Breakout by A.M. Rose

Six days.

That’s the amount of time until Lezah’s execution.

She’ll die never knowing what got her locked up in that godforsaken prison in the first place. Her only chance of survival is to escape. Except the monitoring bracelet that digs into her wrist, the roaming AI, and the implant in her neck make freedom close to impossible.

Her best chance is to team up with the four other inmates who are determined to break out, even if one of them is beyond gorgeous annoying—oh, and in for murder. But he has a secret of his own. One that could break Lezah if she finds out, but could also set him free.

Figuring out how to work with him and the rest of this mismatched group of criminals is the only way Lezah will survive to see the outside world again.

But nothing in this prison is as it seems. And no one.

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Entangled Publishing

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Erica – ☆☆☆☆
A.M. Rose is a new-to-me author, and I'm curious to read more in the future. Breakout is not listed as the debut in a series, however, I hope there is more to come to answer many threads left untied.

Breakout starts with some confusion, because the narrator doesn't know where she is, why she's there, how she got there, with a large portion of her recent memory blank. Held prisoner, the world-building is futuristic, science fiction, a dystopian vibe.

Lezah is confined in a facility, and she has no idea why, only a countdown timer on her bracelet, counting down to what she assumes is her end. With only three days left, Lezah finds a way to attempt escape, along the way picking up four others.

Rapid pacing, nonstop action, Breakout has a Maze Runner and Hunger Games vibe, mixed with a sense of virtual reality of a live-action video game. There was an addictive, page-turner need for answers, which had me on the edge of my seat, but those answers were given as if the reader should just understand/know what the narrator does without it being on the pages.

Along the escape journey, Lezah's memory returns slowly, as she fits the pieces as to how she came to be imprisoned with these specific people. The returned memories are as murky once returned as they were when Lezah struggled to remember – piecemeal, barely fitting anything together.

While I feverishly read the novel, needing to know what happened next, I wanted answers to many questions. It felt as if plots didn't quite fit together, as Lezah rushed along, taking the reader on the journey with her.

At the end of the novel, I'm still not quite sure why everything that happened happened, with a quick resolution that was too easy. The easiest resolution I've ever read, to be honest. There needs to be a sequel to offer a real resolution/explanation. Lezah jumped from A, automatically assuming Q was the answer to whatever question was posed, yet the reader had no idea what B through P were to get to that Q conclusion.

While the pacing was rapid, which kept me engaged and entertained, it was at the detriment of the world-building, character building, and the who/what/where/why/how/when. Reminding me of a plot outline, where the writer is to fill in the gaps to enrich the experience.

With all that being said, I enjoyed the novel, definitely recommend to those who love this genre, and am looking forward to more from this author in the future.

Young Adult age-range: 12+, including profanity, kissing, and mild science fiction violence.


Shelby – ☆☆☆☆☆
Breakout was an exciting, young adult, sci-fi read! My attention was grabbed from the beginning. We follow a young lady, imprisoned with no memory of committing a crime. Fear gripped me, but I had to know what was going on. This future world is a strange place, where computers walk amongst men and fear dominates all.

When Lezah and her cellmate agree that they need to breakout before their death-date of four days and one day respectively, I was totally on-board. The insanity that follows is best left unsaid, so you get the full impact!

So many questions arise with no resolution. Lezah doesn't really know who she is, she only remembers bits and pieces of her family. Her rag-tag group of escapees all have their own lives, but they seem to remember things. Are these people trustworthy? Are they good guys or bad?

I just couldn't put this down, I was on the edge of my seat throughout the story, and hope there will be a book two. I enjoyed the ending, but there are still questions that need answers. I will be adding A.M. Rose to my list of authors to read!

A.M. Rose holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communication from San Diego State University, is a member of SCBWI, RWA, NJWR and YARWA. She participates in several writing groups and is co-founder of All Write by Us, an online YA writing/critique group.

Connect with A.M.

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Reviewers on the Wicked Reads Review Team were provided a free copy of Breakout by A.M. Rose to read and review.

Kingsbane by Claire Legrand

In this sequel to the instant New York Times bestseller Furyborn!

Two queens, separated by a thousand years, connected by secrets and lies, must continue their fight amid deadly plots and unthinkable betrayals that will test their strength—and their hearts.

