≡ Descargar Gratis Crossroads JJ Bonds 9781466383265 Books

Crossroads JJ Bonds 9781466383265 Books

Download As PDF : Crossroads JJ Bonds 9781466383265 Books

Crossroads JJ Bonds 9781466383265 Books

(cross-posted from the blog Wading Through Electronic Ink)

The Plot

Katia is far from thrilled to be headed to Crossroads Academy. She knows it will be full of snobby rich teen vampires who will only be friendly to her in order to curry favor with her powerful uncle. Still, she's determined to learn all she can, especially about becoming an elite fighter.

In spite of herself, Katia begins to make friends and settle in at Crossroads, until tragedy strikes the nearby town of humans. Suddenly the vampires are afraid for the exposure of their world, and Katia must face a much more personal threat - the truth about her past, which she will do anything to keep secret.

The Good

In spite of the fact that Crossroads features two potentially overdone tropes in the YA paranormal world - vampires and boarding schools - I found the book enjoyable and compelling. Crossroads definitely has enough that is unique to keep a reader engaged, from the cutthroat vampire politics to the oddities of the blood disease.

I liked Katia a lot as a character, largely because she was not a cookie-cutter YA heroine. She establishes fairly early on that she does not care whether other people like her, and at no point does she alter her decidedly negative attitude in order to please anyone else. Yet she demonstrates that she can admit when she is wrong and manages to form bonds with select few others. I admit that at times her hostility toward everyone got on my nerves, but I was able to push past that and like her overall.

The kindle version of a book also has full chapter formatting, with a table of contents and the ability to flip between chapters. I cannot possibly describe how much I appreciate it when authors take the effort to do this.

The Bad

For the majority of Crossroads, the narrator Katia is keeping a very large secret about her past from the audience. This is made especially irritating because she constantly hints that there is something that she is not telling us. In a first person narrative, we as readers should feel like we are in the character's head, and this effect is ruined when we are constantly reminded that the narrator is withholding information from us.

I conducted a brief and informal survey of people I know to determine whether everyone else found this device as irritating as I do. There were a variety of responses. Some felt, as I do, that if you want to keep a secret from the audience, you write in the third person. Others said that they did not mind this technique when it is done well. I think even those in the latter group would agree that this is not one of those cases. I nearly stopped reading the book a few times because I was getting tired of Katia's attitude. But then when I reached the big reveal at the end, where we found out what had happened in her past, my response was, "Oh. Oh, wow. That totally makes sense. I now completely understand why she is the way she is." I feel as a reader, this background information would have given me a better appreciation of the story as it developed, and there was still plenty of room for a surprise ending.

The Romance

Before Katia is at Crossroads for very long, Nikolai, the most popular boy in school begins to show an interest in her. In spite of all her rebuffs, he continues to offer overtures of friendship and volunteers to tutor her in martial arts. Basically, he is perfect - cute, smart, talented, rich, patient, tolerant of his friends' foibles, etc. I actually find myself wondering why he puts up with Katia, and especially why he wants to pursue a romantic relationship with her. I cannot stress enough that the reasons for her unfriendliness are totally legitimate, but I would think that it would curtail her having any sane and rational suitors worth having. But, then, if she didn't, the book wouldn't really be worth reading, so we will just have to accept that Nik can see past her gruff exterior to the shining person within.

Will I read more?

I'm thinking probably yes, especially now that the reasons for Katia's hostility are made clear. I'm curious to see how the revelation of Katia's past influences her interactions with the other characters in the book, as well as with the reader. Some people may say that YA stories about vampire boarding schools are overdone, but I say as long as long as they're good, feel free to keep `em coming.


Tags : Crossroads [J.J. Bonds] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. When Katia enrolled at Crossroads Academy she knew things weren't exactly going to be easy. The sole heir to the worlds' most powerful vampire,J.J. Bonds,Crossroads,CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform,1466383267,FICTION Fantasy Contemporary

Crossroads JJ Bonds 9781466383265 Books Reviews

Book description When Katia enrolled at Crossroads Academy she knew things weren't exactly going to be easy. The sole heir to the worlds' most powerful vampire, her presence was bound to cause a stir. But nothing could have prepared her for this. Whispers follow everywhere she goes. So does trouble.

But Katia will do her time at Crossroads. After all, she's only enrolled at the prestigious school for pure blood vampires to fulfill a promise to her Great Uncle Aldo. Tucked away in the Green Mountains of Vermont, Katia hopes to shed the demons of her past and focus on her education. Raised blissfully unaware of the entire vamp world, she's got a lot of catching up to do.

As Katia learns more about this dark society and her own legacy, protecting her past becomes increasingly difficult. Bodies start turning up in nearby Rutland and Katia is sucked into a twisted web of danger and deceit. Haunted by nightmares she can't explain and a thirst for blood that is never sated, Katia will do whatever it takes to keep her past buried. What choice does she have? Exposure will shake the Elder's Council to its core and likely result in a death sentence at the hands of the Linkuri.

Nothing at Crossroads is what it seems and Katia's secrets may be the darkest of them all.

When I read the description for crossroads I just HAD to know the story!

