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**You can see this full review and more at Book Briefs: http://bookbriefs.net**Sight is the first book in the Delcarta Sister's series. And I am not 100% sure the shape that the series is going to take, but this is how I hope it goes- There are 5 sisters. One set of twins and one set of triplets. Each one of them has premonitions featuring one of the five senses. This book focused on Savannah and and development of all of their gifts. Savannah has the gift of sight, but the cool thing is that if they all join hands, they can complete the vision through all of their senses. So I hope in future books that the sisters all stay together, and are all featured. Maybe with a different sister taking lead in each. Sight is a really, really cool concept. This book was a very short and quick read that kind of set the ground work for the situation I just described. It is a young adult paranormal series with a cute romance to boot.
I will tell you a little secret. Other than Savannah, I had a bit of a hard time telling the rest of the sisters apart. I couldn't keep their names straight, and I couldn't really distinguish their personalities. So the biggest hope that I have for the next book is that some time is really spent on making each of the sister's their own person. They all kind of seemed the same, but I am sure that isn't the case. I want to see more subtleties, details and differences come out in their personality in the next book in the series. I think that would help enrich the story even more.
I did really like the concept of the five of them having to be together to get a complete vision of the future. Savannah could only see what was going on, she couldn't hear it. Or taste it. Or smell things in the background. That being said, I think there are clear winners and not such winner as far as the senses go in this case. I would love sight or hearing, but I could pass on smell. Especially in most of the visions they got. But not only did Sight lay a good framework for future books, but there was a neat little mystery of an arsonist for the girls to solve. I thought Sight was good, but I think there is potential for the next books to be even better because they can explore the sisters as individuals more and give them a little more dimension. I also want to see more of Savannah and her beau. This review was originally posted on Book Briefs
I will tell you a little secret. Other than Savannah, I had a bit of a hard time telling the rest of the sisters apart. I couldn't keep their names straight, and I couldn't really distinguish their personalities. So the biggest hope that I have for the next book is that some time is really spent on making each of the sister's their own person. They all kind of seemed the same, but I am sure that isn't the case. I want to see more subtleties, details and differences come out in their personality in the next book in the series. I think that would help enrich the story even more.
I did really like the concept of the five of them having to be together to get a complete vision of the future. Savannah could only see what was going on, she couldn't hear it. Or taste it. Or smell things in the background. That being said, I think there are clear winners and not such winner as far as the senses go in this case. I would love sight or hearing, but I could pass on smell. Especially in most of the visions they got. But not only did Sight lay a good framework for future books, but there was a neat little mystery of an arsonist for the girls to solve. I thought Sight was good, but I think there is potential for the next books to be even better because they can explore the sisters as individuals more and give them a little more dimension. I also want to see more of Savannah and her beau. This review was originally posted on Book Briefs
**You can see this full review and more at Book Briefs: http://bookbriefs.net**
Undercover Empath: Kindred Demon is the first book in the New Adult paranormal series, Undercover Empath. I really like how well the covers of the series go together. They are almost identical but in different colors. And they are each really pretty. It follows detective Rose Hansen who can determine anyone's intentions with the slightest brush of her hand. It is a gift that Rose shies away from, but it is really useful in her chosen profession. I really enjoyed Kindred Demon. It is a super quick read, but I thought Rashelle Workman did a really good job with the paranormal elements in the story. They were very upfront and in your face. I also really liked the mystery surrounding Rose's parents and the bio facility that I am sure is going to play a much larger role in future books.
Romance was not really in the forefront of this book. It was focused more on introducing the world and characters, and surprisingly, I was ok with that. because I could see some of the inklings of where the romance is going to go in the future and it made me very happy. I also think he is going to play a bigger role. There is more to meets the eye with him. I have a couple of ideas, but they each pretty different so who knows.
Undercover Empath: Kindred Demon is a super quick read. Almost too quick. My main drawback with the story was that I wished it was a little more fleshed out. Don't get me wrong, there will be plenty of time for more character and plot development in future books, but I felt like this installment just flew by and there could have been a little more. Each book so far has been about 100 pages, so maybe they are more like longer novellas or serials. I was expecting full length novels, which is probably why it felt short to me. The second book is already out so I can get my instant gratification and find out what happens next, which is a big plus in my book, but the summary is the same as the first book. I think that should be redone, it was pretty confusing to me. I am really interested in following this story. I love Rose, I hope the romance turns out the way that I want and I can't wait to see what surprises Rashelle has in store for us next.
