Thursday, August 11, 2011

Watched by Sharde Richardson (Review)


Genre:Young Adult, Paranormal Romance
Publication.Date  May 30th 2011
Pages:345
Published By:  Jolt
WebsiteSharde Richardson
Watched - Goodreads
My review copy:From the author ❤
Where to get: Barnes and Noble | Amazon | Book Depository


     Mikayla doesn’t want much: just to rock out to her favorite band, become the next Kwiki Stop video gaming champion, and keep her Q-tip habit under control. What she does want is the sight of the sudden inexplicable dark auras around everyone to stop. Problem is, those auras are demons and Mikayla is the last trait holder with the power to ban them. Which is a total buzz kill.

To make matters worse, the town folk of Sulphur Springs don’t look the same, and her classmates are a little dark in the eyes. There are murders, suicides, reckless skinny-dipping, gratuitous use of Q-tips, and newfound powers that Mikayla must learn to control.

Her past becomes present when a shape-shifter tells her what her true identity is, and how to keep the demons of Hell from nipping at her Converse. Through him she’ll discover who to trust, who to kiss, and how valuable her abilities are to the right beings. Because the evils of Hell aren’t staying down without a fight.

Or without her soul.
(goodreads.com)


I looked over my shoulder for the screeching bird. A ginormous freaggin’ black bird flapped on the ground near a tree. I sucked air through my nose like I couldn’t get it in fast enough, hopped down and walked over. “Jeez, aaaren’t you s-s-supposed t-ttooo fly t-to Florida or sssomething like that during wa-wa-winter?”
 You see, I suffered from a condition in which bitchiness was a side effect at the mere mention of bullshit. “Sure. Just excuse me while I think of a polite way to say hell no.”
“You think this could be the start of some psycho serial cannibal killer’s wet dream? You know, like the little Irish man in that movie Back Two Tha Hood.” I shrugged. Chevy tugged at his ear. “I hope not, because I need my heart. And my penis. Probably my penis a little more than my heart.”
 I saw a special on the History channel once, said ‘educate’ stemmed from the root word ‘punish’ in ancient Egyptian.
“Man up, Chevy,” I insisted. “You’re acting so tweetable right now. Hashtag: growapair.”
Bea began a series of finger points and head nods around the room. “Warlock, witch, witch, Demoted, werebear, leprechauns—ugh, never get in a relationship with a leprechaun, can we say ‘possessive’. Oh, and never party with the Fae either, man. They go rock star hard and by the end of the night, you’ll be licking the nipples of a unicorn. Mind blowers,”
In the end, we were all just freaks. We went through the motions at school, attending classes on subjects that would never be applied in real world applications, eating processed cafeteria food, and staring at each other wondering if it was okay to smile. Could we smile? Should we smile? We waited for the puppet master to pull the strings, but what would be the point when someone always burst into tears. It was all some sinister test in will power. Of which most of us failed.

         
     Watched by Sharde Richardson is the perfect example of how you shouldn’t judge the book by its cover. I absolutely loved the cover from the moment I first laid my eyes on it – it’s fabulous, dreamy, colorful and just looking at it makes me happy. Judging by the cover I expected some sort of a fairytale retelling. I thought something along the lines of a big, bad wolf and red riding hood. I did not at all expect it to be a thrilling demon story with kick-ass characters and wild, breath-taking twists! This book rocked my socks! 

     The main protagonist of the story is Mikayla, a snarky teenager with a weird q-tip habit, known in town as “the girl with the stutter”. Although she doesn’t remember anything that happened to her before her thirteenth birthday, she considers herself to be just another teenage girl, no more, no less. 

     The story kicks-off with a total jaw-dropper. I actually had to re-read the first chapter twice to make sure I got everything right.  Mikayla is about to go ice-skating to celebrate her seventeenth birthday, when suddenly a weird looking stranger appears right in front of her and attacks her with a knife. Stabbed, Mikayla passes out and wakes up in the local hospital. But that’s just the beginning of it! Ever since her near-death experience, Mikayla can see weird auras around people. These auras, as it turns out, are the signs of demons and Mikayla is able to see them because she is a demon Hunter! That’s not all, though! There’s another weird fella following her around, only this one seems to be rather friendly and far more handsome! Plus he seems to know a lot about Mikayla and her newly acquired ability. There’s a lot more going on and the story just keeps on getting crazier with every chapter! 

     It is an absolute MUST READ for any YA fan. Now, I am about to say something that will send hordes of Cassandra Clare’s fans chasing after me with pitchforks, but you know what? I actually liked it better than Cassie’s Mortal Instruments. Don’t get me wrong, Mortal Instruments series is awesome and I love it, but this book.. This book is just phenomenal! It’s a wild thrill ride right from the get-go. It’s also snarky, sharp and filled with hilarious quotes. The characters are really, really great. Mikayla is bright, tough and witty. She’s the kind of girl you would love to have as your best friend. She’s just endlessly awesome. The story is told from her first-person perspective and I wouldn’t have it any other way. It was so fun to see the world through her eyes. The way she thinks and the things she says.. top notch! I was constantly highlighting quotes from this book! The whole book is like a giant, insanely hilarious quote. You just have to read it! 

    And one more thing I’d like to talk about is the romance part of this book, which is very subtle and almost non-existent. Sharde Richardson brilliantly laid the foundation for something that could be a really beautiful romance, but she didn’t force it. Instead she focused on developing her characters and letting us get to know them better. I can’t express how thankful I am for that, Sharde! I am so fed up with all the cheesy love stories in YA novels. This was a great refreshment! 

The bottom line is: Go get yourself a copy. Period.

24 comments:

Unknown said...

