**You can see this full review and more at Book Briefs: https://bookbriefs.net**
Pacifica is a future dystopian novel by Kristen Simmons. I am kind of picky when it comes to dystopian novels, because like a lot of people, I read a TON of them several years back, and they all started to feel similar and I got burnt out on the storyline. But Pacifica sounded too good to pass up, and I am so glad that I didn't pass it up because I loved this book! I loved it! it made me want to go binge read all of Kristen's other books. (I already own them all, but I haven't read them! #bookbloggerproblems)

Pacifica is set in our world in the future, when pollution and climate change has taken a very noticeable toll on the inhabitability of the earth. The waters are filled with waste and completely polluted, and people are trying to flee to this elusive uptopian island, that is supposedly untouched by the pollution of the main lands. It was scary how easy it was for me to envision this world. But as awesome as the world building in Pacifica was, the plot and the characters really stole the show for me.

I loved Marin, our kick butt lady pirate. I also loved Ross and Adam, the president and vice president's sons respectively. Obviously, Marin Ross and Adam all come from very different backgrounds, and each of their characters felt fleshed out and wonderfully complex. They felt like real people to me. It made it easy for me to become completely immersed in this story. Right from the start. Pacifica is told in dual perspective between Marin and Ross, but Adam is a really important character as well. I loved the friendship between Adam and Ross just as much as I loved the relationship between Marin and Ross. I love it when an author is able to incorporate a wonderful friendship into a story. Very often the focus becomes the romance and friendships sour, which I hate to see. It was great to see both a wonderful romance and a great friendship.

And finally...the plot. The plot pf Pacifica kept me interested and engaged the entire time I was reading. I didn't really encounter any slow spots. This is a kick butt pirate adventure. One that I totally dug! There are tons of political undercurrents in Pacifica, many of which Kristen Simmons drew inspiration from the internment camps of WWII (read her authors note before you read the story...it made everything so much more meaningful for me!) This book was a huge hit for me! I loved it and I can't recommend it enough to everyone...even people burnt out on dystopian! Plus, it has pirates! :)

This review was originally posted on Book Briefs

**You can see this full review and more at Book Briefs: https://bookbriefs.net**Note: this is the second book in a series that must be read in order. Though I will keep spoilers to a minimum there may be spoilers for the first book in the series. 
If you are new to the series, you can check out my review of book one- Blood Rose Rebellion, HERE

Lost Crow Conspiracy is the second book in the young adult fantasy series, called Blood Rose Rebellion. It is also author Rosalyn Eves debut series which really impressed me. The first book, Blood Rose Rebellion was an excellent read for me, and I can't wait to journey back into this crazy world. The first book ended on a great note, with Anna breaking the binding with her breaking magic and releasing magic to the masses. Initially it seems like a fantastic idea, but this is only the start of the second book, where we get to delve deeply into the class struggles and political drama that have really heightened in the world that Rosalyn Eves has created. And I have to tell you, I am here for it! I loved Lost Crow Conspiracy...even more than the first book!

One of the things I loved most about Blood Rose Rebellion is that the story kept growing and growing. This is a very intricate world not only with the different classes, which all have their own struggles and intricatsies, but also with the politics of the world itself and various countries. So be sure you read closely or you might find yourself confused at some points. I will admit that it took me a quick minute to fall back into the world. I had to remind myself of what went down in the first book, but once I got back into this rebellious mindset, I was off on an adventure with Anna and Matyas. Lost Crow Conspiracy is told from both of their perspectives, which I loved! 

I will say this, History, politics and class struggles are very present in this series. I love that, but I do recognize that might not be everyone's cup of tea. i loved how Rosalyn Eves infused magic into this age old history lesson class systems and divides. In the world of Lost Crow Conspiracy, magic is no longer something only reserved for the upper classes. Now that Anna has broken the binding, people from any class have the ability to be a conduit for magic, which leads t a whole slew of extra interesting side effects. I loved seeing how magic heightening all of the intense rebellion elements in this story. 

Bottom line: If you are a fan of fantasies that have tons of layers, politics, magic and secrets, with action and fighting and lots of political history thrown in, you will love the Blood Rose Rebellion series. I found the premise to be super interesting and wholly unique. The second book was even better than the first book. I am really loving how this series is unfolding and I cannot wait for more!

