The full review can be found at The Book Bratz


This book is literally so much fun! I feel stupid saying it, but it really is. It's packed with so many laugh out loud moments, awesome (and a bit crazy) characters, and an adventure you will be thinking about for a long time.



Dorthea starts out as your typical teenage princess, spoiled, never has enough and thinks she is better then everyone else. That is what I loved most about her character. You start off Spelled with one Dorthea and you end the book with another. All through out Spelled she learned to value what she had and her parents, and not everyone has it as easy as she did. Dorthea is snarky, sarcastic, and wickedly smart when she actually thinks things through and doesn't act on a whim. Things she says and her inner monologue will have you out right laughing. Now to throw in Kato, who Dorthea originally thought was the gardener (See the excerpt below) who both hate each other, and now are arranged to be married, things get even funnier.



The banter between Kato and Dorthea was perfect. They hate each other, they both despise the fact that they are going to be married to each other soon. The romance was really well down. Betsy didn't rush the romance between Kato and Dorthea, it flowed and came to a head at a perfect point with in the story. I am adding Kato to my list of fictional boyfriends though, because he is just super yummy. I just can't explain why.

Overall I really liked this one! It was open ended so I am hoping for news of a sequel soon. I recommend this one for anyone who is looking for a laugh or just something fun to read on their off time.

The full review can be found at The Book Bratz


This. Book. I can babble about it for hours. So much has happened! Hold Me Like a Breathe was a refreshing contemporary/thriller that leaves you eagerly turning the pages with its twists and turns. All I have to say:

Pen has lived a sheltered life, suffering from a rare autoimmune disorder where she bruises easily living a normal life wasn't an optional. She is part of the Family, the underground organ trafficking and transplants. Pen is getting restless now, she wants to go to school, have friends and live life, she doesn't want to be treated like a doll that no one can touch. She craves normality. Soon Pen's world falls apart and she must escape into New York.


Pen was easily a character that I liked. She didn't let her illness get in the way of her, she was determined and strong. Pen from the beginning of the novel to the end are two different people. The girl at the end has grown up and experienced lost and trusting the wrong people. I questioned a few things that she did at certain times, (and I can't share them without spoiling the novel!) left me a little thrown off about how she was actually dealing with everything that was happening to her. But everyone handles trauma differently too, that may have just been how she dealt with it.

Pen had feelings for her brother's best friend/body guard, Garrett. Which in my honest opinion was the only young attractive guy that Pen had ever met, so her choice was limited. But I liked them. In the first part of the novel she is head over heels for him. There are several times they almost kiss. *swoons* It was adorable! Then enters a new guy, Char. This is were I am torn. Garrett knows everything about her, but Char was easier for her to relate too. I don't consider this a love triangle though, it is something you have to read if you want to know more about.

Overall I really enjoyed Hold Me Like a Breathe and I can't wait what is in store for book two!

The full review can be found at The Book Bratz


I did enjoy Ice Kissed but I had so many problems with it. I also expected it to live up to the first book in the series and be amazing. Sadly I am disappointed. Ice Kissed was good, but it won't be like Frostfire were I raved about it often.

Ridley and Bryn return back from Skojare with nothing. The Queen is still missing, no one knows who did it. Then the Queen visits Bryn in a dream, giving Bryn the opportunity to find her. The Queen fears for her safety and to keep alliances strong between the Kanin and Skojare Bryn and Kasper (part of the Hogdragon) are sent to retrain the Skojare guard. But things don't go according to plan. Neither does Bryn's life plan. Who does she trust? What does she want? Is this what she wants for herself?

Bryn starts out Ice Kissed with the same dreams and goals as she had in Frostfire. Become a Hogdragon and protect her kingdom. But we watch as she tries to reclaim herself after loosing Konstantin and Viktor at the end of Frostfire, slowly come to realize that maybe she wants more out of her life. Ridley and Bryn take a huge step in their relationship, which I had hoped would open Bryn's eyes. It did. But she wants to be a Hogdragon and a relationship with her boss would be frowned upon. I wished that Hocking had added a bit more romance to Ice Kissed. There were a few parts that kepts me satisfied but the whole book my mind was: "I want more Ridley and Bryn!"

In Ice Kissed they seemed more focus on who kidnapped the Queen and why rather then the conflicts that remained from Frostfire. The plot was slow and dragged in some places, it always felt repetitive, and a lot of the minor characters seemed dull and undeveloped. The last twenty pages were my favorite, some questions are answered and a whole crap load of things happen. Which sets the stage for book three. I am optimistic to with Hocking's work because she never disappointed me before. I am crossing my fingers that Crystal Fire will be much better.

