(Image from Barnes & Noble)

(Note:  While this review will not contain spoilers for Shadows, it may inadvertently spoil plot surprises from Ashes, its predecessor.  As always, I recommend reading books in a series in order.)

Although Alex has lived in relative safety for the last few months, she knows she can't stay in Rule.  Sure, it's zombie-free, but there are other predators in the city.  And these animals are still in control of their brains—they know all too well how to manipulate teenage girls, to use them, to break them.  Alex can't let that happen to her.  She's already lost the people she loves most; she can't lose herself as well.  But outside the protected town are horrors she can barely fathom, let alone fight.  Captured by a sinister group of Changed, she waits ... to die.

Unbeknownst to Alex, Tom Eden is alive.  Still recovering from the near death experience that led to his separation from Alex, he's hiding out in Wisconsin.  Although he's being sheltered by good people, he knows he's not completely safe.  The Changed are always out there, as are the bounty hunters who roam the ruined country looking for able-bodied men to kidnap and sell to the highest bidder.  Trekking through the snow to Wisconsin, where Tom believes Alex is still living in Rule, will not be an easy journey.  But it's one he has to take.  He can't live without Alex.

As Tom and Alex fight their individual battles for survival, they inch closer and closer to each other.  But in a world like theirs, where death lurks around every corner, there's little chance the two will ever meet again.  Especially when fighting to stay alive seems to be an exercise in futility.  Still, Tom trudges on.  Still, Alex fights.  Still, they hope—for a better life, for a better world and, however impossible it seems, for each other. 

So, the thing I loved most about Ashes, the first book in Ilsa J. Bick's YA zombie trilogy, is that it wasn't really about the zombies.  They were present, of course, but the blood and guts took a backstage to the human drama.  In Shadows?  Not so much.  This time, it's more about the gore.  Which got old.  And nauseating.  Really nauseating.  The story's exciting— it's an edge-of-your-seat, can't-breathe-'til-you-finish, thrill-a-minute horror extravaganza.  And because Bick wrote it, the book's so compelling that you can't stop yourself from reading it even though it's making you physically ill.  My overall feelings on this one, though?  It kept me totally absorbed, but I was a tad disappointed.  I wanted more humanity, less zombie action.  Still, I enjoy this series and I can't wait to see how it all ends up.  I really can't, because Bick always surprises me.  Even if it's with the kind of gore that makes me throw up in my mouth—and swallow it down because I don't want to waste time throwing up when I need to be turning pages to find out what's going to happen next.  Yeah, it's totally like that.    

(Readalikes:  Ashes by Ilsa J. Bick; also other zombie novels like The Passage by Justin Cronin; The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan; Rot & Ruin by Jonathan Maberry; The Enemy by Charles Higson; etc.)

Grade:  B-

If this were a movie, it would be rated:  R for language (a few F-bombs as well as milder invectives), violence/gore, and sexual content

To the FTC, with love:  I received two finished copies of Shadows from the generous folks at Egmont USA.  Thank you!

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Giveaway time!  The very generous people at Egmont USA have given me an extra copy of Shadows to give away to one of you.  It's a brand new, hardcover zombie book, just in time for Halloween.  What's not to love?  What do you have to do to win it?  How about this:  Leave me a comment telling me about the best Halloween costume you ever wore.  Please be sure to leave an email address along with your answer.  As always, I'll give you extra entries for spreading the word about the giveaway (1 extra entry per method of word-spreading).  I'll choose a winner on October 31st.  Giveaway is open to readers with U.S. and Canadian addresses only.  Good luck!

(Image from Barnes & Noble)

If you've read my reviews of In the Woods or The Likeness or Faithful Place, you know I pretty much think that Irish novelist Tana French walks on water.  I mean, the girl's good.  Very, very good.  She's got a potty mouth, but still, I can't get enough of her books.  Every one of them boasts intriguing characters, complex plotting, and the kind of writing that sucks a reader in and doesn't let go.  Her newest, Broken Harbor, is no exception.  I admit it's not my favorite of French's books; even still, it kept me wholly absorbed and totally entertained.  The girl's good, I tell you, really, really good.

Like the other books in French's Dublin Murder Squad series, Broken Harbor takes a minor character from a previous novel and thrusts him into the spotlight.  This time, it's Mick "Scorcher" Kennedy (from Faithful Place).  The 42-year-old's tough-but-fair reputation has made him the squad's top detective, which is why a hot new case lands in his lap.  A family of four has been found dead in their home, a newly-constructed edifice in a half-built "luxury" community by the sea.  To Mick and his very green partner, 31-year-old Richie Curran, it seems like your everyday murder/suicide.  Except that something about the whole thing seems off.  If Patrick and Jennifer Spain were as happy together as everyone says they were, what's with all the holes in the walls of their otherwise well-kept home?  And what about the video cameras and baby monitors everywhere?  The details just don't add up.  Combined with the eeriness of the abandoned community where the Spains lived, the whole thing is just downright ... spooky.

