leacr's review against another edition
3.0
*Spoiler*
YA
L’histoire est intéressante (4 adolescent ont le contrôle sur les 4 éléments du monde) mais y’a quand même beaucoup de choses pas trop claires, je m’attendais quand même à mieux, le résumé était prometteur.
L’histoire d’amour est mignonne mais moins que ce à quoi je m’attendais, et l’évolution de leurs sentiments a Megan et Adam était trop rapide et pas du tout réaliste.
Au final l’histoire tourne plus autour du côté surnaturel que leur histoire a eux deux, et au développement de leur couple.
YA
L’histoire est intéressante (4 adolescent ont le contrôle sur les 4 éléments du monde) mais y’a quand même beaucoup de choses pas trop claires, je m’attendais quand même à mieux, le résumé était prometteur.
L’histoire d’amour est mignonne mais moins que ce à quoi je m’attendais, et l’évolution de leurs sentiments a Megan et Adam était trop rapide et pas du tout réaliste.
Au final l’histoire tourne plus autour du côté surnaturel que leur histoire a eux deux, et au développement de leur couple.
kelseyhager's review against another edition
2.0
I feel like Adam and Megan's relationship was really rushed and boring. This whole book was boring and the writing style was annoying... Would not recommend
tjasap's review against another edition
4.0
Even before I started to read these book...I heard some bad rewievs...and I was sceptical...
It is another Twilight book, they said...ok.I loved Twilight, so it can't be bad, right?
And I read it...yes, there are similarities..But just as in any other book..lets agree there are a lots of book where we find Twilight story...
So I liked it...I like how they had a unique powers..I liked Ireland..
And it was quick to read...
It is another Twilight book, they said...ok.I loved Twilight, so it can't be bad, right?
And I read it...yes, there are similarities..But just as in any other book..lets agree there are a lots of book where we find Twilight story...
So I liked it...I like how they had a unique powers..I liked Ireland..
And it was quick to read...
sabregirl's review against another edition
4.0
I really enjoyed this book, the only reason why it didn't get five stars is because there was some REALLY bad cliche and eye roll moments between Megan and Adam. It is a teen book so I have to realize that'll happen, but there has to be a way to avoid some of that. The plot is nice and original. I've never read anything that deals with the four elements and how people can control that and it's because they've never completed a ritual that the world is the way that it is. I enjoyed that part of it. I also liked that while there were Irish names [a:Leigh Fallon|4611175|Leigh Fallon|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1296592483p2/4611175.jpg] gave Megan pronunciations of the words so the readers would be able to say the names correctly in their heads as well. It was easy to picture the three siblings powers but Megan's was hard to try to picture. Especially during her evocation moment at the end of the novel. But maybe it'll become more clear in the next book. Which I cannot wait for!
lexieb's review against another edition
3.0
So, most of you know why I was so eager to read this. For one thing, this is the first book published from inkpop, a site for young writers, a site I incidentally happen to be on. And for another, Leigh is awesome. So I've been awaiting the release date for months. When I heard I'd won an ARC in a sweepstakes, I was extremely happy, although, ironically, the ARC did not arrive until a couple days after the publishing date.
Carrier of the Mark was a quick read, and while it was by no means perfect, it was enchanting and unique and a lovely debut.
Writing
First, something I must address: the setting. Ireland! It's Ireland! I love Ireland, and I loved reading about it. Leigh really brought it to life, both with descriptions of the surroundings and just the little words and phrases the characters would use that you wouldn't hear in America. I loved that. The setting was perfect.
Setting aside, for the most part, Leigh's writing was very solid. It was a fairly simple writing style, and it worked. The focus of this book was the plot and the characters, not the writing. Also, I loved some of the scenes where they were using their magic--she had a great way of describing them.
However, I did have one major nitpick. Dialogue info-dumping. There were many times throughout the book when characters would suddenly launch into very long-winded explanations that left me very confused and that I had to read over several times to understand, or they would just begin these long stories about themselves. While I understand dialogue is a convenient way to get these stories across, it just doesn't work. People really do not talk like that, and it was a bit hard to follow.
