Intrinsical (The Yara Silva Trilogy, #1) in Once Upon a Twilight blog

Feb 02, 2011 Jamie Manning rated it it was amazing

I have to start by saying that the cover of this book is outstanding (FYI: the author took the photo). The colors, the model, the fontwork...it all goes together so well. Well enough that the cover was one of the reasons that I bought the book, and I'm so glad I did!

Lani Woodland has created a very descriptive and unique world in Intrinsical. She has taken the age-old story of ghosts and added a new, distinct twist that is very refreshing. Her main character, Yara Silva, is well written and comp I have to start by saying that the cover of this book is outstanding (FYI: the author took the photo). The colors, the model, the fontwork...it all goes together so well. Well enough that the cover was one of the reasons that I bought the book, and I'm so glad I did!

Lani Woodland has created a very descriptive and unique world in Intrinsical. She has taken the age-old story of ghosts and added a new, distinct twist that is very refreshing. Her main character, Yara Silva, is well written and complex, with an excellent YA voice. Throughout the book, Yara struggles to deal with a special gift that has been passed down through her family; a gift that she doesn't want and tries to ignore. Her conflict is expertly written by Lani, making us feel Yara's embarrassment and, ultimately, acceptance of her abilities.

Like all good books, romance is at the forefront of Intrinsical. Yara meets Brent, a handsome fellow student who has secrets of his own, and the two have an instant connection. Their love story, however, is very different from others (and no, I'm not telling you how!) in its premise, but all the traditional feelings of young love are there, magically written by Lani. Nearly from the first moment these two characters met, I found myself rooting for them the entire way, hoping that the surprise twist in the story was somehow fixable (yeah, you're gonna want to read this book to find out what that twist is!).

Lani's prose is beautifully crafted, weaving a world full of sights and smells that makes the reader feel like they are sitting right next to Yara beneath that tree enjoying the scents of nature. Her action scenes are engrossing and keep you on edge; but they are perfectly balanced with the right amount of romance and humor, so you don't feel like your head will explode through the entire book!

Overall, I adored Intrinsical. Beautiful writing, excellent story, engrossing characters...what more can you ask for in a book? The only regret I have is that I read it too soon, because now I have to wait for the second book in this enthralling series. Excellent job, Lani! I give Intrinsical 5 stars, and urge you all to pick up a copy now! ...more

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Nov 29, 2010 Angel Charms rated it it was amazing

I really really loved this book, loved all the characters. Apart from being able to see ghosts, Yara is your typical teenager with a spunk. Brent...where do I begin..lets see, he is chivalrous, brave, strong, handsome, gentlemanly (well..mostly) and has good sense of humor. I will just have to add him to my list of fictional chars I am in love with...right there next to Jace and Patch. Relationship between Yara and Brent is sooo believable. They are constantly teasing and flirting with each othe I really really loved this book, loved all the characters. Apart from being able to see ghosts, Yara is your typical teenager with a spunk. Brent...where do I begin..lets see, he is chivalrous, brave, strong, handsome, gentlemanly (well..mostly) and has good sense of humor. I will just have to add him to my list of fictional chars I am in love with...right there next to Jace and Patch. Relationship between Yara and Brent is sooo believable. They are constantly teasing and flirting with each other. They are playful in the start and then eventually know each other and fall in love. They don't even kiss properly until the last page...though they were building up to it thru the whole book. Very cute and playful love story. Here are my list of pros and a very small list of cons (I really had to work on cons)

