BOOK REVIEW: MURDER OF CROWS by ANNE BISHOP - THE OTHERS # 2 - PARANORMAL ROMANCE - HARPER VOYAGER

By: Anne Bishop
Published By: Harper Voyager
Released: Available Now
Details: Paperback from the library, 369 Pages

RATING: 4.5 STARS

Blurb: Goodreads

Return to New York Times best-selling author Anne Bishop’s world of the Others - where supernatural entities and humans struggle to co-exist, and one woman has begun to change all the rules.

After winning the trust of the terra indigene residing in the Lakeside Courtyard, Meg Corbyn has had trouble figuring out what it means to live among them. As a human, Meg should be barely tolerated prey, but her abilities as a cassandra sangue make her something more.

The appearance of two addictive drugs has sparked violence between the humans and the Others, resulting in the murder of both species in nearby cities. So when Meg has a dream about blood and black feathers in the snow, Simon Wolfgard - Lakeside’s shape-shifting leader - wonders if their blood prophet dreamed of a past attack or a future threat.

As the urge to speak prophecies strikes Meg more frequently, trouble finds its way inside the Courtyard. Now, the Others and the handful of humans residing there must work together to stop the man bent on reclaiming their blood prophet - and stop the danger that threatens to destroy them all.


BOOK REVIEW:

This series has such a different paranormal world, and I really do enjoy it. The pacing at times can be quite slow, but when things start to happen, they really start to happen.

I have all the books ready to read and will move onto Vision In Silver # 3.

This would easily be a 5 star read for me if the pacing was tightened up because I can’t fault how amazing the world is that Anne has brought to life.

The different groups of ‘others’ are fantastic.

Meg is still not a very big character, considering she is on the front of the covers, she seems almost secondary sometimes to Simon’s character. The ‘others’ seem to do more in the book, action wise.

Meg is a blood prophet. She’s still trying to understand her limits, and who she is. I understand the ‘others’ more now. They are written so well.

I’m watching the ‘others’ as they become more tolerant of the humans. They make allowance for those in the courtyard but still will kill those who set out to harm, kill or simply stand by and watch ‘others’ being hurt. Towns will be wiped out.

I’m glad I know more about Meg now. She’s twenty-four. In Written In Red, she read to me personally like she was sixteen or thereabouts.

This is a very good series to-date, it just can be painfully slow in areas for me to rate higher than 4 stars. I think I want Meg to be more than she is at the moment, even though I did get a little more from her character in this book.

I see Simon and the ‘others’ growing more.

Meg is sweet and unique and sweet and caring, confused with Simon as a man, confused with friendship and what it means. She still does her mail delivery.

I liked reading about humans and how they really do play with their own fate when it comes to the ‘others.’

The Elementals are still in my mind the most dangerous, next to Tess. They really are the ones controlling life because not even the ‘others’ like Simon can survive what they could unleash on the world.

I always take a break before reading the next book, in fear of the pace making it difficult for me to stay committed to this series, but I can already feel I am addicted. Anne has quite the creative mind, and I need to know what she has in store for these characters.

What I liked was we got to know more about the Controller. In book 1 he was just words in the background of the story, but he is more in this installment. He became that villain we want to hate.

Introducing some new sub characters like Skippy, was fun. Monty, Burke, and Kowalski always make great additions to the storyline. Dominic Lorenzo and Steve Ferryman I enjoyed knowing more about. And as always, I do love it when the Elementals pop up.

I have developed a healthy curiosity about this series.

I need to know more.

BOOK REVIEW - TRICKERY by JAYMIN EVE & JANE WASHINGTON - CURSE OF THE GODS # 1 - YA FANTASY

By: Jaymin Eve and Jane Washington

Published By: Jaymin Eve and Jane Washington

Released: Available Now

Details: Kindle purchase, 298 Pages

RATING: 5 LIGHT ON FANTASY, AWESOME ON WIT AND HOT SOLS STARS!

Blurb: Goodreads

Willa Knight: Dweller. Slave. Non-magical being.

In Minatsol, being a dweller means that you are literally no better than dirt. In fact, dirt might actually be more useful than Willa. Her life will be one of servitude to the sols, the magic-blessed beings who could one day be chosen to become gods.

At least her outer village is far removed from the cities of the sols, and she won’t ever be forced to present herself to them... Until one small mistake changes everything, and Willa is awarded a position to serve at Blesswood, the top sol academy in the world—a position that she definitely did not earn.

Under the sudden, watchful eye of the gods, she will be tasked to serve the Abcurse brothers, five sols built of arrogance, perfection and power. They are almost gods themselves, and under their service she is either going to end up sentenced to death, or else they are going to ruin her so badly that she will wish for it.

Either way, she is in trouble. 

BOOK REVIEW:

I really enjoyed this first installment in the Curse of the Gods series. Willa is quite the clumsy character and the five sols (brothers) are great characters.

The thing with Willa, don’t confuse being overly clumsy with being dumb, because she is far from dumb. Enormously clumsy—yes. Dumb—no.

Trickery is very entertaining and light fantasy. This I enjoyed.

The more you read, the more you learn about Willa and the more you will learn about the five brothers who are all stars in their own right even when there are twins and triplets making up this group of sols.



The last one. He looked just like Coen, the pain-gifted sol who had tried to kill me. They both appeared slightly older than the other three: Yael, the persuasion-gifted one; Siret, the trickery-gifted one; and Aros, the one who apparently had some kind of seduction gift.



A great chemistry grows between Willa and her sols, which has you giggling as you read.



“What are you doing in the male dorm?”

“Exploring my sexuality.” I leaned against the cart, propping my elbow, wiping my expression into something neutral. “How am I doing?”

“I can see your nipples. Your shirt’s wet.”



Emmy is the best friend/sidekick, even though Willa herself seems a bit of a sidekick to the sols, sometimes.



