.


Rating:

Favourite Quote:

" A flame that burns twice as bright lasts half as long." ~ Riley

Recommend to People Who Enjoy:

Young Adult, Fantasy, Paranormal, Dragons, Hunters, Shapeshifters, Overthrowing Governments

Book Review: Talon by Julie Kagawa

Talon by Julie Kagawa

Release Date: October 28th, 2014

Read: February 19-20th, 2015

Publisher: Harlequin Teen

Series: Talon #1

Format: Hardcover, 449 pages

Source: Gift

Description from GoodReads:

   Long ago, dragons were hunted to near extinction by the Order of St. George, a legendary society of dragon slayers. Hiding in human form and growing their numbers in secret, the dragons of Talon have become strong and cunning, and they're positioned to take over the world with humans none the wiser.

   Ember and Dante Hill are the only sister and brother known to dragonkind. Trained to infiltrate society, Ember wants to live the teen experience and enjoy a summer of freedom before taking her destined place in Talon. But destiny is a matter of perspective, and a rogue dragon will soon challenge everything Ember has been taught. As Ember struggles to accept her future, she and her brother are hunted by the Order of St. George.


   Soldier Garret Xavier Sebastian has a mission to seek and destroy all dragons, and Talon's newest recruits in particular. But he cannot kill unless he is certain he has found his prey: and nothing is certain about Ember Hill. Faced with Ember's bravery, confidence and all-too-human desires, Garret begins to question everything that the Order has ingrained in him: and what he might be willing to give up to find the truth about dragons. 

Review:

Contains Spoilers:

   Rnesh karr slithis

   My first Julie Kagawa book was The Iron King, then I went on to finishing the series ( This was when The Iron Knight was still the final book), I cried a little bit then needed more. Julie's Blood of Eden series was next, which was almost even better then her first series! At this point I had become obsessed with Julie's books, it was an automatic buy from there on out. Which is how I came to get myself a copy of Talon, with the copy in my hands I just knew I was in for a ride.
   Julie writes fantasy books, each book featuring it's own creature, Fairies for The Iron Fey, Vampires for the Blood of Eden and finally Dragons for Talon. The dragon genre is somewhat small when it comes to YA, sure you have a few here and there but a lot of times dragons aren't the main focus in the series unlike Talon here. I just loved Julie's take on them, how they lived in a society, that they could change into Humans, the different jobs they had to keep their species alive. I loved all of it, though I did feel like the book edged a bit to close to another YA novel I've read called Firelight by Sophie Jordan.
   Out of all the jobs the dragons were given, I think the Vipers were my favourite! Who would have thought that Dragons would have their own set of assassins. I hope we actually get to see more of them in Rogue and the books after.
   I couldn't stand Riley/ Cobalt, the whole time throughout the book. Every time he was mentioned all I could think of was older guys hitting on me. Someone like 20 years older then me, it freaked me out so much. It didn't help whenever Riley was with Ember she'd get "dragon urges". EW EW EW EW. I just couldn't do it, the same went with Dimitri in Vampire Academy.
   The epilogue in Talon broke me a bit, I knew that Dante was going to tell Talon that Ember was going Rogue. That you could totally see coming, but putting him in charge of bringing her back? I broke a little bit.
   I only had one problem with Talon, how we barely got to see any dragon action. Besides the 3 times, we didn't see much. I hope we get to see more in the future books, considering it's supposed to be a dragon book.
   Talon was yet again a fabulous work from Julie, besides a few kinks here and there it was definitely a must read. After a mini book hangover after the ending, I had to pre-order Rogue most definitely. So I look forward to see where Julie takes us next!

Rating:

Favourite Quote:

"They were so terrified of the big nasty monster out in the water, when there was a bigger, nastier, deadlier one right there on the beach." ~ Ember

Recommend to People Who Enjoy: 

Young Adult, Paranormal, Fantasy, Romance, Supernatural, Dragons, Hunters

Waiting on Wednesday (13)

Talon

Author: Julie Kagawa

Series: Talon #1
Harlequin Teen

Expected: October 28th, 2014

Description from GoodReads:

   Long ago, dragons were hunted to near extinction by the Order of St. George, a legendary society of dragon slayers. Hiding in human form and growing their numbers in secret, the dragons of Talon have become strong and cunning, and they're positioned to take over the world with humans none the wiser.

   Ember and Dante Hill are the only sister and brother known to dragonkind. Trained to infiltrate society, Ember wants to live the teen experience and enjoy a summer of freedom before taking her destined place in Talon. But destiny is a matter of perspective, and a rogue dragon will soon challenge everything Ember has been taught. As Ember struggles to accept her future, she and her brother are hunted by the Order of St. George.

   Soldier Garret Xavier Sebastian has a mission to seek and destroy all dragons, and Talon's newest recruits in particular. But he cannot kill unless he is certain he has found his prey: and nothing is certain about Ember Hill. Faced with Ember's bravery, confidence and all-too-human desires, Garret begins to question everything that the Order has ingrained in him: and what he might be willing to give up to find the truth about dragons.

Why I Want It:

   I've been a huge fan of Julie Kagawa since her Iron Fey series since a little after The Iron Knight came out. When her Blood of Eden series came out, I was just so out of my mind excited that I rushed to the library to pick up a copy! I feel the exact same way about Talon! There has been so much hype about this book for months, I've just so many good things about it that I will most likely rush to Chapters as soon as the doors open on the 28th.

Why You Should Want It:

   Dragons as well as Julie's writing. I love the way Julie's writing just pulls you in when you read one of her books. Her books make you feel as if they were written just for you. Dragons are another prime factor in wanting this book. Why are dragons important? BECAUSE THEY'RE DRAGONS.

 That's my Waiting on Wednesday for this week, what are you waiting on? Will you be picking up Talon on October 28th? Let me know in the comments!