*twirls* I loooooooove this series. Admittedly, my favorite is the first, Noah and Echo’s story. But I’ll say again, this series is one of my favorite YA on the verge of NA contemporary series out there.
I’ve been waiting for Isaiah’s story for AGES, YEARS, EONS… ok, so no, but I have been waiting since even before Beth’s story. There’s just something about Isaiah that screams GOOD and MISUNDERSTOOD and SWOONY.
For Rachel, I’d shovel coal into the furnace in hell.
Isaiah is in the thick of the street life, he has no choice. Rooming with Noah at an infested apartment in the not so exciting part of town, behind rent and scraping for money while avoiding his foster family, he is definitely not in the best of shapes. Noah planning on moving to the dorms isn’t helping things. And then to make matters worse (depending how you look at things) Isaiah’s mother, 2 years after being released from prison, is reaching out and want to renew their relationship.
Rachel Young is a blond, petite, fragile-ish girl, surrounded by 4 brothers and overprotective parents, who mostly see her as a replacement for their eldest daughter who they’ve lost to cancer before Rachel and her twin were even born
I hate Colleen. Hate her. I’ve never met her and I despise her.
How dare she be perfect and beautiful and everything everyone could have ever dreamed of in a sister and a daughter. How dare she get sick and die and leave this entire family in shambles. How dare she haunt me from her grave, taunting me with how I will never be good enough.
Rachel is rich and mostly the exact opposite of Isaiah. But they have something in common.
Both LOVE muscle cars.
Rachel suffers at the hands of her family. Not intentionally, and they do love her, but my God if there are characters more dense in literary fiction than her parents and possibly her older brothers, call me Petunia. I wanted to smash my Paperwhite against the wall several times, and possibly *cough* bitched *cough* about them on twitter a few times while reading. I did like most other characters, though there weren’t many more major-ish ones.
While Rachel makes a few innocent mistakes, trying to let loose and free of her suffocating and pressuring family, she meets Isaiah. At an illegal drag race. Welp!
Getting in trouble with Eric, the drag race-street-lord is possibly the last thing Rachel needs, and to Isaiah’s credit he does try to prevent that happening. However, things get slightly complicated and the end result is Isaiah and Rachel in bed with Eric. And no, not the fun way.
Taking into consideration everything both MCs have to deal with, throwing in Beth trying to rekindle her friendship with Isaiah and him trying to deal with his mother’s return to his life, makes for one heck of an emotional ride.
McGarry’s writing is always emotional, genuine and compelling. The relationships she creates are easy to empathize with, even if not to the letter (God, I hope few of us have to deal with this kind of crap in life). And when a beautiful and complex character like Isaiah is the one the story revolves around, knowing she is the one to do him justice only makes wanting to read the story stronger.
So yes, while I disliked (understatement) most of the characters involved in the plot. And while there were a lot of ups and downs, many twists in the plot and yes – a lot of rage (on my part), I enjoyed this story immensely.
I am now waiting for West’s story. He’s a enough of a complex idiot (right now) that his story has the potential to be pretty awesome. Also, a novella for Ethan and Abby (hint hint) wouldn’t be rejected from my TBR list. Just FYI, Katie *wink*
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I. Love. PNR. And when it’s well written, has great characters *cough* especially a great male lead *cough* and a female lead that’s not a pushover… SOLD!
Becoming Alpha is alllll of the above.
I received a copy of Becoming Alpha from Ink Monster LLC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
When I got the email with the notice about this book, I contemplated. A lot. I have a lot to read and more advanced copies than I can chew probably, but something about this book winked at me, batted its eyelashes and got me all flustered (I’m easy that way) so I requested and was approved (thanks again!) and here’s what I think.
I have one word that can summarize this review perfectly but I’m not saying it now.
Tessa is a 17 year old girl (yes, they’re all 17 years old in YA) and she’s special. She’s from a long line of witches, on her mother’s side, each with her own special gift of sight. Tessa can’t touch anyone or anything without seeing what they did and feel what they felt. Her best friend is her older brother and she’s about to relocate with her family from California to Texas, in the hopes life will be easier for her.
Leaving LA is a feat in itself, and upon investigating a little as to the real reason they’re moving, Tessasees something she can’t explain and experiences her gift a little differently than usual. And then they arrive in Texas, where even warned to stay away from St. Ailbe’s students she manages to share a kiss with one. A kiss that changes her life.
Remember that word I can summarize the review with? Here it goes:
DASTIEN
He smiled, and his dimples showed.
Did I ever mention I’m a sucker for dimples?
I LOVE it when an author writes a great male lead, and Dastien is an excellent one. He’s hot, hot, HOT and every word I read regarding him made me all swoony. I’m quite positive that had I been hooked to an EKG machine my pulse would go nuts whenever his name appeared.
Dastien strode toward us. He wore sweatpants, no shoes, no shirt. I’d never seen anyone with a six-pack in real life before. My heart started pounding.
Personally, I’d just…
Back to the point: Dastien didn’t mean to bite Tessa and breaking a cardinal rule, he didn’t mean to hurt her and change the course of her life, but he did. And when Tessa wakes up changed, this story picks up and is one sweeping action tale sprinkled with the sweetest moments of first (and forever?!) love that keeps the reader enraptured.
Tessa’s character goes through several stages of growing up, from being almost completely isolated because of her gift to falling for an older boy in a completely new environment and everything in between. She is badass, determined, knows what she wants and knows her own value. That rarely happens with YA females and I loved it. Basically Tessa’s arc takes her from seclusion to fiercely protecting her friends and soulmate.
Dastien is everything. He is handsome (naturally), a charismatic leader, protective and romantic, and hot. I’ve mentioned that before, but really, that’s not a word one can overuse. And let’s not forget all the wolfy attributes; the jealousy, the agility and hot (see?) body it comes with, and all the alpha testosterone in this story… oh. my. god.
I’m recommending this story for anyone who’s a PNR fan, YA fan and especially of the combination. Anyone who’s not afraid to give a promising new author a shot and anyone who wants a great, well written page turner.
Becoming Alpha has a sequel due in a few months, Avoiding Alpha that is now highly anticipated by me. And if Becoming Alpha is any indication – it’ll be amazing. Also, the cover. I already announced I want to live in it.
My rating: <– 5 gloriously howling wolves.
This review and others can be found on The Book Hammock!