But despite my nitpick, I liked Leigh's writing. It worked for the story.
Characters
Carrier of the Mark has a pretty wide cast of characters. I'm going to try not to focus on all of them individually, so we'll see how I do.
Megan, our MC, was a pretty good protagonist. Possibly the thing I loved most about her was that she is that normal girl that so many paranormal romances try to make their MC out to be, despite all the powers and magic. Unlike a lot of the "normal girls" in PR, Megan actually seemed genuinely normal with the way she acted and reacted, and even just the way she thought. However, that can also be a bit of a negative, because sometimes her thoughts about Adam made me roll my eyes a little bit. But lusty/in love teenage girls tend to get gushy.
Adam, our love interest . . . I liked Adam. I didn't love him, but I liked him. There were some times that I really liked him, some times that he was just okay with me. Nothing about him really bothered me, except for his appearance--I don't get why he had to be gorgeous. It's not like part of being a Marked One is being extremely physically attractive. I just wish there weren't so many gorgeous boys in YA today, because it sets a girl's standards extremely high and just lets her down in the end.
But aside from his appearance, I did like our love interest. He was cute and sweet and sometimes even awkward, which was a nice change.
Other characters:
Fionn--Liked him, though his dialogue often seemed unrealistic to me and he liked launching into narratives. Still, he was a good father figure.
Aine--Liked her; she was funny and friendly and just generally a likable character. I did pronounce her name as "Ain" throughout the book, though, because my mind just wouldn't process the spelling and the actual pronunciation.
Rian--Really liked him. Felt bad for him, because he kinda got the short end of the stick, with his element and all.
Caitlyn--Sometimes I really liked her, sometimes she irked me with her gushing and girl-talk. But it's like with Megan; that's realistic as far as teenage girls go, it's just not always fun to read.
That's all I'm going to cover because I don't want to go on and on. Overall, I liked the cast of Carrier of the Mark.
Plot
Hmmm.
On the one hand, Leigh has an incredible imagination. This world, these legends and groups and magics she thought up are all so intricate and unique. I seriously respect her for creating something like this; I know I definitely couldn't.
On the other hand, though, while the basis of the plot itself was very unique, the plot devices were not as unique. A lot of things that happened rang familiar to me, just some typical plot devices that are a bit too overused.
My main problem with the plot, though, would be the speed of things. At some parts things happen so quickly, and at others they take a long time to finally occur. When we finally reach the big drama at the end, it lasts about 10 pages.
Although, despite its brevity, I did really like the drama that occurred at the end. I've seen a lot of people compare this to Twilight, but the big difference here is Megan. Megan doesn't just sit around and get rescued. Megan does something. Megan becomes badass when she has to.
Last thing to mention: the romance.
A lot of people had trouble with the romance. How very fast it moved. But to make my reading experience more enjoyable, I decided my own version of it. I decided that for those first few days/weeks when they're all kissy-lovey, it's their elements attracting. The real feelings slowly build over the months until, when they say that they love each other, they really mean it. When you go with that explanation, it's not so bad, is it?
All in all, while it wasn't perfect, the plot was unique and never lost my interest.
Overall
The YA world needs more classic magic. The setting of this story combined with the idea of it all makes for something really enchanting. While it may not be for everyone, Carrier of the Mark is a lovely debut novel by a lovely author. And if the reviews and summary don't convince you to buy it, look at the gorgeous cover. You know you want to.
Carrier of the Mark was a quick read, and while it was by no means perfect, it was enchanting and unique and a lovely debut.
Writing
First, something I must address: the setting. Ireland! It's Ireland! I love Ireland, and I loved reading about it. Leigh really brought it to life, both with descriptions of the surroundings and just the little words and phrases the characters would use that you wouldn't hear in America. I loved that. The setting was perfect.
Setting aside, for the most part, Leigh's writing was very solid. It was a fairly simple writing style, and it worked. The focus of this book was the plot and the characters, not the writing. Also, I loved some of the scenes where they were using their magic--she had a great way of describing them.