The full review can be found at The Book Bratz


I really enjoyed Amanda's Trylle trilogy (Which I read a while ago) and was really excited when I learned the news of a spin off series being published. I liked Frostbite so much better though, it was easy to fall back into the world that Amanda had created. Even if you haven't gotten around to reading the Trylle trilogy you will have no problem reading Frostfire (Though I do recommend it). Plus these books have really beautiful covers.

Bryn wants to fit it in, but being half Kanin and half Skojare she finds it hard. She's made the best of her situation though, she worked harder then everyone else in school, and bought herself up to one of the best trackers in the Kanin tribe. Four years prior to Bryn's tracking career her father was attacked by Konstantin, someone who Bryn had idolized. Konstantin managed to escape, now leaving him the most wanted man in Kanin. Years later when Bryn is out on a mission to bring back a changeling, she never expected to cross paths with Konstantin.

I loved Bryn, she is incredibly strong. She lives in a tribe where she stands out with her pale skin, blue eyes and blond hair, and is constantly judged and looked down upon because of it. Where most people with fade away to avoid the spot light Bryn only worked harder to become the tracker she is, and to reach her goal of being an Hogdragen. Bryn is dedicated to her work, even when she knows it is dangerous she wants to be out there doing it. At the same time though she is struggling with her feelings towards Konstatin, does she trust him? Is he really only a pawn in this all? I loved the small struggles that Hocking out her through. Being in a relationship, her loyalty towards the people she loves.

I expected more romance then we really got, I am a little disappointed about that. Though I am happy to see there is no love triangle yet, which I really hope she stays away from this time around. Ridley is Bryn's boss, which makes him off limits to her, and he has a girlfriend (Yup.) Slowly over time though Bryn has come to realize that her feelings aren't just friendly towards him, she craves something more. But Bryn also doesn't like commitment. But underneath it all there is a connection between them that I hope will come out in the next two books in the series. (I also have a big crush on Ridley, so I want to see him and Bryn together very badly!)

Hocking has a talent for world building. She created the world of Trylle, and now using a similar world created the Kanin who is another tribe. I did feel that there were a few things missing, I hope they do get filled in as the series goes on.

The ended was a cliff hanger, and left me with no idea where the next book is going to take us. Which is the same thing that happened with the Trylle trilogy. My favorite part about this series is that all the books will be published in 2015 so I won't have to wait years to know how it will all end. Overall, I am really looking forward to book two!

The full review can be found at The Book Bratz!



I don't know where to begin with this review. None of the Above was beautiful, and deserves more then what I can say for it. We all have books that have changed us in some way, for me this is that book. None of the Above is written by a surgeon who treated an intersex patient, which inspired this novel. I can throw around a million words to describe this book: real, brilliant, diverse. But in reality it is, something different. We need more books like this in the YA genre to show real life issues. I'll admit, when ever I think of gender it has always been Female or Male to me. Never "other." This book opened my eyes and realizing there is some people out there that their gender isn't exactly defined. Sure, they may look like one gender, but on the inside they could be or feel like a whole other gender.

Krissy's story broke my heart. She had so much in life, and in a matter of days lost it all. This book shows how cruel people are, and how not everyone has the same rights. She is one of the strongest characters I have ever read about, sure she has her moments and I really can't blame her for that. The ending though made the whole book for me. I was so content that she is going to have happiness, and that there will be people there for her that except her for who she is.

I do hope that I.W. Gregorio will write more novels. She has an amazing talent and I would love to see more from her. Maybe even a continuation of Krissy's story?

The full review can be found at The Book Bratz!



This book was so much fun! Superheros? That is some what new to me. It was an interesting concept that I wasn't 100% sure about, but by the end of the story I knew that this series is going to be amazing. Growing up my favorite movie was Sky High (The one about the superhero teenagers that go to a superhero high school along with children of Villains) and this book reminded me of that. Though this book was much better.

Kenna's world was always black and white. Heroes are good and Villains are bad. That is until the day three villains break into the lab she works at, claiming to be rescuing Deacon, a villain who is being hidden on sub level three. Only Kenna is pretty sure there is no sub level three, she practically lives at that lab. She would have known. But as secrets come to light and Kenna's mom is kidnapped, she teams up with her sworn enemies to stop the heroes and their twisted games and to find her mother.

In Kenna's society, everyone has a power. Except her. She is powerless. That doesn't stop her though. While her mother works on serums to help other heroes Kenna is working on her own, to make her a superhero. Kenna is one of the most determined female heroines that I have read about in a long time. It was easy to forget at some points that she didn't have a power. Besides Kenna you have a cast of villains and heroes who are on the run, wanting to rescue Deacon, and Kenna's mother but also stop the heroes and their twisted forms of torture. The banter between this group was awesome. There were many moments when I laughed out loud at something that was said. There was a bit of romance in Powerless. I think that Kenna's feelings for Draven (a villain) really showed her that not every villain is bad as society has told her they are.