Mick would like to get the case solved and get the heck out of Broken Harbor.  The place gives him the creeps—not just because of what happened to the Spains, but because of his own ties to the seaside spot.  Memories of his own family's Broken Harbor nightmare have already sent his little sister over the edge.  Will Mick be next?  Or will figuring out what happen to the Spains finally put his own ghosts to rest?

Although I had the killer figured out long before Mick did, I still found Broken Harbor compelling.  Not as compelling as the other books in the series, but still absorbing in the way that only a novel by Tana French can be.  I've heard other French fans say that this one felt a little formulaic and I agree, although I don't mind it as much with French as I do with less talented authors.  Still, I'm hoping she'll dazzle me with something new and original for the next book.  I have to admit, though, that I'll keep reading her anyway.  Whatever French writes, I'll devour.  Like I keep saying, the girl's that good.  

(Readalikes:  Reminded me of other novels by Tana French, especially Faithful Place)

Grade:  B

If this were a movie, it would be rated:  R for language, violence and sexual innuendo

To the FTC, with love:  Another library fine find       

(Image from Deseret Book)

If you're a fan of Melanie Jacobson's LDS romances, particularly Twitterpated, then the name Sandy Burke will definitely ring a bell.  No?  In case you're coming up blank, I'll help you out—Sandy's the snarky, redheaded fashionista who rooms with Jessie Taylor, the workaholic heroine of Twitterpated.  Yep, she's that Sandy, the girl who upstaged Jessie pretty much from Page 1.  If you—like me—wondered about the story behind Jessie's colorful roomie, then you'll be thrilled to know that all your questions are answered in Jacobson's new novel, Smart Move.  

After her adventures in Twitterpated, 27-year-old Sandy Burke is now living in the Washington, D.C. area where she runs a branch of New Horizons, an organization that provides job training for underprivileged women.  Not only has she returned to the church, but she's feeling confident about the vibrant LDS singles scene in her new town.  With her own place, a job that both challenges and satisfies her, and a fun set of girls to hang with, things are going better than Sandy ever could have expected. 

Then, Sandy gets the shock of her life: Jake Manning.  That Jake Manning, the gorgeous guy she connected so strongly with when she met him at a dance club in Seattle.  The guy whose failure to call almost destroyed every ounce of Sandy's confidence.  Not only has Jake, by some crazy-weird coincidence, moved into her ward on the other side of the country, but he's still trying to put the moves on Sandy.  The nerve!  Sandy's prepared to flirt with every guy in sight to get revenge on the man who caused her such emotional distress, but the thing is, the more time she spends with Jake, the more she's remembering why she was so attracted to him in the first place.

When Sandy discovers what Jake's really doing in D.C.—representing a home owner's group in its attempt to stop New Horizons from building an annex in their neighborhood—she knows she has to stop thinking of Jake as anything but her enemy.  As Sandy braces herself to fight Jake on every front, a surprise visitor arrives to stir things up.  Dealing with her flighty, granola-girl of a mother while trying to save her job and resist the man who's growing more disarming by the day may be more than even Sandy Burke can handle.  It also might be the best thing that's ever happened to her.  

Because I've read and reviewed all four of Melanie Jacobson's novels this year, I consider myself somewhat of an expert on her work.  Which is why I can say with complete, unabashed confidence that Smart Move is the best thing she's written to date.  Yes, the novel's predictable.  Yes, it gets cheesy.  And yes, once again, Jacobson's leading man lacks a discernible personality.  BUT, this time around, Jacobson gives us a likable heroine who's complex, interesting and just a whole lot of fun (her mother's even more so).  The sparring between Sandy and Jake keeps things interesting, while the plot of Smart Move moves at a pace that feels perfect.  Overall, this is a light, funny ("scripture Twister"—I'm still laughing at that one!) romance with a contemporary feel that will appeal to both older teens and "new adults."  Because it's not at all preachy, Smart Move would also be a good novel to hand to non-Mormon fans of sweet, clean romances.  Even though I'm kind of a hater when it comes to LDS fiction, I can say this for sure:  If Melanie Jacobson writes it, I'll read it.      

(Readalikes:  Reminds me of Jacobson's other novels—The List, Not My Type and, especially, Twitterpated)

Grade:  B

If this were a movie, it would be rated:  PG for mild sexual innuendo

To the FTC, with love:  I bought a copy of Smart Move from Amazon with a portion of the millions I make from my lucrative career as a book blogger.  Ha ha.

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Thanks to the very generous Melanie Jacobson, you can win your very own copy of Smart Move.  All you have to do is leave me a comment telling me about the smartest move (literal or figurative) you ever made.  Promoting this giveaway on Facebook, Twitter or wherever else will, of course, get you more entries (one per method of spreading the word).  I'll choose a winner (using Random.org) on November 6th.  Good luck! 

(Image from Barnes & Noble)