Pros:
- Brent (no need to say more).
- No love triangle (thank you very very much Lani)...I am not against love triangles but they are becoming way too frequent and frankly very tiressome and predictable. Heroine falls instantly in love with guy #1 by the end of book and there's guy #2 in sequel and heroin is kissing one guy in one page and another in the next and finally heroin ends up with guy #1 after much debate and sacrifices blah blah blah (okay enough ranting).
- Story moves in a very steady pace.
- Un-predictable. I was trying to figure out what Yara's dreams meant and how they would come true especially the one with her and Brent running and other version of her and Brent lying on ground.
- Scary portions of the story were very scary (for me anyway).
- Right mixture of romance, horror, mystery, action and comedy. (not much drama thank god). Even when Yara finds out she is a waker after all, even though she never wanted it, she doesn't whine much and eventually accepts it as a part of her...Brent played a huge role to help her.
- Brent and Yara has equal parts in the book. They don't out shine each other. They fight side by side, protect each other, watch each other back, fight for each other, equally powerful and more powerful together. They are so right together.
- Yara and Brent relationship is a huge pro in the book for me...can't gush enough about it.
- Cherie...makes you wish you had a best friend like her.
- Finally thanks for not leaving your readers with cliff hanger. Waiting a whole year would be a torture. Why do authors want to torture their readers?

Cons: (not really cons...just complaints)
- Wish Yara was a little bit nicer to Brent (atleast in the beginning). But it makes sense though, she has temper issues which she eventually gets control of.
- Not many hot / juicy scenes. They only have one proper kiss through out the book. Wonder if there would be more interesting scenes between Yara and Brent in sequel now that the whole knowing each other part is over and done with. (hint hint Ms Woodland).

Un-answered Questions:
- Why did Yara and Brent have that connection when they both were "dead".?
- Why could they talk to each other in their heads easily?

I am definetely sold for sequel. ...more

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Dec 22, 2010 Mundie Moms & Mundie Kids rated it really liked it

Shelves: 2011-100-book-challenge, 2010-debut-author, mundie-moms-reviews, signed-books-arcs, books-i-own

Talk about a unique ghost story! Intrinsical is an engaging fast paced read with a fabulously twisted plot. Lani Woodland definitely kept me on my toes with trying to figure out everything that was going on in her story, and surprisingly, she kept me guessing the entire time. I love that when a book isn't predictable. She hooked me with her refreshing take on ghosts and intrigued me with the world she created. Lani's world building is descriptive, alluring and really sets the tone for her story. Talk about a unique ghost story! Intrinsical is an engaging fast paced read with a fabulously twisted plot. Lani Woodland definitely kept me on my toes with trying to figure out everything that was going on in her story, and surprisingly, she kept me guessing the entire time. I love that when a book isn't predictable. She hooked me with her refreshing take on ghosts and intrigued me with the world she created. Lani's world building is descriptive, alluring and really sets the tone for her story. Each of her characters are fun, in-depth and realistically portrayed.

Yara is an enjoyable character to meet. She's a smart, head strong sixteen year old who knows what she wants. She's also someone that teen readers will be able to relate too, as she allows readers to connect with her on so many levels through out the story. I was really impressed with how much her character grows from the start of the story to the end. I liked being able to be apart of her experiences and getting to understand why she makes the choices she does. She's just a fiery, refreshing character and I finally understood why so many of my reader friends love her and have been telling me I needed to read her story.

I adored her friends, and for once I didn't immediately fall for the love interest Brent. I mean, I liked him, but like Yara, I took me a bit to fall in love with his character. Don't get me wrong, he's fabulous. He's the good looking, intelligent, cocky guy who knows he's all that. He doesn't go around flaunting it, but he doesn't hide it either. I liked that he's very sure of himself, and I mean that in a good way. He's got confidence and I love that it took him awhile before he really won Yara over. The way their relationship develops is fantastic! It's so realistic and creditable. There's times in the story they annoy each other, there's times their chemistry just ooze off the pages, and there's other times they get frustrated with each other, but in the end they learn to trust each other, help each other out and end up falling for each other. It was fabulous! I really enjoyed that fact they have normal conversations and communicate with each on a relatable level. They made me sigh, they made me laugh and they both make mistakes they learn from.

