Cinder X

Death Collectors #2

by Jessica Sorensen

Until Asher Morgan came along, nineteen-year old Ember’s life had always been about death. Being around Asher, though, and being able to be near him and touch him, changed her and made her feel alive for the very first time. But now he’s gone and she’s left dealing with her seclusion again, the emptiness of not being able to be touched, and the curse of the Grim Angel.

As a battle breaks out between Angels and Reapers, she desperately searches for answers about who she is, where she came from, and what she needs to stop the battle. But things get complicated when Cameron returns to her life and begins messing with her thoughts and emotions.

Ember tries to hold onto her sanity while the line between life and death begins to blur. Lives are threatened and taken. Murder is everywhere. She needs to figure out what’s real, what’s an illusion, and who she really has feelings for before it’s too late.

**Mature Content Warning** 17+ for language and sexual content

Genres: Paranormal, Angels, New Adult, Fantasy, Paranormal Romance, Romance, Young Adult

377 pages, Paperback

First published November 14, 2013

About the author

Jessica Sorensen is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author from the snowy mountains of Wyoming. When she's not writing, she spends her time reading and hanging out with her family.


http://www.jessicasorensen.com
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Jessica...

Reviews

[Samantha · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved it! I didn't love it as much as the first but still love it!

[*~*~~*~reading~**~till~**~forever*~~*~*]

YES! You have no idea how much I want to sink my claws into this one!

[Ayumi]

OHMIGOSHOMIGOSHOMIGOSHOMIGOSH!!!!
There are no words to explain how excited I am to read this book!!!! Yay! :D Can't wait for it to come out!

[Christina · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm really excited for this to come out. I loved Ember and absolutely can not wait for the next book in the series. Sorensen has an amazing talent for grabbing the reader from the very first page and not letting go. Her writing style is phenomenal and doesn't read like many other ya novels I've read. Fantastic author!

[Hannahlchurch]

When is the actual release date???? Online it says August 2013 but um that ends in one day!! Please oh please someone tell me!

[Samantha]

Cute~

[Danielle (~Dani~)]

November 2013? Hurry!

[Christine · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book had some serious proof-reading misses and was not as good as the first. I'm hoping that the next book redeems the series as I have enjoyed the story-line.

[Lee Face · Rating 1 out of 5]

My god. How predictable can it get.
Brothers, yeah I saw that coming.
You must kill one you love in the end prophecy.
All we need is a surprise pregnancy.

[Kati · Rating 4 out of 5]

El libro no está mal, pero hay alguna parte que se me ha hecho pesada.
Me he llevado sorpresas y he llegado la conclusión de que las autoras dejan los finales como el de este libro para sacarnos de quicio. Ya lo imaginaba, pero ahora lo tengo más confirmado. Jessica Sorensen, más te vale que no suceda nada entre Cameron y Ember!!!

[Jackie Lynn · Rating 3 out of 5]

For some reason, I'm just not crazy about this book. I LOVED Ember X, but this one fell short for me. About half way through I just wanted to get it over with. I still like the story, but I don't like Ember: she kind of got on my nerves. Still, the story was okay and I will be reading the conclusion.

[Paige · Rating 1 out of 5]

I am incredibly disappointed. It seemed rushed and not fully written which is sad seeing as it was months late. I don't think that the series can survive any more.

[Marianne · Rating 5 out of 5]

The final fight for Amber’s heart and soul has started: Things are going from bad to worse in this. She’s left with very few friends and family, and Asher has followed angelic orders and abandoned her to Cameron’s tender, an sexually charged mercies. Insisting he wants her for himself, while subtly hinting that Asher might not be totally upfront about his motives. Meanwhile, the Anamotti and (and their leader) are upping their ante since it’s becoming clear Amber will be the final Grim Angel standing. Amber will have to choose who she can trust, if any. A difficult choice: As it turns out, her two rival death collectors both have a few, dark secrets and, as well as a shared background story. Their background binds them together and put them at odds with the reapers and angels, respectively. An interesting twist to the story.