This review was originally posted on Book Briefs
Undercover Empath: Kindred Demon is the first book in the New Adult paranormal series, Undercover Empath. I really like how well the covers of the series go together. They are almost identical but in different colors. And they are each really pretty. It follows detective Rose Hansen who can determine anyone's intentions with the slightest brush of her hand. It is a gift that Rose shies away from, but it is really useful in her chosen profession. I really enjoyed Kindred Demon. It is a super quick read, but I thought Rashelle Workman did a really good job with the paranormal elements in the story. They were very upfront and in your face. I also really liked the mystery surrounding Rose's parents and the bio facility that I am sure is going to play a much larger role in future books.
Romance was not really in the forefront of this book. It was focused more on introducing the world and characters, and surprisingly, I was ok with that. because I could see some of the inklings of where the romance is going to go in the future and it made me very happy. I also think he is going to play a bigger role. There is more to meets the eye with him. I have a couple of ideas, but they each pretty different so who knows.
Undercover Empath: Kindred Demon is a super quick read. Almost too quick. My main drawback with the story was that I wished it was a little more fleshed out. Don't get me wrong, there will be plenty of time for more character and plot development in future books, but I felt like this installment just flew by and there could have been a little more. Each book so far has been about 100 pages, so maybe they are more like longer novellas or serials. I was expecting full length novels, which is probably why it felt short to me. The second book is already out so I can get my instant gratification and find out what happens next, which is a big plus in my book, but the summary is the same as the first book. I think that should be redone, it was pretty confusing to me. I am really interested in following this story. I love Rose, I hope the romance turns out the way that I want and I can't wait to see what surprises Rashelle has in store for us next.
This review was originally posted on Book Briefs
The Girl is the first book in the Guardians series, and the world of angels, and guardians and trackers is pretty involved so there is a good bit of world building and background information setting to kind of set up the board for the series. There are tons of characters. At first I was worried that I wouldn't be able to keep them all straight but Lola St. Vil did a fantastic job fleshing out all of her characters so you really get to each and every one of them. It almost seems like all of the guardians are not secondary characters. They felt like a big family to me. The girl is split into 3 or 4 sections, alternating between Emmy and Marcus' points of view. But within each section there are multiple chapters. And sometimes the sections backtrack a little bit to cover some of the same parts of the story from the other characters point of view. In fact, I was over a 25% into the book before I even knew it was going to switch to Marcus's point of view. I think I would have preferred switching every couple of chapters so that we wouldn't have to backtrack and cover the same parts of the story so much further down the line. But once I got used to that writing style it didn't phase me anymore.
Even though there are lots of other characters, this was really Emmy's story. She holds the key to some big secret that will help good save the world, or could help evil take over. So everyone from both sides wants her. The guardians help protect her and as you could have guessed it, she falls for one of them. There seems to be some sort of connection between the two of them. On both of their parts, but Marcus has an guardian girlfriend so I felt really bad for mimi. I was totally Miku's side (one of the other guardians). I felt like Marcus needed to sit Mimi down and have a talk with her. But he didn't, so there is a lot of back and forth in this story. I have a feeling it will be like that for a lot of the series. I liked Emmy. She was adorable in her imperfections. She is only 15 for most of the story, so I had to keep reminding myself that she is so young. It must have been really hard on her, but she totally steps up to the plate in the end.
There is plenty of action going on and good v. the baddies fighting. But we also got to learn about some of the guardians bacstories and they even take some time out for fun. They played a game using their flying and super powers. The game kind of reminded me of a mixture of quidditch and the baseball scene from Twilight. Another thing I thought was super cool was learning about all of the supernatural tech in the story. I loved seeing new things and watching what they could each do in fights or just in every day life. There was some seriously cool stuff that Lola came up with.
The guardians series looks like it will be really interesting. Now that I know kind of know all the players, I think the action is really going to take off. I will warn you though, Lola St. Vil has no problem killing off a main character. I appreciate it because this is kind of a war so there are going to be casualties, but I was still really sad to see this person go. The Guardian series looks like it is going to be a really interesting take on angels and good v. evil. There is still so much more that needs to happen in this fight, not to mention the whole prophesy thing with the Sage about Marcus. I can't wait to see how that all turns out.
