JASMINE's THOUGHTS on Enders by Lissa Price

The thrilling end to the questions raised in Starters is here.

Genre:

Young Adult Sci-Fi/Dystopian Romance

Series:

Starters Duology

Publish Date:

January 7, 2014

Publisher:

Delacorte Press

Synopsis:

Someone is after Starters like Callie and Michael—teens with chips in their brains. They want to experiment on anyone left over from Prime Destinations—Starters who can be controlled and manipulated. With the body bank destroyed, Callie no longer has to rent herself out to creepy Enders. But Enders can still get inside her mind and make her do things she doesn’t want to do, like hurt someone she loves. Having the chip removed could save her life—but it could also silence the voice in her head that might belong to her father. Callie has flashes of her ex-renter Helena’s memories, too . . . and the Old Man is back, filling her with fear. Who is real and who is masquerading in a teen body? No one is ever who they appear to be. Determined to find the Old Man to stop him, and grasping at the hope of a normal life for herself and her younger brother, Callie is ready to fight for the truth. Even if it kills her.

     

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**About the Author**

Lissa Price's debut novel Starters is an international bestseller published in over thirty countries. Dean Koontz called this YA futuristic thriller "a smart, swift, inventive, altogether gripping story." The LA Times said it is "Dystopian science fiction at its best." Starters was one of only four debuts on the Barnes & Noble Best Books of the Year for Teens List 2012. It won the Netherland's Crimzone Best YA Thriller Award and was a top ten favorite of 2012 in both Germany and France, beside books by J.K. Rowling and Toni Morrison.

Her name is pronounced LIH-suh.

Lissa Price lives in the foothills of Southern California with her husband and the occasional deer.

Stay connected with Lissa Price

Website

   

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***My Thoughts***

Well, that "cliffhanger" and questions that was left at the end of Starters, has been resolved....and, by no means, it was not a simple resolution! When I started reading Enders, it really didn't feel like a couple of years passed since Starters was released. Enders picked up where Starters left off. I felt the beginning was somewhat a refresh my memory of what happened in Starters, but, yet, was moving forward for Callie. However, other plot twists are revealed that made me think what's the truth and who's who? With all the "occupying" and plot twists, I was concerned that I would get confused with the storyline. Well...that concern faded with every turn of the page. I thoroughly enjoyed the read and in the end, I was seriously "holding my breath" every time Callie searched for answers to the many questions that consumed her.

Lissa Price intricately weaved multiple personalities into individual minds...as boasted about the chip that is in her head. I was unsure about being able to differentiate between actual dialogue and dialogue that occurred in Callie's head. However, Lissa did an amazing job with her character building that I wasn't confused when characters "occupied" Starter bodies. I could actually say that Callie has grown since her experience at Prime Destinations as a donor body for Enders.

Lissa Price definitely created an interesting and unique vision of a future that only specific age groups survived. Her world building and story is imaginative and unique which I thoroughly enjoyed. I loved her characters. Lissa's characters each have their own unique personalities. Each of these characters revealed a lot of growth in this sequel to Starters, especially Callie. Callie grew into a strong young woman who's fighting for her family, friends and her heart. I really enjoyed that Lissa's characters are intelligent and emotional. Enders was a suspenseful, action-packed, emotional rollercoaster ride in search of the truth.

Starters and Enders is definitely a different and interesting twist on a young adult sci-fi/dystopian novel.

My rating:

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Check out my thoughts on the first book Starters, here!

MY THOUGHTS: Starters by Lissa Price

Survival is just the beginning...

You can't get them out of your head.

Callie lost her parents when the Spore Wars wiped out everyone between the ages of twenty and sixty. She and her little brother, Tyler, go on the run, living as squatters with their friend Michael and fighting off renegades who would kill them for a cookie. 

Callie's only hope is Prime Destinations, a disturbing place in Beverly Hills run by a mysterious figure known as the Old Man. He hires teens to rent their bodies to Enders -- seniors who want to be young again. Callie, desperate for the money that will keep her, Tyler, and Michael alive, agrees to be a donor. But the neurochip they place in her head malfunctions and she wakes up in the life of her renter.

Callie soon discovers that her renter intends to do more than party -- and that Prime Destinations' plans are more evil than she could ever have imagined...

Praise for Starters

"Fans of The Hunger Games will love it." 

-Kami Garcia, New York Times bestselling coauthor of the Beautiful Creatures novels.

"Readers who have been waiting for a worthy successor to Suzanne Collins's The Hunger Games will find it here. Dystopian sci-fi at its best."

-Los Angeles Times

"Intriguing, thought-provoking and addictive."

-BookReporter.com

"Readers will stay hooked.... Constantly rising stakes keep this debut intense."