“I’m sick of them. I never want to see them again. Except Aros; he smells nice. And Rome, because he’s so strong. I’m pretty sure not even Rau can get past him. I don’t need the others. Except Siret. I’m pretty sure he hates me, but he’s really good at catching me like just before I face-plant into something. But the others, I don’t need them. Not at all.” I paused, my brow furrowing, my mouth pursing, and then I quickly blurted, “Except Coen and Yael. Coen is really good at making decisions, and if I leave out Yael he’ll probably hunt me the hell down and haunt me—”

That’s all of them,” Emmy interrupted smoothly. She didn’t sound panicked anymore. Now she sounded like she was trying not to laugh.



A lot of wit is spread throughout this book, making it a very enjoyable read.



“How the hell have you stayed alive this long?” he asked. 

I shrugged, trying to catch my breath. “No idea, it’s been a rough road.”



I am looking forward to Persuasion # 2, which is released. The cover art is so beautiful.

TRUST by KYLIE SCOTT - YA/NA CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE

By: Kylie Scott

Published By: Kylie Scott

Released : July 2017

Detail: Netgalley for honest review

Blurb: Goodreads

Being young is all about the experiences: the first time you skip school, the first time you fall in love…the first time someone holds a gun to your head.

After being held hostage during a robbery at the local convenience store, seventeen year old Edie finds her attitude about life shattered. Unwilling to put up with the snobbery and bullying at her private school, she enrolls at the local public high school, crossing paths with John. The boy who risked his life to save hers. While Edie’s beginning to run wild, however, John’s just starting to settle down. After years of partying and dealing drugs with his older brother, he’s going straight—getting to class on time, and thinking about the future.

An unlikely bond grows between the two as John keeps Edie out of trouble and helps her broaden her horizons. But when he helps her out with another first—losing her virginity—their friendship gets complicated.

Meanwhile, Edie and John are pulled back into the dangerous world they narrowly escaped. They were lucky to survive the first time, but this time they have more to lose—each other.

BOOK REVIEW:

“Why is there one set of rules for you and another for me?”

“Because I never knew a girl I wanted to look after before.”

Yes! Yes! Yes!

Kylie Scott has gone Indie for Trust—her soon to be released YA/NA novel—and boy, is it a good one.

This is good.

Really good.

I gotta say…it is refreshingly good. She has a niche here in this age bracket and it shows. She is owning it with Trust.

I’m not gonna tell you anything about the story, but to say, it is up there with the best of them in YA/NA story telling.

The sex scene was written very realistically, with a hint of humor and the right enough for this age bracket.

You will love both characters, John and Edie, and sidekick-dude. You may notice a name inside Trust, too. 😉

Totally dug it.

It’s not too hard to predict it will hit the NYT Best Seller list etc.

I want more writing like this from KS.

Giddy Up!

BOOK REVIEW - WHEN IT'S REAL by ERIN WATT - HARLEQUIN TEEN - YA CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE

By: Erin Watt
Published By: Harlequin Teen
Released: May 30th 2017
Details: Netgalley, from publisher for honest review, 416 Pages

RATING: 4.5 STARS

Blurb: Goodreads

From #1 New York Times bestselling author duo Erin Watt comes the addictive contemporary tale of a teen rock star in need of an image makeover and the teen girl hired to be his fake girlfriend.

Meet Oakley Ford-teen celebrity, renowned pop star, child of famous movie stars, hottie with millions of fangirls… and restless troublemaker. On the surface he has it all, but with his home life disintegrating, his music well suddenly running dry, and the tabloids having a field day over his outrageous exploits, Oakley's team decides it's time for an intervention. The result: an image overhaul, complete with a fake girlfriend meant to show the world he's settled down.

Enter seventeen-year-old Vaughn Bennett-devoted sister, part-time waitress, the definition of "normal." Under ordinary circumstances she'd never have taken this gig, but with her family strapped for cash, she doesn't have much of a choice. And for the money Oakley's team is paying her, she figures she can put up with outlandish Hollywood parties and a team of publicists watching her every move. So what if she thinks Oakley's a shallow, self-centered jerk? It's not like they're going to fall for each other in real life…right?


BOOK REVIEW:

I’m a HUGE fan of Paper Princess. When I got the opportunity to read When It’s Real—early—I was rather excited. Thank you Harlequin Teen.

I really do love Oakley aka Oak. What I liked about his character is we were able to understand a little more what a real rockstar or musician’s teen life can be like.

It’s not all shits and giggles. There is the excess of more than chicks just throwing themselves at you. You are also missing the ‘normal’ that balances out the crazy lifestyle. You may be underage, but everything is there for the taking. Technically you are thrown into an adult world where rules don’t apply to you.

Oak had access to anything; it didn’t make him necessarily happy. He needed more from his music. He wants to be taken seriously and to have growth in an industry that dictates your every move.

Vaughn—by chance—has been chosen to be Oak’s fake GF…let the angst begin.

Okay so this idea isn’t necessarily a new one, but I did really enjoy When It’s Real.

The character I felt was quite redundant was, W. I know he’s there for the angst and dramalama, but Vaughn and Oak could have stood on their own two feet without W in this story. Even his name gives us the predictable outcome. W isn’t even worthy of the rest of the letters in his name. I kinda got annoyed only reading him as W; I mean he’s not in a James Bond movie.

I did dig this story, and I am becoming a very big fan of this writing duo.

I highly recommend reading When It’s Real.

BOOK REVIEW - RED QUEEN by VICTORIA AVEYARD - RED QUEEN # 1 - YA FANTASY - HARPER TEEN

By: Victoria Aveyard

Published By: Harper Teen

Released: Available Now

Details: Paperback from library, 387 Pages

RATING: 5 FRESH STARS!

Blurb: Goodreads

This is a world divided by blood – red or silver.

The Reds are commoners, ruled by a Silver elite in possession of god-like superpowers. And to Mare Barrow, a seventeen-year-old Red girl from the poverty-stricken Stilts, it seems like nothing will ever change.