Even though there are lots of other characters, this was really Emmy's story. She holds the key to some big secret that will help good save the world, or could help evil take over. So everyone from both sides wants her. The guardians help protect her and as you could have guessed it, she falls for one of them. There seems to be some sort of connection between the two of them. On both of their parts, but Marcus has an guardian girlfriend so I felt really bad for mimi. I was totally Miku's side (one of the other guardians). I felt like Marcus needed to sit Mimi down and have a talk with her. But he didn't, so there is a lot of back and forth in this story. I have a feeling it will be like that for a lot of the series. I liked Emmy. She was adorable in her imperfections. She is only 15 for most of the story, so I had to keep reminding myself that she is so young. It must have been really hard on her, but she totally steps up to the plate in the end.
There is plenty of action going on and good v. the baddies fighting. But we also got to learn about some of the guardians bacstories and they even take some time out for fun. They played a game using their flying and super powers. The game kind of reminded me of a mixture of quidditch and the baseball scene from Twilight. Another thing I thought was super cool was learning about all of the supernatural tech in the story. I loved seeing new things and watching what they could each do in fights or just in every day life. There was some seriously cool stuff that Lola came up with.
The guardians series looks like it will be really interesting. Now that I know kind of know all the players, I think the action is really going to take off. I will warn you though, Lola St. Vil has no problem killing off a main character. I appreciate it because this is kind of a war so there are going to be casualties, but I was still really sad to see this person go. The Guardian series looks like it is going to be a really interesting take on angels and good v. evil. There is still so much more that needs to happen in this fight, not to mention the whole prophesy thing with the Sage about Marcus. I can't wait to see how that all turns out.
**You can see this full review and more at Book Briefs: http://bookbriefs.net** Dark Embrace is actually the 4th book in the Dark Paradise series by Angie Sandro. I actually had no idea because the cover looks totally different than the previous three covers (which I like a lot better than this one) and the first three books features a character named Mala. All of them featured Mala to my knowledge and Dark Embrace features her cousin Dena. I have not read the first three books in this series, and I was fine reading this one. There were a few moments where I wish I had a little more back story, but Dark Embrace can stand on its' own. It felt more like a companion series rather than a continuation to the Dark Paradise series. But either way, I absolutely loved Dark Embrace!
Dena is a great character. She is stubborn as a mule, but she is caring, compassionate and determined. And I appreciated how skeptical and distrustful she was of people. because holy cow, everyone in this book should not be trusted. Not even her. It is really hard for me to describe Dark Embrace, other than to say it is one fantastic paranormal mystery of a ride. You have this mysterious dark shadow that Dena seems to be the only one to see. And he seems to be kind of obsessed with her. And then you have all the people that seem to die around her. And then you have all the people trying to kill her. And it just keeps building. You learn one thing and three more mysteries and questions pop up.
Angie Sandro did a really fabulous job telling Dena's story. I loved how everything was presented and how all the events unfolded. I so badly wanted something specific to happen in this book and it did. And when it did, I was whooping for joy. I want to see more Dena stories. I hope this is not the end for her. Now that she knows what is going on, I want her to get her romance on. Even though there was plenty of romantic action in this book, which I absolutely loved, I hope that Dena takes a little more time in the next book to enjoy her relationship.
Bottom line? If you are a fan of mysteries and paranormal romances, Dark Embrace is a book that you cannot miss out on. This review was originally posted on Book Briefs
Dena is a great character. She is stubborn as a mule, but she is caring, compassionate and determined. And I appreciated how skeptical and distrustful she was of people. because holy cow, everyone in this book should not be trusted. Not even her. It is really hard for me to describe Dark Embrace, other than to say it is one fantastic paranormal mystery of a ride. You have this mysterious dark shadow that Dena seems to be the only one to see. And he seems to be kind of obsessed with her. And then you have all the people that seem to die around her. And then you have all the people trying to kill her. And it just keeps building. You learn one thing and three more mysteries and questions pop up.
Angie Sandro did a really fabulous job telling Dena's story. I loved how everything was presented and how all the events unfolded. I so badly wanted something specific to happen in this book and it did. And when it did, I was whooping for joy. I want to see more Dena stories. I hope this is not the end for her. Now that she knows what is going on, I want her to get her romance on. Even though there was plenty of romantic action in this book, which I absolutely loved, I hope that Dena takes a little more time in the next book to enjoy her relationship.
Bottom line? If you are a fan of mysteries and paranormal romances, Dark Embrace is a book that you cannot miss out on. This review was originally posted on Book Briefs
**You can see this full review and more at Book Briefs: http://bookbriefs.net**
3.5/5
Right from the first page, you can tell that Nothing Left to Burn is going to be an emotionally raw and powerful story. It is told in dual narrative between Amanda and Reece. Nothing Left to Burn really got to me. I loved that the book starts out featuring the male protagonist, Reece. Reece really touched me. I felt for him so badly. If anyone needs a hug, it is Reece. Luckily, I was also able to tell right away that he has a kick ass friend in Alex.