Rielle Dardenne has been anointed Sun Queen, but her trials are far from over. The Gate keeping the angels at bay is falling. To repair it, Rielle must collect the seven hidden castings of the saints. Meanwhile, to help her prince and love Audric protect Celdaria, Rielle must spy on the angel Corien—but his promises of freedom and power may prove too tempting to resist.

Centuries later, Eliana Ferracora grapples with her new reality: She is the Sun Queen, humanity's long-awaited savior. But fear of corruption—fear of becoming another Rielle—keeps Eliana's power dangerous and unpredictable. Hunted by all, racing against time to save her dying friend Navi, Eliana must decide how to wear a crown she never wanted—by embracing her mother's power, or rejecting it forever.

Book 2
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Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Shelby – ☆☆☆☆☆
I'm not going to lie, I was like a kid at Christmas when Kingsbane showed up on my Kindle! The Empirium series has totally taken me by surprise and I'm completely impressed by the story Claire Legrand has woven. The second book in the series has picked up where Furyborn left off. War is coming... The Emperor is coming!

We continue to follow the life and events of two women, connected by some circumstances. Only one can be the Sun Queen while the other the Blood Queen. By this book we know who is who, but we don't know WHY or HOW they choose their paths. Wonder no more...

Did I mention this is such a difficult review to write? I refuse to spoil anything, but I will say I am emotionally invested in all of these characters – the good, the bad, the ugly. Every single one of them have worked their way into my head. I am exhilarated yet anxious to find out what happens. Even though I know the general ending, I need to see how everything plays out. What exactly is victory? Who can possibly say they won?

BRING ON BOOK 3!

Also Available in the Empirium Series

Book 1
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For reviews & more info, check out our Furyborn post.

Claire Legrand used to be a musician until she realized she couldn’t stop thinking about the stories in her head. Now she is a writer and librarian living in central New Jersey (although her heart will always live in her home state of Texas).

Her first novel is The Cavendish Home for Boys and Girls, one of the New York Public Library’s 100 Titles for Reading and Sharing in 2012. She is also the author of The Year of Shadows, a ghost story for middle grade readers; and Winterspell, a young adult re-telling of The Nutcracker. Some Kind of Happiness, her middle grade novel about mental illness, family secrets, and the power of storytelling, is a 2017 Edgar Award Nominee. Claire’s latest novel, Foxheart, is a classic fantasy-adventure and a 2016 Junior Library Guild selection. She is one of the four authors behind The Cabinet of Curiosities, an anthology of dark middle grade short fiction that was a Junior Library Guild selection, a Bank Street Best Book, and among the New York Public Library’s 100 Titles for Reading and Sharing in 2014.

Connect with Claire

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Reviewers on the Wicked Reads Review Team were provided a free copy of Kingsbane (Empirium #2) by Claire Legrand to read and review.

Ask Me Anything by Molly E. Lee

I should’ve kept my mouth shut.

But Wilmont Academy’s been living in the Dark Ages when it comes to sex ed, and someone had to take matters into her own hands. Well, I’m a kickass coder, so I created a totally anonymous, totally untraceable blog where teens can come to get real, honest, nothing-is-off-limits sex advice.

And holy hell, the site went viral overnight. Who knew this school was so hard up.

Except now the school administration is trying to shut me down, and they’ve forced Dean—my coding crush, aka the hottest guy in school—to try to uncover who I am. If he discovers my secret, I’ll lose him forever. And thousands of teens who need real advice won’t have anyone to turn to.

Ask me anything… except how to make things right.

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Entangled Publishing

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Erica – ☆☆☆☆
Trying to be as spoiler-free as possible. Ultra-conservative private school is run by a power-hungry principal, who employs extortion to get what he wants from his students, in order to continue on with his reign.

While the principal made a most excellent villain of the novel, I felt that the majority of the community being stuck in the 1960s era mindset wasn't entirely accurate. Yes, some would be upset about sex education (this wasn't the deep south or the bible belt, I don't believe), so while I'm positive there are those who still hang tight to those ideals, I believe they wouldn't be in the majority. I'll show my age – I grew up in a rural, dinky town with almost a dozen churches and only one stop light, back in the mid-1990s, and we had comprehensive sex-ed in 3rd, 6th, and 8th grade. My point, the principal and one or two parents, sure. The entire town enough to stage protests against an advice blog on the internet in 2019... no way. Not when you'd have to cut-off the town's supply of Wi-Fi and 4G to keep them indoctrinated. I could see if the parents wanted the school board to take down a site created by the school they felt inappropriate – otherwise, shrugs, it's the whole of the internet.

