Review: Insidious (The Twixt #3) by Dawn metcalf

Title: Insidious (The Twixt #3)

Author: Dawn Metcalf

Published: 1st September 2015
Publisher: Harlequin Teen Aust
Source: Harlequin Teen Australia
Reviewed: Sapphired Dragon
Rating: *** 3/4  

My Review:

I really enjoyed the third book in Dawn Metcalf's The Twixt series. I was mistakenly under the impression that this was a trilogy so this was the last book. Imagine my surprise when I reached the end and realised it wasn't.

Actually I was pretty glad as I don't think I was ready for this series to end just yet.

Book three starts shortly after the end of Book 2. It is the last couple of weeks of Summer, and Joy is adjusting to her new status as one of the twixt and starting to learn how this will affect her relationships with her family and friends. Things like being unable to lie can be tricky when those closest to her are unable to see the twixt and she is not allowed to tell.

However what her family now *can* see is Ink and this has made things a little easier for Joy who is happy to be able to show off the boy that she loves.

However there is more to becoming one of the twixt than just having a signatura and therein lies the crux of the story for Joy, and for the reader, as Joy is drawn further into the ways and rules of the twixt and starts to uncover deeper secrets that threaten not just her but both of the worlds she is straddling, and evil thought long gone may just come back to haunt her.

I liked the direction of this new book and the way Ms Metcalf draws the reader deeper into the Twixt world she has created. MS Metcalf is incredibly adept at slowly revealing the layers of this world of the Twixt and each layer is more detailed and more interesting and more surprising than the one before. The world building is thorough from the rigid rules of the twixt to the history that we begin to delve into in this story, and the more I learn, the more I want to find out.

The story itself has all the elements that a good story needs in just the right combination. There is action aplenty through out much of the book and for the majority is well paced adding to rather than overshadowing the rest of the story and in nice balance with the information we are given along the way. There are plenty of twists to keep the reader guessing and nothing is what it seems, which adds to the suspense to the tale. There is also an attention to detail that gives this story an added oomph and each story element is cleverly incorporated and never seems to be wasted.

However what I love most about this novel is the relationships between Joy and those around her; Ink, Stef, Monica, Graus Claude. It is through these interactions that we truly see Joy's character and we are able to feel more emotionally attached to the story as a whole. I really enjoyed seeing how these relationships change and grow through out the novel, with a few surprises along the way.

I loved where this story ended even though ( as previously mentioned) it was with surprise that this wasn't the final book. However it does make much more sense with the story and I can't wait to see where it will go from here as I get the feeling that things are not going to go quite the way Joy expects.

I very much enjoyed this novel and I give this book 3 3/4 stars.

Sapphired Dragon xx

About The Book:

Insidious (The Twixt #3) by Dawn Metcalf

True evil is rarely obvious. It is quiet, patient.
Insidious.
Awaiting the perfect moment to strike.
Joy Malone finally knows who she is, where she comes from and how to live in two worlds at once. And now she can introduce her family and friends to her mysterious boyfriend, Indelible Ink. But when Ink's twin sister, Invisible Inq, calls in a favour, Joy must accept a dangerous mission to find a forgotten door between worlds—a door hiding a secret that some will kill to keep.
Unseen enemies, treasonous magic and an unthinkable betrayal threaten both the Twixt and human worlds as Joy races to expose an ancient conspiracy and unleash the unalterable truth—some secrets cannot remain secret forever.






Purchase: Amazon | HarlequinTeen Aust  | Book Depository   

It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

Welcome to Monday.  For once, quite liking this Monday as it is a long weekend and so instead of working I get to enjoy reading some of the many books I have received in the last couple of weeks.  So today it is more than appropriate to say  It's Monday!  What Are You Reading? This is a weekly meme hosted by A Book Journey where we talk about the books that we are reading and have read this week.

Did a reasonable amount of reading in the past week.  Started the week by finishing off Indelible (The Twixt #1) by Dawn Metcalf. I really enjoyed this and plan to review it this week.

Some things are permanent.
Indelible.
And they cannot be changed back.
Joy Malone learns this the night she sees a stranger with all-black eyes across a crowded room—right before the mystery boy tries to cut out her eye. Instead, the wound accidentally marks her as property of Indelible Ink, and this dangerous mistake thrusts Joy into an incomprehensible world—a world of monsters at the window, glowing girls on the doorstep, and a life that will never be the same.
Now, Joy must pretend to be Ink’s chosen one—his helper, his love, his something for the foreseeable future...and failure to be convincing means a painful death for them both. Swept into a world of monsters, illusion, immortal honor and revenge, Joy discovers that sometimes, there are no mistakes.
Somewhere between reality and myth lies…
THE TWIXT

     Next up I started on the Witch Eyes series by Scott Tracey   I actually bought book 1, Witch Eyes,  last year when I received Demon Eyes (Witch Eyes #2) for review but unfortunately never got around to reading either.  However, this year I have received book 3, Phantom Eyes, to review so have finally started on this series. So far I have read both Witch Eyes and Demon Eyes and am about to start on Phantom Eyes.  I am enjoying this series though it was not quite what I was expecting and I am interested to see how this series concludes.

