The Last Orphans

I was lucky enough to be offered an advanced copy of this book by the author in exchange for an honest review. 

I'd like to take a second to say that I am very impressed by the publisher of this book.  It is the first time that I have ever heard of Clean Teen Publishing, and I appreciate what they are doing.  They are offering disclosure about the content of their books, similar to the disclosure ratings you will see on TV or video games.  They do not censor the work, but tell you honestly what you are getting into before you get into it (such as this book contains drugs, violence, sex, foul language, etc), that way you can decide if a book is appropriate for yourself or your children before you read it.  Kudos to them for that.

The Last Orphans by N.W. Harris is an apocalyptic story in which all of the adults in the world have died sudden and violent deaths, leaving only children and teenagers alive. The survivors struggle to find safety, the older ones taking charge of the younger. Many parts of this story were very graphic and violent, describing in detail the deaths of the adults and bloodied corpses.  

The premise for this story is intriguing, making me wonder what would happen in such a world. Parts of it were very sad, as an adult with young children I couldn't help but think what would happen if my kids were in this scenario and it did pull on my heartstrings.  I couldn't help but think throughout the book, what is happening to the babies.  The young ones who are too young to walk or open doors, left to starve to death in the homes.  It was only alluded to briefly, closer to the end of the book, but it was a thought on my mind throughout the story. 

My favorite character in the book was Tracy.  This girl is tough as nails, doesn't take crap from anyone and is a hero.  I love reading books that have strong female characters who think for themselves.  Tracy is definitely one of these women.

This book had me gripped right to the very end.  It was fast paced, full of action and very descriptive.

I will definitely be reading the next part of this series to see what happens to these orphans.

Dream Student

I was offered a free ebook copy of Dream Student (Dreams #1) by J.J. DiBenedetto after I had entered a giveaway for the book and didn't win.  It took me a few weeks to get around to reading it, but now that I finally have, here is my review.

Sara is a typical pre-med student, trying to balance studying, dorm life, having fun, and suffering through the most unimaginable nightmares.  At first the dreams don't seem so bad, she sees a boy that she feels an intense connection with.  They later meet at a club and it is insta-love.  But she keeps having these recurring nightmares of a man brutally murdering young girls and dumping the bodies.  She wakes up screaming and crying.  It isn't until she sees an article in the paper with the girl's picture that she realizes that her nightmares are really happening.  She is viewing someone else's dreams while she is asleep.  Sara and her friends must work together to stop the murderer before he claims his next victim.

The concept for this story is nice and interesting.  It is a cool idea that you could be a crime fighting dreamer.  I think that the author could have done a lot more with it than he did.  At one point Sara visits the sleep lab on campus and they run tests, telling her that the results don't make sense.  They hook her up to all of the probes and scanners while she sleeps, and as soon as her nightmares begin according to the tests it is like she became an entirely different person.  As soon as Sara leaves the sleep lab, there is no follow up with that.  I would think that the professors took an interest in the test results and would want to investigate more, but they don't.

Also, there is a lot of content in the book that is unnecessary and boring.  It is frequently mentioning class schedules, and minute details about how the characters are spending their days.  A lot of this could have been eliminated with absolutely zero impact to the story.  If the author had worked a little bit more on character development and a little bit less on minute details about the characters' class schedules and studying the book would have been more interesting.  As it was, it was still an interesting read, the story had a nice flow, and the pace picked up quite a bit near the end.  I'd be interested in seeing what the author did with the story line in the other books of this series.

Inquest (Destroyer #1)

Inquest by DelSheree Gladden is a story about a young girl named Libby who will destroy the world.  An inquest is a talent unlocking ceremony that each person must attend on their 16th birthday to reveal which of the 7 possible talents that person possesses.  Having more talents means that you have a more prestigious place in society.  At Libby's inquest, it is revealed that she has all 7 of the talents, naming her Cassia, the Destroyer, who it is fated will bring an end to the world.  Libby and her freind Milo must work together to improve her talents and stay safe from the Guardians, who are out to kill them. 

I picked up this book when it was on a free promo for Kindle.  I could not put it down!  I think I *may* have stayed up half  the night because I had to know what would happen next.  I can't wait to pick up the next book in the series!  If you enjoy books like The Hunger Games or Divergent, definitely give this one a try.