That is, until she finds herself working in the Silver Palace. Here, surrounded by the people she hates the most, Mare discovers that, despite her red blood, she possesses a deadly power of her own. One that threatens to destroy the balance of power.

Fearful of Mare’s potential, the Silvers hide her in plain view, declaring her a long-lost Silver princess, now engaged to a Silver prince. Despite knowing that one misstep would mean her death, Mare works silently to help the Red Guard, a militant resistance group, and bring down the Silver regime.

But this is a world of betrayal and lies, and Mare has entered a dangerous dance – Reds against Silvers, prince against prince, and Mare against her own heart.



BOOK REVIEW:

I used to think there was only the divide, Silver and Red, rich and poor, kings and slaves. But there’s much more in between, things I don’t understand, and I’m right in the middle of it. I grew up wondering if I’d have food for supper, now I’m standing in a palace about to be eaten alive.

It is very hard coming up with something fresh in the YA world that is gonna grab readers by the masses around the globe.

Victoria certainly achieved this.

Even though I did see through a couple characters fairly early on, this story is still a five star read for me.

Red Queen is very rich in descriptive, which brings an amazing visual while reading.

I loved the whole concept of the Reds and the Silvers.

Divergent, ( that other big YA series)  has its society divided into factions, and this is the same for Red Queen, but it's different and this I LOVE.

It sucks if you are a Red, basically.

But—then comes along a girl…

And then there is a boy…

And then there is a brother…

Throw in some royalty…

Throw in some dramalama, rebels, lust, dancing lessons (*sigh*), more rebels, wise people, more rebels...special powers, gladiator style take-downs and a bloody good ending.

When I thought I had found a plot flaw and it was scratching away at me…I simply had to keep reading.

Damn—this was good.

Sure there is a basic recipe that all these types of stories start with, but it's the other ingredients you add—that set it above others and make it worth tasting.

I highly recommend Red Queen.

The cover art is amazing. Very apt. Easily understood.

I will be purchasing this series for my bookshelves, because Mini-Me is gonna be getting them shoved under her nose.

Victoria, I give you my glove clap.

Anyone can betray anyone.

BOOK REVIEW - PAPER PRINCESS by ERIN WATT - THE ROYALS # 1 - YA - CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE

By: Erin Watt
Published By: Erin Watt
Released: Available Now
Details: Kindle purchase

RATING: 5 RISKY YA STARS!

Blurb: Goodreads

From strip clubs and truck stops to southern coast mansions and prep schools, one girl tries to stay true to herself.

These Royals will ruin you…

Ella Harper is a survivor—a pragmatic optimist. She’s spent her whole life moving from town to town with her flighty mother, struggling to make ends meet and believing that someday she’ll climb out of the gutter. After her mother’s death, Ella is truly alone.

Until Callum Royal appears, plucking Ella out of poverty and tossing her into his posh mansion among his five sons who all hate her. Each Royal boy is more magnetic than the last, but none as captivating as Reed Royal, the boy who is determined to send her back to the slums she came from.

Reed doesn’t want her. He says she doesn’t belong with the Royals.

He might be right.

Wealth. Excess. Deception. It’s like nothing Ella has ever experienced, and if she’s going to survive her time in the Royal palace, she’ll need to learn to issue her own Royal decrees.



BOOK REVIEW:

I totally dug the Paper Princess. Due to the characters ages it is YA, but man, it is pushing the boundaries of YA.

The opening chapter which informs you of Ella’s seventeen year old life and where it has led her to the second chapter which has her being…and then Callum Royal… and I was like…that’s what I am talking about.



I’ve been working the pole at Miss Candy’s, a baby club where I strip to a G-string and pasties. It’s good, but not great money.



Erin Watt is made up of the writing duo Elle Kennedy and Jen Frederick and they prove they can write YA and push those boundaries just a little bit more than the average YA read.

The Royals are made up of a family of boys and a dad.



He picks up a set of papers on his desk. “Ella Harper, this is Callum Royal.” He pauses as if that means something to me. Meanwhile, Royal is staring at me like he’s never seen a girl before.



They are scary, a little intimidating, but not the dad, he is trying to do the right thing, but the sons…well, they are another playing field.



“I’ve got five sons. There’s no trick in the book that one of them haven’t tried on me, and I know a teenager when I see one, even beneath a foot of makeup.”


“Reed.” Callum’s commanding voice bounces off the walls. “Easton.” Another name rattles out. “Sawyer.” Then another. “Sebastian…”

Not to forget Gideon.

So, at first glance…many pages, they are the evil stepsisters, I mean brothers, even though they aren’t related…well technically their dad is the guardian of Ella now.

Signed on the dotted line.

I’m not gonna tell you what goes down as there are paaarttaaays, and biatches and gold digger girlfriend and all that good stuff to tsunami Paper Princess into the five star read I think it is.

Take a gander. I think you will like.

Oh and that ending…

*gasp*

Shut the front door!

BLOG TOUR - FREEKS by AMANDA HOCKING - YA PARANORMAL - PAN MACMILLAN

By: Amanda Hocking
Published By: Pan Macmillan
Released : Available Now
Details: Received from Publisher for honest review. Thank you!!

RATING: 3.75 STARS

In a world of magical visions and pyrokinesis, Mara just wants to have a normal life. But is that possible?

Mara has become used to the extraordinary. Roaming from place to place with Gideon Davorin’s Traveling Carnival, she longs for an ordinary life where no one has the ability to levitate or predict the future.

She gets her chance when the struggling sideshow sets up camp in the small town of Caudry and she meets a gorgeous local guy named Gabe. But before long, Mara realizes there’s a dark presence lurking in the town that’s threatening the lives of her friends. She has seven days to take control of a power she didn’t know she had in order to save everyone she cares about—and change the future forever.



BOOK REVIEW :


I am a HUGE fan of Amanda Hocking. I have a couple of her original covers for Trylle and My Blood Approves signed, which I covert. They are my precious.