Nothing Left to Burn is a great young adult emotional contemporary. Reece's older brother Matt died a year prior to the start of the story, and Reece is still reeling from the loss. That and the fact that everyone around him (except for Alex) seems to be blaming him in varying degrees for his brother's death. (which, side note, kind of bugged me for the whole story.) In order to honor a promise he made to his brother, Reece joins the local junior firefighter program to get close to his dad. (since said dad was being a major jerkface.) And at this program Reece meets Amanda. I bet you can guess what happens next.
Yep, emotional romance. I liked the romance in nothing left to burn, but for me it came secondary for Reece's journey. Amanda has her own issues, but they didn't really measure up to Reece's. I don't mean that they weren't as important as his. She hasn't really had a place to call home, other than the firehouse, but her emotions didn't bleed out of the pages quite like Reece's did for me. Still, it was nice to see Amanda and Reece impacting the other one. Amanda has to deal with all sorts of crazy with her current foster family, so there were plenty of roadblocks in store for our young friends.
Nothing Left to Burn is a great young adult book for readers that like their romance with a heavy side of emotional and deeper issues. This is not a lighthearted, beach read. But it is a worthwhile read. I had a few minor annoyances throughout the story, but it didn't take away from author Patty Blount's powerfull-ness to her prose. She has a very strong book on her hands with Nothing Left to Burn.
This review was originally posted on Book Briefs
3.5/5
Right from the first page, you can tell that Nothing Left to Burn is going to be an emotionally raw and powerful story. It is told in dual narrative between Amanda and Reece. Nothing Left to Burn really got to me. I loved that the book starts out featuring the male protagonist, Reece. Reece really touched me. I felt for him so badly. If anyone needs a hug, it is Reece. Luckily, I was also able to tell right away that he has a kick ass friend in Alex.
Nothing Left to Burn is a great young adult emotional contemporary. Reece's older brother Matt died a year prior to the start of the story, and Reece is still reeling from the loss. That and the fact that everyone around him (except for Alex) seems to be blaming him in varying degrees for his brother's death. (which, side note, kind of bugged me for the whole story.) In order to honor a promise he made to his brother, Reece joins the local junior firefighter program to get close to his dad. (since said dad was being a major jerkface.) And at this program Reece meets Amanda. I bet you can guess what happens next.
Yep, emotional romance. I liked the romance in nothing left to burn, but for me it came secondary for Reece's journey. Amanda has her own issues, but they didn't really measure up to Reece's. I don't mean that they weren't as important as his. She hasn't really had a place to call home, other than the firehouse, but her emotions didn't bleed out of the pages quite like Reece's did for me. Still, it was nice to see Amanda and Reece impacting the other one. Amanda has to deal with all sorts of crazy with her current foster family, so there were plenty of roadblocks in store for our young friends.
Nothing Left to Burn is a great young adult book for readers that like their romance with a heavy side of emotional and deeper issues. This is not a lighthearted, beach read. But it is a worthwhile read. I had a few minor annoyances throughout the story, but it didn't take away from author Patty Blount's powerfull-ness to her prose. She has a very strong book on her hands with Nothing Left to Burn.
This review was originally posted on Book Briefs
**You can see this full review and more at Book Briefs: http://bookbriefs.net**
Racing the Sun is the second book in the Where Sea Meets Sky series, but it is a complete standalone. I didn't read the first book, but I did read the summary and those characters did not show up in Racing the Sun. Not to mention it takes place in a totally different area of the world. Racing the Sun takes place on the island of Capri, and I have to say that Karina Halle has made me bump Capri up on my list of places that I need to visit ASAP. It sounds absolutely gorgeous! Maybe a country is more gorgeous with a sexy budding love story though, who knows.
Racing the Sun is told entirely from Amber's point of view. Amber takes a tutoring position with a broken family in Capri after spending all of her money on her jaunt through Europe, leaving her with no money for a plane ticket home. I thought that was hilarious. I have no idea why, but I for some strange reason, I absolutely loved that she has been traveling so long and she just up and got a job in a foreign country to make more money to get home. (I know, I sound like a crazy person, but that is so far out of my comfort zone, that I just loved she was brave enough to do all of it.)