However, I did have one major nitpick. Dialogue info-dumping. There were many times throughout the book when characters would suddenly launch into very long-winded explanations that left me very confused and that I had to read over several times to understand, or they would just begin these long stories about themselves. While I understand dialogue is a convenient way to get these stories across, it just doesn't work. People really do not talk like that, and it was a bit hard to follow.
But despite my nitpick, I liked Leigh's writing. It worked for the story.
Characters
Carrier of the Mark has a pretty wide cast of characters. I'm going to try not to focus on all of them individually, so we'll see how I do.
Megan, our MC, was a pretty good protagonist. Possibly the thing I loved most about her was that she is that normal girl that so many paranormal romances try to make their MC out to be, despite all the powers and magic. Unlike a lot of the "normal girls" in PR, Megan actually seemed genuinely normal with the way she acted and reacted, and even just the way she thought. However, that can also be a bit of a negative, because sometimes her thoughts about Adam made me roll my eyes a little bit. But lusty/in love teenage girls tend to get gushy.
Adam, our love interest . . . I liked Adam. I didn't love him, but I liked him. There were some times that I really liked him, some times that he was just okay with me. Nothing about him really bothered me, except for his appearance--I don't get why he had to be gorgeous. It's not like part of being a Marked One is being extremely physically attractive. I just wish there weren't so many gorgeous boys in YA today, because it sets a girl's standards extremely high and just lets her down in the end.
But aside from his appearance, I did like our love interest. He was cute and sweet and sometimes even awkward, which was a nice change.
Other characters:
Fionn--Liked him, though his dialogue often seemed unrealistic to me and he liked launching into narratives. Still, he was a good father figure.
Aine--Liked her; she was funny and friendly and just generally a likable character. I did pronounce her name as "Ain" throughout the book, though, because my mind just wouldn't process the spelling and the actual pronunciation.
Rian--Really liked him. Felt bad for him, because he kinda got the short end of the stick, with his element and all.
Caitlyn--Sometimes I really liked her, sometimes she irked me with her gushing and girl-talk. But it's like with Megan; that's realistic as far as teenage girls go, it's just not always fun to read.
That's all I'm going to cover because I don't want to go on and on. Overall, I liked the cast of Carrier of the Mark.
Plot
Hmmm.
On the one hand, Leigh has an incredible imagination. This world, these legends and groups and magics she thought up are all so intricate and unique. I seriously respect her for creating something like this; I know I definitely couldn't.
On the other hand, though, while the basis of the plot itself was very unique, the plot devices were not as unique. A lot of things that happened rang familiar to me, just some typical plot devices that are a bit too overused.
My main problem with the plot, though, would be the speed of things. At some parts things happen so quickly, and at others they take a long time to finally occur. When we finally reach the big drama at the end, it lasts about 10 pages.
Although, despite its brevity, I did really like the drama that occurred at the end. I've seen a lot of people compare this to Twilight, but the big difference here is Megan. Megan doesn't just sit around and get rescued. Megan does something. Megan becomes badass when she has to.
Last thing to mention: the romance.
A lot of people had trouble with the romance. How very fast it moved. But to make my reading experience more enjoyable, I decided my own version of it. I decided that for those first few days/weeks when they're all kissy-lovey, it's their elements attracting. The real feelings slowly build over the months until, when they say that they love each other, they really mean it. When you go with that explanation, it's not so bad, is it?
All in all, while it wasn't perfect, the plot was unique and never lost my interest.
Overall
The YA world needs more classic magic. The setting of this story combined with the idea of it all makes for something really enchanting. While it may not be for everyone, Carrier of the Mark is a lovely debut novel by a lovely author. And if the reviews and summary don't convince you to buy it, look at the gorgeous cover. You know you want to.
pearlagcalo's review against another edition
2.0
Didn't really do it for me. I didn't feel like this was an epic romance from the start, and then he suddenly can't be apart from her.. eh, no thanks. Storyline sounds too familiar and blah, but the cover is lovely.
lucy_qhuay's review against another edition
1.0
This book was absolutely awful. I can’t even think of one good thing to say.
