Book: American Monsters (Book three in Demon Road trilogy)

Author: Derek Landy

Publisher: Harper Collins

Synopsis:
Bigger, meaner, stronger, Amber closes in on her murderous parents as they make one last desperate play for power. Her own last hopes of salvation, however, rest beyond vengeance, beyond the abominable killers - living and dead - that she and Milo will have to face.
For Amber's future lies in her family's past, in the brother and sister she never knew, and the horrors beyond imagining that befell them...



Review for book one here.
Review for book two here.


I was eager to jump into American Monsters right after finishing Desolation (or more honestly, I started it the next day). I also had the motivation that I wanted to finish it before the new year so I could include it in my 2016 book count, and I did! This is officially my last blog post of 2016 so enjoy!

My main problems with the previous two books in this trilogy was the fact that I felt it too much when it wasn't needed. I didn't feel that as much with this book, yes there were a couple of times that I was like "okay, get on with it" but it was literally only a couple of times and it didn't last very long (thank you Derek Landy).

I really liked the storyline/plot in this book. I felt like I was on track with what was happening throughout the whole story - something that wasn't always clear for me in the first two books. However, it just wasn't as interesting as Desolation but I definitely still enjoyed it. Does that sound contradictory?

As this was the last book in the trilogy, I was constantly trying to figure how all of it was going to play out. I felt I knew the final outcome in a way, but I really had no idea. I really liked the ending except for perhaps one certain aspect, but that's what the author wanted I guess *le sigh*.
There was one particular event that happened that was skimmed over even though it deserved a whole damn chapter, so that made me a bit sad (if you've read it I'm sure you'll know what part I'm talking about).

I enjoyed the range of characters in this trilogy. While there wasn't a whole lot of diversity in these books, there was a little and that made me like the trilogy more. I enjoyed Amber's character more so in books two and three, the fact that she is actually this crazy, strong demon was actually kind of cool. She gets overconfident a number of times but I really started to like it in book two and three.

Throughout the series, Amber's parents didn't really bother me until about halfway through American Monsters. A crazy event that took place really threw me back and I had to close the book for a short while to let my heart break a little (it's hurting now just thinking about it).

Overall, I enjoyed the author's concept for this trilogy. They are fun and sort of spooky reads that are great for teenage and some young adult readers. I haven't read his more popular Skulduggery Pleasant series and therefore cannot compare his series. An enjoyable read!

3.5/5


*This book was sent to me by Harper Collins Unsolicited in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.


WHERE YOU CAN FIND ME:
Contact: erenabennett@hotmail.com
Instagram: @erenareads & @erena_b
Goodreads: @erenareads
Twitter: @erenareads
YouTube: Erena Reads or click here

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Book: Desolation (Book two in Demon Road trilogy)

Author: Derek Landy

Synopsis:
Reeling from their bloody encounter in New York City at the end of Demon Road, Amber and Milo flee north. On their trail are the Hounds of Hell - five demonic bikers who will stop at nothing to drag their quarries back to their unholy master.
Amber and Milo's only hope lies within Desolation Hill - a small town with a big secret; a town with a darkness to it, where evil seeps through the very floorboards. Until, on one night every year, it spills over onto the streets and all hell breaks loose.

Review for book one here.



I'll be honest here, after reading book one (Demon Road) earlier this year, it definitely didn't give me the feeling that I 'needed' to pick up book two straight away, so I left it and read other books. I should not have done this because a) this is a review copy and I should've had it as a priority and b) it actually turned out to be pretty good and much better (in my opinion) than the first one. In saying that, I did somehow manage to misplace this book but found it last month and got to work.

Much like the last book, Desolation starts off with an interesting chapter. Perhaps not as exciting as the previous book but a bit of mystery from a point of view of a new character, which I liked. And yes, new points of views, there a more than just Amber and Milo in this novel and I found it very easy to follow and the author definitely picked the right times and the right characters to do so.

There were quite a few new characters introduced and I think it added to the story really well. There were two elderly men - WHO WERE ABSOLUTELY HILARIOUS, and a group of young adults on a mission to save the population from supernatural evil. I felt that there was some unnecessary dialogue from some of these characters but didn't dwell too much on it since it didn't happen all that often. I felt Amber's character developed really well in the sense that she was more mature and I found myself enjoying her chapters much more than the first book. And Milo, well I love Milo, like we all should. But seriously, those elderly men that I was talking about earlier were gold. It was their bickering I think that was actually making me laugh out loud and the sincere kindness in (one of) their hearts.