While I loved the purpose of the blog, the message of awareness and a safe and informative place to ask questions without judgement, I felt the pitch forks, torches, and tar were a bit over-the-top. The principal was the perfect amount of drama – the rest was just overkill.

Amber is our innocent heroine, Dean our hero, both top 'hackers' in the school, awaiting admission to MIT. They've been friends for years, but with how Amber dated a db for the entire previous school year, Dean assumed his attraction to Amber was unrequited.

The pair are uber intelligent, tenacious, and dedicated, both wanting to change the world, leaving one of them exposed to extortion. This is where I struggled... independently, Amber and Dean felt as if the male and female versions of each other, outside of a few background stories. Too similar. Perfect. While they had plenty of quick-witted banter, it felt dry to me, as if they were chatting back and forth with himself/herself. If not for prompts in the content, their voices were interchangeable during their points-of-view.

The teenage angst was delicious, where Dean and Amber were competing in their own little game of 'best hacker,' trying to out-do the other. I did find the drama of the villain principal bringing out more angst to pit them against one another yummy. (I just didn't believe there would have been protests. The BFF's mom angry over birth control sounded spot-on, and I felt that would help teens today. MOST of the parents being angry, as I said, that was just a step too far and took the entertainment value and believability down for me.)

Amber was struggling from an event with her ex, which I felt was written with compassion and accuracy. It hurts for me to admit how many of us have been in that situation. Normally I can breeze through flashbacks like that, but this one hit me hard, dragging up my own memories. Raw and real, this was the authenticity of the storyline. It's what kept me engaged, since this was used as a mystery to draw the plot forward, because as we were in Amber's head, she refused to share what happened until she had the flashback near the three-quarter mark. If it hadn't been for that, honestly, I might have tossed in the towel and not finished.

While I enjoyed the book overall, the pacing was on the slow side, many filler scenes, which slowed it down farther and made the book feel longer than its length. The abundance of coding information made our narrators feel like hackers, but it was too instructional, like a textbook, which made me lose interest as it went directly over my head. Amber's past event kept me engaged, then I felt I might as well finish the book off after I found out what had happened. I ate up the angst between Dean and Amber thanks to our villain. I felt the issues explored in Ask Me Anything were written with compassion and devoid of judgment, which will possibly help teen readers as they read the novel.

I do recommend Ask Me Anything, flaws and all.

Young Adult age-range: 14+ due to adult language and sexual content. The message of the novel is age-appropriate and I believe comforting and enlightening for readers; however, it depends on the maturity of the reader, not necessarily their age.

Molly E. Lee is an author best known for her debut novel Edge of Chaos, and as a mentor at Pitch Wars – a program which connects promising writers to established authors in the community. Molly writes New Adult and Young Adult contemporary featuring strong female heroines who are unafraid to challenge their male counterparts, yet still vulnerable enough to have love sneak up on them. In addition to being a military spouse and mother of two + one stubborn English Bulldog, Molly loves watching storms from her back porch at her Midwest home, and digging for treasures in antique stores.

Connect with Molly

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Reviewers on the Wicked Reads Review Team were provided a free copy of Ask Me Anything by Molly E. Lee to read and review.

99% Faking It by Chris Cannon

Lisa is a card-carrying, book-loving Gryffindor. Solid. And that’s why everyone knows she’s awesome. Well, except for her crush, Matt. He only ever sees her as a friend. Plus, he's got his eye on another girl. Oh well, plenty of fish and all that.

Good thing Lisa just read a book on the “wedding ring phenomenon”—you get more attention when you’re already taken. What if Lisa pretends to be Matt’s plus one? Maybe it’ll help Matt get his girl and Lisa can hook her own fish.

After the plan works, Matt suddenly claims he doesn’t like the view from the friend-zone and wants her instead… But she isn’t interested in being anyone’s second choice. If this guy wants to earn her attention, he’ll need more than some silly “phenomenon.”

He’ll need to go all out…

Disclaimer: This Entangled Teen Crush book multiple nerd-girl references, cute puppies, and snarky humor that will make you LOL!

Each book in the Dating Dilemmas series is standalone.

