Passenger by Alexandra Bracken & Books I Bought Today*▽*

Synopsis
Passage, n. 
i. A brief section of music composed of a series of notes and flourishes.
ii. A journey by water; a voyage.
iii. The transition from one place to another, across space and time.

In one devastating night, violin prodigy Etta Spencer loses everything she knows and loves. Thrust into an unfamiliar world by a stranger with a dangerous agenda, Etta is certain of only one thing: she has traveled not just miles but years from home. And she’s inherited a legacy she knows nothing about from a family whose existence she’s never heard of. Until now.

Nicholas Carter is content with his life at sea, free from the Ironwoods—a powerful family in the colonies—and the servitude he’s known at their hands. But with the arrival of an unusual passenger on his ship comes the insistent pull of the past that he can’t escape and the family that won’t let him go so easily. Now the Ironwoods are searching for a stolen object of untold value, one they believe only Etta, Nicholas’ passenger, can find. In order to protect her, he must ensure she brings it back to them—whether she wants to or not.

Together, Etta and Nicholas embark on a perilous journey across centuries and continents, piecing together clues left behind by the traveler who will do anything to keep the object out of the Ironwoods’ grasp. But as they get closer to the truth of their search, and the deadly game the Ironwoods are playing, treacherous forces threaten to separate Etta not only from Nicholas but from her path home... forever.

Quotes
P.132
Here it was ,a hundred year's worth of justification for the wrongful enslavement of human beings, gathered into a tidy ,single breath of hot air, Theses sweeping lies about the minds of Africans. 
The denial of every opportunity to advance by reading ,writing, and thinking kept them not only in physical chains ,but insidious ,invisible ones as well.
P.212
This spineless sop had never raised a hand to Augustus, his monster of a son ,even as he terrorized everyone around him with his maliciousness.  
《Idiom》
raised a hand: to hit/to threat somebody

P.212
Cyrus Ironwood's heart had harden into flint,capable only of being sparked into fiery anger.It allowed him to scheme without mercy-to steal a young woman from her home , thrust her into a decade long search that amounted to little more than madness.
＊amount: result into
P.217
Nicholas felt the cold sweat collect along his spine ,and tried to tamp down his desperate longing. 
【Idiom】tamp down :
to reduce the amount ,level size , or importance of something.
(to press something such as soil or tobacco down firmly)

P.302
From the moment he had been exiled, Nicholas had used the dream of  owing a ship as ballast to weather( verb.) the storm of guilt and anger and devastation.
P.311
Raindrops dripped from the arch in soft patters , catching the dim light.The water collected and flowed down the paths worn by hundreds of years of footsteps.In the distance, if she squinted , she could see pale-limbed trees growing into some of the structures, devastating whole sections of walls with their roots and branches.
P.384
The full weight of exhaustion hit her at once. Etta felt as though her head was stuffed with cotton, her knees suddenly hollow.
(※It's a good way to describe the protagonist's chaotic and helpless entangled brain  )
P.357
The stones bounced the sound around, disguising its true source.
P.363
She(Etta) nodded ,and the now-familiar poison of guilt and dread worked its way through his system.
P.393
There was  this dream she used to have,when she was younger and her stage fright was at its crippling worst.The most terrifying thing was how real it felt;each night, she felt the warmth of the stage lights on her skin as she stopped out and let herself be blinded by them.
It never mattered what song the orchestra started to play--it was never the on she knew,never the one she had mastered-and she could never seem to improsive but only choke on her own frustration at her inability to play the right thing on demand.
P.398
Nicholas held her face, smoothing away the tears.The small smile he offered was meant to steal from her, she thought ,but it  only broke her heart.
P.410
In her era, Syria was in the midst of a civil war,one so destructive and burdened with death and despair that millions of refugees had been forced to fleece from it.Even Damascus had not been spared. But it was comforting ,in a way she hadn't expected ,to understand that the city had stood ,in one form or another for thousand of years.

