The Book Depository Stealing Phoenix by Joss Stirling
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Price: £7.99
Brand: The Book Depository
Description: Stealing Phoenix : Paperback : Oxford University Press : 9780192756602 : : 07 Jun 2012 : Phoenix belongs to the Community, a gang of thieves with paranormal powers. Yves Benedict, an American student visiting London, is her mark. But Yves turns out to be more than just a target. He is her destiny. Her soulmate. The Community owns Phoenix's past and it wants her future too. Can Phoenix save the boy she loves. and herself?. The Book Depository Stealing Phoenix by Joss Stirling - shop the best deal online on thebookbug.co.uk
Category: Books
Merchant: The Book Depository
Product ID: 9780192756602
MPN: 9780192756602
GTIN: 9780192756602
Author: ella marie
Rating: 5
Review: I started reading this book a year ago and carried on reading it again this year because it is so good and better that the first book. I read Finding Sky and I really enjoyed it because it is so different from the other books ive read because it doesn't involve vampires, warewolves, witches and fairies. What I enjoyed more was the characters as they are all like life people as they have similar problems like everyone else. I loved the characters especially the Benedict brothers aand Sky because of her shyness. What I liked and enjoyed about this book was that even though it is part of a series it can be a stand alone book apart from savants and soulfinders other than that you dont need the first book because it explains all of the characters for you. I loved the fact it was set in London because having a different setting gives the book new life. It also taught me a lot about London as I dont live there so it helped me a lot for when I would visit. Also it transported me to where Yves and Pheonix are and I can what it might be like for her to live in the community and for Yves to try and steal her. I think it gave UK readers a chance to read about London instead of reading another book set in the US which also taught people who have not been too London a chance too know the sights and main tourist areas. I felt Pheonix is such a wonderful character as she is very reall and she has a very street wise attitude and is very caring and pationate about help Yves not be sucked in the community and saving Tony which I felt was so different to Sky as i felt she is naive about some things. Her strange style made me love her because she doesnt care what people think about her. But what I loved more about her was her spunky humour and the fact shes flirtations but not too obvious. Her difficult life made me feel sorry for her and made even more determined that she have a happy ending. At the end of the book she realises that she has a familiy even though there not blood related and she finally realised that the Benedicts, Yves and Sky really care about her and love her. Joss Stirling is such a fantastic writer as she did not follow the other others as she created a world where there are soulfinders and savants so it made it a lot more interesting and I felt she was really good at transporting you in the scenes of the book so it made you want to read on and find out more about what happens. I also felt she changed what people thought about Yves as just think about how smart he is and nothing more but you leanr how pationate he is about his familiy but more importantly about Pheonix and how he loves her unconditionally even though shes a theif. I was good to have the old characters from Finding Sky appear in this book. Eevn though I love the fact Yves gets the perfect soulfinder Pheonix, I was happy that the Benedict familiy made an appearence and helped them out when they can because Stealing Pheonix made me imagine what the Benedict brothers will be like in Joss Stirlings possible future books.Not only did the reocurring characters make an appearence, new characters like the Tony, the Seer, Dragon and Unicorn as it made me think that this book will never be boring. The community created a mysterious and action pact place throughout the whole book made it it a lot more interesting to read. There are so may fast paced bits that were mixed really well with slower, more sensitive parts when it came to Yeves and Pheonix scenes. I was worried that i was not going to like this book as the Finding Sky was really good and i did not want it to be exactly the same, but as i read it it infact, I liked it a hell of a lot more.
Author: Rachael Parker
Rating: 1
Review: MAJOR SPOILERS IN THIS REVIEW After reading and not particularly enjoying the first book in this series, I went against my better judgment in the vain hope that such a great premise could be improved upon. Unfortunately it wasn't. This story follows Phoenix, the street smart thief, living a half life as a prisoner in an underworld criminal organization of Savants - people with special abilities. Her assigned target is Yves, the smart and rich, second youngest of the Benedict brothers. After a failed attempt to rob him covertly, they are thrust in to each others paths and discover that they are soulfinders with an unbreakable link of love and loyalty preordained from birth. This is where the biggest problem lies. For the sake of a good story, our leads are opposites, an unlikely duo and I felt that no effort was made to create any real kind of bond or genuine affection for each other. It was all a bit like 'hey, these guys are destined to be together forever, don't question it' If you can forgive this, you then have to deal with the fact that this author doesn't seem to like her female leads very much. Phoenix has a background that could make her a force to be reckoned with. Instead, after meeting Yves, she becomes anything but. Soulfinders are supposed to be two halves of a whole, but it felt like in Finding Sky and Stealing Phoenix the boys had more of an impact on the girls lives. There was also some inconsistencies I might have overlooked if the story had been better, but to me they stood out like a sore thumb. When Phoenix doubts Yves motives during the exchanges with the Seer, it didn't sit right with me. The street smart girl, that should be able to size up people and situations goes all insecure and doubtful of his actions. Surely being his soulfinder, she would feel the same degree of love and loyalty and could never possibly doubt him? Well that gets us to another inconsistency that is in both books. The fact that upon using telepathy for the first time, neither Sky nor Phoenix experience any of the mind blowing certainty that the most important person in their lives is stood before them, why? Both the boys do, but the girls appear unaffected till the boys enlighten them. MAJOR SPOILER WARNING Other niggles are minor. The fact that Victor brings the FBI across seas, establishes a liaison with British police, stakes out the jazz club and uses tranquillizer darts (yes, tranquillizer darts) on the mob bosses, is so far fetched it's untrue, The way that when Phoenix wakes up in the hospital and Yves hands over her passport, instead of going on to formerly invite her in to his life, offering her a choice at least. He explains how he got her passport photo from cctv footage in a candlelit club (I hope he managed to get her facing the camera on a white background) I wish I had known of this possibility when I got mine in one of those official booths in town, next time I'll Photoshop one and print it off with my computer. Lastly, the ending. It all went a bit (as the Americans like to call it) Mary-Sue. A saccharine sweet finish to cover up the bad taste left in your mouth. Ugh. Bad, bad book.