Book 2
Buy Links

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Entangled Publishing

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Erica – ☆☆☆
3.5 Stars

As a big fan of Chris Cannon, and the young adult genre, I was super excited to get my hands on this novel. Perhaps it's my mood. I've been distracted, have a lot going on in life, and struggling to work. I wanted a nice, easy dose of escapism, but it just didn't work for me. I will chalk this up to my mood/reading mood/reader’s-block. I do believe young adults will swoon for 99% Faking It. As an adult who reads this genre, in the mindset I'm in, I wasn't as entertained as I could have been/hoped to be. This is no fault of the author or the story itself, and I'm sure young adults and those young at heart will swoon for the novel. There was an ethical, moral, and maturity issue I had a difficult time traversing as well.

The rating reflects the entertainment value and my enjoyment.

Lisa and Matt are considered good friends. Lisa has an unrequited crush on Matt, while he's infatuated with another girl. While I'm sucker for the premise of friends turned 'more than friends,' it didn't feel as if Lisa and Matt were friends at all. They were more acquaintances, as they didn't know much about one another and Matt had an almost antagonistic way of speaking to Lisa, which was not friendly at all.

Matt and Lisa concoct a scheme to get Matt his girl. Lisa is hesitant at first, obviously fearing their friendship won't survive...

This is actually a PSA for the younger crowd reading the novel, maybe the adults too: the fake dating to gain the attention of your crush isn't one of my favorites. Simply because at my advanced age of 40, I have an opposing view on making someone jealous. Personally, I see it as the one trying to make someone else jealous is using the other person, while hammering home to his crush, "if you don't like me, someone else will," which I find abusive to be honest. Manipulative. If your crush did like you back, saw you with another girl, she'd assume you didn't want her and move on. She'd be hurt, not driven to gain your attention. If she were a moral person, she wouldn't want to butt into another's relationship (the fake one). If anything, it makes the person pitting two others against each other seem like he's a prize – he's not. No one is. Man-up and tell this person you like them, don't manipulate. So I don't understand this facet of the mating dance at all. It's unhealthy, but everyone seems to do it, no matter their age.

Don't get me started on the friend-zone. The friend-zone doesn't exist. You're either her friend, or you're in the friend-zone, pretending to be her friend. Which is also manipulative and skeevy. Either be her friend, or tell her you like her, and if she doesn't like you that way back, either remain her friend, or cut ties because you can't handle your own feelings.

As you can see, between the fake dating to make someone jealous, and how dare I be in the friend-zone construct, I had a difficult time enjoying a novel by an author, whose writing style is always a big hit with me. Mostly because if they are behaving like this as teenagers, I can't buy the romance angle or the longevity, because it's setting up the future of a string of broken relationships through life with this unhealthy mindset.

I apologize for the PSA, not truly reviewing the book. I just had to voice why I struggled. Yes, I took this too seriously. Again, it's the mood I'm in. I'm positive someone who is in a light and fun mood will find the novel evokes similar light moods. I'm positive young adults will eat this novel up with a spoon. But my jaded adult mind saw things from a different perspective – a parental one – and this took the enjoyment away from me, and that's on me, not a dig against the author or the novel itself.

Young Adult age-range: 12+ there is adult language.

Also Available in the Dating Dilemmas Series

Book 1
Buy Links

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B&N  ~  Google Play  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo
Entangled Publishing

For reviews & more info, check out our The Dating Debate post.

Chris Cannon is the award-winning author of the Going Down in Flames series and the Boyfriend Chronicles. She lives in Southern Illinois with her husband and several furry beasts. She believes coffee is the Elixir of Life. Most evenings after work, you can find her sucking down caffeine and writing fire-breathing paranormal adventures or romantic comedies.

Connect with Chris

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Reviewers on the Wicked Reads Review Team were provided a free copy of 99% Faking It (Dating Dilemmas #2) by Chris Cannon to read and review.

From Breath and Ruin by Carrie Ann Ryan Blog Tour

In her YA debut, New York Times bestselling author Carrie Ann Ryan dives into a world with magic and sacrifice with the Elements of Five.

Five hundred years ago, the Maison Realm was shattered, divided into warring kingdoms of elemental Wielders with fate and truth shadowed and uncertain. Now, factions of both the light and dark venture into the human realm in search of the prophesied Spirit Priestess who is said to Wield the Elements of Five to bring the two fractured kingdoms together.

Lyric has no idea that there's a realm outside the human one she lives in. When fate and circumstances are pulled from her hands after an accident, she finds out that nothing is as it seems.