First of all, the writing wasn’t that good.
Sometimes, I read books that don’t necessarily capture my attention because of the story, yet the writing is so good that I feel compelled to read it until the end, just to see where it all is going.
I can give you one good example of that – Whither by Lauren DeStefano.
I didn’t really like the story. That whole situation with kidnapping and buying young girls to be married to young men and serve as ‘breeding mares’ seriously gave me the creeps.
However, DeStefano is obviously a talented writer, since I greatly enjoyed the way she led me through the events that happened in the book and I just had to read it until the very last page, so I could know what happened to the characters themselves and to that very twisted world.
I can’t say the same about Leigh Fallon.
I didn’t like the story of Carrier Of The Mark at all, since none of the characters were even remotely interesting to me and I thought the mythology involved was completely ridiculous.
Now, what the hell is going on with all these people who can control the elements?
Why are they marked and what does that even mean? What does it mean all that talk about genes and royal blood? W hat is their purpose? What does it even mean that they are the descendants of the goddess Danu? What does it mean that whole talk about the ‘alignment of the Earth’? What’s the big deal with all that?
And what do monks have to do with the Sidhe? I thought when we referred to the Sidhe, we were talking about the fey. But apparently, in this book we’re talking about dead monks.
See? I thought this entire situation was completely ridiculous. Nothing sounded believable or important to me and I spent most of the book skipping pages.
Also, the romance completely sucked.
I hated that Meg fell head over heels in love for Adam the first moment she laid eyes on his ‘gorgeous’ self and that she proceeded to make a fool out of herself, blatantly showing to everyone how she was tripping on her own feet because of him. And Adam wasn’t much better either, even though he supposedly ‘resisted’ her for a while.
Plus, where were the romantic moments? I didn’t read any. This was a plain ‘I-see-you- OMG-what-a-hottie-I-love-you-I-will-die-for-you-be-the-father-of-my-children.’case.
Ughh! A complete miss.
emiliebookworld's review against another edition
I have been hearing about Leigh Fallon and Carrier of the Mark for the longest time so I was really looking forward to being able to finally read it. And at first, I really didn't think much about it, but the next thing I knew I couldn't put the book down.
Megan never really felt like she fit in at any of the schools she went to in America, but when she and her dad move to Ireland she began feeling at home right away. Right from day one, she made new friends and fit right in. But soon enough, weird things start happening everywhere Megan goes and she can't seem to find a logical explanation for any of it. And then there's the DeRis family. Any times one of them is around, those weird happenings just seem to follow. But Megan also feels strangely attracted to Adam DeRis, despite the fact that everyone keeps telling her that she should stay away. And as Megan gets closer and closer to Adam, she discovers that her destiny is much greater than she ever thought imaginable. And that maybe she shouldn't try so hard to resist her attraction to Adam.
I'm not being honest if I don't say that at first I didn't really think much of Carrier of the Mark. For about the first 50 pages or so I was wondering when stuff would happen and things would start picking up, I found myself having trouble putting the book down. It was like all of a sudden, everything was happening all at once and I started loving the story more and more. I can now say that Leigh Fallan wrote a really great story. I loved the Irish folklore in the book and found the way the four elements were included in the story very interesting. It was definitely something new and different.
Though there wasn't much action going on at first, I still liked Megan right from the start. I felt like I could really relate to her, especially when it comes to the whole moving around and changing schools often. But other than that, Megan still felt really real to me and I felt like I could really understand her. Adam DeRis sounded very dreamy and I could totally see why Megan was so attracted to him. But Adam was a lot more than just a dreamy exterior. He was fiercely loyal and more than willing to stand up for those he cared about and loved. Most importantly, I loved how much he cared about Megan and he was always there to protect her. As for the rest of the characters, I loved all the Irish expressions and traditions they had. And from what I know, Irish people tend to often be really great.
Overall, Carrier of the Mark was a really great read and I loved discovering Leigh Fallon and her fantastic writing. And the way it ended, I can't wait for the next book to come out to find out what happens next.