Ancient Syria

P.414
Etta's back was suddenly drenched in heat, and the world burned fiery red beneath her closed eyelids.She thrashed wildly, kicking , her screams muffled by the fabric around her.
P.414
Dust and dirt filled her mouth,grinding between her teeth as she tried to crawl away.
Black and white exploded across her vision, blocking the sight of her bleeding hand against the pale stone.
(It's a good writing method to describe the fierce fight and the protagonist's painful ,helpless situation)
P.424
The truth, stripped bare to its bones,was that if he had cared for he any less, he would walk away.Not even the full weight of Ironwood's fortune would have been enough to tempt him alone.

Nicholas

Etta

 Vocabulary that I learned from this book

＊brace
(1) to give life ,vigor ,or spirit 
【Synonym】enliven、animate、energize
(2)hold up or serve as a foundation for
【Synonym】support、sustain、uphold
(3) to prepare oneself mentally and emotionally 
For example:　She braced herself for the job interview
【Synonym】fortify、psych、strengthen

Review
This book ...Oh ,it's not only beautifully written but filled with sincere emotion exploding out of the page .I love Bracken's writing style.As you can see, a giant bunch of quotes above proves that I'm absolutely overwhelmed by those golden ,gorgeous sentence that has brought me to ecstasy!I am not quite sure how I could coherence my feeling about this masterpiece.Two protagonists ,two background, from different times and countries,Bracken masterfully combined their own stories into one even more mesmerizing story.Etta and Nicholas' compelling and interwoven tales kept me invested until the last page.
＊invest: to cause (as a person) to become filled or saturated with a certain quality or principle 
Nicholas is a black man who worked in the ocean and he was a member of Ironwoods .Despite how hard he wants to escape and .He is full of confidence,fortitude and tenderness and cautiousness .To people whom he loved ,he will protect and care for them even the death is on the edge.His passionate affection to Etta is so moving and impressive.Here is a quote down below. I read it and my heart was twisted so hard by the strong emotion that I cannot even breath and the tears moistered my sight:

P.424 The truth ,stripped bare to its bone,was that if he had cared for her any less, he would have walked away.Not even the full weight of Ironwood's fortune would have been enough to tempt him alone.

 In addition to the epic romance, time-traveling was one of my favorite part! They traveled through many different countries in disparate eras.From New York to Angkor ,war-torn  London to Damascus in which was so  peaceful that Etta could hardly recognized and believed since the war in Syria torn this place apart in twenty-first century.It was abundantly clear how much research Bracken put into writing this book and her enthusiasm for her story is clearly obvious. Her passion jumped off the pages, grabbed a hold of me and wouldn’t let go.
I am  so grateful that I picked this one up.I love every single detail and the dynamics between the characters.Thank you Alexandra Bracken ,you are incredible!

Books I bought Today(All are paperback edition)
Just want to tell you how exited I am ~~

Yes ,yes!!!I waited for it for almost my entire life~~
I've heard nothing but good things about it, it also has the incredibly high rating on Goodreads!With this simple reason I decided to give it a try.So exited to read this.
Here is the synopsis from Goodreads:



Shadow and Bone (The Grisha #1)

Surrounded by enemies, the once-great nation of Ravka has been torn in two by the Shadow Fold, a swath of near impenetrable darkness crawling with monsters who feast on human flesh. Now its fate may rest on the shoulders of one lonely refugee.

Alina Starkov has never been good at anything. But when her regiment is attacked on the Fold and her best friend is brutally injured, Alina reveals a dormant power that saves his life—a power that could be the key to setting her war-ravaged country free. Wrenched from everything she knows, Alina is whisked away to the royal court to be trained as a member of the Grisha, the magical elite led by the mysterious Darkling.

Yet nothing in this lavish world is what it seems. With darkness looming and an entire kingdom depending on her untamed power, Alina will have to confront the secrets of the Grisha . . . and the secrets of her heart.

Siege and Storm (The Grisha #2)

Darkness never dies.

Hunted across the True Sea, haunted by the lives she took on the Fold, Alina must try to make a life with Mal in an unfamiliar land. She finds starting new is not easy while keeping her identity as the Sun Summoner a secret. She can’t outrun her past or her destiny for long.

