Haven (Winterhaven, #1) in Once Upon a Twilight blog

Jan 09, 2011 Damaris (GoodChoiceReading) rated it it was amazing

Shelves: for-review, for-fun

WOW! I don’t even know where to begin…

I am one of those people that judges a book by its cover. The minute I saw the cover for Haven I was pulled right in and I just had to get my hands on a copy. When I was given the chance to read Haven by the author herself, I was ecstatic. It was simply one of those books that you just KNOW is going to be good.

Well, it was good alright, in fact it was more then good! It was AMAZING! I loved everything about it! From the first page to the very end, I was glue ...more

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Dec 15, 2010 Cindy rated it it was amazing

Shelves: arcs, received-from-publishers, 100-books-in-2011, 2011-debut-authors, favorites

An incredible book that keeps me thinking about it hours after I've finished it. This review is going to be so much fun to write! Full review coming soon. :-)

My Review: Violet is an incredibly likable character who has struggled her entire life with how to hide the awful visions she has of her loved ones getting hurt. It's not until she arrives at Winterhaven that she realizes there are others like her and she can finally begin to be herself. She makes great friends and even begins to fall for An incredible book that keeps me thinking about it hours after I've finished it. This review is going to be so much fun to write! Full review coming soon. :-)

My Review: Violet is an incredibly likable character who has struggled her entire life with how to hide the awful visions she has of her loved ones getting hurt. It's not until she arrives at Winterhaven that she realizes there are others like her and she can finally begin to be herself. She makes great friends and even begins to fall for the hottest guy in school: Aidan. In fact, he's so hot that he's been said to cause "The Aidan Effect" - which no girl at Winterhaven is immune to.

Despite the fact that Aidan and Violet have an intense connection from the start, she knows that Aidan is keeping something important from her. What she doesn't realize is that his secret is a deadly one and it's not just Violet who should be worried.

Haven is a rare breed of book that took me by complete surprise. I enjoyed this book from the very beginning but somewhere around the half way point the story really sucked me in to the point of no return. This book has a little bit of everything that makes a book incredible. There are psychics of every imaginable kind, fun friends, mysterious secrets, a hot lead guy, a surprising villain and so much more.This is not your typical one dimensional young adult paranormal book.

Without giving away any spoilers to the plot, I will warn you that there are some comparisons between Haven and another well known book series out there but do not let those comparisons fool you. Aside from a few minor details, this book is nothing like those and I can promise you the storyline in Haven stands on it's own two feet very well. I can't even tell you what you'd be missing if you chose not to read it for that reason.

The story was very well paced, the characters totally believable and lovable, and the story was gripping, intense, full of surprises and incredibly told. The tension between Aidan and Violet was sexy without overdoing it. Haven is a thrilling ride from cover to cover and a book I highly recommend. I didn't want this book to end and now that it has I am going crazy thinking about the possibilities for book two.

Haven is a riveting, exhilarating and spectacular new story from a promising debut author that I couldn't get enough of. Days after finishing the book, I still can't get these characters out of my head and I'm now anxiously awaiting news of when we can expect the second book in the series. Haven is a book I will read again and again!
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Jan 05, 2011 Crystal rated it it was amazing

What a fun book. I love a book that I really like all the characters from the first time they enter the book. Violet is fun, she is a great character and has always felt out-of-place in her own skin and around others because of the visions that hit her when she least expects it. So not only does she zone out but she can frequently see when bad things are going to happen to those around her. And this is bad enough but when she tries to tell people they never believe her. So Violet feels very out- ...more

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Feb 07, 2011 Christy (TheReaderBee) added it

Shelves: young-adult-fiction, read-in-2011, arcs-for-review, ya-fantasy, ya-paranormal, vampires

Haven is Kristi Cook's debut novel. "HAVEN is the first book in a paranormal series set at the fictional Winterhaven School in New York’s Hudson Valley, a school that’s, well….not like other schools. Think X-Men meets Twilight." - Kristi Cook (http://kristi-cook.com/)

For me, it was more like X-Men meet's Buffy the Vampire Slayer meets Twilight. ;)

Violet is the main character. She is different than anyone else she knows because of her visions, which she feels that she can't tell anyone about bec Haven is Kristi Cook's debut novel. "HAVEN is the first book in a paranormal series set at the fictional Winterhaven School in New York’s Hudson Valley, a school that’s, well….not like other schools. Think X-Men meets Twilight." - Kristi Cook (http://kristi-cook.com/)

For me, it was more like X-Men meet's Buffy the Vampire Slayer meets Twilight. ;)

Violet is the main character. She is different than anyone else she knows because of her visions, which she feels that she can't tell anyone about because they will just think she's crazy. What's worse, is her visions always come true. After the death of her father, she moves to New York with her step-mom, and is sent to Winterhaven school. When she becomes friends with a group of girls her age, she learns that she's not the only one that is different. When she meets Aidan, (enter the strong, silent type), and starts having visions about him, she's more confused than ever.