I loved Racing the Sun. The romance, the writing, the setting, all of it was a homerun. Karina Halle was inside my head with Amber. Even though she is way more impulsive and brave in a much different way than I am, I feel like our feelings and thought process were so similar. I felt like I was in capri tutoring those kids. At any given point in the story, I could take a situation that Amber was in and think "oh man, this is what I would do." or "uh uh, that would not stand with me." and then lo and behold, not more than a few pages later, Amber was doing just what I would do! Get out of my head Karina Halle. (or rather, stay but make me a Derio ::winkwink::) And I loved that while this was a heartwarming romance, it was a complete romance- with all of the ups and very realistic downs.
And the romance in Racing the Sun was great. I lurveed Derio. A lot. He only did one thing to annoy me in the whole story (and it certainly annoyed Amber too...of course) But watching Amber peel Derio back layer by layer until they each admitted their feelings was a beautiful thing to witness. Racing the Sun is the perfect book for summer. You will be instantly transported to Capri. Karina Halle's writing is pure magic. Grab a copy, lay out by the pool or on the beach (or under covers if its' raining) and enjoy.
This review was originally posted on Book Briefs
Racing the Sun is the second book in the Where Sea Meets Sky series, but it is a complete standalone. I didn't read the first book, but I did read the summary and those characters did not show up in Racing the Sun. Not to mention it takes place in a totally different area of the world. Racing the Sun takes place on the island of Capri, and I have to say that Karina Halle has made me bump Capri up on my list of places that I need to visit ASAP. It sounds absolutely gorgeous! Maybe a country is more gorgeous with a sexy budding love story though, who knows.
Racing the Sun is told entirely from Amber's point of view. Amber takes a tutoring position with a broken family in Capri after spending all of her money on her jaunt through Europe, leaving her with no money for a plane ticket home. I thought that was hilarious. I have no idea why, but I for some strange reason, I absolutely loved that she has been traveling so long and she just up and got a job in a foreign country to make more money to get home. (I know, I sound like a crazy person, but that is so far out of my comfort zone, that I just loved she was brave enough to do all of it.)
I loved Racing the Sun. The romance, the writing, the setting, all of it was a homerun. Karina Halle was inside my head with Amber. Even though she is way more impulsive and brave in a much different way than I am, I feel like our feelings and thought process were so similar. I felt like I was in capri tutoring those kids. At any given point in the story, I could take a situation that Amber was in and think "oh man, this is what I would do." or "uh uh, that would not stand with me." and then lo and behold, not more than a few pages later, Amber was doing just what I would do! Get out of my head Karina Halle. (or rather, stay but make me a Derio ::winkwink::) And I loved that while this was a heartwarming romance, it was a complete romance- with all of the ups and very realistic downs.
And the romance in Racing the Sun was great. I lurveed Derio. A lot. He only did one thing to annoy me in the whole story (and it certainly annoyed Amber too...of course) But watching Amber peel Derio back layer by layer until they each admitted their feelings was a beautiful thing to witness. Racing the Sun is the perfect book for summer. You will be instantly transported to Capri. Karina Halle's writing is pure magic. Grab a copy, lay out by the pool or on the beach (or under covers if its' raining) and enjoy.
This review was originally posted on Book Briefs
**You can see this full review and more at Book Briefs: http://bookbriefs.net**
If You Dare is a really fun, really cute feel good romance. Lily and Marcus have the most hilarious competitive relationship going on. I loved that the book was told in their dual narrative, so we could really get inside both of their heads. And I loved that once the main "dare" was over, they kept the dare theme going all the way to the very end of the story. Some of the things they dared the other to do were too funny. This book made me laugh, which was just what I wanted.
Lily is a competitive one, that is for sure. Because I can tell you one thing, if I were dared to spend the night is a super creepy abandoned mansion, no way would I do it. But I admired he way Lily hunkered down, and when I saw everything that she brought with her, I knew I would like her. That girl did not pack light. Haha! If I were Marcus I would have tried to sabotage the night too. And speaking of the night, some pretty freaky stuff went down. And I do not mean sexy times. That night in the house would have scarred me for life, and it was left up in the air. I loved that! It was so much creepier that way.
As for the rest of the story, it was a really cute romance. I loved the back and forth between Lily And Marcus. They were all over the place and try as she might, Lily was just not able to stay away from Marcus. But they also just could not help themselves to keep trying to one up the other one. That was my favorite aspect of their relationship. It help things interesting between the two of them. I didn't realize until after I finished If You Dare, but this book was once a novella. The Author expanded it into a full length novel just this year. I think it works great as a full length story, and I never would have guessed that it was just a novella. Although, now that I know, I would bet that the novella was just the night in the mansion.