The Darkling has emerged from the Shadow Fold with a terrifying new power and a dangerous plan that will test the very boundaries of the natural world. With the help of a notorious privateer, Alina returns to the country she abandoned, determined to fight the forces gathering against Ravka. But as her power grows, Alina slips deeper into the Darkling’s game of forbidden magic, and farther away from Mal. Somehow, she will have to choose between her country, her power, and the love she always thought would guide her--or risk losing everything to the oncoming storm.

Ruin and Rising (The Grisha #3)

The capital has fallen.

The Darkling rules Ravka from his shadow throne.

Now the nation's fate rests with a broken Sun Summoner, a disgraced tracker, and the shattered remnants of a once-great magical army.

Deep in an ancient network of tunnels and caverns, a weakened Alina must submit to the dubious protection of the Apparat and the zealots who worship her as a Saint. Yet her plans lie elsewhere, with the hunt for the elusive firebird and the hope that an outlaw prince still survives.

Alina will have to forge new alliances and put aside old rivalries as she and Mal race to find the last of Morozova's amplifiers. But as she begins to unravel the Darkling's secrets, she reveals a past that will forever alter her understanding of the bond they share and the power she wields. The firebird is the one thing that stands between Ravka and destruction—and claiming it could cost Alina the very future she’s fighting for. 

Alienated(Alienated #1)
Can we just stop to appreciate how gorgeous and swoon-worthy this book cover is?

Two years ago, the aliens made contact. Now Cara Sweeney is going to be sharing a bathroom with one of them. 

Handpicked to host the first-ever L’eihr exchange student, Cara thinks her future is set. Not only does she get a free ride to her dream college, she’ll have inside information about the mysterious L’eihrs that every journalist would kill for. Cara’s blog following is about to skyrocket.

Still, Cara isn’t sure what to think when she meets Aelyx. Humans and L’eihrs have nearly identical DNA, but cold, infuriatingly brilliant Aelyx couldn’t seem more alien. She’s certain about one thing, though: no human boy is this good-looking.

But when Cara's classmates get swept up by anti-L'eihr paranoia, Midtown High School suddenly isn't safe anymore. Threatening notes appear in Cara's locker, and a police officer has to escort her and Aelyx to class. 

Cara finds support in the last person she expected. She realizes that Aelyx isn’t just her only friend; she's fallen hard for him. But Aelyx has been hiding the truth about the purpose of his exchange, and its potentially deadly consequences. Soon Cara will be in for the fight of her life—not just for herself and the boy she loves, but for the future of her planet.

※the reason I bought it is because I've read The Lux Series by Jennifer L. Armentrout,and I found myself fall in love with the paranormal romance!As you can see, this is the first book of Alienated Trilogy ,the final book  already came out last year ,unfortunately,the paperback edition haven't come out yet.Uh ...How am I supposed to survive through these time?
However ,I still posted the synopsis of the second,Invaded,( It's out of stock ,the bookstore have already back ordered the item from vendor.So ...Waiting desperately...)and the third book,United, of this trilogy.

Invaded (Alienated #2)


The romantic sequel to Alienated takes long-distance relationships to a new level as Cara and Aelyx long for each other from opposite ends of the universe...until a threat to both their worlds reunites them. 

Cara always knew life on planet L’eihr would be an adjustment. With Aelyx, her L’eihr boyfriend, back on Earth, working to mend the broken alliance between their two planets, Cara is left to fend for herself at a new school, surrounded by hostile alien clones. Even the weird dorm pet hates her.

Things look up when Cara is appointed as human representative to a panel preparing for a human colony on L’eihr. A society melding their two cultures is a place where Cara and Aelyx could one day make a life together. But with L’eihr leaders balking at granting even the most basic freedoms, Cara begins to wonder if she could ever be happy on this planet, even with Aelyx by her side.

Meanwhile, on Earth, Aelyx, finds himself thrown into a full-scale PR campaign to improve human-L’eihr relations. Humans don’t know that their very survival depends on this alliance: only Aelyx’s people have the technology to fix the deadly contamination in the global water supply that human governments are hiding. Yet despite their upper hand, the leaders of his world suddenly seem desperate to get humans on their side, and hardly bat an eye at extremists’ multiple attempts on Aelyx’s life.

