Title: Blood Ties (Oliver Nocturne #3)
Author: Kevin Emerson
Published: June, 2009 by Scholastic
Pages: 224
Rating:  
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To avoid the summer sun, the Nocturnes head for vacation at Isla Necrata, a resort whose location always changes, putting it near a geologic calamity- most often a volcanic eruption. As a bonus, Oliver is allowed to bring Dean along, the only catch being that he has to pretend to be Oliver’s servant. Before they get there, the Nocturnes must endure a particularly uncomfortable visit with Oliver’s extended, Old World vampire family, who live in Morosia, a vampire city underneath Rome.

At the same time, Oliver discovers that Emalie has stowed away, believing that Morosia may hold clues to her mother’s whereabouts. Oliver must keep his family from finding out about her, sneak out of family obligations to meet up with her on the surface, and search for the oracle that predicted his destiny, which he learns is in the Asylum Colony, somewhere deep beneath Morosia.

Final Thoughts:
More of the same if you’ve read this series before. Oliver’s off on family vacation tracking down information on his vampire prophecy. Dean’s zombieness made is enjoyable enough to get through.

Title: May (Conspiracy 365 #5)
Author: Gabrielle Lord
Published: May, 2010 by Scholastic
Pages: 181
Rating:  
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On New Year’s Eve, Callum Ormond is chased down the street by a crazed man with a deadly warning: They killed your father. They’ll kill you. You must survive the next 365 days! Cal has hit rock bottom. He’s lost the only clues he had to the Ormond Singularity: the family secret that’s turned his life into a nightmare. And now, trapped in a high-security prison for the insane, he’s lost his identity too. Against all the odds, he must escape and carry on his father’s quest for the truth – but how? Nobody knows where he is, and no one can hear him scream. He has 245 days. His life is on the line …

Final Thoughts:
Probably the best so far in the series, plot movement wise. A bit of a shake up from the usual I’d come to expect during the first four books. Let’s just say, if you don’t like reading about sane people stuck in mental asylums, you are sure to be frustrated.

Title: April (Conspiracy 365 #4)
Author: Gabrielle Lord
Published: April, 2010 by Scholastic
Pages: 181
Rating:  
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On New Year’s Eve, Callum Ormond is chased down the street by a crazed man with a deadly warning: They killed your father. They’ll kill you. You must survive the next 365 days! Stranded in the middle of nowhere, terrified and alone, Cal is on the run. Somehow he must make sense of his father’s mysterious drawings and solve a family secret from the past: the Ormond Singularity. But first he has to dodge the police and thugs who are closing in on him, and save his sister’s life. He has 275 days. His world is falling apart…

Final Thoughts:
The mystery is slowly unfolding, but there is still plenty to keep you guessing. More enjoyable than the previous books and with an ending like this one, it has me excited for more to come.

Title: March (Conspiracy 365 #3)
Author: Gabrielle Lord
Published: March, 2010 by Scholastic
Pages: 181
Rating:  
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On New Year’s Eve, Cal is chased down the street by a crazed man with a deadly warning: They killed your father. They’ll kill you. You must survive the next 365 days! Now everyone’s searching for Cal, the psycho kid who’s meant to have attacked his uncle and put his sister in a coma. He’s desperate to clear his name and protect his family, but he also has less than a year to solve an ancient family secret: the Ormond Singularity. And the closer he gets to the truth, the more dangerous his life becomes. He has 306 days. The threat is growing…

Final Thoughts:
The story is still building its web. Mystery, action and the strength of friendship. Fun light reading.

Title: February (Conspiracy 365 #2)
Author: Gabrielle Lord
Published: February, 2010 by Scholastic
Pages: 183
Rating:  
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On New Year’s Eve, Callum Ormond is chased down the street by a crazed man with a deadly warning: They killed your father. They’ll kill you. You must survive the next 365 days! Now he’s on the run. The people who killed his father want him dead, and the police are chasing him for a crime he didn’t commit. A month has gone by and he’s still no nearer to solving the Ormond Riddle, the family secret that has turned his life into a nightmare. Can he trust the mysterious Winter Frey, or will she lead him further into danger? He has 334 days. The clock is ticking…

Final Thoughts:
A quick afternoon read with lots of suspense. Only lessened by the fact that there are 10 more books therefore the main character isn’t going to be bumped off just yet.

Title: Need (Need #1)
Author: Carrie Jones
Published: December, 2008 by Bloomsbury
Pages: 306
Rating:  
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Zara White suspects there’s a freaky guy semi-stalking her. She’s also obsessed with phobias. And it’s true, she hasn’t exactly been herself since her stepfather died. But exiling her to shivery Maine to live with her grandmother? That seems a bit extreme. The move is supposed to help her stay sane…but Zara’s pretty sure her mom just can’t deal with her right now.

She couldn’t be more wrong. Turns out the semi-stalker is not a figment of Zara’s overactive imagination. In fact, he’s still following her, leaving behind an eerie trail of gold dust. There’s something not right – not human – in this sleepy Maine town, and all signs point to Zara.

In this creepy, compelling breakout novel, Carrie Jones delivers romance, suspense, and a creature you never thought you’d have to fear.

Final Thoughts:
Very addictive. I love when a romance is able to capture you so easily. Pixies, shifters and lots of phobia naming make for a very fun read.

Title: Vampire Academy (Vampire Academy #1)
Author: Richelle Mead
Published: August, 2007 by Razorbill
Pages: 332
Rating:  
Purchase: The Book Depository

St. Vladimir’s Academy isn’t just any boarding school; it’s a hidden place where vampires are educated in the ways of magic and half-human teens train to protect them. Rose Hathaway is a Dhampir, a bodyguard for her best friend Lissa, a Moroi Vampire Princess. They’ve been on the run, but now they’re being dragged back to St. Vladimir’s; the very place where they’re most in danger…

Rose and Lissa become enmeshed in forbidden romance, the Academy’s ruthless social scene, and unspeakable nighttime rituals. But they must be careful lest the Strigoi; the world’s fiercest and most dangerous vampires make Lissa one of them forever.

Final Thoughts:
Not an instant favourite, but still very enjoyable for fans of the vampire genre. Tough females and high school bitchiness, add to that some hot guys and you have a very fun read.