If you are looking for a light, fun and hilarious contemporary romance, I dare you to read If you Dare. It will put a smile on your face.
This review was originally posted on Book Briefs
If You Dare is a really fun, really cute feel good romance. Lily and Marcus have the most hilarious competitive relationship going on. I loved that the book was told in their dual narrative, so we could really get inside both of their heads. And I loved that once the main "dare" was over, they kept the dare theme going all the way to the very end of the story. Some of the things they dared the other to do were too funny. This book made me laugh, which was just what I wanted.
Lily is a competitive one, that is for sure. Because I can tell you one thing, if I were dared to spend the night is a super creepy abandoned mansion, no way would I do it. But I admired he way Lily hunkered down, and when I saw everything that she brought with her, I knew I would like her. That girl did not pack light. Haha! If I were Marcus I would have tried to sabotage the night too. And speaking of the night, some pretty freaky stuff went down. And I do not mean sexy times. That night in the house would have scarred me for life, and it was left up in the air. I loved that! It was so much creepier that way.
As for the rest of the story, it was a really cute romance. I loved the back and forth between Lily And Marcus. They were all over the place and try as she might, Lily was just not able to stay away from Marcus. But they also just could not help themselves to keep trying to one up the other one. That was my favorite aspect of their relationship. It help things interesting between the two of them. I didn't realize until after I finished If You Dare, but this book was once a novella. The Author expanded it into a full length novel just this year. I think it works great as a full length story, and I never would have guessed that it was just a novella. Although, now that I know, I would bet that the novella was just the night in the mansion.
If you are looking for a light, fun and hilarious contemporary romance, I dare you to read If you Dare. It will put a smile on your face.
This review was originally posted on Book Briefs
**You can see this full review and more at Book Briefs: http://bookbriefs.net**
4.5/5
Confessions of a Queen B* is the first book in the young adult Queen B* series by Crista McHugh. I loved this book so much!I found it to be a breath of fresh air. The mean girl cliche has seemed overdone and tired to me lately, but Crista McHugh breathes new life and heart into this story of self professed Queen B* blogger, Alexis. Her blog is like a mixture of gossip girl and Harriet the Spy. And what I loved was that each chapter started off with a mini excerpt from her blog, the Eastline Spy. (Eastline is the high school name by the way.)
While the blog and Alexis' status as Queen B* of the high school is a central theme of the story, it almost felt secondary to the wonderful friendship that was forming between Lexie (as he calls her) and Brent. Brent is uber popular, and is paired up with Lexie for a very high tech baby project. Together they are responsible for raising a baby. (which I am beyond happy they did not have when I was in high school, because that would have been a nightmare for me.) Brent is so great. I loved how grounded and stable he is. He is just an all around great guy.And he actually took the time to tell Lexie that he wasn't buying her mean girl act, listen to her and actually get to know her. It melted my heart.
And Confessions of a Queen B*, while being a really sweet budding relationship between the two of them with flirting and cutesy banter, it was so innocent and developed at what I thought was a wonderful and appropriate pace. There is a hint of more to come but I kind of love Crista McHugh for setting up the series the way she did. She didn't rush into romance just for the sake of having romance. When I finished the book I flipped out and immediately checked goodreads to make sure that this was part of a series. But never fear, dear readers, it is. There will be more in store for Lexie and Brent. Crista I hope you have something great in store for them in the next book, because I really really like them together. They are probably in my top 5/10 book couples of 2015.
Fans of Young Adult high school setting books that are craving something fresh and so, so well done. Check out Confessions of a Queen B*. I think you will love it just as much as I did.
This review was originally posted on Book Briefs
4.5/5
Confessions of a Queen B* is the first book in the young adult Queen B* series by Crista McHugh. I loved this book so much!I found it to be a breath of fresh air. The mean girl cliche has seemed overdone and tired to me lately, but Crista McHugh breathes new life and heart into this story of self professed Queen B* blogger, Alexis. Her blog is like a mixture of gossip girl and Harriet the Spy. And what I loved was that each chapter started off with a mini excerpt from her blog, the Eastline Spy. (Eastline is the high school name by the way.)