-Kirkus Reviews

"Fast-paced dystopian fiction.... The inevitable sequel can't appear soon enough."

-Booklist

"Addictive and alluring."

-Examiner.com

"Chilling and riveting."

-Shelf-Awareness.com

    

Check out the book trailer

& get a tease of what to expect in Starters

About the Author

Photo by: Paul Gregory Photography

Lissa Price's debut novel Starters is an international bestseller published in over thirty countries. Dean Koontz called this YA futuristic thriller "a smart, swift, inventive, altogether gripping story." The LA Times said it is "Dystopian science fiction at its best." Starters was one of only four debuts on the Barnes & Noble Best Books of the Year for Teens List 2012. It won the Netherland's Crimzone Best YA Thriller Award and was a top ten favorite of 2012 in both Germany and France, beside books by J.K. Rowling and Toni Morrison.

Her name is pronounced LIH-suh.

Lissa Price lives in the foothills of Southern California with her husband and the occasional deer.

Stay connected with Lissa Price

Website

   

Lissa Price w/ Kami Garcia & Nancy Holder on
The YA Legion Tour 10/2/13

Lissa Price

My Thoughts

The first time I heard about Starters was at WonderCon 2012 in Anaheim, California when Lissa Price was on a YA panel and premiered the book trailer. After watching the book trailer, I was definitely intrigued. Being in a genre, sci-fi, that I love, I wanted to immerse myself into this dystopian world. After meeting Lissa a few times at various events, my curiosity for this book grew. I decided it was time to read Starters. And, so I did...

Starters is set in the future after the Spore Wars, which decimated every adult between the ages of twenty and sixty, leaving the children and the elderly. Moreover, the elderly's mortality seemed to have bee extended. Interesting enough...to set the story in motion. It seemed very creepy to me that senior citizens were living quite a long time. Being told in a young person's point of view, it lent an interesting view on how the young saw their society. Technology has advanced quite a bit in this new society with things like airscreens and advance navigation systems in cars. I was amazed at the details Lissa has included in creating this world. 

I loved her characters, they were definitely characters with substance and emotions. The story is told in Callie's point of view taking readers on the dangerous journey of survival she embarks on to take care of her little brother, Tyler. The characters surprisingly have depth and discernible personalities, especially when they had to share the same body. Lissa's characters maintained their individuality throughout the story; therefore, achieving the readers ability to decipher who was who, especially in a time when the elderly was "renting" young bodies. It somewhat reminds me of Stephenie Meyer's adult novel, The Host, in which two characters occupied one body. 

Throughout the story, I was completely immersed in Callie's quest to make a better life for Tyler, Michael and herself...even sacrificing her body. At such a young age, for Callie to have to become mother and father to her little brother can be such a burden. And, without any living adult relatives to claim them or help them, they had to fend for themselves in a world where they take "unclaimed" minors to an "institution." I even started to question who can Callie trust in a world where the elderly "occupied" the bodies of teenagers. With each turn of the page, I was completely immersed in this world that Callie lives in...with all the dangers and obstacles that she, Tyler and Michael had to endure to survive. I loved this character, Callie; she's strong-willed, compassionate, intelligent and has a big heart....at times, she seemed a bit naive, especially when truths were revealed to her via her body "renter." I definitely did not get bored reading. With all the suspense and mystery behind "The Old Man," the story kept me "at the edge of my seat" with all that thrilling suspense in trying to stop his plan from coming to fruition. Now, that is another story in itself...who is "The Old Man" of Prime Destinations.

I would have to say, this is an interesting YA dystopian sci-fi novel, that was hard to put down. Lissa Price definitely achieved the elements of suspense, thriller, mystery and drama in Starters.

My rating:

The Giveaway

1 Winner will receive a Signed Starters Chapter Sampler

2 Winners will receive a Signed Starters bookmark

Must be 13+ to enter

U.S. entries only

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Unbreakable (Book 1 of The Legion Series) by Kami Garcia Giveaway

One of the awesome fun things I enjoy doing is going to these book tours, especially when it's withing driving distance. I recently went to one of the tour stops for The YA Legion Tour on October 2nd, launching Kami Garcia's new solo novel, Unbreakable. In addition to seeing Kami Garcia, other authors were also in attendance for the tour. The tour stop that my daughter and I was able to go to was hosted by Mysterious Galaxy bookstore in San Diego, which, at first, wasn't on the original tour schedule. At this particular tour stop, we had the pleasure of having Lissa Price and Nancy Holder joining Kami for this launch party. However, I was pretty bummed out that Amber Benson had to cancel. The night was still filled with fun and laughs as these amazing authors chatted about their experiences in life and in writing. Although it was a school night, my daughter and I had a great time even though we couldn't stay long. So, for those who wasn't able to go to a launch party, check out my post on our fun night when the YA Legion Tour Stopped in at Mysterious Galaxy!