Megan never really felt like she fit in at any of the schools she went to in America, but when she and her dad move to Ireland she began feeling at home right away. Right from day one, she made new friends and fit right in. But soon enough, weird things start happening everywhere Megan goes and she can't seem to find a logical explanation for any of it. And then there's the DeRis family. Any times one of them is around, those weird happenings just seem to follow. But Megan also feels strangely attracted to Adam DeRis, despite the fact that everyone keeps telling her that she should stay away. And as Megan gets closer and closer to Adam, she discovers that her destiny is much greater than she ever thought imaginable. And that maybe she shouldn't try so hard to resist her attraction to Adam.
I'm not being honest if I don't say that at first I didn't really think much of Carrier of the Mark. For about the first 50 pages or so I was wondering when stuff would happen and things would start picking up, I found myself having trouble putting the book down. It was like all of a sudden, everything was happening all at once and I started loving the story more and more. I can now say that Leigh Fallan wrote a really great story. I loved the Irish folklore in the book and found the way the four elements were included in the story very interesting. It was definitely something new and different.
Though there wasn't much action going on at first, I still liked Megan right from the start. I felt like I could really relate to her, especially when it comes to the whole moving around and changing schools often. But other than that, Megan still felt really real to me and I felt like I could really understand her. Adam DeRis sounded very dreamy and I could totally see why Megan was so attracted to him. But Adam was a lot more than just a dreamy exterior. He was fiercely loyal and more than willing to stand up for those he cared about and loved. Most importantly, I loved how much he cared about Megan and he was always there to protect her. As for the rest of the characters, I loved all the Irish expressions and traditions they had. And from what I know, Irish people tend to often be really great.
Overall, Carrier of the Mark was a really great read and I loved discovering Leigh Fallon and her fantastic writing. And the way it ended, I can't wait for the next book to come out to find out what happens next.
jlove731's review against another edition
5.0
Agreed with Kreag - It's like a 4.5 for me, but I always round up. :)
_____
This story is rainbows, moths not butterflies, suspenseful, lovely, and everything in between. I really enjoyed Carrier Of The Mark. It is a fun, cute and quick read that had me smiling so much. :)
Carrier Of The Mark starts off with Megan who after losing her mother in a car crash has moved around an awful lot. Finally Megan and her father settle in Kinsale, Ireland where Megan feels strangely at home. She quickly makes new friends, but when it comes to guys she is strangely drawn to Adam DeRis, the one whom everyone tells her to forget about. As time continues, Megan becomes more and more drawn to Adam and his family who seems to be hiding something. When Adam finally seems to return her affections, Megan starts to realize that she has something within her that she could have never imagined.
One thing I really liked about this story was that it's spanned over a good amount of time (months actually!). Letting Carrier Of The Mark take place over so much time, makes the story more believable for me. It actually gives the love time to mature, the friendships time to grow, and the plot time to bubble up and then spill over. And it does.
I really liked all the characters in Carrier of The Mark. Caitlin is such a good best friend, I'd love her as mine! She's the total lets-hang-out-drink-coffee-and-gush-about-our-super-hot-boyfriends type of friend, yet she's there when you need her and capable of forgiving you when something goes wrong. Next, I totally love Adam's siblings Aine & Rian. I think they're both the best siblings in the world. They're protective, fun, helpful, and well duh, super-powerful! ;). I'm really hoping these two have just as big of a role in the next book (There's going to be one, right?!?). Another character I really enjoyed was Meg's father. I think I really connected with him because he's just like my father. He's completely down to earth, protective of Megan but not overbearing, trusts her to go out on her own, but completely caring and dad-like when needed.
So, who did I leave out? Oh right! The main characters... powerful, strong Megan and sexy, SUPER-sexy and adorable Adam. Megan has a lot of accept through out this book. A lot is thrown at her and she accepts it all and is pretty easy-going about it. That takes a lot of courage, but it is also helpful when you have a green-eyed, super sexy, caring boy helping you along the way... aka. Adam. Adam has it all - looks, grades, caring, gentleman, an amazing family, protectiveness, the whole I'll-hold-you-while-you're-crying charm and I'll text you good morning beautiful thing going for him as well. They're love story is so cute or as Rian would describe it "pukealicious" =P. They constantly had me smiling when they were together, and that's the kind of love I like to read about.