This review was originally posted on Book Briefs

**You can see this full review and more at Book Briefs: https://bookbriefs.net**Blood Rose Rebellion is the first book in the young adult fantasy series by the same name. It is also author Rosalyn Eves debut novel, which really impressed me. Blood Rose Rebellion was an excellent read for me, and I can't wait to journey back into this crazy world. I loved the fantasy elements a little more than the romance elements but I have a feeling book two will change my mind. I think this is a romance that is going to get better and better with each book, now that the foundation has been laid for the characters and the story.

Blood Rose Rebellion tells the story of young Anna. Anna is a member of a high class Luminate family. Luminate meaning they are the wielders of magic in this world. Only Anna is barren, she can't wield magic. But she does seem to mess up people's spells when she is around. I loved this premise. I found it to be a breath of fresh air from the norm of magic stories where the main character picks everything up just a bit too easily. Nothing really comes easy for Anna. I liked her a lot. But her breaking spells is really only the beginning of the story.

What I loved most about Blood Rose Rebellion is that this was a story that kept growing and growing. You will want to pay attention to the details of the world and its' structure early on because it gets more complicated the more we learn about magic and the binding spell and all that other interesting stuff. So be sure you read closely or you might find yourself confused at some points. The concept of a binding spell to restrict the use of magic for non-nobles was really interesting to me. Plus, the whole idea of rebellion is exciting and thrilling. It all worked really well. I loved the politics and the class structures and how they all played into the mysteries of magic in the world.

Bottom line: If you are a fan of fantasies that have tons of layers, politics, magic and secrets, with action and fighting thrown in, you will love the Blood Rose Rebellion series. I found the premise to be super interesting and wholly unique. I can't wait for the next book in the series.

This review was originally posted on Book Briefs

**You can see this full review and more at Book Briefs: https://bookbriefs.net**
Note: This is the second book in a series that must be read in order.

If you are new to the series, check out my review of book one: Confessions of a Virgin Sex Columnist! HERE **

Confessions of an Undercover Girlfriend is written by ya author Kaitlin Davis, writing new adult as Kay Marie. This book is the second book in the series and it must be read after book one: Confessions of a Virgin Sex Columnist! I really enjoyed the first book, and this one was no different. It is a hilarious read. I honestly don't know any other way to describe it. I struggled with this review because every other sentence I wrote kept repeating how funny and witty and quirky this book was. So I decided to scrap that whole long meandering and honestly just repetitive review and write a mini review instead, telling you that this book is funny and a great time and you should read it. Period. End of story.

Confessions of an Undercover Girlfriend picks up where book one leaves off with Skylar coming up with some new half baked idea for her and Ollie. Skylar is so funny, but she is also annoying and more than a little crazy. Even when she was driving me insane, I loved her though. She just has one of those personalities you can't help but like. You will shake your head at them lots, but in the end you will chuckle and stay their friend. That is exactly who Skylar is. She is a whirlwind of bad ideas that can't help but go horribly wrong, but that is half the fun with this series. It is really a good time.

Bottom line: If you enjoy comedy of errors type stories, you will enjoy Confessions of an Undercover Girlfriend. But read book one first!

This review was originally posted on Book Briefs

**You can see this full review and more at Book Briefs: https://bookbriefs.net**
Emergency Contact is a young adult contemporary by author Mary Choi. This is the first book I have read by Mary, but I really enjoyed it. The way we connect and converse with people has changed over time, and I really like that not only does this book revolve around characters with lots of their own issues, but it also takes into account the digital world we live in. Emergency Contact follows our two main characters, Penny and Sam, who meet online and converse through text messages. Graduating high school and starting a job or college is a big transition for young adults, and I think Emergency Contact captured this period of life in all it's realness. Sometimes it is pretty but sometimes it is not. And Mary was not afraid to show the hard and ugly moments, which I really appreciated.

Both Penny and Sam have a lot going on in their lives and within themselves, but I loved how imperfect they each were. They fascinated me individually, and then watching the progression of their relationship was very satisfying. This was not a light fluffy read, but it was enjoyable and cute in its' own way. I thoroughly enjoyed the journey Penny and Sam took me on. Emergency Contact was a great book from start to finish.

