Almost Night Review + #Giveaway

Almost Night

Tales of Morcah

Book #1

Emily White

Genre: YA Paranormal Fantasy

Release Date: May 5, 2013

ISBN: 978-149754196

ASIN: B00K1ZPGTE

Pages: 303

Goodreads Rating:  4.0

My Rating: 4.0

Book Description:

Fourteen-year-old Lilly Grey exists in two worlds at the same time. She just doesn't know it.

As the only albino in a million mile radius, Lilly is used to being different. Pink eyes and white hair aren't exactly the best camouflage in the harrowing jungles formally known as high school. And yeah, she's used to being an outcast and seeing the world in a slightly different way, but she never guessed how literally "different" applied to her.

Not until a clan of shape-shifting dragons tell her she's not just albino. She's a unicorn and the only mortal alive who can live on both Earth and its antithesis, Morcah. Now all those times she thought she saw a floating brown blotch in the sky or eyes peering out at her from the bark of trees make sense. She's been seeing Morcah, a land that exists in the exact same spot as Earth, just in a different phase.

But it's not all sunshine and rainbows for this unicorn. As the only one who can live in both phases, she's also the only one who can bring Morcah--and all its inhabitants--to Earth. And creatures who've been trapped on Earth since the Dark Ages are willing to do worse things than kill to make that happen.

Again.

  

My Take On The Book:

Wow. Just wow.  I really enjoyed this book and the uniqueness it brought to this genre. It was intriguing in all the right parts. Usually when reading YA anything, authors shy away from violence that escalates to murder but Ms. White surprises on that front.

This book has an epic prologue, captivating from the go but then it shifts gears leading you into the actual story and its slow… almost too slow. You’re introduced to characters at a snails pace and it kind of takes away from the story. Luckily, there is action in this book and when the action hits, it’s basically nonstop.  The book becomes one of those stories you can’t put down. At least that’s what happened with me. You just have to stick with it.

Other than that, I’m kind of at a loss for words, which is a pretty hard feat, and one I’m not happy to admit lol. There is so much I want to discuss and dissect but then this review would be littered with spoilers. I don't d’ review spoilers at least not any that would give away the juicy bits of the story.

The Great (Pros):

• Lilly & Ian. I loved these 2 characters. They were great leads and extremely likeable. Lily is the kinda of character you sympathize with. She’s different and treat so unfairly. She’s damaged and not just because of her condition but because of how people treat her because of her condition. Ian is a character that barely has his head on straight. He doesn’t know how to process things Lilly brings out in him. But together, they are just too endearing.

• Nat. By far the best character in this book. She’s different and doesn’t judge Lilly not even when said girl thinks she’s loosing her mind. She proves that sometimes the oldest of friends are not always the best. She’s the kind of character you either had as a friend or want as a friend because she happily marches to the beat of her own drum. Never passing judgment.

• Dragons! I love shifters, but I LOVE dragon shifters. There are not enough books with Dragons, at least not books that I really enjoyed but this is definitely a good one. I loved how they were described. From their home to the way they grow; to how they function in a family/clan.

• Unicorns!!! Um WTF. That’s a new one and I freaking love it. Its way different from anything I’ve ever read and something I look forward to reading more about. I love the way they are described and how that species came to be.

The Not So Great (Cons):

• Speed. The speed was inconsistent. It rushed, then slowed then rushed then slowed. It made it difficult for me to fully emerge myself into this intriguing world.

• Maggie. I really, really, REALLY disliked her character. Usually I’m all for villains and mean high schoolers but there is just something so cruel about this girl. I didn’t like her from chapter  and as the story progressed, I realized that my dislike and mistrust was well placed. Personally I didn’t feel like she was a good friend, she was as selfish as they come and I couldn’t get behind her as a character… at least not one that I wanted associating with Lilly.

• :sniffle: I cried. Yup this book made me cry. Not even at the beginning or the end but smack dab in the middle. Not really a con but I was in public and the room was packed so yea lol.

• Open ended um ending. The ending was interesting but it was too much of a cliffhanger if that makes any sense. This was one of the parts that I felt suffered from the speed issue. It made it really hard to follow and I had to reread it a couple of times.

4 Quills

This book was unlike anything I’ve ever read and I look forward to reading the next installment. Hopefully some lingering questions concerning Lilly and Ian are answered as well as more information on Unicorns and Dragons. While there were parts that had me yelling internally at Lilly and crying unattractively in public, it’s a solid read that I would definitely recommend to you lovelies. <3

Book Purchase Links:

Amazon - Print| Amazon - eBook | Goodreads | Smashwords

About The Author 

Emily White is a nerd.

She prefers her men fully clothed and donning bowties, her commas British, her books cheesy with big, overly-dramatic explosions, her characters awkward and endearingly real,* and watching her movies in authentic turn-of-the-century theaters. When not exposing her nerdy self to the world, she's creating her own friends and putting them in horrible, yet sometimes humorous situations.

Check out her YA Space Opera series starting with Elemental (Spencer Hill Press, 2012), continuing with FAE (February 2014), and ending sometime in the near future with a book she has yet to write. She's also authored a collection of Steampunk (zombie, werebot romance) flash fiction, if you're into those kinds of things, titled "To Love or Die in a Steamy-Reamy World."

Author Links:

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Amazon Author Page | Goodreads | Monthly Newsletter

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 “I received a free copy of the book from the author/publisher for my honest opinion. I was in no way compensated for this review and all opinions are expressly my own”