Crossroads is the first book in the Crossroad's series (a trilogy), and the first book published by J.J. Bonds. I was impressed by how smooth the writing was, and how easy the story was to follow, given that J.J. Bonds a debut author and this is the first novel in a new series. However being a series, I was glad that Katia's secret is revealed just before the ending, I would have hated to wait for later in the series to find out. Luckily, Bond gives you plenty of little clues along the way.

Katia has been through hell, but the worst is still to come. At school, she tries very hard to not let anybody get close to her, keeps her guard up almost all the time. Even during her weekly meetings with her counselor, Anya, she gives very little away. Trust doesn't come easy for her. However a few students do break through her reserve and become important to her.

Nicolai, her martial arts help-instructor (and a classmate) gives her private lessons to make her a better fighter, (and just gets under her skin). Shaye, a girl, who loves to stand out, is fiercely protective of who she loves and don't give a shit about what the popular kids thinks, and slowly even Anya makes her way into Katia's heart with her candor, frankness, stubbornness and her protectiveness toward both Katia and Anya's own brother, Nicolai.

When her nightmares begins again, she starts to realize that something isn't what it's supposed to be,her nightmares are more than just dreams. As bodies starts to turn up in the nearby village, Katia realizes that her worst fears are coming true. She will have to make a decision; will she run, or will she stay and fight? And now that her secret's out, will she do it alone?

I REALLY enjoyed reading Crossroads! The characters were very vivid, the school just like any other boarding school - well except for the fact that this was a boarding school solely for vampires.You still had all the elements from those awkward teen years at school, the kids you love/hate, the jealousy, pettiness from the other kids who don't like you and the warmth from the kids that you know are going to be your friends one day. And just like real life - everybody has their own secrets to protect.

I'm looking forward to the next book in the series (no title yet), to see the characters grow a little bit more, what kind of trouble Katia will get herself into, if her secret can be kept hidden and if the slowly building romance between Nicolai and Katia will develop.
(cross-posted from the blog Wading Through Electronic Ink)

The Plot

Katia is far from thrilled to be headed to Crossroads Academy. She knows it will be full of snobby rich teen vampires who will only be friendly to her in order to curry favor with her powerful uncle. Still, she's determined to learn all she can, especially about becoming an elite fighter.

In spite of herself, Katia begins to make friends and settle in at Crossroads, until tragedy strikes the nearby town of humans. Suddenly the vampires are afraid for the exposure of their world, and Katia must face a much more personal threat - the truth about her past, which she will do anything to keep secret.

The Good

In spite of the fact that Crossroads features two potentially overdone tropes in the YA paranormal world - vampires and boarding schools - I found the book enjoyable and compelling. Crossroads definitely has enough that is unique to keep a reader engaged, from the cutthroat vampire politics to the oddities of the blood disease.

I liked Katia a lot as a character, largely because she was not a cookie-cutter YA heroine. She establishes fairly early on that she does not care whether other people like her, and at no point does she alter her decidedly negative attitude in order to please anyone else. Yet she demonstrates that she can admit when she is wrong and manages to form bonds with select few others. I admit that at times her hostility toward everyone got on my nerves, but I was able to push past that and like her overall.

The kindle version of a book also has full chapter formatting, with a table of contents and the ability to flip between chapters. I cannot possibly describe how much I appreciate it when authors take the effort to do this.

The Bad

For the majority of Crossroads, the narrator Katia is keeping a very large secret about her past from the audience. This is made especially irritating because she constantly hints that there is something that she is not telling us. In a first person narrative, we as readers should feel like we are in the character's head, and this effect is ruined when we are constantly reminded that the narrator is withholding information from us.

I conducted a brief and informal survey of people I know to determine whether everyone else found this device as irritating as I do. There were a variety of responses. Some felt, as I do, that if you want to keep a secret from the audience, you write in the third person. Others said that they did not mind this technique when it is done well. I think even those in the latter group would agree that this is not one of those cases. I nearly stopped reading the book a few times because I was getting tired of Katia's attitude. But then when I reached the big reveal at the end, where we found out what had happened in her past, my response was, "Oh. Oh, wow. That totally makes sense. I now completely understand why she is the way she is." I feel as a reader, this background information would have given me a better appreciation of the story as it developed, and there was still plenty of room for a surprise ending.

The Romance

Before Katia is at Crossroads for very long, Nikolai, the most popular boy in school begins to show an interest in her. In spite of all her rebuffs, he continues to offer overtures of friendship and volunteers to tutor her in martial arts. Basically, he is perfect - cute, smart, talented, rich, patient, tolerant of his friends' foibles, etc. I actually find myself wondering why he puts up with Katia, and especially why he wants to pursue a romantic relationship with her. I cannot stress enough that the reasons for her unfriendliness are totally legitimate, but I would think that it would curtail her having any sane and rational suitors worth having. But, then, if she didn't, the book wouldn't really be worth reading, so we will just have to accept that Nik can see past her gruff exterior to the shining person within.

Will I read more?

I'm thinking probably yes, especially now that the reasons for Katia's hostility are made clear. I'm curious to see how the revelation of Katia's past influences her interactions with the other characters in the book, as well as with the reader. Some people may say that YA stories about vampire boarding schools are overdone, but I say as long as long as they're good, feel free to keep `em coming.