IMO; Jessica Sorensen does a good job describing bad boy with a tender and possessive streak; Cameron. Somehow he’s just sounds more likeable, despite his dubious motives. While Asher at times acts annoyingly “angelic”, although I must admit he’s starting to break that particular habit by the end of the book.
But is it just me, or do the angels portrayed in this book sound a lot like masochists who WANT to lose the fight for the human souls? Oh, sure, they’re adhering to rules, but isn’t the eternal fate of human souls worth getting their hands dirty, just a little bit? Still the angels’ illogical behavior was a minor annoyance, compared to the obvious editing mistakes and (at least to me - but hey, I might be wrong, I'm Norwegian.) poorly constructed sentences. But since I enjoyed the book regardless, I've decided to be nice, and not detract stars;-)

[Jaclyn · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ugh! I'm so disappointed in this book! The first book in the series was so interesting, and this one was completely...nothing!! I should have suspected when the release date kept getting pushed back month, after month, after month that it was a bad omen that the author had no clue where the story was going! This book was supposed to be the conclusion of the story, but instead, absolutely nothing happened until the last chapter, and then you're left with another cliffhanger. Forgetting the enormous amount of editing errors, the story was so stupid! For example, Ember can talk to Cameron in her head, and he can read her mind (these conversations take up 80% of the book), yet she still thinks things like "I can't tell him that I hid the book in my trunk." Ummm...she's having a mental conversation with him and he can read her mind, yet SOMEHOW he doesn't know where she hid the book. Wow. And the one "big revelation" of the story was so predictable that I guessed it in book 1. And it's infuriating that the entire book is pretty much Cameron and Asher (and everyone else really) saying that they can't tell her anything. Instead of this being a way to prolong suspense, it becomes glaringly obvious that what it really comes down to is that the author doesn't even have the answers!! I don't even know how she's going to come up with another complete book from this. And I'm going to guess it won't come out for ages. But I guess I no longer care.

[Jinx · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book as much as the first. Although in this one we got more Cameron than we did in the last one. He was fun and all but I'm team Asher all the way and was extremely anxious when I thought I wouldn't get any parts of him :(.

When I finally did get parts of him I was not disappointed. He was everything he's always been charming, endearing and a down right sex god but in this book his character grew and had more depth.

As much as I adore Asher, Cameron had me kind of wavering in my loyalty because his character also grew and had more definition to him. He came across quite likable and I couldn't help but sympathize with Ember's conflicted feelings regarding both guys.

Needless to say this book had my undivided attention and I did not put it down until I was done with it. This was a great follow up. I got just the right amount of answers and enough unanswered questions that I will definitely read the next book :)...

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oh holy mother of cliff hangers!!!! If you don't like cliff hangers, do not read this book until the 3rd is available!!

I just finished this and am still reeling from the ending...

I really love this story so much. Both Ember and Cinder had me captured from the beginning, and fully enthralled in the story. I love the characters, well most of them and I have to say I am team Cameron. I love that the plot only thickens in this book and that more secrets are revealed.

As much as I love this story, and cannot wait to see how it unfolds in the next book, the errors while not as bad in this book as the first, are still distracting from the flow of the story.

[Christine (Shh Moms Reading) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book. The fight between good and evil continues with Ember getting closer to having to choose the side that will hopefully save humanity. I totally didn't see the unexpected connection between Asher and Cameron and of course this leaves me wanting the next book to find out the final outcome. Will Ember be strong enough to make the right decision and who's love will she sacrifice? I am biting my nails in anticipation for this because if it were me, I wouldn't be able to decide! ah!

[Samantha · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enticing! I feel so sad for Ember with no one to help her. but in true fashion the love triangle grows deeper with the bad boy becoming good. A good twist comes out but ultimately we got no closer to embers choice just deeper into the back story. I can't wait to see what comes next!

[Ashley]

Having a really hard time here! When does it come out and on what? I could only get ember on kindle.

[Anka · Rating 1 out of 5]

No me ha gustado para nada esta segunda parte. A ver cómo acaba la trilogía, pero no tengo esperanzas de que mejore.

[Trudy strickland · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ready for the next...