Lissa Price, Kami Garcia & Nancy Holder

Kami Garcia at SDCC 2013

I had the awesome opportunity to have read Unbreakable in advance when Kami Garcia was at SDCC 2013 signing Advance Reader's Copies (ARC) of Unbreakable for fans. As soon as I found out when and what booth, we were in line to to get one and say "hi!" I don't think I can EVER get tired of seeing my favorite authors, especially when new books are released. Check out "my thoughts" at: http://moviesshowsnbooks.blogspot.com/2013/09/unbreakable-book-1-of-legion-series-by.html.

I loved the story! It reminded me a bit of one of my favorite TV shows, Supernatural. Like Nancy Holder stated, "Supernatural meets Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Kami Garcia is Joss Whedon's talent-sister! I didn't just read UNBREAKABLE; I lived it. When it comes to supernatural suspense, Garcia is the Slayer." I would have to agree!

So, if you haven't read Unbreakable yet, I think you should...that's just me!

But, for now, check out the book trailer!

So, without further ado, let's have a giveaway! Of course we can't have a launch party without swag! And, that's just what I got!

The Giveaway

YA Legion Tour poster signed by
Kami Garcia, Lissa Price & Nancy Holder

1 Winner will receive a signed copy of Unbreakable

1 Winner will receive a signed YA Legion Tour poster

1 Winner will receive an Unbreakable keychain

3 Winners will receive a signed Unbreakable bookmarks

Must be 13+ to enter

U.S. entries only

a Rafflecopter giveaway

The YA Legion Tour Stops at Mysterious Galaxy in San Diego, CA

Unbreakable Tour poster

October 2, 2013 was an amazing and fun night as Kami Garcia launched her new solo book Unbreakable, and stops in at Mysterious Galaxy in San Diego, CA! Yay! Along with Kami Garcia to launch her new book was Nancy Holder and Lissa Price, two amazing authors. After having to miss the stop in Barnes & Noble at The Grove on October 1st, I was oh-so-thankful that there was a stop the next day! 

Lissa Price, Kami Garcia & Nancy Holder

So...Mariah and I made our way to San Diego, just in time for the event, too! Whew! Although it was a school night, Mariah came along anyways! I enjoy sharing events like this with her. Plus, we have been going to these events with these authors several times now, and it's always a fun and memorable time. And, Mysterious Galaxy is always a great venue for these events, this time, we visited the San Diego store. 

Photo credit: Mysterious Galaxy bookstore

However, due to unforeseen circumstances, Amber Benson, author of the Calliope Reaper-Jones series, cancelled here appearance for this launch party...<sigh> We were so looking forward to meeting her as well, especially being a Buffy The Vampire Slayer fan. 

Kami Garcia

Lissa Price

Nancy Holder

In addition to this fun event, a fun raffle was held after the Q&A and reading. The lucky winner won an Unbreakable gift box with jewelry, swag, and a $50 MG gift card...now, that's an awesome prize! It was great!

Check out the video clips of this amazing and fun launch party!

This fun event began with author introductions and a discussion of their books.

Kami tells of the raffle winner from the October 1st launch party, then gets 
into discussing what Unbreakable is about.


Lissa, Kami and Nancy discusses writing and deadlines. 
Kami even mentions her office.


Our favorite authors discusses word count, number of pages and writing, 
choice of favorite super power and superstitions.

Check out the swag commemorating the launch of Unbreakable! Even got Starters/Enders bookmarks from Lissa Price!

What a great evening!!! After this fun Q&A, reading and discussion, the signing began. We always have so much fun at these amazing author events; and, each event always has something new and fun to be discussed and launched! If only it wasn't a school night, we would have loved to hang out a bit longer at Mysterious Galaxy to chat with them. 

Getting ready for the signing!

I remember meeting Nancy Holder at a teen book fest in Ontario, CA in 2011! After two years, I finally got my pick with her signed. I read her book Crusade, co-written with Debbie Viguie...an amazing story! I finally got the last two books in this series and signed, too! 

It was also so much fun to catch up with Lissa Price since last we saw her at the L.A. Times Festival of Books! 

Mariah with Lissa Price

Jasmine with Lissa Price

Photo op w/ Lissa Price, Kami Garcia & Nancy Holder

View the photo album of this fun launch party at: 

The YA Legion Tour Stops at Mysterious Galaxy in San Diego

I also was lucky to see Kami Garcia at SDCC 2013 and get a signed ARC (Advance Reading Copy) of Unbreakable. After reading it, I was hooked! I am definitely looking forward to reading the next book!

Check out my review at: Unbreakable (Book 1 of The Legion Series)