Braden was born with witch eyes: the ability to see the world as it truly is: a blinding explosion of memories, darkness, and magic. The power enables Braden to see through spells and lies, but at the cost of horrible pain.

After a terrifying vision reveals imminent danger for the uncle who raised and instructed him, Braden retreats to Belle Dam, an old city divided by two feuding witch dynasties. As rival family heads Catherine Lansing and Jason Thorpe desperately try to use Braden's powers to unlock Belle Dam's secrets, Braden vows never to become their sacrificial pawn. But everything changes when Braden learns that Jason is his father--and Trey, the enigmatic guy he's falling for, is Catherine's son.

To stop an insidious dark magic from consuming the town, Braden must master his gift—and risk losing the one he loves.

Demons don't die without a fight...
After destroying the demon Lucien, Braden—son of Belle Dam’s most powerful warlock, Jason Thorpe—doesn’t need the power of his witch eyes to see that everything in his life is turning against him: friends, family, and even his visions. When disturbing nightmares of Lucien’s return haunt him, Braden discovers that the simmering feud between the city’s two witch dynasties is fast approaching its explosive boiling point.
While struggling to come to terms with his attraction to Trey, Catherine Lansing’s son who should be his mortal enemy, a diabolical plan starts to unveil before Braden’s eyes. Young women are disappearing from Belle Dam, and as he investigates, Braden is forced to explore the dangerous unknown power within himself. But when the truth about his family is revealed, Braden must pay a terrible price.

Every child in Belle Dam is taught about the feud from an early age. There are ‘our’ people and ‘their’ people. Friends and enemies. Associates and strangers. It’s the kind of town where eyes are always watching, and you don’t need a reason to sell out your neighbors.

But the feud is a lie. As a new wave of fury sweeps through the town, creating a third front to an already overtaxed war, Braden has been broken worse than ever. His innocence? Shattered. His heart? Crushed. His magic? Gone. His new life? Ruined. And this is only the beginning.

Beneath the city lay deep wellsprings of power. The one who controls them is the one who will win the feud. In a city filled with puppet masters, Braden must elude their strings and end the feud once and for all. But first, he must outsmart his father, evade Catherine’s dark magic, regain what was stolen from him, trick a phantom who refuses to die, and foil a demon’s master plan.

Even then, he may not survive. Because power is a problem, and victory comes with a cost…

I haven't quite settled on what I plan to read next. I am dying to read Crash into You (Pushing the Limits #3) by Katie McGarry

and Taste of Darkness (Healer #3)  by Maria V Snyder 

 but its more likely I will read the Alice in Zombieland and Through the Zombie Glass by Gena Showalter, which are due for review this month.

She won’t rest until she’s sent every walking corpse back to its grave. Forever.
Had anyone told Alice Bell that her entire life would change course between one heartbeat and the next, she would have laughed. From blissful to tragic, innocent to ruined? Please. But that’s all it took. One heartbeat. A blink, a breath, a second, and everything she knew and loved was gone.
Her father was right. The monsters are real….
To avenge her family, Ali must learn to fight the undead. To survive, she must learn to trust the baddest of the bad boys, Cole Holland. But Cole has secrets of his own, and if Ali isn’t careful, those secrets might just prove to be more dangerous than the zombies….

I wish I could go back and do a thousand things differently.
I'd tell my sister no.
I'd never beg my mother to talk to my dad.
I'd zip my lips and swallow those hateful words.
Or, barring all of that, I'd hug my sister, my mom and my dad one last time.
I'd tell them I love them.
I wish... Yeah, I wish.

Inspired by the childhood classic Alice in Wonderland, this harrowing and romantic story features teen zombie slayer Alice Bell who has lost so much—family, friends, her home. After a strange new zombie attack, Alice fears she may be losing her mind as well. A terrible darkness blooms inside her, urging her to do wicked things. The whispers of the dead assault her ears and mirrors seem to come frighteningly to life. She’s never needed her team of zombie slayers more—including her boyfriend, Cole—than she does now. But as Cole strangely withdraws and the zombies gain new strength, Ali knows one false step may doom them all.

It's Monday! What are YOU reading?  Don't forget to let me know in the comments.

Have a great week!