I have read most of her works and reviewed them. Freeks, I enjoyed, but it might not be my favorite book from Amanda, and that is okay.

I am not sure if it is the beginning of a series because there was certainly room for more story line and answers to questions I have from Freeks.

I really liked her use of carnival characters who all possess a little something supernatural.

The romance I felt needed to connect with me more between Gabe and Mara. I would have liked him more in the story to solidify their less than two week romance. I needed something to hold onto there.

I really liked all the characters, but still feel like I have questions. I wondered about the tag on the cover telling me A Return To The World of The Trylle Series. I did not see any Trylle world in this book.

Unless, I have a memory lapse. I am curious about this.

I enjoyed this YA read, but at the same time I was looking for more. Trylle series and My Blood Approves series are both my two absolute fave series of hers. I was missing some of that writing style from Freeks.

I felt maybe the plot was a little too easy in Freeks, but maybe this will not be the case for another reader and I wanted more connection with Gabe and Mara in dialogue and being front and center. Gabe popped in and out and we moved around the life of the carnival more. I felt sometimes we moved away in the story from where we probably should have stayed for a bit longer, but of course it is not my story to tell.

I will always pick up an Amanda Hocking read regardless.

If you are an Amanda fan, try this one on for size and see what you think. I am a blogger who reads a mountain of books and I am also getting older, so this may also be a reason for my lower rating. I do enjoy a good YA read as much as an adult read, but sometimes I might be looking for a deeper connection with characters compared to a teenaged reader.

Amanda's Mini Q & A

What do you like to do when you’re not writing?

Most of my free time is spent taking care of my pets (I currently have two dogs, three cats, and a hamster, so that takes up a lot of my time). I also watch a lot of bad movies, read a lot of good books, and play video games with my husband and stepson.

How many jobs have you had before you realised you were destined to become a writer?


I always knew that I wanted to be a writer, since I was about two or three years older, and I learned that making up stories could be a profession. But before I was actually able to pay the bills with my writing, I think I had six other jobs. Most of them involved either dishwashing or assisting people with disabilities.


Favourite genre to read?


My current favorite genres are probably horror (either YA or adult), and true crime.

BOOK REVIEW - TEN THOUSAND SKIES ABOVE YOU by CLAUDIA GRAY - FIREBIRD # 2 - HARPER TEEN - YA SCI-FI ROMANCE

By: Claudia Gray
Published By: Harper Teen
Released: Available Now
Details: Paperback from library, 426 Pages

RATING: 4.5 PAULS, THEOS & CONLEYS

Ever since she used the Firebird, her parents' invention, to cross into alternate dimensions, Marguerite has caught the attention of enemies who will do anything to force her into helping them dominate the multiverse—even hurting the people she loves. She resists until her boyfriend, Paul, is attacked and his consciousness scattered across multiple dimensions.

Marguerite has no choice but to search for each splinter of Paul’s soul. The hunt sends her racing through a war-torn San Francisco, the criminal underworld of New York City, and a glittering Paris where another Marguerite hides a shocking secret. Each world brings Marguerite one step closer to rescuing Paul. But with each trial she faces, she begins to question the destiny she thought they shared.

The second book in the Firebird trilogy, Ten Thousand Skies Above You features Claudia Gray’s lush, romantic language and smart, exciting action, and will have readers clamoring for the next book.


BOOK REVIEW:

Well, I will say, I LURVED this installment and I totally understood all the Pauls and Theos so much clearer.

I really do love what Claudia did with this book. She really shows the reader in a clever way her vision with the parallel dimensions, being the multiverses.

I liked having Marguerite help the reader with how she saw all the Pauls and Theos and even her own mums and dads and Josies.

Sending us with Marguerite to new and maybe an already visited multiverse *coughRussia*, brought familiarity.

Claudia has done a wonderful job making me love Theo more and I find myself questioning my allegiance to Paul.

WT?

Theo and Paul are so different in their behaviors. Sure they both love Marguerite and she them in separate ways. I think Claudia plays with the reader a little in that respect.

I know it is Paul all the way for Marguerite, because she does reason each of her multiverse Marguerite-emotions out for us.

We learn things about Paul in the erm…real? Universe, because of another multiverse. Which kinda makes me ask the Q, which IS the real VERSE, because technically everybody in each multiverse thinks theirs is.

Oh, I dig too deeply there.

Well done Claudia. I loved the chase, the twists, the Conleys.

The ending.

Whahhh.

Shit just got real.

INESCAPABLE by AMY A. BARTOL - THE PREMONITION # 1 - YA PARANORMAL ROMANCE

By: Amy A Bartol

Published By: Amy A Bartol

Released: Available Now

Details: Kindle purchase, 368 Pages

RATING: 4.5 REED & RUSSELL & ZEPHYR STARS!

Blurb: Goodreads

My name is Evie Claremont and this was to be the making of me–my freshman year of college. I’d been hoping that once I’d arrived on Crestwood’s campus, the nightmare that I’ve been having would go away. It hasn’t.

I may be an inexperienced seventeen-year-old, but I’m grounded…sane. I look for rational explanations to even the strangest circumstances. Since meeting sophomore Reed Wellington, however, nothing makes any sense. Whenever he’s near, I feel an attraction to him–a magnetic kind of force pulling me towards him. I know what you’re thinking…that sounds fairly awesome. Yeah, it would be…if he liked me, but Reed acts as if I’m the worst thing that has ever happened to Crestwood…or him. But get this, for some reason every time I turn around he’s there, barging into my life.

What is the secret that he’s keeping from me? I’m hoping that it’s anything but what I suspect: that he’s not exactly normal…and neither am I. So, maybe Crestwood won’t be the making of me, but it could be the breaking of me. I’ve been left to wonder if the dark future my dream is foretelling is…inescapable.



BOOK REVIEW:
I really dug this first installment in The Premonition series. The characters and storytelling was of the YA age bracket, but I thought it appealed very much to adults of various ages too.