Very good book. I'm hooked. now I'm ready for the next book in the story line. this is a must read.

[Chasity · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really REALLY like these books. I don't know what it is about me and Angels but I'm a bit obsessed reading about them. It helps when the writer is amazing at what she does! Jessica's writing style and flow is just, I don't know... pitch perfect. It really is.

The only thing that kept me from giving it the overall 5 stars is- I felt like there was some stuff that was extra fluff. The story reads well, the writing is fast paced. You'll read through this extremely fast, due to the overall story, plot, characters etc... but I felt at times that even with it reading so well that, it was boring. And that's only because of the "extra fluff" that I thought the story didn't necessarily need. Just so that I'm making it clear, I'm NOT talking about the sex or anything to do with that part(s). I could totally go for more sex scenes if you know what I mean?! I ain't playing, those were written VERY well. I'd love for Jessica to write out an erotica, I think it would be a best seller for sure! LOL.

Back track to the story, focus. I waited for forever for this book to come out. I hope that the rest (which I'm not sure how many more there are going to be?) don't take as long to get here. Because I kept coming and checking constantly for this before I decided to give it a rest and basically give up on the series for now (at that time.) But then I seen a FB Blogger posting the links for it and was really shocked to find that it was out, since I'd just recently quit checking for it. So hopefully we don't have to wait that long again. Though to be honest it WAS worth the wait. I'd seriously wait all over again. I just really like them enough to.

So with that it goes into phase 2, basically where the first left off. Ember gets closer to discovering which side she truly resides on. Cliffhanger for sure, so fair warning for that. Also, before I forget to mention this. There is 2 different sets of these books out. In case anyone was wondering or if you didn't know about that, now you do. This book is the x-rated version and then there is also a clean version that omits all of the sexual/graphic scenes. I haven't read the clean versions because obviously if you couldn't tell, from my rant about the "sex" spoken earlier about. I don't mind it being in the book(s). I'm an adult so I chose to go with the original (or maybe the one without sex is the original?) But if your looking for something less steamy go with the clean version and you can tell which one it is by the covers. They are different and also the synopsis has it in there as well. As do the font/titles of the stories vary by having the "X" after the title which would mean that they are the "X-Rated" versions verses the ones that just have the title without an "X" that follows.

I'm not really sure how I got the x-rated first book to begin with. I didn't know at that time that there were 2 versions out (or if only at that time the x-rated was the only one out?) but I did notice it when I went to read the synopsis for this book. I seen that it was the clean version so, I clicked on her (Jessica Sorensen's) Author page and found this one too and clicked it and read the synopsis again and found that it was x-rated. So then, I had to check my library for which version I bought the first time around and it was the x-rated. So, obviously I stuck with those versions of the books. And I'm seriously glad I got the x-rated and not the clean because, I'd have been a little bit pissed and probably would have ended up buying the x-rated to see what I'd been missing so... Buy it, love it, hate it but review it.

[Angela · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cinder-X is the second book in the Death Collectors series by New York Times Bestselling author, Jessica Sorensen. This series, unlike other series Ms. Sorensen has written, is a paranormal romance/fantasy series. Most readers will be familiar with the realistic new adult fiction that is typical for Jessica Sorensen. Overall, this is an entertaining read. While it’s vastly different from anything I’ve ever read by her, I’m truly enjoying this series.

Synopsis

When Asher Morgan walked into Ember’s life she discovered she was able to feel something other than death when she touched someone. Asher's peaceful calm changed Ember’s life. For the first time, Ember felt truly alive. But events have taken Asher from her and Ember is once again living in seclusion left to deal with her Grim Angel curse alone.

While desperately missing Asher, Ember must find a way to face what is happening now. Her best friend, Raven and her brother are acting strange and they have become absent from her life. Not understanding their extreme behavior, Ember tries to find answers on her own. When she discovers that their strange behavior is connected to an impending battle between Angels and Reapers, Ember seeks answers to save them before it's too late. When Asher's enemy, Cameron suddenly returns Ember doesn't want to trust him but he's all she has. Cameron starts to wind his way into her life but Ember is reluctant to fully trust him. Then people in her town suddenly begin dying Ember realizes that those closest to her are caught in the cross hairs and she must find the answers before it’s too late and everything she holds dear is taken from her forever.

