Friday, May 18, 2012

Storm by Brigid Kemmerer Review

Happy Friday Everyone! 




Earth, Fire, Air, Water – they have more power than you dream.

Ever since her ex-boyfriend spread those lies about her, Becca Chandler is suddenly getting all the guys—all the ones she doesn't want. Then she saves Chris Merrick from a beating in the school parking lot. Chris is different. Way different: he can control water—just like his brothers can control fire, wind, and earth. They’re powerful. Dangerous. Marked for death.And now that she knows the truth, so is Becca.Secrets are hard to keep when your life’s at stake. When Hunter, the mysterious new kid around school, turns up with a talent for being in the wrong place at the right time, Becca thinks she can trust him. But then Hunter goes head-to-head with Chris, and Becca wonders who’s hiding the most dangerous truth of all.


The storm is coming . . .


Ever since I read Sarah at Saz101’s brilliant review of Storm by Brigid Kremmerer, I knew I wanted to read this book. I entered this book with high expectations and I was pleased (I jumped up and down) with how amazing the book turned out to be!

I was so happy and surprised when I found out that the author Brigid lives in my home state and the setting of this story is set in Maryland. I love how the descriptions of the suburban setting were just like my home. I liked learning about Michael's job as a landscaper because it reminded me of how important beautiful and cleaned yards are to my community. Reading the scene at a cold beach reminded me of hanging out with friends at some of the beaches close to home. It was awesome for me to be able to see myself in the story’s world.

This is one of the few books I loved where my favorite character played a minimum role. But when he marched on the page he left a bright mark! This character used to work for the police and is now successfully running arrogant antagonist Tyler and Seth off in a mad dash!

Casper is the cutest and most amazing dog that ever brought excitement to a book’s story. He is more than a dog; he is a warrior! He reminds me so much of my adorable laboradoodle Happy. Like Happy, Casper is very intelligent and friendly.  

The human characters were equally amazing and relatable. I love the close bond Michael, Chris, Gabriel and Nick shared. I laughed so much during their scenes when it was just the four of them. They were each individualistic and swoon-worthy. I liked how the younger three, Nick, Gabriel and Chris, realistically want to keep every worrisome event a secret from the oldest brother, Michael. I also loved how flawed and real each of the brothers acted! 


I am really glad Kemmerer decided to add Chris's point of view to the story. I found him a very intriguing character that I enjoyed having a chance to know. Becca was also a great heroine who was not all powerful but could mostly handle herself in tough situations. I really liked Becca's best friend Quinn because she reminded me of me. We are both very blunt and like to be direct. Her interactions with every character were priceless. I hope Quinn has more scene time in Spark!


In the end...

What I love most about Storm is that I am reading it to enjoy the ride, to enjoy the characters and to experience the characters’ awesome and exciting lives. I am not reading it just to find out every secret in every corner. I am reading it because I am completely enamored by its excitement. The only other story I felt this way about is The Ivy Series by Lauren Kunze and Rina Onur. 

Who knew that a paranormal story could provide the same relief of enjoyment as a contemporary story?

 Storm is one of the most amazing, incredible and gifted debuts I have ever read! 
Read it now!


5/5 GOLDEN STARS! 

I did a discussion post yesterday on what element I would love to control. 
You can join the discussion here!

Thanks for reading!

15 comments:

  1. Awesome review, Rachel. I have the novella that was free on Amazon so I'll be reading that soon to sample the series and hopefully then I'll read book one! So glad you loved it. :D

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  2. I'm glad you liked this one so much! I've been wanting to get my hands on a copy since it came out, so it's good to know it won't be a disappointment! I'm also glad that you found a paranormal book that you enjoyed as much as a contemporary, since they're my favorite kind of book. ;D Thanks for the review!

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  3. OMG!!! You don't even understand how excited I am right now!! *FLAILS*

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  4. RACHEL! Eveytime I read a gushing review for this book, I want to read it all over again and I think that applies especially to your review! I absolutely loved that Brigid wrote some scenes in Chris's POV too -- he was SO SWEET! And I've heard rumors that Quinn is going to have a bigger part in the next book, so I think your wishes are going to be amplified in Spark! (I'm YAYing with you because Quinn kicked butt in my book too!)

    Absolutely FANTASTIC review, Rachel! :) <3

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  5. It's awesome that the author lives in the same state with you, Rachel, because you can exactly experience the setting of this story! <3 I just finished reading Elemental short story, and although I found it enjoyable, the story is really way TOO SHORT! Now I can't wait to start raving on the full story of hot Merrick brothers! xD

    Amazing review, Rachel! So glad you loved this book! :)

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  6. Lovely review, Rachel! I've decided long ago that I need to get my hands on a copy of this book. Who could resist four gorgeous and powerful brothers? All your reviews just serve to convince me further that I need to hurry up and clear my arcs a little bit.

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  7. I can really tell you loved this, Rach! As have so many other bloggers and I totally understand how fun it is to read a book set in your area, I love it!

    I'm going to grab a copy of this soon so I can find out for myself just how good this book is!

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  8. awesome review
    i loved how it had an contemp feel to it as well with awesome elements ^_^
    i loved all the brothers and there relationship

    i can't wait 4 spark

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  9. Ooh, yes, I so agree with you! Storm was AWESOME, and Kemmerer did SUCH a good job on the Merrick brothers, I loved how authentic their relationship was, and I think Becca ended up being one of my favourite heroines ever. There was just something about her that was so likeable. And I loved that Becca and Quinn have a real friendship too, with squabbles and all that, but underneath it all they really do care about each other. :-)
    Great review!

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  10. Amazing review! I also read and loved Storm. Gosh, what an amazing book! Luckily the next one comes out in a couple of months. I've already preordered it.

    Hahahah I liked that you described Casper, and then the "human" characters. Hilarious! But yeah, I also adored Casper. And all the powers and elements... Reading your review makes me want to read the book again <3

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  11. C A S P E R!!!! Rachel, I can't even say how much I love that you gave Casper the attention he deserves! I love how a character with NO dialogue can play such a big part in the book, and be so, SO charming!

    AAAAH! Amazing amazing AMAZING review, and I am so so SOOOO excited you loved this book so much! ♥

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  12. Yay so happy you loved this one too! I really enjoyed getting both POVs as well Chris is a great character and it was awesome to get inside his head as well! I canT wait for the sequel!!

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  13. Hahaha Casper! I LOVE THAT DOG TOO! <3

    "I am not reading it just to find out every secret in every corner. I am reading it because I am completely enamored by its excitemen THIS. EXACTLY THIS. I could not agree more!!

    Fanfreakingtastic review. I am SO happy you loved this so much! BRING ON SPARK! :D

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  14. Hi Rachel, so nice to meet you. Thanks for stoppijng by my blog. I am always happy to return the fsvor. You have a cute little blog. Thismwas a great review, I liked that line about your favorite character marching on scene and leaving his mark. I don't know why I didn't hear about this book until it came out and now I keep reading about these hot brothers. I want to me them and Casper.

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  15. I love this book. Great characters, plot, action, all that. But the ending. THE ENDING!!! I actually screamed a little when I went to turn the page thinking there was something next and it was over. It seemed that no sooner did I finally see a glimpse of what I wanted, that it just cuts off. I wanted to explode! I wanted to hunt down the author, Kemmerer, and demand that she writes another ending. An ending that had at least five more pages. I actually had to wait a week before I could write this review because otherwise the review would have just been a rant about the ending. And I realize even now that I could go on about it for another five paragraphs. It was that outrageous. I'll stop now, but if she ends the next book like this one, I may not survive it. But again, this is still an amazing book.

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