Starters by Lissa Price

Starters #1
Delacourt Press/Random House
March 13, 2012
YA Dystopia/Science Fiction

SYNOPSIS

Her world is changed forever.

Callie lost her parents when the Spore Wars wiped out everyone between the ages of twenty and sixty. She and her little brother, Tyler, go on the run, living as squatters with their friend Michael and fighting off renegades who would kill them for a cookie. Callie's only hope is Prime Destinations, a disturbing place in Beverly Hills run by a mysterious figure known as the Old Man.

He hires teens to rent their bodies to Enders--seniors who want to be young again. Callie, desperate for the money that will keep her, Tyler, and Michael alive, agrees to be a donor. But the neurochip they place in Callie's head malfunctions and she wakes up in the life of her renter, living in her mansion, driving her cars, and going out with a senator's grandson. It feels almost like a fairy tale, until Callie discovers that her renter intends to do more than party--and that Prime Destinations' plans are more evil than Callie could ever have imagined...

--From Goodreads

 REVIEW

I spent a while trying to figure out what kind of ranking to give Starters. It was difficult because it took me several chapters to get really invested in the story. It was one of those novels that would have benefited greatly from a prologue that described what happened before the beginning of the story, but since it lacked one, you have to piece together those events as they're given to you. (True the synopsis gives you a bit of information about the Spore Wars, but not enough to really get interested.) However, once I got into the story, I really liked it. So, I'm giving Starters a solid 3.5 out of 5 stars. 

What I absolutely loved about this story is that it has a great mystery and tons of action with one twist after another. That was enough for me to fall in love with this story. It was as action packed as The Hunger Games, and lacked the heavy handed use of a traditional love triangle. I loved this part of the story because it made you focus on Callie and her struggle to unwind this mystery. 

Perhaps my favorite thing about the story was at the very end, on the final page. It left me with one burning question: Is the Old Man really who I think he is? 

I Chose to Die by Ksenia Ankse

Siren Suicides #1
Self published
August 5th, 2013

SYNOPSIS

On a rainy September morning that just so happens to be her sixteenth birthday, Ailen Bright, a chicken-legged, straw-haired teenager, decides to commit suicide via drowning in the family bathtub. The ornate marble tub, adhering to her abusive father's love for anything expensive and Italian, is decorated by five sirens--who seemingly help her escape the house when her father breaks down the bathroom door. After an almost-successful suicide attempt number two, which lands her at the bottom of a lake, she learns that sirens are, in fact, real, and they want to turn her into one of them. An amazing, yet dark look into the mind and heart of a suicidal teenager, this urban fantasy follows Ailen's struggle to to figure out the meaning of life, the unraveling of her confusing feelings for her theatrically goofy best friend Hunter, and her desperate battle for her father's love.

REVIEW

Overall, I give I Chose to Die a solid 3.5 out of 5 stars. I normally don't do half stars, but this one was hard to put in a category. There were a few issues with it that sometimes distracted me from the story (I kept thinking, "Why is there chlorine in the bath water?"), but overall it was an amazing read. So a 3.5 it was. But it is a novel that I would absolutely recommend to others. It is an amazing example of self publishing work.

There were a lot of things that I absolutely loved about this novel. It is amazingly descriptive, especially when it comes to Ailen's emotions. It felt as if I was right there with her in her despair. I felt everything she felt, and it was breathtaking. Ailen is a wonderful character who is very relate-able, as a human and as a siren. Her emotions--especially her fear and her confusion--are palpable. The novel is also fast paced and can keep your attention. It moves from one event to another with lots of action without losing the thread of the story. Maybe more than anything, I loved that it had two characters who were amazing "villains." You'll love to hate them. And I absolutely adore how Ailen eventually embraces her own darkness.

For the most part, there were only two things that really bothered me about the novel. The father character was slightly two-dimensional, even though he is an interesting character. However, he does develop more as the story goes on. And the basic premise of the story is slightly overdone as far as selling your soul for power or revenge--but the way that Anske twists it works well with the story. 

 In the end, I Chose to Die is an amazing story about finding your strength and learning that your real strength can sometimes be found in embracing your weakness.