The Arena Wars (Arena Wars #1)

What I liked:
-The main character. Alanna is strong and she cares deeply for her family and her best friend, Quinten. She has anger issues sometimes and can make rash, stupid decisions, but she felt real and believable.
-The best friend. Quinten wasn’t your typical borderline abusive love interest. He was completely blind and he was insecure about his disability, but he felt real, and you could tell he cared about Alanna. He and Alanna’s relationship was not a case of insta-love; it was fleshed out and meaningful.
-The action scenes. They were very well written. My favorite thing about this author is her ability to write great action scenes that can be intricate without being confusing.
-The secondary characters. Alanna’s father Ray and her cousin Jax were both loving, caring men that were major players in the game. Unlike many Young Adult books, Alanna’s father played a huge role in her life, and he wasn’t just there for an occasional page or two.
-The Arena. The fights were gruesome and heart-breaking, and the author did a wonderful job of portraying all the emotions Alanna went through.
-The ending. I never saw it coming. Honestly, the last two chapters and the epilogue were amazing. There was so much raw emotion and action I couldn’t put it down.

What I disliked:
-Alanna had a couple of stupid moments that left me shaking my head, but they weren’t too bad because she was under a lot of pressure, she had no other options, and she thought she was doing the right thing and saving someone she loved. Plus, Quinten pointed them out to her and she agreed with him. She knew she was being stupid.
-The Arena. Partners were forced to fight to the death for the entertainment of others, which was kind of similar to The Hunger Games, but it was a minor similarity that was easy to overlook.
-The villains. There are two major villains in this book, and I felt like they could have been given more detail and maybe some back-story. But I know this is only the first book in the series, and we could learn more about them later.

This book was super cool. A book with vampires and werewolves can sometimes be kind of a Twilight copycat, but I really felt like this book was really different. I loved the characters, especially Quinten and Ray, and I felt like they were all one big dedicated family. There was intense action that was described so well I felt like I was watching the fights in person, and there was a relationship that grew over time and turned out to be true love. This book has it all. Drama, action, romance, suspense, and mystery.

I loved this book. The only "issue" I had was since when is 22 years old a boy? I just loved it

I really fell in love with the character development and the end of the story

I loved the book and the characters. It kept you on your feet, fast paced and a book that you can't put down.

This book was excellent. I can't wait for a sequel. Nice twists, great characters. Very fast read because I couldn't put it down.