Review: The Replaced (The Taking #2) by Kimberly Derting

First, thanks to HarperTeen and Edelweiss for allowing me to read an e-galley of this title.  I was happy to get this early since I got to read the first one, The Taking, as an e-galley as well.  If you haven't read the first one, this will definitely have some spoilers.  The last one left you hanging and waiting to know what would happen next!

We pick up shortly after the end of the first book.  When we left off, her new boyfriend, Tyler, her father, and the horrible Agent Truman had all disappeared when the fireflies and bright lights went away.  Kyra had to go live in the camps with the other "Returned" as they called themselves because she'd learned that her blood really was toxic to her friends and family. That is part of why she'd tried to get the aliens to take Tyler in the first place, so that they could save him.  But now she's waiting with them for any sign about where Tyler and her father went.  Normally people are returned in about 48 hours.  Kyra was different, being gone for five years.  And as we've learned, she even has some differences from the others.  Like she can heal much quicker.  However it seems there is no word from either her dad or Tyler.  But soon there is something out there, a cryptic message that seems to maybe be from her dad.  And then a message from the NSA about an unknown boy who has shown up.  So Kyra decides she has to go to where they are supposed to have found the boy.  Even if it is a trap, she has to know.  She feels it was her fault he got taken in the first place. 

Along the way they will stay at some other camps, ones where there is history between the leaders of the camps, between Simon, the camp she first was at, Thom, from the latest camp, and even one more, Griffin.  They will run into their nemesis on their search.  Griffin, not a guy, a beautiful girl actually.  And there will be some strange things going on when they find out if Kyra's dad or Tyler made it.  It seems maybe there is now not only the "Returned", but people like Kyra who are more what they call "Replaced".  You'll have to read the book yourself to find out out what that means, and if Tyler and Kyra will be reunited.  And will you want them to be?  Simon seems to have feelings for Kyra, whether she wants him to or not. And he will make her think about whether the strength of her connection to Tyler is real, or if it is just based on her guilty feeling for exposing him to her blood and having him need to be rescued by the aliens.  And it won't just be Agent Truman they have to deal with, but also there is a traitor within the Returned. 

As I've noticed, and I think mentioned in the past, the second book is often what seems to be an "on the road" or traveling story.  This one definitely has that feel.  But it was good. We got a lot of good information about the aliens, as well as their history here on Earth with this book.  And we got a look at what might be their next move with humans.  Enough so that I again am left hanging and waiting for the next book to come out, which has no release date set as of yet, but I'm hoping for this time next year!

I did get to meet the author last year shortly after I read the book, here is the picture of me with her!

While you're here, go check out my giveaway on one of my A to Z Challenge posts, like my R Post yesterday!

Review: The Body Finder by Kimberly Derting

I'm a bit ashamed to say that I got a copy of this book May of 2013 at the Romantic Times Convention, and didn't actually start reading it until after I read The Taking e-galley earlier this year.  Once I knew how much I loved her writing, I was hooked.  Since my copy of this isn't personalized, I will be donating it to the high school library where I work and probably ordering the rest in the series.
 The main character is Violet.  She has this weird sense that tells her where dead things are.  Usually she just finds animals, but one time when she was a little girl she found a dead body.  She can also sense killers by feelings that she gets from them, like a smell, or a sound.  Violet is only 16, and this year is noticing just how much her best friend Jay has grown up into a very attractive boy.  And she's not the only one who has seemed to notice.  All the others girls seem to be flirting a lot more.  But she's pretty sure that Jay still just thinks of her as a friend, and she doesn't want to ruin their life-long friendship by showing him her feelings.  While all this is happening though, girls have started disappearing.  And it seems there is now a serial killer in their town.

Because she knows she can sense these things, and Jay even kind of knows as well, she feels like she needs to help find this killer.  Only this will put her in danger, something that Jay is not happy about, and he tries to stick with her to keep an eye on her, and discourage her from doing some of the things she wants to do.  She tries going out with another boy at school when she sees Jay flirting back with some of those other girls.  But good friends do often make the best lovers, and soon they will be able to see how each other really feels.

I have to say that I loved the character Jay so much that I even dreamed about a guy that I can only say he was the way he was because I had been reading this book earlier in the evening before.  I'm excited to read on in the series as I said before, and I just hope that Jay and Violet stay together the whole way through!  Here's my picture with the author this past spring when I met her on a tour for The Taking.

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A to Z April - U: UFOs

Okay, maybe I'm stretching again for a topic today.  But I do enjoy a good book about UFOs or alien abduction type stories.  So, once again I will share 5 of my favorite of this type of book.


1.

 

Now this is a very recent YA book, in fact I don't think it is actually published till next Tuesday.  And one thing I really liked about it is that up to the very end, you don't even know for sure if it is aliens, or what.  Now I have to wait for a sequel to see if I get any more clues!  Such a great read!

2.

 

Dean Koontz is one of my  most favorite authors ever!  I think I'd want to meet him even more than I'd want to meet Stephen King, if just because I can tell how much he loves dogs, like I do.  And this book is one of my favorite of all of his books.  In fact talking about it right now makes me want to read it again!  Wonder if I can fit it into my book reading schedule in the near future!

3.

 

This is the first book in a series that I really enjoyed, up until one of them that came out a year or two ago.  I've kind of lost steam with the series I guess.  But the first 3 or 4 in the series were really good!

4.

 

Now this is one that I haven't actually read yet, but I hear AWESOME things about!  The main reason I haven't read this yet, is that it is one of the books I was supposed to have received in a YA Book Exchange awhile back that never arrived.  With all the news stories about postal workers sticking mail in their attic, or throwing it when they deliver, I'm beginning to wonder if that is what happened to the two books I was supposed to receive that never made it to my house.  But anyway, I'll have to give in and read it this summer I think.

5.

This is a newer teen title as well.  It came out last year, and I did enjoy it, so thought I'd share it as well.

Do you like UFO/alien stories?  Do you like to read nonfiction books about it? 

Also, while you're here, you can enter my 900 Follower giveaway on my T post.