The Way clearly needs humans’ help . . . but with what? And what will they ask for in return?
United (Alienated #3)

After thwarting a deadly coup and saving the alliance between their worlds, Cara and Aelyx have finally earned a break. Their tiny island colony is everything they dreamed it would be―days spent gathering shells on the beach and nights in each other’s arms.

But the vacation is short-lived.

The treaty between Earth and L’eihr has awakened an ancient force that threatens to destroy them all. The Aribol, mysterious guardians charged with maintaining interstellar peace, deem the alliance a threat to the galaxy. They order a separation of the races, decreeing humans and L’eihrs must return to their own planets within the month or face extinction. In fact, they already have agents in place on Earth, ready to begin.

With the clock ticking, Aelyx and Cara assemble a team of colonists and race back to Earth, where they unite with old friends to solve the mystery of who the Aribol are, what they want, and the real reason the alliance has provoked them. As tensions build to a full-scale war, Aelyx and Cara must fight harder than ever―not just for their future, but for the survival of both their worlds. 

And ,a retelling

The Instant New York Times Bestseller!

Bustle - 2017 YA Must Reads
Paste Magazine - Most Anticipated YA Books of 2017

Dark, romantic, and unforgettable, Wintersong is an enchanting coming-of-age story for fans of Labyrinth and The Beauty and the Beast.

The last night of the year. Now the days of winter begin and the Goblin King rides abroad, searching for his bride…

All her life, Liesl has heard tales of the beautiful, dangerous Goblin King. They’ve enraptured her mind, her spirit, and inspired her musical compositions. Now eighteen and helping to run her family’s inn, Liesl can’t help but feel that her musical dreams and childhood fantasies are slipping away.

But when her own sister is taken by the Goblin King, Liesl has no choice but to journey to the Underground to save her. Drawn to the strange, captivating world she finds—and the mysterious man who rules it—she soon faces an impossible decision. And with time and the old laws working against her, Liesl must discover who she truly is before her fate is sealed.

Rich with music and magic, S. Jae-Jones's Wintersong will sweep you away into a world you won’t soon forget.

Goblin King

Lisel

I watched ReadingRaeanne's YouTube channel,and she highly,highly recommended it.So I decided to pick this one up!Also, the story line of this book really intrigues me!

A Discovery of Witches (All Souls Trilogy #1)

A richly inventive novel about a centuries-old vampire, a spellbound witch, and the mysterious manuscript that draws them together. 

Deep in the stacks of Oxford's Bodleian Library, young scholar Diana Bishop unwittingly calls up a bewitched alchemical manuscript in the course of her research. Descended from an old and distinguished line of witches, Diana wants nothing to do with sorcery; so after a furtive glance and a few notes, she banishes the book to the stacks. But her discovery sets a fantastical underworld stirring, and a horde of daemons, witches, and vampires soon descends upon the library. Diana has stumbled upon a coveted treasure lost for centuries-and she is the only creature who can break its spell. 

Debut novelist Deborah Harkness has crafted a mesmerizing and addictive read, equal parts history and magic, romance and suspense. Diana is a bold heroine who meets her equal in vampire geneticist Matthew Clairmont, and gradually warms up to him as their alliance deepens into an intimacy that violates age-old taboos. This smart, sophisticated story harks back to the novels of Anne Rice, but it is as contemporary and sensual as the Twilight series-with an extra serving of historical realism.

Shadow of Night (All Souls Trilogy #2)

IT BEGAN WITH A DISCOVERY OF WITCHES.

Historian Diana Bishop, descended from a line of powerful witches, and long-lived vampire Matthew Clairmont have broken the laws dividing creatures. When Diana discovered a significant alchemical manuscript in the Bodleian Library, she sparked a struggle in which she became bound to Matthew. Now the fragile coexistence of witches, daemons, vampires and humans is dangerously threatened.

Seeking safety, Diana and Matthew travel back in time to London, 1590. But they soon realize that the past may not provide a haven. Reclaiming his former identity as poet and spy for Queen Elizabeth, the vampire falls back in with a group of radicals known as the School of Night. Many are unruly daemons, the creative minds of the age, including playwright Christopher Marlowe and mathematician Thomas Harriot.

Together Matthew and Diana scour Tudor London for the elusive manuscript Ashmole 782, and search for the witch who will teach Diana how to control her remarkable powers..