Across a Star-Swept Sea by Diana Peterfreund

Title: Across a Star-Swept Sea (For Darkness Shows the Stars #2)

Author: Diana Peterfreund

Publisher: Balzer + Bray 2013

Genre: Young Adult Science Fiction

Pages: 469

Rating: 3/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Perpetual - YA Retellings; I Love Libraries;  Seasonal Series - Duology

Centuries after wars nearly destroyed civilization, the two islands of New Pacifica stand alone, a terraformed paradise where even the Reduction--the devastating brain disorder that sparked the wars--is a distant memory. Yet on the isle of Galatea, an uprising against the ruling aristocrats has turned deadly. The revolutionaries' weapon is a drug that damages their enemies' brains, and the only hope is rescue by a mysterious spy known as the Wild Poppy.

On the neighboring island of Albion, no one suspects that the Wild Poppy is actually famously frivolous aristocrat Persis Blake. The teenager uses her shallow, socialite trappings to hide her true purpose: her gossipy flutternotes are encrypted plans, her pampered sea mink is genetically engineered for spying, and her well-publicized new romance with handsome Galatean medic Justen Helo... is her most dangerous mission ever.

Hmmm.... so I loved the first book in this duology (For Darkness Shows the Stars), but this retelling of The Scarlet Pimpernel just didn't wow me. I couldn't quite connect to any of the main characters. I was not completely on board with the terminology used throughout. The first book felt like a logical adaptation of a classic work redone into a post-apocalyptic world. This one felt a little too fantasy/candy-colored future for me. My mind wandered throughout attempting to get through the pages. Just really not my cup of tea. 

For Darkness Shows the Stars by Diana Peterfreund

Title: For Darkness Shows the Stars (For Darkness Shows the Stars #1)

Author: Diana Peterfreund

Publisher: Balzer + Bray 2012

Genre: Young Adult Science Fiction

Pages: 407

Rating: 5/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Perpetual - 365 Young Adult, YA Retellings; A to Z - F; Seasonal Series - Free Space

It's been several generations since a genetic experiment gone wrong caused the Reduction, decimating humanity and giving rise to a Luddite nobility who outlawed most technology.

Elliot North has always known her place in this world. Four years ago Elliot refused to run away with her childhood sweetheart, the servant Kai, choosing duty to her family's estate over love. Since then the world has changed: a new class of Post-Reductionists is jumpstarting the wheel of progress, and Elliot's estate is foundering, forcing her to rent land to the mysterious Cloud Fleet, a group of shipbuilders that includes renowned explorer Captain Malakai Wentforth—an almost unrecognizable Kai. And while Elliot wonders if this could be their second chance, Kai seems determined to show Elliot exactly what she gave up when she let him go. 

But Elliot soon discovers her old friend carries a secret—one that could change their society . . . or bring it to its knees. And again, she's faced with a choice: cling to what she's been raised to believe, or cast her lot with the only boy she's ever loved, even if she's lost him forever.

I remember hearing about this adaptation of Jane Austen's Persuasion when it was published, but promptly forgot about it. Thank goodness I saw it on my perpetual lists and finally got it from the library. This is such.a treat! Peterfreund has taken the amazing story of Anne Elliott and Captain Wentworth and set it in another time and place. We still get the social commentary on social classes, but now it's in a post-apocalyptic society. We get an interesting society to explore and fun side characters to liven up the party. We get a bit of mystery concerning the Fleet Posts. And we get the amazing spirit and courage of this books Anne, Elliott North. I sped through this volume just waiting for the letter from Wentworth, Wentforth, to Anne, Elliott. And I wasn't disappointed. I'm very interested to see what Peterfreund does in the sequel, but first, I think I'll read the two short stories. 

For Darkness Shows the Stars

• #0.5 Among the Nameless Stars
• #1 For Darkness Shows the Stars
• #1.5 The First Star to Fall
• #2 Across a Star-Swept Sea

Next up on the TBR pile:

Alice in Zombieland by Gena Showalter

Title: Alice in Zombieland (White Rabbit Chronicles #1)

Author: Gena Showalter

Publisher: Harlequin 2012

Genre: YA - Fantasy

Pages: 404

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Perpetual - YA Retellings; I Love Libraries; Seasonal Series - Character Growth

She won't rest until she's sent every walking corpse back to its grave. Forever. Had anyone told Alice Bell that her entire life would change course between one heartbeat and the next she would have laughed. But that's all it took. One heartbeat. A blink, a breath, a second, and everything she knew and loved was gone. Her father was right. The monsters are real. To avenge her family Ali must learn to fight the undead. To survive she must learn to trust the baddest of the bad boys, Cole Holland. But Cole has secrets of his own and if Ali isn't careful those secrets might just prove to be more dangerous than the zombies.