I was so excited to get this ARC from Simon & Schuster. The book sounded really interesting, and I have to say... it was! Ok, so there were some silimarities to other books, but that didn't deter me from reading it at all. It definitely wasn't original, but what books are lately? It had me hooked, and left me wanting more. (I'm also reading this for the 2011 Author Debut Challenge!)

Violet was a great main character. She's strong willed and determined. I like that she cared about people... With being different, she didn't like seeing other's be treated differently either. Although she was a bit on/off at times... Especially when it came to Aiden. Aiden is the strong, silent type that I love so much. Their relationship was great. Not too rushed, but not drawn out either. The on again, off again part drove me crazy a bit. ;) I didn't like that he kept secrets, but if he hadn't of, there wouldn't have been a story.

I loved her friends: Cece, Kate, Sophie, and Marissa. They seemed to really care about Violet, and their friendship grew really quickly. They were perfect.

Haven was the perfect mixture of mystery, romance and paranormal. If you're a Twilight fan, or a Buffy fan (Me!), then you'll love this book. I really hope that this will be a series!

Great debut novel, Ms. Cook! Thank you to Simon and Schuster for allowing me to read and review the ARC of Haven. I really enjoyed it!

PS- This book is released on February 22nd. You can preorder your copy now! ...more

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Jan 13, 2011 Christin (Portrait of a Book) rated it really liked it

Shelves: young-adult, btc-review, paranormal, 100in2011, dac2011

With so many paranormal books on the market right now, it was very refreshing to see one in which almost all of the characters have a supernatural ability, not just the male or female lead. The premise of Haven sounded very promising, and it definitely did not disappoint.

Violet McKenna has always been plagued with visions of the future, usually visions of unfortunate or even tragic accidents occurring in the lives of those she cares about. To make matters worse, she can't even warn them - nobody With so many paranormal books on the market right now, it was very refreshing to see one in which almost all of the characters have a supernatural ability, not just the male or female lead. The premise of Haven sounded very promising, and it definitely did not disappoint.

Violet McKenna has always been plagued with visions of the future, usually visions of unfortunate or even tragic accidents occurring in the lives of those she cares about. To make matters worse, she can't even warn them - nobody would believe her, and so she hides her gift. But all that changes when she arrives at Winterhaven, a school that, for some inexplicable reason, she feels drawn to. She quickly learns that she is not alone in her psychic abilities, and she can even develop them further. Then there is Aidan Gray, the most irresistible guy at Winterhaven, and he seems drawn to her - an attraction that is definitely mutual. But a school like Winterhaven wouldn't be complete without its secrets, as as Violet's visions become increasingly intense, she realizes that she and Aidan may have more to learn about themselves after all...

Haven was a quick, enjoyable read. Cook's writing easily engages the reader, finding just the right balance of description and action and refined style and teen voice that brings the story to life. The characters were all very believable, and I enjoyed watching their development throughout the novel. Moreover, the relationship between Violet and Aidan found a convincing balance of tenderness, tension, and romance. Between character interactions and plot developments and revelations, Haven is an interesting read throughout.

I will say, however, that throughout the novel, there are a fair number of similarities to other comparable books. In addition, while some events come as a surprise, others are rather predictable. Despite this, however, Haven has enough individuality, as well as questions left unanswered, to make this book worth reading and to make me intrigued as to what will happen next.

Overall, this was a great debut novel for Cook. I will look forward to reading more from her in the future! ...more

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Nov 21, 2010 Brandi rated it really liked it

Shelves: paranormal, young-adult

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Feb 25, 2011 Paula from Reading Lark rated it it was amazing

Anyone who likes YA paranormal needs to read this. NOW. Go get it. Seriously.
But don't ask what it's about- it's best without the spoilers. :) ...more

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