Review: STARRY NIGHTS by Daisy Whitney

Title: STARRY NIGHTS
Author: Daisy Whitney
Published: September 2013
Series: Standalone
Genre: YA
Publisher: Bloomsbury
POV: 1st person
Pages: 280
Format: e-ARC
Source: Netgalley
Rating: The Great Hall

Seventeen-year-old Julien is a romantic—he loves spending his free time at the museum poring over the great works of the Impressionists. But one night, a peach falls out of a Cezanne, Degas ballerinas dance across the floor, and Julien is not hallucinating.

The art is reacting to a curse that trapped a beautiful girl, Clio, in a painting forever. Julien has a chance to free Clio and he can't help but fall in love with her. But love is a curse in its own right. And soon paintings begin to bleed and disappear. Together Julien and Clio must save the world's greatest art . . . at the expense of the greatest love they've ever known.

Like a master painter herself, Daisy Whitney brings inordinate talent and ingenuity to this romantic, suspenseful, and sophisticated new novel. A beautifully decorated package makes it a must-own in print.

For Julian, art comes to life. As in, art actually comes to life. Once night falls, the artwork hanging in the museum leave their frames and step into real life. But while dancing Degas ballerinas are fun to watch, there's only one painting that Julian wants to see come to life: The Girl in the Garden. Thought to be long lost but recently found, there's something about her that captures Julian's attention. Add in a personality-filled Bonheur (and his awesome sister Sophie), a little magic dust, and an old enemy who is bent on claiming The Girl in The Garden, and you're in for an interesting story.

STARRY NIGHTS features fantastic characters and an even more intriguing concept. Yet, for all the fun that Julian & Co. provide, I was left wishing for more meaning and originality to the story. Whitney tugged at my emotions with her debut, THE MOCKINGBIRDS, so I was very surprised by how little I felt while reading this story. Simply put, STARRY NIGHTS is a cute and light read that will undeniably entertain readers in the mood for such a story, but it does not come close the excellency of Whitney's other works. If you're looking for a quick and fun library check-out, this book is for you. 

Highlights: Paintings come to life¹. I really liked Julian, Bonheur, Sophie, Emilie and other characters. I loved learning who Clio really was, especially since her true identity was an interesting twist. The art aspect was fantastic, though I wish we could have seen some of it in the story (if only pictures of the artwork could have been included, that would have been amazing).

Lowlights: The romance was unbelievable. As a crush? Sure. As love? No way. So when the l-word was introduced, I stopped believing in the romance. Also, for a Parisian boy, Julian sounds an awful lot like an American teenager. It's been my experience that people from anywhere tend to have their own local/cultural slang that comes with the territory of growing up in a certain area. If I hadn't been told that this story was set in Paris, I would have assumed it was meant to be Anywhere, USA.

Rating: The Great Hall (high 3 out of 5). This book was very likable, enough that I want a copy in the palace even if it doesn't earn a spot in the royal library. STARRY NIGHTS is a likable and entertaining novel, but there are a few issues. 

1 I took a few Art History classes early in college, and they were outstanding. So, it was very cool read about artwork I've studied before, especially in a story where they come to life. Although I'm not going to lie, the Mona Lisa's secret was slightly underwhelming.

Waiting on Wednesday (130): VERONICA MARS + GLORY O'BRIEN'S HISTORY OF THE FUTURE

WOW is hosted by Breaking the Spine

VERONICA MARS

by Rob Thomas, Jennifer Graham

March 25th, 2014

The first book in an original mystery series featuring twenty-eight-year-old Veronica Mars, back in action after the events of Veronica Mars: The Movie. With the help of old friends—Logan Echolls, Mac Mackenzie, Wallace Fennel, and even Dick Casablancas—Veronica is ready to take on Neptune’s darkest cases with her trademark sass and smarts.

I'm a huge fan of the Veronica Mars TV show (and was a Kickstarter backer for the upcoming movie), so I'm definitely excited for a book series! More Veronica Mars? YES please! 

GLORY O'BRIEN'S HISTORY OF THE FUTURE

by AS King

WOULD YOU TRY TO CHANGE THE WORLD

IF YOU THOUGHT YOU HAD NO FUTURE?