There were a few things that I did have issues with though. The difference between heroes and villain wasn't touched up much, you catch something about a marker here and there but what makes them what they are? Also, is the whole world a hero or villain or are they a secret society? There were a few things that weren't talked about that I hope are expended upon in the next book.



Overall I really did enjoy Powerless. It was a fun read, that I'm going to recommend to all superhero junkies. This is my first run with Tera Lynn Childs & Tracy Deebs, so it is safe to say that I will be reading more from them soon.

The full review can be found at The Book Bratz!

**Please note: I recieved an eARC from the publisher via Edelweiss. All thoughts are my own**

This book was sweet, and then a punch in the gut. I wasn't aware that this book would only take place over the course of one night, before Matt left and when Matt returns. I found it quite interesting for a love story to be told in the course of only a few hours, but Lauren made sure that happened. I read The Night We Said Yes in only three hours, only moving from the couch when my leg would fall asleep.

The book alternated between then and now. We see how Matt and Ella fall and in love in the before, which was incredibly cute, then we see Matt come back and Matt and Ella fall back into love with each other. All in one night. I figured that because of the time frame of this book that Lauren was going to end up rushing it, but she didn't. The story flowed nicely and switching back and forth through time gave you a bigger appreciation of the characters and what was going on.

When we first meet Ella you can tell she has been hurt. She funny, sweet, sarcastic, and her best friend Meg hangs over her, protecting her. Meg basically gives you the impression that if she doesn't like you she will punch you in the face. Pretty much someone I would be friends with. I loved Meg and Ella's friendship and how the story focused a bit on their friendship as well. Through both now and then these girls have an incredibly strong friendship.

I liked Matt from the moment he came back. There was something about his character that I completely fell in love with, but I also wanted to hit him upside the head at some points. He just wouldn't open up to Ella. Ella is hurting because of his secrets. I never expected the reason for why he left, at this point my heart was no longer just breaking for Ella it was breaking for Matt too. Matt's leaving didn't just affect Ella, it affected Jake and Meg as well. Jake was Matt's best friend, and he didn't know why Matt left either.

One thing that I especially loved about this book was Meg and Jake's relationship. Because it wasn't a main point in the book it happened subtly in the background but in the "then" part of the novel, they grow through a rough patch in their relationship and then Jake confesses about how much her loves her. It was beautiful. Jake thinks he is a complete screw up and doesn't deserve Meg, and Meg doesn't need Jake. She loves home. I love that Lauren added that in there.

I could gush all day about how much I love this book. I did knock a star off because of the time. I do wish we would get more time with these characters. Other then that though The Night We Said Yes is defiantly a book I will be looking for in the book stores when it is published.

The full review can be found at The Book Bratz closer to its release date!


**Please note: I recieved an eARC from the publisher via Edelweiss. All thoughts are my own**

Made You Up is easily one of my favorite contemporary that I have ever read (and I am VERY picky with my contemporaries). Francesca is a talented writer who created a thought provoking story about a young girl who refuses to let her mental disorder get in the way of her dreams.

When she was seven, Alex freed the lobsters at a supermarket. She received help from mysterious boy with blue eyes, who told her she smelled like lemons and himself smelled of pond water. She asked him to be her friend and he accepted, then disappeared. Shortly later Alex learned she was schizophrenic and was convinced that he was nothing but a delusion made up by her mind. Only ten years later she never expected to see this boy again.

What makes this whole book is Alex, who is a paranoid schizophrenic who takes pictures to help her know what is real or a delusion. She is terrified that the communists are coming for her, doing 360 degree perimeter checks when she walks into a room and checks her food for tracking devices that could be used by the communist to get her. Her character is so complex. The story is about her, not a romance, or a mystery (well a little bit) but about the struggle of her mental disorder and knowing what is actually real, or what her mind has made up. Besides Alex, Miles is well written with some issues of his own. He hires himself out to do weird tasks and has general assholish tendencies. But underneath all that Miles is vulnerable. Made You Up could have easily been your typical flawed girl meets flawed guy and they fall in love. Though there is romance, that wasn't the main focous. Francesca managed to branch this story off in different ways to give us a clear view into the life of Alex and her daily struggles.

Most of the story focuses on Alex's struggles but there is also the struggle that is facing both Alex and Miles. Their principle has an unhealthy obsession with the score board, dedicating a day to give it offerings and such. Alex soon uncovers that he made the board a memorial for the girl he was in love with who was crushed by it nearly twenty years earlier at their high school reunion. Now Scarlett's daughter, attends the school and the principle is forcing her to be just like her dead mother. Even if it means getting rid of anyone who is in they way. But who is going to beleive the delusional girl?

Made You Up is equally parts funny, heart breaking and thought provoking. It leaves you wondering what is real or what is fake. I am honestly going to say I wish we could get more of Alex's story. I loved her character, and getting to be in her head. She is one of my favorite characters I have read about.