I really enjoyed this book and thought it had a fresh, intriguing plot. Darcy Jones was found outside a Chicago firehouse at the age of 5. She has been shuttled from foster home to foster home, always feeling like she didn't have a home or fit in. Once she lands at Marsha's house, she starts to settle in, have friends, and feel like she belongs. Then Conn shows up. I don't want to give any spoiler alerts, but Darcy finds out the truth about herself and about her world. She also has to figure out who she wants to be, regardless of what others tell her about herself or her past. A great read for teens and tweens who love a bit of intrigue and action, a bit of otherwordly stuff, and a bit of romance.

In Which There Is Alternate Chicago:

http://thebookfix.wordpress.com/2013/07/10/only-the-shadow-of-greatness/

Nice change of pace from vampires and hunger games-esque dystopians.

I LOVED THIS!!

A book that pulled me out of my reading slump. Highly recommend!!

The Shadow Society starts off with a normal girl going to school, hanging out with friends, and pursuing her hobby in drawing. However then you find out she’s adopted, has moved from one foster family to another, and also that some crazy, weird things have been happening to her. Then she meets the guy. Yes, the guy that appears in every book and sometimes you love him and sometimes you don’t and unfortunately I didn’t like him all that much. The plot then kicks off and a ton of things happen in these 400 or so pages. I’ll just discuss the characters then the plot in the next paragraph.

The main protagonist, Darcy Jones, has a mystery revolving around her past. She doesn’t remember her first 5 years and doesn’t know what has become of her parents. Conn, the guy she meets and can’t seem to get out of her mind is somehow implicated in all this. Darcy finds out there is a parallel earth and is thrown head first into it. She then has to become a spy against her own kind and this is when everything gets complicated. I honestly felt that too much too soon happened in the story. Her and Conn, then his betrayal (its in the synopsis, not a spoiler), then her being a spy, then ALL the missing pieces that somehow connect everything but you just can’t find. It was great the first 300 pages, but then it got draggy. Recently I’ve been reading many 400+ novels that could have been reduced less and enjoyed more. Also the ending was just too convenient, too easy, and too comfortable. I know many reviewers had the same problem. I hoped the author somehow shocked us but I felt the easy way out was taken.

Plot wise, many things happen as I mentioned earlier. Many of them were unique, such as the parallel worlds, but other things were left unexplained and that frustrated me to the extreme. Other parts of the plot were very predictable, others were too comfortable, and others heart tugging. However, I did enjoy the plot, with all of its craziness, I did like the direction it went, and I especially loved the relationship between Darcy and her foster mother. Even though this relationship barely occupied any pages but it really showed me Darcy’s vulnerability and that is what made me like her. There was also a very brief love triangle that I choose to ignore. All in all I did like the overall novel. Was it memorable? Not really, but I did enjoy it in the end. If you are a sci-fi fan then you should check it out.

I have to admit that it took me a longer break to finish this one, but I'm happy I did. The story started out with the whole new guy in school falls for the odd girl, but it actually had a nice twist that made it bearable and killed the kitsch factor. I loved the male lead Conn, and Darcy grew on me. Even her painting did. The concept of an Interdimensional Bureau of Investigation was great, and I loved how (SPOILERS) Darcy wasn't a half-blood of anything but part of the presumed bad guys. Nice change. This definitely could've been a 4-star-rating if it was a little longer. Still really enjoyed this. It's nothing earth-shattering, but it's a quick read that leaves you content with how the story ended. And once again, Conn was just so damn cool.

I really liked this one. Alternate history worlds combined with paranormal super spy agencies, combined with great characters and romance. What's not to love? And, this one was recommended to me by a teen. I enjoyed the Winner's Curse, but I like this series better.

This was just a really big meh for me. It took me forever to get through too.

The Winner's Trilogy is one of my favorite series of all time, so I finally decided to give this one a shot! This book felt very different from her other fantasy series because it was more of an urban fantasy or paranormal. But I really loved the vibe an uniqueness of the alternate world!

Darcy was easily likable. She has a complicated history that she has yet to discover and I was with her every step of the way as she uncovered more and more about herself. She was super strong and not in the physical way but in the smart sort of way! Conn had an interesting story as well, and I really liked the chemistry between him and Darcy. But at first it was very insta-love, which is fine, but I still wanted more development between them later on. 

My favorite part for me was actually the Shades and learning more about them. They were just super cool and I wish I could just go invisible at any time! There were twists and the writing was fabulous. Toward the end things got a little weird but it ended on a great note. I know this is a stand alone but I really wish the Marie would have written a book two because I have unanswered questions!

There's a whole other world on the other side of Chicago? I'll buy it. I like Shades, too. Even more, I love Darcy and her friends and how they all come back together in the end.