Several times when reading Inescapable I couldn’t help but wonder if it was ever a Twilight fan fiction.

Maybe…maybe not, but I had really strong fan fiction moments while reading. I have read Sempre by J.M Darhower and I believe it was definitely Twilight fan fiction, but I gotta say I personally never saw it when reading Sempre at all. But, Inescapable I personally felt it was in there quite strongly, but eh, I could be wrong.

Not that it matters. I loved this book and am rather eager to read on.

Reed Wellington I really liked for many reasons. He’s just uber yummy book boyfriend material. Period.


His eyes narrow, “I wanted to destroy you,” he says, and a shiver goes through me, “and I wanted to take you in my arms and love you, and I wanted to tear you apart, and I wanted to crush anything that would harm you, all at the same time.”

“No one wants to be proven wrong more than I do,” Reed says tiredly. “Everything about you calls to me. Your skin begs me to touch it, and when I do it burns me like a drug and I want more. You are like a cut that never heals. I just keep bleeding,” Reed says while he disengages from my embrace.

I also liked Russell. It is so hard to not want him to be with Evie Claremont and on top of that they have a connection to start with.


When I thought I had some future things worked out, I wasn’t quite right and then I got a cool twist which I hadn’t factored in at all.

I love getting those.

I think this has everything for the YA reader and I am so looking forward to more.

Oh and that guy Zephyr…yeah…he’s pretty cool.

BOOK REVIEW - WHITE CAT by HOLLY BLACK - CURSE WORKERS # 1 - YA PARANORMAL ROMANCE - MARGARET K. MCELDERRY BOOKS - SIMON & SCHUSTER

By : Holly Black
Published By: Margaret K. McElderry Books, Simon & Schuster
Released: Available Now
Details: Paperback, 310 Pages

RATING: 4.25 CASSEL STARS!

Cassel comes from a shady, magical family of con artists and grifters. He doesn't fit in at home or at school, so he's used to feeling like an outsider. He's also used to feeling guilty; he killed his best friend, Lila, years ago.

But when Cassel begins to have strange dreams about a white cat, and people around him are losing their memories, he starts to wonder what really happened to Lila. In his search for answers, he discovers a wicked plot for power that seems certain to succeed. But Cassel has other ideas and a plan to con the con men.

BOOK REVIEW:

I have had White Cat and Red Glove sitting on my bookshelf for ages. I think I even had to dust a little before reading.

I am a spontaneous reader. I will flip all over the place as I feel it helps to keep my reading pleasure fresh. I’m not judging a same genre book because of the previous one I read.

White Cat is a refreshingly original YA read.

I loved it.

It is a slow-to-get-to-the-point read and that is okay. Holly brings us into Cassel’s story a bit ahead of what we will eventually understand.

If that makes sense?

In other words, keep reading and let your mind play catch up. I was a little disoriented at first, but it is all for a reason.

I feel like we have only just touched the tip of the iceberg with this series.

I really enjoyed all the sub characters and I loved the twist. Sure you can pick a few things out along the way, but then I got my surprise and I like being surprised.

Reading from Cassel’s pov is wonderful and Lila has sass. You can tell this plot took a lot of planning. If you really pay attention to the writing you can see the work gone into it.

I have only read The Coldest Girl In Coldtown by Holly Black prior to White Cat. I am a bit behind on the Holly Black train, but I have been riding the Cassandra Clare train from the start. Both authors are best buddies. Holly is majorly known for the Spiderwick Chronicles.

I’m looking forward to jumping into Red Glove shortly, because I’m intrigued, especially after I read the excerpt at the end of White Cat.

BOOK REVIEW - MAKING FACES by AMY HARMON - YA/NEW ADULT CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE

By: Amy Harmon
Published By : Amy Harmon
Released : Available Now
Details: Kindle purchase, 405 Pages

RATING: 4.5 BAILEY & AMBROSE STARS!

Blurb: Goodreads

Ambrose Young was beautiful. He was tall and muscular, with hair that touched his shoulders and eyes that burned right through you. The kind of beautiful that graced the covers of romance novels, and Fern Taylor would know. She'd been reading them since she was thirteen. But maybe because he was so beautiful he was never someone Fern thought she could have...until he wasn't beautiful anymore.

Making Faces is the story of a small town where five young men go off to war, and only one comes back. It is the story of loss. Collective loss, individual loss, loss of beauty, loss of life, loss of identity. It is the tale of one girl's love for a broken boy, and a wounded warrior's love for an unremarkable girl. This is a story of friendship that overcomes heartache, heroism that defies the common definitions, and a modern tale of Beauty and the Beast where we discover that there is little beauty and a little beast in all of us.




BOOK REVIEW by Michelle:


My Kindle is full to the brim with all the #oneclicking I do. I’ve had Amy Harmon books sitting there waiting patiently. When was I honestly going to get to all these books and read them? I read every night and keep on plowing my way through my purchases. I simply had to just tell myself, enough is enough and pick up Making Faces and I am so glad I did.

I knew it was going to be awesome. But, there are so many awesome books to read. I just had to make the decision to override all others lined up waiting patiently and dive in.

Making Faces is a story that can’t help make you feel and appreciate life and who you are, and what you have. We start off as babes that everybody cuddles and kisses and coos over and then we start to take shape and go through awkward stages in life. There are those of us who pop out of our teenage years like swans, and boys that become as beautiful as sunshine.

Fern felt she was an awkward, ugly duckling and Ambrose, the boy she had loved for so long was the handsome prince who couldn’t possibly return that love.

But, things can change and ugly ducklings can turn into beautiful swans and handsome princes don’t always stay that way.

This story has a little beauty and the beast, a lot of feels and a boy named Bailey who will steal your heart and the limelight for many reasons.