My main problem with book one was that I felt it had too much going on which it made it drag out a bit. While this book seemed to have a little of that, it improved immensely and made it much more enjoyable to read. Sometimes I had to go back to the previous paragraph and read over it again because I feel like some things happened so fast I didn't understand what was happening, but all in all, I was okay with it.

The story itself is great, I reckon. I honestly had no idea how they were going to do it after book one - it definitely left an opening but I was just unsure. It has plenty of fantasy elements that I liked and were easy to read. There was a sort of 'twist' I guess you could say, that I REALLY liked. It makes me crave what happens next (lucky I have the third and final book in my hands).

Sorry if I seem a bit vague about the story but it can be hard with sequels because you don't want to give spoilers of the previous book/s. I would recommend checking out my review for Demon Road, where it all starts with Amber's crazy parents. The synopsis for this book (above) actually gives a goo description of it I think, as well as the little bits I've added on to this review.

I would honestly highly recommend this story to middle grade to the younger adult age, and for those older (I'm 25 if that helps?), if you enjoy teenager to young adult I would recommend picking up Demon Road just to get to Desolation. I was pleasantly surprised by this book and thoroughly enjoyed myself - very much picking up book three after this blog post so stay tuned for that review also!

Make sure to leave a comment letting me know your thoughts on this trilogy or send me a message on Instagram. Be sure to check out my YouTube channel (see below) as I post videos on there all the time. See you soon for more bookish things!

4/5




*This book was sent to me by Harper Teen Australia in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.


WHERE YOU CAN FIND ME:
Contact: erenabennett@hotmail.com
Instagram: @erenareads & @erena_b
Goodreads: @erenareads
Twitter: @erenareads
YouTube: Erena Reads or click here

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Hello! Yes, I'm still around...
My November was somewhat busy with my end of semester uni exams (thank god that's over) and at the end of November I jet setter off to the other side of the international date line to the West Coast of America. In the time that I wasn't doing either of those things, I kind of just slowly read and watched lots of TV, thus bringing my book count of the month to three. I'm not really bothered that it was little, I did what my brain/heart/body wanted to do. So, are those three books...
Check out my video for my November Wrap Up here. And my December TBR video here.





NOVEMBER WRAP UP 

1. This is Where the World Ends - Amy Zhang
This story gave me an All the Bright Places vibe but I still very much enjoyed it and loved reading it. This is told in alternative points of view and in different times. The story starts with Micah in 'after' and switches to Janie with 'before' with small snippets of Janie's journal. This story tells the heartbreaking story of Micah waking up in hospital with no recollection of the past month (I think??) and his best friend Janie, missing. Despite the story being about high school aged characters, I felt that it was written in a much more mature way which is a must for me to enjoy the book. I enjoyed the format of the book - I also think this made it more addicting to read as I needed to know what happened. But beware, this book may give you all the feels! Full review here.
4/5

 2. A Torch Against the Night - Sabaa Tahir
I received this book in the middle of my exam week so I had to hold off for a couple of days but I dove straight into when I could. Book two in the An Ember in the Ashes series, the story continues with Elias and Laia on the run and I didn't realise how much I missed Elias. In this book we get point of view chapters from Elias, Laia AND Helene which I loved reading from (mainly because my new fave character Avitas Harper was in almost all her chapters). Each chapter kept me wanting more and I highly recommend this series. I loved this more than book one too!
5/5

3. The Unexpected Everything - Morgan Matson
I had been meaning to get around this for a while now and I'm so glad I finally picked it up because this was such an enjoyable read. This starts off as a fun and light contemporary but it transitions into so much more than that. I found myself wanting to live the story and there were plenty of times where my heart wanted to lurch out of its place. This is definitely a read for teenagers, young adults and lovers of YA fiction. A really great read and I absolutely recommend!
5/5

With these ratings, I'm happy with only reading three books. These are the books I'm hoping to read in the month of December:

DECEMBER TBR

1. Falling into Place - Amy Zhang
2. Rebel of the Sands - Alwyn Hamilton
3. Wintergirls - Laurie Halse Anderson (reread)
4. Desolation - Derek Landy
5. Harry Potter & The Goblet of Fire - JK Rowling (reread)

See you soon for more bookish posts! Make sure you check out my Instagram and YouTube channel :)



WHERE YOU CAN FIND ME:
Contact: erenabennett@hotmail.com
Instagram: @erenareads & @erena_b
Goodreads: @erenareads
Twitter: @erenareads
YouTube: Erena Reads or click here

Follow my blog with Bloglovin'!