While the blog and Alexis' status as Queen B* of the high school is a central theme of the story, it almost felt secondary to the wonderful friendship that was forming between Lexie (as he calls her) and Brent. Brent is uber popular, and is paired up with Lexie for a very high tech baby project. Together they are responsible for raising a baby. (which I am beyond happy they did not have when I was in high school, because that would have been a nightmare for me.) Brent is so great. I loved how grounded and stable he is. He is just an all around great guy.And he actually took the time to tell Lexie that he wasn't buying her mean girl act, listen to her and actually get to know her. It melted my heart.
And Confessions of a Queen B*, while being a really sweet budding relationship between the two of them with flirting and cutesy banter, it was so innocent and developed at what I thought was a wonderful and appropriate pace. There is a hint of more to come but I kind of love Crista McHugh for setting up the series the way she did. She didn't rush into romance just for the sake of having romance. When I finished the book I flipped out and immediately checked goodreads to make sure that this was part of a series. But never fear, dear readers, it is. There will be more in store for Lexie and Brent. Crista I hope you have something great in store for them in the next book, because I really really like them together. They are probably in my top 5/10 book couples of 2015.
Fans of Young Adult high school setting books that are craving something fresh and so, so well done. Check out Confessions of a Queen B*. I think you will love it just as much as I did.
This review was originally posted on Book Briefs
**You can see this full review and more at Book Briefs: http://bookbriefs.net**
Never Always Sometimes is a young adult book by Adi Alsaid. This was my first time reading Adi's works and I have to say Never Always Sometimes was much more emotional than I was expecting it to be. This book tugged on my heartstrings man. Never Always Sometimes is the story of Dave and Julia, two best friends. I loved that the story was broken up into a Dave section, then a Julia section, and then Dave and Julia sections. By giving the reader larger chunks of multiple chapters in a row of one perspective, rather than alternating every chapter, it really gives you a chance to get to know Dave and Julia's very different personalities.
Never Always Sometimes starts out right before Dave and Julia begin high school. They decide to make a list of "nevers". Things that they never want to do in high school. (you all know how much I love a good list.) Then the story jumps ahead to their senior year, and not much has changed. Dave and Julia are still best friends and they still consider themselves to be different than most of their peers. Never mind that fact that by wanting to avoid all stereotypes, they kind of became a stereotype themselves. (but then again, that is kind of how I see hipsters, so it was fitting for the kind of hipster vibe I was getting from Dave and Julia. But I digress.) Dave finds the list of Nevers when he was cleaning out his locker, and they decide to do a social experiment of sorts (first people in the history of high school to have this idea. I think ever.) and check off every item on their list. And that is the set up for Never Always Sometimes. Kind of cliche, kind of cute, lots of promise.
The great thing about Never Always Sometimes is the emotion that Adi Alsaid is able to evoke with his writing. He takes this cute, but a little cliche idea of a list of things to accomplish before high school with you best friend, and also secret crush, and turns it into a really poignant story of love heartbreak, friendship and growing up. I loved all the feels that Adi Alsaid was able to bring out in me. I was just expecting this to be a fun cute read. And it was, but it was also really heartbreaking. And happy. And nostalgic. Never Always Sometimes is so many things. There are things that I wanted to turn out differently, sure, but looking back on the book as a whole, I don't know that I would have changed anything. Never Always Sometimes is an imperfectly perfect and special read.
This review was originally posted on Book Briefs
Never Always Sometimes is a young adult book by Adi Alsaid. This was my first time reading Adi's works and I have to say Never Always Sometimes was much more emotional than I was expecting it to be. This book tugged on my heartstrings man. Never Always Sometimes is the story of Dave and Julia, two best friends. I loved that the story was broken up into a Dave section, then a Julia section, and then Dave and Julia sections. By giving the reader larger chunks of multiple chapters in a row of one perspective, rather than alternating every chapter, it really gives you a chance to get to know Dave and Julia's very different personalities.
Never Always Sometimes starts out right before Dave and Julia begin high school. They decide to make a list of "nevers". Things that they never want to do in high school. (you all know how much I love a good list.) Then the story jumps ahead to their senior year, and not much has changed. Dave and Julia are still best friends and they still consider themselves to be different than most of their peers. Never mind that fact that by wanting to avoid all stereotypes, they kind of became a stereotype themselves. (but then again, that is kind of how I see hipsters, so it was fitting for the kind of hipster vibe I was getting from Dave and Julia. But I digress.) Dave finds the list of Nevers when he was cleaning out his locker, and they decide to do a social experiment of sorts (first people in the history of high school to have this idea. I think ever.) and check off every item on their list. And that is the set up for Never Always Sometimes. Kind of cliche, kind of cute, lots of promise.