My only hangs on the book are the couples times the plot line got a bit confusing for me, and the way Yara acted towards Brent near the end of the book. With out saying too much, I got a little annoyed with after all Brent does for Yara and what they end up experiencing together, she still kind of strings him along. But Lani threw me for another surprise with the ending, and what Brent does makes me love him that much more. I gave a little "yes" with the scene between him and Yara. Being the first book in the series I like that Lani didn't leave me with a cliff hanger, and I thought the ending wrapped up the story nicely. I'm definitely looking forward to reading more of Yara's story. This is a clean cut book I'd recommend to YA readers 13 yrs & older. ...more

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Feb 26, 2011 Trisha Wolfe rated it it was amazing

I’ve been meaning to read this story for a while. Every time I look at that gorgeous cover, I wonder what the heck took me so long? Many review requests, my own writing… Either way, I will remember in the future when a book is calling to me to be read, to drop everything and just read it! I was almost angry with family and friends for pulling me away while reading. I didn’t want to stop.

Sixteen-year-old Yara is an amazing character. Right from the beginning—which is breath-holding-ly exciting—sh I’ve been meaning to read this story for a while. Every time I look at that gorgeous cover, I wonder what the heck took me so long? Many review requests, my own writing… Either way, I will remember in the future when a book is calling to me to be read, to drop everything and just read it! I was almost angry with family and friends for pulling me away while reading. I didn’t want to stop.

Sixteen-year-old Yara is an amazing character. Right from the beginning—which is breath-holding-ly exciting—she was fierce and determined. She relates with teens of today on so many levels. I remember being that age and embarrassed over every little thing in my family—not wanting to be associated with them, but wanting to be ‘normal’ or average, just like everyone else. Of course, looking back, we can all see how silly it was, but that’s not how you feel at the time. And Yara’s character is so perfectly developed around this issue. Her character growth over the story is wonderful. I love it when you can actually SEE the character change through her experiences, not just told she did so at the end. And her actions show this in a vibrant way that made me root for her through the whole story. She’s smart and I enjoyed being inside her head as she rationalized her situations. It’s refreshing. I also share a little issue she has with her angry management lol. We would get along well ;)

Brent… Oh, boy of my dreams, is cocky. Yes. Cocky in every way that I love my lead guys to be. He’s gorgeous, and he knows it. But what I love about him is he is so fleshed out, he’s not just full of one-liners trying to make me believe he’s cocky and then show me what a decent guy he is. His personality sparkles on every page through his actions and even his inactions. There were so many sides of his character I came to love, I truly see him as a real person—with interests, flaws, habits, strengths, and courage. There are no words to describe what a phenomenal job Ms. Woodland did creating him and delivering a truly swoon-worthy lead guy. I. Love. Brent.

The relationship between Yara and Brent. Let me tell you, this story has an amazingly fleshed out plot, but even if it didn’t, I would have gladly followed the story to the end, loving every second of it, just to watch Yara and Brent interact—to listen to their conversations that at times had me laughing my head off and at other times biting my nails. I loved theirs weren’t like so many other relationships in books where they fall in love in an instant and its all chemistry. *POILER* Oh, they had chemistry, but they were real, they questioned their emotions and made me believe it when they professed their love.*

I WANT MORE! Right now. I really loved the side characters and the story arc. It held mystery and I love it when I don’t see the ending coming. I also liked that this story completely wrapped up. It didn’t leave you on a huge cliffhanger waiting for the end to be tied up, but then again, just getting to know these characters makes it hard to wait to go through another adventure with them. If you’re looking for something fresh in the YA market, something that rekindles your love for YA, check out Intrinsical. I will be waiting anxiously for the second installment. ...more

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Jun 06, 2011 Vanessa rated it liked it

I have mix feelings about this book. First, I love the quality of the printed version of the book. The paper is beautiful. I also love the bantering between Yara and Brent and the friendship between Cherie and Yara. I like too that the romance between Yara and Brent was slow building.
But... this wasn't one of those stories that tempt me to lose my precious hours of sleep because among other things I didn't love Yara's voice. For a female leading character she seems to be a little neurotic. She d ...more

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Jun 15, 2011 ILoveBooks rated it really liked it

This book is perfect for teens. The character, specifically Yara, are very relateable and likable. Yara is a strong female character, always nice to see in books with hints of romance (no sappy heroines please!). Brent is extremely cocky, but in a good way-female readers especially will think that trait "hot." Their relationship is believable and intriguing to watch as it develops. There are many ups and downs, but the story was perfect the way it was.

The plot is great. Ghost walking among huma ...more

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