It's Monday, What Are You Reading? #3

So it is Monday again and time to talk about what I am reading this week. It's Monday!  What Are You Reading? is a weekly meme hosted by A Book Journey where we talk about the books that we are reading and have read this week.

Got my read on this past week.  Finished  The Woken Gods by Gwenda Bond and 

then started on Witchstruck by Victoria Lamb.   

   

This book made a nice change of pace from what I have been reading lately as it is an historical paranormal type book and I will be reviewing it in the next couple of weeks.

     I had fully intended to read All the Truth That's In Me by Julie Berry next but I finished Witchstruck earlier than I anticipated and as I did not have ATTTIM on hand (it's a paper back), 

I purchased and read The Darkest Minds by Alexander Bracken in preparation to read book 2 in the series, Never Fade for review.  

When Ruby woke up on her tenth birthday, something about her had changed. Something alarming enough to make her parents lock her in the garage and call the police. Something that gets her sent to Thurmond, a brutal government “rehabilitation camp.” She might have survived the mysterious disease that’s killed most of America’s children, but she and the others have emerged with something far worse: frightening abilities they cannot control.
Now sixteen, Ruby is one of the dangerous ones.
When the truth comes out, Ruby barely escapes Thurmond with her life. Now she’s on the run, desperate to find the one safe haven left for kids like her—East River. She joins a group of kids who escaped their own camp. Liam, their brave leader, is falling hard for Ruby. But no matter how much she aches for him, Ruby can’t risk getting close. Not after what happened to her parents.
When they arrive at East River, nothing is as it seems, least of all its mysterious leader. But there are other forces at work, people who will stop at nothing to use Ruby in their fight against the government. Ruby will be faced with a terrible choice, one that may mean giving up her only chance at a life worth living.

I LOVED this book and cannot wait to post my review later this week.  I finished this book in less than 24 hours and again as I did not have ATTTIM on hand went straight to Never Fade even though it's not due to be read till November.  

Ruby never asked for the abilities that almost cost her her life. Now she must call upon them on a daily basis, leading dangerous missions to bring down a corrupt government and breaking into the minds of her enemies. Other kids in the Children’s League call Ruby “Leader”, but she knows what she really is: a monster. 
When Ruby is entrusted with an explosive secret, she must embark on her most dangerous mission yet: leaving the Children’s League behind. Crucial information about the disease that killed most of America’s children—and turned Ruby and the others who lived into feared and hated outcasts—has survived every attempt to destroy it. But the truth is only saved in one place: a flashdrive in the hands of Liam Stewart, the boy Ruby once believed was her future—and who now wouldn’t recognize her. 
As Ruby sets out across a desperate, lawless country to find Liam—and answers about the catastrophe that has ripped both her life and America apart—she is torn between old friends and the promise she made to serve the League. Ruby will do anything to protect the people she loves. But what if winning the war means losing herself?

I have to say so far I adore this series.  It has been a while since I became this invested in a series and I am really looking forward to seeing where this series is going to go.  I don't regret picking up either book.

I swear I am going to pack ATTTIM in my bag tonight for work this week so its on hand to be the next book I start but it is actually kind of interesting that i have been reading most e-books lately as generally I prefer print books to e-book and would usually choose to print over e-book when I had a copy in both, which is more than I care to admit :-P.  May be its because my bag has been full and I worried about ruining them or maybe because its just easier to pull out my ipad or kindle on the train.  I think it is also that I like print books, especially print books with pretty covers to keep, but more and more i am loving the ease of the e-book and the lovely (but kinda dangerous) fact that if you finish a book that you love and the next book has already been released you can be reading it minutes after you finish the first after a quick jaunt to your favourite e-book site. I may or may not have been guilty of this recently... :-P

Anyhew if i get a chance later this week, I am also looking to read Indelible by Dawn Metcalf, which I received for my birthday yesterday.  Once finished, its back to my TBR list I go

Some things are permanent.

Indelible.

And they cannot be changed back.

Joy Malone learns this the night she sees a stranger with all-black eyes across a crowded room—right before the mystery boy tries to cut out her eye. Instead, the wound accidentally marks her as property of Indelible Ink, and this dangerous mistake thrusts Joy into an incomprehensible world—a world of monsters at the window, glowing girls on the doorstep, and a life that will never be the same.

Now, Joy must pretend to be Ink’s chosen one—his helper, his love, his something for the foreseeable future...and failure to be convincing means a painful death for them both. Swept into a world of monsters, illusion, immortal honor and revenge, Joy discovers that sometimes, there are no mistakes.

Somewhere between reality and myth lies…

THE TWIXT

It's Monday! What are YOU reading?  Don't forget to let me know in the comments.

Have a great week!