Graduating from high school is a time of limitless possibilities—but not for Glory, who has no plan for what's next. Her mother committed suicide when Glory was only four years old, and she’s never stopped wondering if she will eventually go the same way...until a transformative night when she begins to experience an astonishing new power to see a person’s infinite past and future. From ancient ancestors to many generations forward, Glory is bombarded with visions—and what she sees ahead of her is terrifying.

A tyrannical new leader raises an army. Women’s rights disappear. A violent second civil war breaks out. And young girls vanish daily, sold off or interned in camps. Glory makes it her mission to record everything she sees, hoping her notes will somehow make a difference. She may not see a future for herself, but she’ll do everything in her power to make sure this one doesn’t come to pass.

I'm still new to AS King's writing (loved EVERYBODY SEES THE ANTS, and am starting THE DUST OF 100 DOGS), but I'm enjoying her work so far, so I'm curious about her next novel. 

What are you waiting on?

Review: CRESS by Marissa Meyer

Title: CRESS
Author: Marissa Meyer
Published: February 4th, 2014
Series: The Lunar Chronicles #3
Genre: YA Sci-fi / Fantasy
Pages: 560
POV: 3rd, multiple alternating
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Format: Printed ARC
Source: Publicist
Rating: The Royal Library, Top Shelf

Rapunzel’s tower is a satellite. She can’t let down her hair—or her guard.

In this third book in the bestselling Lunar Chronicles series, Cinder and Captain Thorne are fugitives on the run, with Scarlet and Wolf in tow. Together, they’re plotting to overthrow Queen Levana and her army.

Their best hope lies with Cress, who has been trapped on a satellite since childhood with only her netscreens as company. All that screen time has made Cress an excellent hacker—unfortunately, she’s just received orders from Levana to track down Cinder and her handsome accomplice.

When a daring rescue goes awry, the group is separated. Cress finally has her freedom, but it comes at a high price. Meanwhile, Queen Levana will let nothing stop her marriage to Emperor Kai. Cress, Scarlet, and Cinder may not have signed up to save the world, but they may be the only ones who can.

I liked CINDER, loved SCARLET, and adored Meyer's latest installment in the Lunar Chronicles, CRESS. With each novel, Meyer's writing grows more captivating, entertaining, and surprising as she takes each major and minor storyline in intriguing directions. CRESS picks up where SCARLET left off, and the excitement level kicks up a few notches right from the very beginning. Prepare yourself for journeys across deserts, adventures in space, fight scenes, and plenty of Carswell Thorne being as fabulous as Carswell Thorne can possibly be. I had high hopes for this novel, and Meyer succeeded in creating a wonderfully entertaining novel from start to the finish.

I'm going to keep quiet about specific plot points, since Meyer's books are better experienced without knowing too many details. With CRESS, readers gain the opportunity to see a bit more of the Lunars. We only receive glimpses into Lunar life, along with the small tidbits of knowledge Cress shares (since she is a Lunar shell, but this skilled hacker hasn't had the easiest life because of her shell status), but it's enough to make me very curious about the next novel. Fortunately, there is still plenty more to enjoy in this novel. This story is filled with action, secrets, adorable budding romances, humor, and so much more. If you are not reading this series, I'd highly recommend you start these novels soon, because you are in a for a delightful and surprising twist on some of your favorite classic fairytales.

Highlights: Meyer excels at balancing a large cast and doing each character justice when it comes to the different perspectives, not to the mention the multiple storylines. Cress is a fabulous addition to the cast since her timid strength and dreamy, hopeful nature created a nice contrast to Scarlet's toughness and Cinder's more serious nature. Even Captain Thorne managed to surprise me, because under his humorous and slightly selfish personality, there really is a guy with a heart of (mostly) gold. Also, Iko is a definite highlight¹.

Lowlights: It ended? I wanted a bit more with the Lunars. The wait for WINTER (Snow White retelling, set on the moon - yes, the moon) is going to be a nightmare, because I need that book now.

Rating: The Royal Library, Top Shelf. CRESS is a wonderful sci-fi / fantasy twist on familiar fairytales, with quite a few surprises in store for readers. If you're looking for a fun, exciting series to start reading, I'd highly suggest checking out the Lunar Chronicles.

1 No surprise there. Iko rocks.