“I have no pride left, Ambrose!” Bailey said. “No pride. But it was my pride or my life. I had to choose. So do you. You can have your pride and sit here and make cupcakes and get old and fat and nobody will give a damn after a while. Or you can trade that pride in for a little humility and take your life back.”



“You can’t punch a man in a wheel-chair, Ambrose. And I’m kidding. I just wanted to see what you’d say. She wasn’t that bad. But she grew up thinking she was ugly. She doesn’t realize that she shed the ugly a long time ago. She’s beautiful now. And she’s just as pretty on the inside, which is a side benny of UGS. See, ugly girls actually have to work on their personalities and their brains because they can’t get by on their looks, not like you and me, you know, the beautiful people.” Bailey smiled impishly and waggled his eyebrows.



“Fern doesn’t have a clue how pretty she is. That makes her priceless. Make sure you snatch her up before she clues in to her good looks, Brosey.”



While Fern and Ambrose come of age, and become wiser to what they have in life, Bailey remains the wisest of the lot. He will grab your heart and not let go. I adored reading him. In many ways he did steal the show he was so real and so internally beautiful to read.

This book is a very clean read and it doesn’t deter from this love story in anyway.



“Yes.” His voice was raspy. “I think about your long red hair and your sweet mouth, and the way your little body feels when it’s pressed up against me, and I just want to put my hands on you. Everywhere. And forget that I am ugly and alone and confused as hell.”



I think I want to see this book made into a movie so I can hear and see these words being said on the big screen.



“Ambrose Young! I have waited my whole life for you to want me. If you don’t hold me tight I won’t believe you mean it, and that’s worse than never being held at all. You’d better make me believe you mean it, Ambrose, or you will most definitely break me.”



A beautifully told story that will resonate with you well after finishing it.


“I’ve felt like one of those snowflakes we used to make in school. The ones where you fold the paper a certain way and then keep cutting and cutting until the paper is shredded. That’s what I look like, a paper snowflake. And each hole has a name. And nobody, not you, not me, can fill the holes that someone else has left. All we can do is keep each other from falling in the holes and never coming out again.”



We can’t conquer our reading piles, but we can jump the queue for the special ones.

This book is a queue jumper.

“...and when you get tired of looking at me, I promise I’ll sing.”

Michelle

BOOK REVIEW - WALK THE EDGE by KATIE MCGARRY - THUNDER ROAD # 2 - HARLEQUIN TEEN - YA CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE

By: Katie McGarry

Published By : Harlequin Teen

Released : Available Now

Details : Paperback purchased, 438 Pages

RATING: 4.5 YA MC ROMANCE TENSE STARS!

One moment of recklessness will change their worlds.

Smart. Responsible. That's seventeen-year-old Breanna's role in her large family, and heaven forbid she put a toe out of line. Until one night of shockingly un-Breanna-like behavior puts her into a vicious cyber-bully's line of fire—and brings fellow senior Thomas "Razor" Turner into her life.

Razor lives for the Reign of Terror motorcycle club, and good girls like Breanna just don't belong. But when he learns she's being blackmailed over a compromising picture of the two of them—a picture that turns one unexpected and beautiful moment into ugliness—he knows it's time to step outside the rules.

And so they make a pact: he'll help her track down her blackmailer, and in return she'll help him seek answers to the mystery that's haunted him—one that not even his club brothers have been willing to discuss. But the more time they spend together, the more their feelings grow. And suddenly they're both walking the edge of discovering who they really are, what they want, and where they're going from here.


BOOK REVIEW by Michelle:

I absolutely adore Katie McGarry’s story telling.

YA is her niche. She's got this age bracket well and truly covered.

Katie brings the tension and romance to young adults lives, when really they should be just out having a good time in life.

But where would the good YA romance writing be then?

So bring on in this case, the blonde hunk Razor and his Reign Of Terror MC and the girl from the other side of the tracks, who falls for him.

Bring on all their problems.

Bre’s problems are her large family and Kyle and a boy with a cut and a bike.

Katie went out of her way for the reader to really have not much love for Bre’s family. She piled it on thick and high. In real life, people who have that many kids and behaved like that...well they should only have a few kids.

NOT NINE!

My father is one of eight, so don’t judge that comment I just made.

Not to mention the behaviour of the other kids in the family.

Sheesh!

Then bring on Razor’s parent dramas, one alive and one dead and it goes to show even a small, barely there, biological family has its own simmering dramas ready to boil over.

Throw in the Riot MC and their way of worming into each instalment, just to add that little bit more danger and intrigue and you have the very apt title, Walk The Edge.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and am looking forward to the next book in the series.

Michelle

BOOK REVIEW - OBLIVION by JENNIFER L ARMENTROUT - LUX #1.5 - YA PARANORMAL ROMANCE - HODDER BOOKS

By: Jennifer L Armentrout
Published By : Entangled Teen , Hodder
Released : Available Now
Details : paperback from library, 350 Pages

RATING : 4.5 DAEMON STARS!

Blurb : Goodreads

Experience the epic love story of OBSIDIAN as told by its hero, Daemon Black…
I knew the moment Katy Swartz moved in next door, there was going to be trouble. Lots of it.

And trouble’s the last thing I need, since I’m not exactly from around here. My people arrived on Earth from Lux, a planet thirteen billion light years away. Plus, if there’s one thing I know, it’s that humans can’t be trusted. We scare them. We can do things they only dream about, and honestly, we make them look weak as hell. ‘Cuz they are.

But Kat is getting to me in ways no one else has, and I can't stop myself from wanting her—or wanting to use my powers to protect her. She makes me weak, and I’m the strongest of our kind, tasked with protecting us all. So this one simple girl…she can mean the end for us. Because the Luxen have an even bigger enemy—the Arum, and I need to stay on my game.

Falling for Katy—a human—won't just place her in danger. It could get us all killed, and that’s one thing I’ll never let happen...



BOOK REVIEW by Michelle:

I was one of the first bloggers to read Half-Blood in the Covenant series and I just kept on reading and reviewing every book in Jennifer’s Lux and Covenant YA series.