War is raging around her, and when Lyric realizes that they are searching for her, she must rely on those she once trusted as she trains: a boy who isn't who she thought, and a new realm of warriors who have come to protect her.

For the darkness is coming, and the Queen of Obscurité wants to ensure that the King of Lumière can't get his hands on Lyric. And the only way to ensure that is if Lyric herself is no more... no matter the cost to prophecy.

Book 1
Buy Links

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B&N  ~  Google Play  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Erica – ☆☆☆
Carrie Ann Ryan is a new-to-me author.

From Breath and Ruin is the first installment in the Elements of Five series. Even though Lyric is eighteen, on the cusp of adulthood between high school and college, it easily fits into the Young Adult genre, suitable for those 12+. Lyric is an adult, the genre is young adult, but I feel younger teens would enjoy this book the most.

Coming-of-age, Lyric doesn't know what she wants to do with the rest of her life, finding the pressure of making life-changing decisions suffocating. How at eighteen, with no experiences, is Lyric to know what major in college she should choose? She's never excelled in anything, but been good at academics, so it's not as if she can play into her strengths. I felt this would be a comfort to younger readers, as well as resonating with older readers, as most of us have been in such a state of terrifying indecision.

I did struggle at the start of the novel (the first 20% or so), as it was laden with inner monologues about the state of her life, her controlling ex now being her friend, and the dreams. Her indecision resonated with me, the fear of her dreams evoked real emotions within me, but Lyric also came off as a Suzy do-gooder, who never made mistakes, did as she was told, and that comes off as both judgmental in its goodness by comparison, as it does boring. Mousy generally doesn't lend well to a strong heroine. I couldn't wrap my mind around Lyric calling Rhodes 'dreamy,' since that's phrasing someone over 70 used in their youth.

I also never had Lyric firm in my mind. At one point, I thought Lyric was described as being shorter and overly curvy, which I took to mean a bit chubby. I was thrilled by this and being bisexual, as both aren't often used to describe teenage girls in the young adult genre. She describes herself as not being athletic, yet she runs continuously as a hobby. A large portion of the beginning quarter of the novel focused on Lyric jogging. While I knew what color and type of sports bra she had beneath her tank tops and windbreaker, I never got an accurate image of the heroine affixed in my head, as what I thought she would look like contradicted other descriptions.

Lyric has dreams, nightmares really, that show her insight into her life that has been kept from her. As usual in the young adult, fantasy genre, Lyric doesn't know she has powers, thinking herself below average, not knowing how she fits into the world, but then finds out she is rather extraordinary instead. The boy (even though Rhodes is over 21) is the one with the information Lyric needs.

Where I had issue with the magic system and world-building... it was glossed over, same as with Lyric's appearance, the characters' personalities jumping all over the place, and their motivations were muddy, yet I can remember what foods were in the burritos, washing of the sheets on a daily basis, the color and material of the sports bras, the number of tank tops beneath the highly detailed mesh windbreaker, the color of the leggings, and the type of shoes. What I needed explained never was to my satisfaction.

From a young adult's standpoint, no doubt they will be intrigued and find enjoyment in this novel and the series. I do believe the plot, the way the characters interacted with one another, this is far younger than the 18-20+ age-range of the characters, more like 12-14 in their behavior and dialogue. I did struggle with this, as it didn't read as adults in the novel – I wish their ages had been nudged to be younger.

Writing this review from my adult standpoint, I must admit I didn't enjoy this as much as I hoped I would. In a nutshell, everything felt forced. The flow, the direction the plot took, the connections the characters had with one another, all of it felt forced.

While I do recommend this novel to young adults, I'm not sure how it will be received by adults. I won't be continuing on with the series.

Carrie Ann Ryan is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of contemporary and paranormal romance. Her works include the Montgomery Ink, Redwood Pack, Talon Pack, and Gallagher Brothers series, which have sold over 2.0 million books worldwide. She started writing while in graduate school for her advanced degree in chemistry and hasn’t stopped since. Carrie Ann has written over fifty novels and novellas with more in the works. When she’s not writing about bearded tattooed men or alpha wolves that need to find their mates, she’s reading as much as she can and exploring the world of baking and gourmet cooking.

Connect with Carrie Ann

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Reviewers on the Wicked Reads Review Team were provided a free copy of From Breath and Ruin (Elements of Five #1) by Carrie Ann Ryan to read and review for this tour.