My Thoughts

Another entertaining read from Jessica Sorensen. I’ve read plenty of her books to know I’m going to enjoy just about anything she writes. I’m most familiar with her realistic fiction but saw she had this series and quickly added it to my to-read list. I wasn’t sure what to think about her writing this type of book but I was pleasantly surprised when I read the first book in the series. Like Ember-X this book unfortunately has some major editing issues. There are a huge number of grammar and general sentence structure issues that should have been corrected in the editing process. At times it reads more like a first or second draft rather than a final product. This is something I’ve been seeing more often with Ms. Sorensen’s books. It saddens me to see this because she is a truly gifted and talented writer. I’m not sure why it's started happening but it's very disappointing. I hope that future products will be cleaner when heading to print. If you can get past the editing issues and you enjoy paranormal romance then you will likely enjoy this book and series. I’m anxious to see how this series ends. The final book, titled Spark-X, is out now.

[Janae Mitchell]

For those who haven't read my review of 'Ember', let me just say that I didn't rate it. For some reason, it left me confused, but I liked the characters and how the story flowed. I felt the same way about this one.
There were a few more things explained regarding the death angels, grim reapers, and angels of death, but I still just can't grasp exactly what is going on with this story-line. I was already confused about everything, and then the governor of the town is suddenly the leader of the reapers, hypnotizing the entire town into...well, I really don't know what they are being hypnotized to do. At first I thought it was to kill Ember, but then they let her walk right by them, making me unsure. Some have been turned into complete Animoti, who are a group of reapers (I'm pretty sure) who want to kill all grim angels, but then some are just possessed.
There wasn't much that seemed to happen in 'Cinder'. It's like the entire book happened a day or two, maybe, and the story didn't move along much. But even so, I didn't mind this, since it did move along. What I mean by that is there were no dead spots that left me skipping over boring scenes. As confusing as it may be (to me), neither book has been boring at all.
I loved the ending! This has been my favorite part of this series so far. It left me wondering what was going to happen next; what/who is Ember going to choose? Jessica's writing style left me turning the pages, whether I was confused or not, and anxiously awaiting the next book, which I've got a feeling will be the best one in this series so far.

[Louise · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great value but found this book disappointing compared to Ember and I felt that this was rushed, there are lots of obvious errors eg spelling/typo/grammar. These errors should of been picked up by a good proof reader.

The story felt as if it had lots of holes in it and seemed to be a first draft with just the key points done and little descriptives etc.

This could be an excellent book as well as series the story has an excellent concept that I've not come across amongst other fantasy books, obviously there are good versus evil etc but not Angel's of Death versus Grim Reapers that I'm aware of.

I know Jessica Sorensen has produced a lot of books lately and I wonder if that's why Cinder X has been rushed and therefore perhaps some of the story lines got missed or not expanded on due to time constraints. I haven't read her other books lately so not sure if these have been affected too. She has expanded her number of series being produced at present and know if it was me to keep track of so many different stores things will start to slip.

I'm looking forward to the next book but hope that Jessica Sorenson spends more time on the story lines to make this an excellent book and series rather than a mediocre book as she has produced excellent series and books in the past. I've yet to read Cinder and wonder if this has been better written as I found Ember was better than Ember X. I don't mind spending more for a better book.

[Robin]

I must of missed something, because when Ember's book was stolen, why in the hell didn't she just find another one? Go on Amazon for goodness sake! Or take the bus to another town and look for it in a library. I'm 1/2 way and I just don't think I can finish it. Ember is such a boring protagonist. Why doesn't she take some initiative, and try and find the author of the book? I know she called him, but the internet should provide some clues as to where the author lives. And I really want to like Asher, but he's so selfish! Either tell her the truth all the time, or freaking go away. It's frustrating for me, because he lies so much that I'm not sure what's what. The whole town is possessed and trying to kill her...so let's keep going home. That's a good idea. NOBODY knows where you live (dripping with sarcasm). I think this is a cool idea for a book, but I can't like Ember because she's just so dumb. Could she wear gloves to protect herself from the death omens? Or something...try something sometime Ember. Something proactive- not just going to parties and then remembering you are depressed when you have a bad time. Also, who takes care of the household? I know her mom does every now and then, but I'm pretty sure CPS would have been called at some point (before the possessions). Who grocery shops? How does she afford her cell phone? I'm pretty sure if you don't pay your bills, shit gets turned off.