I devoured anything YA from her.

I read Oblivion in paperback format so only got to read Obsidian from Daemon’s POV.

I did enjoy it.

We know the story, so no real surprises but it was wonderful being in his head.

Anybody who has read The Lux series has fallen for Daemon.

We do get some more insight into parts of Obsidian with other characters which I enjoyed.

We understand Daemon’s thinking when it came to Katy a lot more which was cool.

Love this series.

It will always have a special place in my heart.

Michelle

BOOK REVIEW - THE BOYS OF SUMMER by C.J. DUGGAN - SUMMER # 1 - NA / MATURE YA CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE

By: C.J. Duggan
Published By: C.J. Duggan
Released : Available Now
Details: Purchased for freee on Amazon, but also had a paperback copy from local library.

RATING: 4 ONSLOW BOYS STARS!

Blurb: Goodreads

Quiet seventeen-year-old Tess doesn’t relish the thought of a summertime job. She wants nothing more than to forget the past haunts of high school and have fun with her best friends before the dreaded Year Twelve begins.

To Tess, summer is when everything happens: riding bikes down to the lake, watching the fireworks at the Onslow Show and water bomb fights at the sweltering Sunday markets.

How did she let her friends talk her into working?

After first-shift disasters, rude, wealthy tourists and a taunting ex-boyfriend, Tess is convinced nothing good can come of working her summer away. However, Tess finds unlikely allies in a group of locals dubbed ‘The Onslow Boys’, who are old enough to drive cars, drink beer and not worry about curfews. Tess’s summer of working expands her world with a series of first times with new friends, forbidden love and heartbreaking chaos.

All with the one boy she has never been able to forget.

It will be a summer she will always remember.


BOOK REVIEW by Michelle:

I have been needing to start this series for far too long.

I finally put my foot down and parted the ocean of books and made the freakin’ time.

This was a delightful YA/NA mix genre read.

This installment is about Tess and her friends coming of age. Year eleven is finished and her best friends join her working at the Onslow pub on the top of the hill for the summer break.

Adam is the fun sidekick. I would have loved to have read more about him because he is a corker of a character.

Enter the Onslow Boys and Tess and Ellie go all dreamy eyed. I mean who wouldn't?

The Onslow Boys are pretty cool guys who like to be real Aussie blokes. They love their beer, their fishing and hanging together.

In my personal opinion, Sean Murphy steals the limelight.

Throw in an Angela who isn’t really that bad a chick but she is the girlfriend of Toby aka Tobias, which is not a good thing for Tess.

Now as far as Tobias’s character, I felt he needed to be more present and connecting with Tess.

Sean really connected with me and he is a great guy hanging about Tess. His character leaped off the page more so than Tobias’s, for me anyway.

Maybe the only reason this book didn’t get a five star from me.

Small town, three friends and the Onslow Boys makes for a great first installment.

I am eager to return and watch more of the Onslow Boys fall for their lady.

Michelle

BOOK REVIEW - ANGELFALL by SUSAN EE - PENRYN & THE END OF DAYS # 1 - YA APOCALYPTIC

By: Susan Ee

Published By : Skyscape

Released : Available Now

Details: Kindle, 228 pages

RATING: 4.5 RAFFE & CRAZY MOMMA STARS!

Blurb: Goodreads

It's been six weeks since angels of the apocalypse descended to demolish the modern world. Street gangs rule the day while fear and superstition rule the night. When warrior angels fly away with a helpless little girl, her seventeen-year-old sister Penryn will do anything to get her back.

Anything, including making a deal with an enemy angel.

Raffe is a warrior who lies broken and wingless on the street. After eons of fighting his own battles, he finds himself being rescued from a desperate situation by a half-starved teenage girl.

Traveling through a dark and twisted Northern California, they have only each other to rely on for survival. Together, they journey toward the angels' stronghold in San Francisco where she'll risk everything to rescue her sister and he'll put himself at the mercy of his greatest enemies for the chance to be made whole again.

BOOK REVIEW by Michelle :

Admittedly I have had Angelfall sitting on my Kindle for a few years. I received book three from the publisher last year and I decided it was time to crack open a book that has been so well received.

Over 100,000 ratings on Goodreads.

Holy mac and cheese! 

The apocalypse has happened. 

We meet Penryn, her sister and mother as they are leaving their home.

Angels have taken over.

A gazillion lives lost.

Shiz is real and gangs are adding to the problem of trying to survive. You know all that good apocalyptic shiz where humans turn on each other and the weak get picked off and the strong turn into kings of their small territories.

Penryn saves an angel. She saves Raffe. And there begins this odd friendship between these two, but something happens...which leads Penryn on a search party.

Is there a romance?

Ummmm...not really. There is a passionate kiss. It is all a bit forbidden with the rules of human female and angel being a BIG no no. All that nice forbidden stuff to deter any romance from getting its wings.

We are introduced to more characters and creatures.

For me this story really kicked off at around the last twenty percent.

Now the first eighty percent was good. I liked it, but shiz hit the fan and all kinds of GAHHHHH was going down in that last twenty percent. It got a wee bit gory and ewww and a bit more ewwww.

Love the sub characters tweedle dee and dum. Clever lads, where all is not what it seems.

I am curious about Obi. Even his name.

Now the mum.

GOOD LAWD!!

She has me confused with her behavior.

She is one mixed up can of three beans. 

She is creepy and a bit insane. 

But is she?

She just kept on disappearing and then her behavior around certain individuals was almost to be revered. I have my thoughts on her and all her ramblings. We get told things which I believe are seeds for future growth. Definitely an odd character to watch out for. I think? 

Rotten eggs anybody?

Susan really does visually depict an apocalyptic world in her story telling very well.

I am rather eager to know more in World After.

I am sort of in the 4.25 – 4.5 star range for this one. I think I wanted a bit more from Penryn and Raffe and what was slowly going on between them, but that is just me. I do like a little romance or something to go on by the time I finish a book. They had their sarcasm rocking between them but I wanted to feel a little more with those two.