I really enjoyed the plot of this story, the landscapes, and the elements factor. With the elements if I had to chose... man how would you chose?! It would be a battle between Adam's power and Aine's power. I'm obsessed with the ocean and water, yet being able to talk to animals is seriously a dream of mine. Keeping to the plot, the only thing I would say is the ending seemed a little rushed to me. It was kind of building up and building up than the 'boom' part seemed to happen very quickly. However, I still loved the whole story and how it ended for sure! :)
If you're looking for a quick, cute, awesome read... this is it! I really enjoyed reading Carrier of The Mark and I cannot wait for the next one!! I'm really eager to see where the story goes plus I need more Adam! ;) This book doesn't come out until October but make sure you go out and get it when it does! I'm sure you'll enjoy it! :)
_____
This story is rainbows, moths not butterflies, suspenseful, lovely, and everything in between. I really enjoyed Carrier Of The Mark. It is a fun, cute and quick read that had me smiling so much. :)
Carrier Of The Mark starts off with Megan who after losing her mother in a car crash has moved around an awful lot. Finally Megan and her father settle in Kinsale, Ireland where Megan feels strangely at home. She quickly makes new friends, but when it comes to guys she is strangely drawn to Adam DeRis, the one whom everyone tells her to forget about. As time continues, Megan becomes more and more drawn to Adam and his family who seems to be hiding something. When Adam finally seems to return her affections, Megan starts to realize that she has something within her that she could have never imagined.
One thing I really liked about this story was that it's spanned over a good amount of time (months actually!). Letting Carrier Of The Mark take place over so much time, makes the story more believable for me. It actually gives the love time to mature, the friendships time to grow, and the plot time to bubble up and then spill over. And it does.
I really liked all the characters in Carrier of The Mark. Caitlin is such a good best friend, I'd love her as mine! She's the total lets-hang-out-drink-coffee-and-gush-about-our-super-hot-boyfriends type of friend, yet she's there when you need her and capable of forgiving you when something goes wrong. Next, I totally love Adam's siblings Aine & Rian. I think they're both the best siblings in the world. They're protective, fun, helpful, and well duh, super-powerful! ;). I'm really hoping these two have just as big of a role in the next book (There's going to be one, right?!?). Another character I really enjoyed was Meg's father. I think I really connected with him because he's just like my father. He's completely down to earth, protective of Megan but not overbearing, trusts her to go out on her own, but completely caring and dad-like when needed.
So, who did I leave out? Oh right! The main characters... powerful, strong Megan and sexy, SUPER-sexy and adorable Adam. Megan has a lot of accept through out this book. A lot is thrown at her and she accepts it all and is pretty easy-going about it. That takes a lot of courage, but it is also helpful when you have a green-eyed, super sexy, caring boy helping you along the way... aka. Adam. Adam has it all - looks, grades, caring, gentleman, an amazing family, protectiveness, the whole I'll-hold-you-while-you're-crying charm and I'll text you good morning beautiful thing going for him as well. They're love story is so cute or as Rian would describe it "pukealicious" =P. They constantly had me smiling when they were together, and that's the kind of love I like to read about.
I really enjoyed the plot of this story, the landscapes, and the elements factor. With the elements if I had to chose... man how would you chose?! It would be a battle between Adam's power and Aine's power. I'm obsessed with the ocean and water, yet being able to talk to animals is seriously a dream of mine. Keeping to the plot, the only thing I would say is the ending seemed a little rushed to me. It was kind of building up and building up than the 'boom' part seemed to happen very quickly. However, I still loved the whole story and how it ended for sure! :)
If you're looking for a quick, cute, awesome read... this is it! I really enjoyed reading Carrier of The Mark and I cannot wait for the next one!! I'm really eager to see where the story goes plus I need more Adam! ;) This book doesn't come out until October but make sure you go out and get it when it does! I'm sure you'll enjoy it! :)