The great thing about Never Always Sometimes is the emotion that Adi Alsaid is able to evoke with his writing. He takes this cute, but a little cliche idea of a list of things to accomplish before high school with you best friend, and also secret crush, and turns it into a really poignant story of love heartbreak, friendship and growing up. I loved all the feels that Adi Alsaid was able to bring out in me. I was just expecting this to be a fun cute read. And it was, but it was also really heartbreaking. And happy. And nostalgic. Never Always Sometimes is so many things. There are things that I wanted to turn out differently, sure, but looking back on the book as a whole, I don't know that I would have changed anything. Never Always Sometimes is an imperfectly perfect and special read.
This review was originally posted on Book Briefs
**You can see this full review and more at Book Briefs: http://bookbriefs.net**
I loved Like Candy! I have read Debra Doxer's other books, and I really enjoyed them as well, so I expected to read a solidly good book with Like Candy. But revenge is normally not an instant love plot point for me, so I was unsure how much I was going to love this book. I know you are thinking, then why did you read it Michelle? Well, I will tell you. Debra's writing is really great, and her last books were so powerful and wonderful that I just couldn't pass this one up. And boy oh boy am I glad that I didn't miss it. Because I think Like Candy is one of my top picks of 2015 so far! I loved that it was age appropriate for the young adult genre in the romance department, and I loved Candy and Jonah. That end though! Debra is clearly trying to kill me.
The summary for Like Candy makes revenge out to be a central theme of the story, but I didn't really think it was. And that was totally fine with me. I thought when Candy moved back to her high school that she was going to have some grand scheme to get revenge on everyone (or certain people) but the story didn't unfold that way at all. And I was really happy about that. Sure, there were revenge pranks pulled and one was even pretty serious, but they were sprinkled far apart in the story. The really focus was on Candy and Jonah. And what a focus they were. I loved that Jonah seemed to instantly see beyond the image that Candy was projecting for the world.
I need the second book so desperately because there are so many unanswered questions that I have now. And honestly for the first 3/4ths of the book, I didn't even think I was going to have unanswered questions. Everything was progressing great, but then I started to see hints of another layer, and bam the end of the book happened (really the last 1/4th of the book) and I was left with my mouth agape. Those last few chapters put so much into question for me, and I was left going back through the story, trying to gather more hints. But all it did was bring up for unknowns. I need the next book, because I cannot wait to see where this story is going to go next.
Debra Doxer write really great characters, and really great stories that draw the reader in and doesn't let go. I just love losing myself in her books. And the romance is wonderful in Like Candy too. If you have not read any of Debra's books, you really should!
This review was originally posted on Book Briefs
I loved Like Candy! I have read Debra Doxer's other books, and I really enjoyed them as well, so I expected to read a solidly good book with Like Candy. But revenge is normally not an instant love plot point for me, so I was unsure how much I was going to love this book. I know you are thinking, then why did you read it Michelle? Well, I will tell you. Debra's writing is really great, and her last books were so powerful and wonderful that I just couldn't pass this one up. And boy oh boy am I glad that I didn't miss it. Because I think Like Candy is one of my top picks of 2015 so far! I loved that it was age appropriate for the young adult genre in the romance department, and I loved Candy and Jonah. That end though! Debra is clearly trying to kill me.
The summary for Like Candy makes revenge out to be a central theme of the story, but I didn't really think it was. And that was totally fine with me. I thought when Candy moved back to her high school that she was going to have some grand scheme to get revenge on everyone (or certain people) but the story didn't unfold that way at all. And I was really happy about that. Sure, there were revenge pranks pulled and one was even pretty serious, but they were sprinkled far apart in the story. The really focus was on Candy and Jonah. And what a focus they were. I loved that Jonah seemed to instantly see beyond the image that Candy was projecting for the world.
I need the second book so desperately because there are so many unanswered questions that I have now. And honestly for the first 3/4ths of the book, I didn't even think I was going to have unanswered questions. Everything was progressing great, but then I started to see hints of another layer, and bam the end of the book happened (really the last 1/4th of the book) and I was left with my mouth agape. Those last few chapters put so much into question for me, and I was left going back through the story, trying to gather more hints. But all it did was bring up for unknowns. I need the next book, because I cannot wait to see where this story is going to go next.
Debra Doxer write really great characters, and really great stories that draw the reader in and doesn't let go. I just love losing myself in her books. And the romance is wonderful in Like Candy too. If you have not read any of Debra's books, you really should!
This review was originally posted on Book Briefs