I can see why Susan nailed the 100,000 plus ratings on Goodreads.

Michelle

BOOK REVIEW - FINALE by BECCA FITZPATRICK - HUSH HUSH # 4 - YA PARANORMAL ROMANCE - SIMON & SCHUSTER

By: Becca Fitzpatrick

Published By: Simon & Schuster

Released: Available Now

Details : Paperback from publisher for honest review, 454 Pages

RATING: 4 PATCH STARS!

Blurb: Goodreads

Will love conquer all?

Nora and Patch thought their troubles were behind them. Hank is gone and they should be able to put his ugly vendetta to rest. But in Hank's absence, Nora has become the unwitting head of the Nephilim and must finish what Hank began. Which ultimately means destroying the fallen angels - destroying Patch.

Nora will never let that happen, so she and Patch make a plan: lead everyone to believe they have broken up, and work the system from the inside. Nora will convince the Nephilim that they are making a mistake in fighting the fallen angels, and Patch will find out everything he can from the opposing side. They will end this war before it can even begin.

But the best-laid plans often go awry. Nora is put through the paces in her new role and finds herself drawn to an addictive power she never anticipated.

As the battle lines are drawn, Nora and Patch must confront the differences that have always been between them and either choose to ignore them or let them destroy the love they have always fought for.


BOOK REVIEW by Michelle:

I made a resolution to finish off the last book in a lot of series, so I started off with Finale.

I have always loved this ever popular YA series. Patch I think was pretty much my first YA book boyfriend...that taco scene...

Patch is missing from a fair bit of Finale which had me turning the pages looking for him but I dig what Becca was doing. This series is about Nora and her adventures and Patch kinda stole the show so she is letting Nora take the limelight and be the heroine.

Nora does change quite a bit in this last instalment and there was some predictability and I am so HAPPY to say I got some twists too.

Huzzah! I love a twist or two.

I did think possibly Vee and some things there were a little rushed and we were more told a bit last minute but eh, not my story to tell.

Nephilim vs Fallen Angels with betrayal, suspense and G rated love thrown in along the way, made for a fitting Finale to this series.

I do feel sad it is over.

I feel sad Patch wasn’t in it more but I am glad I can close the book knowing I had an awesome ride with this series.

Michelle

BOOK REVIEW - FORETOLD by JANA OLIVER - DEMON TRAPPERS # 4 - PAN MACMILLAN - YA PARANORMAL ROMANCE

By: Jana Oliver

Published By: Pan Macmillan

Released : Available Now

Details: Sgned paperback as gift from author, 438 Pages

RATING: 5 DENVER BECK STARS

Blurb: Goodreads

In the fourth Demon Trappers novel, Riley faces the final battle for humanity and Beck's heart—and Hell is the least of her problems
Now that Riley’s managed to (just barely) fend off Armageddon, everything’s changed. Well . . . most things. After their passionate kiss before the big battle in the cemetery, Beck is back to treating her like a little girl, as if nothing ever happened. While she’d love to just tell him off and move on, Riley vowed to take care of Beck the way he’s taken care of her since her father’s death—but she’s about to get a whole lot more than she bargained for. When she’s commissioned to go with Beck to his hometown and help him care for his dying mother, they stumble too close to a dark and murderous secret, one that Beck fears will drive Riley away from him forever. As chaos breaks loose, Riley may be Beck's only hope for redemption . . . and survival.

Meanwhile, up in Atlanta, it’s quickly becoming clear that Heaven may have won a battle, but the war is far from over. Riley and Beck face a stormy future, as Lucifer's ex-right-hand-man, Sartael, proves himself to be more resilient than anyone thought. He has Atlanta in his grip and is about to begin a brutal war with the prince of Hell. As the seconds tick down toward a final confrontation, it's up to Riley and the man she loves to finally defeat their old enemy, or lose everything they've fought for.

BOOK REVIEW by Michelle:

Anybody who reads this series can’t help but love Denver Beck, aka Backwoods Boy.

I LOVE Beck.

Jana knows how much I love that boy...if only I was erm many, many years younger and he didn’t have Riley.

In this instalment you pretty much have two sections.

We learn more about Denver and his home town and his momma. Some past things get rectified and then it is back on to the demon side of things and the politics of heaven and hell.

I love me some Grand Master Stewart. He is a good sort. Harper found his way in the end and Peter is always there to pop up and say hello in each book.

Even little Magpie Ninja. I do love the little guy.

Simon is a character who grew on me. He has a bit of a rollercoaster ride in this series with his faith and other things. I will leave you to find that all out.

Ori...oh Ori...I do like you. Even though things worked out a little...I would love Ori to maybe one day by the miracle of Jana’s mind get himself a nice filly.

Never say never.

This was a very satisfying end to this series...even though...da...da...daaaaaaaa there is a novella # 4.5 Grave Matters aaannnddd Mind Games # 5 released 31st Oct 2015.

Yay to me.

Oh and I heard a whisper there may be one more book after Mind Games.

Giddy Up!

I did love how Jana wound this one up, but so glad there is more for me to read. It took me so long to read this one because I really didn’t want it to end in my mind. I knew Grave Matters was the novella, but when I saw Mind Games cover I was like ...HUZZAHHH!!! Okay now I can read Foretold.

I get like that with some books. I have to be ready for it to be finished in my mind. If I don’t read it...it didn’t finish. This reminds me I better read Mockingjay and Allegiant so I can see the movies with mini me.

I have always loved the cover art to this series and the next two covers are just as awesome.

One day we shall have a drink again in Brisvegas Jana.

For an awesome YA series pick up the Demon Trappers and you too can be lining up behind me ( just kidding) for some Denver Beck luurrvvve.

Justine...sorry Jana...still can’t like her and you know why.

*raises one eyebrow*


LOL!!

Michelle