In the beginning they were a group of nine. Nine aliens who left their home planet of Lorien when it fell under attack by the evil Mogadorian. Nine aliens who scattered on Earth. Nine aliens who look like ordinary teenagers living ordinary lives, but who have extraordinary, paranormal skills. Nine aliens who might be sitting next to you now.
The Nine had to separate and go into hiding. The Mogadorian caught Number One in Malaysia, Number Two in England, and Number Three in Kenya. All of them were killed. John Smith, of Paradise, Ohio, is Number Four. He knows that he is next.
A movie trailer my sister sent me got me interested in reading I am Number Four:
Basically, the story is about nine Lorien aliens who leave their planet for Earth with their guardians after their planet has been attacked. Aliens from a different planet called Mogadorians are after to kill each Lorien and to take over Earth once this is done. They are limited to killing the Loriens in numerical order, otherwise they face inflicting double of the damage they cause onto themselves. Loriens develop legacies/superpowers over time which further complicates the task. Number Four has been on the run for many years and in the beginning of this book he assumes a new identity: John Smith, in the town Paradise.
The premises of the book sounded exciting however the book was too long and drawn out. The first 3/4 of the book moved quite slow when we are introduced to the background of John's species, the developing of his powers/Legacies, a human love interest Sarah Hart and a bunch of situations which risk exposing John's identity.
I did not really ship the Sarah and John coupling. I was disappointed in the lack of chemistry I felt between them. Sarah was a dull character to say the least. The one relationship which I found notable and heartwarming was between Henri and John. I loved the fatherly-son relationship that occurred between the two characters despite there being no blood bond.
The last 1/4 of the book was full of action. The descriptions of the bad guys (Mogadorian scouts/soldiers) are so vivid it gave chills every time they appeared. Unfortunately, soon after the action/climax began I was worn out from reading about the different environments, battle scenes and Mogadorian monsters/aliens John encountered. Throughout there were suspenseful but reoccurring situations of This-must-be-the-end-I'll-just-accept-it...-but-wait-someone-saved-me? This section of the book felt written for Film/TV. It was really hard to process the scenes and I couldn't help thinking that "this would translate well to a movie by using special effects and camera angles".
The next book in the Lorien Legacies series is called The Power of Six. Six was a female Lorien introduced toward to end of I am Number Four and boy was she kick-ass. I might read the next book for the sole reason that she was my favourite character.
I rate I am Number Four ★★★.5
Nevermore pulled me in from the start and had me reading it instead of doing assignments T_T. I swore that I would not read until all my assignments were done but this book was too addictive to be left alone! The unlikely couple of a cheerleader Isobel and goth Varen had me intrigued. I liked the transition set up from meeting to falling in love. The pacing was perfect as their love for each other was not sudden and out of the blue. I loved the numerous scenes and interactions between them.
Never would I have thought a book could be fun and frightening at the same time! Pretty little liars is about four girls who are very different, dealing with their own problems but are connected through one person who went missing. Each girl receives messages that remind them of their secrets, from the mysterious 'A'. Could it be their friend who went missing 3 years ago, Alison?
This is probably the first YA book I've read which is written by an Australian author. Even though I'm Australian myself, when I hear 'Australian' I think of the stereotypical references such as the outback and the accent we are so well known for. To be honest I didn't even know this was written by an Aussie until it made mention of New South Wales! There was no mention of the above mentioned references and the setting didn't affect the plot much. 
I viewed Marked to be a school drama infused with vampyre mythology. I was captured by the parts of the book where bits and pieces of myths were told. However when it came to the main character Zoey's voice, I was annoyed at times and wanted to slap her (mentally). Many of the friends Zoey makes at the House of Night have practically the same personality. I felt some of the comments were rephrased for each person just so that each character could get a line and be known to the reader. Occasionally, they did provide me with a few laughs.
The Gallagher Girls book number 1 was a seriously fun and witty read. The main character Cammie was a great narrator, I loved reading her comical thoughts. The constant use of nicknames throughout the book made me feel like I had gotten to know the characters in less than 300 pages, although some aspects of the characters felt stereotypical and two dimensional. For example, the bookworm Liz, the clever one Bex and the hateful girl who turned out to be a pretty good friend Macey. These didn't distract from the enjoyment of the book but their actions were cringe worthy at times.
With a title like that, I expected mystery and horror. The Body Finder delivered this but I found it took the back seat towards the second half of the book. The relationship between Violet and her childhood and best friend Jay was the main event. Not that I'm complaining because their chemistry was apparent from the beginning and it was sweet reading about their love blossoming. I found the idea of Violet sensing dead people and the people who killed others through an 'echo' - a fascinating idea but I would have liked to know how she got these abilities (since her parents or relatives have no such case) at least vaguely.
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The fourth novel of Percy Jackson and the Olympians is the packed full of action and adventure while managing to develop the characters. The Battle of the Labyrinth was a really fun read filled with Greek mythology. In this installment we are introduced to a range of mythical beings, items and places which were intriguing and which for me, really added faces to the 'monsters' Percy and Camp Half-blood are facing and will have to face. I really liked the ongoing glimpses of Daedalus' life in Percy's dreams, the mention of events in previous books to refresh my memory and the revelation of the meaning behind the Oracle's foreboding words. Greek mythology aside, I learnt many other things (like what a cattle guard was!) The Battle of the Labyrinth was definitely a page turner!
One night, Dr. Kane brings the siblings together for a "research experiment" at the British Museum, where he hopes to set things right for his family. Instead, he unleashes the Egyptian god Set, who banishes him to oblivion and forces the children to flee for their lives. 
ICE is a modern-day retelling of “East o’ the Sun, West o’ the Moon”. I've never read that fairytale but ICE is one of the most unique and strangest books I've ever read. It was an adventure that I never expected. The imagery is so strong in this book you can't help but picture the setting and transporting yourself there. The idea of Munaqsri, caretakers (every species has their own) who transfer and transport souls was an interesting and imaginative concept.
This book is amazing! I never knew what was coming and the paranormal element in this book. The blurb and cover gave no clue whatsoever about it and I loved this aspect.