This series has been sitting on my virtual TBR shelf for years now. I'm always a sucker for Alice in Wonderland adjacent books and movies. Most of them are super dumb, but I watch or read anyway. Thankfully this one was delightful. I sped through this volume in just over a day. I couldn't put it down. I loved the references here and there to Alice. I loved the zombies (gotta love the zombies). I loved the various side characters that added a bit of flavor to the story (Kat is hands-down my favorite). And I very much loved Ali and Cole. My one little issue is the over done trope of characters withholding important information "for their own good."  Seriously there would be a  lot less conflict and heartache in books if people were just upfront with information and their thoughts. But I know, being honest doesn't make for good conflicts in books. Oh well. Still really loved this one and can't wait to grab the next volume from the library.

White Rabbit Chronicles:

• #1 Alice in Zombieland
• #1.5 Cole... Meet Ali
• #2 Through the Zombie Glass
• #3 The Queen of Zombie Hearts
• #4 A Mad Zombie Party
• #4.1 Kat in Zombieland

Next up on the TBR pile:

Dorothy Must Die by Danielle Paige

Title: Dorothy Must Die (Dorothy Must Die #1)

Author: Danielle Page

Publisher: Full Fathom Five 2014

Genre: YA Fantasy

Pages: 452

Rating:  4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Perpetual (YA Retellings); Popsguar - Character's Name in Title; Fairytale Retellings (I'm counting Wizard of Oz as a more modern fairytale)

My name is Amy Gumm—and I'm the other girl from Kansas. I've been recruited by the Revolutionary Order of the Wicked. I've been trained to fight. And I have a mission: Remove the Tin Woodman's heart. Steal the Scarecrow's brain. Take the Lion's courage. And—Dorothy must die.

Such a fun retelling of one of my favorite childhood stories. I loved the twists on each character while keeping true to Baum's original story. The Lion is truly terrifying. And we get elements of the rest of the original Oz stories with Ozma, the witches, etc. I sped through this book in only two days. I had to see where it ended, or should I say, where it left me hanging. Of course this is just the first book in the series. Thank goodness I have the rest of the series out from the library just waiting for me to die in.

Dorothy Must Die

• #0.1 No Place Like Oz
• #0.2 The Witch Must Burn
• #0.3 The Wizard Returns
• #0.4 Heart of Tin
• #0.5 The Straw King
• #0.6 Ruler of Beasts
• #0.7 Order of the Wicked
• #0.8 Dark Side of the Rainbow
• #0.9 The Queen of Oz
• #1 Dorothy Must Die
• #2 The Wicked Will Rise
• #3 Yellow Brick War
• #4 The End of Oz

Next up on the TBR pile:

Cinder by Marissa Meyer

Title:  Cinder (Lunar Chronicles #1)

Author: Marissa Meyer

Publisher: Felwel andFriends 2012

Genre: YA Scifi

Pages: 448

Rating: 5/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Popsugar - Based on a Fairytale; Fairytale Retelling; Perpetual (365 YA #49, YA Retelling #25)

Cinder, a gifted mechanic, is a cyborg. She's a second-class citizen with a mysterious past, reviled by her stepmother and blamed for her stepsister's illness. But when her life becomes intertwined with the handsome Prince Kai's, she suddenly finds herself at the center of an intergalactic struggle, and a forbidden attraction. Caught between duty and freedom, loyalty and betrayal, she must uncover secrets about her past in order to protect her world's future.

Another middle of the night read. Somehow I forget that I had added this book to my Kindle at some point. Glad I rediscovered it a few nights back. I loved this retelling of Cinderella set in a distant future. I immediately fell in love with Cinder. Such a great character! And the side characters, including the androids, were a treat. But my favorite character was definitely Queen Levana. Very intriguing villain. I can't wait to read more from this world and follow Cinder's journey. Such a great start to a series.

The Lunar Chronicles

• #0.5 Glitches
• #0.6 The Little Android
• #1 Cinder
• #1.5 The Queen's Army
• #2 Scarlet
• #2.5 Carswell's Guide to Being Lucky
• #3 Cress
• #3.5 Fairest
• #3.6 Stars Above
• #4 Winter