[Jessica · Rating 5 out of 5]

I LOVED THIS BOOK!! I think more so than the last (Ember) .. this book had me on the edge of my seat the whole time! I don't know where to start without giving too much away! In this book you really get inside Embers head... I feel really bad for her most of the book.. shes alone a lot.. and of course that would drive anyone mad!


I really love the characters! I can't decide if I really hate Cameron or not.. I should hate him.. I mean right? I should go for Asher.. which I really love! But as the story goes, we find out we don't know about each of them as we thought! OMG and the part where we find out the connection between Asher & Cameron.. I think I screamed at my Nook.


Cinder-X really makes you think about good & evil and which side you belong to. Which may not be as easy as you think! I love that Ember goes back and forth and we still don't know what side she will choose! I can't wait to read the next book!


I love the poetry throughout the book, I think it adds to it. I love the idea of Angels of Death/Reapers, it really interests me. This is the first Paranormal book I've read other than Ember. Needless to say I really enjoy them.


I would highly recommend this book to anyone & everyone!!

[Lily Rivas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Death. Everywhere. Torture. I can't give up. But how long is it until they break me? Until they win? Ember is all alone. That's her torture. Since finding out she is a Grim Angel, people ( the Angels, Reapers and Anamotti) all think she might be the last Grim Angel standing. They think she can break the curse. The Reapers want to break her, they want to get inside her head, so that she will give in to her Reaper's blood so that they can win the battle. But Ember knows that Asher would want her to keep fighting. Asher. Asher left her in the cemetery one night because he was in trouble with the angels. But now, everything is different. They have lost the book that had all the answers. Her whole family were Grim Angels. Her dad is trapped in the shadow realm. And worst of all they have given in to the Reapers, leaving Ember the last pure Grim Angel.

I love this book. I think this book is more for girls than the boys. The story got a little confusing at some parts, but, I reread those parts and now understand them. I would defiantly recommend this book to my classmates. I think this story is so good because all the odds are against Ember. And now she has to choose what side. I'm now just going to wait for the third book.

[Charisse · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well, this series turned out to be so much more than I was originally thinking it would be. I loved Cinder just as much as I loved Ember. I really grew to love Cameron in this book. I think his character developed tremendously and he really grew into a person you love, even in his not so lovable moments. I kept waiting for Ember to see it, to dip herself into the shallows of the Cameron pool, but in some cases I don't think we ever get our wish. I feel if she had given him more of a shot her choice would have been harder, because even though she said it was over and over again, she didn't have much ground to stand on since she really never gave him a shot. This is also coming from someone that loved Asher the entire time. But I wanted her to really KNOW the difference in the two. This was by far my hardest love triangle, if you really want to call it that. I did love this book hard. I love that it's different, I love that it makes you think, and I love that even when I thought I knew what was going to happen it didn't. 5 star read for me. On to Spark X.

[Wendy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Again I was NOT disappointed in Jessica Sorensen!! Loved the second installment of the Death Collectors and again I could not put it down till I was completely done!!
Things get a little crazier in this book with Ember. Just when she thinks she is all alone and wants to give in to the Reapers her life changes yet again. The story takes off with Ember trying to deal with Asher being gone from her life and her trying to find out more on Grim Angels. Then of course, she is still looking on leads on her dad....she feels followed by something in the shadows and she wonders if Cameron really did leave like she told him too. I was sucked into the story AGAIN!!! I don't want to say too much cause it will surely give the story away.
Come on Jessica don't leave me hanging too long for the next one!!! LOVE it so keep them coming!!!! :D