Wow - it was kinda hard to tell but I get the feeling you might have liked this book a little ;). I'm going to look for it now too - great review.

Faye( Ramblings of a Teenage Bookworm) said...

I does kind of look like a fairy retelling...Red Hiding?

Haz my pitchfork out lol jk! Love TMI! So Kick ass demon hunters & romance...sounds like a recipe of awesome!

therainhouse said...

Hahaha.. I like lots of books better than TMI. I mean, TMI is great and all but still. There's The Lord of the Rings, The Chronicles of Narnia, The Silmarillion and Dune and lots of amazing unpublished and unwritten books.

But back to your review.

1.I heart that cover! It's so pretti-ful.

2.This is whacked out! This book has awesome elements of mystery and adventure.

3.I love me a little romance but I can wait for that in the next book.

Obsession with Books said...

A fantastic review Evie! I have just placed my kindle order for it and can't wait to get started..

Sabrina said...

I NEED to get this!

P.E. said...

The cover alone makes me want this book. I'm glad the contents are awesome too though! & I'm glad the romance wasn't stressed. Watched is moving to a very high spot in my TBR list. Thanks for the review!

Evie said...

@Dana.. a little?! I absolutely LOVED this book :D You should definitely look for it! It's not available @Book Depo at the moment (sucks!) but they have it on Amazon and B&N :)

@Faye *looking scared* Please put the pitchfork away, hon! :D I know, right?! There are so many great YA (and not only) series out there, some are way better than MI series :) This book though is a hidden GEM, I am so surprised not many people know about it!!!

@therainhouse Dude! How can I stalk you? ;> Your comments always make me happy, but I can't seem to find any Twitter nor blog page.. lemme know! My stalker senses are tingling!!!

@Thanks Sharon <3 I'm so glad to hear you already got a kindle copy!! YAY :D You will LOVE it!!!

@Sabrina I'm hoping the wonderful Sharde Richardson will stop by for a giveaway, so check back later! :)

@P.E. Yup, yup *nodding* the cover is absolutely gorgeous *_* But the contents are even better! the writing style is so unique and endlessly fun to read! you gotta read this!! :D

Thanks all for the comments <3 love ya!

P.E. said...

@Evie: Don't worry, I will be reading this for sure. :)

Anonymous said...

Your review rocked my socks. I love TMI (and it's cool that you think this is better because I totally understand. I won't go beheading you for honesty.) All the things you just wrote about this book nearly put me in a tailspin. I need this book! Great review :)

♥ Trish
Just a YA Girl

Alexis @ Reflections of a Bookaholic said...

Wow 5 stars? Sounds like a winner. Fab review. I'll be on the look out for this one.

P.S. I definitely see what you mean about the cover.

Maria Behar said...

Hi, Evie! Hey, I could have sworn I was already following you, but it turns I wasn't... so I just did!! I LOVE your blog!1

This was a terrific review! You've really given me a feel for the book, and the quotes you included are hysterical!! Lol.

Thanks for your comments on my YA authors signing post. I can't wait to go to another one of those...

Hope you and hubby have a FABULOUS weekend!! : )

Maria Behar said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Jamie said...

This book sounds AMAZING! I haven't read the TMI series yet so no pitchfork here ;) Have a great weekend!

Butter said...

I read Watched a few weeks ago and like you I loved it! I was laughing so many times and I totally agree with you: the romance part is brilliant! Finally a story that doesn't have the "love of my life at first sight" thing going on AND if I remember right there also isn't a love triangle going on (wuhu!)(but please correct me if I'm wrong). I really hope there will be a sequel because the end was just a big WTFridge moment.
Happy Saturday :)

Unknown said...

On my way to check it out now!

Steph

http://stephsstacks.blogspot.com

Sarah M said...

It's not a red riding hood retell? I totally guessed that from the cover too. Sounds like a great book.

Bonnie said...

How could I NOT want to read this book after reading your review! Talk about a recommendation! I am definitely going to have to check this out... actually I'm pretty excited to read it now! Evie, I got your message and I do hope that we can work something out when you are in T.O.! I have Friday and Sundays off. I'm excited!

Munnaza said...

I love the colors on the cover of this book! They're just so incredibly gorgeous. Aside from the interesting paranormal aspects of this book, the quotes you posted (that twitter one is making me laugh so hard right now) are hilarious/interesting. I kind of love the writing. The characters in this book sound incredibly kickass and awesome, and I love actually witty protagonists. Throw in demons and well done subtle romance, and I'm basically sold. (And yay, glad to hear it's even better than The Mortal Instruments. As a TMI fan, I'll really have to check this book out!)

FairyWhispers said...

Really love the cover of the book!

Anonymous said...

i have NOT seen this book ANYWHERE (maybe because i just started blogging) but the cover is beautiful (always a sucker for beautiful covers) and your review makes me put it on my must read pile! thanks for the review =)

Christina said...

Never heard of this book. Totally clicked on this review because of the cover looked like a fairy tale retelling. You are so right on that. Adding to the tbr pile now!

Jaime Lester said...

How has this one slipped past my bookie radar? That cover? I would remember that cover, no doubt. And if I had ever read the blurb, I would have this book on my shelf NOW. A weird Q-tip habit? Yeah, I can't pass that up. I mean, talk about a mystery. The blurb screams at me to read it now! So, that is what I am going to try and do asap. Thanks for yet another review that made me want to spend my hard earned moolah! That's why I love it here!

Mary Preston said...

Why haven't I heard of this book before. It sounds fantastic.

Joie said...

Oh my gosh this book has been on my TBR list for months! Thanks for reminding me that I really need to read it--it sounds so much better than I'd anticipated!

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