Teaser Tuesday, #75 Queen of the Tearling by Erika Johansen

Welcome to Teaser Tuesdays! Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following: Grab your current read Open to a random page Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!) Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers! My Teaser Tuesday is for the following... 

Queen of the Tearling by Erika Johansen
Publisher: Bantam Press
Publication Date: July 17, 2014

Blurb:  Kelsea Glynn is the sole heir to the throne of Tearling but has been raised in secret by foster parents after her mother - Queen Elyssa, as vain as she was stupid - was murdered for ruining her kingdom. For 18 years, the Tearling has been ruled by Kelsea's uncle in the role of Regent however he is but the debauched puppet of the Red Queen, the sorceress-tyrant of neighbouring realm of Mortmesme. On Kelsea's 19th birthday, the tattered remnants of her mother's guard - each pledged to defend the queen to the death - arrive to bring this most un-regal young woman out of hiding...

And so begins her journey back to her kingdom's heart, to claim the throne, earn the loyalty of her people, overturn her mother's legacy and redeem the Tearling from the forces of corruption and dark magic that are threatening to destroy it. But Kelsea's story is not just about her learning the true nature of her inheritance - it's about a heroine who must learn to acknowledge and live with the realities of coming of age in all its insecurities and attractions, alongside the ethical dilemmas of ruling justly and fairly while simply trying to stay alive...

Quotes taken from chapter three: 

Teaser #1:

"Where's your handsome face today?"
"I'm home now," he replied easily. " No point in dressing up."

(In this short teaser above, a real connection finally had began to surface. I won't mention the male here, however, my interest piqued exponentially.)

Teaser #2:

"I don't understand how I'm supposed to make smart decisions without knowing everything."
"Why dwell on the past, Lady? You have the power to make your own future."
"What of my dolls and dresses?"
"I poked you with a stick to see if you'd fight back. And you did."
"What if I order you to tell me?"
"Order away, Lady, and see how far you get."

(This was another powerful conversation between the protagonist and one of the Queen's Guard. It took me a little time to warm up to him, but as I read further, and the lengths he would go to protect her, I developed respect for the man.)


PLEASE LEAVE A COMMENT with either the link to your own Teaser Tuesdays post, or share your ‘teasers’ in a comment here if you don’t have a blog Thanks! 

Review: Renegade (Mila 2.0, #2) by Debra Driza

Renegade (Mila .0, #2) by Debra Driza

Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books

Publication Date: May 13, 2014

Amazon / B&N

There is no one left for Mila to trust. Except for a boy she barely knows.
But Hunter has no idea who—and what—Mila really is. She can’t bear to reveal her secret, even though he’s unwittingly joined her search for Richard Grady, a man who may know more details of Mila’s complicated past.
Yet the road to the truth is more dangerous than ever. With General Holland and the Vita Obscura scouring the earth for her whereabouts, Mila must rely on her newfound android abilities to protect herself and Hunter from imminent harm. Still, embracing her identity as a machine leads her to question the state of her humanity—as well as Hunter’s real motives.
Perfect for fans of I Am Number Four and Divergent, this action-packed and heart-wrenching second installment of MILA 2.0 will leave readers breathlessly awaiting the series conclusion.

My Thoughts: 
Renegade picks up where Mila 2.0 left off. Mila was devastated from the loss of her mother, and makes a phone call to one person who she felt she could trust, Hunter. Mila faces numerous obstacles while searching for a persons name her mother told her to find. While on this search, Mila begins questioning Hunter after discovering a GPS beneath his truck.  With the pressure of General Holland and the Vita Obscura not far behind, time was of the essence.

This installment was nothing short of amazing, and was packed full of action and twists. It was so fast paced, I didn't want to put it down because I knew there would be yet again, another twist. This was one of my most anticipated releases this year and for good reason. Ms Driza is relentless when it comes to throwing deadly obstacles in Mila's way and giving readers a story they could immerse themselves in. Not only that, but she forces the protagonist to make tough decisions and tests loyalties and friendships throughout and me as the reader questioned every character as well. Who could she trust? Mila's emotions play a large roll here. And I feel that she was becoming more human as time went on. She had a constant internal battled of whether or not she deserved Hunter and whether they could be a real couple. My heart broke for her. Its evident she loved him so so much, but when the truth of what she really was broke the surface, a part of her synthetic heart broke.

Persuaded by a new character, Quinn, Mila made a decision that would steal away the humanity within her. During the time Mila is in this facility and under the influence of Quinn, I knew deep down she wasn't any friend of Mila's and never once had her best interest at heart. She saw Mila as a multimillion-dollar weapon and she was going to use her to bury Holland in a revengeful pursuit to get back at him.

I became a big fan of Lucas in Mila 2.0, and was ecstatic when he was brought into this story. He quickly became a favorite and was happy he was back. But what I'm wondering is how he was able to, and what makes him determined to be her savior?

Overall, this was a homerun for Debra Driza and fans of Mila 2.0. This doesn't suffer the second book syndrome whatsoever, and I actually think I liked Renegade a little better, if that's possible. Renegade gets a big 5 Snowflake rating!

                                                             
                                                                           5 Snowflakes