Book Review: Drawn by Cecilia Gray

Drawn

Cecilia Gray

Published 'December 15th, 2013

325 Pages

A wholly original tale of friendship and betrayal through the eyes – and lies – of one extraordinary girl.

Sasha has a secret – that she can make you spill your secret with nothing more than a question. Her strange gift makes her a burden to her foster family and a total freak of nature. Not that Sasha cares. Why should she when no one cares about her?
Then the CIA knocks on her door. They want to give Sasha a new identity and drop her into a foreign country to infiltrate a ring of zealous graffiti terrorists. They want to give Sasha something to care about.
To survive a world where no one is who they seem, Sasha needs to make people trust her. But when that trust blossoms into love, Sasha is forced to decide between duty and friendship, between her mind and her heart, and whether to tell the truth or keep her secrets.

Sasha is a girl with a gift, one that she sees as more of a curse. She has the unique ability to make people speak the truth - whether they like it or not. Growing up, this obviously causes some problems. She's seen as a freak, has difficulty connecting with anybody, and isn't the tightest with her foster family. Just as she thinks she's doomed to a life full of misery, Sasha gets a visit from the CIA and her life is changed forever.

In Drawn, Sasha has a new life. She works for the CIA, helping to solve difficult cases. Her specialty is making criminals spill the beans, no matter how terrible a crime they committed. When she is relocated to a new country for her biggest case yet, Sasha is both terrified and excited. She resides with a new temporary family, befriended the daughter who has no idea who she really is.

With a sensitive case that puts her in a number of awkward situations, Sasha finds out more about herself than she ever thought possible. Friendships are forged and boundaries are pushed, and for the first time ever, she finds herself siding with the criminal. Watching and reading about her internal struggles was different than many of the other books I read, but I really did enjoy getting deep into her thoughts.

There were cool comic strips at the beginning of chapters that I feel added a really nice touch. Sasha loved to draw and the story revolved around all things art. Everything was intertwined perfectly, and while I wasn't too keen on the story in the first few pages, things quickly changed for me. Drawn was a unique story that left me thinking about our world and many of the issues surrounding it.

Book Review: Becoming Alpha by Aileen Erin

Becoming Alpha

Aileen Erin

Published December 17th, 2013

273 Pages

Tessa McCaide has a unique talent for getting into trouble. Then again, it isn’t easy for a girl with visions to ignore what she sees. Luckily Tessa and her family are leaving California and moving halfway across the country, givingher the perfect opportunity to leave her reputation as “Freaky Tessa” behind.

But Tessa doesn’t realize that kissing the wrong guy in her new Texas town could land her in far more trouble than she ever imagined. Like being forced to attend St. Ailbe’s Academy, a secret boarding school for werewolves.

Even if the wrong guy did accidentally turn her into one of “them” and doom her to attending the weirdest high school ever, Tessa can’t help her growing attraction to the mysterious Dastien Laurent.
When vampires attack St. Alibe’s and her visions pinpoint an enemy in their midst, Tessa realizes that boy drama and her newfound canine tendencies might just be the least of her problems

Tessa is a seemingly normal teenage girl. She has an average, ordinary life doing all the things that normal teens her age do. However, gripping visions that she can't control have made her life strained and difficult. Pretty much anything she touches sends her off to la-la land, a place where she sees far more than she ever would have liked. Avoiding people and such has gotten her a bad reputation as a freak who's up to no good, so her family packs up and moves to Texas in hopes of helping her find he footing and shed her bad rep. However, their new town hides many secrets.. including a pack of werewolf's

Though most people in the town seem to be completely aware of this, Tessa isn't let in on the big secret, and winds up receiving her first kiss from a handsome boy named Dastien, who attends a school for the trouble called St. Alibe's. When things get hot and heavy, a rough bite to her skin transforms both her and her life forever. Tessa was now one of them.

I liked both Tessa and Dastien a lot. Though they are both unsure at times and completely awkward around each other, it was obvious how they truly felt. Though Tessa is understandably reluctant to welcome him back into her life after the pain he caused her, I loved watching them slowly fall deeper and deeper in love, despite many obstacles.

Getting deep into the world of magic, visions and werewolves was a thrilling ride that I didn't want to end. Erin does a great job painting pictures in my mind, and at times I felt like I was right there with Tess and Dastien. Becoming Alpha was a great first installment to what I'm sure will be an intriguing series.

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