This review was originally posted on Book Briefs

review to come

**You can see this full review and more at Book Briefs: https://bookbriefs.net**Ignited is the first book in a new young adult fantasy, called the Dance of the Elements series by author A.M. Deese. I am so sick of books that start out slow and eventually build up to something interesting. It seems like that has been all I have been reading lately. But I am really happy to report that Ignited is not a book that starts out slow. It plops us right into the middle of interesting action. We start with out main character, Jura having to plow head first into a governing council meeting in her father's place. She is the daughter of the first, the highest family in the council of the Thirteen, and she has to make lots of tough decisions as she tries to unravel the mystery of what is going on with her father. While keeping the whole thing a secret. In a country that thrives on secrets. I immediately fell in love with these characters, this world and this story. Ignited is one of my favorite books of 2018!

Ignited is told in multiple perspectives. I loved Jura, Kay, Tylak and I even loved some of the less expected characters. But I really loved the world that AM Deese created. It is world filled with fire wielding magic, dragons, and plenty of political intrigue and secrets to keep you on the edge of your seat at all times. I didn't think there was a single dull moment in this book. I gobbled it up in one quick sitting and I was left wanting book two asap.

My only two gripes about the book are so minor and they didn't really detract from my overall love of this fast paced, intriguing magical adventure. First, Kay. I loved little Kay. I loved her so much. But she is 7 years old and she acted about 15. Which is fine, I prefer characters on the mature side, it just seemed a tad unrealistic how mature she actually was. But I loved her so it was only a casual observation on my part. The other is that it was pretty easy to guess who one of the bad guys was. And I didn't want it to be true for the simple fact that it was too easy to guess. But other than that, this book was tailor made for me. I love political fantasy and I really love magic and dragons and secrets. And this book had it all. I feel a love triangle coming on in the next book, so we will have to see how that plays out, but fans of politically driven fantasies with court intrigue will really love the Dance of the Elements series. I already know it is going to be a favorite of mine. Ignited is easily one of my favorite reads of 2018.This review was originally posted on Book Briefs

**You can see this full review and more at Book Briefs: https://bookbriefs.net**
To Kill a Kingdom is a young adult standalone fantasy by Alexandra Christo. This book totally rocked my world you guys. I loved the fact that it was a standalone. (though I would love to see some more novels in this world, whether they be sequels or companion novels.) To Kill a Kingdom was a book that a few of my bookstagram friends read really early on and were not shy about raving about. It made me so excited. That coupled with the fact it was about sirens, and my excitement rocketed up a few more notches. And then I picked up the book. And for the first 30 pages or so, I was very underwhelmed. Then I started to get nervous. Normally if a book is really hyped, I enjoy it as well, but there is nothing worse than expecting to love a book and then not liking it. So I had a mini freak out. I wanted to like To Kill a Kingdom so much. But then I read on a bit...and I totally fell in love. To Kill a Kingdom is a book that gets better and better and better as it goes on. By the time I was done reading, I had become great friends with Lira and Elian. I was not ready to say goodbye to them at all. 

My point is, if you are reluctant to pick this book up because of the hype or if the beginning is just not for you- keep reading! This book became one of my top reads of 2018 so far. The characters came to life for me. Watching Lira come into her own, and watching her interact with Elian and his crew was pure magic for me. I love how fierce and sassy she is. And I loved watching Elian fall for her. I really really loved the slow build of the romance in To Kill a Kingdom. One of the best romances I have read in a fantasy novel this year, hands down. 

Lira is a siren, who feasts on the hearts of princes. And she is so well known, that on land Lira is known as the Prince's Bane. But she angers her mother, the sea queen so much that she gets transformed into a human. I could definitely see where the book drew on the Little Mermaid, but the story that Alexandra Christo tells is a much darker, and much more fun tale. I loved the adventure that Lira and Elian embark on. I love the slow development of their relationship, and their general distrust of one another. They are two smart cookies. To Kill a Kingdom is told from both of their points of views, and to be honest, I fell in love with both of them. They are two of my favorite characters I have read about in a while. They don't fall into any of the typical traps and molds that we see in YA fantasy or fiction in general. Alexandra Christo did a fantastic job fleshing out the characters (hehe, yes Lira is great at fleshing people out.) and she did an equally wonderful job of creating a captivating story that was entirely her own. To Kill a Kingdom is a fantastic standalone. I loved the progression of the story and I loved the wrap up. But I loved it all so much, that I want to see more. To Kill a Kingdom is so so good. 

This review was originally posted on Book Briefs